A friend asked me the other day what books I would recommend as a good resource as she and her husband are looking at moving to a small holding as well. I have collected some good books over the years but I'm sure others could add to the list. The net, of course, is invaluable and there are innumerable sites covering every topic she could hope to research.
Other peoples blogs are brilliant; I like reading about the day to day journey as well as getting tips on all sorts of things.
So here is the list from my bookshelf;
The New Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency. by John Seymour. (Known as the father of modern self-sufficiency. an English book but translates well to Australian living)
Living the Good Life by Linda Cockburn. (Aussie book, full of how-to's, great ideas, recipes)
Backyard Self-Sufficiency and Chook Book both by Jackie French. (Aussie of course)
A slice of Organic Life. Editor -in -Chief Sheherazade Goldsmith (all sorts of wonderful topics covered)
Choosing Eden by Adrienne Langman. (More of just an interesting read about the move into self - suff by a couple of city exects. From Sydney to Nana Glen)
Grow your own Drugs and A year with James Wong. both by.....you guessed it ...James Wong. (great books on growing your own plants for simple remedies. Fascinating books)
This is a good short list of what I've used and enjoyed. I've got many more on gardening, herbal remedies, cooking, chemical free living etc. but these ones are sort of good -all-rounders. As much as I love the net I really like having a book on the shelf so I can grab it on the way past just to check something. And there's nothing like taking a bit of time out of a busy day and curling up with a good book. Bliss!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Back on track.
It was a lovely cool morning here today - a promise of things to come. I couldn't see the hills behind us at all as the fog hung so heavily over the tree line. A little breeze got up and the fog moved through the trees just down the back and up close to the house. It was so quiet and misty - beautiful. It doesn't fill me with dismay, this cooler weather, I'm a huge fan of autumn after the usual stifling heat of February.
Now the house is empty of tradesmen (AT LAST!!!) I can get more organised in the yard. The gardens, although an absolute priority when we first moved here have sadly taken a back seat to getting other things organised. There are only so many hours in a day and I often felt I'd run out. At least we sleep well. :) It will be great to sit down and look at our plans and ideas again and see what needs tweaking. I'm looking at putting in an experimental garden in using the wicking technique; I think its worth looking at.
The idea has never been to be fully self-sufficient - killing a chicken or anything else just isn't going to happen here. Instead I prefer the term "self-sufficient-ish". To that end I make most things from scratch and try to find ways to make our footprint as light as possible. Solar is the next thing we'll look at. We have a long way to go but we're learning all the time.
There are so many books, blogs, courses etc that can give us the tools to do what we've chosen to do. You don't need an acreage to grow veges or fruit trees - its just a matter of doing what you can where you are. Its interesting just how many people are fed up with mindless consumerism and are opting for a simpler life - to our grandparents it was just everyday living. (whats that song - Everything old is new again.) Its not easy and don't think its not time - consuming or hard work. It definitely can be both but at the end of the day there is, for us, a sense of "rightness". That's a nice feeling.
*** I named this blog - back on track. I don't know that we were ever off track but I find when my house is in an uproar and every day seems to be a frustrating chase after tradies my sense of peace slips a little. (that could just be a massive understatement!) It is a means to an end and I want my home to be warm and inviting for Mark and I, family and friends so "ya gotta do what ya gotta do!" lol.
Now the house is empty of tradesmen (AT LAST!!!) I can get more organised in the yard. The gardens, although an absolute priority when we first moved here have sadly taken a back seat to getting other things organised. There are only so many hours in a day and I often felt I'd run out. At least we sleep well. :) It will be great to sit down and look at our plans and ideas again and see what needs tweaking. I'm looking at putting in an experimental garden in using the wicking technique; I think its worth looking at.
The idea has never been to be fully self-sufficient - killing a chicken or anything else just isn't going to happen here. Instead I prefer the term "self-sufficient-ish". To that end I make most things from scratch and try to find ways to make our footprint as light as possible. Solar is the next thing we'll look at. We have a long way to go but we're learning all the time.
There are so many books, blogs, courses etc that can give us the tools to do what we've chosen to do. You don't need an acreage to grow veges or fruit trees - its just a matter of doing what you can where you are. Its interesting just how many people are fed up with mindless consumerism and are opting for a simpler life - to our grandparents it was just everyday living. (whats that song - Everything old is new again.) Its not easy and don't think its not time - consuming or hard work. It definitely can be both but at the end of the day there is, for us, a sense of "rightness". That's a nice feeling.
*** I named this blog - back on track. I don't know that we were ever off track but I find when my house is in an uproar and every day seems to be a frustrating chase after tradies my sense of peace slips a little. (that could just be a massive understatement!) It is a means to an end and I want my home to be warm and inviting for Mark and I, family and friends so "ya gotta do what ya gotta do!" lol.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Quiet Weekend.
Am so looking forward to a couple of quiet days! It would be even better if Mark were on days off but he's only off on Sunday (I think)
My eldest and his partner are coming over on Sunday afternoon, hopefully for dinner, so we'll probably fire up the barbeque. I got some premium mince yesterday so I'm about to go make some herb hamburgers for the barbie, and the left-over mince I'll use to make meatballs ahead of time so we can have spag and meatballs through the week sometime. I got some gorgeous tomatoes at a great price so I'll make a nice Italian sauce to go with them, (with some yummy fresh basil from the garden) Pop in the freezer then away you go for a quick scrummy meal next week.
Cooking day tomorrow to fill the freezer - it doesn't stay full very often around here! As usual we have an abundance of eggs so I'll be able to use a heap up and send the kids home with some.
I've been concerned about the amount of food wastage that has happened here lately. I don't know why it's suddenly happening- perhaps everyone is going through a "not-hungry" phase. Anyway I'm making a concentrated effort to make sure left-overs are used up so today we had wraps for lunch. Rye wraps with cos lettuce, grated carrot and cheese, sliced mushrooms, avacado, tomato, dressing and the marinaded chicken (sliced thinly - yum) we had yesterday for dinner. Normally I'd leave the chicken in the fridge in case anyone wanted a bit later on and then it would be forgotten.
I know eveyone has "lurkers" in their fridge, lol, but I'm really trying to cut down on that. I really hate seeing good food thrown out.
Off to make the burgers and meatballs. As well as a delizioso sauce to go with the meatballs!
Ciao. :)
My eldest and his partner are coming over on Sunday afternoon, hopefully for dinner, so we'll probably fire up the barbeque. I got some premium mince yesterday so I'm about to go make some herb hamburgers for the barbie, and the left-over mince I'll use to make meatballs ahead of time so we can have spag and meatballs through the week sometime. I got some gorgeous tomatoes at a great price so I'll make a nice Italian sauce to go with them, (with some yummy fresh basil from the garden) Pop in the freezer then away you go for a quick scrummy meal next week.
Cooking day tomorrow to fill the freezer - it doesn't stay full very often around here! As usual we have an abundance of eggs so I'll be able to use a heap up and send the kids home with some.
I've been concerned about the amount of food wastage that has happened here lately. I don't know why it's suddenly happening- perhaps everyone is going through a "not-hungry" phase. Anyway I'm making a concentrated effort to make sure left-overs are used up so today we had wraps for lunch. Rye wraps with cos lettuce, grated carrot and cheese, sliced mushrooms, avacado, tomato, dressing and the marinaded chicken (sliced thinly - yum) we had yesterday for dinner. Normally I'd leave the chicken in the fridge in case anyone wanted a bit later on and then it would be forgotten.
I know eveyone has "lurkers" in their fridge, lol, but I'm really trying to cut down on that. I really hate seeing good food thrown out.
Off to make the burgers and meatballs. As well as a delizioso sauce to go with the meatballs!
Ciao. :)
Monday, March 14, 2011
Hellooooooo!
After way too long I'm back to blogging.
There's been so much going on here there just doesn't seem enough hours in the day.
It's been a mad-house with tradesmen coming and going. I can't say I've been impressed with some of the service; communication doesn't seem high on the priority list of some businesses. The carpet went down three weeks ago but the door cover strips - I don't know if that's what you call them - were the wrong colour. After numerous calls and promised visits, as well as two actual visits with the wrong strips, we have finally got the right colour coming hopefully this week.
The wardrobe people changed the install day twice but they will be here this Wednesday. The ducted air-con is being installed tomorrow; though I'm not sure if that will take just the one day or two. The blind man came last week and put in one of the blinds but had to re-order the other one as it had arrived damaged from the carrier! He ended up putting the second one up but just to cover the window - it actually looks fine - but is damaged so he'll bring the new one out this week. Arrrrggggghhhhhhh!!! By the way these were not back -yard johnnies but reputable well advertised companies.
The garden has been a bit sad; I think the heat has wrought a terrible toll! I pulled the peanuts yesterday so they have to dry now for a couple of weeks and then we can have a little snack - hopefully. I saw the plant at the nursery and, as usual, thought I'd give them a go. :) I don't think I'll be making batches of peanut butter any time soon ( I think theres about 25 peanuts lol) but it will be interesting to see what they taste like in a couple of weeks.
We had a sad time this last week. Aunty Joyce was my Mum's sister and has been quite ill in the last month or so. She had Parkinson's and Alzheimer's and sadly developed pneumonia. I was able to see her a few times and say some goodbyes. Mum and Aunty Joyce were both very special people, as different as chalk and cheese but very close despite their different personalities. Its comforting and lovely to think that now they're reunited. My brother came from Perth and my sister and brother-in-law from Nambucca Heads and as sad as the circumstances it was lovely to see them all. We don't see each other very often and rarely the four of us together so we really enjoyed the short visit. A.J. would have been thrilled (but surprised I think) to see how many family and friends there were at her funeral which really was just a lovely celebration of her life.
When he was here my brother-in-law informed me he follows my blog and it was about time I did an update! Here you are Bazz. :)
I'm about to go through the freezer and pantry to update what I have there and then I'll get onto the menus for the next fortnight.
First though I'll go sit down with a cold drink and watch a genealogy program. :) Gotta feed the obsession.
There's been so much going on here there just doesn't seem enough hours in the day.
It's been a mad-house with tradesmen coming and going. I can't say I've been impressed with some of the service; communication doesn't seem high on the priority list of some businesses. The carpet went down three weeks ago but the door cover strips - I don't know if that's what you call them - were the wrong colour. After numerous calls and promised visits, as well as two actual visits with the wrong strips, we have finally got the right colour coming hopefully this week.
The wardrobe people changed the install day twice but they will be here this Wednesday. The ducted air-con is being installed tomorrow; though I'm not sure if that will take just the one day or two. The blind man came last week and put in one of the blinds but had to re-order the other one as it had arrived damaged from the carrier! He ended up putting the second one up but just to cover the window - it actually looks fine - but is damaged so he'll bring the new one out this week. Arrrrggggghhhhhhh!!! By the way these were not back -yard johnnies but reputable well advertised companies.
The garden has been a bit sad; I think the heat has wrought a terrible toll! I pulled the peanuts yesterday so they have to dry now for a couple of weeks and then we can have a little snack - hopefully. I saw the plant at the nursery and, as usual, thought I'd give them a go. :) I don't think I'll be making batches of peanut butter any time soon ( I think theres about 25 peanuts lol) but it will be interesting to see what they taste like in a couple of weeks.
We had a sad time this last week. Aunty Joyce was my Mum's sister and has been quite ill in the last month or so. She had Parkinson's and Alzheimer's and sadly developed pneumonia. I was able to see her a few times and say some goodbyes. Mum and Aunty Joyce were both very special people, as different as chalk and cheese but very close despite their different personalities. Its comforting and lovely to think that now they're reunited. My brother came from Perth and my sister and brother-in-law from Nambucca Heads and as sad as the circumstances it was lovely to see them all. We don't see each other very often and rarely the four of us together so we really enjoyed the short visit. A.J. would have been thrilled (but surprised I think) to see how many family and friends there were at her funeral which really was just a lovely celebration of her life.
When he was here my brother-in-law informed me he follows my blog and it was about time I did an update! Here you are Bazz. :)
I'm about to go through the freezer and pantry to update what I have there and then I'll get onto the menus for the next fortnight.
First though I'll go sit down with a cold drink and watch a genealogy program. :) Gotta feed the obsession.
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