Showing Up

That's the theme from my Get to Work Book for March. It bears keeping in mind.

Today I continued some kitchen work - canning trotter gear and chicken stock, prepping pork fat for lardo, rendering the last of the lard and making some "cracklings" aka pork rinds or fried pork fat. Not a low calorie day, but a little goes a long way. This is all part of what I'm calling the "freezer reclamation" project. I don't know about you, but our freezers (we have a small chest freezer in the basement) are almost always full, and often we have no idea what's in there. It's good to get things out of the freezer and onto the shelves.

Things are starting to get back to routine after our week away. It's amazing how seven or eight days away can almost entirely erase the rhythms you had before, but I feel like mine are pretty well established now, which is quite satisfying. Even this blog post - Monday is my usual day to post. It just makes it easier.

Also, I'm pleased to announce that one of my stories was a finalist for the Breakwater Review Fiction Prize. You can read it here.

Showing up, and moving forward! Have a great week.

Summer Summary

Let's skip the lengthy narrative and rely on images (okay, with brief captions) to summarize the rest of the summer in Nova Scotia.  Oh, summer ain't over yet, but we're back in Ontario (at least momentarily) and onto another chapter.

Things we did -

On a boat tour at Peggy's Cove.

The ladyfriend and I visit Caldera, a whiskey distillery in River John, with friends

Things we found or had made for us:

Local woodworker made this table for us.  An amazing addition to our kitchen.

New cottage; new couch (thanks, EQ3) with pillows woven using local wool (Lismore Sheep Farm) and natural dyes.

Jelly cabinet (more kitchen storage!) made locally in Stellarton

Sideboard/hutch found at a secondhand place.

Needlepoint from a yard sale.  The ladyfriend thinks it looks like David Suzuki, and I say, "Dressed as an Tyrolean."

And, of course, food -

Local oysters; no one had a name for them.  I called them "delicious."

And a shload of canning!  Ended up making three types of strawberry jam, raspberry jam, blueberry preserves, sour cherry preserves, lobster stock, and chicken stock.

Wondering about the crafting?  Yes, there was that, too (plus swimming, reading, biking, etc.).  Images of the two FOs plus my new swift (!) to follow.

Hope your wind-down from summer is good and prepares you well for the fall ahead.  Carry on.

Oh Summer! You Wacky Girl!

Clearly I've been spirited off by the siren of summer, but that wasn't before my father and I finished the roof (front of house we started in May).

The roof is great now, having undone the fraudulent work of the previous roofers.  We still have a shed to do, but it's not an emergency.  After that one, I think I might retire from the roofing business.

The ladyfriend and I are now in Nova Scotia, enjoying our new cottage and making it our own slowly but surely.  I've got three knitting projects on my needles at the moment.  My new guideline for my WIPs is as follow - three is the magic number (if you can, please sing De La Soul here), one has to be a TV/car knit (aka no need to look at or keep track of much), one should be more technical/interesting, and one should be for the upcoming season (I'd like to be ahead of the game every once in awhile).  Of course one project might meet two guidelines, like the John Galliano sweater that was published by British Elle in 1986 (back in the day when they had knitting patterns - oh the glory days!) is for fall/winter and has a traveling cable and unique construction.

I'm using some vintage yarn that came with matching tweed fabric (!) that I bought on eBay a hundred years ago.  There were supposed to be patterns with it, but they were not included.  I'm playing a little yarn chicken as I don't know how many yards I have of the stuff, but I'll be okay with 3/4 length sleeves should it come to that.

The other sweaters I'm working on are a simple, in-the-round, sweater for my mother (per her instructions and choice of yarn) and Pasture, by Annie Rowden, which I'm absolutely loving.

It's not only the easy shape that is appealing; it's the yarn from Woolen Rabbit - a blend of merino, silk, and cashmere.  I've got the body almost finished; just waiting for the needle I forgot to bring to arrive in the post.  Such is life!

I have plans to unravel a cardigan I made years ago but have never been happy with the fit of to make a pattern from the most recent (and first) issue of Making.

Additional crafty ambitions I have while at the cottage are to work on Shake-n-Make's English paper piecing project for our Hand of Craft show next year and the Gallery tunic.  I also have the pieces for the Alabama Chanin sampler quilt (from the first book) here, which I consider an ongoing cottage-based project.

I'm looking to the time here as an opportunity for making in all its forms.  I'll be working on stories as well and canning and cooking and living the life I'm constantly crafting for myself.  It's a luxury to have this time and space, and I plan to enjoy every moment of it.

Happy summer!  Happy creating!

Quality of Life Markers, or Baby, Where Has Our Love Gone?

On Sunday I realized my Saturday fit (as I'm now calling my bad mood) went deeper than just the feeling that my desire to be conscientious (about so many things) was a Sisyphean task.  I'd seen some of the signs earlier, but I'd tried to ignore them or explain them away.

Here are some of the signs:

1. You don't make pickles
2. In fact, the larder is pretty low on home-canned goods
3. You haven't gone to yoga since the summer (yikes!)
4. You cook, but you're not really cooking (if you know what I mean)
5. You're making a lot of socks because everything feels like it needs to be portable and pretty manageable (low commitment)
6. You run out of homemade stock

Yes, it all adds up to a more harried and busier fall than usual.  I think I've said before that "busy" for us is pretty much status quo, but this fall has been crazy.  Partly it's because I'm teaching four classes, and partly it's because we kind of just hit the ground running, even harder than usual, in late August/early September.  It's basically all we can do to keep up with things.  Finding pleasure in our handmades or even in an afternoon of stock-making has been challenging.

Frankly, not much is going to change next semester.  While I'm only teaching three classes, I'll only have about seven or eight students less, but the contact hours will be lower.  But I'm a big believer in the adage "Forewarned is forearmed," so I'm working on some scheduling and planning.

For example, I've chosen the projects I'm going to work on in the next couple of months.  After the sweater-for-a-certain-someone is finished, I'm going to knit the Sophia Loren sweater using the LettLopi the ladyfriend brought back for me from Iceland (be still, my beating heart!).  Coincidentally, another woman in Hamilton did this sweater in the LettLopi as well.  It's a sign!

I've also planned out two sewing projects.  For my birthday last year, the ladyfriend's mom bought me this pattern and money for fabric.

Wish they'd just style the models in a contemporary way; why make it seem costumey?

This is the fabric I've ordered for it (see yesterday's comment about fabric made in Italy):

I am also planning on making another Alabama Chanin dress with fabric I got for Christmas a few years ago (red!).  I'm actually going to be modifying their t-shirt pattern into a dress.  I'm really excited to do some serious hand-sewing (for myself).

I think part of being "forewarned" is just understanding what's going on.  I'm looking forward to returning to yoga, and this semester has demonstrated that I can, indeed, keep up with the marking (no more papers "curing" for a week at home before I read them - hah!).  I can cut myself some slack while taking advantage of whatever time becomes available.

And in case you're concerned, there are chicken bones in the fridge ready to be made into stock.

On My Mind Mondays: Toward a Common Goal

Mulberry is fascinated by the pressure canner

• Independent bookstores:  I listened to a Fresh Air interview with Ann Patchett who was compelling in her argument for buying books at actual bookstores and not online.  More often than not, I buy online because it's often less expensive and conducive to off-hour (aka impulse) purchasing; however, I do value bookstores, and frankly, I can afford to pay full price to support local economies so that's what I'm planning on doing whenever possible from here on out.

• Wabi Sabi (continued):  I'm reading Simply Imperfect:  Revisiting the Wabi-Sabi House by Robyn Griggs Lawrence, and her explanation of the concepts and how to make them part of one's life resonates with me.  I cannot claim to be a minimalist by any stretch of the imagination, but my life seems to be a constant work-in-progress where I continue to try to whittle things down and get everything closer to what I value.  I'll be working on slowly decluttering spaces around me.

• Eggplant with Anchovies:  This is what I'm making for dinner tonight.

• My upcoming trip to Oakland:  I'm off for a visit with the boy and will have a lot of time on my own (the boy's got to work).  I've signed up for a sashiko workshop already, and a friend has recommended I check out the Ai Weiwei installation on Alcatraz.  While I'll be seeing the boy daily, part of this trip feels as though I'm on my own, which is quite interesting.  What will I do with my time?

• Fashion Blows:  My friend, Abi Slone, curated this exhibit showcasing some of the late, great Isabella Blow's clothing.  It's got a short run, and I'm going to Toronto to see it tomorrow. 

• Interrogation of the Closet:  I've been trying to "curate" my closet/wardrobe for the last couple of years, slowly.  I'm working with the theme "Making my closet work better, not bigger."  Now it's time for the inquisition, as it were.  I'm going to take each rail of clothing (yes, there are more than one), divide it based on how often or the last time I wore an item, and then figure out what stays and what goes.  In conjunction with that, I've conceived of a creative nonfiction piece that deals with the process.

• Apples:  Today I've got to utilize the last of our apples.  Applesauce & hard cider are on the schedule.

I've never seen Gwendolyn so fully sacked out on the DVR before.

Harvest & More: Preserving the Good Stuff

 

 

 

A weekend in the Berkshires can be quite energizing!

We spent Canadian Thanksgiving in the Berkshires with friends; it seemed like a good idea to go south for the holiday because not only does most everyone love the opportunity to have two Thanksgivings, but also we wanted to go to New England because it's freaking beautiful at this time of the year.   It was, by far, one of the most relaxing weekends we've had in awhile.

So this weekend I've had a bit of a making/cooking/canning spurt.  It's been fantastic!

Yogurt, courtesy of the yogurt maker I bought from Goodwill.  I feel like a fool waiting so long to make it because it is really easy, and it works even if you put the lids on during the process (whoops!).

And then there was...

• canning the traditionally fermented kosher dills; frankly I was afraid they might've gone too far.  I had them in the brine for 6 weeks, easy, but they are very tasty.  I use the recipe from Canning for a New Generation
• cooking and canning apple butter (it's in the crock); also from Canning for a New Generation
• I made some elderberry winter tonic syrup (not shown); it's supposed to be good for staving off colds and what-not during the winter.  I put some into my homemade yogurt, and it was delicious
• and I tried my hand at making some cottage cheese.  Not entirely sure about it, yet.

The magazine in the foreground has the recipe I use for applesauce.  It's from the November 1998 issue of Martha Stewart Living (they don't have the original recipe online; we've noticed that with some other MS favourites from the '90s).  I'm hoping to make that tomorrow along with starting some hard cider (yay!).  There could also be a batch of chicken stock...

Tomorrow will also be the start of a regular Monday feature called "On My Mind Mondays."  This is not a spoiler, but clearly I've been thinking about the shape and future of this blog.

Soup's On

It's soup season, and I spent Monday fortifying my stock supply.

I used my pressure canner (what I call the time machine since it looks a little like it came from the '60s TV show Lost in Space) to make it shelf stable.  For you pressure canner users, I used 10lbs of pressure for 20 minutes.  Works like a charm.  I'm over freezing stock in glass jars.  Lately, even when filled with an inch or so of headroom, I get cracks.  A little frozen flat in ziploc bags isn't bad, but I have more shelf space than freezer space.

Danger!  Danger, Will Robinson!

Respect the pressure canner, and it will be your best friend.

Some Things I Learned From a Long Trip - Projects

When we go to Nova Scotia I always bring a number of projects along since I know I'll have hours of uninterrupted time and no pressing outside obligations to attend to.  These projects include crafts, of course, as well as writing and art projects as well.  Berlin was no different.  What was different was the amount of time we had - almost three times as much time.

However, Berlin was different in that we weren't in a rural environment, with few distractions.  We were in a city that not only had things we wanted to do and see but people we met and wanted to hang out with.  What has this taught me about packing projects?

Firstly, let me outline what I brought with me and their status:

1. Yarn and the incomplete Tourist Sweater - finished
2. Beginning of and yarn for the Soho Smocked Dress - finished
3. A crossstitch kit that I'm 3/4 of the way through - didn't touch
4. The Alabama Chanin dress I started at the workshop last year - made some serious progress
5. My collection of short stories - shopped around a little as well as submitted individual stories
6. Drafts of stories and novel - worked on a couple of shorts
7. Two university classes to design - started thinking about.

That should've been enough, no?  But it was clearly (yes, clearly) unreasonable for me to take a "no new craft materials for a year" pledge.  Besides going to Liberty of London where it would've taken some kind of twisted logic to leave without fabric, there were yarns that I haven't seen in Canada or the US (okay, maybe I wasn't looking for them either, but still), and when taking one of our guests to four different yarn shops (need to write reviews of them), it was too tempting.  In fact, I have a new saying, "If you leave a yarn shop without buying any yarn, a sheep somewhere cries."  (This applies to "cotton sheep" as well.)  I ended up buying four skeins of sock yarn (two to give as souvenirs to friends, one for a holiday present, and one for me), yarn for the Loop Entrelac Tank that I actually finished in Berlin but need to readjust the straps on, yarn for scarves for the ladyfriend and myself (also completed in Berlin), and yarn for the Carnaby skirt I plan to make.  I also (yes, there's more) had some Alabama Chanin fabric brought by a visitor so I could make a skirt and t-shirt that I badly needed.  I wear that skirt like a pair of jeans right now - all the time (photos will follow one day).

What I'm Wearing to Teach Today: Self-Portrait with Canning Supplies

You want pickles?  I got pickles.

Shirt:  Rachael Mara
Skirt:  St. John's
Shoes:  Manolo Blahnik

Bush(el)-Whacked!

I really had no idea how many cucumbers would be in a bushel.  My logic went something like this -

1. The farmstand is selling pickling cucumbers by the bushel, 
2. I want to make pickles, 
3. I guess I need a bushel.

No.  I did not need a bushel.  But a bushel I have, and now I've got to gear up for some crazy-ass pickle making: long fermented kosher, quick(er) kosher, bread & butter, and cucumber relish.

2013 may end up being the year of the pickle.

Sometimes a Chasm Is a Nice Place to Fall Into

 Yes, I'm currently in the timewarp that is Nova Scotia.  (Yikes!  It's been a long time since I've posted and so much has happened in the intervening few weeks, but let's save that for later.)  Each year we get better and better at relaxing more quickly.  When we first started coming here, we'd still be whirring about in our heads about things that needed to be done.  Now, those things still come up, but we're finding it easier and easier to give over to the deep chill that is Nova Scotia.

We now make it a point to come during the last week of August so we can take advantage of the local lobster season.  It did, however, feel at times like it was getting out of hand. I basically was on a lobster murder spree.  We "processed" 16 lobsters over the course of about a week.  Yes, 16.  I know - crazy.  But what is great (and so crazy in its own way) is that I brought my pressure canner and have canned a dozen or so pints of lobster stock.  Oh, how I'm loving the pressure canner, and oh, how I love lobster stock.

We froze some of the lobster meat to use later in our stay, but we did have the traditional lobster boil, lobster rolls, lobster macaroni salad (oh yeah), and chili lobster (courtesy of a NYTimes recipe).  That's already a whole lot of lobster love.

Another Week in Paradise

 

First things first.  Right after my last blog post, we came back to the cottage and a gorgeous evening.  It felt like a reward for sitting through a number of cold and wet days.  The weather since has been a good mix of sunny days with overcast ones.  Sometimes, in the fog of reminiscence, you forget that not all the days of your holiday are sunny.  In short, the weather overall has been quite favourable.

The crafting has taken on a different focus.  I managed to finish the second sock of a pair destined to be a gift, but knitting has fallen to the wayside.  In its place is some Shake-n-Make work.  The photo above is of one element of our site-specific installation for the Hamilton Supercrawl in September.  We’re making reverse appliqué beaded “cozies” for three concrete planters along James Street North.  The holidays, for which most of my current knitting is destined, are at least four months away.  The Supercrawl is only five or six weeks away.  The great thing with priorities is that you can almost always shuffle them around (just ask my collection of short stories – sigh).

Yes, I Can

I guess canning season is officially open for me.  Today it was pickled okra, courtesy of Imbibe magazine (how can you not love a magazine whose subtitle is "Liquid Culture"?) and pickled fiddleheads.  I got the recipe for that one from the blog, Fat of the Land, which I was led to by Well Preserved.  Huzzah!
   I tried out my new Weck jars alongside the tried-and-true traditional Bernardin jars.  I think I need a little more experience with the Weck, but I'm into them.  They're really beautiful and will make great gifts; however, they'll be the kind of jars that if you get one and you don't return it to me when you finish the contents, you won't get another.  That's actually a point of etiquette explained to me by a friend who does indeed return her used jars as well as the tins the ladyfriend puts brittle in each year.

(Almost) Over too soon

(The "yard horse" down the street from us) 

While it feels like we’ve only just settled into our routines here, we leave in just a few days.  This year I didn’t quite plow through as many books, complete as many projects, or read all the NYTimes Book Reviews I’d brought with me.  Such is life.
    I did finish the Elizabeth George book (With No One to Witness).  Reading mysteries is a must-do here, and I’m glad I got at least one in.  Although had it not been over 700 pages in length, I might very well have read another one too.
    As for knitting, I’m deep into my Noro sweater, which is giving me great love and satisfaction.  The Cash Iroha yarn is amazing.  I’ve finished the back (making a few adjustments like adding a selvedge stitch at each end and leaving the shoulder stitches live so I can use a Kitchner stitch to put the sweater together) and have started the front.
    Unfortunately, the love didn’t extend to the tank top I’d actually finished and stitched together.  Yes, after working the armhole a couple of times, I realized that the whole thing was too big and that I would never wear it in its current manifestation.  I’ve taken it apart and already ripped out the back.  I’ll rip out the front when I get back.  I just couldn’t stand it as it was and will reknit it (once I recover from the trauma of needing to “put it down”) in the smaller size.
    We’re not always just hanging around the cottage.  Last week we took a day trip out to Joggins (fossil cliffs) and Cap D’Or.

We’d never been to Joggins (the photo above is my feet on the rocks of the beach), but it was pretty cool.  We found what we think are fossils, which we photographed (on Liss’ camera).  I was really good and resisted my acquisitive desires by not taking one home with me (you can only take a fossil if you have a permit).  I was tempted.
    We’ve been to the Lighthouse on Cape D’Or before.  It was our “nice” dinner out – the restaurant is good and the setting is gorgeous.   However, my choice of footwear for the evening teetered dangerously on the border of foolhardy and stupid.
    Here’s the path:

Here’s where we were headed:

And this is what I wore on my feet:

    I am, however, determined and managed to make it down unscathed.  Going back up was no problem (as anyone who wears heels knows – up is always easier).
    We saw some incredible riptides after dinner:

And a great moon over the horizon sent us home.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I canned some beans from Green Dragon, a local organic biodynamic farm and B&B.

Before:

After:

Two pounds of beans actually ended up making four quart jars of pickled beans.  Because of the relatively small yield, I generally tend to hoard them rather than give them as gifts.  Last year I made a ton of strawberry jams and raspberry jam, but not this year.  I still have strawberry products left from last year, and we just didn’t make it to raspberry picking this year.  I imagine if we’d been here for our usual stay (four weeks), it might have happened.  But maybe not.
    And finally, I’m back running.  After taking advice from both my father and my physiotherapist (sent her an email with a photo documenting area of pain), I’m back on track.  The problem may have stemmed from my shoes so I’ve ordered a new pair, put new insoles in the old pair, and am switching between my old running shoes and my trail running shoes.  I’ve been running steadily since last Friday and did an 11-mile run on Sunday.  So far, so good.
    From here we’re going to the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival (stopping near home along the way).  Yes, we’re headed to “the land.”  It’ll be our first time.  I’m looking forward to making Liss learn how to swing dance and playing some ultimate Frisbee.  We’ll see how it all goes.