My Piece - Cleaning Out the Wood Shed and Attitudes About Work

We have this beautiful wood stove in our living room which we intend on using daily this winter.  My neighbor took me to a man that will sell and deliver wood that is custom cut to fit my stove.  We were going to request delivery in about four weeks.  My neighbor came over yesterday and said that it would be better to have it delivered today since the weather has been so beautiful and dry.

Great.  Except for our wood shed was a disaster and would need to be cleaned out before we could put any wood in there.  I wish I would have gotten a before picture.



This is what it looked like after we had fogged for spiders, stacked our existing wood, boxed our poor man's wood (floor was thickly littered with small branches from the yard), put some of our landlord's things in another shed, unpacked some of our own boxes, and removed two of Sophia's old bikes.  There was no floor space this morning, and now we have room to put our delivery that will come this afternoon.
When I told a friend how I was spending my morning she joked about me becoming a ranch hand with all of the apple picking and woodshed cleaning.  It's true that I enjoy Aveda haircuts, painted nails, and nice clothes, but I didn't bat an eyelash at having to clean out the wood shed and I started wondering why it doesn't bother me like it would bother some of my friends.
I can think of a few childhood experiences that made an impression.
We usually rented the houses we lived in and my parents always wanted to leave it nicer than it was when we moved in.  One house in Oregon when I was in 5th grade had a run down barn and 10 acres of dead alfalfa.  I worked on cleaning out the barn because I was hoping for a pony.  We only lived in that house for a year, so that of course didn't work out, but the barn was in better shape for the kittens that were born to the barn cat that came with the house.  And, we learned to irrigate alfalfa because my parents were embarrassed of the neglected field.  I was given a choice to either help do the dinner dishes or move irrigation pipes.  I think I always chose the pipes.  I told Kenny today that I would rather clean out the wood shed than do the dishes (as long as the spiders were dead!).  Unfortunately doing the dishes in our house is always my job.
The summer after 8th grade my high school assigned all of the incoming students a job to help work off tuition.  Everybody was expected to work all day during the summer, and a half day during the school year.  I was assigned to be a groundskeeper in the morning and a tree nursery worker in the afternoon.  These jobs weren't glamorous.   It is hot in New Mexico in the summer.  I went home hungry, dirty, and tired.  I did my best every day.  At the end of the summer my supervisor offered me an accounting job in the business office.  I was only 13 years old but she told me that if I could do a good job at something unpleasant then she could trust me to do a good job in the office.  That was an early, important lesson, that it pays to work hard even at something I don't like.
Going into college I had planned on spending the summer at home with my parents but I was unable to find a job.  My college, however offered a job along with their summer start program.  Again, the job was assigned.  I was a painter. It was really unpleasant with all of the fumes and harsh chemicals that we used to clean up.  It wasn't long until I found an accounting job at a construction company.  But, I had to take the unpleasant job to get me by until I could find something better.  I worked for that construction company for two years, and they were pleased with me so they held my job while I studied in Spain for a year. 
After college I became a CPA/MBA and had the opportunity to work for a Fortune 100 company. After I had Sophia I decided I better learn how to dress because I desperately didn't want to become a rundown mom.  Maybe that's what makes it seem so strange that I would do a lot of manual labor in my yard.  But, there's work to be done so I guess I'll just go ahead and do it.
I get the feeling that all of my random experiences, interests, and qualifications are preparing me for something.  I just don't know what yet!

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Gardening - Making Apple Juice

We're really lucky to have lots of fruit trees in our yard. The apples are ready this time of year. We really enjoyed going out in the evening and picking a cool, crisp apple to eat. But, there were a lot of apples and I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them. When my neighbor suggested taking them to a local place to have them made into juice, I thought that sounded like a good idea.

We needed to have a minimum of 50 kilos of apples, so to be sure we had enough we pretty much stripped our trees, which was a little sad because now we don't have any to eat.

I was getting ready to go out and pick apples one by one using a ladder. This would not have been very efficient.










Our neighbors came over and helped us. They beat the branches with a long wooden pole and the apples fell to the ground. We then sorted them and filled large sacks.




The next day we went to have our juice made. First, we weighed the apples...154 kilos! Guess we could have left some for eating.




Then the apples get washed in a tub. Next, they are shoveled into the juicer.




The leftover fiber gets sent outside where it is shoveled into a cart. It will be saved and fed to the deer in the winter.




Our juice. We got 100 liters, almost a whole barrel.




The juice was sent through a centrifuge to further separate solids from liquids. The remaining juice was heated to 80 degrees centigrade. Then it was time to package it up. That was our job. The juice came through a spout and we filled one 10 liter bag at a time. When one was full we turned on the other spout and the next bag began filling.




The bags were then placed into a cardboard box.




These boxes can store in a cool place for up to a year. When it's time to use one we lay it on its side in the refrigerator and pour it from a spigot. It is a very easy way for Sophia and her friends to get their own juice. And, it is sweet and delicious.

I really like knowing where our food comes from. Our juice came from our tree and I helped it get processed. I met the chickens that lay our eggs and I see the oven and people that bake my bread. The grocery store labels the produce that comes from our region. We live only about 20 minutes from the city, but it is very rural in our village and it almost feels like we have gone back to a simpler time when people knew where their food came from, communities got together, neighbors helped each other and it was safe for children to play outside. It is perfect.

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Army Life - Comfort in Familiarity

Grafenwoehr

Weiden

Everybody agrees that moving is a stressful experience.  I think I handle it pretty well.  But, I didn't notice how much it was wearing on me until I went back to Grafenwoehr and Weiden last week.  Everything was easy and comfortable and I had high spirits.  I knew how to find my way around the health clinic.  I knew where to pay for my gas.  I knew where to find things in the PX and Commissary.  I knew how to drive to Weiden without second-guessing myself.  I knew where to take a friend for lunch.  I knew where to park in town and how to pay for my parking.  Though unsuccessful in searching for an off-season item for a friend, I knew quite a few places to try.  I knew where to find a special bribe for Sophia.  I knew where to find the special colors of pencils Sophia was looking for.  It took two years to know all of those things.  By the time I know Bamberg that well it will be time to move again.

There is comfort in familiarity and that is something we miss out on as an Army family.  A friend told me recently that after 10 years (It's really about 6, but it's almost the whole lifetime of our children so that's a long time) of knowing each other I'm finally able to tell her what I really think.  We've had the good fortune to be stationed together twice.  It takes me awhile to get beyond acquaintance, or somebody I hang out with, to real friendship.   Sometimes it happens in two years and sometimes it doesn't.

Kenny is more than halfway done with his Army career.  What will we do when he retires?  Will we live somewhere we've lived before? Will we put down roots?  Will we find comfort in home?  Will excitement and novelty come from vacations?  Will we find people we can relate to?

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Running - Marathon Recovery

There are many programs out here for marathon recovery. They typically include resting and resuming running gradually.

After my marathon I quit cold turkey, not because I didn't want to run, but because we moved and climbing countless flights of stairs and schlepping boxes was just about all of the physical activity I could manage.

Sophia went back to school yesterday so today I ran.  It had been six weeks.  My feet and ankles still feel stiff and achy when I first get out of bed in the morning.  But I ran.  Not far.  Only about a hilly mile and a half.

I felt a surge of emotion as I started out.  Was it joy?  I loved that I was out again, enjoying the beautiful morning.  It was chilly but clear.  Temperatures were in the 40s and I was okay in shorts and a long sleeved shirt but I wished for a hat to cover my ears.  There are lots of farm trails around here to be explored, as well as a flat canal run that should go quite a ways.

My right knee felt a little achy and the skin around my left big toe is tender, but I other than missing two toenails on my right foot, I don't feel like there are long-term consequences to my marathon run.

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Sophia Update - First Day of Second Grade

Early morning!

Sophia's summer vacation was only six weeks long but it feels like an eternity ago.  We moved to a new town so that has something to do with it, but it didn't take us long to get off schedule.  She has been sleeping in until 8:30 or 9  so when the alarm went off this morning at 6:15 it was a little bit tough, though tough mostly for me.  She was excited about her first day of second grade.

We walked with our neighbor who is in fourth grade and she showed us the way she goes.  I was the only parent hanging out before school because the first graders came later and the older children already knew what to do.  Sophia told me she was scared but just then her teacher came and introduced herself and whisked Sophia into the classroom and introduced her to her desk mate.

I went back to the school with Mary and Riley to make sure they could figure out what was going on since they of course have the German language barrier.  The older children sang songs to the first graders so I got to see Sophia then and she smiled and waved on her way in to sing her song.

I also saw her later during her snack time and she was running around with some girls, so I'm glad she found someone to hang out with.

She was pleased with her morning in school and wished she could stay longer.  It is a nice start to what I hope will be a nice school year.

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Gardening - Priceless Help from Neighbors

Before

After

After

I really don't know anything about gardening.  I had a big empty space to fill in my front flowerbed but I didn't want to waste money on something that was just going to die.  So, I asked my neighbor if he would go shopping with me.

He came over about 10:30 or 11 this morning and we went to Dehner which is pricey, but has high quality plants.  We consulted with a store worker and looked around.  We came away with two butterfly trees, a lily, and what I think is a variety of daisy.  I didn't expect my neighbor to help me plant them, but when we got home he said he just needed to change clothes and he would be right over.

He helped me arrange the plants making sure they were not too close to the house.  He dug the holes, filled them a bit with some new soil, had me fill them with water, and then we put the plants in the ground.

I had some questions about pruning some of the existing plants in the garden and that opened a can of worms that didn't wrap up until about 7 in the evening.  His wife came over and helped weed and prune and till the soil with a tool that was kind of like a claw with three bent prongs.  We went to the rock factory and purchased some stones to pave the way to the water faucet so we wouldn't get our shoes dirty or walk on raked soil.  His son came over and helped level the ground and lay down the stones.  He measured precisely like he was laying tile.

We also washed my car and cleaned the interior.

I don't like to ask for help, and somehow asking for help in selecting flowers led to a crew helping me all day.  I still need to plant some spring bulbs, but I'm proud of my front flowerbed.  I don't feel like the odd house out anymore.  All of that help from my neighbors was priceless and I am truly thankful.

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Gardening - Sophia's Garden

Weeded and Raked

Deciding Where the Flowers Should Go

All Done

Kenny told Sophia she could have part of a flower bed for her very own.  She weeded and raked.  No small job.  If you look at the untended portion you can see that it was very overgrown.  Then we shopped for flowers. I showed her how to look on the tags to see what was appropriate for a shady bed.  Then she decided how she wanted them laid out.  She dug the holes and I showed her how to gently remove the plants from their plastic pots.  I helped her plant some spring bulbs.  Then we put in some mulch.  She's very proud of her garden.  I'm glad it looks nice because it is right by the front door.  We had to tell her just flowers because otherwise she would fill it with pinwheels and gnomes.

We have worked on our yard a lot but there is still a lot to be done.  As soon as we clean one part up, the surrounding areas look desperately bad.  After we were done with Sophia's garden we cleaned up the sidewalk in front of it that was overgrown with weeds and littered with sticks and cigarette butts.

Our landlord came by last week and said the yard looks really nice.  I'm glad he noticed!

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What's Cooking? - Plum Applesauce

We have ripe plums and apples on our trees in the yard and I've been itching to do something with them so they don't go to waste.  I've already made plum jam, but there's only so much jam you can eat so this time I made Plum Applesauce.  I more than quadrupled the recipe so I could have some to eat right away and some to can.  I used this recipe from Epicurious as a starting point but I changed it up a little bit.  I was really pleased to see that peeling the apples wasn't necessary.
Ingredients (for one batch)2 pounds apples, quartered and seeded (mine are green with some spots of red where the sun hits)2 pounds plums, quartered and pitted1/4 cup water1/4 cup sugar (I used a little less for a tart flavor)2 cinnamon sticks
PreparationCook all ingredients in a large covered pot over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until fruit is very tender and falling apart, about 1 hour.  Remove cinnamon sticks.
Meanwhile, soak canning jars and lids in hot water.  I used jars that are self-sealing.
Process cooked fruit with an immersion blender until desired consistency is reached.  I don't mind having a little skin in my sauce so I didn't process for very long.
Pour into prepared jars.  Tighten lids. Turn upside down and let rest for at least 10 minutes.
Label jars.  I used a white permanent paint marker that I found at a small office supply shop in our village.
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Travel - St. Wolfgang, Austria

Quite awhile ago Sophia found a picture of a swimming pool extending out into a lake in a Ryan Air in flight magazine.

She was fascinated and never forgot about it.

We spent the better part of her summer vacation moving from Weiden to Buttenheim.

To make sure she had a little bit of fun on her summer vacation Kenny took us to the White Horse Inn at Lake Wolfgang in Austria where the pool extends into the lake.

Judging from the boot trays, umbrellas, and raincoats provided for us in our room, and the way it was pouring when we left, we knew we were really lucky to have three nice swimming days.

The water in the pool was heated to 80 degrees, but the lake water was a little chillier.  Sophia needed a little convincing to get in the lake, but she eventually went because she was excited to jump on the trampoline.

Out on Lake Wolfgang.

The pool.

On the train up to Schafberg Mountain.

From the top we could see many lakes and mountains.

Our train.

Sophia was genuinely frightened that Kenny was going to go over the edge so she grabbed his feet to save him.

Restaurant at the top.

I need some photos with red in them for our living room so I spent lots of time taking pictures of these flowers.

There are bursting window boxes all over Austria and Germany right now.

Summer is almost over.  I'm glad we got to have one last hurrah before school starts next week.

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Decorating - St. Wolfgang, Austria

My new favorite thing is browsing through Pinterest for inspiration on how to decorate, dress, do my hair, craft, throw a party.  It is inspiration for life.  I thought it was about time that I add some content of my own.  These are my three favorite decorating ideas that I found on our Labor Day trip to St. Wolfgang, Austria:
Simple plants dressed up with a colorful lantern and pumpkins.  The turquoise and orange color scheme is right on trend.
Terra-cotta pots hung upside down from rope to resemble bells.  Just thread the rope through the hole in the bottom of the pot and tie a knot.
Dark but colorful light fixture in a restaurant at the top of Schafberg Mountain.

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Army Life - Fixing Bad Highlights on Dark Hair

One of the frustrating things about living this Army life is trying to find a new hairdresser all of the time.  We move, or they move.  There is no consistency.

I had quite the adventure today.  I wish I would have had somebody take better pictures than my iPhone self-portraits because you can't quite see how bad the salon results were.

I had planned on going to the Aveda salon in Bayreuth.  They are expensive but I'm a big fan of their natural products, and they always do a really good job.  But, it is about a 45 minute drive to Bayreuth and it usually takes about four hours to do my hair.  I didn't want to spend the extra time right now when Sophia is out of school and we're still settling into our house.  So, I went to the salon here in town.  I thought it would be nice to go to a place in our village that I could walk to.  My friend went and had good results so I made an appointment there too.  I made an appointment with the lady that did my friend's hair.  She is the boss of the salon.  But, when I showed up, some other lady was there all by herself.

When she took my towel off I thought there was still soap in my hair because it was so white.  Nope, I just had really blond highlights.  She cut and styled my hair nicely, except for the zigzag part that was popular ten years ago, and I thought I would just have really unnatural highlights.  When I got home I immediately undid the zigzag part and I saw that my roots were spotted orange, black, and blond.  I looked like a jungle animal.  I played with parting different ways.  One side was much blonder than the other.  I thought about going back to the salon but I just didn't want her touching my hair again and I didn't want to be the ugly American.  But, I was really upset every time I looked in the mirror and I knew I couldn't go on vacation with such bad hair.

A friend who recently moved back to the States recommended Schwarzkopf hair color.  Another friend and I went to the drugstore to pick some up.  Luckily she is very interested in anything that has to do with beauty so she offered to help me.  We chose Schwarzkopf's Perfect Mousse permanent color in Mittel-Braun because it looked like it would be dark but not too dark and it was the most expensive variety.  It was maybe just slightly lighter than my natural color.  We bought two boxes because I have a lot of hair.

I went over at 8:45 after we got our kids to bed.  We were not done until about midnight.  She did the first application, applying only to the areas that were highlighted.  Thank goodness I didn't have my whole head done.  I washed and conditioned and dried.  There were still a lot of orange spots.  She was shocked at just how bad the highlights were.  Spotty and orange.  Can't get much worse than that.  She opened the second bottle and we repeated the whole process three more times, applying only to the bad areas.

In the end, it looks pretty good.  I'm thankful to have a friend that had the willingness and patience to help me in a crisis.  We'll see what happens when it fades.  My next appointment will be with Aveda either here or in the States.  They will probably have a lot to say about what they find.

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