Pickles!

I made pickles on Monday. Sweet and sour pickle chips. It was fun, and incredibly easy. The pickles look so pretty in the jars. Just seeing them makes me smile. I used the recipe in the Ball Blue Book. It will take six weeks for them to fully cure, but then I will have pickles to last for a year.

I spent an afternoon making pickles and I have enough to last a year. Take that, Monsanto.

One more skill I've learned. I've now canned jam, tomatoes, and pickles. I've also dehydrated and frozen lots of fruits and vegetables. Every thing I do and learn to do is one more step on the path to self-sufficiency and food security. And pickles look might pretty, too, especially when you've made them yourself. :)

I'm Back

My life has been totally crazy, hence the silence. Things finally seem to be calming down. What has been happening? Here's a short list:
The house -the sell fell through at the last minute. Three days before closing. How's that for ironic? I was more than half moved out. What happened next is a little complicated, but the house is off the market and is going to stay that way for a while. I was having some trouble paying the mortgage on my reduced income but not anymore. My girlfriend moved in with me. That's good for a whole lot of reasons. We're doing really well.

The farm -some of the plans had to be scaled back because of the craziness. My greens have slowly petered out. The tomatoes, peppers, and squash are taking off. We're growing a trial patch of sweet potatoes. I've also planted the garden patch at the house, of course.

Health -I have been seriously ill with sinus problems, but they are finally getting better.

Weather -the weather has been completely crazy. After an abnormally cool and wet spring, we sprang right into the middle of summer. It got hot, and fast. Sunday it was 107 degrees with the heat index. The heat index was over a hundred for four days running, and today is going to be slightly under that.

I promise I'll post more later.