This time last year, our teeny weeny house was surrounded by bush and it was fast encroaching upon us! This was all because of machinery failure and the only thing that we had working was a weed-wacker to clean the 10 acres of land! Here are some pictures of our bushy yard:
Bush behind house.Bushy Yard.
Well, this year the walk-behind brush-mower worked the entire year (that is a record for us in the last 15 years!) and we have managed to get the place cleaned up. I guess Gnome’s parents might appreciate these pictures as they saw the place last year…they wouldn’t recognise the place now. Ooooh look at this; beyond the pond:
Cleaning up.Cleaning up fence line
We are piling up all the branches and leaves…there are probably about a dozen of these piles now after our mega clean-up!
Brush Pile.
Thanks also to Panda who has been helping us with the big clean-up…an extra pair of hands and a machete is always a great help!
Hello! Still here on the farm and still hauling water up into the house. It’s not a huge deal (with Munchkin’s well trained strong arms!); it is only an issue when we are trying to do a washing machine load. The washing machine takes 40 gallons in total (=8 pigtail buckets) with the wash and rinse cycle so that’s the real pain. But, of course we still have to do it and the clothes need to get washed! Right now, we are still in the midst of the grey water drainage project #135 so the water tower preparations are not in the forefront yet. The last few days, Gnome has been digging (I believe that’s what Gnomes do amongst many, many other things) our first drainage ditch which takes all the washing-up, clothes washing and bathing water out of the house area.
Digging First Drainage Pond.
The pond is actually bigger than this now and the final size will be 3 feet (90cm) by 30 feet (9metres). We will be planting edible plants (taro, lotus, etc) in this first pond. The overall plan is to have several of these connected ponds draining from one to another until they reach their final destination which is a great big banana and plantain grove. That way, all the nutrients from our grey water can be used to water a whole bunch of food plants as it wends its way from food pond to food pond. What a great way to water your own food!
Anyway, food is always in abundance on the farm and I am so pleased with our harvests. This is the lifestyle for beings (like Munchkin and Gnome) who like to eat and cook good food.
Just got a sweet potato harvest today:
Sweet Potatoes.
Barbados Gooseberry is producing…
Barbados Gooseberry.
Oh and look at the flowers of the Barbados Gooseberry…
Barbados Gooseberry Flower.
And yes we are eating dandelion salad right now…
Dandelion Bed.
Some hot peppers; this is a funny story. For quite some time, we have been trying to procure durian (Asian smelly fruit that all Asians adore and adulate). We tried to buy from Ebay several times: “fresh seeds from China.” If anyone knows about Durian, the seeds are the size of chestnuts but each time we received our seeds they would be pepper seeds!! These Chinese…they really are something trying to pass off pepper seeds for durian seeds!! So, these are our “Chinese Rip You Off Not-Durian Ha-Ha Pepper Seeds.” I guess it is still something…
Chiney Pepper.
Oh this is a pretty edible: celosia; kinda like a spinach:
Oh the silly little ironies, right? Gnome just finished the plumbing…the sink, washing machine and the bathing area…and now what?? The pressure tank has stopped working. It is filling up but there is no pressure so it looks like there is probably a leak in the bladder. Here in Belize, I have not seen any pressure tank bladders for sale so it looks like a brand new tank has to be bought. The one that we have was not cheap and it is only about two years old.
Well, anyway, we’ve been working through our list of projects quite diligently and the new water tower was not scheduled until late next year. So Gnome said that the best thing to do was to turn this unfortunate incident into a fortunate opportunity to begin water tower construction early. He said that if Munchkin could whine sufficiently enough about hauling buckets of water into the house, he could probably get the water tower up in record time. And so begins the complaining and the whining…it’s for a worthy cause, right? 🙂
Water Tank.
It is going to be a big project and no mean feat for a Gnome to accomplish. Water will still be collected in our tanks which are close to the ground…a solar pump would be used to pump water up to a single tank placed on a water tower. The water tower will have to be high enough (Gnome says about 30 feet (10 metres)) to give pressure to the water as it cycles back down into the plumbing system of the house. This new system is a step in our direction of independence as we will harness energy from sun and gravity rather than relying (and paying) for electricity. Okay, let’s see what happens…
Hello!! Yes, thought I would squeeze in another Blog post so that you don’t think that it is every 7 to 10 days only!! You know what…time just flies by and before I know it, I haven’t written for ages. Anyway, we are now in November-December time…the last leg of the year when it goes crazy-fast and you are left spinning in a whirlwind. I really do think that from Thanksgiving time to Christmas/ New Year time, time accelerates and if you are not careful, projects come to a stand-still. We are making a huge attempt to hold onto our sensibilities and keep on going!! The veranda is getting its make-over. Master Make-over Gnome has been plumbing and tiling. The sink (love the sink!) and the bathtub are plumbed and working…oooh, look at that…
Sink and Bathtub.
We also re-located the washing machine-sans-case since the outer white cover was donated very generously by Gnome to the goosies as a nest:
Nesting Boxes.
Gnome Decor: attach the control panel to the wall and remove outer covering and lid. Who needs frivolous washing machine accessories like that? The washing machine, believe it or not, works absolutely fine. On the plus side, stripped of its case, it is easier to move and takes up less space:
Gnome Washing Machine.
There you go…I now have all water stuff in one place…we will keep on going….
Here’s a tune for Gnome for doing everything that he does: “Gnome Does It Better.”
Yeah, we are still here. Sorry for not writing for a while but have been busy-tired-busy-tired-hot-hot-hot-busy-tired. Anyway, we had a successful Guy Fawkes night despite a deluge the night before and the morning of the event. It was so wet and puddle-ridden, we thought that we might have to call the whole thing off. Luckily, the sun peaked out late morning and we decided that it was worth it to go on. The afternoon consisted of wheel-barrowing stuff over to the pond area (I want donkeys!!) and Master Fire-starter Gnome started a bonfire and fire (pits) for cooking. Here is Guy, traditionally made by Panda every year:
Guy Fawkes.
We had our usual merry friends around the camp-fire (did not sing Kum Ba Yah!) and we had a jolly good time. We had roast chicken, potatoes and onions cooked in coals. Very Nice…definitely the best way to cook chicken!
Camp Fire Chicken.
The sitting area was very comfortable and kept bug-free with the fires; Gnome being organised, had set up the shelter the day before and we had a test run of camp-fire food together in a romantic Munchkin and Gnome usual way…
Sitting Area.
It did not rain on Guy Fawkes night so the shelter was used as the food serving area. All in all, another good year so looks like we will keep the Bonfire Night Tradition going…
Hello, Good Morning to y’all! We have had a two days of showers and this morning kinda looks bright and sunny (cross my fingers). We are sitting down with a cuppa getting ready for some farm work. Some days, we have our Yorkshire tea and other days we have our own cinnamon leaves boiled for 10 minutes, steeped for 5 minutes and sweetened with honey. It is a natural stimulant and sometimes we choose this over tea when we prefer a milder wake up!
Cinnamon Leaves.
Since it is generally drying up, Gnome has started a big mow again…the pond area was done first in preparation for our yearly bonfire for the the 5th of November (Remember, Remember…the 5th of November). Ooooh, I wonder if Gnome will do a double bonfire again!! It is an evening that we have friends around with bonfire(s), food cooked over coals and home-made wine. We also undertake a little tradition every year that involves burning a
symbolic representation of an aspect of our life that we no longer
feel is necessary. Hmmm…I am not sure if I am ready to burn the Pringles…it is one of my last links with consumerism!! 😉 This is the Guy from last year:
Guy.
What else…oooh, exciting stuff…sink is plumbed and we have a bath-tub/ trough for bathing…hee-hee.
Gnome asked me,“…it’s not exactly Martha Stewart…are you okay with it?”
Munchkin reply: “…who’s Martha Stewart anyway?? That is exactly why I love it!!”
I will have a better picture for you next time. Fine decor with Munchkin and Gnome where Practicality is all that matters. What do you think…can we market this lifestyle??!! 😉
Bath Tub.
Anyway, I will leave you with a picture of a morning gift from our Beloved Cat (he is like a son to us: lazy good-for-nothing-but-we-love-him and uses the place like a hotel). Cat:
Cat.
A Gift from the Cat; he left this outside the front door and nonchalantly walked into the house to his eating area. If he could talk, he would say: you guys can have the rat, I will have the gourmet liver that Munchkin serves up everyday, ta very much!
Gift From the Cat.
This is what I said to Gnome: “…we could eat it…I have seen enough episodes of Alone to work out how to prepare the rat for food….”
Gnome: “…hmmm…don’t tell me you are starting to think you are an expert on survival skills from watching television!!”
Ha-Ha!!
(Alone is an American reality TV series where people are left to survive in the wilderness by themselves and expected to use their skills to hunt and forage to survive. Many of the contestants have ended up catching rats to eat.
