Earth Hour
How many of you ‘celebrated’ Earth Hour yesterday evening? My house did. I had a few lovely beeswax candles burning away in the house, trying to discourage my toddler from trying to blow them out. No need to worry, they were well out of his reach, even when he tried to pull a chair to get closer…. The best bit was when he kept asking me if we could “eat cake now, Mummy?” Maybe next year I will bake an Earth Hour cake…does that defeat the purpose of conserving energy? Perhaps if it is a cake made with all local ingredients, and maybe by then I can bake it in our mud bread oven (well that is something we may get to this summer).
I quickly listened to the news to see how many cities participated in Earth Hour and the numbers were up from last year. That is encouraging. One reporter remarked how the lights at Dundas Square in Toronto were also turned off. Too bad that those lights couldn’t stay off permanently. Talk about an assault on your eyes! Don’t even get me started on the lack of originality in the advertising being beamed into your brains. I think a real challenge would be for ALL of the lights down on Broadway at Times Square to be turned off. Years ago, during my first trip to NYC, I remember my pal Eve making sure the taxi driver drove right smack through the centre of Times Square for me to see all of the lights. I was gobsmacked by how much electicity was being wasted in one place all the time! Don’t get me wrong, I love NY, but the absurdity of energy waste makes me nauseous. I’ll bet somebody out there in cyberland has the exact number of energy saving light bulbs are being used. I’ll guess none!
All this talk about the Earth and conserving energy has caused me to get all in flutter about the arrival of spring! Yes, finally, the long and very cold winter has finally faded and knock on wood (tap,tap on my desk) no more snow. My partner has been busy planning the garden, planting seeds and building our chicken house. Our wee chickens are ready for pick up this week and there is much to do in preparation. I have more reading to do on chicken husbandry…for instance; how can chickens be my husband if they are female? Silly me, it is against the law to have more than one husband, in Ontario anyway. Apparently Spring Fever is setting in and madness can’t be far away. I just want to make a public statement that our chickens will NOT be named. No Pickles, no Fluffy, none whatsoever. Why? Because once the girls start to slow down in their egg production and they start to freeload on the job, I plan on making some ‘carcass soup’ with them. Times are tough and I will not be suckered into being a mother to wayward animals. I take delight in the knowledge that our chickens will live healthy lives earning their keep by eating all the slugs and bugs they can get their little beaks on. This in return for a few eggs a week. I will know exactly what went into their body and appreciate what comes out. Today’s food consumer really has lost touch with where our food is grown and the conditions in which animals are kept.
I am still reading Barbara Kingsolver’s book, “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle”, http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com This is not a book that I want to rush through as quickly as one would eat a Micky D’s dinner. I am savouring each chapter and getting inspired by the stories and recipes. I have decided to make a date with a few like minded people to try making our own cheese. This is quite a statement since I never really paid much attention to when my Mum tried to teach me kitchen skills. My most memorable meal as a child was the onion sandwich and tea made with warm tap water. My parents almost had me fooled that they really enjoyed it. It is the thought that counts correct?
Here is a delightful shot of our garden preparing for its future plantings. Notice the compost bins and laundry line? The furry one in the front is Rudy, the chicken protector. I imagine he will have to be bribed to guard the chickens. Here we go into the world of growing as much of our food as we can…..wish us luck!
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Claygrl's Maniacal Musings 