6.18.12 Life & Chocolate

I don't know what it is but I've been completely exhausted for the last 5 days. Maybe it's the lack of rain. We're so dry here, our hay dried up before we could start cutting it. I let the goats just eat most of it down but there's not that much to eat. We went ahead and cut some of the brown (we cut by hand with sickle and scythe) and will probably get two more cuttings this year, if I water it or we get rain. I was hoping to have a cutting put up already but we're lucky to have anything.

What garden we have planted is doing well but still watering a lot. There's still a great deal to do toward the gardens. Even so, we'll have peppers and tomatoes soon and that's something to be very thankful for.

A lovely elder woman with very soft hair told me that the sun only feels hotter because I'm getting old  :)   I reckon that might be true enough but it's doing odd things to the plants too. The garden plants that are doing very well are in sun for only half the day. These are things that i would have normally planted in full, all-day sun. The longer the better. But instead they get sun from midday to early evening and they're thriving.

I think living on a hill has a lot to do with it too. Very different than living and growing in a more sheltered area. It's often windy here and i think we're just overall a bit dryer because of it.

Our pond is lower right now then it got last year in the worst of the heat and drought. Thankfully it does still have water tho. I'm worried that the spring has gotten clogged or blocked and I haven't figured out how to find it for sure to check it.

We're getting a spot ready for my sister and her family. We've not found anything for them to live in yet but it will work out. They have their tents for now and we have pallets, which are a great boon.

I need to drag myself out to milk then make myself get around and make some No Bake cocoa oat cookies!  That's what I need, chocolate!

Speaking of chocolate, my friend Bonnie gave me some wonderful chocolates yesterday, dark chocolate with almonds and orange   :)  :)  :)  :)  :)  it was fine, beautiful, delectable and gone way too soon.

I found some very old Nuttella in the pantry  *-*  Not good!  If it hadn't of been opened fifty years ago, but alas it had been and was dried and very creepy looking. Walnut the pig enjoyed it this morning.

I once tasted bacon chocolate chip cookies. People were lined up buying them from a fellow vendor so, altho they sounded quite freakish to me, i figured they must be good and since they had chocolate ....  they were Horrible!!!  I have the ability to swallow all manner of creepy things to keep from hurting peoples feelings but there was no way my throat was going to let that abomination through. I just held it in my mouth and held my tongue very still until I could get away and spit it out. It sat so long in my mouth tho that i could taste it for a long time. Bacon and chocolate should Never be in a mouth at the same time!

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Knapweed (Star Thistle, Bottleweed) I've heard of Star Thistle but never knew exactly what it was and have not used it yet myself. A friend showed it to me as Knapweed. It's an introduced invasive species from Britain and was greatly esteemed as a medicinal for many years. Probably introduced to Turtle Island by settlers bringing their medicinals with them. It's fairly abundant in the Ozarks so a good thing to make use off. The flower heads are used and should be in full bloom. Most common uses are as an infusion of the flower heads to lower blood sugar, for sore throat, in salve for wound healing, as a diuretic and more.