Tuesday, June 28, 2011

It Rained!

Okay not much, but it was enough to get me excited! With any luck there is more on the way this afternoon - we'll see, but I can hope, right?

Still waiting on the tiger lilies to begin blooming. Usually they are in full bloom by now, but with all the rain earlier this spring, they seem to be a bit behind.

Been taking a lot of pictures of the various flowers in the yard, which I'll be sharing on the website over the summer. The more I use them - the more I love our Nex-5 cameras; which is one reason I decided to review them on the website this week.

Also being reviewed is a fantastic book I picked up titled Stories of Survival: Arkansas Farmers during the Great Depression by William D. Downs, Jr. If you enjoy the Foxfire series of books, this book is along the same ideals; sharing stories of life in Arkansas during those terrible years.

I see the sun peeking through the clouds and the radar doesn't look promising for more rain, but at least we got a bit. Not enough to save the gardens, but maybe the grass will green up a bit.

So that's it for today...keep watching this space for more news and updates from the Ozark backwoods.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Ozark Summertime...but can it rain soon, please???

Summer is in full swing here in the Ozarks. While only a couple of weeks ago, I was whining about all the rain, now I would really like some, please. Temperatures have been running in the mid to high nineties for the last couple of weeks.

Neighbor came down with potatoes the other evening. Like most around here, the early rains of spring pretty much destroyed his garden. Beans and corn all washed away. The transfer from wet to hot did in his potato plants. Not a good year for gardens, so all in all, I'm kinda glad we didn't plant one this year. With Kevin working all the hours he is, really didn't have time this year which proves that most things always work out for the best.

Beyond that not a whole lot happening around here, just trying to stay cool. I can now play three full songs on my dulcimer and am planning to start a new section on the Backwoods Living website to begin documenting my journey as I learn to play.

So check in to the website often, new articles are being added weekly now so there is always something new to read.

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

I have decided....

That there just are not enough hours in a day. Even tho I'm generally up by 4am and don't go to bed until 9pm or so...I still don't have time to do everything I want to do every day. Could someone please extend daylight hours to 24 and make days 36 hours long?

So what things am I wanting to do...beside write?

Take pictures. With early summer here in the Ozarks, I'd love to tramp around the hills with my Sony Nex-5 and take pictures of everything. I'd love to take a picture a day of certain subjects then work them into a time-lapse video. Speaking of video, still have to help edit the footage from our two films...but that's going to take a better computer than what I have at the moment.



Keep learning to play my dulcimer. And that takes time and lots of practice. Okay, so I can knock out a fairly decent rendition of Amazing Grace, but there are so many other songs I want to learn.

Did I mention - write more? I've got stories dancing in my head, begging to be put on paper. For right now, I've just been filling out index cards of ideas as they mesh in my brain.

Reading screenplays. I currently have two sitting on my hard drive from friends that want me to read them and write comments and notes. Each one, to do it justice, would take at least 8 hours of time. But for friends, how can you not make the time?

Reading message and discussion boards. While lots can be said about these things being a waste of time, I love them. My day follows not only other homesteading boards and websites, but also boards catering to freelance writing, fiction writing, and wait for it - the dulcimer.

Plus reading...books of all kinds, from fiction to biographies to non-fiction how to's. My too be read pile is stacking up real nice...

I guess this post could be seen as whining and moaning when really I'm not. I find that it's a wonderful thing when you have so much to do and want to learn. It's what get's me out of bed in the morning and allows me to sleep well at night - knowing I've had a full day of experiencing something new. And that's a good thing, no?

For right now, I think I'm going to grab the camera and head outside - the roses are in full bloom!