As the Spindle Turns . . .

One of the channels I watch is a politically neutral channel called What's Going On With Shipping? For business as well as global trends, I find it a good source on the pulse of business. I started watching when the crazy tariffs started to impact ports. As a business, I need to know the impacts on the import business. A lot of my yarn comes from Peru. I invite you to check it out so you can follow what is going on in the Strait of Hormuz. https://youtu.be/wck_88OaQX8?si=ix2_-qGd64HISP5z

One of my many concerns is how this will impact gas prices and thus food prices. It appears that it impacts Europe more than it will impact us. I still think oil companies will raise prices just because they can. I am, at heart, a pessimist. I am working real hard to not try to plant the entire garden too early. I am worried sick. Over the years I have worked with Israelis as well as Persians (and Palestinians). I fear for many things, including their children and grand-children. I worry about US Soldiers in Iraq, who are not surrounded by friends/allies. I pray for the families of those killed at the consulate in Pakistan. My cousin used to work in an embassy. They are merely public servants.

This is rapidly expanding into a religious conflict that impacts the globe. Right or wrong, the genie is out of the bottle. You are not going to trick it into going back in. I am profoundly sad today.

I worked outside despite the colder temperatures today. I needed the physical exertion. More branches have been rendered into tiny twigs. I am looking at planting peas a little early. Normally, peas and onions go into the ground mid-March. Tuesday and onward, we get rain with 70 degree temps. The soak of a week of rain may be good for germinating. I have a lot of seed so even if they die, at least I will feel better. Beets got planted today in my soil blocks. Generally I plant beets indoors around Feb 25th.

I am also working on some organic store-bought potatoes. I have them in a tray in the sun to start them chitting (growing eyes). I need to check on the seed potatoes I stored in the basement. I am sure those have grown vines, going everywhere. Next week I'll work on freshening up my soil in grow bags to get those started. They might live in the garage for a little bit until the weather settles. Then I need to check with the hardware store for raised bed soil. It's stupid early to be doing this but if we want to eat this year, it's gotta be done. Last year the hardware store ran out of soil before the end of March. I have a feeling that lack of affordability is about to get even worse. Mostly though, it just feels good to be doing something useful.

MI Gardener says that bare root plants will ship next week. I ordered 10 strawberry plants - June bearing, and another blueberry bush. As long as the pine tree in the front yard is doing well, the blueberries should too. They will all go in the SW Mandala bed. It'll be a good start to the season. Another thing I ordered was onion starts. Those are coming from The Maine Potato Lady. They could come anytime in March. It adds additional urgency to making new garden beds.

Last year's onions arrived March 18th.


Last night I took my list and started trying to do a plant layout for each bed. Since I haven't finished making the beds yet, it was hard. I think I'll find more motivation if I start clearing weeds in the back. Once I have the lay of the land, I'll have more confidence. This year's plant list includes peas, beans, lettuce, zucchini, onions, leeks, sweet potatoes, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes (4 kinds), pumpkin, beets, cucumbers, spinach, celery, and a couple of chard plants. If things work out, I also have sorghum and corn. There will also be various herbs and flowers throughout the garden. Those always depend on what actually germinates.

1. The mouse stashed seeds inside the oven lining. They caught on fire. The stove/oven is toast. The mouse is fine.
2. The water was unusable for two days. Electric went out during the cold snap and there was backflow. It took two days for testing to prove the water was potable again.
3. We got a call from the US embassy in Warsaw. Don't ask. It's too long a story.
4. The temperature warmed significantly. Bats were out. One made it into my laundry and is wrapped around my washing machine's rotor. I hope it didn't suffer. It's very sad.
5. The van is still dead in the driveway. It has to dry out before I can try to jump it.
6. I had so much going on that I didn't realize I had a show last Saturday. My apologies.


Please let that be an end to the month's calamities.

It hit a high of 0 degrees F today. I checked our thermometer. Still no safe water. It appears now that an electrical outage occurred around 4 am Saturday morning. There was back-flow. The boil alert went out around 11 am. Power was fixed right away but my guess is the staff to test the water doesn't show up until Monday or else there are a lot of pipes to test. The list of affected townships is staggering. Over 95,000 people were affected. That might just be the number in Allegheny county. All of Washington county was affected. The current estimate to finish checking the safety of the water supply is Tuesday around midnight. It sucks.

I just rinsed my hands with some vinegar water. I have more cuts than is safe to take a shower in this. I have a lot of chapped and cracking skin. I grabbed two more quarts of canned water which I put away for emergencies. I also brought up more frozen water out of the freezer. The "no stove" nor water is wearing thin. Monday will warm up enough to start the car and go get propane.

I am quite hesitant to go shopping for a new stove. I don't know if the mouse died. No point in buying a replacement until I know for sure.

Amazingly, I saw a Starling today. The snow cover is still pretty deep but I put out fresh bird seed. The temps were negative last night again. It's hard to imagine that they predict 52 degrees on Tuesday.

I thinking the word I'm looking for is "Coveting". I don't have money for a beautiful professional seed starting system. There is everything from grow tents to shelving units. This is my current favorite:
https://www.greenhousemegastore.com/products/fluence-razr-modular-array-led?variant=45764067197127&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=ECI+-+%5BCONS%5D+%5BCONV%5D+-+ASC%2B+-+Cold+-+Higher+AOV&utm_content=Conv+-+Dynamic+Carousel+-+Higher+AOV+-+12%2F25&utm_id=120232348012860470&utm_term=120237030405140470&fbclid=IwY2xjawPc9F5leHRuA2FlbQEwAGFkaWQBqyrxRSUxlnNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR41frbi0SK_cLAA8UAJo6Z7NZZ-dFj3FStaI4-D58Kl1WUGFU3dx7YTUfSl6g_aem_rSVdR-Ir9HnG8MLkS2b9Sg

What a mess of code that is! Anyway, that is way too much money. MI Gardener recommends shop lights. He goes into Lumens and so forth to get ones appropriate for plants. Eventually I'll get there. Meanwhile, Ace hardware has Miracle Gro(TM) Light bulbs that fit regular sockets. I don't like watering with a danger of electrocution. I picked up trays to keep water from going through. My setup started with one single light, designed for hydroponics. Unfortunately, it isn't 3 feet long. It's 20". Most grow trays are 10" by 20". One fixture works for one tray. Even with staggering my plantings, that is not enough. I have a very gerry-rigged setup.

From 2024


Right now, I have 2 trays each or 10 plants each of spinach and lettuce just for winter growing. Those will be done soon. Lettuce has a 12 week growing cycle. The finished plants will be composted and the soil reused after refreshing it with coconut coir and a pinch of feather meal (nitrogen). What will I do to replace them?

It starts with my average last frost date. Mine is May 3rd, basically Beltaine or May Day. I back off of that what it says on the back of each seed packet. It could be 4 to 6 weeks or 8 to 10 weeks. For me, that means planting onions first. They need to go in at the end of January or beginning of February. That is the Celtic holiday, Imbolc or St. Brigid's Day. Commercial onion seed is fussy. Old seed has really bad germination. All my seeds came from 2024 or earlier. I don't expect much. As a backup, I also ordered seed bulbs from the Maine Potato Lady. Hopefully, those arrive in March. The seed bulbs get direct sown into the garden. A short word on onions, the kind you grow is dependent on your latitude. Farther north requires long day onions. Farther south requires short day onion varieties. I'm at an intermediate latitude, about 42 degrees.

Back to planting:
The next crops I'll be starting indoors in February like cooler weather. They take a long time to get going. I am starting thyme, rosemary, savory, celery, and more lettuce to replace the outgoing crop. Brassicas are also good to start. Since I have an allergy, I'm passing on planting brassicas. Another thing I start at about this time (or earlier) is sweet potato slips. They need warmth and sun to get going. I plant an organic sweet potato from the store on top of some soil horizontally. I used to do the toothpick trick and water but they get knocked over too easily. I like reusing bone broth or tomato soup cartons (not jars or cans) for this. I cut a large hole in one side and lay them flat. I fill them with soil and place on a heat mat under a grow light. That provides more surface area exposed to the heat mat. My windows are too cold to get anything going until April. By then, it's too late.

At the end of February, I'll start on warm weather crops that need a long time, like artichokes, eggplant, and basil. If you are following the new moon planting for optimization, then February 17th is the day. Some people swear by that. I find backtracking from the average last frost date works better.

My biggest problem is space. The seedlings need to be transplanted once they are big enough and the weather doesn't always cooperate. The other problem is that most plants that you want to start indoors all say 4 to 6 weeks. It can seriously take up your entire house. If I seed a 50 plug tray (10 x 20), then I need to find 50 spots as they grow for just that one tray under my lights. One tray becomes 5 trays of bigger pots. I think this is typically when people buy a greenhouse. That is so not happening here. I live on a hill in Appalachia. Level ground doesn't happen. What I try to do is grow things that can be hardened off and go outside under frost covers. It works to some extent. The bunches of flowers always gang up on me; all those 4 to 6 weekers. My front porch looks like a plant store until I get around to planting all of them in the ground. The other side of the steps can hold just as many trays. In all, about 140 plants. I usually manage to grow 300 though. Yes, I have a bottleneck.



This year more perennials are planned. It should help with the seed starting backlog. I also picked up some direct sow seed like flax and poppies. Why do I do this? I have mice and voles that eat direct sown seed. I also have squirrels that dig things up (and skunks). My direct sow success is very limited. Usually, only volunteers from the previous year come up. I can't plan a garden that way. My feral plants include claytonia and calendula. Those I typically leave where they come up. Major food sources like lettuce, spinach, summer squash and melons can't be left to chance. The mice do love themselves some spinach seed. It doesn't stand a chance. The squirrels love squash seed.

Yes, maybe I work too hard, but I love doing it.

With regard to gardening and self sufficiency:

Two things struck me this weekend, one is self sufficiency. I've followed any number of self sufficient homesteads and farms. There are guides for how much to plant for each person, how much land do you need, etc. Even people with 3 acres of land still buy certain staples. If you are eating a plant based diet, most will admit that you can only grow 80 % of your own food. They buy flour, sugar, salt, and oil/fats to fill their pantry. Making jelly and jam takes a lot of sugar, even using a low sugar recipe (or Pomona pectin). Pickles need vinegar with a specific acidity to avoid spoilage and disease. Everyone likes a treat every once in a while too, like coffee or chocolate. Screw the new food pyramid. 60% of the people developing it have stock in the companies it benefits. My garden plan reflects food I actually eat and how frequently. Example, I ran out of frozen beans by January 1st. I need to plant more than I did, probably double.

I figure that I can only grow 60% max of what our family eats. Another homesteader recommends 25 pounds of white rice, 25 pounds of quick oats, 25 pounds of flour, and a couple pounds of salt, plus a couple gallons of vinegar for a typical family of 4 for a 3 month period. I think the idea was to keep achieving food storage goals, first for 3 weeks without shopping and then 3 months. The person I watched was not US based so it had nothing to do with the current political climate. It was just general prepping. Since that person was a farmer, I think that is a good rule of thumb. She also mentioned pasta.

A lot of my harvest is weather dependent. If we have a late frost, I lose the stone fruit tree harvest. Some trees only produce big every other year. Then there is the late season drought which kills my attempt at fall crops. We have one very frequently. In the stupid high temperatures caused by climate change, squash won't even produce. It's a tricky balancing act. Don't even get me started on bugs and critters. This year I hope to get more fencing set up to prevent some of my usual problems. It always comes down to finances.

The other video I watched was on design. While I'd like to setup a watering system, I am not sure if I can. Water should be planned before anything else. I need gutterwork and may eventually move an IBC tub up the hill, but a first flush system needs to be setup as well as a leaf-catcher. Piping costs money too. Finding a reliable contractor who will actually listen to me, a mere female, that's another thing entirely. The garage may be missing a facia board and other side's gutter isn't exactly attached. A previous contractor cemented the PVC drainpipe to the driveway on the downhill side. The garage is built into the hill. I need the water to run in the opposite direction. Also I hate PVC. The glue they use makes me violently ill. Then there is the matter of overflow or winter drainage. A tape measure will determine if the IBC tub is even short enough to get under the gutter. If it fits, it would mean moving the compost pallets and rejiggering the potato garden. It could be done, but it depends on whether the last contractors did what I asked them to do. Then I'll need pipe fittings for that IBC. I won't be able to put it up on blocks for a watering can. There's a lot to take into account. The designer I watched would have me use 3 IBC tubs for the size of my garden. No space for that up the hill, just one fits.

I've drawn up plans for another set of garden beds. Once the weather clears, I'll get out and take measurements to see if they'll fit where I want them. I've 6 new raised beds that'll need soil. I also need metal conduit. Infrastructure isn't cheap. I'll be using a lot of scrap wood that's been kicking around too.

I am dreaming of spring and new beginnings. I won't be self sufficient, but I hope to grow 400 pounds of produce. Will it be 60% of my groceries? I think I need more infrastructure to do that. I already know I can't begin to grow enough peas, carrots, tomatoes or corn (raccoons). I've never been successful with onions, but I hope this year is different. (dratted squirrels)

First, and probably foremost, I didn't get at the tree trimming because I had no healthcare at all. I went for 26 years or so without healthcare coverage.If you live in America, you'll understand. If not, I can't begin to explain how archaic our system is. Without healthcare, there was no way I was going to climb a ladder or a tree.

Second, I didn't have a ladder. Once a tree gets too tall, I couldn't trim it. Last year I broke down and bought a ladder when they were on sale. Previously, I owned a rickety wooden ladder that was really only meant to make it easier to change light bulbs. Being cash strapped has been a constant for me for many years. It started with the Bush (W) Administration. Recession hit us hard. Both my husband and I were laid off before 9/11 was even a word.

Third, a sharp object to cut with. All I had was a lopper. You can't cut 2" thick limbs with a lopper. I attempted to use a pole saw. It wasn't easy to use and got stuck in the tree for a year. Then I broke the blade. I lost the screw holding on the lopping attachment. It was a disaster. Then I bought a hand held blade but I still didn't have a ladder. The hand held blade took forever to cut even one limb.

Now I have a mini-chainsaw and a ladder. I shut the power off to the garage. I'm finally making progress. Wish I had a chipper/shredder but for now, I'm happy. There will be light in the garden and there will be less likelihood of contacting the power line, plus the tree will grow better. Win - win!

2025 started with learning how to pressure can. On my quirky electric stove, this was harder than you'd think. The original goal was one pressure canning session per week. No, I didn't stick with that goal. I had picked up a Presto pressure canner, the smaller size to see if this was even something I would like to do. I'm glad I bought one but no, I am not inclined to upgrade to an American Canner in a bigger size. I am not feeding a family of 8 or more. Do I want to grow more of my own food and preserve it? Yes. We do prefer fresh or frozen food. I think I'd be more inclined to spend the extra money on a power station to keep the freezer going in a power outage.

Things I tried pressure canning in 2025 are beans, Chicken Stew, Mince Meat, Pot Roast, Sloppy Joes, TeriyakiChicken, BBQ Pork, cold pack plain chicken, also beef, Beef Bolognese, and corn. Mostly I continued my normal schedule of preserving fruit with jams and jellies. Some produce came from the farmer's market. I haven't tried the mince meat yet. The chicken turned out dry. The Sloppy Joes were wonderful for days when there was no time to cook. Just heat and eat. Those I will make again. Part of the fun was creating our own Worcestershire sauce. As of late, the store-bought variety is starting to add allergens that affect my family. So we learned how to make our own.



There is a lot of stuff in the freezer right now. I was very thankful I'd frozen asparagus, yellow beans, and spinach. There were power outages at food distribution centers that caused no frozen produce in the stores at all. Later in the year, there was a week that subzero temperatures froze most of the produce coming out of California. You should have seen the oranges and zucchinis. We had to rely on what we grew.



It is an ongoing journey to eat what is in season and save for when nothing is available. In theory, it's a hedge against inflation, but only if you grow it yourself. The snow is 10" deep at this point. The ground is thoroughly frozen. It's 18 degrees. Plans and ideas are percolating. We'll see what 2026 brings.

It's not been a good week. I've had little sleep. My husband's health is not in a good place right now. Because of that, I am not getting much sleep. So bah-humbug for the day. I spent 5 hours making more English muffins. Finding decent bread has been futile. When the farmer's market is in session, I can get bread, but not at this time of year. The food co-op has decided to only order multi-grain which I cannot digest. Instead, I spend a half a day working on bread products. That alone will tire you out.

Yesterday I made mozzarella. I like making bread with the leftover whey. Somewhere in there I made shortbread cookies. A long nap followed.

I made the mistake of watching too many economists over the week. Let's just say, it left me with a really bad feeling about 2026. As a nation, our prognosis isn't good. It also sucks that this is a month where there will be 5 weeks between social security checks. That means making two payments for internet and two payments for the home equity all out of one check from December. The COLA notices went out. It is almost nothing as an increase. It leaves me still in a bah-humbug mood.

To combat this feeling, I'll be canning a bunch of stuff. I have two bags of tomatoes in the freezer and 9 pounds of chuck roast. I'll be warming up the pressure canner in January. I'll be following along with Leissa at Sutton's Daze for her Canuary event. I won't be able to buy groceries until after the 14th of the month but there should be some good recipes to think about in the meanwhile. No worries, my shelves are well-stocked and I have lettuce growing in the basement.

https://youtu.be/PGsb3gDBSvc?si=UPxIDsj48k1JaWBm

Sunday is when the temperature dips down. Tomorrow is an ice storm (in theory). The radar doesn't seem to give much of a clue. I hauled wood up near the house in case we lose power. The cold weather plants got moved up near the house under an awning.

I've been thinking a lot about next year's garden. There needs to be more potatoes in my life. I pre-ordered The Compact Garden book by Char Lopez. Their Youtube channel is "plantedinthegarden". As to what growing zone, they are zone 5B in Toronto, if I remember correctly. I am looking for inspiration for my small urban yard. If I can get a small section fenced off in the backyard, I can improve my yield. Another inspiration is "FarmForProfitUganda" which also deals with container gardening in a small space. She has unique challenges like water shortages. But I love her multi-level grow bench! What a difference it makes to live at the equator!

With the warm weather this week, I only managed to repair the herb spiral from the deer knocking all my bricks down. A fence is now blocking them from cutting through. The topsoil has been mulched for the rest of winter. It was a start. Once I can setup the burn barrel again, I need to make more biochar. There are a lot of cherry tree twigs that could go into a tin to be turned into char. "SergioOutdoors" will show you how to adapted an old tin to make charcoal. Now you know all my inspirations. The economists keep me inspired to keep working on preparedness. If they are wrong, I lose nothing.

My sweater is complete. The picture is dark and dingy but I am pleased with it.

I'm tired. Really tired. There were two really long days at the convention center. Setup started at 10:30 am with shopping starting at 4 pm through 8 pm. Traffic within the parking structure was insane. It took 45 minutes to get out. Then add on drive time of 40 minutes each way. Saturday shopping started at 9 am until 6 pm. Of course we had to get there earlier than the customers. Tear down took 2 hours. Then I got up the next day to work at the grocery store 10-2. I couldn't even eat when I got home. After filing my paperwork to get paid, I fell over and slept. Am I too old for this shit?

Sales were down about 25%. It was Chronographia's booth. She has a hernia so I lent her a hand. I was fine with the event, just not the grocery store. With a continued recession growing, will there even be gigs that make a profit in 2026? That's the big question.

I am grumbling more. Feel free to skip. Work is implementing a new system. I am not thrilled. It was bad enough that our router routinely flakes out. The printer quit talking to the computer and Apple updated the phone software. I absolutely hate the new operating system. I'm ready to go back to a wall phone and a TV set with rabbit ears. Screw this. I am so tired of AI programming and data mining. I'm tired of billionaires' BS (the fight for Warner Bros). I could easily retreat into weaving while listening to CDs and chill out with Celtic music.

Solar storms and polar vortexes are the main concern now for the winter. Tomorrow I have to remember to pick up the car at the shop. It'll be 15 degrees F tonight. It's a little early for temps to be this low. I think I'd like to be a bear and hibernate until spring. There is no Yule tree, no Christmas cards, and no decorations. Who can afford the electricity? Tomorrow, we will be Santa's helpers and mail out the online orders. Orders will go out each day until there are no more. When that day finally arrives, I can start my own winter celebration. Typically, I call it "Inventory". No rest.

After inventory, I get to play with colors. Inventory is often a source of inspiration. It's a chance to play with old friends that I'd forgotten I had. A time to fill the looms and plan projects. A new birth of sorts. I look forward to that time, but I also like to eat. We need the orders to get through this hour of darkness. I often wonder what it would be like not to worry about making ends meet. . .