Project whistle.

For a long bit, whenever I’m determined to learn something new, it feels near impossible, or maybe a little closer than near – like pretty much totally impossible.  Not the often caffeine-induced moment of inspiration, that moment’s totally cool and confident.  It’s the long pause after the initial spike, when I’m typically reaching for chocolate, desperately trying to recreate my initial high. 

Beautiful things.

Today, we invited all of our old neighbors and all of our new neighbors to Apricot Lane Farms for a day of swimming, BBQ and general barnyard shenanigans.  We had a great time, and though I planned on talking to you tonight about an incredible trip we took to Benziger Biodynamic Vineyard in Sonoma with our Biodyanmic consultant Alan York, I am too beat and will be heading to bed for a long autumn slumber.  However before I do, I wanted to share with you a few pictures of the most beautiful flowering cactus I’ve ever seen.  Our gardener, Maria, found this one day and encouraged us to check it out first thing in the AM, before the daylight makes the flowers close.  It is magnificent.  The latest gift the farm has given to us.  Enjoy…

Vacation!

Ahhhhhhh…. Summer vacation.

I’m fully committed to doing NOTHING these bliss-filled 11 whole days, and I’m surprisingly quite adept at it.  I don’t count reading (Bossypants, by Tina Fey), eating too much, goofing off, sleeping excessive amounts or drinking caffeinated tea (to ensure I have plenty of energy for my nothing-doing.)  And, I’ve not once had to reprimand myself for trying to slip in something productive.

We’re in!

Well, maybe not Todd.  He’d been out chasing this guy…

But, the rest of us and our many, many, many boxes of belongings are officially home.  Mom‘s here, too.  She’s come to help and stay for the next two months, while John’s in South Africa for work.  Dad flies in later today for the same reason.  Through the window of my temporary kitchen office, mom walks past, probably switching the laundry and definitely making me wonder how we ever, ever could have done this without her.

We’re moving!

Please don’t ask me to pass the mustard.  I wouldn’t have a clue where it is right now.  If you’d like to borrow a certain pair of cute shoes, you’re out of luck for at least 3 weeks.  And if I get a paper cut while moving, I’m out of luck because there’s no WAY I could find a band-aid.  We’re (almost) packed up, and I haven’t even gotten back to California yet!  We’ve had help, and John’s there overseeing and taking pictures.  Probably a little heavy on the later, god love him. The cowgirl hat above is standing tall, anxious to be one of the most sought after possessions in less than a week.  Farmers need hats.  And though it’s beyond me how this actually happened, we’ve become farmers.  Yippee!

Before

During

The clock looks a bit lonely in the picture directly above.  I guess she’s still got teapot, but not for long, I’m sure.  I didn’t call the second picture AFTER because Dad kindly pointed out that the final step in this adventure is really the farmhouse kitchen, whereas DURING was taken mid-pack.  Photos mostly down and appliances moved, I’m going to miss this little (little) kitchen.  She and I wrote a cookbook together.  We learned how to preserve lemons, make a mean pot roast and burn a potholder in the oven (yup.) My neighbors would walk by the kitchen window with a “Hi Molls!”  And, I cooked to the sound of children playing in the courtyard.  It was a great place to live.

Actually, it all looks a bit depressing right now.  No soul.  No happy buzz of daily life.  This is the familiar part where a bit of sadness creeps into the heart and the head gets filled up with very tangible memories.  Each grand stage of life is beautiful.  And, each stage eventually ends no matter how long it lasted: moves, retirement, job changes, children, even death.  Whatever the circumstances, it always gets a bit messy before it gets straight.

xo – Organic Spark

Building a new home…

LOTS.

That is my Jeopardy formed answer to the question, “How much has Molly been working on a brand new website for Organic Spark?” I begin so, in honor of both a super-computer beating a human on Jeopardy and my own computer dominating my race to the finish line of this new site.

A slave to my computer’s every need, my eyes become fixed and hair frazzled. Pulled along by the organized homework assignments of my amazing web designer (and cousin) Damon Morda of Branded Clever. Damon is turning a big, unsettling project into something that is actually manageable for a person who gets a bit big-eyed around core reconstruction involving technology. He is organized, talented, stylish and almost always… one step ahead of me. Thank you Damon!

Did you bring the camera?

The answer to the question was sadly, no. We forgot the camera.

Hello England.

A workshop called porkshop.

For those of you with a queasy stomach when it comes to raw meat, I’d suggest we temporarily part ways and meet back next week, same time same place. Because we’re talking pig meat today, with pictures.

A few weeks ago, my mom and I attended the Weston A. Price Foundation yearly conference. Mom departed a day early leaving me solo for a workshop called Porkshop that professed to teach proper pig butchering. To be frank, I was a little apprehensive. I’ve been known to pink glove my way back into full-on meat eating, and each bold new step makes me pause and re-accept my perspective on the necessity of a proper cycle of life. Staring at a recognizably dead animal is no exception.

Five Tips for a Nutrient-Dense Lifestyle

Slowly, over the course of the past 6 years, my diet has done a complete 180˚. Completely instinctual changes have lead my plate away from vegetarianism into a carnivorous nutrient-dense diet. Foods that would have never – ever – ever touched my hands, my plate and certainly not my mouth are making me feel better and stronger with each passing day. I’ve crossed thresholds, as seemingly simple as eating a bird to more complex, like cooking liver and using chicken feet to increase the gelatin content of my broth. Looking back, I’ve learned a few tricks, and I’d like to share them with you.