The Bees & The Birds

I hope that you aren't expecting that kind of blog post - however I have books I could point you towards.

I am a librarian, after all.

For the last 5+ years, since moving to Massachusetts, I have learned more about organic food, local farming, and the big business of commercial animal "farms" and GMOs (genetically modified organisms). On my bookshelf sits Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Plenty, and The Backyard Homestead. I've seen The Corporation, The World According to Monsanto, and am girdling my loins for the arrival of Food Inc. from my Netflix queue.

It makes eating a scary thing. You realize that corn is in EVERYTHING, that most packaged meat in the store came from multiple animals that were crowded in tiny spaces, and that most every fruit or vegetable traveled hundreds of miles and was sprayed with hundreds of chemicals. There have been illnesses and recalls all over the news for foods that have been exposed to bacteria strains that have no business being there.

But I love to eat. So what's a girl to do, besides wring her hands and grab the next box of Twinkies? (Never. Who wants to eat a food that has a half-life?) She makes changes.

I have started gardening. I make sure that my garden seeds are heirloom. I recycle. I go to the Farmers Markets during the summer season. I freeze and can. I make most meals instead of buying frozen lunches. I have found a local provider for milk and meats and shop at the little co-op downtown. But I want more.

Earlier this summer, I visited a friend who is making things work right in her own backyard. Besides keeping her budget as tight as possible, I have seen her chickens and her beehive. Right behind the house. She made her first batch of honey this past fall. I have read the stories about Colony Collapse Disorder affecting beehives. I walked a lavender labyrinth this summer and sat down to watch scores of bees and other insects collecting pollen and nectar from the plants. Never a childhood fan of bees, I have gained an understanding of their necessity to what I do NOW. Some of my garden can self-pollinate, but not all of it. What would happen if there were no honeybees?

So, I discovered the Worcester County Beekeepers Association. They teach Bee School every year and I have decided to attend. I'm excited, a bit nervous and filled with the wonder of learning something new. I don't know if I am going to have a hive at this point, but I hold the possibility.

Free-range organic chicken eggs cost an average of $4 a dozen or more. My family can go through 2-4 dozen a month. It would be more economical - and more work, and more fun - to have chickens at home. Many urban lots are large enough to house a half dozen chickens. We currently have a 20 x 50 ft. dog pen in the backyard, left by the landlord through the winter (and where my garden will be going once it comes down). That would be enough space itself for a dozen hens or more. Alas, my city does not allow chickens within their municipal limits.

What is being called the Urban Chicken Movement has seen a big rise over the last couple of years. Many cities, larger than my own, allow penned chickens on housing lots. Seattle, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Rochester NY, among others. So, why not here? Why can't we have chickens in the city? I doubt I am the only person in town who wants them. There are so many GOOD reasons to have them. Check out the benefits of urban chickens here, here and here! Who's going to get the word out, look into how other groups enacted local ordinance changes, talk to people, get the ball - or the egg - rolling? Who is going to be the first to step forward and say "Why not?"

Gandhi said "You must be the change you wish to see in the world", or as I like to say, "Put Up or Shut Up". So, I guess the change I desire has to start somewhere, and where better than with me.

Why not?

Wax On, Wax Off

The above title will justify my claims that I have a strange sense of humour...

This last weekend was spent in the kitchen much of the time. I LOVED it too. I never would have thought that making a mess and knowing I would have to clean it up later would result in such a pastime. However, I've discovered that I have tapped into a place of creativity and zen that I have never known before. On my journey to find my Authentic Self, I believe that the kitchen is one of the places I come out.

I decided I had to bake for my upcoming OPAC (that would be Online Public Access Catalog) Committee meeting. This is the first meeting I have had for these people in months, and we have a LOT of work to do in the future. Our libraries will be migrating to a new library automation system in about two years. This system is open-source, which means not only do we have more control and access to the bones of the system - we also have development to do. If I am going to make these demands of my library staffs, I want to make sure they have happy stomachs during these meetings. (Plus maybe then I can get them to agree with me more if they are distracted by food.)

I also threw down a couple dozen scones and muffins for church.





Oh yes, and stew for dinner. I was a productive mama.

So, once the dishes were washed up and the island cleared, I decided it was time to make candles. I got myself a simple kit from the local craft store. I had received beeswax tealights a while ago, and loved them. Needless to say they didn't last long, and I thought that learning to make them myself would be great. Then I could find local beekeepers, get an in on finding local honey and wax, and one day maybe have a hive of my own...

Okay, I was getting ahead of myself again. I am STILL waiting for the Animal Control Officer to get back to me on owning a beehive or chickens within city limits. Since before Christmas. I've heard one tell me that her neighbor's chickens were removed when discovered, however I want to hear it and see the regulation for myself. Or it isn't there.

But, I am still ahead of myself...

I picked up beeswax from the local craft store also. The kit came with paraffin, but no way am I making my candles out of by-product, thank you.

The directions were pretty simple, melt the wax to a certain temperature, fill your containers, set the wicks, do a second and third pour, and voila! Candles!

I thought, how difficult could it be to follow those directions? That thought should have been my first clue...



I chopped up the wax, deciding to do votives as I hadn't gotten any wicks for tealights yet. The set came with wicks for the votives, plus three molds.



Wax went into the pouring pot, which was set into a pot of boiling water. You don't melt wax over direct heat, but with the small amount of wax I used, the pot kept floating up. I finally got the handle braced over the edge of the pot, and the beeswax melted rather quickly.

I checked the temperature a couple of times until it got to where it was supposed to be, around 185.
Then into the molds they went. There was a bit left over, but that would be needed for the next pours. Then I only had to wait about 4-5 minutes to set the wicks. It would just be starting to cool, so they could be set in the bottom.



Aaaaaand...this would be where I went chasing butterflies or something. Checked email, talked with the niblets and hubby, looked at recipes for dinner. Something else. And who needs timers?

Well, obviously I do.

So, when I finally noticed that the candles were skinned all the way over, and after I had my "OHMYGODDESSWHATWASITHINKINGOHYEAHNOTABOUTTHISOBVIOUSLY" rant in my head, I popped the votives into the hot water again until they remelted enough to tuck the wicks in.



The second and third pours went more smoothly. And more under a watchful eye.



But eventually they were set, and they popped out of the molds easily. My first three homemade beeswax candles. Lessons learned - and hopefully remembered.

Now I have some knitting to catch up on.