7-27-10

AN EXCELLENT SOURCE OF ANTIOXIDENTS

PASCAL FOUND ONE!

I SPY WITH MY LITTLE EYES SOMETHING BLUE

ARE THESE GROWING WHERE YOU WORK?

HIPPY HIPPY SHAKE

Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to pick we go! We started harvesting the extensive blueberry patch this morning, working on the first three rows. Not nearly all of the baby blues are ripe yet, but the birds are starting to nibble and we must beat them to the bushes. Instead of waiting to harvest all the bushes in one day, Lorna thought it'd be good to work our way through the patch in shifts; one day we'll harvest three rows and the following day harvest the next three rows and so forth. We love to harvest fruit, because while we are sure to bring plenty back inside, it's not only assumed, but encouraged that some of the bounty will end up in our bellies. Harvesting fruit is probably our number one favorite WWOOF activity second only, maybe, to eating said fruit. After finishing the three rows and with berries safely in our bowls, we kind of had the blues, but lucky for us, we headed for the nearby raspberry bushes. We've been harvesting raspberries every other day since our arrival and they get sweeter each time. Hopefully we'll have time for at least one more harvest from each bush before we leave on Friday.

We began to work on a couple long term projects today, which we may or may not see through completion. One was to put a fence on the perimeter of a four acre pasture across the street from the main house where two horses will soon graze. Currently the horses live up the road but they've eaten all their grass down and it's time for some fresh greens. The other project was started by the WWOOFers who just left; they began clearing an area on the east side of the house where a "reflexology path" will one day live. Today we took over where they left off and began to haul sand up from the banks of the creek. Ten five gallon buckets full of sand got us started, and we sifted and raked it into the designated area. After we put more sand in, we will lay smooth stones in a pattern Lorna has designed.

With Lorna and Carl back, we are reinspired and reenergized for the work we'll do here the rest of the week. It was nice to have a relaxing weekend to ourselves without much work, but we're eager to learn what they will teach us over the next few days. To celebrate their 19th wedding anniversary today, Lorna brought home take out asian food for dinner. Dessert is ice cream topped with plenty of freshly picked organic berries. When we celebrate our wedding anniversary over the years, we won't be eating local berries because they won't be ripe in mid-October, but we'll figure something out.

7-26-10

SSSSSSSSNAKE

SO CLOSE

TOYS "ᴙ" US AREN'T THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN DO IT

NOEL

The loafing continued with Lorna and Carl away, and we took advantage by reading. Jen is enjoying Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet. The novel is set in the 1100's and almost everyone in the story has farming skills, even the priest. In those days, if everyone didn't grow their own food, or a portion of it, they would starve. It brings up questions about our society, and how if fewer and fewer people possess farming skills, what will be the consequences down the road? Aaron started and finished reading The Rebel Farmer, an autobiography by Sepp Holzer, a farmer who utilizes permaculture techniques on his Austrian mountainside farm. Time and time again, Holzer's unconventional strategies were questioned by neighbors and government officials. He was often reprimanded for going against the grain, but almost always, his revolutionary organic systems eventually proved superior to "conventional" farmers, and today, people from all over the world look to him for advice on farming and permaculture. Aaron enjoyed it.

Lorna and Carl returned tonight as Pascal and we sat down for dinner. Conversation quickly turned to fruit trees and pruning and grafting. One evening this week, they promised us a hands on demonstration. We are extremely eager to learn about these skills and gain some practical experience. We've heard and read some about orchard management, but theory alone won't help us have a productive orchard of our own one day. Regardless of where we end up, planting fruit trees is a very high priority, and we want to ensure we select proper fruit trees for our climate, and provide them with the best environment to thrive. This lesson will hopefully be a wonderful stepping stone in that direction.

7-24-10

NO GIRLS ALLOWED!

HOW MANY ITEMS CAN YOU FIND?

PSYCHEDELIC CHESS PIECES

THE KEY TO SUCCESS IS ORGANIZATION

ORGANIZED CHAOS

THE CROCODILE HUNTER

PASCAL'S TRIANGLE

FINE COUNTRY LIVING

TREE TRAP

BZZZZZZZ

One of our main chores this weekend was to hang little plastic red balls in the apple orchard (see photo). These balls are hung on apple trees and coated in transparent, sticky goop to attract insects to the balls and keep them away from the apples. Apparently this goop is enticing for bugs to lay their eggs on which is good for preventing baby bugs from eating the fruit. We're not sure if the goop kills bugs immediately or simply makes them stick to it, like fly paper. Wearing latex gloves during application and trying to read the contents of the canned goop, we were unsure if this product was organic. We realized, however, that none of this yucky stuff was being applied to the trees or the fruit, but simply was trying to keep the bugs away from the fruit. We think it's legit. Lorna's car broke down so their return is delayed until Monday night but we are curious to see what results she's had with this stuff in the past. If you have a great fruit orchard, but bugs and birds ransack all the goods, how do you solve this problem without resorting to chemicals? There must be ways. In addition to some other methods we've come across, including spraying plants and their leaves with compost tea, this may be a strategy we wish to implement one day.

We've been taking Noel, the dog, on walks around the property over the weekend, which is great fun for all of us. We get to explore the grounds outside of the garden and Noel gets to play host, showing us the way and running into and out of the creek for refreshment. There is a maze of trails in every direction from the house and though we have managed to get a little lost once, we are enjoying the scenery, peace, and quiet around here. Being surrounded by hills, the valley we have been exploring is mostly wet, boggy land and can prove tough to traverse, but we've managed just fine. Usually one thinks the forest is where all the hidden animals are, and that may be the case here since we've heard of local bear and cougar spottings, but we haven't come across any. In and around the gardens though, the amount of gardner snakes are staggering. We see scales sneakily slither out from under covered objects and despite knowing they naturally keep garden pests at bay, Jen still treads lightly and looks to avoid them with every step.

Country living wouldn't be complete without bugs; they are just a fact of life. We're used to a normal amount of bugs but here they seem to be out of control. Flies swarm the house, in the kitchen, the bathrooms, and all the hallways probably since the doors and windows are often left ajar. Aaron has taken out a personal vendetta and has declared war on the flies; he has managed to swing so fiercely at a gang of flies, he broke the swatter! The flies are mainly a nuisance in the kitchen as we feel they create an unsanitary environment around food. The "no-see-ems" are awful little critters. As their nickname suggests, they are barely visible but they are wreaking havoc. Jen's face and head are bitten up and so itchy, yet luckily for Aaron they don't seem to bother him. Why do bugs always seek Jen out? What's the deal? She must be too sweet smelling. To complete the laundry list of bugs overtaking the house, there is a large hornet's nest embedded in the wall on the east side of the house. Sitting outside on the deck, you hear the wind rustling the tall grass, the creek babbling, and the endless buzz of the swarm. Even though they're in the house they seem to keep to themselves, along the perimeter. We're unsure if they've managed to penetrate the walls, or simply have set up shop under the shingles.

7-23-10

PROTRUDING LIGHT SWITCH

SOLAR CONES

ZUCCHINI = DINNER

RAISED BED WE MADE THURSDAY

GARLIC GOING TO SEED

WATER FILTER FOR IRRIGATION

This morning was goodbye for 5 wwoofers, but Chasity is returning midweek. Aya and Amy will continue their cross country adventure by bus, while Kathrin and Thomas will head further south riding bicycles. Coincidentally, Lorna and Carl also left, and drove east to Spokane for a wedding, leaving only Pascal and us to hold down the farm. With Lorna and Carl gone for the weekend, the three of us have a few chores to attend to, but mostly, we just have to water the plants, and feed and walk the pets.

When you live out in the countryside, and this house is very much in the country, certain luxuries city folk expect vanish. For example: public water. In rural areas, many people rely on well water, or creek water. Here, there is a pump that takes water from the creek directly behind the house, and pumps it up to a 750 gallon water holding tank, where it is gravity fed back down to the house. The holding tank is for the water use only at the house, but there is also a separate pump that extracts water from the creek further downstream and sends it into the fields for irrigation. Both pump routes require daily attention. The one that goes to the fields has a filter that must be cleaned twice daily. The pump that sends water to the holding tank for house use must be turned on and off twice daily. Unlike the creek at Coweeta Heritage Center in North Carolina, this tank has no electronic, automatic floating switch to turn on the pump when the tank is low and turn off the pump when the tank is filled. It must be done manually here at Twin Brooks Farm, and walking out 100 yards in pitch black night when cougars and bears stomp around is no picnic. The bonus of their system that relies on the creek is their water will never run out; wells can run dry, but creeks in Washington, with heavy rains, always flow ferociously.

We weeded, watered, fed the pets, walked the dog, and even ate some raspberries off the bushes, but we mostly lounged around and read today. So with no more daily activities to report on, let's get back to the farm house description. Today's focus is on the lights, in conjunction with the steps. As previously mentioned, light switches here are awfully challenging to locate. Normally one can feel around a door frame for light switches, but here such an act is fruitless. They are hidden underneath door latches, on load bearing beams, and some jutting out, not even on a wall (e.g., between the oven and the refrigerator on a shelf like structure). And we may be incorrect in saying so, but we have yet to find a light source controlled by two light switches. Normally one can turn on and off a light bulb from a few points, say, at the bottom, and also at the top of a staircase. Here this is not so. At night, a brave volunteer must climb the steps in the dark to turn on the lights that illuminate the rickey wood stairs so others can have visible footing. If you plan ahead and turn the lights on before it's too dark, you waste electricity, but if you don't, you have to feel your way as you ascend up the cobwebby steps trying not to fall over.

7-22-10

THE HORSE WHISPERER

LUMBERJACK IN TRAINING

WORDS TO LIVE BY

STROLLIN DOWN THE HIGHWAY

TWIN BROOKS FARM BARNHOUSE

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: THOMAS, CHASITY,
AMY, AYA, PASCAL, KATHRIN, AND US

LORNA AND CARL


Arriving before sun fall last night, we quickly met everyone here and made ourselves at home. The task that lies before us of describing this place, and making you truly feel it as we do seems nearly impossible. It is our goal by the end of our stay to try and convey the quirkiness of this farm, and more specifically, farmhouse.

Lorna and Carl reside at 644 Lucas Creek Drive, in the house Lorna grew up in. Carl motorcycles to and from work, at a nearby plant nursery, and is gone during the week so we anticipate not having much time to talk to him. Lorna is a practicing reflexologist and spends some time making house calls and the other time holding down the farm. There are eight of us WWOOFers here until Friday, when several will depart.

With so much manpower today, we moved mountains...of sheep manure! Lorna uses permaculture techniques in her garden and relies heavily on raised beds for planting. We have heard of raised beds, but we haven't seen any raised four feet tall, as some of them are here. As Lorna and Aaron went up the road to get five truckloads of manure from a neighbor, the rest of us set out to lay the foundation for a new bed. We hoed the area clear of grass, put sides in place using recycled tin and reused wood, and lined the floor of the bed with outdated newsprint and wood scraps. We heaped wheel barrow after wheel barrow full of manure and hay onto the bed and soon it rose higher than the walls. In the afternoon we tried, unsuccessfully, to rip up a silver leaf maple grove, as they are an invasive species. Trouble is, the trees were over 10 feet tall and they didn't rip up so easily. Even with 18 hands and a tractor, the job proved impossible. Instead, Lorna had us go into part of the forest and tear up ivy, another invasive species. This task, though possible, was seemingly pointless. It reminded us of pulling up fiddleneck at Annelle and Thurston's; when standing in an infinite sea of a weed, no matter how much you pull and tug, there never seems to be any progress.

We'll start the farmhouse descriptions today focusing on the bathrooms. There are three in the house, one unisex toilet with no sink upstairs where all the bedrooms are located, and two downstairs, adjacent to each other and to the kitchen, with one for the men, where the seat is ALWAYS left up, and one for the women, seat set down. The bathroom upstairs is so small that the wooden door has a cutout leaving just enough room for it to swing open and shut while avoiding smashing the toilet. Inside, there is a single red light bulb, which is very dim and makes the reading material in there quite a strain on the eyes. The toilet paper dispenser is a limb of a tree coming out of the main trunk, leaving enough room for the roll to balance. Similarly, the toilet paper dispenser in the female bathroom downstairs is of the same design. Unfortunately the one downstairs comes from a smaller tree, whereby a full roll of tp is wedged so tightly against the wall you can't rip off a square without lifting it out of the holder. None of the bathrooms have light switches inside, but somehow finding the proper switch for the bathrooms is an easier task than finding the corresponding switches to any other lights in the house. More on the electrical wiring of the house later this week.

**In reference to a recent comment, we have been racking our brains trying to figure out how we can turn our budding passion in gardening and farming into a decent living. Lack of land and money is a serious hindrance, but we are eager to collaborate with others in ways beneficial to all parties involved. We believe our society is on the cusp of change where small organic fruit and vegetable growers will be able to make livable wages and we want to be part of that trend; nothing seems more important.**

**Nancy and Jimmy, we'll be heading through Saratoga in the middle to end of August. Let's have a serious brainstorm.**

7-21-10

SO LONG, VICTORIA

CASCADE MOUNTAINS

BROADLEAF LUPINES

WESTERN WALLFLOWER

BAD FOG OF LONELINESS

I LOVE SUNSHINE THIS MUCH

GARLIC'S GOT NUTHIN ON ME

SITTIN' HERE RESTING MY BONES

PROPER FOOTWEAR: CHECK

SKI PATROL

AVALANCHE LILY

You know that feeling you get when you have to wake up really early but you get worried that for some reason your alarm won't go off and so you'll miss whatever you're supposed to wake up early for? If you are familiar with this sensation, you know you sleep fitfully checking the clock every half hour praying you haven't overslept. When this happens, you almost don't even need the alarm, because you're already awake before it sounds. At 4:25am, we were rolling around in bed, waiting for 4:30 to arrive. We had to be on a 6:10 ferry departing Vancouver Island for Port Angeles, WA, which meant arriving at the port no later than 5:20. Final packing necessitated a few minutes and with the drive to the ferry taking 25 minutes, we slept horribly.

As east coasters, we are used to watching the sun rise over the Atlantic, and since we got to the west coast, it has been a treat to watch it set over the Pacific. It was a strange sensation watching the sun rise over water while riding back at the crack of dawn on the ferry back to our country tis of thee. Back on dry ground, we headed straight for Hurricane Ridge.

Said ridge in the Cascades was rumored to have wildflowers aplenty this time of year, and we thought we'd give it a gander. Some famous Washington government official was instrumental in spearheading an initiative to knock down thousands of trees, install a paved road to the top of the ridge, and make a flat asphalt path assuring that any old fat lazy American could experience the thrill of standing at the mountain's apex in order to revel in its high altitude vista. In addition to gorgeous wildflowers up here, like the broadleaf lupines, western wallflowers, avalanche lilies, scarlet paintbrushes, and the common yarrow, we also saw a winter wren flutter it wings, and witnessed a varying snowshoe hare, olympic chipmunk, and blacktail deer all scamper into the brush. We weren't quite prepared for the 20 foot high snowdrifts, but we managed even in beach shoes.

**In reference to a recent comment about feeling fit or flabby, due to work versus food, Aaron is slowly getting in the best shape of his life. Prime fitness level was during collegiate ultimate frisbee days for cardiovascular shape, but now, Aaron is probably the strongest he's ever been. The food hasn't increased his weight. Jen feels she is getting back to where she was with strength, but was at her prime in NY when doing yoga every day. In Alabama specifically, Jen felt she was eating too much starchy foods and not enough fresh produce, and that combined with not working hard because it was winter made her feel more flabby than fit. But she is now getting back to her desired strength because our summer diet is different and the workload is harder and more physically tolling.**

7-20-10

BABY STEPS

THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKIN'

POCKETBOOK

REUSABLE TOTE

KICKIN IT

STEP RIGHT UP

HOW'S THE WEATHER LOOKIN, SAILOR?

SIDNEY HARBOUR

We woke up for our last day of work at the Garden Path but Carolyn told us we couldn't possibly work on our last day and instead took one more day to explore Vancouver Island. She somehow convinced us that we had worked too much already, which we disagreed with but decided not to argue with. As a result, we spent the day exploring the nearby town of Sidney. Although this was a trip for pleasure, we did have to take care of one small piece of business: we dropped off several of Carolyn's books at a local green shop and also picked up a check to bring back to her. Officially our time in Sidney was productive.

Sidney is a harbour town, and ferries people, bikes, and cars from here to the San Juan Islands and to mainland British Columbia. Sidney is also known as "booktown" because it features over 23 bookstores in a five block radius. Obviously we spent the day perusing these stores but showed incredible self restraint and left empty handed. After hunger pangs were audible, and we had walked up and down the main street several times looking for some suitable place to lunch, we finally settled on a small Japanese place. The food was just as good as their decor, which had plants growing out of numerous types of footwear and women's accessories. Next time you're about to throw something out, instead think of an innovative way to reuse it.

Back in Saanich, we prepared and enjoyed our final meal with Carolyn, Guy, and Jane (Guy's visiting sister) and then they bade us adieu. Working at the Garden Path worked out to be the perfect way to spend our time in Canada. Carolyn imparted us with much knowledge, passion, and optimism and we intend to continue learning from her as we read her new book, which she kindly gave us a signed copy of. She also sent us off with over 10 packets of seeds which we are thrilled to plant, whenever we decide to stay somewhere for more than two or three weeks. Overall, we had a pretty good time in Canada, 'eh.