Friday, April 6, 2012

Independence Days 2012- week 9

A bit frosty around the edges!  Actually, we fared pretty well last night.  The thermometer on the porch was reading 29F this morning when I got up at 5:40 am.  A tad bit chilly after the 80 degree temps we've been having recently.  Amazingly, while a few things got nipped around the edges (mainly in the herb garden) most everything looks to have survived pretty well.  The apple blossoms look OK but it's hard to tell.  The strawberries already have buds on them but I don't think they're developed enough to have taken much damage.  Still, we've got some cold nights ahead early next week so we'll see how we come through.
My away from home work has been rough for the last few days. It's been busy and the patients are really ill which always makes my job more stressful.  Plus, being Easter weekend, there are a lot of people not happy about being hospitalized and away from their families.  I do work tomorrow so I've got one more day to go before I get a break- but then next week should be easy: Monday is my day off; I work Tuesday and Wednesday; Thursday I'm off all day at a conference for continuing education (one on managing chronic pain) and Friday I'm also off for my comp day for working Saturday.
Today is Friday. Time for my usual Independence Days check in.  It's been a bit hectic around here so I hope I've got things to report.
Plant something- actually not much. Only my sacrificial cucumbers and some melon seeds that I saved from a really tasty honeydew that I picked up at the store.  But soon I'll be planting again.
My seed potatoes arrived from Seed Savers Exchange today.  Organic Mountain Rose and Yellow Finn potatoes. And aren't those just the coolest mesh, drawstring bags that they came in!!  I had really hoped that they would have arrived earlier in the week since I had wanted to plant them this weekend but that is not to be.  I need to let them sprout a bit and then cut them so it will probably be the end of next week before I can get them in the ground.
Harvest something- eggs (46 this week) and nettles.  Do the masses of lilac blossoms that I've been bringing into the house count?  I suppose I could make lilac jelly but I'm not sure I'm that motivated this year.
Preserve something- hmm... I can't think of anything
Waste not- mainly the usual- recycling, composting and scraps to the chickens.  I did snag another 18 count egg carton from work before it got thrown out.  And I'm definitely going to hang onto these wonderful bags from Seed Savers!
Want not- they're having a sale on sugar at the store this week.  I picked up two packs but I'll probably stop tomorrow on my way home from work and get two more.  We did pick up candy for the children for Easter and I'll probably try to ration it.  Although they aren't usually too bad about rationing it themselves.  I think last year I found part of someone's chocolate bunny in the cabinet in June.
Eat the food-  Yummy raviolis last weekend.  Brats from the freezer- most everything from the freezer this week.  We stopped at the store the other day to get sugar and milk and couldn't really think of much else we needed.  Yeah!!
Build Community Food Systems- sold 5 dozen eggs at work this week!  That's a new record. Otherwise, not much.
Skill up- hmm, hand crank pasta maker and ravioli maker is all I can think of.  I'm sure I'll have lots to report in this area next week.  V has all kinds of plans for deck and construction stuff for my Monday off.

6 comments:

  1. You must work at a hospital,I might have read it before but can;t recall right now,Either my brain is losing power or its just the stress around here.when,I find out someone is a nurse ,I'm pounding them with health questions,I promise not to,I'm sure you get sick of that but inquiring minds what to know.we have a home health nurse comes out for Jerry,my husband ,I'm sure you've heard he has pancreatic cancer.But it really does seem to be a slow growing kind like Steven Jobs had,and for that I'm very thankful ,I get to keep him longer

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    1. I'm an Occupational Therapist and work at our large University hospital here; I work primarily with psychiatric patients so I do get my share of 'how do I handle this' questions. I do hope your husband hangs on for quite some time. I had an uncle with that and he lived almost 5 years longer than they originally told him. You just never know. I hope you are having a good weekend.

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    2. Hi Judy,

      Sorry to hear about your husbands cancer. I had breast cancer back in 2004 it took a year to have all the chemo treatments, surgery and radiation. It is great that there are so many options of treatments now. I have a been ok now for about 7 1/2 years.

      I know a lady who has had pancreatic cancer. She was diagnosed several years ago. She is still hanging in there. She still has troubles but she is ok. Everyone's situation is different.

      Also it is hard to think that you have no control over this. Or your husband doesn't. So any way he decides to deal with the frustration of that is the right way for him. Having control over how to treat it, the chemo, surgery or radiation, is what helps. :) My thought " I may have cancer but it doesn't have me"

      I will pray for you both. Take care, Janet W
      http://throughthewoods2.blogspot.com

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  2. Wow you are a busy lady. I am impressed. :)

    So you get to work with people who have had strokes too. If you wanted to. My husband had a stroke back in 2004 that took all day to come on. We didn't recognize it sooner. It didn't do much to him then, thank goodness. And last year at the beginning of May and June he had strokes again. Now it has affected his brain, memory and getting the right words to come out have been problems for him. But we are doing fine. As fine as we can anyway. :)

    Hope you have a great Easter Sunday.

    Take care, Janet W

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  3. I haven't heard of letting the potatoes sprout first before planting. We always just cut them into chunks leaving an "eye" on each chunk and then planted 2 or three chunks to a hill. By letting them sprout first are you then only planting one per hill? Makes sense in doing it that way though you have to wait until they sprout.

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  4. I got my potatoes from Seed Savers last week, too :-) We grow German Butterballs. Ours are waiting to sprout as well, but I'm itching to put them in the ground!

    Congrats on selling 5 dozen eggs last week! Incredible!!!

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