The last couple nights have dipped down below freezing, riming the fields beyond our house with frost. This morning a heavy skim of frozen fog at the foot of the distant mountains contrasted with the bold grapefruit of the pre-dawn clouds, like a painting of frost and fire. It feels like a fitting entree to … Continue reading Here AND There
Tag: Backyard Homestead
Advice for Mr. Pickletoes
I had a pleasant email this morning from a fellow blogger, JJ Pickletoes, and one of his questions deserved some thought. And as I thought, I remembered a principle I followed as a teacher: if one person asked the question, other people probably had that same question too. In a classroom, I'd address it openly … Continue reading Advice for Mr. Pickletoes
Tomatoes & Moose
JustD in her garden Long ago (15-ish years?) in a galaxy far, far away (my Hawaiian BBQ restaurant in Boise), my then-new neighbor (and regular customer) explained to my then-husband how to spell her name: "It's not D-E-E, it's just 'D'." Keoni wrote out, on the lid of her take-out container: JustD. And ever since, … Continue reading Tomatoes & Moose
A Swimming Chicken, a Filing Ferret, & a Knight Seeking Work
Our chickens won't be winning any intellectual awards. Ku'okoa (aptly named with the Hawai'ian word for "freedom") is brighter than the rest---she spends a fair bit of time outside the chicken-yard, but she always returns when she's done adventuring. The other girls, though... Maybe I'm too much "Mother Hen" with them, but I just don't … Continue reading A Swimming Chicken, a Filing Ferret, & a Knight Seeking Work
Bathing Ferrets, Idaho Wildlife, & Pumpkin Pie
I used to think that my sister and I had the best-ever outlet for playing with our bath toys. We grew up in an Idaho farm-town that practiced irrigation-watering for the lawns in town, so our front yard was flooded in several inches of water for a couple evenings every week. I still have memories … Continue reading Bathing Ferrets, Idaho Wildlife, & Pumpkin Pie
From Noah’s Ark to Yellow Submarine
I jinxed myself, no doubt about it. When I wrote last week about our growing tribe of pets and animals, I ended by saying I hoped we wouldn't be floating away like Noah's Ark. Just a couple nights later--Saturday night, to be specific, or rather, the "wee hours" of Sunday morning--Keoni woke me to say … Continue reading From Noah’s Ark to Yellow Submarine
Our Arc Afloat
We don't usually get a lot of rain here. We live in Idaho's "high desert" climate, where it gets really cold in winter and really hot in summer, but we seldom get even an inch of precipitation in a month. Which makes the last few days unusual---we've had more than an inch of rain this … Continue reading Our Arc Afloat


