Look at that - another post. For those following along, the second installment of this resurrected blog will talk about how much I’m looking for ward to Spring. Don’t get me wrong - part of the reason we moved away from Florida was the weather, and I tried to enjoy this first northern Winter as much as possible. But it’s been an exceedingly mild one, and the unseasonable warmth and blue skies have me really itching to get outside, taking hikes and gardening, or just lounging in the hammock we plan to install in the clearing out back. Daylight Saving Time is just a few days away, followed by what we officially consider the beginning of the Spring season, ushering in more daylight hours to enjoy.
So far, we have plans to convert a portion of the back yard into a vegetable garden space, as well as specific areas for flower gardens. There are wild daffodils coming up on the edge of the woods, the honeysuckle and multiflora rose are leafing out, and I’ve found remnants of the previous garden out back that include garlic, leeks, and lemon balm. We were leaving corn for the deer that occasionally visit, but they started emptying the bird feeders as well, so I moved the last remaining feeder and I’ll leave the deer corn farther into the woods to try to make our yard less appealing. Of course, we will need to fence any garden that we plot out, so that’s worked into the footprint now.
We’re almost at the 6-month point of this adventure of relocating to Pennsylvania, and I’m ready to really get into exploring up here. Being an introvert makes meeting people extra challenging, but I’ve decided to put some effort in. Last month, I made my husband go with me to the monthly open house of a local farm. Very outside-our-comfort-zone, but it was a great afternoon of meeting new people, learning about gardening and farming, and my favorite: petting goats! This farm has these events each month, so I expect to attend every open house if I’m able - including their cattle drive event in the summer, which sounds really fun. Next week there’s a lecture at the library branch in the next town that features a local farmer talking about our social relationship to food and agriculture, and next month at the library branch in my township there is a presentation on planning a garden to support pollinators that I plan to attend. I also signed myself up for a four mile BIGFOOT HIKE on St. Patrick’s Day. I am so excited for that!
Recently I’ve been reading quite a bit, and I’m currently on my second book in the Grishaverse series by Leigh Bardugo, which the Shadow & Bone Netflix series is based on. I absolutely flew through Six of Crows (because it features my favorite characters in the series), and I’m just about finished with the first book in the trilogy, which shares a title with the Netflix series. The magic and adventure elements are enjoyable, and the character banter is pretty fun. I was watching The Last of Us on HBO+ but found I have not been enjoying the bleak themes I sometimes turn to when I’m stressed, so I doubt I’ll actually finish it.
Season 1 trailer for Shadow and Bone on Netflix:
Season 2 trailer (coming to Netflix March 16th):
In art news, I was accepted into a local craft fair but opted out after a miscommunication issue. There’s a Halloween market in Ohio in October that I submitted to, so I’m waiting to hear back about that, as well as a grant I applied for. There are some other leads and opportunities I may look into going into Summer as well. But I’m definitely putting less pressure on myself to focus on that particular hustle. I’m not posting as much to social media so if you don’t see as many random updates it’s because I’m outside playing in the dirt, wandering in the woods, or I got lost in a book that I can’t seem to put down. Until next time, friends!