Day Off...Now What?

Well today is my first day off in 4-5 days. Again. I enjoy working and I enjoy where I work but there are so many other things I need to do around the house.
     So today I woke up to Pat cuddling into the blankets with me, Ein cuddling my feet and Cole trying to pounce on my head as usual. Reasons to hate waking up and leaving my warm snuggly bed are many and usually have to do with the oodles of cuddles I get every morning. I decided to take Ein with me to drop Pat off at work and then to hit up Petsmart. We needed dog/cat food and I wanted to say hello to my favorite vet techs. I don't like the vets at our local Banfield much but the "nurses" are usually fantastic. My two favorites were in today and working front counter so they got to see Ein all prettied up. Normally they see my animals on their bad days, today I figured it would be a great treat for Ein and the nurses to see each other on a good day. We only stopped by the desk to say hello and show off the fact that his coat is finally better from the ravages of his flea allergy this summer but it totally made their days. Both nurses beamed at me and one got teary eyed when I told her we would soon be able to go ahead with Claudia's surgery.
     From Petsmart to home Ein was really confused when I left his harness on. I then got myself ready, shoes, sash, bucket, reusable bag or sturdy construction, water flavored with just a tiny bit of fruit juice to make us both more likely to drink it. Then off we went to gather pine cones and kindling. Ein was loving it, racing across the lawn by the lake, snuffling through our little mini woods, even went down to the water's edge which is big since he is terrified of large amounts of water. We think he knows that he is gator food sized. I played on the computer a bit and am debating starting my NaNoWriMo after I start a load of laundry.
     I need to do laundry, sort firewood, make apple and pumpkin preserves and make something for dinner. I also need to pick up my medication at the pharmacy before 7pm. Patrick gets off at 7:30 so no luck just getting it when he gets off work.
    In gardening news my worms are going through organic matter faster than I thought possible, I accidentally starved them a little bit but have more than made up for it. My first dirt harvest yielded 5 pint size flower pots of worm dirt. It went to the peppers mostly but also to several other plants and helped to get them ready for winter. I bought some night crawlers to go with my red wigglers and provide my with a dirt harvest year-round and over wintered my plants.
     Night crawlers are Canadian worms, they prefer cold dirt with more moisture. Red wigglers are warm weather, mostly southern US, worms that prefer a sandier, slightly more dry and warm environment  By keeping both I have producers and a composter year-round whether it is warm or cold. The biggest worry is to keep the food coming so they don't eat my root vegetables. That and there has to be a larger area for the two types to hibernate alternately. An exploding worm population is only a good thing if you have the room and resources to keep it healthy. If not, well the local environment could always use a few extra tails from the worm kingdom.
     I used spanish moss and ashes as a reusable mulch this year. The spanish moss helps to hold in heat and rots at a medium rate without adding acidity to the soil. Containers are good at retaining acidity so using most mulch isn't an option for low acid plants in a container. Also the moss can be placed directly around the plants and on the stems, mulch and most other toppers for winter cannot be because it causes nitrogen burn when they decompose. The ashes provide a great growing medium that is light and won't compact roots while also giving quite a bit of nutrients to the soil. Using the ashes on top of the spanish moss helps to fill in some of the holes and assists with retaining heat and water better. The ash is then watered down which also helps to keep the plant fed and keep the moss from blowing away. The spanish moss can be burned in the fireplace when it breaks down to far or more can be placed on top to provide an extra layer of protection. Moss and ash helps the soil and thus the plant to breathe, instead of suffocating it. Moss also does not inhibit growth of the plant or put pressure on the stems/trunks. That makes it ideal for plants that can actually grow during the dormant season and or for those like my bonsai which are malformed by improper use of restrictive measures.

Well until next time I suppose that to-do list need to get to-done.

First Step

"Step one, well be-gun" You can sort of hear that being chanted as you try to master a new dance step or sewing technique. It seeps into your soul and rests there, constantly giving encouragement and reminding you that you are only on the first step.
     It has been a long journey for me and I am happy to say that there is much left still to go, this blog is my way of sharing those steps and just maybe helping others along the way. I really don't much care for blogs because everyone can use them and post on them and there are millions out there so the chances of my blog making a big difference is slim to none but still, this is for me. Please pardon my run-on sentences, they are my worst fault in writing.
     I don't anticipate that I will update more than once a week or so but I am going to try. I suppose I should just launch into it then hrm?

     Well last night my boyfriend (let's call him Pat 'kay? ;) ) took me for a walk in the "woods" near our apartment. It was fun even though it is the season of the sand spurs. We took Ein, our chihuahua something or other hopefully terrier, as well. He didn't like it as much but then again he isn't very adventurous. I got to teach Pat some woods stuff that was kind of cool and we found several downed branches that we could break and turn into firewood. There is a type of grass that grows here in Florida that has still bristles on four to five short bracts at the top. If plucked while still green they can be used green or dried as toothbrushes. Not that we are going to but it is still really cool. The grass had sent runners over a concrete area in the vacant lots on the other side of the woods and I told him about how the grass normally would be hard to use because those runners would root to the ground but since they were on concrete they could be used like any normal rope. If you soaked them and then used them and left them to dry they could be used as ropes for thatching, fire bundles, mats, anything woven or braided. I also got to tell him about the uses of cattails and which plants made good tinder when dried and which you could harvest and use immediately. 
     We found wild blackberries growing in that vacant area this summer, also found our three kittens there so it is a fun spot for the two of us to visit and get in touch with our wild side a bit more. I do think I will wear my slip-shoes or at least socks next time though because the sand-spurs/prickle burrs were a pain. I have to pluck them all out of my house dress now. Either way I have a little more firewood to use against the chill of winter. Am thinking about leaving the windows open and using it now or tonight honestly. 
     I am going to go make sculpy food and start getting dinner defrosted, Pork chops cooked with applesauce and vinegar as a marinade with squash and zuchini on the side, Yum!
     Really easy re-use idea! Take pringles cans or anything that is tubular and burnable (paper towel tubes also work, just pinch shut the "bottom") and stuff them full of paper, sawdust, small and medium sticks, moss, basically make a tinder tube. When ready to use merely open your tube on at least one end, both is preferable, then light from the middle or whichever end has the most "soft" tinder that will light easily. You can even use dryer lint for these tubes and don't worry if they don't work right away, getting the right amount of easy lighters and burnables in the right spots does take some practice. Don't forget to save or recycle any plastics or metals that are left over. I love this idea and really want to try it on camping because if built correctly you have all you need to start your fire in one easy to light, durable, lightweight package. Also since most paper towel tubes and food tubes are waxed they can withstand a little bit of water like what might leak through a zipper or small hole. Food tubes are also not always recyclable because of the grease from the food. Personally I like to use pizza box parts because the grease from the pizza is not only not recyclable it is an oily conflagration waiting to be used properly. I only use pizza box parts inside my tubes and I try to do so with pringles can that i can close up so no bugs can find it and use it for a new tasty home. I would post pictures but the camera is dead...guess I know what I will be doing next!