by Krista | Sep 23, 2015 | Spring
Bear and I are home safe and sound from our wild and wonderful trip to the St. Ives Medieval Faire. We’re utterly knackered after the 27-hour round trip, but chock full of great memories made with old and new medieval friends.
It makes me smile to think back on all the great discussions held around campfires, huddled under tents out of the rain, and on straw bales outside the sanity-saving coffee vendor’s tent. There’s truly never a dull moment at medieval events, for each person you meet has a passion backed up by years of research and experimentation that leads to the most fascinating conversations.
I learned about medieval perfumery, Varangian leather armor, how to make soap from olive oil, what people ate for lunch in the 14th century, Templar religious practices, Odinism, Scottish herbalism, surgical practices in medieval times, and how to do Viking tablet weaving.
I loved strolling through the medieval encampments and market stalls, learning all about how rose petals and Grains of Paradise were used in the Middle East and what vegetables were grown and cooked with by the Vikings.
I couldn’t get enough of all the gorgeous handmade crafts, from hand-dyed wool and linen to carved wooden spoons. Aren’t the colors marvelous?
I’m always charmed by the naalbinding mittens, socks, and slippers. They look so cozy and warm, and the cheery colors and patterns are delightful.
Some of my favorite displays are the toys. The hand-carved wooden horses and tiny dolls made from scraps of wool and linen.
All this beauty and talent and history inspires me no end. As I sat on the bus coming home, my brain was whirring with things I want to research, make, and taste. Bear and I talked a mile a minute when we got in our car for the final leg of our journey, listing plans to enhance our own encampment, garb, and personas.
We want to finish the medieval bed Bear started a while back, complete my armor so I can start practicing medieval combat, and add the colorful Bedouin tassels I’ve been making to the Bedouin baby cradle, doorway to our tent, camel saddles, tent poles, and anything else that needs them.
It all makes me so happy and excited.
But first we need to settle back into normal life a bit. There is laundry to be done, dishes washed, bread made, animals fed, gardens watered, and errands run.
It’s so good to be home. xo
by Krista | Sep 16, 2015 | Spring
We had a gorgeous storm tonight that brought us some much-needed rain. Even though it wasn’t a lot, we are thrilled and thankful.
Bear and I have been working flat strap the last few days getting ready to head to St. Ives (near Sydney) for the St. Ives Medieval Faire. It’s a new event for us and we’re delighted to experience medieval camping in a new way. Instead of going as our usual Blackwolf Bedouin encampment, we’re joining the Templars as a pilgrim (me) and combatants (Bear and our friend, Adam).
As much as I love our encampment, and I really, really do, I’m excited to see how the Templars live, camp, and eat. We’ve been getting to know them over the last few months and they’re such a hilarious and jolly bunch.
I’m wearing new garb for this event too. Gone is my Finnish dress and in its place is the garb of a woman on pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I must say it’s rather fun to embody a new persona, if only for a weekend, and I look forward to grilling our Templar friends to learn more about what life would have been like for “me” during the Crusades.
In order to go adventuring for four days, Bear and I have been working hard to get the gardens and orchards watered and mulched, and all the feed, water, and shade ready for our animals so our lovely caretakers don’t have anything to worry about. They do such a good job keeping an eye on our house, property, and animals while we’re gone, and we like to make things as easy as possible for them.
I’m sure looking forward to this getaway with both new and old friends.
Now it’s time to finish packing and get all the food together. I’ve got homemade oatmeal raisin cookies, dried apples, dates, nuts, seeds, bread rolls, double-smoked ham, Croatian salami, and frozen bottles of our fresh-pressed apple juice. I think we’re almost ready.
Hope you have a fantastic weekend! xo
by Krista | Sep 15, 2015 | Spring
Sometimes I have a lot of words swirling around in my head, tumbling over themselves in a race to get typed into a blog post. And other times, like the last few weeks, I have none. I sit down to my computer and all I can do is feel. The expressions for those feelings haven’t resolved themselves into anything comprehensible. I don’t understand yet. And when I don’t understand, I can’t communicate.
My friend Margo once told me that when she’s traveling or muddled and doesn’t have time or energy to write it all out, she just writes in bullet points. Short little bursts of information from her day and experiences that help her remember and track and, one day, understand.
So here are my bullet points from “my lately”:
- Asparagus growing is wondrous. One day there is nothing, the next there’s a 6″ spear ready for eating.
- Sundresses are the best item of clothing in the world. Truly. I find it difficult to ever be too downhearted in a sundress.
- When I’m grieving or hurt or sad, going outside at sunset and sunrise never fails to ground and comfort me and remind me that it’s OK to feel these hard things. They will pass.
- Bear bringing me a cup of tea without being asked makes me feel more loved than if he showed up bearing diamonds.
- Gardening makes me feel like I’m a magician. I throw dried up old seeds in the dirt, give them some water, and before long they’ve transformed into sugar snap peas and artichokes and tomatoes. Amazing.
- Watching baby animals of any variety is excellent therapy. They elicit laughter from even the most battered hearts.
- Stealing a few minutes to read a novel is never, ever a waste of time.
- Go for a walk. Even a little one. You’ll not regret it.
- Muscovy ducks make me smile. They are so quiet with their quacks that they seem to always have laryngitis.
- When you stroll past a rosemary bush, run your hands up the stalks then breathe deeply from them. Bliss.
- Eating lunch on the veranda makes even sardines, olives, and cheese feel like a feast.
- Reading other people’s blog posts is like traveling for me. Their words and photos take me to places and experiences completely different than my own, and make me a more balanced person.
- Re-reading my favorite childhood stories has been such a good idea. It’s like revisiting all my happiest memories.
- When I get homesick for mountains and pine forests, a dish filled with pine cones and set on the table sure is nice.
- Baking a cake is always a good idea. Especially when it’s a simple, homey one, heavily fragrant with vanilla and studded with spirit-soaked cranberries.
What are some bullet point moments from your life that you’re treasuring this week? xo
Vanilla Cake with Boozy Cranberries
Ingredients:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup spelt flour
1 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup vodka or rum soaked fresh cranberries
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 F (180 C).
- Cover removable bottom of 8-inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
- In medium size bowl, beat together sugar and butter until pale yellow.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition.
- Beat in vanilla extract.
- In small bowl whisk together flours and baking powder. Add to wet mixture and stir until well incorporated.
- Add milk and beat until mixture is smooth.
- Add cranberries, stirring gently so they don’t break.
- Pour into prepared pan and place in oven.
- Bake 35-40 minutes until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.
- Let cake cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove and cool on rack until ready to serve or until fully cooled and ready to store.
by Krista | Sep 10, 2015 | Spring
I’m home again after a sunset tractor ride with Bear through our bush. It’s one of our favorite things to do together, getting totally away from everything and trundling along on our old red Massey tractor as we point out roving gangs of kangaroos, the exquisite light shimmering through the gum trees, and our favorite spots where “one day” we’re going to build a cabin with a veranda overlooking the trees, back dam, and valley beyond.
It’s been a contemplative week for me, one where I needed to pull my borders in close and rest, giving myself time to grieve the loss of two dear ones, time to do those things that comfort and heal.
Nature, love, and companionship with a trusted soul, these are the things that strengthen me.
I took naps and read books and wrote many, many words in my journal.
I lingered in my gardens soaking up sunshine and celebrating every new sign of life, excitedly showing Bear each tiny harvest of asparagus, peas, and baby beets.
I shared many cuppas with Bear, talking or just sitting quietly, finding comfort in his hugs and kindnesses.
They were all good things, so good, and today I was ready to step back into the world.
It was a lovely day for stepping back. Gorgeous Spring sunshine warmed us to our bones and cool breezes fragrant with new blossoms kept us from sweltering as we worked.
Bear and I have been building new pens this week and this afternoon we nearly finished number three. Soon we’ll have enough to be able to rotate our flocks of ducks, chickens, geese, and turkeys so they always have a source of grass and weeds to peck through while staying safe from foxes and wild dogs.
Today I spent with Oma at her farm, visiting over our favorite Earl Grey Tea and homemade chocolate cake in between all sorts of projects. We oohed and aahed over her gorgeous pigs, trimmed the beaks of naughty egg-pecking chickens, dispatched some roosters for the stew pot, bottled her latest batch of whiskey (smooth as silk, I tell ya!), and taste-tested her luscious caramelized marmalade jam – just to make sure it was OK.
It was a beautiful end to my stepping back day.
Now it’s time to finish up my latest wood-burning orders, have an evening tipple of Oma’s whiskey, and go to bed for a good sleep.
Wishing you a beautiful weekend. xo
by Krista | Sep 4, 2015 | Spring
It’s one of those funny sorts of days where I’m perfectly happy but feel all sorts of emotional, getting weepy at the drop of a hat. I know it’s because of all the kindness I’ve received and observed this week. It never fails to turn my heart to mush and make me a bit soppy.
The refugee situations in Europe and Australia are breaking my heart. I wish I was rich enough and powerful enough to find everyone a safe place to live and grow and thrive. But I’m so thankful for those who are doing everything they can to help and comfort and support. If this situation is on your heart too, here are 5 practical ways you can help refugees, starting today.
I’ve seen kindness close at home too. Yesterday my friend Oma spent the whole day with me showing me how to use her feather plucker, how to butcher ducks and chooks to get the most use out of each bird, and shared recipes for corned meat, sauerkraut with black pepper and caraway seeds, and crispy fried duck pressed under a brick. Then she gave me a stove. A stove!!! Do you remember I told you my stove and oven (and electric frying pan and spice grinder and bread maker) konked out last month? Bit by bit we’ve been replacing the appliances, but a stove is a big one and had to wait a while. Well, Oma told me, “I’ve got two and I don’t need two so one is for you.” I cried. Such generosity and thoughtfulness. It’s the loveliest little oven, just enough to bake a loaf of bread, a roast, or a pan of cookies, with two burners on top for soups, boiling potatoes, and frying eggs. I love it. And have named her Rosie.
It was such a beautiful day at Oma’s, working in the shed out of the wind, thoroughly enjoying the novelty of lush green grass and wildflowers after a dry and withering winter. As we plucked and gutted and carved and chatted, we were able to talk about so many good things in our lives: rain for our gardens, chooks laying eggs again, friends who are really there for each other.
When you move to a new country, it takes a while to find your place, to build the relationships that will be the ones you depend on when life goes wonky. And today I’m quite overwhelmed with gratitude for the lovely people in my life here. People I can ask for help when I don’t know what to do, who can ring me for a ride somewhere or to pick something up or to lend a hand in a project they’ve got going on. We’re there for each other and it is a lovely, deeply comforting feeling. It’s good to not be alone in this world.
Earlier this week I got to spend time with my friend, Kathy. Several months ago she invited me to join her gardening group and we’ve become dear friends since then. She grows and sells seedlings and plants and always has something new to try, like Egyptian mint. I love going over to her place for the afternoon. A “quick visit” always turns into hours of animated talking about herbs and veggies, happy perusing of seed collections, and sipping wine while catching up on all the ins and outs of our daily lives. We’re always swapping plants and seeds and sharing things we’ve grown, baked, or brewed. This week I brought her goat manure, black violas, pansies, bush lemons, and spelt flour, and she sent me home with celery, mugwort, horse manure, and a stack of cool new seeds: apple cucumber, jam melon, Amish paste tomatoes, Italian striped zucchini’s and other treasures. If you’re on the Southern Downs of Queensland and want healthy, hearty plants for your garden, pop over to Facebook and join her group: Pots of Herbs and Punnets of Seedlings.
Today is sunny and quiet and peaceful and I’m exhausted after a very busy week. 🙂 So I’m taking the day to potter, to rest, to do the things that restore my body and spirit: reading, naps, sorting seed packets, making soup, and chats with far-away-but-dearly-loved friends who always give me courage and inspire me to press on with hope.
What kindnesses have you experienced this week? xo
by Krista | Nov 26, 2014 | Spring
It’s dark and cool tonight after a gorgeous rain that soaked deep into our parched soil. The air smells delectably clean and fresh and frogs are croaking happily outside my office window.
It’s long past my bedtime, but I don’t mind. It’s the last day of my 30’s and I feel quiet and thoughtful, happy to indulge in some quiet moments to settle my heart and embrace this next big adventure: turning 40.
I feel deeply thankful to be in this place, this time in my life. Not because things are idyllic and stress-free, far from it, but because I’m handling things so much better. I love sitting back and observing my stronger self, getting little chuckles of pride when I don’t crumple before a bully or have my health shatter at the first hint of stress. It’s a lovely, amazing thing to grow, heal, and strengthen, to feel courage and self-confidence instead of crippling fear and self-doubt.
A few months ago I decided that I was going to do something brave and creative before my 40th birthday, something I’ve been dreaming about since I was a little girl: publish my own book.
Although I’m thrilled with the history book I was commissioned to write, and can’t wait to share it with you in a month or so, I really wanted to make a book that was all mine, my words, my photographs, a sharing of something precious to me.
So, bit by bit over the last months, an hour here, a few snatched minutes there, I’ve been working on a black and white photography book about Italy. Although I initially thought I’d write words to go with it, the photos took over and it became a book more about inspiration and reflection than words. I finished up the last edits today and am delighted to be able to share it with you on the eve of my 40th birthday.
These are not images of famous buildings, fashionistas, or posh restaurants, they’re moments of daily life. From laundry blowing in the wind and a farmhouse breakfast to surprising works of art and treasured moments in Italian homes, these are the photos that I love: quiet, simple, reflective. (You can see a little preview below.)
If you would like a bit of Italian inspiration of your own, you can
order the book here if you’re in Australia, and
order it here if you’re in any other part of the world. And if you’d just like to bask a while in the preview photos, that would be lovely too.
In the morning Bear and I are off to spend my birthday together and I can’t wait. We’ve both been working so hard and it will be bliss to set aside a whole day just to have fun and make good memories.
Wishing you a beautiful weekend.
xo
