Hello there, dwelling place of the crickets. My last post was almost a year ago. What happened? A lot! I could say it was a lack of time and that would be accurate. Likewise, there were changing pieces on the board I couldn't keep up with. How to voice the process of transition? Well I'm about to...only not here.
Who doesn't love a good clothesline for hanging those exceptionally large bed linens on? When you make the bed and tuck yourself in that first evening, they smell like heaven and sunshine. Bliss! My rotary clothesline, has seen better days though...
You know the proverbial saying, of getting it done before Christmas comes? Well this Christmas cactus tells me, I'm knocking on the door now. These beautiful blooms emerge around the festive season. So I'm coming good with a promise I made, at the beginning of the year. Something about an update on life.
It has been a while. Several posts in the pipeline, itching to be published. I will have to jump into those another time. As time is short presently. However, I wanted to share a pattern I've always been meaning to publish, for the perfect dishcloth. Or at least I think it is.
In Australia, it's early Spring. If you live near the Toowoomba region, you know it's Carnival of Flowers time. The annual celebration for the Garden City. This year though, Spring represents a whole new way of life for me. It's the place of regrowth, from a rather harsh prune in my personal life, last year. Come have a wander around my garden, and catch up for a spell.
The first time I tried making sourdough donuts, it tasted more like bread! I thought the only way to make them, had to be using liquid starter into a batter. Fortunately, I learned not only was it possible to make sourdough donuts, without tasting like bread - but they actually tasted better than regular donuts!
When it comes to retarding fermentation with sourdough making, it's all in knowing which containers to use in the process. As these are what will protect your dough from drying out, from the effects of chilling or freezing. Here are some suggestions for containers, I have found the most useful.
Thank you to all those who joined me at the workshop today. I had a lovely time, and I hope you all did too. There were some familiar faces and some new ones too, and we all got busy with the leavening! I appreciate there was a lot of information to take in, so I'll share it here again, for your reference.
Baked yesterday
Hi folks, it's been a while. I have an update to make about life in general, but I'll save that for another day. Right now, I have a sourdough workshop to post about. I will be holding a workshop for The Simple Living Group, this Saturday 11 June. Join me at the Breakthrough Centre, 15 Blake Street, Toowoomba from 10am - 12pm. For more details, see here.
I'm still kicking around here, preparing for the new year ahead. School was unexpectedly postponed for 2 weeks, so a lot of my plans have been put back too. It's no major drama just yet. What was though, is an encounter with a neighbour who decided to pop by, for a quick visit.
It's been several weeks since my last post, and I wanted to say a huge thank-you, for all the wonderful replies. They were incredibly supportive and kind, which meant the world to me. When you feel like a deer, staring into headlights, it was nice to hear voices calling somewhere safe. Which is how I felt. Safe in your wonderful thoughts. So thank you, each and every one. Now to fill you in with the rest.
Well hello again. I sat down to a lovely salad and coffee, for breakfast this morning. I've been wanting to sit down and write this post for about a month now. I guess the words don't come easy, for one of the hardest things I've ever had to share. I'll do my best though.
I was going to share my propagation boxes, once I finished the first month. To track progress during that time. However, after receiving a question in the comments section of my last post, I thought, why not share what I know to date? Like, where I first learned about prop boxes, different growing mediums to use, etc.
So I missed winter, on my blog completely! It's been a peculiar year of big changes. We're on the last push to finalise David's family estate, and our eldest moved into town with some friends. So many things had to be rearranged, moved, stored and eventually used. It's an ongoing process. This is some of what I've been up to lately, in our new outside area.
The party, that is. Our daughter's 18th!! It has been keeping me away from my blog, since the beginning of the year. Well, one of the things. As we had to fix the narrow back landing, behind the house, to make it safe for partying teenagers. Seven in total, and they were mostly well behaved. I say mostly, because I'm sure the neighbours heard. But it's the first loud party we've had, since moving here in 2007. I'm glad to say it's over though...
Like the rocks piled around our septic tank, waiting to be turned into a retaining wall, so are the rest of the jobs, piling up outside too. We were already struggling with time but recent storm activity, held things up further. I don't mind the rain. It's fantastic! Always does wonders for our garden. But I do find myself counting the hours, to when I can get the next job done!
I didn't intend to be this long away from posting. Over 3 months! Stuff has happened though. How to unpack it all without writing a saga? I'll just say what you all might be wondering. We're still here and the whole family is doing well. Health hasn't changed since we last caught up, but there's always room for improvement, right? I don't believe in waiting until you NEED a doctor, before listening to your body.
Today, is the first day back at school, for our youngest. Grade 3. Time certainly marches on. So we should do something meaningful with the time we have - wherever we are, and whatever condition we find ourselves in. Presently, I'm grateful to have the full use of my hand back, after a recent injury. So I can finally return to the companion post about dealing with soil erosion, on the front slope. It's a long overdue project, because it's such a tricky slope.
The new swale alteration, before my weird accident involving it, is doing as I'd hoped. It's been much fuller, with heavier rain recently, but my hand wasn't up to taking photos then. About 6 days is how long it took, to use my hand properly again. It's almost like it was, mobility wise - being able to twist my wrist now. However, I still can't put as much pressure on it, when it comes to gripping, pulling, or even typing on the keyboard. Which is why I haven't replied to all those wonderful comments, you all left.
I tried taking a picture of my injured hand, one handed. My chest played a crucial role, stabilising the camera, because David is currently at work. Thankfully he wasn't yesterday morning, when the weirdest accident happened. I was surveying the swale I was working on recently, to plan my next step. Turning towards the ramp, to get some tools near the house, a huge hornet comes flying at me. I try dodging it, but everywhere I moved, it re-positioned to go for my face.
