March 6, 2009 at 11:03 am (better health)
Tags: exercise, family, garden, nature, workout
Don’t think gardening is exercise? Check out the picture. I’d rather be doing my leg squats outside in the sunshine instead of in some smelly old gym any day of the week.
My own garden prep work is well under way and it is a workout. Raking, shoveling, bending and lifting not to mention the cardio. But I get a lot more than just an in shape body out of it.
I get a nice looking yard. I get some very good vegetables. I get flowers to brighten up my desk at work and my home.
I get much needed time alone but also time to talk with the neighbors.
I get a daughter that will finally eat a tomato, not straight out of the garden, she still hates those, but she loves them when I dry them for winter storage.
I get to see the wonder of something growing.
Yea, I get a lot more out of exercising in the garden than just some nice looking legs.
Leave a Comment
January 26, 2009 at 11:40 pm (money savings)
Tags: eating, economy, food, freezer, garden, green, saving money
No matter how bad the economy is we all need to eat. But most people could cut their food bills considerably and save some green.
This week I’ve come across some interesting stats that point to the fact that people are rethinking how they eat. While restaurant revenues are down, cookware and cookbook sales are up. And people aren’t spending as much money on high end flashy appliances, but they are buying more freezers.
Here are some other good ideas for saving money on food.
First, watch the waste. Your not saving if your over buying and throwing food out. If the vegetables are at the end of their shelf live and you can’t eat them all now then freeze them. You can still use them later in soups and stews.
Second, go to the source. I buy all our bread at the Rainbow store. I can buy Sara Lee multi grain bread for $1.25 a loaf.
Third, if you have a freezer buy in bulk. We are getting ready to buy half a side of beef from the butcher. It’s cheaper than even buying in bulk from the store. If thats way to much meat for your family then split it with friends.
Fourth, grow your own food. Anybody can grow a few vegetables and herbs. I usually grow a large garden and enjoy the produce all year.
Everywhere you look today there are hints on saving on your food bill. It’s really not hard to do if you put a little bit of thought into “what’s for dinner tonight.”
Leave a Comment
December 3, 2008 at 3:23 pm (Mother Nature, journey)
Tags: alternative religion, bugs, garden, nature, plants, wild life
I have another word press blog, it’s call playing n the dirt. It’s main page is about gardening. Any type of gardening, but a lot of vegetable growing. I’ve always loved to play in dirt. My mom could keep me busy for hours when I was a kid with a spoon, a bowl, some water and dirt. When my mom or grandfather wanted to garden, I wanted to be with them.
As an adult things didn’t change much. Even if it was just house plants in an apartment, I’ve always grown something. I’ve never used chemicals of any kind. Long before I read all the bad stuff about them, it just didn’t seem right to me.
Shortly after I started researching Alternative Religions, I found a group of them called earth based religions. It would take several books to describe them all, but most earth based religions have one thing in common. They all have a strong link to nature. They respect nature and it’s forces.
Most of these religions have roots that are much older than any type of Christianity. There are still traces of the religious rites in our societies today. Ground hog day, February 2nd is one just day. So is May day and any harvest festival.
It all began it click into place for me. I had always felt so at peace outside. I loved the smell of dirt in the spring and waited each year for the first sign of tulips. I could stare for hours at the night sky or the clouds. I had struggled for years to understand Christianity, for it to make sense. But all of nature was in my soul, it always had been. No one needed to teach me about this, because some how I just knew.
I have continued to garden and with even more respect to nature. I no longer till the dirt, it destroys the ecosystem of millions of living creatures below the surface of the dirt. I try to make sure I can replenish the nutrients in the soil the plants take out. I try to grow native plants. I try to provide for wildlife, birds and squirrels to name a few. One rule my daughter hates, if the bug is outside you can not kill it. If it frightens you, move. I try to study any new garden area before I plant in it.
As a result of reading a lot about earth based religions I feel more connected with nature than ever. My gardens are also doing better than ever.
Leave a Comment
September 29, 2008 at 12:37 am (general)
Tags: barrier, basket, bicycle, cardboard, garden, paper, recycle, vegetable, weed
I just received a new basket for my bicycle. It’s really neat. It hooks right on the handle bars and lifts off to become a shopping basket. It fits almost any old school bike. I loved the basket, but I found another surprise when I opened the box. The basket was wrapped in about 30 feet of 18 inch wide brown paper. Perfect for a weed barrier in the vegetable garden along with the cardboard box.
I know I must sound like the kid that was more interested in box on Christmas day than the present, but I couldn’t help it. And while I was excited about the extra bonus of the paper I am looking forward to running errands and having a nice basket to hold all the things I need.
Leave a Comment
