BABY STEPS AND DONKEY BRAIN

Today I read a quote that said "You don't have to go FAST, you just have to GO" which proved to be a very timely reminder (though for me, would be even better if the word "GO" was subbed with "START").

Everyone has their own motivation and ways of tackling issues; for me some things need to happen quickly otherwise I lose interest and momentum, while other projects can be maintained on a slow burn, providing I do at least one small thing a day towards the goal in question.

So what have I been procrastinating over (other than writing my blog!)? Well it's been some time since the trees and elephant grass were cleared for the area that is to be the organic vegetable garden. I have a ton of seed either gathered from other gardeners or purchased from the seed merchant during my recent trip to the UK (anyone who knows York, knows Barnitts - a veritable Aladdin's Cave for the homemaker, DIY enthusiast and gardener alike).  So what is the hold up?

Ironically, in an effort to live more frugally and sustainably, the initial stumbling block is financial! Though I have no doubt that this is true for many who would love to leave their current lives and head to their own little homestead in the country.

Anyway - I had begun in earnest last year with my first crop of lettuce, arugula (rocket), chinese cabbage, pak choi, aubergines, carrots and tomatoes which were all doing quite nicely until the dogs arrived and brought proceedings to a halt. I take full responsibility! As puppies, they destroyed seedboxes full of seedlings, whilst I was busy taking cute photos of them doing so. In  the meantime, they were developing a perchant for fresh vegetables.  So, now to proceed with the garden means it must be dog-proof.

I had looked at a number of possibilities and finally decided that the only option was to fully fence the whole area with a 5ft high fence, however, the cost was astounding and totally beyond my means. With this option off the table, I have dragged my feet, tutted and complained and generally been hopeless about finding an alternative solution, allowing valuable weeks to slip away and not a single seed sown.  I was beginning to feel like the donkey in the story told by Susan Jeffers in her book "Feel the Fear and do it anyway!".

The story goes something like this......A rather hungry donkey stood in a field with a stack of delicious-looking feed in each corner.  The donkey weighed up his options and deliberated but could not decide which stack of feed he should make his way to.  Time passed and he continued to weigh up the pros and cons "what if I go to that one and I don't like it when I get there..." ...."what if that one way over there is better, I'll be even further away from it than I am now"......and so on; his indecision kept him rooted to the spot and unable to proceed in either direction until eventually he became so weak with hunger that he no longer had the strength to make his way to any of the piles. His procrastination and fear of making the wrong decision had paralysed him, until making no decision at all proved to be far worse......anyway, you can see what I'm getting at (by the way, I highly recommend the book - there are many gems and "Arh-ha!" moments).

So here I was feeling slightly defeated and deflated and making zero progress. Then suddenly today, whilst standing in the newly mown and very empty new garden, it was as though I had seen a light - what I like to call a "Road to Damascus" moment.  The stumbling block was not the extortionate cost of the fence, but my own inability to see that other options were available and that the original plan was not the only possible route. I could do this project in small baby steps rather than being paralysed into in-action by trying to take one huge (rather costly) leap.

THE SOLUTION?: instead of a huge garden measuring approx 150ft x 100ft, why not make one raised bed at a time and just fence it individually?  It would work and the fence would double as vertical supports for growing cucumbers, melons, squash etc., upright rather than along the ground. Eureka!

So, the man will come tomorrow to:

1. Dig a trench around an area 25 ft x 15 ft
2. Lay concrete footings for block walls to sit on
3. Build a wall all around, three or four layers high (6" breeze/cinder blocks) and some steps up
4, Line with metal netting to keep out ground burrowing pests
5. Back fill with organic top soil
6. Add a 4ft fence to sit on top of the block wall and a gate to go into the "garden-within-a-garden"
7. Add gravel boards and pea gravel to create paths between the beds
8. PLANT!

Et Voila!

So, by letting go of my original idea and considering another option, suddenly I see that there can be ACTION, which means there will be PROGRESS!  Seems so simple, yet I have been delaying making a start for weeks because of this one single issue. I can't understand why I didn't think of it before??  I guess I just needed a kick in the pants and some motivation to truly apply myself to finding an alternative solution.

The Happy Hippy 1 - Donkey Brain 0  

SUNNY SPRING SUNDAY

It's a beautiful Sunday morning here - the sun is shining, the sky is blue and there's a light fresh East wind. A tad on the humid side with temps around 30c/86F but very pleasant and Spring-like.  Trevor the gardener is here today (it's his day off from his real job as a gardener at a rather grand house in the upscale "Cap Estate" region of the island, so I get to borrow him).  It's all about the pretty kind of gardening today - the stuff you feast on with your eyes, rather than your taste buds, but no less delicious in my view.   So, Trevor is cutting grass (all 37,000 sq ft of it!) and I'm planting flowering shrubs.  I know that we are a few days beyond the official Full Moon planting times, but I tend to be less pedantic with the ornamentals than I am with the fruit and vegetables.

Had a walk around with my camera to capture some of these pretty sights and have been experimenting with a bit of photo-magic (courtesy of  picmonkey.com), whilst I have a quick coffee and chocolate break.

So here's my first attempt - a little "chocolate-boxy" but I thought I would share anyway - it can only get better from here ; ) 

Wishing everyone a fabulous Sunday, whether you are working, resting or playing....sending blue skies, sunshine, warmth and huge St Lucian SMILES!   

PUPPY PROGRESS

Well it seems I can't call them puppies anymore as they are now 17 months old, but George is definitely still growing and seems to get bigger by the day.  Everything I have read suggests that he would have reached his full size around 9 - 12 months - reality says otherwise. Ilsa, on the other hand, seems to have stopped growing a while back (but doing much better than expected being the runt of the litter and oh so tiny when she was younger). She is filling out now but, compared to George, is still small and cute - though even I look small and cute when I stand next to the big fella!

Both are reasonably well behaved and those folk who filled my head with horror stories of destroyed homes and gardens were only right to some extent.  A pair of "Curate's Eggs" - they have their good sides and then they have their "other" side. The seedlings and flowers beds that they dug up for fun or trampled whilst chasing lizards in their early days have, more or less, fully recovered and overall the garden is looking full and pretty, however, if I ever want to taste low hanging fruit, I have to beat them to it.

All said and done, I would not have them any other way - both are full of character (like the people we know, each have their very own quirks and foibles) and are lots of fun. We spend endless hours laughing at our own silliness (I include myself in that).  The story of the crazy lady with an old broom, two mad dogs and a frenzied rat being chased all around the garage will no doubt be told and re-told over time. The destroyed Barbour jacket.....and yesterday, a manic moment of trying to aid a mongoose's escape from the clutches of two very excitable hounds who, in their view, were just executing their duty, for after all a mongoose does look rather like an extremely large rat, wearing a tail toupee - thankfully the wiley mongoose remained unscathed....this time.

And now I have a hankering to get one more canine companion, just because I fancy having a dog called Reg about the place : ))  

If only I could keep my eyes open for just one more mouthful...yawn, y-a-w-n!

Hmmm, there goes another box of greens! "We just love helping the Mama!"

George snoozing in his private pool

I know you just mopped the floor, but can I come in just for a while? Can I, can I?

The Big Fella...

....and the Little Miss

George doing what George does best : )

Eh, I think my head is stuck Mama.....H-E-L-P!!

IN THE SPRING THERE WILL BE NEW GROWTH...

Well actually, no need to wait for Spring, a cooler spell and some good showers of rain have caused more than just a stirring in the garden.

My poor drought stricken cocoa sapling and avocado trees have suddenly and miraculously burst into life and what a heartwarming sight they are.

All over the island, an abundance of pink and yellow mango flowers fill the air with their heavy, cloying perfume and many have already set a good crop of fruit. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly these tropical trees go through their cycle of blossom, fruit and harvest. It's just about a month ago that we were bemoaning the end of our own mangoes and here they are again, perfectly formed and growing nicely. A what a crop! It seems to be a veritable "Embarrassment of Mangoes" to quote Ann Vanderhoof's book title.

Whilst the long, hot, summer days last a little too long (5 - 6 months) and are just a tad too hot for my liking, I am looking forward to those months when I can enjoy many mangoes straight from the tree.....or maybe mango sorbet, mango smoothie, mango mousse, mango salsa, mango martinis or daiquiris - what's your favourite way to serve or eat mangoes?

A self seeded West Indian Lime (Key Lime)

Beautiful new shoots of recovery on the avocado

A huge old mango tree in full flower and house in the background with its fresh coat of paint

 

 

CHAIRS & PALM TREES - THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

What a lucky creature I have been these last few weeks, feeling as though I've had the best of both worlds!

When one decides to up sticks and head halfway across the globe, one generally leaves with mixed emotions - a sense of trepidation, mingled with huge excitement and anticipation of what's in store - a new adventure and the road less travelled.  For some people there is an underlying concern (even fear) that they will hanker for that which is familiar and comfortable. That special store (where you know where everything is), a favourite restaurant (that knows exactly what you like, how you like it and can even be trusted with the request "surprise me!") and so on. For some, it's the thought of dealing with the disruption in their established routine built up over many years - things that have moved beyond a habit and long since gained the status of Ritual - for others, like myself, it's the very fact that there is a chance to create new rituals that is so very appealing.  Though there is one thing that we all seem to agree upon - that there is a sadness in leaving friends and family. Even for the most exciting adventure imaginable - part of you wishes they could come along for the ride and that somehow the journey would be that little bit more special, if they were part of it.

For me, I was leaving friends to be re-united with family so one-out-of-two is not so bad.

What a bonus it is then, when one of my dearest friends decide to make the journey and come to visit my island home - and even better when they come for a wedding! It's been a wonderful 14 days, and in that short time, my friend and I had slipped into a routine of post-children's-bedtime-evening-chats.

Today they should be safely returned home, to temps some 20 degrees cooler than they have left here.  Those days seem to pass extraordinarily quickly but we managed to make some new memories.

Old friends + new location + happy occasion = very special memories.

This particular friend and I have begun a ritual of sorts - that of taking a photo of the boys and I in "the special chair" from the time the eldest was a baby. On this visit, the boys and I had our photo taken on the beach under the palm trees and we joked that in years to come perhaps we will recreate the "St Lucian palm tree picture" as we do the "York chair picture" - here's hoping for very many chairs and palms trees .....

"Let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit" ~ Khalil Gibran

PASS THE PASTA !

Today was the day, the mood was right and I finally got around to trying my hand at gluten-free fresh pasta.  Finding a suitable recipe seemed to be the hardest part; an internet search threw up endless possibilities, all with a dazzling array of ingredients (given that I always thought that pasta was so very simple and made of just three ingredients - flour, eggs and water). However, no two recipes seem to be the same, which made it rather difficult to determine which sounded best.  So, I finally settled on one based almost entirely on the fact that it called for ingredients that I actually had available.

As with all these things, it was rather messy with a resultant mountain of dishes in the sink (I should say at this point, that although I cook every day, my kitchen usually looks as though the home owners have gone abroad for an extended stay - all that is missing are those white dust sheets that one sees servants in movie adaptations of Jane Austin novels throwing over the furniture before the master's carriage has even reached the end of the long driveway - how efficient they were!), anyway I digress.

The very first mouthful was a testimony to the fact that this was indeed a truly worthwhile exercise!  Silky smooth pasta dough, with a delicious spinach, ricotta and nutmeg filling, topped with my favourite tomato sauce, fresh parmasen, a twist of freshly ground black pepper and basil from the garden.  I'm pleased that I made the effort to try the challenge from my fellow blogger at http://growitcookitcanit.com and will definitely make fresh pasta again (on this occasion I made something akin to Agnolotti, but had enough dough to make a portion of noodles).  Now, my tummy is full and I'm about ready for an espresso and a piece of dark chocolate to end my sunny Sunday lunch.....if only I had someone to wash up the dishes.

 
FRESH EGG PASTA - GLUTEN FREE
- Recipe from "More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet" by Bette Hagman. 

INGREDIENTS

• ½ cup tapioca flour
• ½ cup cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons potato starch
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 4 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum
• 3 large eggs ( or 4 or 5 egg whites)
• 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil

1. In a medium bowl, combine flours, salt, and xanthan gum.
2. Beat the eggs lightly and add the oil.
3. Pour the egg-oil liquid into the flour mixture and stir.
4. This will feel much like pastry dough.
5. Work the dough into a firm ball.
6. Knead for 1 or two minutes.
7. Place the ball of dough on a potato or corn starch-floured board and roll as thin as possible**.
8. This dough is tough and, when almost transparent, will still handle well.
9. Cut into desired shape.
10. For fettuccine and spaghetti, slice very thin strips.
11. For a noodle casserole, make slightly wider noodles.
12. If using for lasagne, cut into 1 1/2-by-4-inch rectangles.
13. For my recipe today, I filled with creamed spinach, mixed with ricotta, seasoned with salt, fresh ground black pepper, freshly grated nutmeg and a little dry oregano. 
14. To cook pasta: Cook in salted boiling water, to which 1 tablespoon of oil has been added, for about 10 to 15*** minutes depending on the thickness and size of your pieces.
15. You will have to test for doneness.

** I rolled my dough until I could just make out the black type of the recipe under the glass cutting board. As I don't have a pasta machine, this was the hardest part.   

*** My Agnolotti were pretty large - the size of my palm and well filled, so I cooked for closer to 18 minutes.

SOMETHING IS A-STIRRING IN THE GARDEN

Returning home from a brief trip to the UK, I was struck by how dry my island home had become in the short time that I'd been away. Due to a lack of rain, many trees are already turning brown and dropping their leaves and the grass has turned a pale straw colour. My poor cocoa sapling has no leaves at all and one of the avocado trees finally seem to have given up.  It's sad to see a three year old tree give up when it has done so well thus far. Perhaps it will send some new shoots - I'll give it some recovery time and review the prognosis.  

As with all things, thankfully, there is a balance and whilst some trees have lost their leaves, others are putting forth new growth and all around young fruits are making their debut. Lime, mango, gauva and more, are showing off the cutest miniature versions of the real thing.  Curiously, the Golden Apple (spondias cytherea), has lost all it's leaves but still has a good crop of new fruit. Before long, we will barely be able to spot the fruit amongst the lush new foliage.

In the driveway, although the grass is looking rather rough and unkempt and the temporary gate looks as though it is about to keel over, the young trees seem to be holding their own and the  Cashew has donned her first pretty pink flowers and burnished copper leaves.  Fingers crossed that they will go on to make fruit and eventually nuts!

So all in all, whilst Europe struggles with the snow, here in St Lucia there is almost a sense of spring in the air and I feel spurred on to start thinking about planting seeds. It is also Full Moon this week, so anything potted needs to be transplanted. Using traditional local methods, the weekend will mean that I should decide if I'll be planting any root crops and if so, what? I need to consider whether the time is right or whether I should wait until the next moon.  Perhaps by then we may have had more rain which would give seeds and newly transplanted saplings a better chance of survival.

By the way, it's not just the plants that are a-stirring in the garden - can you tell what the creature in the last photo is?  OK, it's a really poor quality photo - these fellas move like grease lighting - but you might just be able to make him out.....

Cashew with it's new coppery leaves and pink flowers 

One of several baby limes on the potted tree waiting to be transplanted

A mature Golden Apple tree full of fruit but without leaves for now

My favourite variety, Mango Palwee, small, sweet and a lovely shade of bright yellow when ripe.

The three year old Julie Mango tree showing it's first fruit

Cashew, Acerola, Golden Apple, Pomegranate and Love Apple saplings settling in nicely

A very poor photo - these fellas are as quick as lightening....but can you see what it is?