Adventure

Bucking Around on the Farm… (Just Kidding!)

My body aches. Just like I predicted it would, and just like I expected, I am happy about it. Sure, I don’t wake up every morning excited about the prospect of sinking 100 nails into plywood, but hey. It means that soon I get to live on a beautiful farm with my husband and pets, and roll out of bed to greet the resident goats, chickens,  cows, and pigs (coming soon!).

So far the house construction is chugging along. It takes me about 12 swings on a hammer (with both hands…that sucker is heavy!) to sink a nail, while Andrew does it in three or four whacks. So for the most part I do what I can and then move onto other farm chores when my arms fall off. Which is fine by me…I really enjoy watching seeds sprout and being involved in new growth. When the house is completed I will write a blog dedicated to the process, with the help of Andrew. I know there is a large community of “tiny house” enthusiasts out there…so stay tuned for insights and photos about our construction experiences!

Speaking of the tiny house…while we have been living “simply” in a borrowed apartment (it’s actually a single-wide mobile home), I still look around me and see all this stuff that I know won’t fit in our ~300 square foot home. There’s not a lot of fat to cut either…it will be interesting to see how we manage. We’re hoping to figure out a good storage system for under the house, since it is up on a trailer we have about four feet to stash stuff away, assuming we can make sure it is watertight and rat proof!

It rains a lot here in Washington (duh!), and the ground soaks it in very quickly. Mud is constant, and I wear my fashionable pink plaid mud boots (AKA my “sh*t kickers) frequently.  Initially I was worried that the weather would slowly leech away my will to live and farm in Washington, but I was wrong! Thankfully we have enough sunny, warm days mixed in to keep me happy. When the skies clear the views of the neighboring Cascade Mountain Range is spectacular! We set up drip lines for our hoop house that drain from a tank of collected rainwater, and we are also starting to plant outside, so I now see rain more as a beneficial life force rather than an inconvenience. I do hope it doesn’t snow again though…we got four inches the first day of spring! It was beautiful, and thankfully the sun came out and melted it all by the end of the day, but I had a little bit of a SoCal hissy fit and decided to work in the warm greenhouse all day.

Most of our days are spent planting seeds, seedlings, starts, running irrigation lines, and building the house. But for me the real excitement comes with our new animal additions. We now have a family of eight goats! The buck is a Kiko, a cool breed with a beard, gnarly horns, and the ability to forage well without much interference. There are three does (Boer breed), and four kids which are mixed (called GeneMasters for some reason!). Three of the kids are male, and the other day we banded their testicles so that they will constrict and fall off, making them “wethers” instead of bucks. These three will be sold for meat eventually. I think I can call myself a farmer now…I carried kids over to a pickup truck while Andrew and Eric (our boss) did the deed. The poor kids carried on, and their mothers did too, but as soon as they went back in the pen it was as if nothing had happened. What a dramatic bunch!

Zephyr absolutely adores the resident livestock. Every morning he gets pumped up for our ritual visit with the goats. When little Lucy the calf is around he touches his nose to hers and sometimes even gives her a lick. The combination of running around all day, and some training with his new shock collar, has made him a really well behaved pooch. The only times we have to worry about him is when we leave him alone in our apartment. We hide the trash in the bathroom, put away any and all food, and recently learned the hard way that we also must make sure there are no dirty dishes in the sink. But otherwise he has really “matured” insomuch as a dog can mature. Mostly I think this is just a much better lifestyle for him, and his behavior is a reflection of that.

Every day there is one incident or occurrence that reminds me about how lucky I am. A beautiful red sunrise over purple and white mountain peaks.  Getting to eat lunch every day at home with my husband. Listening to frogs happily chirp away as I plant strawberry starts in a field. Listening to my husband whistle as he hammers away, oblivious to my contented eavesdropping. There is something so wonderful about being outside, working in the dirt, and using my body as much as I can. Sure it hurts, and I get cold and grumpy sometimes. But when the clouds part and I see Mt. Baker off in the distance, I can’t help but pinch myself and wonder how this life came to be.

Okay onions. I don’t like you. You don’t like me. But if you promise to stay off my plate I will water you.
It was a beautiful morning to be sure, although I’m glad it didn’t last.
When the weather turned nice we moved some seedlings outside to “harden off” before transplanting.
Caution, kids at play! They are the CUTEST. Kinda stinky though.
Galaxy, the buck. He’s very regal, except when he tries to impress the ladies by urinating on his own face. True story.
He looks so professional! Well…almost.
This is me using the Skil saw, just before I cut into the cord. I no longer use the Skil saw.
I can’t wait to move in!
A tangled mass of drip lines. Untangling electric fencing (which is actually more like twine) is equally infuriating.
My favorite lunch…mixed varieties of freshly picked kale!
A beautiful crimson sunrise

The Farmers in the Dell

A little over six months ago, Andrew and I were just starting off on our North American road trip. We were excited about the next three months, but had no idea what our “real” future would look like. Every time I tried to imagine where we would find ourselves at the conclusion of our freewheeling adventure, I suffered a bout of anxiety. Will I have to go back to work in an office so we can pay our student loan bills? Will our simplified, reduced-clutter, outdoors-oriented lifestyle be a fond memory once our travel funds run out? Somewhere along our 15,000-mile journey we decided to never return to “the way things were.” Our newfound freedom, untethered from superfluous possessions and a 9 to 5 workday, would forever be the norm.

So far, farming seems to fit the bill just right. We are still in the learning stages, and for me especially, the learning curve is steep. I have learned how to operate some semi-heavy machinery like the tractor, rototiller and weed whacker. I have learned how to sow seeds in a green house, how to fight blackberry brambles (although I still cannot seem to come out of a bout unscathed), and how to set up sprinklers. I have had the joy of welcoming 100 newly hatched chicks that are happily brooding in the garage next to our temporary housing. I have also experienced some remorse: this morning I unknowingly rototilled over a bunny nest, and decapitated a newborn bunny. The other two survivors had to be “taken care of” as rabbits are pests on a farm. That’s the way things go here…it’s time I get used to it. After all, the cute little chicks are going to be someone’s dinner soon enough!

The first few days on the farm were spectacular. The weather was a balmy 55 with blue skies and abundant sunshine. I marveled at the views of the Cascade Mountain range while I weeded around the rows of blueberry bushes, and even found myself stripped down to a t-shirt. I was told not to get used to this weather, and sure enough after those two clear days it has been cloudy, rainy, and cool. Although there is often the threat of imminent rain, mostly it is overcast and cool enough to make the work outdoors quite pleasant. The times when it really rains we can usually find work to do inside the greenhouse, hoop-houses, and other covered spaces. In other words, I am not complaining about the weather! Yet.

Every morning I roll out of bed and toss on old dirty jeans, a wool layer, and my new trusty Carhartt jacket. I throw my hair up into a messy ponytail and slap one of Andrew’s beanies on over my head. I stuff my feet into my rubber boots and away we go! It’s really nice not to have to worry about looking nice on the farm. That feeling I got while in Hawaii (this goes WAAAAAY back to one of my first posts!) also exists on the farm. There is no need for makeup or pretty clothes. And when I do decide to wear those things, “dressing up” becomes that much more special.

We have only done a little bit of exploring in the nearby town of Snohomish, but I’m hoping this weekend maybe we can see what the nightlife scene is like. Last week we found an excellent spot for lunch called Grilla Bites that even served gluten-free bread and vegan cheese, and you can imagine my joy and excitement at finding such a local gem. Another nearby dining spot, Mongos, looks like a mediocre takeout joint, but they specialize in pretty gourmet fair despite appearances. The other day I inhaled a pile of truffle fries that were served up in a cardboard takeout container. There is also a yoga studio in town that I am hoping to check out soon enough. My sore, abused muscles sure could use some TLC!

In the next month or so we will be building our “tiny house” on a flatbed trailer that Eric, our farmer/mentor bought. With his help we will construct a lodging that is approximately 12’ x 20’ with a loft for Andrew, Zephyr, Sake, and I to live in at the farm. This way we can keep an eye on our animals (we’re hoping to soon add pigs, goats, sheep, and turkeys to the mix), and it will be even easier to roll out of bed to get the morning chores done. I am looking forward to another opportunity to downsize, and without television or internet I will find a lot more time to read, paint, create art, snooze, and get to know my love a little bit more every day.

Sake was an excellent travel companion on the trek from Tucson to Washington!
Here are our first starts! Andrew planted the seeds a week before I arrived.
Yes, riding a tractor is as much fun as you’d think!
One of the many happy beef cows that call Chinook Farms home!
A girl, a dog, some subtle brand promotion…
Here Andrew hand tills one of the hoophouses.
And I followed up with the seeder. It’s a great contraption that drops seeds at the proper intervals and then covers them up as I push it along. Genius!
This will be the foundation for our tiny house! I can’t wait to move in!
I made sure each and every chick got a sip of water as I put them in their new home. Overkill, maybe. But I love them so!
My new arch enemy, the blackberry bramble! They are evil. It’s a bittersweet fight though; I know I will enjoy the berries in the fall!
I’m sorry baby bunny, but look at it this way…now you will live for eternity on the internet!

Oh No…Now I’m the Girl Who Writes About Her Cat

A week passes incredibly quickly when you are living life on the road, experiencing new sights every day with the love of your life. A week passes agonizingly slow when you are sedentary, alone with your thoughts, bad television, and your cat. Obviously adjusting to life in Tucson is going to take some time. I am grateful that I get to see my grandmother every day, and help make her life better by keeping her company and running small errands for her. When Andrew and I visited her before we went to Mexico I was worried about her. She was tired and disoriented, symptoms of the infection she has been fighting for months. For many people aged 88 these symptoms are commonplace, but for my grandmother they are extremely unusual. As a child I always thought my grandmother was invincible, and though I am far less naïve these days, I am happy to report that she is back to normal and seems healthier than ever. In fact she looks downright out of place at the rehab center, where she is the only patient who does not rely on a wheelchair to move about.

Unfortunately the world of health insurance is so muddled that the only way my grandmother’s antibiotic treatment is covered is if she stays at the rehab center until she finishes her second six-week course of medication. So I do what I can to ease her boredom by visiting her in the early afternoons, and we often sit outside and chat with a nice woman from the Congo who is recuperating from a stroke. Thankfully I never tire of hearing about the past lives of others, whether it is about pre-war Holland, post-war Ecuador, or traditional birthing practices of the Congo. It’s also fortunate that the elderly seem more than eager to share their stories and reminisce about their youth, and I am a willing receptacle for their memories.

I am living alone at my grandmother’s house, and unfortunately she lives in a suburb north of Tucson that is not within walking distance of much. Driving in this city is INSANE.  The main roads are six lanes wide, and there are very few stop signs or protected left turns. Because of this I haven’t ventured too far away from the neighborhood, but luckily I found a Bikram Yoga studio nearby where I go for an almost daily 90-minute torture session in a hot, humid, stinky room. The actual exercises and positions utilized in this kind of “yoga” are not incredibly difficult, but the near 100-degree heat and extreme humidity make this a very sweaty, dizzying, and in the end, rewarding experience. It doesn’t fulfill me spiritually in the same way that other, more traditional styles of yoga do, but at least it gets my blood moving and keeps me from going stir crazy.

When I’m not busy with Bikram or locking my keys in my truck (thank you, AAA!), I am cooking for myself using Paleo-diet friendly ingredients. I first went on this diet at the beginning of the year, and I was amazed at the results I noticed within just one month. The diet stresses fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, eggs, nuts, and other items that are considered “natural” to the ancient human condition. I already don’t eat wheat or dairy, and “going Paleo” just means I also cut out other grains like rice, and corn, and avoid overly processed foods. It’s a really great way to keep healthy, and this combined with Bikram will help me “detox” from all the noshing that occurred during the last month of our road trip.

I have also been enjoying the company of my cat, Sake. I was very fortunate to find a wonderful foster mom for Sake while the rest of us hit the road, but now that I knew I would be more stationary I decided to take her with me to relieve some of my loneliness. I love this cat, but after all I have experienced with her I have to say I might never have another. I adopted her from a shelter about five years ago, and when I took her home she was already a year old and had birthed a litter of feral kittens. Since I have owned her, her health problems have ranged from severe skin allergies to major scent gland infections to chronic arthritis. When I brought her to Tucson and let her out of her carrier I noticed she walked like she was three sheets to the wind. She was always a little on the loopy side, but at this point she couldn’t walk in a straight line to save her life! I brought her to the vet, and it was determined that she may have “bilateral vestibular disease,” which I think is a fancy way of saying serious double ear-infections.  She is on a course of antibiotics, but there is a possibility she may never fully recover. She is a very happy, loving cat otherwise, and her quality of life is still quite good, despite the apparent heart murmur that she has also acquired. I think I should just stop taking her to the vet!

In my spare time I read, research potential careers, or as a last resort, watch television. The other day I decided on a whim to apply for a position as a Park Ranger for the National Park System…at Kenai Fjords, Alaska! I have no idea how competitive the position is, or whether or not I will even make it through the first cut. I have never even been to Alaska! Ironically that seemed as good a reason as any to apply, and since I am determined to avoid a traditional office job for the time being, I might as well venture out on a limb or two while I can! In the meantime you can find me in Tucson, white-knuckling the steering wheel, sweating profusely while attempting to balance on one foot, sunbathing in December, or making dinner plans with octogenarians. Jealous yet?

This beautiful berry bush behind my grandmother’s house is home to many happy birds. I tried to capture some resident quail, but those suckers are FAST!
The mighty Palo Verde, which is Spanish for “Green Wood.” Go figure!
Maybe I could try my hand at making tequila?
One of the plants behind the house is going to seed, and little white puffs are everywhere!
Grams and I ham it up!

So Long (Mexico), and Thanks for all the Fish!

You would think that a 15,000 mile cross country road trip would have prepared us for a 12 hour car ride through Mexico, but you would be wrong. Riding in the backseat of an overstuffed sedan that is careening around mountain curves in a country where the lines on the road are merely suggestions is a lot different than meandering around in our pickup truck, stopping to admire the scenery when it suits our fancy. Thankfully Danny has been driving this route forever, and he was entirely capable of getting us to our destination safely. It required some quiet acceptance on our part that this wasn’t “our” road trip anymore, and we tried to sit back and relax while we sucked on ginger candies to ward off carsickness.

After a long uneventful drive with a few unpleasant bathroom stops and drug checkpoints, we made it to the house that sits on a cliff overlooking a serene, turquoise bay in the Sea of Cortez. Katie and I did some preliminary chores around the house (since it is a vacation home it is boarded up and the furniture is covered when no one is there), while the guys worked on getting the fishing boat ready for action.  That first night was the only night we didn’t eat freshly caught seafood that we wrangled ourselves. And by “we” I mean Danny, who is an expert at all things related to obtaining food from the sea.

I didn’t take notes while in Mexico, so I won’t be able to tell you what we did on any given day. Most days we awoke before the sunrise and headed out in the little fishing boat. I don’t know anything about boats, but I know that this was 19 feet long, and had GPS and this fun thing called a “fish finder” that uses some kind of sonar to detect fish below the boat. It was handy, but I could tell that even without the fish finder Danny would have found fish! Every morning started with us catching “bait fish.” I have only really ever done river fishing, and my faithful readers will remember the excitement I felt at catching three rainbow trout with my brother in Oregon. The bait fish we caught in Mexico were about the same size as those trout, and so I was already stoked when we started reeling them in.

After we had enough bait (around 10-15 fish) we headed out into deeper waters. Danny has specific fishing holes on “speed dial” if you will on the GPS, and so we tried various holes to catch fish. The first day out we caught two yellowtail fish; Danny first hooked one and then had me reel it in. I was unprepared for the strength of this fish (which was probably around 12 pounds or so), and so Katie had to help me by holding onto my back AND the fishing pole as I reeled. It was exhausting, but it was definitely a fun experience. That was the only fish I “caught” on the reel. Andrew had even worse luck, and had several fish get away before he could get them in the boat. Fortunately Danny and Katie caught plenty throughout the week, and we never went hungry in Mexico.

In addition to traditional fishing, the sea has lots to offer and we definitely took advantage. Andrew caught a small hognose fish with a spear gun, and it was my favorite fish taco meat we had all week. Danny also taught us how to dive for various clams and scallops. Scallops were hard for me because I’m not so great at holding my breath and diving deep, but I managed to pull up some on my own and I was proud of this accomplishment! Danny also scored us some lobsters, so we had quite the smorgasbord for our Thanksgiving feast.

When we weren’t on the boat we were lounging in the house, on the patio, or taking a hike. It was a relaxing time, and we encountered very few other people on the whole trip. There was no internet, no cell service, and no television. We read books, chatted, and played a game of spades every night. I am not a natural born card player, which gave Andrew (my partner in the game) a sizeable handicap. Everyone else would remember what cards had been played so they could formulate strategy. I only noticed what cards were being played in that given hand. I have the kind of brain that prefers to dwell “in the moment,” which is why I try to take good notes when something interesting happens so I can remember it later for the blog!

As the end of our trip neared, Andrew and I discussed plans for the future. Our visit to my grandmother in Tucson had convinced me she could use a helping hand, so we decided that I would spend the winter at her house while he and Zephyr headed up to Seattle with our stuff. It was a difficult decision, but as I sit here in Tucson typing this up I know it was the right one.  After returning from Mexico we spent a few days in San Diego couch surfing and getting our things organized, and then parted ways. Andrew headed into real winter with a rented moving truck and the trailer, while I headed back into the warm desert with the pickup truck and our brain-damaged cat.

Which leads me to this pressing question: do I continue posting on the blog? Our road trip is over, and we are going to be apart for a few months (with the exception of a week around Christmas, when I will fly up to Seattle). Despite this hiccup, I feel that the adventure of our young married life together is just starting. We still don’t know what the future holds; in February we could be living together in Seattle, or I could apply for a job working at a National Park, or we could decide to move to Costa Rica for a while! I have also become accustomed to having this blog as a sounding board for my feelings, insights, and experiences. I have received so many positive comments and compliments about the blog that I feel motivated to continue, and perhaps see if this whole “writing thing” can play a significant part in my future.  In classic blog style I will end this post by asking you, my readers: what do you think?

The hacienda on the hillside…not a bad place for a vacation!
This seemed like a good place for silly photos. This is our best “acro yoga” pose. We’re good, right?
Yeah, I took this photo.
The mighty Praying Mantis! We stumbled upon several of these creepy crawlers on this trip.
Here’s the monster that I “caught” with a little help…
One of the mighty yellowtail that Katie and Danny reeled in
One of our most successful fishing days. And again, by “our” I mean Danny’s.
Danny caught this giant creature with his own two hands!
Of course, Andrew was a natural on the wakeboard
I was not a natural, but I did manage to stand up for a second!
One of our Thanksgiving courses was handmade, freshly caught sushi. The other courses were scallops, clam steamers, fish tacos, lobster tails, and old snickers bars for dessert!
Snowflake, the resident “desert cat” enjoys the sunrise
Awwww! We’re tan and happy!

A Homeless Homecoming

I’m sitting in the passenger seat of the pickup, outside my favorite taco shop in San Diego. “San Diego!?” you say. “You’re still in Arizona!” Okay, I admit I have fallen hopelessly behind on blogging about my adventures, and for this I apologize. I know many of you (okay, maybe just you Jane!) are sitting glued to your monitors wondering where in the world the Ides are now.

After departing the Grand Canyon we headed down south towards my native city of Tucson to visit my grandmother, who at 88 years old is just starting to experience some health issues. Once we were on our way to Tucson we started to get the sad feeling that our trip was coming to an end. We saw more and more California license plates on the road and realized our teardrop traveling days were dwindling. We tried to keep our spirits up with diversions. We stopped in Sedona for lunch, and we went into every single jewelry store in town so Andrew could find the perfect silver wedding band before he finally settled on a very cool Hopi design. We braved the snow flurries on the crazy mountain pass outside Jerome, and then hunkered down for a freezing night spent in a campground near Prescott. Despite the bitter cold we were not alone, and made a point of camping as far from possible from the group of young men rocking out heavy metal while huddling around a large bonfire.

Sadly, this was to be our last night in the teardrop. We spent our first night in Tucson with Jane, an old family friend who lives out in the desert in an area so remote that she came out to meet us on her four-wheeler as we were driving up. We had a lovely time visiting Jane and her husband Don, while also mooching free laundry and dinner. We have become quite adept at taking advantage of people’s generosity, and fortunately so far people seem to actually enjoy helping us. I am grateful for all of the help and hospitality we have received along our journey. I wonder how long we can keep up this charade…I really think I could have a future in hobodom!

The next few nights were spent at my grandmother’s house, and we visited her every day in the rehab facility where she is being treated for a mysterious infection. While in Tucson we distracted ourselves by having a drink with Chaz, an old high school buddy of mine who happened to be in town. He showed up in his Navy khakis (he is an officer), and talked about his plans for nursing school. Yet another example of one of my peers having achieved so much already and having responsible plans for the future. Who are these people?!?

Most of our time in Tucson was low-key, so we had plenty of time to think about our options and fret about our own future. We figured we were all set to move in with Andrew’s parents for the winter, but we were beat to the punch by his sister, her husband, toddler, and their two dogs. Andrew’s family is very generous and accommodating and still welcomed us to come, but having six adults, a toddler, and three dogs in one house was starting to sound like “crazytown” to this girl, who is used to being alone in the woods with her little family. Additionally, as I spent more time with my grandmother I realized that, while she has a wonderful network of friends in Tucson, there is no family nearby to take care of the day-to-day tasks that she needs assistance with. She had been in the rehab facility for five days before we got there, and still only had the clothes she was wearing when she arrived. I started thinking maybe I could be of use to her this winter, so Andrew and I began grappling with the idea of parting ways for a few months.

After lolling around Tucson for a few days we said goodbye to Grandma and headed back into San Diego for a few days before the exciting Mexican leg of our adventure; the grand finale if you will. Returning to your hometown without actually having a home there is tough. You feel like you’re home, and you start spending money on all of your favorite restaurants and such, but you don’t have a routine, and you don’t have a place to settle. You also don’t have a job, so the whole spending money bit is treacherous! After floating around San Diego for a few days we dropped Zephyr off at Sunnybrook Farms, an awesome dog-boarding farm that lets the dogs run around in a pack and play all day. It was bittersweet to say goodbye. Zephyr has grown on me, despite (or maybe thanks to) his crazy antics, but it was nice knowing he was going to have a grand time with some canine pals.

Our Thanksgiving trip to Baja, Mexico was planned months and months ago, much to the dismay of my father who usually hosts Thanksgiving. Fortunately Dad was generous enough to give me his blessing. I love family and I love Dad’s turkey…but when life asks you “Sacramento…or Mexico?” you’d better say Mexico! Our friends Danny and Katie travel to Baja frequently, and Danny’s family owns a house near the town of Mulege which is about 12 hours south on the Sea of Cortez. After a few days in San Diego the four of us crammed into Katie’s (mostly) reliable sedan, along with oodles of fishing gear, spear guns, snorkeling equipment, coolers, and a wakeboard, and left San Diego at 0’ dark-thirty in the morning.

A lovely view of a snowy mountain peak in northern Arizona
The red rocks outside Sedona are beautiful, although compared to the awe of Utah they’re nothing to write home about!
I was white-knuckling the steering wheel while driving in the snow over the mountains when I suddenly realized I needed to relieve myself! There was nothing for it but to squat behind the truck and hope no one saw. Andrew made a point of capturing my pee dance.
Here is Jane, leading the way on her four-wheeler. What a badass!
Nothing reminds me of my childhood like the sight of the stoic saguaro
Jane’s backyard comes equipped with an excellent spot for family photos!