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undeceivable, fate-drenched thing. two fingers to my chest. golden needles, azaleas. strings all pulled taut, the twin-spirits of Before and Again.

four things make a post

Jan. 16th, 2026 04:17 pm
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[personal profile] unicornduke
I am two years overdue on moving my pictures from my Camera Uploads folder on my dropbox to my external harddrive/online only dropbox folder. So far I've done about 50GB, around 6 months and have just moved up to the end of March 2025. Since the Camera Uploads folder is mirrored on my computer harddrive, it takes up a ton of space if I haven't moved things out of it in a while. In an ideal world, I'd do the transfer every two months. I ought to go looking through and print some photos out, which is something I enjoy doing every couple of years. 

I have hung two pieces of art in my crafting room using command strips. I have decided that's how I'm going to hang most things since the plaster and lathe walls don't exactly hold things well. I have a whole crate of used frames for art prints and posters which my aunt gave to me. Some need new cardboard backing but I'm excited to hang art! I think I will make some collages of photos and art as well. Main struggle is getting things to stay in place . Also had an absolute galaxy brain moment the other day when I started winding the warp to go on my loom: the warping board can be clamped to the front beam of my loom and it is the perfect height to wind a warp. The best ergonomics for winding ever. Previous places I have put it: on the floor leaning against a table, on my crafting chair arms, on the couch. All of those require leaning over or sitting on the floor. This is such a good change.

We spread another two loads of straw this morning to empty the trailer before it got windy and I reassembled the chainsaw. It's usable if cranky, which describes most equipment on this farm. It was having issues cutting, would more or less just stop once it got partway into the log and it seems like the bar was the problem. We ran through all the other things, sharpened chain, tightened it, cut maple instead of the pin oak, etc. I switched to an alternate bar and it actually started cutting. Spent some time this afternoon cutting up a maple tree that will be burner wood probably and also my dad got a call that the guy brought a load of oak logs. I wanted to replace the rim sprocket on the chainsaw because it's getting worn but the piston stop I bought is plastic, it was taking too much force to remove the clutch drum and I was worried about the plastic breaking and getting into the piston which would be a big pain to get out. The small chainsaw is still out of order, so we might take that to someone to fix, it runs for 15 seconds and then shuts off no matter what, so mystery. I wonder about finding a small engine repair course of some sort, we have chainsaws, weedwackers, pumps, generators, snowblowers all here on the farm. They break a lot. Could be our maintenance. We are running for more straw tomorrow afternoon. 

My farm business stuff is progressing. I haven't really talked about it much, but it is happening. My parents attorney did all the paperwork for me, so now I have the EIN and operating agreement, which I'll need to set up banking accounts and go to other businesses for things. My parents are currently footing the expenses until that's all set up, but we are considering it an operating loan for now. I need to do research on the banks/credit unions and figure out who will be good to work with. We are getting back to weekly farm transition meetings so much discussion of things is happening. I am taking a six week webinar on farm insurance. thrilling stuff

small amusing things

Jan. 14th, 2026 08:08 pm
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[personal profile] unicornduke
project: get my parents moving on projects is going well, I helped my mom paint most of a room in the rental this afternoon, high priority since they finally have renters moving in feb 1st. it took 30 mins of her flitting around doing sanding and wandering away and me taping things and then we got to painting. I rollered and she did brush touchups of corners and edges. I'll need to roller the main areas again tomorrow but progress! There is a second room and then we'll switch to their house doing primer on some walls there. 

My phone has decided to receive group text messages again, verizon must have changed something on their end. I'm still using a unihertz phone and just accepted that I wouldn't receive group texts, the only ones I am regularly in are my family group chat or my parents and I. So I could just ask my parents if there was group texts in the family group chat. This actually worked okay. Not great, but I didn't miss much. But something changed, I now get all the group texts. 

early bedtime today I think, two loads of straw spread, moved a bunch of equipment, pulled a lot of twine out of the straw shredder too. 

(no subject)

Jan. 14th, 2026 08:12 am
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[personal profile] greenstorm
We had a couple days of rain on our snow the last few days. It brought the pack down a couple inches and no doubt will make things slippery when everything refreezes.

I'm glad it stopped snowing. I'm still basically bedbound, my excitement is walking downstairs and sitting on the downstairs couch in the evening. I only had a couple days doing pottery this winter, and I'm becoming increasingly worried I won't be able to garden this summer. That would be devastating.

But I'm maybe borrowing trouble right now. Probably because getting out of bed to feed the cats feels so enormously difficult, like lifting every weight in the world.

Oh well. To it.

muddling through winter

Jan. 13th, 2026 08:34 am
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[personal profile] unicornduke
things melted last week and everything was mud, so I got a couple days break from spreading straw. weirdly, my problem elbow hurt more when I wasn't using it constantly than when I was. Not sure what's up with that. The temperature dropped again, so the ground froze again. Did another load at dawn this morning but discovered a belt had worn weirdly on the shredder, so I need to run to town today and get a new one before we shred more. 

The pottery class I was going to take isn't actually available on Wed, their only evening hours are mondays from 5-8 and they only just updated that on facebook and haven't emailed me back. I'm busy that night, so that's out. I could theoretically do day classes but with how short the days are, any daylight is needed for work hours especially if I need extra warmup time between morning and afternoon. ETA: I found another studio with wed classes and easier signup procedures. done.

 I did go to spinners guild on sunday and it was a gosh dang delight including one of the longer term guild members coming this time who is queer in so many ways and everyone was lovely to him. It was so so so nice and relaxing. I think for the next meeting I'm going to get either my electric wheel battery up and running or take my smaller wheel and start an alpaca spin on it. My CPW is too big and loud for the space we've been meeting in. I got there right at 1pm and was still one of the later arrivals, so clearly I need to get there even earlier :)

We have started the wood stove indoors back up, so that's nice. I missed it. We ran out of wood that size and it had gotten warm, so there was less point in running it. Dad got on the roof and cleaned the chimney out while it was off, so that was nice and split some of the wood at the rental into wood stove size for both their house and mine. 

I did kickstart my parents into doing work on their house! I sanded their office floor and then mom cleaned it and we sealed and finished it together. Definitely one of those times where it would have been faster with just one person, but so be it. My dad has been working on their living room wall drywall which is next in line. They do have renters moving into the rental Feb 1, so there is painting to be done there, plus some other small misc stuff. Parents' house also needs paint so I will be helping with some amount of painting. I didn't do drywall in my upstairs bathroom yet as expected, but I'm planning to later this week when dad is around to help me move the drywall outside to cut and then upstairs to get in place. They do have an extremely firm deadline of house renovations of June when my dad's college buddies are coming to visit, so there's that. We did discover that nice foosball tables are extremely heavy and it would be good to have more than two people to get it in a bilco basement door. I didn't get squished but it was very very heavy. After we got it down there, my dad said, you know, I think it did say something about being over 200lbs. hmm. thanks dad. Although we would have had to get a cousin or something to come help, which my parents are slightly allergic to asking for help, so I dunno if that would have happened anyway. We do have a vague plan to get the floor done which is good and there is progress happening. Given my parents hated the smell of the seal and finish, we are waiting to move them into the house until the living room/dining room/kitchen are all sealed and finished. 

Winter is one of those times where I am just sleepy a lot, so I do accept this as a fact of life but also am fully aware that I am relatively isolated from the local area. In NY, I had an established friend groups, I had places I could go when I wanted a little socializing or crafting with folks, all sorts of things. Here I don't have any of that, so I'm trying to find something. Over the summer, I was so busy with the farm that I didn't really notice, but now I really can tell. To be fair, I have three nights a week where I have weekly social opportunities, but they are all digital. I know I need to push myself and get out there but it's hard and farm work is a bit unpredictable with when we need to run for straw and things. So spinners guild was excellent. I'm hoping to go to a meetup this saturday, although I'll be missing gaming with Jade that night for it. I need to do something thur/fri nights. And maybe some saturdays during the day. Hmm.

Quick medical update

Jan. 12th, 2026 04:55 pm
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[personal profile] greenstorm
For own reference:

Gyne is always nice to talk to in the rare intervals I can talk to her. Lupron 1month shot starts on 19th with progesterone daily.

Neurologist: as close as can be certain it's not MS. Social worker at his offic and him said hey'll provide suport on CPP appeal.

After those two back to back medical appointments I've been in bed for 4 days, I'd overfed the animals deliberately beforehand but couldn't even make it outside consistently. Significant gut pain, dizzy, passing out, etc. So er, I'm still sick and pacing really really works because when forced not to do it I'm back to this, like I was nearly two years ago when I left work. I have to go into town to the mailbox this week but otherwise rest.

Back to quiet dark room with no more than fifteen minutes of noise/screens/anything per hour.

Not sure if gut pain is just because I have no idea if I'm taking my pills right or not. Trying to be more careful.

crafting monday time

Jan. 12th, 2026 04:45 pm
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[personal profile] unicornduke
Hey all, if you'd like to join the crafting hangout, it is tonight from 6-8pm ET!
 
Video encouraged but not required!
 
Topic: Crafting Hangout
Time: Mondays 6:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
Join Zoom Meeting
 
Meeting ID: 973 2674 2763

Spring Flowers

Jan. 12th, 2026 05:14 pm
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[personal profile] bookscorpion posting in [community profile] common_nature
I buy primroses and pots full of bulbs as soon as they are available, it does so much for my mood to have them where I can see them from the couch. I have daffodils, grape hyacinths, a couple of different hyacinths and these netted irises.

Back to Indoor Things

Jan. 11th, 2026 08:00 pm
ursulas_alcove: medieval garden (garden)
[personal profile] ursulas_alcove
While the false spring was here, I did spend time clearing the area behind the garage. I think it'll become my potato patch. I checked out the sun angles. In spring and summer, it'll get morning and afternoon sun. Parts will have full sun. There is room between the hazelnuts to put an old bench that a neighbor discarded. I can give it a coat of linseed oil or polyurethane. Then it can hold about 5 potato grow bags. I have in mind to make a makeshift bed with wood boards, rebar and cinder blocks. The steps to the attic of the garage can hold four more containers of potatoes and the wire mesh corner bench can hold 6 more grow bags of potatoes. That's 21 potato plants.

Potatoes are one of the first plants I start outside in March. It also means that it is the first area I need to have ready to go. The weeds have been pulled and grass has been sickled. The compost pile has grown significantly. It's also located right there. I need to turn the pile regularly as soon as temperatures get above freezing. I have a tarp to put up there to flip the pile. The ground will get covered with cardboard and woodchips. The bench has got to be hauled up there too. That'll be the hard part.

Rock wall on the bottom of the picture. From the 2022 incident:
Day One

The branches from the fallen Siberian Elm have been removed. I also was given a set of RV steps out of treated wood. I plan to use those on the rock wall. When the Elm fell, the rock wall kind of scattered and needs to be rebuilt. It was a 100 year old tree. It had three major trunks. Two fell at various times on my poor garage. Last year my neighbor took the rest of the tree out entirely. The area has sun now.

2022
Day one

behind-garage

The building is the garage. North is up. The curve is the rock wall. The H is a hellabore. The (P) persimmons and currant bush never got planted. One persimmon graft died and we don't know if the base stock survived. Persimmons need two to bear fruit. We could not obtain a second. The company read the original zone wrong and had it listed as zone 6 but it was actually a 9. I'm in zone 6. They refuse to sell me a zone 9 plant. If it died in the drought, I will replace the existing tree with a willow, currently growing in a pot. The three tiered wire rack will go where the currant bush was planned.

By removing the branches and portable steps, the ground hog hole has been exposed. The neighbor did leave mothballs there to deter the skunks. The mothballs offended some critter. It left me two huge piles of poop. It looks like small pellets. but the piles are large. Raccoon, ground hog or skunk, maybe even deer? I didn't notice any tracks when it snowed.

I've been watching the Back-to-Eden video as well as Ruth Stout on how she grows potatoes. My wooden boards will define an area for me to try a Ruth Stout garden. I need the compost to create ground on top of the cardboard. The boards are 6 ft long. Cinderblocks will be the end caps. Those are 18" wide. That will be the new potato bed, holding 6 plants, covered in straw.

I'm back inside because we've had snow flurries all day. I've sharpened my pencil and I am planning out what to plant and when. Some seed packets are old and may not germinate. I am doing a trial batch of onions. The seed is from 2024. In two weeks, if it doesn't sprout, I will start over with a different pack of seeds. I also have onion bulb sets coming later in spring. I have more garden plan sketching to do. I've outlined 17 crops that I want in the garden. I have in mind to grow 400 pounds of food. I have tons of flower seed packets too.

On that note, as the temperature drops again, I need to bring in my cabbage plant and a pot of herbs. They were on the front porch getting some vague sunshine. Hopefully this makes sense. I have a hard time articulating the pictures in my head.

January bridleways

Jan. 11th, 2026 11:22 am
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[personal profile] puddleshark posting in [community profile] common_nature
Bridleway 1

A bright cold morning, the fields silvered with frost, and the paths an entertaining mix of ice and mud.

Read more... )

Photos: Contorta Willow

Jan. 10th, 2026 05:11 pm
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[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith posting in [community profile] common_nature
I took some pictures yesterday but didn't have time to upload and post them until today. The night before, a windstorm blew down the contorta willow sapling that used to stand between the house yard and the south lot, near the big maple tree.

Walk with me ... )

It's Been a Long Time Coming

Jan. 7th, 2026 08:27 pm
ursulas_alcove: medieval garden (garden)
[personal profile] ursulas_alcove
First, and probably foremost, I didn't get at the tree trimming because I had no healthcare at all. I went for 26 years or so without healthcare coverage.If you live in America, you'll understand. If not, I can't begin to explain how archaic our system is. Without healthcare, there was no way I was going to climb a ladder or a tree.

Second, I didn't have a ladder. Once a tree gets too tall, I couldn't trim it. Last year I broke down and bought a ladder when they were on sale. Previously, I owned a rickety wooden ladder that was really only meant to make it easier to change light bulbs. Being cash strapped has been a constant for me for many years. It started with the Bush (W) Administration. Recession hit us hard. Both my husband and I were laid off before 9/11 was even a word.

Third, a sharp object to cut with. All I had was a lopper. You can't cut 2" thick limbs with a lopper. I attempted to use a pole saw. It wasn't easy to use and got stuck in the tree for a year. Then I broke the blade. I lost the screw holding on the lopping attachment. It was a disaster. Then I bought a hand held blade but I still didn't have a ladder. The hand held blade took forever to cut even one limb.

Now I have a mini-chainsaw and a ladder. I shut the power off to the garage. I'm finally making progress. Wish I had a chipper/shredder but for now, I'm happy. There will be light in the garden and there will be less likelihood of contacting the power line, plus the tree will grow better. Win - win!

Tree Trimming Time

Nature diary

Jan. 6th, 2026 09:17 pm
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[personal profile] signoftea posting in [community profile] common_nature
It started snowing yesterday, and now there's about 5 cm of snow, an amount that is very rare here. I went for a walk to see the beach, because it looks so cool when it's covered in snow. To my surprise, there was even ice on the water! A fragile crust of little floes had formed and seemed to slow down the movement of the waves as they licked the snow away from the breakwater bit by bit.

At first, I didn't hear any bird calls. I did see a few sanderlings darting around, some big birds (probably black-backed gulls) hovering over the sea, and a huge swarm of smaller birds, but they were all far away. I was about to leave when suddenly an impressive formation of geese appeared in the sky. My birding app identified them as barnacle geese. Then the app recorded some more calls, including one from a dunling, a bird I had never seen or heard before.

The snow and the greyish sky skewed my perspective in interesting ways, so that it looked like there were mountains growing out of the sea near the horizon, or like there was a huge wave rolling towards the beach. It felt surreal and a little eerie.

North Sea beach with snow and ice

Monday Muffin Madness

Jan. 5th, 2026 03:31 pm
ursulas_alcove: 19th century engraving of a woman using a drop spindle (Default)
[personal profile] ursulas_alcove
It started with a batch of Kefir gone wrong. I wasn't about to throw it out, not at today's prices of milk. Muffins were the answer. Banana Nut Muffins, Cranberry Orange muffins and Date Nut Bread (muffins). Except by the time I got to baking the date nut, I had to half the recipe but I accidentally put the full amount of sugar in. Oops! They are caramelized. The freezer is full and breakfast is a no brainer.

Banana Nut Muffiins

Cranberry Orange Muffins

Date Nut Bread

A small list of things I did

Jan. 5th, 2026 02:38 pm
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[personal profile] unicornduke
Holidays were very good
  • hung out with family and their dogs
  • we did a puzzle that friend of a friend of my SIL made of their painting - it was very good and difficult
  • had friends visit on their way south, they brought their dogs
  • played a random series of games - exploding kittens, oh hell (family fav), some kind of game about guessing on a scale, ransom notes, some kind of imposter game. most party games aren't to my taste, but I did like exploding kittens
  • new years day family party which was nice
  • I pulled all my stash out organized it and it is mostly put away
  • I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and they were so good
  • I made tacos for the friends that stopped by and it was good 
  • went for many walks - christmas day with the cousins, twice with sibs and the dogs, friends around the farm
  • I brought some furniture, my CPW and the two extra boxes of yarn stash that I didn't know I had from the shed and am now more optimized for crafting and can watch tv on the big screen while I do it
  • finished upstairs bathroom floor - drywall next
  • started journaling my feelings in a little physical notebook
  • made a dr appointment for next week
  • my brother bought me anno 1800 - time sink it's very good if confusing
  • my brother and SIL came overnight because they realized their ski lesson place was closer to here and so brought their dogs for two days and I got to hang out with the dogs which was very good
today, I spread two loads of straw - person spreading counts as the one putting the bales in the shredder, not the driver. driver has easy job. we go 1.5mph and a bale goes 50 ft or so. the cart behind the shredder holds 50 bales or so. I'll try and have my mom get a video, it's very fun and decently difficult farm task. then I finishing sanding my parents office at their house. I was supposed to run for groceries and supplies from hardware store but after straw and sanding I am tired and don't want to. Might do that and baking tomorrow. 

I am attempting to motivate my parents on their renovation by just simply doing parts of it for them. this is working okay so far. I need to pick up a spackle bucket. not a bucket of spackle but something for holding the spackle because my dad used it for floor patch in the rental and it apparently because extremely solid in the container. spackling and sanding is next for them and as soon as I get my drywall pieces up in the upstairs bathroom, I will be spackling and sanding. 

In theory my parents are moving their bedroom over this week, the reality is that my dad went to urgent care today to get something with his jaw looked at. I have been working with an attorney on business stuff. there's a lot going on and I'm very tired right this minute so I might get my heated blanket and take a nap in my comfy chair and then crafting tonight, can't wait for more crafting

crafting monday

Jan. 5th, 2026 02:38 pm
unicornduke: (Default)
[personal profile] unicornduke
Hey all, if you'd like to join the crafting hangout, it is tonight from 6-8pm ET!
 
Video encouraged but not required!
 
Topic: Crafting Hangout
Time: Mondays 6:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
Join Zoom Meeting
 
Meeting ID: 973 2674 2763

Cemetery in the snow

Jan. 5th, 2026 05:17 pm
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[personal profile] bookscorpion posting in [community profile] common_nature
I went to the cemetery today to take photos of all the snow we've been getting, and it was gorgeous. Even better, the snow came out - only for about fifteen minutes but it was magical

Photos: Sunset

Jan. 4th, 2026 09:06 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith posting in [community profile] common_nature
Tonight I happened to glance out the window and spotted a colorful sunset. So I grabbed my camera and ran outside to take pictures. This gets me started on my goal of taking and posting photos at least once per season. \o/

Walk with me ... )