The sun has returned to us again! Yesterday afternoon while Daniel worked on his article I went to dig in the dirt. Grange Place is getting ready to garden. Jan showed me how he wanted me to dig a trench. So I spent two hours digging the one foot deep, four feet wide dirt, flipping it over on itself with my trusty spade and breaking up the earth. My neck and shoulders got a bit sore because earth is very heavy. I jokingly asked Jan where the rototiller was; he had a different name for it and also told me that they are crap. I warmed up real quick which is always pleasant. I was only meant to dig the trench two feet wide; however I kept going crooked and trying to fix it. At one point Jan came over and told me it looked perfect, however I had lost my trench. I laughed and told him I was aware of my blunder. He assured me not to worry as it all has to be dug up anyway. Later I took a break to join Daniel for lunch and hear about his paper. Then I spent some of the afternoon reading before I had a Theta session Skype trade with my dear friend, Bethany. Daniel and I also got to Skype with my folks [Ginny and Darren] on Saturday morning and that was indeed a fun time.
Last night for our Sunday Supper Jan made whipped eggs, French style, with parsley and a side of toast. Pat had made a trifle and I’d been so excited all day to eat it. Daniel helped her whip up the cream and it made me think of the Kitchen Aids that both my mom and sister have. A traditional English trifle includes sherry and I wondered while eating it if anyone has ever become drunk from the dessert. It was delicious. We contributed a bottle of French wine and we all ate and visited happily. Pat rarely drinks so she teases that the three of us are “wine bibbers”. Sometimes when Jan comes into our room and sees our wine bottles on the mantle he refers to us as wine bibbers as well. [He knows he is too]. After a month I decided to ask him, “Is that a polite way of calling us alcoholics?” He replied, “No, not at all. It’s just a funny expression that means you enjoy wine.” Then he smiled like a cheshire cat and continued, “Maybe a little too much… “. Well we do enjoy red wine, and I’ve always just said it makes us fancy.
Back up in our room Daniel said to me, “Wow, Pat really loves you.” I instantly melted into a pool of school girl and quietly said, “What? How do you know?” He said, “Because she always smiles so huge at you.” Finally it occurred to me that the feeling of embarrassment that had come over me was a familiar feeling. I want Pat to like me and I told Daniel as much. It’s a little funny to me that I want her to be my friend. It’s been years since I have consciously wanted a certain person to be my friend, thus at times felt nervous around them. Last night when I identified where that emotion was coming from it cracked me up.
Living here has changed two things about me; two things that I plan to continue throughout the rest of my life. One is that after our first few days here Jan gave both me and Daniel our own handkerchief. We use them all the time and I love it! It’s soft, it’s sturdy, and I’m not wasting lots of tissue just to blow my nose. So forever more Daniel and I are handkerchief users and we encourage all of you to give it a try. It is a simple way to help our planet. The second change we have made has to do with composting. This is not a word to shy away from, nor attach smelly adjectives to. For years Daniel and I have lived without garbage disposals and we always wanted them. Now I feel more educated to the fact that what is either being thrown away or ground up in the sink is totally helpful for the ground. Plus, it’s so easy! If you have a little piece of land I would strongly advocate you to have a go at composting. Just look online at all the things that can be composted, you might be surprised. Just put it in a pile outside somewhere and cover it with a tarp. It makes the most awesome fertilizer. If you live in an apartment and do not have a small piece of earth you can still compost! You can use a plastic tub, an old coffee can, or get a tiny countertop composting bin. Then you could donate the fertilizer to your local community gardening center, which I’m sure they would love, or a neighbor, friend, or even a nearby nursery. You can get creative with this, it’s just like recycling. So now you know that I am a food composting, handkerchief using, red wine drinking, fancy farmer! And you can be one too; without having to shovel cow crap!
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