I am feeling very out of balance lately. Not in a spiritual or existential sense. On Tuesday I had a plantar wart treated on the heel of my right foot. That is the nice way of saying I had a dermatologist give me 3ed degree frost bit! Since the procedure I have been unable to put weight on that part of my foot with out a good deal of pain. This means I am either favoring my left foot completely or standing only on the ball of my right foot. As a result I am sore. Sore everywhere. My hips are imbalanced, my calves are tight. Don't get me started on my feet. I just finished beggar's night with Mo and her kids and From the waste down...
I don't mean to complain. I am grateful to live in a society where I can go get a procedure like that done so easily. I am also grateful that I live in a place where walking is not a fact of life. Well, maybe most days the fact that most americans don't walk more is part of the problem, but today walking was the problem.
I am mentioning all this because I find it very interesting. Something so small as this can cause such a problem. This ice burn is smaller than a dime on the sole of my foot. However, it's effects have telegraphed through most of my body. There are many small things that we encounter everyday that are preventing us from being all that we are capable of being. Some of them can't be avoided, some can. Things like sleep and stress or bad diet. We may think that staying up a few nights a week won't hurt us. Or that eating that bit of gluten will be fine as long as tomorrow we are 100% paleo. But in exactly the same was a favoring my left leg is throwing my body out of whack, only working on one corner of your lifestyle is as you let the rest spiral out of control will wear you down. I think what I am trying to say here is that I need to get some sleep.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Preparing for Winter.
For the past two weeks I have been working very hard to clear out my community garden plot. We have to have everything out of the area by the end of tomorrow. A week ago I was not sure if I could get that done. I know now I am with in striking distance of the goal.
The reason for this is because of how the city manages the community garden plots here. Every year on October 31 we need to be completely out of our areas then they till the land. Then again in the spring they till again. Every year I get more and more stuff down there that has to be pulled out at the end. That makes this task harder and harder. This is also a very depressing time of year for me because as I am doing my fall harvest I am also destroying my garden. The fall harvest should be a time of celebration.
However, this process also gives me an opportunity to think about what I will do next year in my garden. That is a positive that I can focus on. Next year, I want to build more furniture to have down there. The adirondack chair that I made myself really made me very happy this year. Next year I want to build one for Mo. I think having a coffee table would be nice as well. I want to plant all the sunflower seeds I collected this year. I am going to make a wall of sunflowers all the way around our space down there. On the outside of that I want to plant marigolds all around the perimeter and I think inside of those two flowers I will plant more giant zinnias. I want to create a room out of flowers. I am going to reattempt the sweet potatoes using the same tire method I used this year. I want to do butternut squash again, but I want to try to grow up and not out with them next time. I also want to do other squash. This year I had a great crop of early lettuce, next year I want to get that going earlier and last longer.
Over the next several months I will be doing a good deal of indoor gardening. I am going to finally put the leg work in on the window farms. I want to start sprouting more again. I also want to get back to writing again. For now I am going to get some sleep. It feels good to post again.
The reason for this is because of how the city manages the community garden plots here. Every year on October 31 we need to be completely out of our areas then they till the land. Then again in the spring they till again. Every year I get more and more stuff down there that has to be pulled out at the end. That makes this task harder and harder. This is also a very depressing time of year for me because as I am doing my fall harvest I am also destroying my garden. The fall harvest should be a time of celebration.
However, this process also gives me an opportunity to think about what I will do next year in my garden. That is a positive that I can focus on. Next year, I want to build more furniture to have down there. The adirondack chair that I made myself really made me very happy this year. Next year I want to build one for Mo. I think having a coffee table would be nice as well. I want to plant all the sunflower seeds I collected this year. I am going to make a wall of sunflowers all the way around our space down there. On the outside of that I want to plant marigolds all around the perimeter and I think inside of those two flowers I will plant more giant zinnias. I want to create a room out of flowers. I am going to reattempt the sweet potatoes using the same tire method I used this year. I want to do butternut squash again, but I want to try to grow up and not out with them next time. I also want to do other squash. This year I had a great crop of early lettuce, next year I want to get that going earlier and last longer.
Over the next several months I will be doing a good deal of indoor gardening. I am going to finally put the leg work in on the window farms. I want to start sprouting more again. I also want to get back to writing again. For now I am going to get some sleep. It feels good to post again.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Up with the Sun.
I have been struggling with sleep for the last few weeks. My new job keeps me out past 10 three nights a week. Even when I get out at 10 I am still amped up. Last weekend I was up pasted 1 am three nights. I have also been drinking more, enough that even once I am asleep my sleep is disturbed. A few glasses of wine seems like the best way to wind down at the end of a busy night. But I have found after an hour or two of sleep I am then awakened. I usually am then up for 40 minutes to an hour. Getting up in the morning has been hard too. I get up after 8 or even after 9, which is late for me. I am never getting restful sleep after sun up. All in all for the last few weeks I have been getting in the range of six to seven hours of sleep a night. This really messes me up during the day. My allergies will be much worse. I obviously feel more tired. My brain function is lower, my memory and learning are not as sharp. I don't blog as much.
I have a solution for this problem at least three nights a week. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I work nights and Thursday I have a game night with some friends. That leaves Monday, Tuesday Wednesday that I control my evening. It just requires discipline. I have two alarms set on my phone, one is for about 30 minutes before sunset and the other is for sun set. When I am disciplined I turn out all my artificial lights after the second alarm. Out of boredom or frustration from stubbing my toes I usually go to bed with in half an hour of this.
I did this last night. I was in bed for 11 hours and 40 minutes and I was asleep for just over 11 hours. Its very interesting to see how different my sleep feels like this. I feel like me sleep is a more active. Last night there were three times that I remember being up in the night. Normally waking in the night is stressful for me cause I know I only have a very limited time to be asleep and if I am waking up I am cutting into that. I feel great today. I love when I get to do a solar cycle. I know there are still four days a week that I can't be going to bed at 7:30, but I want to work on before 12 and really push for before 11 for at least three of those. I also want to get this "down with the sun" thing on for the other three days a week that I don't work. Not just one or two of them.
I would love to be able to have a job or lifestyle someday that would allow me to remain on a solar cycle all the time. I can't really imagine what that job would be or how I could swing that. Doing something like that though the summer would be easy enough. In the winter in Central Ohio around the solstice we have only about 9 hours and 18 minutes of sun up. That wouldn't leave much time for much besides an 8 hour work day. If I have a job where I work on my own schedule it might be possible.
I have a solution for this problem at least three nights a week. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I work nights and Thursday I have a game night with some friends. That leaves Monday, Tuesday Wednesday that I control my evening. It just requires discipline. I have two alarms set on my phone, one is for about 30 minutes before sunset and the other is for sun set. When I am disciplined I turn out all my artificial lights after the second alarm. Out of boredom or frustration from stubbing my toes I usually go to bed with in half an hour of this.
I did this last night. I was in bed for 11 hours and 40 minutes and I was asleep for just over 11 hours. Its very interesting to see how different my sleep feels like this. I feel like me sleep is a more active. Last night there were three times that I remember being up in the night. Normally waking in the night is stressful for me cause I know I only have a very limited time to be asleep and if I am waking up I am cutting into that. I feel great today. I love when I get to do a solar cycle. I know there are still four days a week that I can't be going to bed at 7:30, but I want to work on before 12 and really push for before 11 for at least three of those. I also want to get this "down with the sun" thing on for the other three days a week that I don't work. Not just one or two of them.
I would love to be able to have a job or lifestyle someday that would allow me to remain on a solar cycle all the time. I can't really imagine what that job would be or how I could swing that. Doing something like that though the summer would be easy enough. In the winter in Central Ohio around the solstice we have only about 9 hours and 18 minutes of sun up. That wouldn't leave much time for much besides an 8 hour work day. If I have a job where I work on my own schedule it might be possible.
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Just call me "Theo Hood"
Last Tuesday I met with an old professor from one of my schools. I heard on good authority that he could tell me a thing or two about hunting. It was a very informative meeting. This guy grew up hunting. He had hunted just about everything there is to hunt in this state, except wild boar. Before the meeting I didn't even know what questions I had to ask. After the meeting I now have a plan of action. Sort of.
I have signed up for The Ohio Devision of Wildlife Hunter and Trapper Education Course. The class is on a Saturday at the end of the month. In the mean time I am reading a booklet of the hunting laws and regulations from last year. I expect that the dates will have changed, but the rest will be the same.
During the conversation with that professor I realized that I am only interested in bow hunting. First, bow season in this state is much longer than gun season. Since there is so little time for the gun hunt the public spaces can become a war zone. I don't want to mess with that. Also, Robbin Hood is a boss. I went to the closest Cabelas and priced bows. There are three main types of bows avaliable there. Most of the bows they carried were compound bows. These have pullies that increase the force of the arrow. They also had recurve and long bows as well. They are off to one side sort of in a corner. I need to do more reasearch before I can make a decision.
I have also been talking with a butcher about bulk meat. I am hoping to be able to get a quarter or half cow soon. I will keep you updated on that as well.
I have signed up for The Ohio Devision of Wildlife Hunter and Trapper Education Course. The class is on a Saturday at the end of the month. In the mean time I am reading a booklet of the hunting laws and regulations from last year. I expect that the dates will have changed, but the rest will be the same.
During the conversation with that professor I realized that I am only interested in bow hunting. First, bow season in this state is much longer than gun season. Since there is so little time for the gun hunt the public spaces can become a war zone. I don't want to mess with that. Also, Robbin Hood is a boss. I went to the closest Cabelas and priced bows. There are three main types of bows avaliable there. Most of the bows they carried were compound bows. These have pullies that increase the force of the arrow. They also had recurve and long bows as well. They are off to one side sort of in a corner. I need to do more reasearch before I can make a decision.
I have also been talking with a butcher about bulk meat. I am hoping to be able to get a quarter or half cow soon. I will keep you updated on that as well.
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