Category Archives: Blog

Hello From Munchkin and Gnome!

August 8, 2022 Munchkin

The longer I wait to write a new blog post, the harder it gets. So, I have decided to bite the bullet and write. Looking back at my previous blog posts, I have only written on Holidays and the next local Holiday is not for 2 months!! It is pouring down today and has been for the whole weekend. This year, we had the shortest dry season ever which was only two weeks. I think that our pond only dried up for a week (usually remains dry for 2 months) and the rains started again and still hasn’t stopped.

We are having the usual wet season problems: puddles galore, mud mud glorious mud and flooding.

Well, at least the ducks and geese are having fun. Every new puddle and pond is a new adventure. During these rainy days, all we hear is endless flapping of wings in water, loud gregarious quacking and endless squeaking from geese jostling about in the water. This year, we had a very successful breeding season and doubled our flock. It never ceases to amaze me how the fun-loving goslings turn into such nasty hooligans. How does that happen? I gave them so much love and attention and after two months, I have to defend myself with a broom!

Oh, and another piece of news. Our wonderful, lovely cat that we have had for 13 years never came back home one morning. His usual routine was to get tossed out of the house unceremoniously at night, when he would hunt and do cat things, and then return in the morning to plonk himself down to sleep all day. This was about 6 weeks ago so sadly, I don’t think he is coming back. I miss our gourmet cat who loved beef jerky, duck liver pate, curry and home-made vanilla ice-cream. Now I miss all the silly things about him that drove me crazy at the time…yes, even the way he used my belly as a pillow or shelf to sleep his heavy head on! Anyway, sending lots of love to our orangey companion!

We still have our other two, mind you:

Amusing, Belize, Blog

Seriously Funny!

November 25, 2020 Munchkin

This post is dedicated to Giselle (you know who you are). It is a Thank-you for getting me back on track to writing blog posts. I stopped writing in May because it just didn’t seem fun any-more; writing posts became part of a tick list and it ended up feeling like yet another chore. I forgot the reason why and neglected my blog for six months. At times, I would ask Gnome whether I should resume and he always said that it was up to me. I couldn’t bring myself to write anything because I didn’t know my reason for writing and I felt that there was nothing to write about(!). These things I knew: it certainly wasn’t for fame and glory. What for?

Anyway, along came Giselle. And, every time we spoke she told me that my blog posts were Hilarious, Funny and Humorous!

Yes, Yes, Yes to all three descriptions…that was what I was always trying to do!!

Just to write to get a laugh, a chuckle or even a guffaw!!

Nudge Nudge…I was trying to make you laugh!!

In these times of COVID, Fear and Anxiety, we certainly need to find something to make us smile and remember to be Seriously Funny sometimes.

Amusing, Belize, Blog

The Awesome Duo Are Back!!

November 21, 2020 Munchkin 4 Comments

Hello!! I bet that you thought that we would never, ever write again after 6 months of complete and utter silence. Well this is the conversation that Gnome and I had:

Munchkin: ” Gnome, Gnome…”

Gnome: “Yes, my dear?”

Munchkin: “I think I know why nobody reads our blog posts!!”

Gnome: “Hmmm?”

Munchkin: “Well, I’ve been studying the media and other blogs…and, what I’ve noticed is that they use more sensational words to grab your attention.”

Gnome: “What do you mean?”

Munchkin: “Oh, like ‘awesome’ and ‘more awesome’ and words like that…to evoke a ‘flying off the seat of your pants feeling’ or words that make you feel like you are flying down a ski slope…that sort of thing… you know, that adrenaline rush …”

Gnome: “So, you think that by using the word ‘awesome’ you would increase your readership?”

Munchkin: “Yes, yes definitely!! The Brand New Munchkin and Gnome are going to be Incredibly Awesome and Mind-Blowingly Brilliant and are going to cause ripples of Awesomeness throughout Belize!!”

Gnome: “Hmmmm….”

Actually, this is what he looked like:

Yes, the Awesome Duo are back ready to awesome the pants off you. Being Bored in Belize can be Awesome!!

Belize, Blog

Blog Back On-Line!

December 19, 2018 Munchkin 2 Comments

The Blog is back on-line! I don’t think anyone actually noticed and we didn’t realise until Gnome’s Mum told us that our website was down and what’s happening?

So, for about a week the website has just been a blank page and there was no text to be seen. We really thought that we had lost it all. My first thoughts were: “…oh…all my zillions of recipes!!” and, “…oh, Gnome, how are you going to remember the Pet Lime-Sulphur recipe??” I wasn’t devastated about it and was prepared to email (do people email anymore?) a few (maybe six)) of the people who follow our Blog regularly with updates. Gnome didn’t show any signs of emotion; he was neither happy nor sad.

Anyway, we asked Panda to sort it out and came back to us today to tell us that it was something to with a plug-in. So, we are back on-line and a special thanks to Panda for assisting in the continuation of our chronicles. Anyway, I need to get the hang of WordPress 5.0 which is a lot more visual and requires more clicking on icons. I was happy with the good old-fashioned way! Why do they keep on changing old stuff around when it was all perfectly fine? I will write more soon with a picture of the completed pond and our new vegetable beds. Yes, still working like little troopers…

Amusing, Blog, Our Products

Hello There…

May 21, 2018 Munchkin 4 Comments

Well, Hello there, here is another update from Munchkin and Gnome. You see, I feel a bit sheepish because I forgot my camera for the Choc Fest (well, you know…there was so much stuff to pack into boxes, packed lunch and icy water…the camera was the last thing on my mind). Firstly, thanks to Alisa Atkinson and Tati for sharing the booth with us this year. We had a great time stuffing ourselves with their croissants and muffins and enjoyed their company very much.

This year, the fair was set up a bit differently since the town council were organising it. The stalls were packed on both sides of Front Street . Most of the stalls were not designated and so in the morning, it was first come, first served. Luckily, we found a place with a breeze from the sea so that helped with the dry season heat. As Gnome has said in the past:

“…Cacao Fest is always the hottest day of the year!!”

The fair started at 9am and ran on until 5pm (Saturday). The Wine and Chocolate was Saturday night instead of Friday this year. Because of this timing difference, we thought that the morning crowd was smaller; it was mostly made up of incidental tourists and Punta Gorda locals.

One thing happened that was really quite funny (maybe not funny for the people involved!!). I hope that I can describe it well so that it makes up for the lack of photographs. Late in the morning, three young Belizean girls came up to our stall dolled up to the nines with cute little skirts and heels. They were ooohing and ahhhing…at first I thought that they were complimenting us on our chocolate soaps…but, then it actually sounded like whining. Their beautiful bare legs were covered in bug bites and all three of them in unison stared woefully down at their bitten legs and then looked at the glowing container of “Copal Ointment for rash and itch.”

They pointed at that tin and uttered in feeble tones:

“…we want that…”

As soon as they received the Copal Ointment, they whipped the top open and dug right into the container…each one of them desperate to calm the itch on their legs. Oh, the poor girls!! There was more oooohing and ahhhing in front of me but this time I sensed more of a relief in their tone. Crisis over, they thanked me and went on their way. Afterwards, Gnome said to me:

“…that was perfect advertising for us…a shame we couldn’t get a picture!!”

We left the fair early afternoon to go home for a rest before attending the Wine and Chocolate. Yes, we did go this year…

(Incidentally, we were both at the the Very First Cacao Fest 2005. I ended up the kitchen cooking all night and Gnome got roped into pouring wine. That’s another story for another day!! But, never again!!)

It was nice to get out and get dressed up. It is certainly quite a job to try to get out of the farm without covering your good clothes in sticky burrs and mud. Nonetheless, we managed with a few passing pecks from the geese of course!! Much wine was drunk and we had a good evening together socialising. Good to get out once in a while…

Amusing, Blog, Farming, Food

Lots To Do!

May 13, 2018 Munchkin

After I got up this morning and after I had my buzz of Yorkshire tea, Gnome said to me very pointedly,

“….we are going to have a nice quiet day together. We might not achieve anything, we might not get anything done but that’s okay.”

He said this slowly and precisely so that I would not gloss over it and start doing my usual Hurricane Munchkin from kitchen to farm. Hence, I am sitting down in a Zen sort of way to try achieve balance. In my head, I am thinking:

(did he have to wait until after I had the tea??)

“…ooooh, I have ten jackfruit, or more to clean up…oh, and I have to feed my little goosies and I need to to do this and that and oh, I need to get that done before Tuesday because Wednesday will be busy…oh, and there is the Cacao Fest on Saturday too…oooh, busy busy!!”

Oh so much jackfruit this year…

And there I go again, the whole week is planned… 🙂

Anyway, it is all good and we can take a rest. Change of plan…

“…I am going to cook a Sunday roast and then…oops, I am starting the planning ahead again…”

Hee-Hee!! I will stop at the roast and take it from there.

Oh, what did you say, Gnome?? He just said something. He is going to make jackfruit wine today…Ha-Ha, he is still doing something…

Anyway, we are doing okay and are charging ahead to clean up the farm…onto the coconut area; we have so many sprouted coconuts (hundreds) that I will have to pick up (some of them rooted to the ground) so quite a lot of heavy work for the week. That is partly why Gnome has forced a break.

Okay, the tea is wearing off so I can probably sit down for a bit and watch some silly films with Gnome…

and perhaps make some wine together. Have a great restful Sunday!!

Amusing, Blog

New Look Munchkin!

January 26, 2018 Munchkin

It has been horribly grey and pouring down the last few days. This afternoon, it has surprisingly cleared up with the sun shining and blue skies. There is not much farm news since the weather has not been conducive to outside work. Gnome has been learning to program with C++ with an (ancient) book from 1989. He says that it still covers the basics and that it doesn’t matter that it is an old book. I have been making lip balms and all sorts of concoctions. When the weather is like this, I usually go through a kitchen marathon. Anyway, not much to report but thought I would share with you my New-Look Munchkin since I can’t get any new pictures of the present character. This one is a more mature character…a snow woman in fact..

Munchkin surprised:

Munchkin Upside-Down:

Munchkin Thinking:

Belize, Blog, Philosophy

Why Munchkin and Gnome?

December 3, 2017 Munchkin

Nobody (dares?) asks us but I think that it would be good to tell you why we use personae to portray ourselves. Firstly, we think that it is funny and we think it is fun to make fun of ourselves. Also, it is innovative because our writing is all original (our thoughts and personal experiences) and not a re-hash of some other website or some other person/expert/consultant/master of whatsits. It is our attempt at humour in order offset the extremely (we think) dystopic nature of news, television and media. Munchkin and Gnome want to to keep the magic of living whilst still keeping a firm ground on reality…that’s why we dig our own dirt, grow our own food and write silly stories about our animals.

Belize, Blog

Phew…Back On-Line!!

September 5, 2017 Munchkin

Hello…we have Internet back on after a week off-line and nothing has changed. Gnome said, “Nobody bothers writing emails anyway.” And sure enough, I’ve checked the mail and there were 42 junk emails. Anyway, it all started with a bad storm last Wednesday evening which resulted in our transformer blowing out. By the time electricity was restored, it was Friday so it was near enough to the weekend…and we all know nothing happens at the weekend here, so we called to get our Internet fixed on Monday.

Even before all of that happened, we have been experiencing computer woes. The power cable for our computer crapped out (after a thunderstorm and a brief power-cut) and then the computer shut down before we even knew what had happened. We did not get a chance to back up the hard-drive so I’ll need some time to retrieve my passwords for administrative websites. Oh, and the printer doesn’t seen to recognise this temporary computer so we can’t print our business labels out. Hmmm…somebody once told me that when you get electrical problems, it’s because Mercury is in retrograde (something like that). Let’s all hope (cross our fingers) that Mercury is moving forward again!!

Belize, Blog