Who Says the Countryside is Quiet?!

Life is never dull here.  Who needs the excitement of city life when you have the countryside and all it offers…

We took over the Gardien’s cottage in November 2013 and have been enjoying the dramas of its garden, and animals, ever since.  Every day some new adventure comes our way, but with 8 animals initially, now up to 16, and that’s not including the wild critters who reside in and around, how could there ever be a dull moment?

Building new pallet beds, Part 1 ~ Getting our excuses in early and planting late

If you have followed the weather at all here in France, particularly Northern Burgundy, you will know we have had rain. Rain, rain, rain. Plu, plu, plu. (Don’t you just love the French word for rain? It sounds just like a drop of rain hitting a surface.) Needless to say, all this rain has had a bit of an affect on the garden. Add in a deep frost at the end of April and storms in May, and I have to say I am so glad I have been really lazy this year where the garden is concerned.  Ah, what I mean is… I waited with due diligence until there was an opportunity to truly work on it.

You can have only 2 kitchen utensils. Which do you choose?

I was cooking last night and it occurred to me (not sure why) that I use two particular utensils much, much more than others. This then had me thinking, in a general train of thought, if I was going to be washed up on a dessert island and could only have 2 utensils, which ones would they be?

The obvious one is the knife. Generally always needed and most utilised in the kitchen. One, well, cuts with it. Mince, dice, sliver, chops… a good knife does all these things. And I also use the side of the blade to crush, such as garlic.

I have a vintage Henkel steel knife that is my go to knife for everything cutting. It was Pumpjack’s birthday present to me a couple years ago, that has now started a birthday tradition. (And for those who subscribe to the concept that you should never give a knife as a gift, like Pumpjack, I did give him a penny for it just to be on the safe side as I did so want a knife.)

And why is it my go to, take to a dessert island, knife? It’s carbon steel, as opposed to stainless steel. It rusts, hence why knives these days are not made out of it, but it also is very very easy to sharpen. And a sharp knife is beauteous thing to work with in the kitchen.

So the easy choice is the knife, but what of the other choice? I’ve been thinking about this for awhile. Again, no idea why, as I have no intent to be marooned on a dessert island in the foreseeable future with two implements. I think it is more about minimalist living. I believe in homesteading, self sufficiency and old stuff. Combine these… and I come up with why I can only chose 2 utensils. (Well, the thought process worked for me.)

So, the other utensil I decided would be tongs. Yup, tongs. Not a spoon, I can use the tongs to stir. Not a fork, I can use the tongs to grab. Okay maybe whisk action would be pretty tricky, but I generally find myself using my tongs when the knife doesn’t, well, cut it. (Sorry, I just had to say it.)

What would your two be?

A fox went out on a humid night – causing chaos in our duck world

Last night we lost a young male duck to a fox. We knew something was up when we heard lots of chaotic duck quacking. I went out to find one of our little females on her own, very obviously upset. I walked her down to the other ducks, to find them running over from the other side of the garden. In counting there were only 5, including the little girl by my feet. That left 3 more to find.