Embracing Fall

Summer is officially over. Fall has arrived!

I used to dread this time of year.

Fall.

That word alone connotes some disaster, ask me, I know!  Fall, for me, is a time to begin to gather in, as in a harvest. I was thrilled years ago when I found that my name meant 'one who harvests.' It felt right. Living up to my name, I have harvested most of what the garden had to offer this year. The tomatoes were troopers, but they were so confused by the inconsistent weather we had; some days were blazing, scorching, fraking hot,

 others were cool, moist and cloudy. The tomatoes gave up and produced only a few very tasty treats. It was a painful tease. I had 6 varieties, 4 were heirloom and organic, and all suffered and survived the attack of the killer tomato worms. The real winner of the garden this year, and still producing, is the zucchini. That one lone plant has produced more than 40 pounds of food. It currently has 4 squash growing, and I am going to harvest those before next weekend, and then pull the plant out. It is beginning to weaken and will soon attract undesirable bugs.

Fall is a good time to take stock, put things in order, plan and prepare. I will be spending some time tomorrow plotting and scheming for the Fall/Winter garden. I'll plant lettuce for sure, as it will love the cooler days, and I will appreciate it not bolting after the first warm day. Broccoli would be nice too. I will give the compost one more turn and in a couple of weeks, will be able to use it for the Fall plantings.  

 I love the quality of light that Fall brings. It's not as harsh, with the sun being lower on the horizon. The way it creeps into the kitchen in the morning, it's not quite as blinding. When the sun reflects off the back neighbors windows as it is setting, it brings a golden light to the kitchen in the late afternoon. The fantastic sunsets that fill my workroom with a warm glow delay the inevitable moment when I must rely on electric lights to continue working.

I tend to do two major house cleanings a year. In Spring; it's the perfect time for new beginnings, and in Fall; it's the perfect time to put things in order before hunkering down. Plus, our Homeowners Association pays for all the advertising for the twice yearly garage sales that just happen to coincide with my purges. We have a sale coming up in October and I have been hunting and gathering for this event. It is getting harder to come up with things to get rid of, and that concerns me a bit. It either means that I have just about pared down as much as I can, or I am in denial!

Fall is also my favorite time of year to decorate in the house. I love the rich colors; ambers, greens, oranges with hints of red, browns; nature's earthly palate. Every year I add one new thing to my stash of Fall decorations. Maybe one reason I like decorating in the Fall so much is because it tends to be a long season. The dried wheat I will put in a vase this week can stay out until shortly after Thanksgiving. I have already bought pumpkins, but they are to be baked and used for pie. I have a bag of Indian corn kernels that I keep in the freezer in the off seasons, and each year I find a new use for them; sometimes they are used to fill a vase to hold the wheat in place; they have steadied candles in bowls and I have sprinkled them across the table as a runner that can be played with. I have pulled out the Autumn kitchen linens  and will begin to pack up Summer tomorrow.  I may just simmer a stick or two of cinnamon and some cloves to help set the mood!

So, do you have any Fall rituals? What do you do to mark the change of the season? I'd like to know!

Zucchini

If you have ever grown zucchini, or had a neighbor who grew it, most likely you have experienced zucchini abundance. I was not going to let that happen to me, no way. I was going to be an attentive gardener, checking on my plants every day. I was going to learn how to cook the baby zucchini with the delicate flower still attached, like the expensive restaurants do. I was not going to be the kind of gardener that walks into the garden looking for a few tender zukes to add to the evening meal, only to find vegetables that could be used as weapons of mass destruction. So imagine my surprise when this past Saturday I ventured out and found three zucchini, proudly crowding the space with their collective weight of 7 pounds.

 What's a Farmgirl to do? I am not a big fan of stuffed zucchini. I prefer them julienned in a pasta dish, or ruffle cut, lightly steamed and served with parmesan cheese. I have been dehydrating a lot of what is comes out of the garden so that I can cook with it in the winter, and to have on hand as part of our long term food storage. But to dry these behemoths, I wasn't sure. The centers aren't as dense, and the seeds are large. So, I cut the center out, cubed the outer edges and dried them separate of the centers.

This is what 7 pounds of dehydrated zucchini looks like. 

 I tend towards thriftiness, so I cubed and dried the centers too. Then I ground then up in the blender to make a powder that I can add to dried soup mixes. I love that the flavors of dehydrated foods are intensified. The powder is sweet, and I like that it will only take a small amount to add a lot of flavor.

This half gallon jar holds what was 12 pounds of fresh zucchini. (I admit, I had a couple of beasties earlier, and swore I'd pay closer attention...)     This could last me all year!

While I don't really want any more mutant squash, I won't let any of them go to waste. I love my dehydrator! I am afraid that my neighbors won't be opening their doors to see anonymous donations  on their steps, and my family won't be finding me trying to disguise it in a variety of meals. We eat them fresh when they are of a manageable size, and the rest get put up for the future. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pick a couple small zucchini.

Tomo, the Wonder Dog

I love dogs. Specifically, I love my dog. I think he's the best canine I have ever had the pleasure to live with. Tomo was 9 months old when he came to live with us, and I am forever grateful that he arrived completely housebroken. We did have a few incidents of chewing, but nothing of any real value was destroyed. I had read horror stories of Shiba Inu's chewing through drywall, ripping up carpet, and generally re-arranging the house when the owners were away. My buddy turns out to be somewhat of an anomaly, in that he is very calm. Could it be he likes his name and identifies with it? "Shizuka no Tomo Dachi" means "calm friend" in Japanese. His breeder had originally named him "Hooligan." He is a far cry from a hooligan, thank goodness!
Michael had grown up with cats mostly. There had been a bad experience with a Beagle in his early childhood. I can relate. We had a Beagle, briefly. They are nothing like Snoopy in the  Peanuts comic strip. They are loud, nippy, hyper dogs.
When our daughter was about 4, I began to press for a dog. It had been 13 years since I had one, and I really wanted that companionship again. I also wanted our daughter to experience a relationship with an animal that would be affectionate in return. After nearly a year of research, and a few failed contacts with breeders, we found the perfect match.
Tomo came to us from Tennessee. I was very nervous about him being traumatized by the flight, but he did fine. It took him a while to be able to travel in the car without literally turning green. Poor guy! Now, he is a seasoned traveler, and he is oftentimes with me in the car. I have had to leave him at home or at a kennel a few times, and I hated it.

We did obedience training, working up through the levels, and have numerous trophies to show for all our hard work. He earned his Canine Good Citizen Certificate after I had been training him for 4 months. That was pretty amazing for a Shiba! We trained to be a therapy team and volunteered for a couple of years at our hospital and a nursing home. It was fun and rewarding work, and he loved it.
He turned 11 this year and he is showing some signs of aging. He is getting the 'goggle' look around his eyes as his hair whitens. He gets up a bit slower, and his eyes are beginning to look a tad cloudy. But then when I least expect it, he will race around the house with a wicked grin and seem to be laughing at me.

Mid bath

Post bath


Did I say that I love my dog?! As I sit here typing, he is laying next to me. He is my constant companion. If  I get up and leave the room, he will find me and lay down in what ever room I am in.
The life expectancy of a Shiba is 12 to 15 years. So, I am treasuring the time we have left, and considering introducing a puppy into our home before Tomo departs. I think we could all use with a bit more joy in our lives, and nothing does that quite like a puppy. For now though, I am happy to have just Tomo. He is the BEST dog I have ever had, and I love him so very much.

Works in progress

According to my Zodiac sign, I good at starting projects. From where I am currently sitting I can count at least a half dozen. If I were writing this in my studio, the number would be much higher. I am getting better at putting wips (works in progress) away when my inspiration stalls. I love it when the creativity flows unimpeded and a project gets finished in a day or two. I am rocking along on two such projects now, and this one may be completed tonight!

This is a vintage style glass button that has had the shank removed. It is secured to a piece of leather and has a beaded  bezel that I am embellishing. What I need to do now is attach a bail and determine how the necklace will be made.

                                    

This is an unidentified stone, secured to a piece of leather with a peyote stitch bezel. This one needs a bail and necklace too. This is my first time attaching a stone or button to a base with beads, and I love the results. It works up pretty fast once the initial row of leather work is done.  

As I have spent most of the day sitting and beading, I've not been in the garden yet. So, I'm off to see if there are any ripe strawberries, and pick the zucchini that will become a monster if left another day.

Launching!

Welcome!

I have a small garden for the first time in several years, and have been keeping track of how much produce I am getting for my endeavors. To date, the zucchini is the champion producer. Isn't it always?! So far 15 pounds have made their way into either our meals or dehydrator for future meals, and off to friends kitchens for their consumption. I have sliced, grated and cubed this abundant veggie to dehydrate for long term storage, and I am looking forward to being able to toss a handful into a soup in the dead of winter. Yes, I know that in these days of global food availability, I can get zucchini year round. I feel so much better though knowing that it came from my back yard, and was grown without pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

I grew red potatoes for the first time and was amazed at how easy it was! I cooked up 3 1/2 pounds and we ate them with butter and garlic. Bliss! The remaining 1 1/2 pounds were dehydrated.

The Brussles Sprouts are chugging along. Interesting plant to look at. I love that the little sprouts form at the base of the leaves, looking like miniature cabbages.

The tomatoes are a challenge. I have 6 different varieties, 4 organic heirloom, and 2 generic (purchased by Michael from the garden department of a hardware store.) They are only doing OK. My neighbor has a plethora of the fruit, and I admit it, I am jealous. So far, my favorite is the Black Zebra. When green, they look like mini watermelons. I picked two this morning and will add them to a salad tonight. Even with all the attention they require, they are so worth it. Nothing beats the taste of a home grown tomato!

So, that's it for my first post. I have more pictures to be put up later. Thanks for stopping in!