After the first week on the farm

I'm not minding the farm much, it just is at the it doesn't quite seem worth it.   With the food situation, we are suppose to be provided food, there is a whole list of what all is provided, anything that is not actually grown on the farm is rationed out and not all of it is actually provided.  Lunch is always done as a group and I can only eat about half of it as the common (only beyond salt and black pepper) seasonings are the peppers.  So I have been eating a whole lot of vegetables.   While good for me and making me feel a lot better than living on carbs, I do need some pasta/grain/protein/fat in my life.  I really realized this when I went to the SCA event this weekend and couldn't stop eating all the non-vegetables, I even ate my whole piece of salmon and I usually don't like fish especially salmon.  This combined with the lack of communication is really starting to annoy me and make me think that I won't be staying beyond my two week trial period.  Expectations are not clear, and since everyone else has been here 2-3 months, it is even worst, in that they know, and I'm clueless, with no one really willing to tell me what I need to know.

I did go to a wonderful SCA event this weekend, down here in Trimaris, it definitely has a different feel than events back home but still the same.  The it really doesn't matter what the door says, the bathrooms are unisex does take some getting use to.   They did an amazing job trying to dress up the ymca camp to feel less like a camp and more medieval. And they feed you for the entire weekend, and almost all of it was me friendly.  And yummy food too.  Also there are cabins available, much like black oak lodge back in Caid, but I get the impression that most the events here are like this.  Anyway I had fun and forgot to take pictures and learned how to do needle-binding, and now I want to make myself warm wool socks that don't run if they get a hole.

Since I'm thinking I won't stay beyond my two weeks here, the question is what next?  I'm still trying to decide, but if I had to answer the question today I would say Friday head out to another Trimaris event, and then from there head south toward the florida keys.  I still want to see the oversea highway.  Then slowly meander to Gulf wars, still really want to go.  Probably go to Everglades NP for a little bit.

More on Florida

Yes I was planning to talk more about the farm, I am at Orchard Pond Organics, they do pesto, honey, grass fed beef, and organic vegetables mostly as a CSA.   Yesterday when I got here I got to work right away, first helping put together the CSA bags and then spent the rest of the day weeding, not really all that interesting.  My hands were not prepared for this, no calluses in the places I need them.  Some muscles are very sore but nothing more than expected  Today was a little more interesting, I got to gather some broccoli (one of the weird varieties), make pesto (yum) and pour honey (so much honey).

The Cabin (office) with the honey hut (silver building)

Look farm fields

The hot house

Florida is covered in pretty trees like this.

I have not yet seen the honey bees or the cows, but I am told they are around here somewhere. Temperatures are in the nice area, low last night was high 40s, high to day was high 70s, I can do this.  I can stay as long as I continue working and not doing anything stupid and looking at average/record temperatures I should be comfortable for at least a couple months.  So I suspect I'll be here for a bit (and Rachel, I'm not sure of the mail situation, but I can ask, or you can send general delivery to the nearest post office that does that and just let me know so I can go pick it up.)

Looking at SCA stuff nearby, I hope to make it out to an event this weekend.  In general, I'm doing ok and having fun.

Florida

I'm in Florida now.  It was over 70 degrees today, I got to run around in short sleeves, very much like it.  And it's not going to freeze tonight, also a very nice thing.  So glad to be out of the snow, 18 ish inches in just 3 days.

Glasses finally arrived on Saturday.  And then yesterday, I had to dig the truck out of snow melted to refreeze into very solid chunks, before I could go anywhere.  Spent most of the drive trying to adjust my glasses to comfortable and make them so I don't look under the rims.  My regular drinking water is nicely defrosting, and after one day it's too soon to know but I think I'm going to enjoy myself.  Already have lots of dirt under my fingernails.  I didn't get enough sleep on the road so I am now exhausted.  I also get to learn new ways of cooking because what I think of as staples is not the same as what others think of as staples.  Coconut oil instead of butter and way more from scratch.  Plus a never ending supply of vegetables.

Antsy

You know how when something happens that is unexpected and messes with your plans and then you have to spend time waiting, sometimes one gets antsy?  That explains my mode for the last week.  My new glasses are taking forever to arrive.  I finally got a tracking number, so they should arrive this week.  I am ready to move on, go somewhere, I was really only planning to stay with my sister for maybe a month and then find something else to do.  I was starting to make plans, I was going to leave here last week but then I broke my glasses, and since then I have been waiting for the new ones to arrive.  And that makes me antsy.

Also I think my little sister is torn.  She likes having me around because I cook and clean and I am really not that much of a bother.  On the other hand, I am an extra person in her space and just another thing to deal with at the end of a long day.  Although I do make it better in that I am willing to cook her dinner and will even make some of the what should we eat decisions when she is in the I don't care type mood.  Not sure about the brother-in-law, but get the feeling it is a very similar extra person in our space but she cooks for us internal debate.

Overall, definitely time for me to move on to something different and today I made plans.  I am leaving soon, I have signed up for a volunteer position working on a organic farm in Florida.  I think it will be interesting.  I will learn a lot and hopefully it will help me on my big quest to figure out what I want to do with myself in general.  It will also help me not spend money, as I will get food while there, which is exciting to me.

My quilting project is coming along.  I have finished all the embrodery on my blocks and am currently sewing them into a quilt top.  Very exciting.