This past Sunday, I was finally able to check "canoe around Clear Lake" off my bucket list. The headwaters of the McKenzie is known for crystal clear waters with views of the bottom of the lake in many places, and while still very amazing to take in from hiking around the shore, is reported to be nothing short of spectacular from watercraft. Having been without any sort of watercraft for the past ...
Strawberry Pie
As anyone who has ever frozen strawberries for the winter may know, things usually start out conservatively. You try to dole the fruit out evenly so you won't run out, but when you do such a good job that you find several bags left and strawberry season is approaching once again, it becomes a free for all. Right around the Spring Equinox, I start making strawberry pies for dessert to help clear ...
Spring on the Quinault River
There is a vitality in rivers that becomes more visible with the emergence of spring. The willows budding out on the banks, birds singing in the brush, and water rushing down from the snow melt all convey a sense of waking up from a state of rest. Right about this time of year, I'm feeling it too, as I start spending more time outdoors, digging in to preparations for a new growing season. Right ...
Emergence
When you think about it, the shift from winter to spring is a pretty incredible one. No mater how much you know about plants and what's going on within them, how all their processes work, and their chemistry, it feels miraculous to watch them unfold from snowy ground and bare twigs. There are so many lessons here that we can take away from observing this shift in the seasons, but one of the most ...
Chicken Coop Deluxe
After growing up with chickens throughout my childhood, and keeping chickens for over a decade of my adult life, I've known a lot of chicken coops. My first chicken coop was a very important place on our little farm, and will forever hold an important place in my heart. That's where I would go hang out with Maude the chicken on rainy days, and even though she usually ended up pecking me, we were ...
Wild Violet Syrup
Wild violets are one of the first signs of spring in our woods. Once they open up, the daffodils are not far behind and winter is on the way out. We have a patch of them right at the edge of the yard, and as we've fought back the blackberries, the violets have flourished and spread out. I found all these great violet recipes last year after the violets were done, so I was excited for them to ...
The Lone Rooster
We're down to being a one chicken homestead, and the last lone rooster has decided that we're his flock. How we came to have only one chicken is a long, sad story that unfolded over the course of this last year. It started with some rogue tree-roosting chickens getting picked off by a cougar last winter, and in spite of our diligence in closing up the coop every night, the flock kept ...
Rosehips in Winter
Winter decided to really show up and linger this year, and since we're not really used to that in this part of Oregon, I've found myself gravitating toward things that are bright and cheerful. I noticed some flaming red rosehips peeking out of the briars along our driveway, and went out one morning with pruners and a basket to investigate. I may have gotten a little carried away, and ended up ...
These Boots are Made for Marching
On Saturday, January 21, I marched. I joined over 3 million people across the United States, and roughly another 300,000 across the globe to take a stand and take a walk in support of women and equality. I marched with my closest friends, with women I know, and women I do not know. Not all of the marchers were women. Many men marched with us in solidarity. My partner marched with ...
Migration
I've got some exciting news to share. My blog has migrated. You may be asking yourself, "Wait, what? Blogs migrate? How and why do blogs migrate?" Well, I have been wanting to move my blog from Blogger over to Wordpress for quite some time now, so I can set it up more like a website with my Etsy shop and bean-to-bar chocolate, and links to the magazine articles I've gotten published. I ...