rain, rain, and more rain in Robertson today

It is pouring rain here today as we are hit by the outer edge of a cyclone which crossed further up the coast.  Please note we are not suffering, its just rain. Its lovely and welcome as the ground has been dusty dry and our neighbour's dams empty for a while.

Our hearts go out to both family and strangers who are cut off without power in Queensland and Northern New South Wales. And to those who have lost love ones and their homes. Its only 2 years since the last major flood so some of those who just got back on their feet will be losing again.

While cyclones and floods are devastating the north, fires are destroying the south. Its a big, harsh country of great and terrible beauty. It is rather fitting that this should happen this weekend as we celebrated our nation's birth which resulted in greatness but began with destruction.

So meanwhile we are home safe, with power, food, wine and nowhere we have to be. Tomorrow may be interesting as we assess our route to work and see whether we can get through or whether we need to stay home again.

I can but extend hopes of peace and safety to those worse off.

Eating from the garden

Still studying but not for much longer

I am working on my last assignment today. Its cold, damp and I'm home alone. I can hear nothing but the whirring of my hard drive and the snores of my dog Harry. There are no distractions, yet as always I feel jittery, bored and want to be doing anything other than thinking through this assignment.

I guess that is the main problem - I'm up to a part I don't entirely understand. For the background I pumped out 500 words without hesitation or pause. Now that it is becoming more challenging I am procrastinating.

My solutions: I am going to put on an oil burner to entice my senses and aid concentration. I'm going to get up and stretch a little and find some cheese and crackers to munch on. Then I'm going to work on another section that is a little clearer. I'll come back to the tricky one with more of a sense of success.

And in a little over two weeks I will be free: to sew, cook, garden and blog and share more exciting adventures than sitting labouring over an essay on Sunday afternoon.

Wish me luck.

thanks for the encouragement: another assignment done so back to my homespun life for a while

Thank you everyone for your encouragement and words of love during my academic freak out. Hopefully I'll pass - that's all I want.

Yesterday I was really struggling to concentrate but I needed to get it finished.
I decided to take a different take: I set up a little altar of concentration on my desk.
I lit a vanilla soy melt, put out my strawberry obsidian.
I made a card for myself: listing the things I could do after assignment 1 (tick), assignment 2 and the exams.
Last of all I set up our Tibetan singing bowl, played it for a while before powering through my assignment.

I submitted it today, so thank you, thank you, thank you.

Feeing frustrated and trapped - not terribly homespun right now

I have started studying two business subjects by distance education for the first time in almost a decade. Since starting this blog I have increasingly embraced a homespun life, working towards the life of my dreams.  I go through stages of doing nothing but sewing and others cooking and gardening in equal measure.  I gardened all winter so my vegie garden is a picture of abundance. I have a lovely cottage garden of flowers in the front and a steadily expandng fernery. We created a lovely lush lawn in the place of bare dirt in the back yard, a perfect picnic spot under large trees.

I have been eating home made granola and yogurt. Packing nutritious, tasty lunches every day and cooking great dinners as well.

I freely chose to do the study. I need to reach closure on a half completed qualification from what feels like a previous life. It will free me to undertake other study that fits better with who I am now and what I want for my future.

But I am not feeling free. I feel trapped. I keep telling myself that it really is only a few days of my life. That this too will pass. Good words but hard to take to heart.

It is perhaps the lack of balance in my life. Right now I feel guilty about taking time out from study to write this post. My darling niece arrived yesterday to visit until after Christmas and I feel guilty about taking time out from her. We need to finish painting the laundry and bathroom but I can't right now. My garden is looking neglected - I need to pull weeds, mulch with compost and lucerne and plant the next lot of summer crop.

But I must spend all my time out of work doing my study. My second assignment is due Monday. Once that is done I will have a month to complete the next two. So it really is only a couple of days until I can make my next batch of granola, refill the freezer, get back into the garden and enjoy the countdown to Christmas.

Why can't I accept that and be zen and embrace the opportunity in front of me?

Tonight's harvest: eggs, broccoli and snow peas

Broccoli soup and other garden delights

I have magificent heads of broccoli coming up in the garden. Never before have I gown such stunning specimens.

So what will I do with it all?

I've started with soup.

To make basic but delicious broccoli soup I made vichyssoise (classic potato and leek) and added the broccoli. Very simple, very quick and yes, most importantly, very tasty.

Ingredients:
Two heads of broccoli - washed well and chopped into florets
One leek, trimmed and sliced
Two medium potatoes, peeled and diced
Butter
Vegetable stock cube
Water
Cream
Parmesan, optional

How to:
Melt a small chunk of butter in a large soup pan. Throw in the leeks and cook until they start to soften, take care not to burn them.
Toss in the broccoli and potatoes. Add stock cube and enough water to just cover vegies. 
Bring to boil briefly, then simmer, stirring every now and again.
When all vegies are soft, poor the soup into a blender, in batches, to puree. You choose whether you want it completely smooth or a few small chunks are ok.
Pour it back into the soup pan and replace on stove on low-medium heat. You are not cooking it now just reheating.
Serve with a drizzle of cream and a sprinkle of parmesan and crunchy bread on the side.

This will serve 4-6. I only served two but we now have four serves in the freezer for another day.

 

There is plenty more broccoli growing in the garden.
I will need to monitor them daily now so that I pick them before the flowers start to open out and they are spolied.

As always my vegie garden is a sea of potatoes. So there'll be plenty more soup I think.