Well, folks, I'm here! We are all settled in and in our third day of classes. Our house is extraordinary! As stated before (probably) it is an 1830's farm house with a whooooole lotta history. I'll make that a separate post.
So I'm sitting here enjoying my cornbread which is really amazing and I think has jalapenos, and do you know what? I'm just happy. There's something just--well, if I could find the flippin word!-- particular...? about being happy. what I mean is--well, let me put it this way. A few days ago I was in a store and the store keeper asked us how we were doing, and we answered "great" and she responded "Isn't it just so nice to say that? Aren't we just so lucky today?" And do you know what? I do count myself lucky. I always say I don't believe in regret because I believe, scientifically, that if anything in the past had changed ever the slightest, the present would be nothing like it is now. I mean, I do wish my rabbits hadn't gotten out, (What???? Right?????) but, I wouldn't change it because of the lessons I've learned these past few days. And yes, the rabbits got out. More clarification: Ever let herself and the other bunnies out. We got all but two of them back, but she let herself and the bun buns OUT AGAIN!!! Extremely mad at her, but extremely happy with Masra for being a bunny wrangler extraordinaire. He caught one bunny so far this evening (Not Ever, thank god). Would I get rabbits again? At this point.... NO MA'AM! They chewed up the house, they escaped twice, but gosh darn it, they're just so friggin cute. Those tails. I just wish my little Ewok would come home. Apparently she likes camping out and hiding in holes like wild rabbits do. But you see, Ewok is a working pet, not just something I can let go of. I imagine my chickens (layers) will be the same, but there's a reason you don't name meat chickens and meat rabbits. And I knew when I named Ewok that she would be a momma, not a dinner. Now, For those who want to stop reading because I mentioned meat of a certain kind, I have to tell you, I've been thinking about death a lot lately. You see, I've been asking my friends and professors, "When does a plant actually die?" Plants are very different than animals, in fact, if you didn't know, they are in a different biological kingdom than animals. What kept coming up is, how can we define plant death, when we don't even really understand animal death and human death? We don't know scientifically or religiously what happens when we die. If energy cannot be created or destroyed, where does the energy of our brainwaves go when we die? Are we really a being, knowing that we could not survive without the other beings, the bacteria, who live inside of us and decompose us when we die? Do we not, in turn return to soil and nutrients which become a part of plants that grow from that soil, and then travel on up through the food chain? How is that death? I call that life. Life continued, anyways. so the beings that we are raising, we are doing so to show the ethics and the beauty of life. Samsara. The creation and destruction and recreation of life. In addition to rabbits being the most sustainable meat, and us selling in a local market. That's my schpeal on that. Believe what you believe, because that is an important part of community, it takes all people to make the world go round. More later, all my love. Tomorrow is the day, folks! I moved the rabbits down yesterday to the Colonial Hill House where the WBFPers will be living. They were so cute in their little habitat in the barn, they all got in a little cuddle puddle minus ever since she is a grumpus, ha ha! I'm happy to report that the house has two outdoor cats! So thankfully, I will get some Kitty love when I'm away from Ollie, Picky, and Nimie (Oliver, Pickles, and M&M). I'm about to start loading stuff into my mom's car (my car is reserved for plants, which I will load tomorrow morning), and then run off to the grocery to get some zero waste goodies. I'm planning on buying some jars which I will ask the cashier to weigh, then he can subtract that from the final weight. I'm also bringing bags with which to get veggies, and bags with which to load cans. Gotta get some recyclables, you know.
I've been putting off finishing the three remaining Chicken hats, 6 Chix to go! But, as tomorrow is the day, I gotta finish today. I'm proud of how I got the others done early, but man, I've just had zero motivation the last week. Anyhow, it'll get done. I'm just so excited for all the things we're gonna get to do; barn raisings, sheep go getting, draft horse driving, travelling here there and everywhere! And Y'all get to follow me on my adventures! Much love, will send pics of the Rose Room where I'm living once I get it all set up! Mom, If you're reading, stop now! You can continue reading when I go off to New castle! It's all good, just a surprise!
So, as you can tell, I have a surprise for my mom. You see, my mom is fantastic and treats me amazing and builds me up with her love and all that good stuff. As I embark on my adventure into the next chapter of my adulthood, I wanted to give her something special. You see, while I believe that every moment of every day is uniquely special, sometimes, life does not feel special. This summer has kind of been like that. We had a lot of exciting things happen this summer, first of all, we moved, second Jos and I got into our Dream college programs, and the big one--we freed ourselves. My mom lived with my dad and loved him for about 25 years. Neither of them believed in divorce, although it wasn't healthy for them to be together anymore. At times, it was dangerous. I won't go into detail because I know it would only hurt them to read it. Anyhow, it was one of those times that did not feel special. It was rough, it was scary, and we were nervous, awaiting our freedom. We used to spend our summers going on these magnificent trips, and on one, my Mom and I drove all the way back from Utah to KY. This summer, I decided to give my mom something to remember that fabulous trip by, a scrapbook. My mom is the scrapbook queen! We have book after book after book of our family and our trips, our cats, our friends--I mean, the list goes on and on. I always wanted to make scrapbooks alongside her when I was little, but could never really get the hang of it. As the years went on, we always said we would scrap together, but we never found the time. This summer, we decided that was going to be our big thing, but, as always, life got away from us--or with us, however it goes. But, I secretly began making one of that trip from Utah--I got all the pictures, all the keepsakes, travel brochures, everything, and loaded it into just about the fattest scrapbook in the land. I'm planning to give it to her the day I leave for New Castle, and when she misses me, she can open it and know just how much I love her and how much fun we have. The best gifts come from the heart! So, we are a grand total of two days away from moving down to New Castle for WBFP! Four chicken hats to go, dishes and clothes to pack, but other than that, this girl is ready. Well, there is one other thing I've got to do tomorrow, pick up our last rabbit! You heard that right, I am picking up a rabbit. And in total, we have not one, but currently six ready for our breeding program! We named our breeders, since they won't be eaten, and will continue with us for the next year and after the program. So this girl is gonna need to get a buck in a couple years. A buck is a male rabbit, a doe is a female. We got a good mix of breeds so that we can create a good duel purpose offspring. Half are meat rabbit breeds, half are showing/pet breeds. My three are--can you believe it--the showing/pet breeds, and hopefully I can show them in the Fair next year. That's actually how I got my rabbits, I went to the fair and noticed that a good deal of the rabbits on display were for sale. So I ended up with Ever, a tan rabbit (Holland Lop Variation), whose name used to be souffle, and I'm not certain that this will be her forever name, but she has definitely found her forever home. Iris, a black otter with heavy Vienna markings (which means she has white splotches) who gives litters of six kits (babies). And last but not least, my favorite so far, Ewok, a little bitty Holland Lop. Ewok is just the sweetest little thing, she'll come up and sniff you and get in your lap. She also thinks she can hide in plain sight. Ever is a curious little trickster. She loves to play with things like shower rings and her water bowl. And Iris is getting picked up tomorrow! Gabe, another WBFPer, has four rabbits including the buck for our warren (a group of rabbits) and just arrived in KY yesterday with his oxen! My prayer is that the rabbits do not fight--I am not intending for this to be a Watership Down situation where the bunnies war to the death, no! No rabbit fights!
The fair was very fun! got to see the old bibles, (oldest was from the 1600's, so mine wouldn't win). I got to see the quilts--mine could possibly win, since there was only one yo quilt, and it had no pattern. I got to see the embroidery--mine would hopefully win! I got to see all the beautiful livestock and get free yougurts and cheeses, bought myself some sorghum, kept myself from buying expensive honey, fudge, and fair food. Hung out with Emily, another WBFPer, in the veggies and tobacco. It was a blast! Fun to see family and friends, and the pride of the counties. Kentucky has 127 counties and I plan to travel to all of them someday. Tomorrow I am off to Leitchfield to pick up Iris. Well, I think that's all for now, blessings blessings blessings! Much love, August Lee So in 11 days when I move to New Castle, I am going to try living zero waste for one month! This type of one month self-challenge is how I went vegan for five years, and only changed my ways due to health and lifestyle changes. It is also how I got more creative, putting down my phone for most of the day and writing instead. Instead of a trash can, I will have a big mason jar. Instead of throwing away food waste, I will compost. Instead of using aluminum foil, saran wrap, wax paper, and plastics, I will opt for reusable sources such as reusable containers, beeswax wrap, silicone baking mats, and such. I'll let y'all know weekly how I'm doing, and I will be posting it all through my blog because I am trying to spend less time on FB and more time just living life as I continue my education and learn more about homesteading, sustainable agriculture, and the rural communities of our region. Much love to everyone! If anyone wants to join me on this challenge, just send me a message, and I can share the document for my plans and tips on how to compost and recycle, even in a small apartment setting. I hope this challenge can be seen as an offering as to how to mitigate our current ecological, environmental, climate, consumer-culture crisis, and learn from the old ways.
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Quilt Update!
IronweedDisco Chicken of Love
sTate fair ready!seed starting 2019ky state fair quiltWHOTH Embroideryseashell casTleswhoth blanketedible goodnessAuthorA sustainability major at U of L, beginning farmer, crafter, and writer. Archives
April 2024
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