fun on the homestead

free-ranging birdies

the ranch king...and his riding mower

 after a few days of triple-digit heat, an air conditioner seemed like a pretty good idea...

no window

no problem

the finished instaalation

i'm working on some bamboo trellising for the new garden.  these will get covered with bird net and will hopefully keep the deer and wild turkeys out of the veggies.  never worked with bamboo before---fun stuff!

not bad for a first try

trellis ends

4' x 8' at the base and about 7' tall

 zane is shedding...a lot

"i made a fur-baby"

happy birthday

while i was unpacking and organizing a couple weeks ago i came across something i'd written a few years back---i've rewritten it a bit.  

the zen of dog (for grover)

what is a dog?

he lies in the sun

peacefully

in the moment

soaking up the golden warmth as if it were the only sustenance he will ever need

asking for nothing more

i feel it too

the sun on my face and contentment that there is nothing beyond that which is this moment

only now

that now is forever and all that we will ever need

a dog is now

happy birthday, grover dandy, and thank you. 

          

merry beefmas!

 today was like meat christmas.

half a grass-fed beef

           so close...

mmm...weenies

   

this week's food porn...

grilled salmon, red onions, and yellow crookneck squash

beef and veggie stir-fry w/saifun bean threads and ginger-coconut sauce

freshly-picked blackberries

green salad w/avocado and sunflower sprouts

home-made mango salsa with lime

grilled beef w/mango salsa, steamed green beans and mushrooms, and salad

dessert---home-made chocolate "ice cream" and sunflower seed butter with fresh blackberries, frozen blueberries, and a strong cup of vanilla-nut decaf

 warning:  gratuitous weenie shots...

grilled organic, grass-fed beef franks and onions

beef franks and onions, sauerkraut, and salad

sexy, aren't they

 breakfast: leftover franks and onions w/hashbrowns and sauerkraut

grab a napkin...and wipe the drool off your chin.

chickens

this place has been in need of chickens for some time---this morning we went down to catheys valley and picked up my four dark cornish chickens (and their 4' x 14' chicken tractor) and hauled them up to their new digs in the pines.  they seem to be fine with the change in scenery.

 

dark cornish---1st day at triangle rd.

4' x 14' chicken tractor

gizzard and his hens

 

mother moon

i lie in bed, 

somewhere between wake and sleep, 

thought and dream.

here, 

in whatever here is,

i find a clarity inaccessible to my waking mind.

through the window the moon is staring in at me as i stare back out at it,

and i feel a tranquil energy wash over and into me.

safe,

i am safe.

it is like a mother smiling down into the face of her newborn,

speaking softly as she cradles it in warm and loving arms,

and the sensation of being both mother and child, self and moon.

there is no time or distance or place.

i am everything and nothing,

and they are me.

as the sun rises to light the day,

i wake into obscurity once again.