Zealous Endeavors

01/25/2024

10/22/2023

Pressure canning takes time but it’s really not as scary as some people make it. Just follow the steps, each one, each time, and you should be ok.

Don’t forget a cup of white vinegar in the canner to help avoid staining.

10/22/2023

First time making vegetable broth, using the no waste method. I saved up scraps of veggies for a few months in freezer bags. Boiled in water 1:1 (8 cups veggie scraps, 8 cups water) for an hour. Let cool. Now I’m straining out the solids. Letting that cool further then I’ll jar it up and pressure can (probably tomorrow, I’m running out of day today).

Tastes good. The scraps go to the compost. Nothing wasted, and free vegetable broth in the pantry.

09/17/2023

Cleaning and storing cayenne seeds from some peppers I grew and dried. I rubbed my face and wondered why it’s burning…duh! Glad I figured that out before touching my eyes or worse 😬

🔥

09/12/2023

I love lemon squash. It adds a bit of sunshine to any dish it’s in.

08/15/2023

Teddybear sunflowers are blooming. The bumble bees (and I) are loving it.

🌻 🐝

08/09/2023

Today my heart hurts. This injury is 100% my fault.

Quail are adorable. Their little eggs are cute. They take up less space than chickens. They mature faster. They don’t need to free range.

But.

They are fragile. They have a social hierarchy that is easily upset. They’re mean to each other.

It’s not all happy playtime in the dust bath and Instagram pics of the pretty speckled eggs.

It’s having your beautiful boy lose all his head feathers and develop a scab crown that can’t heal because the girls pick on him literally and he scrapes it off on the cage.

It’s having a girl who lost patches of feathers because the boy won’t leave her alone. And now she won’t lay, so you’re worried about her health.

It’s separating them knowing they may not be accepted when it’s time to go back in.

And it’s accepting responsibility when you make a mistake and hurt an animal that trusted you for care. I’m pretty sure I broke his toe. It keeps rebleeding. Had to separate him because the girls were picking at it. I’m hoping he heals on his own quickly.

08/05/2023

Today’s harvest. Not bad.

06/22/2023

Last day of a great conference. My first with my new company and it feels *weird* because my last was the only reference I had. I have this weird feeling that I’m still in that old role or that I will see people I knew from that life. Funny how environment changes perception.

06/12/2023

Tonight’s harvest.

06/05/2023

Going to be trying some clover jelly on a whim.

05/13/2023

Taking a break from the garden work for some live music.