Pondering the Myriad Things

Thanks for the useful info. Ths fungus is slowly d...

2011-04-09T07:32:06.038-06:00

Thanks for the useful info. Ths fungus is slowly destroying my forest at the cottage. You're right,it seems to be becoming a very noticeable problem on the prairies!

"Deeply primal" - yes, exactly! I have ...

2010-11-29T22:12:08.123-07:00

"Deeply primal" - yes, exactly! I have a camping oven that I put on the wood stove to bake in - I have a feeling your Baker's Oven is a bit more substantial and oven-like, yes? Sounds wonderful!

A wood stove is a comfort, in so many ways. We ha...

2010-11-29T21:43:51.905-07:00

A wood stove is a comfort, in so many ways.

We have our new Nectre Bakers Oven in place now and have been able to actually BAKE in it (and cook on the surface too). Having the kettle over the stove is a wonderful thing - hot water on demand, but ... different!

It's such a deeply primal joy, being warmed by a fire. Aaaah. :)

Hi Bev! How nice of all of you to come and commen...

2010-11-28T16:13:00.522-07:00

Hi Bev! How nice of all of you to come and comment, since I've pretty much fallen of the face of planet blog of late :)

Wet wood is no fun, that's for sure. The waiting method definitely doesn't work under those conditions. Keep warm and dry!

We've been heating with wood this year too and...

2010-11-28T15:36:33.169-07:00

We've been heating with wood this year too and I am loving it. I've tried waiting for the wood to ignite on embers, but I think our wood is too wet for that.

We find the house gets almost too warm at times but we are still learning to regulate the temperature. What a change from living in an underinsulated house with electric baseboard heating!

I've missed your ponderings!

Hello MofS - thanks for stopping by and taking the...

2010-11-28T13:59:43.929-07:00

Hello MofS - thanks for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment :) We supplement our natural gas heat with our woodstove, installed several years ago when natgas prices started to get so high. It does help keep the house cozy and the bills manageable :) We have a woodlot and just burn deadfall or other scavanged wood. My father-in-law on Vancouver Island (Saanich Peninsula) does what you do and goes to get wood from clearcut areas - makes a lot more sense than just burning it in big piles for no reason! Thanks for the well wishes and I hope you have a snug winter as well :)

Wonderful, Theresa. I kicked the fossil fuel heat...

2010-11-28T11:45:16.560-07:00

Wonderful, Theresa. I kicked the fossil fuel heating this year and went the wood stove route - and I'm loving it. Of course with the ocean a block away we don't get your winters but I find that a fire of about 6-hours duration keeps my place comfortable for a full day which must speak volumes for modern home insulation.

Around here the forest companies license scavengers who go in and clean up felled trees left around after a clear cut. It used to be the big companies would simply bulldoze them into a pile and burn them on the slops before replanting. Now I get to buy that waste wood to burn in my own stove.

Have a snug winter

Cheers

Hi Liz! Ya, I've been lying low here for a wh...

2010-11-28T10:05:15.053-07:00

Hi Liz! Ya, I've been lying low here for a while. I'm going to try and post more often, but keep it short. Hope you and yours are doing well!

Nice to see you, Theresa! I've missed your pos...

2010-11-28T10:02:50.856-07:00

Nice to see you, Theresa! I've missed your posts.

Mrnoself- thanks for coming by and posting :) You ...

2010-10-22T20:59:59.931-06:00

Mrnoself- thanks for coming by and posting :) You make some thought-provoking points. Mindful eating is certainly not easy. I do like to take the time to remember where the food came from and all the people and resources that went into it before it came into my hands. The universe in each bite, really. :)

I think mindful eating can be difficult. It's ...

2010-10-22T03:10:06.062-06:00

I think mindful eating can be difficult. It's a great way of appreciating the simplicty of eating for survival and also gain pleasure from the act of eating. I think often eating is done for comfort.It's a great way to self soothe. It can also be an ethical action and a way of interacting with the world that is highly meaningful. Interesting post.

Hi Barry - thanks for coming by and taking the tim...

2010-09-21T08:38:44.488-06:00

Hi Barry - thanks for coming by and taking the time to comment. I can relate to what you're saying. A couple years back I was visiting some relatives in Phoenix and they didn't think water was a problem - they would just divert more flow from going downstream to Mexico they said. I was stunned.

Here in the desert, water has an urgency that'...

2010-09-21T02:58:02.503-06:00

Here in the desert, water has an urgency that's hard to miss if you're paying attention, and yet there's still an amazing amount of neglect and waste.

Hi Jerry - that makes a lot of sense, for sure. I...

2010-09-03T20:24:03.097-06:00

Hi Jerry - that makes a lot of sense, for sure. I know I do certainly like to start cooking and baking at that time of year, with all the 'taste-tests' that involves - I will pay attention to that, thanks!

Congrats on the inspiration and finding/making use...

2010-09-03T20:14:22.872-06:00

Congrats on the inspiration and finding/making use of a resource to help you along your path. I would offer a reminder that appetite can shift with the seasons as well. We tend to be hungrier in autumn and winter as our bodies still tend to want to store energy for winter. I know this is certainly the case for me. Come spring and summer my appetite really winds down, but some autumn...

Best of luck in your efforts!

Ha Theresa, I agree---I want to have cake AND enjo...

2010-09-01T21:39:53.782-06:00

Ha Theresa, I agree---I want to have cake AND enjoy it too! Nothing wrong with some of the sweets and more "negative" food choices if it's moderated and balanced with calorie burning. Sending you a big "pumped up" hug! :) Let me know if you start running---I've been thinking about trying to do an accountability type of thing from my blog. Two of my cousins and a friend are just starting up with running but have yet to decide if I want to use blog space to do it.....

Hi EcoY - hope all is well with you! The mindful ...

2010-09-01T12:29:01.423-06:00

Hi EcoY - hope all is well with you! The mindful eating is tricky indeed. I'm glad to have found something that has 'gelled' for me so that I pay attention to what I'm eating. I do a lot less gobbling of food now, and more slow enjoyment of my smaller portions. It's a change I feel really good about, and the hypocrisy of my eating habits has bothered me for a long time. I have a lot less existential guilt this way, and that can only be good!

yep, eating mindfully is tricky. i try to do it- b...

2010-09-01T07:00:09.510-06:00

yep, eating mindfully is tricky. i try to do it- but get bored with my thoughts haha.
andrew and i used to be really good at eating at the table and connecting with each other... but lately we've just been eating on the couch watching MasterChef or something.
maybe the table isn't in a good spot at our new place.

in any case, Andrew really spent some time figuring out calories, not because he wanted to lose weight, but he wanted to make sure he ate enough now that he's been working out and running.

Hi SA - you inspire me with your running! My sist...

2010-08-31T19:47:35.373-06:00

Hi SA - you inspire me with your running! My sister has started to run too, after losing 30 lbs on the same website. It makes me think I might be able to try it too! Balance is key, absolutely! I like that I can eat anything I want, so long as its a reasonable and measured portion and I balance it with exercise that I like, such as walking or riding a bike.

Glad you've found something to help you find t...

2010-08-31T18:30:53.108-06:00

Glad you've found something to help you find that balance. It definitely helps to recognize that balance really is the key to the equation--moving more when we eat more and sometimes vice versa. For those that burn many calories sometimes they've also got to eat more so as to have enough energy, as in those avid avid exercisers. My motivation came from establishing goals for myself. The veg diet helps limit my calorie consumption somewhat (although I do love sweets) but my big thing was that I wanted to be able to run again. So I started out with a goal of running every day for a month, then changed to 3-5x a week for about 5 months, and when I started to plateau then I switched it up again 7-11 miles per week to push myself to run farther each go for less outings. ;) So far running so frequently is stabilizing my weight and benefiting my emotional and mental health---definitely something I notice if I miss a few days in a row. And that's the nice thing the current goals have enough flexibility that I don't have to run every day. Sorry this is a novel! :) BUT I'm so glad for you---keep with it!! And be willing to adjust as you need while still getting what you need too!

Hi Cheyenne - every drop counts! I know when our ...

2010-08-23T17:58:49.529-06:00

Hi Cheyenne - every drop counts! I know when our power goes out and we have no way to pump water in from the cistern, I really appreciate water even more then!

I listened to the same CBC program. I am struggli...

2010-08-23T14:33:29.551-06:00

I listened to the same CBC program. I am struggling with my consumption of water. Last weekend, my husband, my baby, and I went camping. Because I had to transport all of the water we used from the communal tap, I became aware of how much water I required for every day tasks and I realized how difficult I would find it to only use my fair share. This summer my family began to shower with a bucket in the bathtub to use to water our outdoor plants, which is a start but not enough.

Hi Annie - thanks for stopping by and taking the t...

2010-08-19T13:58:23.445-06:00

Hi Annie - thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. I still love this cast iron pan, and have since been gifted with two more used ones! I'm really like your idea of a cooperative relationship rather than a buyer/seller one - more of the first kind of connection is what we all need. :)

Isn't cast iron great? It's great for savi...

2010-08-19T11:58:58.731-06:00

Isn't cast iron great? It's great for saving energy through hot-boxes too.My best find was actually a freestore find.I scored a laptop and bag from a graduating student.Recently I got two vintage wool blankets from Goodwill for $3 each.They were marked as doggy blankets because of some hairs.A run through the wash and they were fine.I think scavenging from freeboxes/stores/piles is way more fun than shopping.And by passing on your own surplus it is a cooperative relationship rather than just manufacturer to consumer.

Yes, you're absolutely right. The tar/oilsand...

2010-07-30T15:56:48.996-06:00

Yes, you're absolutely right. The tar/oilsands are a lot more water intensive in their extraction, and then the tailings lakes leak into the Athabasca river as well. Nasty.