Times Flies....It's June, Baby!

Woo....hooo! A few days of freedom...sort of :) I finished grading and uploading final scores for spring term yesterday. Technically I have two finals this coming week for the massage program and my summer term in person course to prep, but I'm not too worried about any of them. So yesterday afternoon turned into my favorite end-of-term time: the time when I weed out, recycle, & organize all sorts of stuff I've been putting off doing. I still have more little projects to do but at least I made a sizeable dent in some of the stuff that I've been so behind on taking care of. This has been the term of treading water, as I never truly have felt "on top of" anything organizationally. I'm not sure if this term will be much better but only time will tell. :)

So a few pretty decent changes since the last update:

---I had a week or two to myself in the house (amazing!) after M moved out (which ended pretty poorly on his final day unfortunately). On Memorial Day, I helped my current housemate unload her storage shed components into the garage and then over the course of that final week in May she transitioned the rest of her stuff into her room. Granted the first few months are usually pretty good when sharing housing with someone new, but seriously...she's quiet, she's health conscience, she's focused, she enjoys the animals, we have similar interests/values but also lots of differences, and she helps take out the trash/unload the dishwasher/keeps the bathroom clean. (She also shares here Vitamix.....which is AmaZING!) In comparison to the last six months with M, my stress is so greatly reduced and I'm loving it. We'll be joined by the AirBnB gal in a week and she'll be here for two months. I'm hopeful the three of us will do well together.

---My brother came up again last weekend and helped finalize the coop and arbor. I painted the remaining boards on the arbor, hung my lanterns, and set up the new hammock yesterday. The kiwi is out of control per usual so I might trim it this week sometime. I finished the coop on Monday, returned the roosters (miss my sweet lil guy!), and found two new little hens to complete the flock. The hens are smaller due to breed so I might get one other larger lady also. They spent one night in the new coop so far but we dropped temps again so I put them back in the garage coop until wee one gets all her feathers in..or it heats up :)

---The kitchen sink backed up again. The landlords had me call a plumber. In clearing the kitchen line, the main line clogged so then he had to clear the main line. All in all, I learned a lot about the pipes in the house (which are incredibly old and small). We'll also be switching back to composting rather than using the disposal, which means that I need to finalize my compost project ASAP. :) In other related learning news, I was motivated last week by an external source, and I finally retaught myself how to use a drill and the saw.....my brother was very happy to have me help even more and now I can do many more projects solo.

---Technically I don't know if I can call it truly dating but at the very least I'm getting back out there with getting to know new options for potential partners. It's been interesting this time around, as I'm so settled in myself now that I really don't care either way if I meet someone or invest much time in the process at this point in my life. After everything the last few years have brought, I am much stronger in who I am and I'm not willing to lose that to anyone else again. I'm also okay with the notion of just being solo for a long while if it means being happy with myself. I have so much already in this life and while I like the notion of having someone to share that with long term, I don't know if all of us are cut out for long partnerships :) Regardless....I had a really awesome "date" this last week. We met at the Waterfront in the evening for a jog, originally planning on only 3-5 miles but we ended up doing 8, although there was some walking in there too. The views along the waterfront were incredible and I saw so many new areas that I've never explored before (wish I could have snapped pictures!). We were able to chat along the way, but really it was just fun to be out doing something we both enjoy. I don't really know that any of these outings will pan out into anything, but it's fun and low-key all the same.

---Lil' cousin got married...and it was such a gorgeous and really great wedding. Everything from her dress, to the center pieces, to the food, to the decor, to the speeches was spot on...and it was so wonderful to see her truly glowing, happy, confident, and totally in her element. So very happy for her!

---Three kayaking outings last term were incredible. I seriously loved the experience and eventually I definitely would love to purchase one. I had a paddleboarding outing last weekend that was wonderful also. This summer I only registered for the surfing weekend, but I am so stoked that my employment covers these opportunities. In other outdoor news, the dogs and I made our annual Kings Mtn summit. This summer I plan to thru hike all 22 miles of the Wilson River trail in one day and I have my first backpacking trip of the summer on the calendar.

---Tomorrow I'm hosting an old undergrad friend and her husband for dinner. They're visiting from Oakland (M and I saw them while in SF last spring break) and I'm so looking forward to catching up after all this time! In July my gal Christina and her boyfriend will be here from Atlanta, my buddy R who moved Texas will be in town for a couple days, and my old high school friend Matt and his fiance will be passing thru while visiting from Edmonton. In mid-August, my gal Caitlin will be here and we've scheduled a girls day with our gal Brook also. Then in early August, we'll also celebrate Granny's 103rd birthday and so family will be in town for the celebration. My cousin and her husband also get back at the end of this month from their six months of central America travels. :) So lots of great visits coming up this summer.

So ya....I'm sure there's more in there that I'm forgetting but those are the biggies. Really it's the little moments that seem to be the most awe-inspiring though: holding the chickens, Roxi's crazy expressions, delicious steak dinners & Argentine wine evenings, nailing out a fast run, structural work on my lower leg muscles, conversations with the housemate in the kitchen, flowers, wrangling strawberries, sunning on the patio, lawn mowing.

I'm making progress on my goals although slowly, but I'm not too worried about where I stand with goals as much these days. I know that I'm moving forward...and really I'm just happy with...well, being.

It's a pretty good place to be these days.

What a Great Day

Seriously, today was amazing. There was a whole lot of awesome. A whole lot of low key. A whole lot of lazy too. And a whole lot of moments when I just thought to myself "This is REAL life. This is MY life" and "I'm so in love with THIS life THIS moment." Life...in it's every day moments...man this is it, this is Pinterest worthy. :)

Things aren't perfect. But they never will be and I'm okay with that. But there are so many moments when I lay on my back patio and look around my yard, really see my amazing furry companions, appreciate the fluffy chickens sunning next to me or watch them peck around the yard, and take in the raised beds, the fruit trees, the coop coming together, all the simple, easy details of my existence....and I exhale and so deeply feel the fortune that I already have in this life. There is something about being just another element hanging out in my yard...that lets me feel the whole picture is already in completion.

Or maybe it was the moment this morning as I stood on my rental paddleboard and tooled around Ross Island, watching baby ducks & geese swim along their parents or wobble run along the shores, listening to the birds chattering excitedly among the trees, being happily greeted by all the fellow paddlers I crossed paths with, noticing the ebb & flow of conversation among the immigrant men fishing from the shore, the overcast morning being a perfect juxtaposition for the sunshine of the afternoon, and looking up to the hillsides surrounding that area of Portland just full of vibrant greens and SO.MUCH.LIFE.

Or maybe it was the time with family today via a Facetime conversation with my father & Granny this afternoon with Granny looking happy and chattering on about things on their end or the spontaneous dinner invite to my aunt's with my cousin after they came upon me during their evening walk while I was in the front yard weeding and pruning, and the great conversation that ensued with my aunt post dinner.

Or maybe it was the moments I allowed myself to indulge in just plain day dreaming about life, dreaming of what could be evolving, appreciating the awesomeness that already exists.

Regardless of the many other small things that also brightened, today felt like such an incredible day. The days aren't all sunshine & roses around here, but there are plenty of pretty amazing ones...and lots of reasons why they all have something to be grateful for.

Seriously, great day....

Garden Goods 2014

This last year I paid attention to what I used in terms of frozen and preserved produce. I'm hoping to can, jam, freeze, and dry my way through a LOT more goodies this year...preferrably from free sources if at all possible. Ie I'm trying to get the guts to hit up people in the neighborhood who let their apples & pears rot on the ground ;) I also will frequent the U-picks, my sister and I will be making strawberry jam together, and she's checking with her free blueberry source.

But with all the yard projects, I also changed one of the raised beds and I'm doing a much better job of using total raised bed space this year.  I'm also planning on harvesting and then re-seeding what I can also, ie radishes, carrots, etc.

Garden Box 1:

L-R: Leeks, spinach, carrots, radishes, lettuce, kale, beets, chives, strawberries. In background are the berries and grapes hanging over the fence.

Newly created & relocated cinder block bed: 

A raised bed just for the zucchini to take it over! :)

Background is mint under the berries and garlic.

Garden Box 2: 

L-R: cucumber, onions, bush beans, tomatoes w peas, kale, lettuce, broccoli, brussel sprouts.

Not pictured: more lettuce and an acorn squash in containers out front, two new artichoke plants, the Asian pear got moved this year, strawberries & blueberries in the front, the kiwi is covered in blossoms on the new arbor, and a cherry tomato is out front again. In the coming week I also hope to weed one more area of the front yard and see if I can use that space as another garden space for corn, onions, and a few other things.

It was a major battle with the slugs this year, so  I hate to say it but I caved and sprinkled slug killer all along the sides of the raised beds and below. I had tried picking the slugs off, epsom salt sprinkling, containers of cheap beer, & copper tape....none worked. The hazardous stuff seems to be doing the job.

We'll see what all comes to fruition but it's nice to see stuff finally growing!