tornado? wtf. || bits and bobs

[liminal_space]

 * apparently, there was a tornado in southern wisconsin almost two weeks ago. i just found out about this yesterday and promptly told mister we're moving back to california where there are NORMAL things like earthquakes. then, later in the day, i found out northern CA is on a tornado watch. go home, earth, you're drunk. 

he said tornadoes don't happen where we are (proximity to the lake and crap) and TECHNICALLY he's correct. but there have been tornadoes in the past that are close enough to here to make me want a storm cellar. *nod*

* mister ordered lights and a heater for my little garden shed/greenhouse so i can get some seeds going soon. i have to spend some time today mapping out when to start and when to plant all the things — it's a little overwhelming, but i'm up to the task. :) he's going to start work on my raised beds pretty soon, so we need to really have an idea of where they're going and how the garden will shape up in the next few years. 

i found some resources on growing carrots that require nothing more than five gallon buckets (and soil and seeds and fertilizer and water, shush), so i'm going to try that with a few heirloom varieties. i'm excited about carrots! i'm not excited about ugly five gallon buckets, but i have a plan to hide them. =D

we're also now in the planning stage for chickens. yesterday we picked out where we THINK their coop will be and i should have some girls within the next three months or so. the lady that kid rides with will have some baby chicks for us, so we probably will go with her....she has fancy chickens and i'm not-so-secretly excited about having five of these girls running around in my garden:

polish chickens — aka super fancy hat girls.

then again, they lay white eggs only and i would like some colored ones in the mix, so who knows. maybe just get more chickens of different breeds? i don't know if mister will go for it — he's already said five might be too many. feh. 

* things are starting to wind up for the pitch....i can feel it. now that winter is over (not technically, but it's over), plans have to be made and action has to be taken. there's no dilly-dallying right now. mister and kid are going to do a california visit in the summer (we promised her a chance to go visit her friends) and mister and his friend are going to gen con in indyansspolis the first part of august. 

by the time they leave, there will be chickens, goats, and HOPEFULLY horses, so i'm going to be a busy little homesteader! he said that we'd hire a ranch hand to help out while they're gone and i might agree to that. doing THAT much farm work goes against my edwardian lady of leisure/hobby homesteader way of thinking. 

* i have an appointment with a nutritionist today at 2 to go over some issues i'm having with getting enough protein. friends are all "drink protein shakes!" but UGH. 1) i am trying to stay clear of processed foods, 2) the texture is nose wrinkling to me sometimes, 3) they're so filling that it's sometimes counter productive when i drink them, 4) ok, there's no 4. 

we're going to get some protein POWDER and maybe that will help in some way, shape, or form. all i know is i need to fix this problem before it gets worse. 

* ok. time for a little walk before seed shopping and nutritionist talking time.  

Comments

[maju01.livejournal.com]

Cut mophead chicken! My sister in law used to have some fancy chickens that were very feathery and flouncy around their heads and legs. I can't remember what breed they were though.

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

did they have big butts? i love the chickens that look like they have ruffly bloomers!

[maju01.livejournal.com]

I don't remember big butts. I think they were Spitzhauben chickens, but when I look at pictures of those on the internet they don't look as poofy as I remember.

[chocolate-frapp.livejournal.com]

I live in Northern Calif and the weather has been shitty here but I haven't heard anything about any tornado!

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

that's great. apparently it went from watch to warning, though. o.O (more in the sac area)

[inchpinching.livejournal.com]

wait that's where I live and I didn't hear a peep :'D ~ o b l i v i o u s ~

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

You can't grow carrots in the ground there?
My dad was in Montana-always started his seeds indoors, then transferred most of them out to containers.

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

yep, in the ground would work, but i don't want to bend over that much — plus, i can keep the containers up and away from bastard bunnies. =D

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

Ah. Good plan.

[inchpinching.livejournal.com]

we had a local rooster here who was solid black with white hair like that, I called him The 80s Man and I miss him! YES to that fabulous style of chicken!!

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

i would love to have a rooster, but i don't want fertilized eggs. :( i couldn't eat them if i knew they were squishy babies! ugh! lol i'm only going to be getting a handful of chickens, so really want to make sure they're friendly, fun, and have colored eggs.

[namastaybaybay.livejournal.com]

I struggle with getting enough protein as well….

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

how many grams are you getting a day?

[howlin-wolf-66.livejournal.com]

Hope powder is the answer! *hugs*

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

me, too!

[pinstripe-bindi.livejournal.com]

Americaunas usually lay colored eggs. I used to buy eggs from a co-worker who had some, I've seen green, blue, and even pink.

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

......easter eggers! =D

[zeecha.livejournal.com]

That is a crazy looking chicken! If a predator couldn't get at them, I think chickens would be cool to have. Good luck in figuring out the egg shell colors.

I think you'd be wise to think about what you would do with goats milk *before* you get goats! Baby goats are so cute.

I've lived in the midwest for my entire life, and have, fortunately, dodged the tornado bullet. There have been some close though! Did you recently watch twister or something? lol Why not put a storm cellar under your new barn? Plus, that could be a place to keep all the produce you'll end up canning! win-win!

I have a vegan recipe for a protein shake--it uses hemp hearts, flax seeds, chia (I think), berries (I use a frozen mix berries for mine-cuz I don't keep ice on hand typically. It uses dates for the sweetner! not bad, really! I hope you get the protein thing figured out.

[liminal-space.livejournal.com]

there is so much deadly wildlife around here that we're going to be setting up a security system for the girls. lol

i don't want goats milk i just want goats. their "purpose" on the farm will be to....ummm.....errr....climb things! =D lol

i would take an earthquake over a tornado any day of the week — and no, no twister movie haha :P it was just on my news feed. i do like the idea of a storm cellar, though. ;)

i'm working on protein still...i am being so hesitant about powders because you have to buy like 90 lbs of it and what if i hate it? i could PRETEND i'd just use it and finish it up, but the truth is i'd wrinkle my nose and say NOPE.