This afternoon, taking advantage of the warmer weather and the abeyance of snow/rain, I spent a good three hours splitting, moving and stacking close to 1/4 cord of firewood. While I was at it I conversed with the chickens, whose coop is next to the woodpile and the chopping block (eek). Two friends happened by …
Monthly Archives: November 2013
Homemade Wine Bottle Labels
 Some of these are inside jokes: PS. We’re not in Seattle. Far from it. The majority agreed that labels with castles on them lend a certain cachet to the wine: When the conversation turned to sulfites, the theme changed:  From there on out, it was a free for all: Some of them mention an expiration date:  Â
Bottling the Wine
We bottled the wine (which was pressed, see here, and racked, see here earlier). We ended up with 29 bottles,  8 of Cabernet Franc, 10 of Merlot and 11 of a 70-30 mix. My MIL, FIL and SIL were here, as well as our three NYC friends, and we put everyone to work. Drawing the labels: each label …
The Loneliness of Reading
It’s not fair that we have only one mind, only one pair of eyes, and only so many hours in the day. I wish I had more of all of those so I could read all the books on my desk, cracked open, belly-up, belly-down, bookmarked with old envelopes and pencils and whatnot – to …
Pumpkins are Coming In
Some Music
(I realize I am soon becoming the Queen of Grief, but you can always read the “Molting Chicken” entry after this one and restore some balance.) Last Sunday Amie played in her Orchestra concert. This concert featured four Rivers Youth Orchestras, from Preparatory (that Amie is in) to Symphony. It’s absolutely riveting to follow the …
Molting Chicken
Finally I can  hit the “molting chicken” meme! Skipperdee started molting very fast and suddenly and is now a ghost of her former self. Picking her up is the weirdest sensation: ribby and bony and very light. And she doesn’t like it. Amie calls her “Turkey Chicken” A She has no tail feather left. But the …
Processing Rose Hips (yes, they’re itchy)
Last week I ran over to our local High School where they planted lots of rose rugosa. The hips were perfect after a few frosts. I came home with about three pints, then did some research. Turns out that: Rosehips are packed with vitamin C, calcium and vitamin E (especially the seeds). The hairs that surround the …
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Will You Pay More For Local?
Our group has been discussing the starting up of a co-op for local food, goods and services. One of the major bones of contention in our conversations is the problem that the food, etc. at small co-ops and local stores are usually more expensive. But why is the price at the co-op higher? And (just …
Something Else I’ve Been Working On
How many will come? Always the question. We filled up the room. The 350MA Metrowest Node Kickoff: a success.