Home Page
   Articles
       links
About Us    
Traders        
Recipes            
Latest Articles
... the sky is baby blue, and the just-unfurling leaves ...
Page Previous  1, 2, 3 ... 270, 271, 272 ... 423, 424, 425  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Downsizer Forum Index -> Grow Your Own
Author 
 Message
Jam Lady



Joined: 28 Dec 2006
Posts: 2501
Location: New Jersey, USA
PostPosted: Sat Jul 01, 17 7:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Mistress Rose - I pit, lightly sugar, and freeze sour cherries for cobblers later in the year. Make mostada, a sweet preserve with mustard. Rumtopf, but use brandy rather than rum. Etc.

Here are two pictures for you:



and



Gregotyn - schlepping is Yiddish for hauling or carrying something heavy or awkward.

I once saw a furniture / house contents moving truck with this company name on the side: The Seven Schlepper Brothers. Made me smile.

State of New Jersey didn't manage to get a budget signed / authorized by Friday so - among other things - all state parks, camp grounds, and beaches are closed until further notice. Just in time for the 4 day holiday weekend. Not good.

Mistress Rose



Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15542

PostPosted: Sun Jul 02, 17 8:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Thanks for the pictures and information Jam Lady. I didn't actually know what schlepping was either, but more or less worked it out as I have seen it used in American English now and again. The cherry recipes sound lovely. That basket looks useful. I think it came from first nations traditions didn't it?

In the UK we have rather lost our wood traditions as we went through the industrial revolution before anyone else, and so metal and china were rather more easily available to ordinary people. We also don't have as much woodland, being a small, rather heavily populated island than most of Europe and of course other continents.

Cassandra has been posting on Facebook Gregotyn, and seems all right. She tends to do that on her phone I think, and this on her computer, so she may have line problems again.

Will an inch be enough to take your floor above the high level water table Gregotyn? An alternative might be to put in a suspended floor on brick posts so the water goes underneath it. Make sure it has plenty of ways to get out so it doesn't just sit there.

Fired the kiln again yesterday as we have over 40 bags of charcoal still on order, although 22 are new order. Seemed to go all right. In addition, our volunteer group cleared the public footpath down the lane which was getting a bit overgrown, and we finally identified the plant that has been eluding us for months; wall lettuce. Later on I made another spoon out of field maple.

cassandra



Joined: 27 Mar 2013
Posts: 1733
Location: Tasmania Australia
PostPosted: Sun Jul 02, 17 8:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Mmmmm cherries - as MR says, I do FB on the phone and computer at home and at present with most of the kitchen in the loungeroom, getting the cord to stretch to the sofa is a challenge. On the up side, the sofa is right in front of the fire which is a good thing as we have had a series of subzero nights of late.

Cooking is a real challenge as the cutlery is in the lounge the spices in the shed, the pots in the gardening shed and I still don't have vinyl. We had a forecast of snow to 300metres so they cancelled. So did the weather gods, but it was definitely icy - lots of bad accidents on black ice. Minus degrees last night, and again tonight. Oh, and I ran out of gas so don't have a cooktop at present, bangers and mash tonight reheated in the microwave.

I have created all three steeks in the vest now, and I have to say that between reducing either side every second round, working out where I am up to in the fair isle when I resume the other side of the steek and generally mucking around, I think I will in future just create the opening and resort to flat knitting. Or maybe I will get better as I go along. We will see.

I have also been disrupted by a bit of a political crisis in my Party of choice. Essentially one of the State groups operates on a different system to the rest of us and since they have the money use their position to bully the rest of the States into submission. They are great on extreme left wing theory and consider themselves master strategists, but they instructed their senator to vote against a piece of legislation that the rest of the states had negotiated to an acceptable position. And it was a major embarrassment. The Party leader has excluded this Senator from future decisions until the situation is remedied and the State in question is crying foul, and it turns out the Senator in question is in early Alzheimers. So it's a bit of a mess really. Since I am currently non-financial I think I will stay out of it till the dust settles, but if it settles in favour of the communist element I will not be renewing - there are limits and that one is a bit too far beyond the limit.

So sorry for my prolonged absences, and it's good to hear all is going well for you. Dpack I will implement your suggestion. And Gregotyn, I love your strategy for avoiding washing. If I had any past-use by pants I would employ it myself!

Mistress Rose



Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15542

PostPosted: Sun Jul 02, 17 8:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Glad you managed to find all the bits in the same place to post Cassandra. I didn't realise all the ramifications of the split from the FB posts.

I was going to add a couple more points to my post. Jam Lady, your political system seems rather odd to me, although I am sure ours does to you, but they seem to keep getting crises like that, which is rather disconcerting for everyone concerned.

We had a problem in the woods yesterday. Husband went up early, about 7am to light the kiln and found someone had cut through the chain which holds a locking post into the ground on the track into the woods. He found the post in the bushes up the track. Doing some tracking later, and speaking to someone who lives down the lane, it was a Jiminy or similar small 4 wheel drive used and it happened some time between 10pm the previous night and well before 7 am that morning as husband didn't hear the vehicle. Police have been informed, but no other damage, and the vehicle may have dents in it where it hit some fallen branches.

Rowanlady



Joined: 21 Apr 2006
Posts: 195
Location: NE Hampshire
PostPosted: Sun Jul 02, 17 11:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Hello Jam Lady and Mistress Rose

That 'back' pack makes me think of the back creels of the Western Isles off Scotland - used for carrying anything - fish, seaweed, turf, potatoes, heather, etc. to the crofts - very suitable where there were few roads, steep heathery moors, frequent little burns

I have seen pictures of women carrying them with fish - walking along rough tracks and knitting away industriously - no time for idle hands !

Pony panniers were made on a similar principle - I found a site showing some of the techniques and individual islands variations

https://wovencommunities.org/collection/creels-of-lewis-a-comparison-of-techniques-and-materials/

The Islands are a wonderful source of information and inspiration for archeologists and re-enactors - great holiday too - far away from a small town in NE Hampshire

Jam Lady



Joined: 28 Dec 2006
Posts: 2501
Location: New Jersey, USA
PostPosted: Sun Jul 02, 17 2:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Rowanlady, welcome to the discussion. My basket is commercially made, acquired when I worked at a feed and grain store in Connecticut a long tome ago. I also have a bushel basket made in the same style.

I've take a few basketry classes, mostly working with a blend of commercial and foraged material to make small baskets. Gathered material includes grape vines, wisteria, kudzu, Virginia creeper vines and roots, and long needled pine needles for a coiled basket.

Defrosted the big freezer in the basement yesterday, discovering that A) I have more venison than I remembered and B) ditto for sour cherries and double ditto for blueberries, plus some cranberries. When I first had a freezer I kept a notebook with columns for in / out / use by information to help me keep track of things. Would start again but I was so intent on getting things back in that it couldn't happen. Shall make a more concerted effort to use things up.

To begin with I will make: blueberry sour cherry jam, sour cherry cranberry jam, blueberry cranberry jam. Understand they might segue into a conserve (adding finely cut lemon and / or orange). Perhaps I shall even look at the book I wrote on preserving to see what I suggested to readers (grin.)

Mistress Rose



Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15542

PostPosted: Mon Jul 03, 17 5:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Thanks for that link Rowanlady. I have never been that far north; Edinburgh on one occasion is my only foray north of the border. There seems to be a tradition of using whatever was available to make baskets in various places. One type of hazel frame basket I am making is Welsh, and the other type is described as a 'gypsy' basket, and could be Hampshire/Sussex.

Jam Lady, I have loads of blackberries and some sloes in my freezer, among other things. I really should make some bramble jelly, bramble wine and sloe gin, but things have been rather busy lately. I know the wild raspberries are ripe, so I must take a punnet up and pick some today or tomorrow.

Jam Lady



Joined: 28 Dec 2006
Posts: 2501
Location: New Jersey, USA
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 1:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Somewhat overcast this morning. Today is the Glorious Fourth (fireworks booming last night and the night before). We'll be going over to neighboring friends for the traditional hot dog & hamburger cook-out. I'll bake and bring a sour cherry cobbler.

I finished with the brandied / rumtopf-style single-fruit sour cherries.

Gently heat, mash, then strain strawberries. Repeat with raspberries. Strain. Combine equal parts of each juice and sugar. Heat until sugar dissolves. Cool. Add equal amount of brandy. Pour over sour cherries and cap. Now it is the waiting game for a few months.

Yesterday I made sour cherry conserve (added a diced up Seville orange excavated from the freezer when defrosting it) and sour cherry jelly. Today's conserving plan is for blueberry lavender jam.

Himself has decided the seal coating has cured sufficiently so A) move log splitter and big trailer out of their respective garage bays (I get to help with that), B) move small trailers off the weeds at the edge of the driveway (solo effort on his part), and C) bring cars back up to garage.

Rowanlady, do you want me to take, then post an image of the ash splint bushel basket, or any of the smaller baskets I made?

gregotyn



Joined: 24 Jun 2010
Posts: 2201
Location: Llanfyllin area
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 2:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Happy Thanksgiving Jam lady.
I don't know what has happened but I have been talking to you all, took a moment to look at back packs and I seem to have lost an hour's posting! I will go back to that Rowanlady when I have posted and nothing to lose!
Glad all is well with you Cassandra, just the weather to change and you will be ok I guess. I think if your Party are going communist then best retreat; there all are equal but I have observed a few are more equal than others!
I ranted on about 2 holidays in Scotland, Skebost Hotel on Skye was very good indeed, and a pub B+B in Pennan a small fishing village North of Aberdeen, so peaceful there. The landlord, ex Black Watch officer, poured the drinks at the pub at night and my other half's dubonnet and lemonade got a larger % of dubonnet in the glass, as the land lord drank a few himself!
I have Scottish blood in me from somewhere or other so the family told me.

Jam Lady, the ash carrier is really good. I suspect it is made from green wood and kept moist for a while to get the bends needed for the shape.

I expect the floor of my shed will get raised at some stage when I have moved, MR. an inch would do the job. No time now as I am going asap. I hope there was no more damage in the woods other than the lock/chain. A shame you can't coat that with some invisible paint which shows up and doesn't wash off for a few weeks!

Rowanlady



Joined: 21 Apr 2006
Posts: 195
Location: NE Hampshire
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 4:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Jam Lady - I have only once been in USA for Independence Day - visiting my sister when she lived in Lodi, NJ - that was quite a day/night

Her apartment was on the 5th floor of the block - her cat (never been outside in his life) hid in the airing cupboard for 24 hours !!

Hubby and I had been exploring New England for the previous month - he had a rather vague grasp of the American States - to the day he passed away he was totally convinced we had visited the State of New England a well as NJ, NY, RI, Mass, Maine, NH, Conn!! - as a RN man he really had no idea about maps - sea charts yes - land maps no

I would be very interested in the baskets - used to play with basketry and weaving when doing experimental archeology - alas arthritis has limited my hand mobility - button off a skirt this morning - could not thread needle to sew it back on - gggrrrrrrrr

Last edited by Rowanlady on Tue Jul 04, 17 5:00 pm; edited 1 time in total

Rowanlady



Joined: 21 Apr 2006
Posts: 195
Location: NE Hampshire
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 4:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Mistress Rose - I was born in Scotland - left Glasgow in 1962 for Southampton - lived in Hampshire ever since

On my Scottish side I have ancestors from Caithness, Kilmarnock, Musselburgh and Clydebank - all ending up involved with shipbuilding on the Clyde

My English maternal side was from County Durham - involved in coal mining

I told my sister we were the product of the Industrial Revolution - probably explains why my Dad and Mum used to escape to the mountains for fresh air

Rowanlady



Joined: 21 Apr 2006
Posts: 195
Location: NE Hampshire
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 4:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

gregotyn - I remember several trips to Skye - both hike and to climb the Cuillins - stayed at the Sligachan Hotel - still ideal for those early morning starts for climbing - happy memories

Don't think I have ever been to Pennan - one of those tiny fishing villages - a Scottish industry in extreme decline - not unlike the shipbuilding

In my garage (never had a car in it for 25+ years) are pallets around the walls, keeping garden tools, tool chests, chest freezer, and logs off the concrete floor that gets damp in winter - also has the effect of keeping some order in the place

Jam Lady



Joined: 28 Dec 2006
Posts: 2501
Location: New Jersey, USA
PostPosted: Tue Jul 04, 17 8:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Danny Macaskill extreme bike ride on the Isle of Skye's Cuillin Ridgeline

https://vimeo.com/125896742

Mistress Rose



Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15542

PostPosted: Wed Jul 05, 17 6:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Sorry Jam Lady, it only occurred to me last night that I forgot to wish you happy Independence Day. Sounds as if you had a good time anyway.

The Brandytopft sounds good. How long do you have to wait before opening?

I picked the first of the wild raspberries from the woods yesterday. We had them with home made yoghurt yesterday evening.

We bagged another 40 bags of charcoal yesterday and partly filled the kiln for another firing. The bags will fulfil our present orders and give us just a few over. The charcoal has been manic this year!

Sadly the weather has been ideal for horseflies, so husband spent most of the afternoon killing them. Think he got about half a dozen before they got him.

My parents were told that we have the right to wear the Sinclair tartan as it was granted by the Laird after our family did some work for him many years ago, but I rather doubt that as my maiden name is quite common and a trade name, so unlikely it was our branch, as we have been small farmers in the Home Counties since the 17th century.

cassandra



Joined: 27 Mar 2013
Posts: 1733
Location: Tasmania Australia
PostPosted: Thu Jul 06, 17 8:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
    

Hi Rowanlady - welcome to the fold! I love those creels they used to use, but imagine it was rather harder work than I am up for these days. And the knitting on the run - they used those perforated belt pouches to hold the left needle steady as they worked with the right needle - Not sure it is quite my style!!

The cold weather passed and is now returned. Minus 3 for tonight. Still it was a nice sunny day so waiting for the vinyl installers was not as horrid as it might have been. They were due at 9:30 and finally arrived at 12. So in the interim I headed into Oatlands and stuck a note on the window of the History Room to say it was closed for the day. Very annoying. The person who might have been able to rush in and fill the gap is presently in Far North Queensland (lucky beast) so since we are both backup for the person whose actual day it is and who remains ill, there was no-one to call upon.

Home once more I sat and paced and phoned at regular intervals so was feeling a bit snarly when they finally got there half an hour after they had informed me they were five minutes away.

But they were hard workers and did a good job. Which was a relief, since the vinyl they installed was not the vinyl I had ordered all those months ago. You might recall I described it as a beige taupe in the form of crazy paving made from well worn stone. Well, no.


Actually I like it a lot better. The other was just a cheap offcut, albeit good quality. This is good quality also, and I have always been fond of diagonal tiling. It has all the virtues of the other in terms of hiding dust, and being neutral so I am happy. Finally.

Since I am in the History Room on Friday and Sunday I will have to fit architraves, trim doors to go back on and so forth in between that sort of thing, but it while it will be fiddly work, I will be able to motor along as there is nothing in there bar the fridge stove and freezer at present. Food preparation might be a challenge, but I expect I will manage.

And yes, Happy Independence Day Jam Lady (I was a bit disconcerted about the earlier reference to Thanksgiving though - surely that is not till November?

Gregotyn, the extreme left element of the party are a bunch of armchair political theorists and wannabe revolutionaries. I suspect most still live with Mummy and Daddy and bolster their self-esteem by pretending to be rebels. They are, however, very vocal and their Senator is, as previously mentioned, a bit off in lalaland, letting her ego get the better of her loyalty to the Party. I expect they will sort themselves out once National Council has had a chance to bash out the latest issues. They are the trouble-makers though, so we will see. It is the problem of a Party that wanders from Centre Left (which is roughly where I am) and extreme and that also attracts a lot of people for whom protesting is a lifestyle. I often wonder what they will do with themselves if we ever get done the things they want done now. Probably find something else to moan about.

Post new topic   Reply to topic    Downsizer Forum Index -> Grow Your Own All times are GMT
Page Previous  1, 2, 3 ... 270, 271, 272 ... 423, 424, 425  Next
Page 271 of 425
View Latest Posts View Latest Posts

 

Archive
Powered by php-BB © 2001, 2005 php-BB Group
Style by marsjupiter.com, released under GNU (GNU/GPL) license.
Copyright © 2004 marsjupiter.com