Everyday Life with Seven In the Ocean – August 7
Hi friends! It’s been a hot minute since I’ve done an “everyday life” post and I need to play some catch-up! “Need” is perhaps too strong a word. You don’t “need” to know the random details of my life. I don’t “need” to write this. So why am I? Because obviously my life is wildly exciting and you’ve been waiting with bated breath to see how that garden turned out. Right? 😉
Kidding!! As with my last post, these “life updates” are all about sharing the behind-the-scenes bits that fill my cup and keep me fueled for doing what I love to do. It’s also a chance to talk about things that I find interesting that don’t quite fit in with my Wins or Success Stories. (for example, chicken drama and wildfire smoke nonsense)
Last we talked (February! ah! 😱 ) I was all about package-free plunder, vegan snacks, garden prep, and hiking with friends, plus marvelling at the sunset shows Mother Nature treats us to every so often. This post will be…more of the same! Only this time with 100% more smoke since the area I live in is currently surrounded by several (huge) wildfires. Egads.
From Then to Now: Garden Update
In my last “everyday life” post, I was giddy over seeds and starting things in egg cartons. It was a fun five months of growing a garden in the dining room and watching the progress of seed to seedling to full-on plant. Fast-forward to this week and I’m:
- getting lost in a tomato jungle (forgot to prune those suckers, oops)
- having my mind blown continuously that new tomato plants can be propogated (cloned?) from prunings. Currently coaxing 10 baby tomatoes along from a recent prune!
- marveling at tomato tar. Yup, it’s a thing. I wondered why my shower water was turning yellow after pruning tomatoes and turns out, there’s a reason. Read up on it here.
- ogling future bell peppers and melons – holy smokes, things are happening!
- enraptured by delicate little wildflowers that keep blooming with minimal effort. Now I want to grow a meadow!
- giddy about future carrots, a vegetable that I have tried on numerous occasions to cultivate with less-than-stellar results. This year is the year (I hope).
- appreciating flowers – this is the first year I’ve intentionally grown flowers and it’s adding a lot of beauty to the garden. Zinnias, aforementioned wildflowers, future lupins and hollyhocks…oh my!
Running Into Masks
I’m training for a 33K run in the fall (no official race, just for fun) and started a running program this spring. In my wanderings on both road and trail, I’ve observed an uptick in the number of masks littering the path.
Actually, come to think of it, this is not exclusive to running! Seeing mask litter is becoming more common while simply out and about. It’s not surprising in the slightest, but I am discouraged by it. These masks are just another example of disposability at its finest. They’re boring, the same, and unremarkable. But interestingly, even reusable masks are making an appearance, which is even worse! Ugh. Will we ever learn?!
Refill Wins
Lest you think I am going to wallow around in disposable drama, think again! The last few months were marked with a lot of amazing reusable wins from my favourite, local refilleries. Top hits include:
- epsom salts! in a big, ‘ole epic, repurposed jar! (thank you, FILL for hooking me up!)
- Nellie’s oxygen brightener in reused packaging (also at FILL)
- laundry strips and concentrated all-purpose cleaner (FILL again!)
- pretty jars of legumes from Chickpeace (chickpeas at Chickpeace? how fun! 😁 )
- lavender-lime sapadilla dish soap (also at Chickpeace)
Running with Gratitude
Disposable masks notwithstanding, the runs I’ve been out on have been amazing. Running, it turns out, has been a great way for me to experience parts of the Okanagan I haven’t yet seen. Fresh air and exercise: who knew it was good for what ails ya?? 😆 And during this time where travel has been discouraged, running in nature has helped me more fully appreciate my hyper-local surroundings. I’m falling in love with this area all over again.
(And thank goodness I’m not much into specific finish time achievements – I stop about one million times to gawk at plants and take photos!)
Chickens: Never a Dull Moment
As you may have seen around here, I’m kind of into chickens. 😇 I started with a small flock in Maine and have been head over heels in love ever since. It didn’t take long after moving to the Okanagan until I convinced Jan that we really “needed” chickens and he graciously helped revamp a shed into a chicken coop and built me a palace of a chicken run. He’s the best. 😊 Since 2017, we’ve had a small flock of mix-breed hens who provide us with endless entertainment and therapy. (and occasionally – when they aren’t perpetually broody – eggs) They are also the best.
Chickens can also be really stressful, one thing that isn’t always talked about with backyard hens. Sure, they lay eggs and provide laughs, but then they moult in the winter and almost die. Or become egg-bound and it’s super scary and gross. Or somehow they contract tapeworms, something that is doubly gross and super icky and surprisingly hard to deal with as a regular person without access to a veterinarian. And if none of those things happen, they either get eaten by raccoons or bully each other so badly that it looks like they’ve joined the UFC.
I mean…I’m just assuming that these things can sometimes happen. All in one year. Maybe. In any event…
…this year has been a weird one for the Lakeshore Hens. Thankfully I think the worst is behind us and we can all get back to our regularly scheduled programming! Take a look at some of their recent antics:
Cooking Up Some Inspiration
Getting creative in the kitchen is one major way I relieve stress, exercise my creativity, and get motivated/inspired to write. I particularly love experimenting with seasonal produce. Yum! The last few months have seen a bevy of food things in our kitchen. Included in that list…
- fresh hummus
- grilled asparagus
- veggie frittata with backyard eggs
- grilled caesar salad with vegan dressing
- mixed root veg medly with tarragon dressing
- vegan zucchini enchiladas with fresh tomatillo salsa verde
- dairy-free basil pesto with fresh basil from a friend’s garden
Reading Up a Storm
I grew up reading a lot. We didn’t have cable TV and our dial-up Internet was, well, dial-up Internet. Books filled my time and I have fond memories of borrowing stacks of books over summer vacation. And waiting at Borders for the midnight release of one Harry Potter book or another. 😇 Reading is one of my favourite activities. Fiction or non-fiction, it doesn’t really matter: I love getting lost in a good book. Reading helps me relax, it expands my horizons and stretches my brain.
I have great ambitions when it comes to reading more books each year and then I invariably get distracted. (or I buy new books despite piles of unread books!) This year, I’m making an effort to work through my inventory. 😂 Here’s a smattering of what I’ve read (or am reading) so far this year:
- Cradle to Cradle
- Like Water for Chocolate
- Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas
- The Four Agreements
- Badass Habits
- Diet For a Small Planet
- Who Really Feeds the World?
- Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
- The Science of Yoga (a deep dive into the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali) – still reading!
- A Garlic Testament – still reading
- Animal, Vegetable, Junk – still reading
The Smoke
May as well address the large, hazy, elephant in the room as there is no way of getting around it. The smoke. This year has been a crazy weather year pretty much everywhere! Here in the Okanagan, we’ve experienced record-setting heat waves and a supreme lack of any significant rainfall (up until just recently). The result? Dry, crispy conditions that are perfect for wildfire spread. I’ve never lived in a place prone to wildfires before and even after five years here, it’s still not something I’m used to. The wildfires currently raging in BC and the west coast of the US (and in central Canada! and everywhere!) are producing copious amounts of smoke that spread far and wide (even reaching the east coast! yikes). It’s noxious, oppressive, and makes everything feel apocalyptic and upside down.
The smoke also makes going outside pretty challenging. Remember that 33K I’m training for? I haven’t been running in weeks because the smoke has been so thick, you can taste it. This sucks, not just for poor woe-is-me, but for anyone trying to get outside and stay healthy. These recent weeks have been hard on everyone: every day feels the same, we can’t really do anything, and it’s making us all stir-crazy. But this isn’t even so bad. For people who rely on being outside for their livelihood, this is very Not OK. I have so much respect (more than I already did!) for farmers, fruit pickers, construction workers, and any type of physical, outdoor labour position. This sh*t is bananas.
Thankfully, we finally got some rain this weekend and the winds blew in, meaning some of the smoke blew out. Please let’s keep it up, Mother Nature!
Until Next Time
I think that pretty much brings us up to speed, dear readers! Now I’d love to hear from you. 🙃 How is your summer going?
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