Little House by the Railway Line

2009 Goals

Learn to make yoghurt
Pickle walnuts
~~Make marmalade~~
Perfect my granola bar recipe
Grow green beans to eat
~~Grow spinach~~
Grow peppers and winter squash
Save seeds from peppers and winter squash
Knit lots of dishcloths
Finish my hidden stars quilt
Make napkin rings
Finish cardigan back
Learn how to do water-bath-canning
Knit a pair of socks

Preserved this Year

February: Marmalade, 10 1/2 standard jars, 2 tiny jars
February: Blatjang chutney, 6 jars
March: Caramelised onion chutney, 6 jars
June: Elderflower cordial, 5 jars
June: Strawberry Jam, 7 standard jars, 3 tiny jars
June: Elderflower cordial, 4 1/2 jars (2nd batch)

Projects in Progress/ Planned

Navy and pink lap quilt
Hidden stars bed quilt
Sampler cardigan
Amish Alphabet Cross-Stitch
Knitted scrap blanket
Planned: summer blouse and skirt

Scripture Memorised this Year

Psalm 8
Psalm 103
Romans 12
Romans 13

European Madness

16:38, Thursday 13 November 2008 .. Posted in On the Madness of the World .. 2 comments .. Link

I read this and was horrified!

I knew, of course, that I never saw odd-looking vegetables at the supermarket, but it had never occurred to me that it was actually illegal. Why on earth are we throwing away 20% of our onions?! I must say I'm very pleased they've decided to scrap it - now how long will it be before they scrap the 10 remaining restricted vegetables as well.

Another thing I wonder about regarding supermarket veggies is the cleaning of them. Since I've been getting used to getting really muddy potatoes and carrots and washing them in a bowl with a nailbrush, I've realised just how tricky it is to get all the mud off. How on earth do you get them as clean as the ones in polythene bags in the shops? The only thing I can think of is they must be pressure-washed or something, which doesn't really sound like it ought to be good for the spuds... Plus, they keep much better coated in soil.

(I don't actually worry about them being perfectly clean - I tend to take the view that once they've been boiled to cook them anything harmful will be well and truly dead.)

Thoughts on a Fragmented Society

16:41, Monday 27 October 2008 .. Posted in On the Madness of the World .. 0 comments .. Link

I read this article and found it strangely unnerving.

Before G and I met, he had a lodger. An elderly gentleman whose health isn't wonderful, and who is terrified, for various reasons, of the authorities. He has almost no friends - there are about 3 people he communicates with - and no known family.

When we got married, he had to move out. He's now living in a Housing Association place a long way north. It occurred to me, when I was pondering heart disease in the light of my mother's recent operation, that if he were to collapse at home, it could be a very long time before anyone went to help.

He phones G a couple of times a week, and the other friends once each. I told G that he must be sure to notice if phone calls don't come without a sensible reason. Thankfully, G does no the name and details of the Housing Association.

Much as I find his dependency annoying at times, and the phone calls irritating (he usually phones G at work, but he phoned us on New Year's Day at about 9 am - not fun when you've been out till 3 in the morning the night before, I suddenly realised that they are very important. They seem less irritating now.

Trees in a Townscape

16:08, Thursday 16 October 2008 .. Posted in On the Madness of the World .. 0 comments .. Link

I've just received a letter (which appears to be a circular from the Council to all the offices on our street) saying they need to cut down some of the trees on the park we back onto and replace them, including two trees that are "good specimens", because "it is considered important in townscape terms to achieve a single row of uniform trees".

This all seems to be to be a total non-argument. Why do the trees need to be in a straight line? Especially given that the side of the park it's talking about isn't remotely straight anyway. Why not just replace the trees that are failing and leave the good ones there?

As my grandmother always says, the mind boggles.

About Me

Hello! I'm Jo, I'm 26 and I live in a small house in England with my husband. I work full time in an office, and in my spare time I help out with Sunday school and the church youth group. When I have time, I enjoy reading, cookery and crafts, and I'm trying to learn about the garden.

Links

The Cotton Patch
Sew and So
The World's Healthiest Foods
Daily Bread
Bible Gateway
E-Sword
The National Trust