Beanie #7 & The Daily Pie

Yesterday I was in Goulburn for work and it was COLD.

So last night I made a new beanie. This is beanie number 7.

Do you think I went over board with the buttons? No, I don't think so either.

Lucky I had a new beanie, because today was a CRAP day. I chaired a meeting for a colleague and I did a CRAP job at it. The meeting got away, and off topic and I just couldn't pull it back. It really wasnt obvious to me or anyone else that actually, I am usually rather good a facilitating groups and meetings and getting folks to play nice with each other. I am still sick with the flu, and I was tired and my brain just wasn't nimble enough to keep up.

I think the problem was that the meeting room was too warm for me to keep my beanie on. Because I reckon if I had been able to wear it, then they would never have gotten away.

Anyway. Sometimes I wonder why there are humans, and why I have to work with them.

And then I put on my new beanie, and drop in on my compost heaps to feel how hot and lovely they are even in this cold weather, and then I go out and feed the ducks and the chooks and everyone quacks and clucks and fluffs and all is right in the world.

In other news, the Grand Purl Baa Queen of Tea Cozies was interviewed on Radio National yesterday morning and she was WONDERFUL. Go Loani!!!!

In other other news, for all you ONCians, I have had lunch here at The Daily Pie twice and it is HEAVEN. You see, a sad thing happened a couple of months ago when Cedar Organics in Goulburn closed, and my source of lentil patties with organic salad and homemade relish was cut off. But then Helen and her team of gorgeous things opened up a PIE SHOP at Collector and well............everything is going to be just fine.

It is the COOLEST WARMEST FUNKIEST place ever and can you really go wrong with delicious homemade pies nestled on oceans of mashed potato, gravy and peas? I didn't think so.

There, I feel better now.

Truck Farm Episode 3

Well, 10 months later the truck farm boys are at it again. Yippee for truck farm.

duckherder inc

The girls, having a sunny dust bath, in celebration of the new red chook PM. They think Julia is GREAT.

It's been a quieter week this one. My BIG project finishes at the end of the year, and folks are starting to approach me about little projects and smaller pieces of consulting work. I spoke to my accountant on Wednesday about setting up as either a sole trader or company. There are pros and cons for both. By the time I got home he had emailed me with my new ABN and I must say it seems a fine number from an aesthetics perspective.

Anyway, I think sole tradering might be the way to go while I test out this new unhinged unattached flapping in the breeze thing. I must admit I am LOVING this working from home thing and after 3 years suspect I am now ruined and incapable of working in an office with humans and set hours.

It is winter and I get to see the duckies and chookies during the day instead of letting them out at dawn and only seeing them after they have gone to bed.

I love being able to work in my jammies, and to take off in the middle of the day for a run or a ride or a jog down to the community garden to pick rocket and parsley for a salad.

I like being able to have a proper lunch. I like being able to do the washing while being on the phone.

Bring it on I say.

Mr Bacon Avocado reins supreme!

So we had a couple of -5 nights here last weekend. Not that we'd know. Mr Duck Herder and I were languishing on a beach up at Port Douglas for a week. For those of you who are unAustralian, think climate of Tahiti. No complaints there I can tell you.

Anyhoo, Mr Bacon has really hit his stride this autumn, putting on a spurt of growth 'n all. As you can see, he is feeling PRETTY SMUG about his wintering capabilities so far. (so far so good)

This will be his SECOND winter here in the ONC and who knows, another few and we might even get some fruit one day.

I like to defy the odds.

Notes from a winter duck palace.

I never have much luck with strawberries. So this year I am trying something new. That's $60 worth of new strawberry runners (30 plants) from Diggers in $40 worth of hanging pots! Now, if a punnet of strawberries costs $5 (organic) then these little babies need to produce 20 punnets before I break even. Thats 2/3rds of a punnet per plant, so it really is quite possible. They are ugly, but I hope they are productive!

After the girls had a little moult in autumn we noticed the shells on their eggs getting a bit thin and brittle. Normally I would whack some dolomite into their feed but was inspired to try the "breakfast bar" approach to providing supplements to animals who are clever enough to know what they need. The idea is based on Pat Colbey's stock lick, but instead of mixing everything up together, the ingredients are kept separate.

For cows, you might use 20 litre drums cut in half but for chookies, an old ice cube tray works a treat. Sure enough, the next day one of the chooks laid a super wrinkly thick strong egg, and then after that they were all normal but very strong and thick. The ingredients are dolomite, seaweed meal, copper and sulphur. Sometimes there are little peck marks in the dolomite especially where a little girl had as a little beak full!

I haven't worked out how to set something up for the bastard ducks they they can't fill with water.....but I'm working on it!

In other news, here are some leek and onion seedlings from the glass house.

Kiwis finally ready!

that is all.

Lacuna Sabbath Death March

Mrs & Mrs Duck Herder went on a marvelous adventure yesterday. We walked along the Stockyard Spur from Corin Dam up to the top of the Brindabella Range to Pryors Hut (nestled between Mt Ginini and Mt Gingera) and back again. Yep, ALL the way up, and ALL the way down again. Weather = perfect. Smiles = BIG.

But golly it was so beautiful up there in the mountains.

My beloved knows that I get much less stressed out in the middle of nowhere if he tells me that yes, the GPS has plenty of batteries. Not like that other time when we were stuck out in the middle of Wollemi NP after dark with our bikes and the batteries went flat.......

As you can see from the blue line, we did a BIG climb up onto the spur but after that is it gently undulating and brain crunchingly beautiful. The walk took us about 6 hours including stops and a picnic lunch looking out into the brindabella valley. Total 800 meters of climbing all up. There would have been more photos except those batteries went flat after 2 shots. The forest is recovering really well after the 2003 fires (finally). I love it up there.

Luckily we got home intime to meet Mr BVVF to take ownership of some more yummy Berkshire bacon and ham. hmmmmmmm.

wild apples

Traveling back from Condobolin I came across some perfect wild apples near Binalong and another lot near the back road to Wee Jasper. Honestly nothing gives me greater joy!

The Binalong ones have a bit of an acid bite so off they go into a vat of cyser. This one I'm calling "Binalong Coddling Moth Cyser" which is a bit unfair as really there was only ONE apple in the whole lot that looked like it might have some coddling moth damage.


But the back road to Yass ones - WELL, they look like gravestines, and are just lovely. Sweet with no bite. Not sure where these will end up. In our tummies, or bottles or in the cyser after all.





In other news, how cool is this Turkish turban pumpkin?
And in other other news, a box of pomegranate trees (wonderful), kiwi vines (Kramer) and some Passion fruit vines arrived safely from the dear folks at sunraysia this week. yipp!

That is all.