The Barter System

I love to barter. You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours! So when my good friend Norm offered me a trade I took him up on it.

 Norm has a boat.

Two of the boat bunks are in the passageway and don't have very much privacy...

....so Norm asked me to sew some curtains for them out of this cool fabric from Abbey's Reflections.

Now, I absolutely DO NOT have time to sit indoors to sew, but Norm was offering to trade Black Cod Tips, and I love, Love, LOVE, LOVE Black Cod Tips!

Today was a good day to be indoors sewing....

....because the weather was certifiably psychotic....One minute it was sunny and beautiful and I was driving myself crazy thinking I should be outside working....

...and the next minute it was just an absolute white-out, and I was GLAD I was not outside working....

Anyways, the curtains are done....

 And the Black Cod Tips are delicious.....

So, EVERYONE'S happy!

Sheep's Clothing

About a year ago I started to make a sweater....I wanted something that I could wear while working in the garden....something with sleeves that were just a little shorter than normal so I didn't have to push them up all the time, something with a warm snug neck, and made out of wool so it would be warm. Well, I finally finished it last night, and just in time! Although it was beautiful and sunny yesterday, it was windy, rainy and cold today. And I'm glad to say that the sweater was everything I'd hoped it would be....

Yeah for crochet!!.....yes, although it appears to have been knit it is actually crocheted. I used a stitch called the "pineapple stitch".

I highly recommend wearing wool to work in the garden...it is so cozy, handles the rain well, and provides a gentle, soft barrier to the weather.  I LOVE IT!!

Things are happening outside...not fast, but happening none the less... Today was the first day that I worked until dark....  I'm working on this year's carrot row.

Yes, I ran into another big rock. Fortunately it came out without a jackhammer, thanks to Levi and his friend, Chris Reeves (Yes, that's right, he's Superman!). One side of the row is completely done. And of course, where ever I am......the ducks have to be too.

Here you can see how the chicken wire is loose until I stretch it out and attach it to the bottom 2x4.

And then I draped plastic over the finished side and dug out the other side......that way the dirt wouldn't fall through the fencing  while I'm finishing the project.

 This is facing the area that hasn't been dug out yet...(sorry it's blurry)

And this is facing the area that is done.....

Silly ducks!

Transplanting Celery

Yesterday I spent quite a bit of time transplanting celery. Celery is one of my least favorite things to transplant. The little dainty starts are so floppy and unmanageable....

Sometimes you get lucky and they will cooperate and stand up nice and straight once their in their new pots....

But most of the time they are very uncooperative and disagreeable, and they won't stand up straight no matter what you do....

But I've learned over the years to do the best I can. I just make sure that the growing centers are at ground level, not covered up with any dirt ....

.... and eventually the most amazing thing happens....

They straighten up all on their own!!

I'm Old, Fat, And Tired.......And I Can't Stop Thinking About Cookies

It is just harder to get moving this year. I think it's a combination of being a year older, being out of shape because I have been sitting in my recliner crocheting all winter, and packing around these 10 extra pounds I gained. All winter I thought about and planned all the things that would get done this Spring. It was easy then....looking out the window.......but now it's Spring.......it's actually time to move.....and all I can think about it eating cookies!!!! I swear, the thought of warm, freshly baked cookies haunted me all day.

The first project of the day was to collect and haul another load of seashell sand from the beach. Today was my 3rd day of hauling it this week.

Once seashell sand is mixed in your beds you never have to add it again, but last year I added a LOT of new material to my beds, so I thought it would be a good idea to bring some more sand in as well.

Check!

Next I spread it about an inch thick over the beds.

Of course, all the Nosy Nellie's had to come and check out what I was doing!

Check!

Then I staked out another bed and dug out the dirt to get ready to build the side support.

Check!

I made it all the way to the end...I wasn't moving fast, but it got done.

The weather was so beautiful today that even the cat enjoyed being outside...

 Okay, I had to force him to come out, but after he was out for awhile he started to enjoy it....I swear!

 That's right, kitty, enjoy the air blowing your magnificent mane, because some day soon it will be gone!

All in all, even though there were no cookies involved, it was a pretty good day.

It's The Little Things In Life

I'm starting to get back in the groove of things...hopefully my energy level will rise to meet the challenge ahead!

The weather turned out to be pretty nice, so I took advantage of the fact and took Lucy for a walk. My good friend, Diana, lives just down the road and I was blessed to have her join me!

Walking the dog is a drudgery for me, so it was wonderful to have a good friend to visit with while I walked...it made the time go SO much faster!

Once I got back home I worked a little bit outside.  The ducks LOVE it when I work outside! They follow me around to see what kind of good things get unearthed.

Although there aren't a lot of creepy crawlers around yet, I did find a couple of pathetic worms I was able to feed Pink-Pink....

Wow, she's fast!

And, the tomatoes are finally all transplanted....

All in all it was a good day!

Eat Eggs

The egg production is picking up.....11 eggs today!

Speaking of eggs, the commercial herring fishery is well under way here in Sitka. Many people do not realize that although the fish are harvested - the primary goal of this fishery is the roe (eggs). Local subsistence users don't harvest the fish to get their roe, they put hemlock branches in the water, the herring roe sticks to the branches, the fish go free, and the branches are pulled out of the water to harvest the roe!

Be sure to eat your eggs!