I have a new job!

Hi ya'll.

Well, after a month of working for my friend Mariam at WiseWays Herbals, I guess it's time to spill the beans...I have a new job! It's a great job, creating herbal salves and oils, working on policy, enjoying the good vibes of handmade herbal products. Talk about the smell, man I am whiffing some good air there! Have you ever walked into an indoor garden with warm herbal smells and sweet scents in the air? WiseWays is this smell times ten. Takes me back to Northern California, back in 1979 when I first sent foot into a real herbal kitchen. Being an Oklahoma girl, I was used to my dad smoking Camels and my mom frying good old southern food. That first hitchhiking trip to Venice Beach, California took me all the way from fried pork and cigarettes to vegan plant spirit medicine. I first used an herbal shampoo in in L.A.

Working at WiseWays catapulted me right back into a beautiful memory, and now, I'm living in dreamtime. We have a wonderful staff of sweet women and a young man, making salves and oils to soothe the soul and body. Mariam is a Medicine Woman filled with love and light. Check her out here at: http://www.gaeastarcrystal.com/

Hope to see you there. Check us out at www.wiseways.com

And when it snows, you'll see me at Jiminy Peak and Magic Mountain, riding Ski Patrol. Otherwise, hey, I'm expanding my garden. Might as well live in the moment, and right now, my plants are still growing strong. Peace and love, Jules

Email me

It's gonna snow! Yippeee! I already gleaned goodies from the garden and put them in the greenhouse, just like Daniel Dog advises on his great article about gleaning at Laughing Dog Farm ...

http://www.laughingdogfarm.com/gleaning.htm

Jules

There's a new tipi at our sanctuary

For details, go here:

www.cherryplainfarm.blogspot.com

Petersburg Pass, how beautiful it is in the fall

When she had dreads...

My books are available directly from me

I have tried to do business with amazon ...

Owl Publications has multiple titles to uplift the human spirit. We are listed in the New Age section and in the sports section. One of our authors is in the Christian section. Please contact me directly at: photonicgirl at anything dot com for a complete listing of our titles.

Now, my books are really not out of print as amazon says...they are just available elsewhere.

I have tried to do business with amazon ... however, I am printing small runs of books (200 to 500 at a time) here in the great U.S.A. as I believe in supporting American industry. My printing costs are noticeably higher than if I were to do business with say, China.

Hence, I am only selling through channels that allow me to make a very small profit. For example, amazon will pay me $6.50 per book that is sold on their site, and I pay shipping.

I charge $13.95 for Tripping with Gabrielle, and $15.95 for the color version of A Woman's Bike Book (only available in bike shops and independent bookstores, or directly from me), $13.95 for black and white.

My cost for the black and white books is: approximately $5.95 per book, $7.95 for the color version, plus shipping from the printer and shipping to this site. By selling on amazon, I am losing money, big time. As long as I can make a small profit I can continue to pay for my overhead and publish books.

Once we are up and rolling, you can expect to see my books on ebay and www.abebooks.com, a reputable online selling agent. I like abe books, they are simple and do not overcharge to use their site.

Meanwhile, feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions about any of my books, and about Owl Publications, soon to be an LLC. Also, you may visit my blogs at: www.photonicgirl.blogspot.com, and www.cherryplainfarm.blogspot.com to see what's happening around here.

Peace, love and happiness.

Om Shanti to you.

Jules

A Woman's Bike Book & Tripping with Gabrielle

Hello all,

Well after all this time, my two books are now at the printers. I will receive galleys this week and send them out to those of you who have expressed interest. To read about these books and see inside pages, please visit the amazon links I have posted on the right.

Color copies of A Woman's Bike Book (Bike Shop Edition) are reserved for independently owned bike shops and bookstores, while black and white copies can be purchased on amazon.com and through Barnes and Borders.

You can purchase the color version of A Woman's Bike Book (Bike Shop Edition) directly from me for $15.95, plus tax (8%) and shipping ($2.00). If you would like to purchase the black and white version for $13.95, please contact me at: photonicgirl at hotmail dot com.

If you are a bookstore or bike shop and would like to stock these books, please send me an email for 40% off the retail price.

A Woman's Bike Book is 160 pages. Tripping with Gabrielle is 300 plus pages, at $13.95. Both books are trade paperbacks, 5.5 by 8.5.

I am arranging book signings now in NY, MA, and VT. Please contact me if you'd like to order copies of the book or have any questions. To order directly from me, please use the paypal links on this site.

Mahalo,

Jules

Magic Mountain will be open this year!

Let's support this grand old mountain.

From Jim Sullivan:

We will be offering an early season rate through October 5, 2009 for the price of $379 and thereafter the price will increase to $429.

Contact Magic at: http://www.magicmtn.com/

I will be there on Ski Patrol Saturdays, plus teaching snowboarding. And whatever else they have me doing. See ya there!

Jules


A walk though the garden this morning, and kitties.

Rise up and shine

These two were headed for the shelter. Click this photo to enlarge, check them out. They live with us now.

It's freaking raining like a tropical summer here in upstate NY. My feeling is that the weather has changed and we are becoming a tropical place here on the planet. Then there's the photon belt...the blue star kachina, things are getting hotter, colder, dryer...are you getting happier or sadder?

The key is no fear. Stay happy. Be thankful everyday. And for those of you who think my prayer (posted earlier) is over the top, go spend some time with the Native Americans in tipi ceremonies. Listen to what they say, and you too will believe. It's not about Christianity vs whatever religion, as all the witches know, it's about bringing peace and unity to the planet. The Christ consciousness is within us all. Our brains can manifest what our souls know is true. Words are just words, they evoke something bigger than us but who knows what the true power of words really is?

Feel your spirit rise up, believe in a higher vibration. Attract abundance by being of service to others. Live a live of service, dedicate yourselves to being helpful to others. You'll see, life is so good for us here, we have no idea what it's like to dig for food in a garbage pile, or to clean rods out of old batteries to resell. There are three year olds who are doing this for work in Asia. Believe me, it's true. We are so lucky, it's time for us to give back and be thankful. Let's count our blessings on a daily basis, on an hourly basis.

All of you out there who believe, good for you. All of you out there who don't believe, that's okay too. Doesn't matter what we think, the Universal laws are in effect on this planet and we are under their control. What are the universal laws?

I'll sum it up:

Be good to each other, and other will be good to you.

Peace, out.

Jules

It's riding time again!

Yes, we are back on the bikes, when we can find the time in between rain showers, slug hunting forays, ginseng planting and weeding.

If you are a gardener too, you can read more about our farming adventures at: www.cherryplainfarm.blogspot.com.

Life in the fast lane to me means riding a mountain bike with my two best girl buddies. What a happy day we have today. The kind gentleman in the background taking these pics for the new bike book is Jerome Tracy, my wonderful husband and friend.

peace and love,

Jules

The Blood of the Lamb

Pray this for a new Heaven and Earth here now.

In Jesus Name, I cover everyone on the Earth and in the surrounding Universe in the Blood of the Lamb.

All conflicting and otherwise lower dimensional entities within the Earth and surrounding Universe are Bound in Jesus Christ's Holy Name. These grey entities now float upward to the Light where God and His Angels take them forever for reprogramming.

Amen.

The last day of snow

We think it's the last day anyway.

Could be another day will still thunk huge snowplates upon our heads. But I doubt it. Ski patrollers know how to have a good time even when the snow is so slushy that you have to surf it to get down the mountain.

What happened was, I radioed in that there was a big puddle of water getting off the lift ... wanted top house to know. Some patrollers said they'd come check it out, you know, since I of course couldn't tell if it was *really* a problem. I think they just wanted to splash in the pretty puddle myself. Then all of a sudden a hord of patrollers ascended. They set up an ambush for those two patrollers who radioed in that they wanted to check the puddle out. I had to watch. When the two patrollers got off the lift, the waiting ambush forced them into the puddle and threw snowballs at them! It was really funny.

And that, my friends, was our last day at Jiminy Peak.

snowboarding on rocks

Snowboarding rocks at Magic Mountain, especially on the double blacks with less that perfectly (boringly) groomed surface. Oh baby! I love Magic Mountain.

So, what you do to preserve the quality of your board, not that I'm particularly into preserving gear instead of using it, because I'm more of a gear abuser, is you wax the board.

When I say wax, what I mean is, you iron wax into your board for a long time till it soaks in, seeps into the nooks and crannies, and really fills up the base of the board to the point that it kind of congeals on the surface. You should be able to slow iron a ton of wax in, and scrape only a little wax off ...

This takes about 30 minutes, 20 to iron the wax in, and 10 for scraping.

Tomorrow I'm heading back to Magic. I realize it's spring in Albany but here in the farthest corner of Rensselaer County, we still have snow. And in Southern Vermont at Magic Mountain, if we ski patrollers can get a toboggan down the trail, you can come on out and ride it.

Mad River Glen coined the phrase, "Ride it if you can." Magic Mountain, a smaller version of Mad River (and much closer to my house) has the same vibe, and the terrain speaks for itself.

I'll see ya out there.

Jules

Be the first to lose your facebook addiction

We dropped off the map. You can do it too. Be strong, facebook allows too many people to access your information. Do your friends know your friends who know your friends? Do you really want to know everyone else's friends and what they are doing? Are you spending too much time twittering and twiddling with everyone else about your day? I am, or I'll say, I was. Topple the giant in your mind. Drop off the facebook map.

Life with snowboards

They take over your house, your gear is strung everywhere, and still you add more each day to the pile. I just bought a new thermos cos I was jealous of Joe Hess's. We went to Magic the other day and he pulled out this fat hot toasty thermos that sat in his car all day, but was still boiling hot with fabulous tea. I knew then and there that there was unbelievably one more piece of gear I needed for my stash.

Then, there are the snowboards...

Ride for Free, Fact or Fiction

Written for and published by Mountain Gazette

(In their Mountain Notebook Section)

If you are a dumpster-diving dirtbag like me, the Northeast is the place to be this year. I know, complaining about lift ticket prices is de rigeur thing to do, especially at the snowboard shop when you are trying to replace those broken Burton Mission bindings on the cheap…gotta pay to play they say. And then you also have a chance to talk about all that great backcountry stuff you did last weekend in the Dacks that took 18 hours round trip including hip-deep powder and a 3,000 feet elevation gain. There’s always that story along with your rock-torn, sand-blasted tree-stomped aging body to prove it. Hey, I’m 49 years old, I can complain about pain if I want to. There’s either free turns, earn your turns, or work for your turns, take your choice. If its liftserve you are looking for, the money exchange can be challenging, even on e-coupon days. Do you buy gas or do you spend your last $20 on a lift ticket? And what about food, cos those granola bars are getting way old.

Me, I like my stuff free or greatly reduced, always have. I used to work in bike shops so I could use the tools I couldn’t afford. Finally, after slowly building up my basement shop by buying used tools from retiring mechanics, I continued working in bike shops to acquire the bikes I couldn’t afford. Then I got addicted to snowboarding after working in a bike shop that sold snowboards. My climbing rack is comprised of free swag found at the cliff, old cast-off cams from friends, and deals from swap meets. Just so you know, before any comments, I do use new ropes. Well, maybe not perfectly new…

My whitewater kayaks are those that the shop couldn’t sell cos they had five years of dust on them and were too big to fit anyone under 250 pounds. Who weighs 250 pounds and whitewater kayaks, anyway? The foam inserts came from a factory dumpster … they almost float. Because of my fabulous volunteering skills, I finally won a new kayak at the Deerfield kayak festival one year in between beers. Stuff just comes my way.

Ya gotta eat right to live they say. I like organic veggies including fancy tomatoes and strawberries, so I grow them myself. Since good fertilizer costs a lot I also grow llamas and scoop their poop. I’m so lazy I fenced the garden next to their favorite poop pile so travel from one to the other is minimal. There’s a really great food coop nearby so I work there and shop with coupons for sale items each week. Not cheap but still, our eggs and cheese come from the next little town, and the apples are local too. Trips to town don’t cost much as our youngest car, a very beat-up purple Honda Civic hatchback with 171k miles uses minimal gas. Staying limber at my age means teaching beginner yoga once a week at the local library so that I can get a free yoga class and some pocket change. Think I’m kidding? You can stretch or die in my world.

It’s probably understandable by now that when it comes to winter, there’s just no way I’m gonna buy a ticket to a liftserve, and true to my lazy nature, I can’t do backcountry every weekend. Besides, I work Saturdays and Sundays, a time when most people play, and I don’t work at an office. Yes, it’s true, I have foresaken all corporate trappings and work at area ski resorts as a Mountain Slave. I am a ski patroller at one mountain and a snowboard instructor at another. Both these titles translate into: Cheap local labor.

The military precision of our incredible ski patrol team at very strict and jam-packed with guests Jiminy Peak in Massachussetts is rivaled by the unlimited tree riding/cliff hucking opportunities at wildly unregulated Magic Mountain in Vermont, where you can even hike up for free and earn your turns with your dog if he’s leashed. I looked at all the resorts in our area (there are many in here on the NY/VT/MA border) and picked the coolest, non-commercial, telly ho mountain I could find to teach at this year. Magic Mountain in Londonderry, Vermont is the sweetest, I love that mountain. I teach a little and play a lot. Last year, I taught full time, Monday through Friday AND holidays at Jiminy so this year my new motto is, don’t make your snowboard your corporate ball and chain.

Getting national ski patrol OEC training was easy, I just signed up and went to classes. Back in September, I thought it was so cozy and warm, sitting in class, practicing splints on other instructors. Drinking coffee. Once you pass the medical exams, ongoing mountain training lasts for a total of nine months. You begin to realize that you are also now officially a Mountain Slave and figure out how much work there is ahead. You start to feel the crunch of what happens when you screw up. Yes, that was my fault and it was a mistake. That was a major screw up and I understand the consequences to our guests on the mountain and to the future of skiing and riding here. Yes, I will attend training to make sure I never do it again.

The payoff is great, however, if you are a dirtbag like me. I can visit other mountains by way of my ski patrol number, some without even so much as a letter of introduction. Mountains want ski patrollers on their trails, anyone can google ski patrol certification and you’ll get gobs of free offers. Just this fall we could have stayed at Lake Tahoe for free and taken ski patrol training. Think about it, wouldn’t you like to ride for free too?

There is a downside to my story. I’ve had to improve my technique enough to hang on ice off double black diamonds pulling a freaking 150 plus pound sled with a 200 pound guy in it. Hey, I’m 125lbs and I am riding a snowboard. It’s below zero windchill, at night, and the breeze has become a tornado. I’m tired, I’m cold, my teeth are chattering and my hands are ice cubes. Still, the patient needs first aid including ABCs and O2, C-collar, extrication from the trees, backboarding, loading onto the sled, then sliding, successfully I might add, down the mountain to Hq. Doesn’t that sound like fun to you? Oh, and did I mention that falling or losing the sled is obviously not an option. It’s happened.

Have you ever tried snowboarding at night with a really big, two-foot long drill? How about carrying eight, six-foot long poles? Maybe you’ve tried refencing a closed trail while riding your snowboard switch. Then, there’s always the student who runs over your board repeatedly till the top separates from the bottom and you have to buy Tips and Tails off ebay to save your gear. The best news of all is, if you get injured on the mountain you get pee-tested! How’s that for fair trade?

As for teaching snowboarding here in the Great North Iced, at Magic the rope tow is no piece of cake so we end up walking up and down the bunny slope while chattering our teeth and freezing our butts off. Ten or 15 laps on the bunny are all the cardio I need for the day, but wait, there’s more! Take the cold kids in after two hours of lessons, buy him/her overpriced hot chocolates and cookies, give them your warmies out of your gloves cos their hands are so cold, go back outside and do it again for another two to three hours, then hand the kids off to mommy and daddy. Explain how great the kids did, blah blah blah, oh that’s okay, don’t mention the hot chocolates and cookies, the kids were hungry, and what do you get? Certainly not a tip.

Then there’s the other mountain where I taught full time last year. Picture this: Me with 11 little four year old kids, snowboards that they have never seen before, missing gloves, runny noses, peed in pants, sometimes even poop, vomit, crying, mom and dad disappeared for the ENTIRE DAY and I am trapped till at least 3:30 p.m. with this mob. It’s six degrees outside, and our bunny slope with the Magic Carpet looks like an ice skating rink. We have to eat hot dogs and mac and cheese together as these are my charges for the day, including potty, snacks, naps and lunch. Shall I say more? It’s not a pretty picture.

When it gets ugly, you just keep breathing, and tell yourself you are getting a free lift ticket this year. What defines free anyway? Free means you can come and go to the mountain as you please, oh yes, let me tell you about the good parts to my story. Free means we have this fabulous Hq at Ski Patrol where I leave my snowboard and gear and can suit up in style. Free means I have private bathrooms at both mountains (well, I admit one of the bathrooms doesn’t lock and the little kids don’t knock). There’s the intructor’s lounge at Magic where we can toss our crap, and the wonder of hitting the slopes at eight a.m. before anyone is on the mountain. Closing down trails at Jiminy with Ski Patrol after 10 p.m. can be really fascinating, especially after it snows then rains. The entire mountain is covered in unseen moguls that you must hop over while searching the trees for a wayward skier/rider who may have fallen off the face of the Earth.

Winter is getting older these days. I get up in the morning at six a.m. and I feel like shit. My rusted up, purple Honda is covered with ice and snow, the llamas are screaming at something that looks suspiciously like a coyote in the woods, the dogs and cats are hungry (again!) and I have to be on the lift at eight a.m. or else. Weather forecast for today is “wintry mix” and we all know that means freezing rain followed by sleet and snow. We’ll get soaked to the bone on the lift, then become shellacked Ski Patrollers with sticks for fingers. There could very well be multiple accidents on the mountain today, with very limited employee parking as over 5,000 people are expected.

Speaking of the mountain, it is half an hour away to where I park then I gotta walk and I’m still lying here in bed. The old man is snoring. Will someone please bring me some hot tea? Will someone go reboot the woodstove, start my car, scrape the snow off, feed the animals, drive me to the mountain, put my boots, knee pads, helmet and radio on, suit me up in my fancy red with a white cross Ski Patrol jacket, haul my sorry ass up the lift and carry those poles that drill those sleds down the mountain for me? I just really want to go back to sleep cos I was on my snowboard last night till 10:30 p.m. then finally went to bed, rode hard and put up wet.

Ride for free, is it fact or fiction?

Here we are at war you know

My friend Yuval, an engineer writer who happens to be Israeli and lives in Israel, recently sent me an email in Hebrew. I happened to be on his list and dropped him a line, saying hello. We chatted a bit, as we used to hang out together in Global Spec's CR-4 blog room, then he wrote me a beautiful note that expressed so much that I wanted to share it with all of you. Yuval, just an ordinary bloke, said this:

Here - there's war you know. It fills me with deep feelings of sorrow, waste, missed oppurtunities - to live a simple life - isn't it what all people - beyond any ideology - want ?

My sentiments exactly! Yuval, what you just said is so beautiful. I'd like to share it with friends so they know all Israelis are not about war. May I?

Yes of course, but many Israelis (including myself) would never accept suicide bombers and rockets hitting our towns - this is pure barbarism - and many governments in Israel were kicked out for failing to protect the civil population here - the trouble is that politicians rush to use their brutal military power to comply

It is sad that so many civilians who do not support war are forced to take sides....I'm glad to share Yuval's note so the rest of us can take heart: Many of us are united in peace, even when confronted with war.

On the brighter side of things

I have been emailing my old friend Wes Laraway (Northeast Llama Rescue) about Arpeggio, my biggest baddest male llama. He's five years old now, and getting to the point where his behavior really needs modification. In short, he's a jealous llama, while the lady of his affections, Endante, loves to be handled by me. So, to stop her from enjoying my attention, he gets between us, and lately, he's been actually kicking.

Now, for a llama to kick for no reason is not good behavior. It's not like he's a horse that can actually hurt me, but kicking is just not allowed. So I emailed Wes, and said, Hey, should I spit at him, what should I do? Wes is like, well, just use the old hat trick.

I said AHA! The hat trick, how could I have forgotten so quickly something that works so well? The secret to the hat trick is, you wear your crusty old hat as you enter the llama pen, and when someone does something ill mannered (in my case, only Arpeggio as the other three are just easy wonderful happy llamas these days), you take off your hat and give them a swat. Kind of like swatting the dog on the nose with a newspaper, only you really don't go for the nose of a llama, as that's taking it too far. They are very protective of their faces.

So I saunter out into the llama yard with my favorite crusty old hat on, hoping Arpeggio will try something and sure enough, he kicks up a storm and I take off my hat and give him a swat...on his rear. Well, that's not exactly noticeable by a big wooly llama. I think he may have actually ignored me. But at least I had the satisfaction of responding to his kicking behavior, and now I will wear my crusty old hat each and every time I venture into the llama pen and he'll know that yes, I'll take it off. Big bad me. He does weigh about 400 pounds... compared to my 125, so I guess I'll just have to be big and bad only in my head.

This may not mean much to you, gentle reader, but for me, a llama neophyte even after five years of llama ownership, even after gentling two rescued llamas, one of whom took years to calm down, I still feel like such a beginner sometimes. Having a hat in my pocket of tricks, so to speak, at least makes me feel like I've got something over these intelligent creatures.

Wouldn't you?

Jules

Yikes, a Proposed Cell Tower in My Backyard!!!!

Dear Eastwick Press:

It is with growing dismay that I have watched our lovely little valley transformed into a cell tower corridor. Is everyone aware of the health risks associated with microwave transmissions? Just because they are not advertised in the US of A, do you really believe we are safe? Now I have found out that a local transplant from NYC is quietly trying to install yet another cell tower in our lovely backyard of Cherry Plain...these people moved here recently and it is obvious by these and prior actions that they do not care about the local heritage that many of us are planning to leave for our children.

I hope the readers out there will take note and fight this latest proposed travesty that could add to the further ruination of our lovely town and Misery Mountain. Town planning meetings are already happening and the proposed cell tower will be covered in future issues of the Eastwick Press. Please help us stop the encroachment of cell companies up on our little valley. As many of you know, once you make a deal with a cell phone company, it is very very hard to get out of it without expending a lot of time and money. Once these towers go up, it will be nearly impossible to get them back down.

For information about health risks of cell towers, one only needs to look at countries such as Germany, who are sounding the alarm and telling their citizens to put away their wireless devices as the health risks are too great to bear. Will you allow your children to be irradiated and microwaved on a daily basis? I for one am all for protecting our health, and to start, we need to stop the further proliferation of cell towers in our valley.

Thank you,

Julie Harrell
Cherry Plain, NY

The Saga of Trace Continues

Trace entered our life with a splash, spent a month with us enjoying herself, and has now gone back on the road to Judy's place ... why? Final straw, Trace chased our cats too many times, with her muzzle on their necks racing full speed on top of them. It was either let her eat our cats, or send her back to Judy.

Of course, by this time, Judy had decided that I was an unfit mother so insisted on getting Trace back...but that's another story that I will spare you the details of for the moment. Suffice it to say, we were keeping Trace no matter what. In the very beginning, before the news that Trace leaked so much urine that the vet said she couldn't travel, we were promised that Trace was safe around cats. Otherwise, I would have never offered to take her.

I find it interesting now that pre-surgery, Trace leaked so much urine that she never actually squatted to pee, and, a fact stated also in Judy's words, when she wagged her tail, urine flew everywhere. Yet she was going to be heading to us as a fully vetted rescue? Not after the vet saw her! That's where the surgery came in...still, we weren't going to say no, as there were no other takers for poor little Trace. I'm just a mite bit surprised that this was never noticed before.

Let me tell you about Trace:

Trace, due to no fault of her own, was never housebroken. She also still constantly leaks urine, chases cats, and bit all three of our dogs so much (playing very hard, not fighting but definitely being overly dominant) that one of our Weimeraners, Bella, had to get veterinary care for a bite on her eye and face. Bella's still on antibiotics. Brutus and Dante got their ears torn up with plenty of blood, especially on Brutus.

That's a lot to take, right? Still, all dogs seemed to get along, especially Bella and Trace when Bella wasn't being overly dominated by Trace. Trace and the llamas made friends, so they pretty much got along also. Dante avoided Trace, and Brutus played with her a little but avoided her also.

Trace slept with Bella in the basement, and had full 24X7 access to the fenced acre of property in our backyard. She ran with the llamas, the dogs, the cats, and spent much of her time outside, coming inside only to eat, poop and pee. That's right, she spent all that time outside but still preferred a nice warm floor to poop and pee on. She also ate our stairs, the weight bench, ore up more things than I can mention here, and every blanket we put down for the dogs on the floor.

Bella slept on urine soaked torn up blankets every night, as we didn't want to leave Trace alone. Unfortunately, Bella continued to lose weight from the constant playing and cold weather, so we are still trying to fatten her back up.

The final straw wasn't the leaking urine, the bit up dogs, the poop and pee in the basement although I admit that got pretty tiring. It wasn't even when Judy insisted that I give her Trace back, and even got Rhonda involved who I was shocked to discover questioned my integrity and character in one of her emails to me.

As an aside, I refused to give up on a rescue that we'd agree to take because no one wanted her, and according to Rhonda that makes me a bad person. Huh? I have provided homes for many rescues, and I am the type to stick to a plan and find some way to make it work if the animal is happy...which Trace was. She was probably the happiest she'd ever been in her life, racing around the yard with multiple animal friends, and I didn't want to see her go back to Judy's place where she would once again be living her life inside an outdoor kennel with a run that is I'm guessing about 15 feet long if she's lucky.

That's probably why I cried when Stephanie came to take Trace back to Judy.

Anyway, the final straw was seeing how Trace went after our eight year old cats and almost got them. We love our kitties, they are very special friends and they've survived coyotes, owls and fishers, I couldn't stomach allowing them to die at the mouth of a rescued dog. That was when I let Judy know she could have Trace back.

Now, I hope and pray that Judy takes Trace home and keeps her in her own house, as she expected me to do, and deals with the urine, the poop, the pee, the destruction and hopefully, doesn't have cats as I'd really be sad if her cats were killed. Trace seems safe around cats till she suddenly decides to go after them, which is a split second decision, and then it's all over for the cat.

As for us, our basement is mopped again, our dogs are all asleep on their dogbeds in the house, and the torn up bloody ears and eye and face are all healing up.

See you next time, animal lovers.

Jules

Yup, it snowed all right

These are pics taken by Jerome, who's out there enjoying the new snow. Yahoo! Let's slip and slide on down the mountain, then hike back up and do it again...

In case you are wondering

All of us somehow managed to pass both our written and practical exams. We are now officially National Ski Patrol "candidates," with all of the privileges of that position (none). Those of us who are at Jiminy Peak will be training on mountain every Saturday through late February, after which we'll take yet another test to see if we *really* know our stuff.

The Eastern Division, Western MA OEC instructors were absolutely fabulous, and their devotion to our cause is greatly appreciated. All of our instructors volunteered many many hours of their time to teach us and help us learn how to respond in outdoor medical emergencies. I truly felt like I got a serious education these past four months.

I am looking so forward to riding the mountain this year, fully equipped to help in any medical emergency.

Whew! Glad that's over with. Let it snow, or shall I say, let it sleet, hail and rain as we are in the Great Northeast.

Jules

OEC Exams This Weekend

Yes, the day is arriving fast where I'll need to pull all this stored info (I hope it's stored!) out of my brain and put it all down on paper and use it in practical exams.

After the OEC exams are done, my plan is to finally put the Dwelling Portably site up, yes, here on blogspot of course, as well as make some purple cabbage sauerkraut.

It's gonna be time soon to get out the snowboards and head to Jiminy Peak with my lovely daughter Reesa, who's ready to get back on the snow on her all new riding gear and hang with Mommy. I guess I'm officially cool now that I've taught snowboarding full time :)

Anyway, it's back to the grindstone for me. See you at the tipi!

Jules

The Story of Trace, in Letters and Photos

It all started with an email on one of the many rescue lists I belong to. I saw her picture...and read her story. Trace had been found running down the road with a dogchain embedded up to an inch in her neck. She was a pup, severely undernourished, and barely a year old. Here's the email I saw:

Hi Lisa,

I hope you remember Trace from a couple of weeks ago. Since her email was first circulated, the plan we had for her to go to VT has unraveled, and she is now with me awaiting another option.

Her neck has healed nicely, and pretty soon you wonʼt be able to see all those scars. She has been fully vetted (Rabies, DHPP, bordatella vaccinations, spay, dewormed with 3 days of Panacur, heartworm negative) and is settling into her kennel next to Gracie and Oakley. She adores other dogs and isnʼt interested in cats. Weʼre working with her on leash training, which we were just able to begin after her stitches were removed and her neck started to heal.

Iʼll attach photos of her from two weeks ago and from today. Any assistance you can offer this sweet girl would be welcome. Iʼm still covering the vetting costs to an approved adopter or rescue who absolutely doesnʼt euthanize. Thanks.

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Hey guys, I wanted to fw this to all of you who offered to help Trace. Unfortunately the plan to send her to rescue fell through, and she is now in need of an approved forever family or rescue Please read the email below, from her rescue angel Judy and contact Judy if you are still interested in helping Trace. Thank you so much!!

Rhonda Sims
Coordinator, Freedom Train Animal Rescue Transports
www.freedomtraintransports.com

www.myspace.com/numberoneanmllvr

"A wise man regards the life of his animals, but even the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel."
Proverbs 12:10

Subject: Seeking no kill rescue/home for Trace - Please crosspost to the ends of the nation

Project Zero, and Trace need your help in finding Trace a safe home. Please help Trace to understand that not all people are cruel and that she 'can' trust in the human race again.

Please contact Judy if you or someone you may know is looking for a soul mate. :)
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At this stage we volunteered to take Trace, and she was all set for transport to our home in NY. Then, the unexpected happened. A last vet check to provide papers for Trace to legally travel across the USA brought bad news: Trace had a urinary defect that would cost $3k to surgically correct, if the surgery worked. We were devastated.

Judy came up with the funds for Trace's surgery and we all held our breath: Would this little dog ever have a forever home?
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All,

Our girl came through the THREE HOURS of surgery better than the surgeons did. Being young and incredibly healthy except for this rare ectopic ureter helped, I'm sure.

Her surgery was Tuesday morning, and they called with updates through this morning, when they said she was safe to come home. Not really. She has umpteen staples, an E collar, and 3 medications that need to be given for 7 days, while she recouperates in a small area without too much option for jumping or running. That ruled out every space I have here, so since I didn't want to pay $50 a day for them to keep her there, I called Dear Dr. Alexander, who is the queen of all vets in my opinion, vet to all my personal pets and any of the fosters who need heartworm or other treatments. She was willing to hospitalize her at her clinic for at least a week and probably the full 2 weeks until she has her staples removed and can come back to PZ.

They cut her from her ribcage to her woo-woo (sorry to use those high tech words :)) and when the surgeon lifted her up for me to see I just cringed for her. He had to dissect the displaced ureter, cut her bladder open for this process and also to put it back where it should have been, so Trace has been through a very extensive procedure. She still has so much puppy in her that except for the goofy looks the pain meds gave her, she was pretty affectionate and tried to play some.

The news is that she was still leaking a little after she recovered from the surgery on Tuesday, but the surgeon said that he gave her 3 times the normal IV fluids to flush all the blood, etc. from her bladder after the process. But when I picked her up today, she was dry for the first time since we've had her-no odor--- and the surgeon said that all day she had accumulated only a couple of drops in her kennel. This means that the surgery was perhaps 100% successful, as while she heals she should leak less and less as the days go by. I saw her squat and pee a huge puddle for the first time since we've had her, and gave her a big cheer for the effort! The surgeon
said she will be in a lot of discomfort, much like having a serious UTI, but the pain meds should keep her fairly comfortable while she heals.

This has been such a blessing, and such an amazing experience. Dr. Alexander has been practicing veterinary medicine for about 20 years and this is the first case she's ever seen of ectopic ureter. These specialists just an hour from here know how to do the microscopic surgery to restore Trace to a healthy bladder function. My dear friend Tom and his unbelievably generous girlfriend Ingrid, donated a significant amount toward the cost of the surgery. I'd luckily been selling snacks at work and taking all our extra change to roll and deposit for Project Zero for some time now so paying for this treatment was not as painful as I'd anticipated.

You've all heard of the six million dollar man. Well, our Trace is officially the $3000 dog-and worth every penny of it! She is a shining example of how animals can be abused and neglected to the point of physical torture, and still have a light heart and loving countenance for all they meet. Trace is a true heroine. She has had constant suffering-with the embedded collar and the leaking bladder and UTI for most of her one year of life---but she forgets the past and lives in this moment, sharing her love and life with us all. It's a humbling experience to be able to alleviate suffering in another sentient being, and to offer her a new lease on what will be a long and happy life.

Thank you all for your part in her relief. I'm attaching some photos here, and will send others separately.

Peace and love to you all,
J

Judy Wyles
Project Zero, LLC
Humane Society of Cherokee County, Inc.
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Fifteen drivers now volunteer to take turns traveling over 1500 miles little Trace from North Carolina to upstate NY:

Thanks to Roena, Jaime, Rhonda, Cathie, Katrin, Rochelle, Anne, Deb, Blythe, Sue S., and Stephanie for sending the cellphone/car info.

Please when you have the time---Barbara please send car info and Susan R please send cellphone and car info---then I'll put this all back into the format that you're used to. I have to work an insanely long day tomorrow and won't get back online until Thursday evening. Trace is ready to travel--health certificate passed today with flying colors.

Notes to all: Trace is a really good rider in a crate. She never makes a sound and just lays down and takes a nap. I have no experience with her riding in a vehicle without a crate. Trace has a lot of energy, but she also is very loving and probably will settle down fine. Just want to let you know this. I see Trace as a high flight risk because she is SOOO inquisitive and for the first time in her little life, feels very good. She bolted out the kennel door today and my hubby had to run to get her, because he didn't put the leash on first (bad Larry!). If you make sure she's leashed before opening the car door---no problem. Trace is leash trained and will walk beside you without much ado. Let me know if you have any questions at all.

I know we all want to make this sweet girl's voyage to her forever home a peaceful and pleasant one for everybody. Bless you all for what you do at your own expense and with your free time that most folks would be spending doing something useless like sleeping (LOL) on the weekends.

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I write a short note to the rescuers, thanking them:

To all of you who are bringing Trace home:

Trace will have three dogs, two cats, four llamas and a goat for animal company. She will have a loving 14 year old girl, and 17 year old boy to play with. She will have over an acre of fenced, wooded yard, a dog door into the basement which runs up to our front door, and a warm dogbed near the woodstove. She will eat regular dogfood along with all the scraps that our dogs get, including brown rice, chunks of steak fat, raw broccoli from the garden, apples and tomatoes. She will learn to guard from our other dogs, and run and run and run and run with them.

Thank you for bringing her home. I will be posting photos of Trace at her new home at Cherry Plain Farm once we have her here.

Jules
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Judy, who's faithfully loved and taken care of little Trace (after vet care in North Carolina, she vanished without a trace) prepares let go into the universe the dog she's fallen madly in love with. Trace and Judy tearfully say goodbye, with tears and hugs and kisses and some sadness in their hearts. As you can see, they both love each other completely.

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Drumroll.....Trace arrives in Cherry Plain and meets the fam. What kind of dog is this anyway, we all wondered. Pitt bull? Actually, she's something we've never heard of. Trace is a part Plotthound pup, bred to take down bears and wild boars. Here's my first email to the gang right after Trace meets the llamas.

Hello all.

We have leaky little Trace and she's no wuss that's for sure. The last thing I expected was for all four llamas to go after her when we let her into our fenced yard, but they did. Instead of running, crying cringing or growling, Trace just took a llama beating (well, not exactly a beating but it would have been) while we humans got our sticks out and yes, we got after the llamas, who also wouldn't budge. It was a four llamas against one dog stand off. My white llama, the smallest rescue of the bunch, was the most obnoxious, continuing to pester Trace, who was happily wagging her tail the whole time, laughing at his fury. He just would not leave her alone and all the other llamas followed his lead. Meanwhile, our three other dogs just watched the show. One of our weims, Bella, gave it up and hid in the basement for a while, certainly not true to her usually bellicose nature.

I did the only thing I could in this situation: I chased the llamas into another pasture, and quickly brought a bunch of llama food and hay inside the llama fence as fast as I could to distract them. It sort of worked. We also blocked off the dog yard from the larger llama yard so that Trace could run around without us worrying about her getting stomped and the llamas could get used to her presence on full bellies, from a distance.

That's when Trace really turned her attention to our other three other dogs, each over 60 pounds, and proceeded to give them all an ass whipping...she's definitely got some pit bull in my opinion and she gave it full force to all of them. What started as friendly but nervous play escalated into something worse. This went on for quite some time. All three dogs, two of them quite generally quite dominant (the weims) quickly gave into Trace's awesome and powerful jaw action, and in a few hours, everything calmed down. There was no belly shown by any of the dogs, but Trace established herself as leader of the pack, top dominant dog, and then we decided that it was time for her to learn to get into the basement from the outdoor dog door. That took several steps, a new step in the dog ladder to the inside, and a few hours of coaxing.

Trace is one helluva dog. Other than refusing to eat snacks such as apples and sweet potatoes (she'll learn), Trace has settled in quite well for the night. I will keep you all informed, but so far, she escaped once outside the door, I grabbed her and brought her back inside. I think after a week or so she'll be here to stay, in her dog mind, as we are the keepers of the food and warm bed.
--
For peace, Om Shanti

Jules

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What's happening now? It's been over a week. Judy was concerned but I assured her that the llamas and Trace and the dogs would all learn to get along. Here's what's happening:

As we had always hoped and expected, Trace loves her new 2.5 year old Weimeraner sister, Bella.

They sleep together in the foyer every night, and play together every day. Dante, the old man, is back in his bed in the house, and the cats could care less if there's another dog around. Trace is almost housebroken (basement broken that is) because I followed Judy's advice and it worked.

Here's how: Bella, in a community effort to help Trace understand, demonstrated that pooping outside brings praise from Mommy (that's me), so Trace immediately followed suit and received praise herself. What a smart dog! Now, I let them out in the morning, praise them profusely for pooping and peeing, then feed them. They go back out on their own after breakfast. The basement has remained nearly poop free since that first day and there's only been one pee accident.

Trace guards, she romps, she runs and she has fun. She's learned that rice is good and even apples are tasty. But, her favorite food is.....you'll never guess.

Trace has demonstrated that her favorite food is llama food. Even though, for her own protection, we've blocked off access to the llama yard, allowing only noses to touch through the fence, and some occasional good natured spitting by the llamas (Trace steals their food), Trace decided to take matters into her own hands and somehow squeezed through the fence into the llama yard. It happened yesterday morning.

Jerome discovered her in the llama's catchpen eating Cocobutt's food and witnessed this animal tableau. You have to understand, out here in Cherry Plain, I refuse to have cable tv so everything is about watching the animals. Anyway, Cocobutt, our littlest gelding rescue llama who also thinks he's got the biggest set, was not thrilled to see Trace eating his food, so he pawed her a little bit. Trace ran off down into the field (it's newly fenced) while the other llamas totally ignored her.

I might as well open the dog door to the llama yard and let everyone play together.

I will also post more photos once we get some sun. By the way, she'd already gained 10 pounds with Judy's wonderful loving care, and now I swear she's putting on more weight. I wonder what in the heck she's been eating? Are my llamas really looking skinnier lately? Trace is frequently covered in llama food spit...hmmmm... :)

Update! Trace is happily cavorting in the acre of fenced in woods/pasture, checking out her newfound space. The llamas are, well, totally ignoring her. She briefly considered stealing some food but one look from Coconutbutt told her not to try.

Thank you all for reading, and to the rest of you animal rescue people out there, God Bless Your Souls!

Jules

Wes got his Not for Profit and Obama got elected, yahooo!

Go Wes! Everyone, you can now donate to this great llama whispering wild animal rescuer at: www.northeastllamarescue.blogspot.com , so please, help him out!

Thank you America, for voting for Obama.

I am so thrilled and excited to finally see a man of color as President of this country. I have a great feeling about him, which my friend Amelia described perfectly. The whole country has come together in this election to vote for change for the better (paraphrase).

Blessed Be! There's a future beyond the horizon and it's definitely a better place.

Jules

October

Hi ya'll, well the fall is here and it's just glorious! OEC training is happening, along with lots and lots of garden prep, hiking and enjoying the great outdoors. Reesa and I are spending a lot of time on the trails practicing our slingshot so we can rest assured that the local dogs are well-trained. To leave us alone! Here's a couple of pics so you can share in our joy. Peace on Earth. I mean it, we need it. Jules

what's been happening

Hey ya'll, I know the blog seems un-updated. I actually blogged more but then erased it as I figured out who cares what the heck my daily life is like, right?

Okay, so here goes. OEC training (National Ski Patrol) has been my big focus lately. The book is thick, the questions are many and I have to know all of this for my mid-term on October 10. Then the finals happen in December, both practical and written. So between 10 hours of class at various locations during the week, plus studying usually 200 pages or so, I'm kind of focusing on that for now.

I'm teaching Monday night yoga, then taking yoga classes at Kripalu on Tuesday. Still working in the garden although I've slowed that down considerably. What in the heck to do with all that produce!

Getting a little riding and a lot of hiking in, looking forward to the fall/winter season. Hoping you are all having a great time out there. Pray for peace! I am.

Om shanti,

Jules

It's Feeding Time!

I don't need no stinkin gas!

Hairy Ho to Row

Hi everyone. I should rename my blog "The soggy misadventures of a hapless bug farmer."

As you may know, it's rained here in Cherry Plain daily for the past three months. I think we took one day off for sunshine some weekday back in June. Anyway, as the title says, it's been a long hairy ho to row in the garden. My tomatoes are falling off the vines, rotten. The cold nights (50s) are turning the leaves yellow. The cukes have seen better days, and the watermelons are still only thinking of becoming round.

I'd like to say that everything else is doing great but since the Dawn escapade, (see Cherry Plain Farm) the Japanese Beetles are back in strength. The slugs are back as well, although not quite in force as the slug stuff really does work. I have milky spore for the beetles, and in five years or so we can only hope their growth will at least be stunted.

One good thing, I got a new camera, so I'll be posting pics that are a little more awesome than the others. If I can *ever* figure out how to use the camera. There's always a catch. See ya next time.

Bike Book and Garden

My two obsessions! For those of you who are interested in checking out our garden, click on Cherry Plain Farm to see (finally) some new pics. Meanwhile, the bike book rolls on, and we are nearing the finish line before going to pre-press.

Thanks to the lovely women who have submitted photos, and to the kind folks at The Spoke, Mountain Goat, The Downtube, Plaines and Berkshire Outfitters, I've got some excellent pics to illustrate A Woman's Bike Book.

Blog and description are here, on amazon.

Peace, yo.

Wanted: Pics of Women Cyclists, Sisters and Friends

Dear cycling ladies of the great northeastern mountains wild and the people who love you.

I'm putting together the second edition of A Woman's Bike Book (first published in 1999 as A Woman's Guide to Bikes and Biking, Bicycle Books). If you are one of those photogenic women who love to ride your bike in all kinds of weather, send me a pic with an accompanying short story and you may be included in my bike book. Stories are one to three paragraphs, don't worry about grammar and spelling. Just tell it like it is. Could be we'll hook up later for a photoshoot with Joshua Daimler, the photog who also works for Bicycling Magazine. It's possible I might want to take a few pics of you too, if we can pull that off.

For now, please do send me your pics. Pics can be of any woman, anywhere, on any bike, as long as the images are of good quality. My goal for this bike book is to open our circle of mountain and road biking to women of all shapes, sizes, ages and personalities who are sitting on the sidelines, wanting to join us. The women's bike book is a positive take on sometimes dirtbag cycling, with pig out stories, cycling mishap anecdotes, a little bit of yoga, and easy to understand explanations woven throughout to help women get the bike they deserve.

There are not too many boring technical details beyond the basics (i.e., this is a story about hardtail mountain biking, this is a story about a city bike, etc). Okay, well, there is the repair section but it's also got details about what I did wrong and don't do it along with how you fix your bike. I've even included a section on riding with the guys, and not riding with the guys you date...ladies you know what I'm talking about here.

In short, this bike book for women is about real people out having fun recreating on their bikes, a lot like stories in the Mountain Gazette. It's also about supporting independent bicycle dealers, and is definitely on the faaar left side of big box retailers. Tee hee!

Please send your comments, questions, stories and pictures to: Jules Harrell, photonicgirl@yahoo.com

I look forward to lots of great pics and stories of your adventures. Live long and sweat hard!

for peace, om shanti

jules

California Dreaming in 1989

When we first reached the beach after a ten year hiatus, I was so glad to be back. I drove all night from New Mexico into the early dawn of California to smell the richness of the coastal flowers at Big Sur, then walk on the beach somewhere up north.

Greenhouse Plans

Hi ya'll. Normally as you can see I do not post my email address on this site.

Recently, I've had so many requests for cattle panel hoop house/greenhouse plans that I will send them to anyone who contacts me. Combined with multiple raised beds wedded to permaculture designs, this type of building is the most efficient and least expensive that I've discovered yet. Those who know me know I'm the queen of living green cheap:)

Without question, we all now truly need to start growing our own food. I believe that building gardens in community with each other, even if only through online access, fosters belief and trust in humankind again, something sorely lacking in today's media.

Do you prefer instant gratification? Go here: Greenhouse Plans

If you are building a garden in the city or in the country on a budget and want to know more about how things work here, with some detailed answers to your questions, please feel free to email me at:

photo

nonic

girl

at hot

mail

dot

com

Put everything together and you'll get my address. I've done workshops for the past two years at the AERO Conference in Troy, NY entitled "How to Live Green Cheap," and will happily share with you my tidbits.

Please excuse this primitive (yet successful) effort to prevent spam. I look forward to hearing from you.

Om shanti,

Jules

Suddenly, Last Summer

Here's a cute pic, taken by my great friend Renee Barr on a hot summer day in Cherry Plain. I just couldn't resist.

Want to know what happened with the slug story?

I wrote all about it on Cherry Plain Farm.

What's Been Happening?

Hi ya'll. I've been so busy with the garden, working at Honest Weight in the Garden Shop and yes, I admit it, riding my mountain bike that blogging has not been on the top of my list. However, it's time to update everyone...well the garden is pumping. What is it pumping? Obviously food for bugs! The slogfest continues, as I find new and "organic" methods to deal with slugs, bugs and other thugs, which is incidentally the name of a wonderful book I recently found at a used bookstore in Great Barrington.

Armed with my Bug Recognition Encyclopedia, and my natural dealing with bugs books, I am still using the same old standbyes, which are Dawn dishwashing detergent, and diatomaceous earth. What I learned is that you can also use half white vinegar and half water to sprits slugs as they feast, thereby eliminating the nasty task of picking them up and placing them in large buckets of their favorite beer.

What I also learned and I can't wait to try this...is that if you puree dead bugs then add them to water for spritzing, the dead bugs of their species will leave your food garden alone. I considered doing the slugs but my blender shook its head no with a sigh, so I'm waiting to puree Japanese beetles. I will keep you all posted on how that turns out.

Until then, it's the regulars with the addition of supposedly non-toxic but deadly to slugs and thugs iron phosphate, a new remedy I also found out about this spring. Am I skirting the edge of pesticide land with iron phosphate? Not according to the organization who sells the stuff, Gardens Alive.

Please do let me know if you find out I'm just dreaming and the stuff is toxic, I'd really like to know. Have they created a genetically modified seed to withstand multiple applicatons of the stuff, that's really what I want to know, and a true indicator of whether it's a pesticide...

Today's communication takes the place of my garden blog on the other site...I'll have photos up there shortly, as soon as I can figure out this bug thing. Jeeze Louise....it's the dark side of organic gardening.

Until the next rain,

Jules

Tornados and Metal Sheds in Oklahoma, a Firsthand Report

After a long flight, we settled down to bed and were sleeping in Oklahoma. One thirty AM found us suddenly cowering in the hall with a mattress over our heads, praying really really hard. A tornado had been sighted, and the alarms went off, right outside my mom's house. If that wasn't enough to shake me out of bed, having 90 almost 91 year old mom yelling at us to get into the hallway shot me into action.

I grabbed the heavy mattress off her bed and managed to get it into the hall where we as I mentioned cowered hoping that we'd survive the freight train that was surely coming our way. Welcome to Oklahoma! The weather's been nice ever since, I've visited the Refuge twice already and even got some climbing in this past weekend with some guys from Kansas and OKC.

Yes, it's that time again and we are visiting old mom. Of course, visiting means getting a little extra sun, and also cleaning building creating...wait a minute, that would imply artistry. Let me rephrase that, we are currently building a metal shed out in the back yard. My mom's best friends volunteered their energy and labor at exactly the time we arrived in OK. They already bought the shed and concrete, so after the tornados passed over, we headed for the backyard and got cracking.

It goes something like this:

First there's building of the frame, and the pouring of the concrete. 30 bags at 80lbs each. Doesn't that sound like fun?

The sheds themselves are the most awful things ever invented, with thousands of screws nuts and bolts, tiny and impossible to hold, with required contortions above and beyond anything in yoga class, with slicy dicy metal sheets that bend fold and CUT your hands face head...with the most ridiculous amount of work required to do the simplist thing, requiring multiple people hands drills tools. While suspended precariously above the hot metal frame, line up the holes of three or four layers of these awful sheets then squeeze bend fit one tiny screw into these holes that don't match up...one tiny screw the size of...an anorexic fly. AAAAARARRRGGGGG!!!!!

Tomorrow we'll build the doors, after that, we'll build...the world!

Now it's time to switch sports!

Hi ya'll.

Well, we still have snow here in Cherry Plain but the good news is, the greenhouse is filled with little bitty baby plants, and so's our dining room.

This is a far cry from the full time office bleeb I once was, and yes, it's a happy change. Permaculture, biodynamics, organics and all the rest. Life is sweet, and Gaia, our Mother, will be pleased with our efforts this year.

I'm a little behind on my yoga but now that my snowboards are parked for the season, I'll stretch out once again...even more.

Hey, want to know about our gardens this year? Here you go. Now that's Devotion!

Om Shanti,

Jules

What's Happening With Farm Animals?

Farm Sanctuary Offers Refuge to Severely Neglected Animals from Canaan Farm

Leading Farm Animal Rescue Group Aids Citizens Seeking End to Years of Animal Abuse

Watkins Glen, NY - February 22, 2008 - Last night, Farm Sanctuary, which operates the largest rescue and refuge network for farm animals in North America, welcomed five severely neglected sheep and one pig to its farm animal refuge and rehabilitation facilities in Watkins Glen, N.Y. These six animals, along with four other sheep who had already arrived at Farm Sanctuary, including several who are pregnant, were rescued from Red Barn Farm in Canaan, N.Y. by Columbia County citizens who took matters into their own hands-seeking an end to years of animal abuse upon which local authorities had failed to act.

Farm Sanctuary is also working with the Department of Agriculture and Markets in Massachusetts, hoping to locate approximately 24 more sheep from Red Barn Farm who were allegedly transported illegally over state lines from New York on Wednesday night. If the animals are located and still alive, they too, will likely come to Farm Sanctuary.

"The animals at Red Barn Farm were failed by nearly everyone who had an obligation to provide for or protect them from harm, and would not have survived this ordeal if it hadn't been for the compassionate community members who gave freely of their time and energy to give the animals a second chance," said Jeff Lydon, Farm Sanctuary's executive director. "We are relieved that the animals' misery is now ending and are happy to be the ones to give them the help they should have received long ago."

According to Farm Sanctuary, Red Barn Farm-the subject of at least four years' worth of cruelty reports to Columbia-Greene Humane Society/SPCA from citizens who witnessed ongoing neglect of farm animals on the property-came under renewed scrutiny when malnourished dogs from the property killed a neighbor's sheep nearly three weeks ago. Little Brook Farm founder and director, Lynn Cross, was contacted by citizens to help with the dogs and later discovered about 79 farm animals-including more than 40 pregnant sheep-living in squalor with little or no access to food and water. She alerted Columbia-Greene-an agency she has worked with closely on rescues for 35 years.

Originally contacted by Cross to help with placement of the pig, who was reportedly malnourished and posed a risk to other animals, Dan D'Eramo, Farm Sanctuary's chief rescue and investigations officer, visited the farm and allegedly found injured and starved animals in need of urgent care and recommended their immediate seizure by authorities. D'Eramo, following up on Cross's initial cruelty report, turned to Columbia-Greene Humane Society/SPCA for help. The agency twice visited the property and both times refused to seek a seizure warrant-despite D'Eramo's findings being corroborated by Carlene Patterson, D.V.M. of Ghent, N.Y.-continuing a legacy of unheeded pleas for assistance.

Disappointed area residents have confirmed with Farm Sanctuary that they are continuing to seek justice for the surviving animals, even after they were removed from the property by their owner, who last week allegedly sold some and gave others away as payment for outstanding debts. Knowing that the animals needed specialized care, neighbors approached some of the new owners and successfully pled for the release of those who are now newly-arrived at Farm Sanctuary. Four sheep, relinquished to the rescue group by a Canaan resident who acquired them from Red Barn Farm on Sunday, Feb. 17 were assessed by veterinarians at Cornell University who confirmed that these animals were malnourished. The animals who arrived last night were assessed by Cornell vets, as well, and they are also malnourished. Farm Sanctuary is still waiting on word from the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture and Markets regarding the approximately 24 sheep-all of whom are likely pregnant-reportedly transported into the New England state on Wednesday. The whereabouts of all the other surviving Red Barn Farm animals are still unknown, but citizens are rallying to find them too.

"The people who are entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing the laws created to protect animals must be dedicated to the prevention of cruelty to animals," said Lynn Cross, Little Brook Farm's founder and director. "Waiting for animals to die first before taking action permits rather than prevents suffering."

About Farm Sanctuary
Farm Sanctuary is the nation's leading farm animal protection organization. Since incorporating in 1986, Farm Sanctuary has worked to expose and stop cruel practices of the "food animal" industry through research and investigations, legal and institutional reforms, public awareness projects, youth education, and direct rescue and refuge efforts. Farm Sanctuary shelters in Watkins Glen, N.Y., and Orland, Calif., provide lifelong care for hundreds of rescued animals, who have become ambassadors for farm animals everywhere by educating visitors about the realities of factory farming. Additional information can be found at www.farmsanctuary.org or by calling 607-583-2225.

Synchronicity

Yowzah! Man is it cold!

So many cool things have been happening. To those people who are devoted to the art and living of synchronicity, you will appreciate what I'm about to relate.

This morning, I look out my window to see the llamas in their shed, quite a ways from the window, not that they can see me, and I think to myself, I wonder how Babette is doing?

Babette, my sweetie rescue llama, picks up my thought form and immediately sits up from her nap, and stares right into my eyes. Not that she can see me! Oh yeah.

Then, en route to work my friend Helga is on my mind...so of course she calls me. I'm finally at the end of a long day, driving up the driveway, looking at my neighbor's wood stove hut outside of his house, with pine logs ready to be burned, and I'm thinking wow, he was just cutting up that stuff recently, I saw him, and a tiny pine needle branchlet falls on my windshield.

That NEVER HAPPENS!

Oh dear synchronicity, thank you for coming. Since the lunar eclipse, a lot has happened, and I believe we are on the way to a better world.

Namaste, Shanti, Om

Jules

The Ice Show Cometh

So we drove over Petersburg Pass to check out the snow condition for a possible telly ho...no wait a minute, snowboard trip ... to see would it be like on our favorite backcountry trail.

We got up the the top and the sight was so stunning and astounding that we turned around and drove home to grab the cameras. We were treated to an ice show, complete with rainbows. The snow was crusty icy with powder, suitable for snowshoeing, and the view was absolutely spectacular. Naturally we took multiple photos, of which we will share a few with you. Note the pronated stance of the girl in the red fleece (yes, I'm still a girl) .... for those of you out there who have a similar stance, have faith! Snowboarding is easier by far than skiing if your feet don't automatically go straight. Come to Jiminy and I'll show you how that all works. It's really a balancing act when you snowboard, maybe more like a unicycle than anything else.



That evening, we finally made it home to the Bridgeway Restaurant and Bar for some snacks and drinks. Our little home spot, five minutes from the house and worlds away from New York City.

I also must share this photo of two pups in love.

Dante is an old dog, 11 years, and Bella is only two. She has brought new life into his wintery eyes, a new bounce to his step, a new twinkle to his dance. Two rescues, both loving animals, happy to have a nice home together and a big yard to roam. Sweet loving dogs. Om Shanti

This is what it looks like

You see I used to ski where I now ride. This is what it looks like going up...

And heading down. Me and the old man, with a few gnarly dudes who are already hurtling down ahead of us. From the top of T Bolt last winter. Oh la lah.
Guess I'm saying goodbye to my old ski self as the tele set up is for sale. Here's a photo of me and the old man again, at the Mt Greylock Ski Club.

Good old rope tows, one step up from earning your turns.

Jules

Spring Has Sprung!

The unmistakable signs of spring are upon us.

True, it was Arctically cold Sunday through Tuesday, especially here in our elevated region. But I smelt spring in the air last week ... today it came in with a soft whisper of birdsong and a live ladybug in the shower.

Get ready to plant, all ye faithful eaters, and behold, God's mercifully delightful, deliciously muddy, great northeastern weather is soon to be upon us.

Until then, let it snow! I mean hey, President's Week is coming up at Jiminy Peak, and we'd like to have a bunch of fresh pow to play in outside. Just one more week! Or two, or three or four. Doesn't matter how long it takes, we can smell sweet spring in the air today as once again it rains upon a thick carpet of newly fallen snow.

Our friends, the ladybug and the songbirds have spoken.

Om Shanti

Sign This Petition

If you care about animals. I am serious. The world is falling apart and we ruling humans need to start showing some love fast to the rest of the ecosystem or it is history. There's more to life than cell phones and ipods. Living breathing loving animals need our help and they need it right this second. Here you go. Just do it.

kitty love

In these cold hard times, we should take a break and remember the animals who are still looking for homes, living behind bars, awaiting either a family or eternity with their Creator. Can you will you could you would you take an animal home today? Give some love back, as we are given so freely by our furry friends. Jules

By the way, our animals are rescues. See how loving they are to a child? Love is the only way to change the world. Love is the power that brings light to this darkened planet. Love is real, love is beautiful. Love is found in the eyes of children and a rescued animal.

I turned it off for three days!

Yes, that big sky in the Great Northeast is officially my roof. I am so used to looking up and seeing sky, after 45 plus days on the board this season...what a wonderful life! I am so grateful everyday.

Turning off the mini-me laptop and letting it go for books and sleep beside the fireplace is all good. Speaking of friends who have lost touch with me lately, my buddy Dave sent me this pic he says I took of him and my other buddy Paul, climbers, in the Gunks. Both gnarly hard men. Lucky they are my friends. So take a look, here they are after a full days work on the cliffs. Oh yeah. It's gonna be spring at some point, and we'll be hitting the rocks again. Softly I hope, as I need to preserve my aging beauty :) oh well, I'll tell the truth, I love the fun and sun and rocks and dust and cliffs and harshness of nature and pain in my muscles more than personal beauty. Do you understand what I mean?

Ever wonder what I do in my free time? Aside from sitting around watching Buffy with my daughter Reesa, I spend a lot of effort collaborating with Wes Laraway and his wife Darcy to bring Northeast Llama Rescue to the forefront of animal rescue in the USA.

In addition to llamas, goats, chickens, potbellied pigs and horses, Wes just rescued a barred owl... these animals see him and they just know their salvation has arrived.

For more information about the daily life of a hardcore animal rescue guy with just about every license a man can have, including USDA certification, check out his site: http://www.northeastllamarescue.blogspot.com/

Yes, it's true, we in the Great Northeast do get snow on occasion. You'd think after working teaching snowboarding at Jiminy Peak for five days I'd be interested in taking a day off....not. Had to strap on the stuff and snowshoe up the back forty for a ride down. Glad my daughter got this pic as the "before," because the after pic wasn't nearly so user friendly. I was trashed, got lost, barely made it back. You'd think after 14 years I'd know better, but as always, Misery Mountain got my goat. I guess when you really look at the pic you can tell I'm a little scared. After all, these mountains hold mysteries far beyond my ken. Especially that white orb in another photo that's not shown...is that really snow? Or is it...the Other?

Well, anyway, I had to say bye bye to my sweeties here on the Farm before taking the plunge uphill for some solace and meditation in almost two feet of snow. The pow was really weird as it was fluffy on top and crusty in the bottom .... my excuse for getting lost is that hey, the Spirits of the mountain took hold and shook me up a bit, making sure I got turned around before realizing that it was getting late and the mountain was getting darker the trees were looking unfamiliar...a trek in the woods, the first time in pow. I always get lost out there and find my way home. There's a myth here somewhere should we care to decipher it. The deep dark woods, the Old Old Ones who dwell within mossy tree trunks and ancient rocks. They know us, they can always turn us around if they want to. It's Coyote Magic.

Speaking of those furry big eyed creatures who stare into your soul... I think about llamas all the time, mainly cos I have four of them, snorting and spitting at each other, every time it's feeding time we have a circus in the yard.

Not long ago, Wes and I (he's the director of Northeast Llama Rescue) picked up a couple of very cold llamas in New York who needed a home. This boy has had enough of the trailer, let me tell you. These llamas are now happily in their new home and I'm so thrilled. They were ready for a change and Wes provided it.


What's really important to you, to me, to us? Is is our relationship with the Earth, her creatures, including humans with all our faults and with our inner souls? My feeling is that we all together create our reality, I envision us standing together in soul clusters, sharing experiences in this life, before this life, and beyond.

What say we all hold hands, in spirit, and raise our vibrations? I'm ready...let's head for the sky. Look up! The Great Spirit is upon us today.

Hey ya'll. I have a new plan.

This spring after snowboard season, I'm going to build a greenhouse yurt out of cattle panels. It will have a deck made from recycled (free from a neighbor) cinderblocks with rough cut big fat gnarly hemlock 2 x 12 by 10 foot boards laid on top and full on greehouse plastic. Windows will be flaps that can be tied down from the inside, and I've found a connection for a portable small woodstove that's handmade here in the good old USA. The good folks at Go Yurt gave me the info as I was talking to them about yurt design.

Think about it, a place high in the woods where someone can go and be alone with her thoughts, with a yoga mat, a woodstove, and light, beautiful light flickering down between the trees. Yes, in the summer my little yurt will be hot, but in the winter when I really need it the shelter away from home will be available.

I suspect the girls will play there in the summer, and who knows, I may grow orchids!

Stay tuned. Right now I'm getting out of this snowboard gear and finally chilling out with a beer in front of the fire and watching some reruns. We are on Desperate Housewives at the moment. A little junk for the mind.

Tomorrow is a run down P Pass ... so I gotta rest up.

Peace and tranquility to all and to all a good....evening.

Jules

Hello folks.

I finally have a little energy after three weeks straight of working at Jiminy Peak teaching snowboarding. I must say, being outside in such a GEM of a place is a wonderful feeling. It's so wonderful to see my students taking off and going up and down the lift ... snowboarding on their own, absolutely beautific smiles on their faces. I have gained alot of confidence on the board too, so I share their happiness.

All I can think of now that I've had two whole days off and time to think...is about farming. I am itching to plant. I have all these great organic seeds, and catalogs for more seeds. I am so excited to know that Amelia will be helping me this spring, and we will sell produce to the Ginger Man. Wow. All because of some visioning way back when. Yes, it's true, I wrote all this in my notebook years ago. Now it has come to pass.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our three chickens are still in the greenhouse, quite happy I might add, the rooster cockadoodle doos in the morning, his hens clucking round him. Since Bella ate Ruth when the chickens first came here, I have to train her not to eat chickens, which requires either a swift three or four kicks to the arse, or a shock collar. My neighbors lent me theirs, which broke their Great Dane from eating the chickens, but its battery is dead so I have to order another.

The chickens will remain in the greenhouse for the foreseeable future till I shock the dog a few times.

I've been again studying the books written by Shankuntala Modi. She's so right on. Those of you out there who believe in good energy know what I'm talking about.

Do you remember your life in Heaven? Have you ever looked at sunlit clouds and seen yourself on them? I have. Come join me.

Om Shanti

Jules

Can I just say... I love snowboarding!

I love winter in the GREAT Northeast, and I especially love mountain folk who brave the cold and sleet and snow and come out to play upon the mountains. Slippery sliding away, enjoying the feelings of yes, surfing the pow. Let's surf the pow...my friends.

I'll be on the mountain, thinking of you.

Jules

Yeah! Snow! You know what I'm doing today...working at Jiminy Peak as a snowboard instructor! That's what I'm talking about, a gig close to home with all the perks of being:
a) outdoors
b) teaching
c) close to home
d) on the slopes (did I say that already?)
e) they have a huge wind generator!

BTW, these photos are a mix of JP and Petersburg Pass...last winter we had the most awesome blizzard that dumped feet of snow and we caught up with it for some sweet pow. Unbelievable, smooth like butter, rich like vanilla pudding, sliding like olive oil...mmmm good! Makes me hungry just thinking about it.

I couldn't resist publishing this photo of my dear husband and I, enjoying a fundraising dinner for the Woodland Hill Montessori School.

What's been happening lately?



Well, for one thing, I am....(drum roll)

Starting a new business!!

I have been sooo busy! With really exciting stuff. Between working as Project Manager for Northeast Llama Rescue, creating a blog for The Bridgeway Restaurant and Bar, writing for Global Spec, working at Kripalu in the Healing Arts Center, writing for the Honest Weight Food Coop's Nutrition Committee, and taking care of our own little Sanctuary Farm here in the eastern New York mountains, life has been whirring by at a rapid speed. And soon, we will have some chickens!

I'm actually doing more than the above but since our project is still in the beta version, only a very few people know the exact details. Hint: It's about new books :)



Here's a picture of my little lovebug llama, Endante. Now back to my story:

Plus there's more, I'm now getting more involved in helping people avoid excessive wireless RF and EMF electro-pollution.

So, to keep you informed of some other stuff I'm doing, check out this article, to be published in the December issue of the Honest Weight Coop Scoop newsletter.

As a result of purely serendipitous meetings with cosmic people, I will soon be measuring people's houses and helping them avoid EMF and RF exposure. Yahoo! I'm not just writing about it anymore folks, which I've done for years. I'm now going to step out on a limb and actually do something about it.

Going Wireless?

It started innocently enough.

I was introduced to a small Macintosh computer in 1989 on which I would write my first novel. The electric typewriter got tossed and I marveled at the amazing Mac’s powers, especially that fabulous delete key.

We moved East in 1994, which is when the real electronic addiction began. A student at RPI, I was to spend up to 40 hours per week in the Mac Lab to complete my degree, and gads! I was forced to use email for the first time, literally against my will, to download my class assignments. As I sat uncomfortable and pregnant in the Mac Lab, surrounded by 20 flickering screens and untold EMF waves, I knew this was not the life for me.

Destiny had other plans. Within a year, I was a webmaster and parked with my infant in her sling in front of my own, bigger Mac at home. Email was, by then, my middle name but I still didn’t have a cell phone. That was coming. First there was the pager.

As a newly single mom, I carried a pager to retain contact with my daughter. That worked for a while but as she grew older I rationalized that I should have a cell phone so she could call me directly. I still felt very sick around large doses of EMF of any type, so I positioned myself at work as far away from the large server arrays as possible. We upgraded to DSL at home and began using portable phones, also wireless, in the house.

My email and information addiction steadily grew to gargantuan proportions. To feed the beast, we added a router to our modem, and I got a wireless card installed in my computer. Suddenly, we had Wi-Fi radiation transmitting to every room in the house, and we never turned the modem off or unplugged the router.

Here’s the strange part of my story: you’d think as an always-question-authority, science-writing, healthy, active vegetarian, I would know better. Then there’s the research. I write for an online industry trade website, so far having written a total of 143 articles, gleaned from at least 500 news sources, all related to wireless technology. After carefully scouring through a ridiculous amount of articles every month for something newsworthy, I have come to the conclusion that we as individuals are helplessly embroiled in a huge morass of EMF , radio frequencies, and microwaves. Are they dangerous? In my opinion, of course they are!

There are all kinds of studies that say cell phones in particular and Wi-Fi in general is safe, or that dangers are unfounded, etc, but take a look at what’s happening in Germany. Unlike most European countries, Germany’s Federal Office for Radiation Protection has called for caution. Florian Emrich, a spokesperson for the Office, says wireless technology should be avoided "… because it is a new technology and all the research into its health effects has not yet been carried out.” The Office recommends landlines rather than mobile phones, and avoiding electric blankets and other items that increase “electro-smog.”

The industry, like any strong entity, has rallied, and companies have sprung up to soothe the fears of radiation poisoning, offering protective devices to shield users from harmful effects. Fortunately for us, one of our local Coop shoppers owns a warehouse/storefront located at 809 Madison Ave in Albany NY. He offers products that protect against harmful EMF and wireless radiation.

All you have to do is google “Wi-Fi danger” and you can find out more than you ever wanted to know about this technology. If we are to believe that a country such as Germany may have knowledge that we don’t have, what can we do to mitigate our exposure? I wouldn’t presume to advise anyone so I’ll simply tell you instead what we do in my household.

After a long and heated debate with my loving husband, who has absolutely no fear of anything wireless, walks around with his phone glued to his ear and has said he’d be happy to get chipped, we made some changes around the house. These changes are as follows:

1.Turn off the modem, attached to the router, when the computers are not in use (reduce Wi-Fi).
2.Turn off the power strips to computers, stereo, TV, etc. (EMF).
3.Do not sleep next to electronic appliances (EMF).
4.Leave the microwave in the basement (radiation).
5.Use the speaker option on mobile phones in the house, and on the cell phone when traveling (radiation).
6.Use only LCD screens instead of CRT on TVs and laptops (radiation).
7.Bury electric cables underground (EMF).
8.Do not live near transformers or cell towers (radiation).
9.Shop at Honest Weight all the time (increase joy)

As wireless users, we are still at risk. How shall we as a species survive the increasing onslaught of EMF, radio frequency radiation and microwaves? I wish I had the answers to that question, as it applies to many other issues that confront us today. My thoughts for you are to educate yourself, take safeguards and precautions, go outside, stretch your body, hug your loved ones, help an animal, live green and be happy. Om Shanti.

References:

1. Microwave News: A Report on Non-Iodizing Radiation.
(http://www.microwavenews.com/docs/mwn.1-07.pdf)
2. Federal Office for Radiation Protection. (http://www.bfs.de/bfs?setlang=en)
3. The Place to Buy Gauss Meters, RF Meters, & Shielding. (www.Less EMF.com)
4. How Stuff Works. (http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/cell-phone-radiation2.htm)

I'm gonna miss my garden, yo.

Still picking some brussel sprouts and yeah I built that greenhouse but it's cold outside and beyond hanging with the llamas I'm just not as inspired. The good sweet adventure news, for those who care, is that I saw a nice fat dusting of real snow on Mt Greylock today. I was cruising over P Pass to catch the cheaper W'town gas prices and visit the coop there, Wild Oats. It's a great coop and the new manager actually has lowered prices...imagine! In this day and age, that's quite an amazing accomplishment. I assure you they are taking a cut at the top to achieve this cut for us consumers. I'd call it a selfless act of kindness.

Anyway, it's gonna be a sweet winter this year for snowsports. My mama says. She's 90 and tells me that she has a feeling that winter in Oklahoma will be a cold one. Her instincts are never wrong.

We gonna get some sliding in, way out back into the woods yo.

Peace, om shanti

Jules

Hi ya'll.

Tell me, where is winter? Looking forward to those first tracks...

The river releases have mostly ended, a little more rain might do them good. When the weather is clear, fall climbing is superb.

Sometimes it's time to hit the trails, other times we are just sitting on our mountain bikes, waiting on the snow.

Jules

What the heck. Time to blow about the East, as sent to Paul (with a few minor corrections) at the Mountain Gazette, a great mag devoted to the people mountains and communities of the West. If you like the outdoors and microbrews, and currently don't subscribe, you should.

Hi Paul. As usual, I poured over my issue of MG when it arrived. I particularly enjoyed the Dearly Departed story and Mountain People.

I know you guys are all about the West, but let me tell you a little about Mountain People here in New England, of which I am one.

We live on the MA/VT/NY border, on 18 acres of forest, high up a steep driveway, deeply into the snow belt. The temperature drops 15-20 degrees when you drive from Albany, NY heading east to the MA border, which is only 23 miles as the crow flies.

There's still no cell service here on Misery Mountain, which is in the Taconic Range of the Berkshires, and if you get lost up here on the ridge you could die and stink for quite some time till someone finds you, probably a four wheeler if you are lucky. We have moose, bear, wolves, bobcats, foxes and coyotes who share this space with us. Sometimes they surprise us out on the trail, where we take our llamas for hikes along with the dogs.

You can drink water out of the springs here, directly from this mountain. I have been doing it for almost 14 years. One of many mountain bike rides from my house is up the old trail (older than the telephone) to the top of the ridge, which winds up and down till you get to Massachusetts. We call it The Sick Bitch Ride. Don't wreck, break down or otherwise hurt yourself cos it is still wild up there. Read above.

We trad climb in New Hampshire, where you can get 10 pitches of 5.8 and still get off the mountain in time for a swim in the river, The Gunks, The Dacks and even in Great Barrington, MA, where there's some of the best bouldering to be had this side of the Mississippi and a sick 5.10b called Endeavor to Perservere.

In the winter time we strap on our tele skis and snowboards, then hike up the closest mountain to earn our turns. Last year one of our most epic days was spent on Mt Greylock, small at only a few thousand feet, but the site of a 1930s battle between the Nazis and local ski bums for the Olympic medal. That's right, the Olympics were held on a little mountain in Massachusetts, with a top speed of 4 minutes to ski down that steep slope. The day me and my buds went there we took two hours to get down it, dodging trees and laughing the whole way down. Took a lot of beer to kill that cold pain. (Luckily at the top was a community cabin with a fire burning, so we are able to warm up before freezing on the way down.)

Right now we are still paddling whitewater and I just won a new $1000 boat from American Whitewater at the local kayak festival on the Deerfield. I paddled my new boat on the West River in Jamaica Vermont. On the way there, I found six free new windows, which I strapped into my truck with the boats and took with me. We have free signs everywhere here in the East, which means you can really score good on garbage day.

The locals here take care of you. My goat recently died and I gave a call to my friendly farmer, who came over with his pickup and took her to his land to bury her since I don't have a tractor. I gave his brother in law (the divorced guy) a box of veggies and zuchini bread for their efforts. Our driveway washed out, and the farmer's brother with the (undisclosed location) gravel pit brought a couple of tractor loads of gravel over and filled in the holes, no charge thank you.

The local bar in our tiny town of 200 (circa 1800s) is owned by a Salvadoran immigrant who caters to the biker crowd. They recently had another free pig roast complete with huge vats of Spanish rice. One big ugly biker guy came up to the Puerto Rican cook and asked if he was the one who made the dinner. When he said yes, the biker guy gave him a bear hug and said, Thank you! I thought he was gonna cry for a moment there.

I built eight raised beds this summer because my neighborly farmers give me unlimited free loads of topsoil, even loading it up onto my 190,000 miles on it still runs Toyota T100 pickup. Their grandchildren are eating produce from my gardens. Now we have a new greenhouse built out of cattle panels to continue our food production without giving up snowboarding this winter. Next year we are taking apart the llama house and building a huge greenhouse so I can sell veggies to the local restaurants. My friend who owns a CSA told me we can grow kiwis too.

I used to be a writer but these Eastern mountains got to me and now all I think about is being outside with the rest of the animals. Check out my blog if you want to know more about what life is like here in the sweetest of the East.

For Peace,

Jules

Gosh, it's so easy to get sucked into this organic permaculture stuff. To support our newfound fresh homegrown veggie addiction, I built a greenhouse out of ... guess what? Cattle panels of course. We first used them to enclose the poopers, then for garden trellises and finally for a shed, but I have all kinds of ideas about correct use of restraints...so now they are a greenhouse.

Back to the cattle panel greenhouse. To avoid confusion, I built it *before* reviewing what everyone else has happening out there in the world of small scale cattle panel enthusiasts.

Here's the details:

First, I took apart our old cattle panel shed which was housing the lawn mower, hay bales for the poopers, and a few chairs. That took an entire day but provided me with much needed posts and three full size cattle panels.

Then, I drove down to the local rough cut lumber yard and bought two 2X12X10s and two 2X8 very thick heavy rough cut pine planks to use as a base for the greenhouse.

After screwing these together with the Makita, I then attached four 2X4s (resized to fit) to the top of the base to ensure a solid backing for the strips and plastic.

Then, the fun part. I hauled all three cattle panels over to their new restraining pen, much to their dismay, and proceeded to maul and woman-handle the unwieldy and obviously possessed cattle panels into a shape that would work for the hoop house. I tied them off with left over hay bale twine, and a few pieces of rope at the top, overlapping the panels to add strength, then somehow managed to get them into the frame of pine planks. Whew, that was a challenge! Took a whole day.

You should know that I have a love/hate relationship with cattle panels, and they are still angry at me for the extreme makeover. However they are by far the cheapest strongest option for the really low budget greenhouse/shed/fence builder and I still love them at the moment.

After getting those suckers into shape, I pounded four metal stakes inside the shed, as opposed to outside like my garden trestles, and began to pad them up. We had a stack of unused insulators in the basement, so I brought them up and padded up all places on the posts and panels using copious amounts of duct tape and insulating until I was out of foam. What people may not realize, as I don't see anyone else doing this online, is that cattle panels have little burrs that can catch and tear greenhouse plastic, so insulating them is the safest way to ensure the long life of your greenhouse. That took a whole day.

Now that the greenhouse frame was ready for some plastic, I emailed my buddy and mentor Daniel Dog, founder of Laughing Dog Farm in Gill, MA, and asked him where to get the good greenhouse plastic. Please note, home gardeners, using good plastic is the *only* way to build a solid greenhouse. He said a good product could be had from Griffins, and lucky for me they have a warehouse in Latham, NY. Yahoo! No shipping, although finding the place was a true challenge.

I bought a roll of plastic, enough for four greenhouses and the best price by far I'd seen anywhere, along with the plastic stripping (you have to staple the plastic onto it) and some repair tape, also useful for building the greenhouse. It really sticks.

Back to the greenhouse. In an almost anti-climactic moment I unrolled a little plastic, threw it over the top of the greenhouse and nailed the plastic onto the 2X4 base. Done deal. Added a strip to the front and back for "walls," using those great .99 cent clamps you can buy at Home Depot and taping a board to the bottom of each for weight, and presto framo, we have a very hot greenhouse. Whew!

Here's our item breakdown:

3 cattle panels
2 2X12X10 rough cut planks
2 2X12X8 rough cut planks
4 6 foot metal stakes
4 2X4s
20 foam pipe insulators
greenhouse plastic roll
greenhouse plastic stripping
greenhouse plastic repair tape
12 .99 cent clamps
hay bailing twine
1/2 inch staples
long screws for base

Tools:

good staple gun
Makita or other electric drill
sharp box cutters for plastic
small hand saw
stake pounder

I have enclosed a few pics, and I hope you enjoy the show. Please do leave a comment with your email address if you'd like a response. I have a hard time tracking people down without email addresses.

Next year we plan to take apart the llama shed and make that into a large greenhouse. For now, I am happy to have a way to keep my veggies going through the long hopefully cold and snowy winter, so I can enjoy the outdoors without missing my garden too much.

Keeping on,

Jules

What an amazing time we have in this life! Jerome and I hiked out to the Snow Hole, which unsurprisingly is devoid of snow or even frost. Global warming? Probably. We met an older guy there who said "The ice caps are melting," in an apocalyptic voice... could be he's right.

En route to the no longer cold Snow Hole, we ran into a couple of guys who were going to toss off the mountain aboard their paragliders. Lucky for us, at the vista where we stopped to stretch, they caught up to us and proceeded to get up and go. Here's a few pics of their adventure that day.

Carry on.

It's poop time, yo!

We are building another bed and adding a very small greenhouse to extend the growing season. Jerome and I are both so hooked on tomatoes and basil and cukes and zukes and freshies that we really can't fathom the approach of fall without doing some prior planning.

So it's poop time for me. I'm shoveling it over the fence into a new bed, while Jerome is busy clearing trees so we'll have more light for those luscious lovelies, those yummy tummies, those delectable and delightful veggies that we have grown and love.

The sunflowers have reached epic proportions too. I have no idea what we'll do with them but chances are, if they can be eaten, we'll eat them!

Now I'm back to work, thanks for looking.

Jules

Here's a few garden pics, I thought I'd change the subject for everyone so we can cheer up after Star's death. Moon is having a good time hanging with the llamas and I am having a good time hanging with the garden and Jerome is having a good time eating tomatoes...hey wait a minute. What's wrong with this picture?

The garden is still pumping. Local farmer asked me how we grew those tomatoes since he hauled off Star's poor carcass and buried her...He could ask as he had some fresh produce in return for his and his brother's friendly neighbor favor.

I told him the usual, we grow them on a trellis with llama poop and fluffy soil, covered in plastic and then straw ...

He's chowin down. We all are. Next year the plan is to double this garden size and grow enough produce to feed more people than this year. I'm excited at the prospect of a new career as an organic farmer. Alas alack, I doubt I'll ever fully escape the computer but at least I'll always have some soil under my fingernails.

Until next time my friends, I'll be here writing stories for you.

Jules

Last night our favorite goat Star died.

She has been having problems for quite some time but when I came home last night, she was down with her head stuck under a log. I lifted the log to release her, fed her some grain and hay with the llamas, and hoped for her to improve. The llamas were good natured about letting her eat, even while she tried pitifully to butt them away. I went inside then a while later, went back to put her in her goat house. She was down again, crying, with her head and leg stuck inside the fence. I knew then that she wouldn't survive the night but I gave her a shot of Ivomec and a shot of penicillin just in case, along with a wad of ginger and molasses to help her burp if she needed to.

Reesa, Jerome and I stayed with her while she cried, with her neck arched back, and we told her we loved her. Reesa and I cried for a while, holding her and petting her. Reesa decided to sleep on the living room couch, which put her closer to our dying pet as she lay crying in the goat yard. We had made her as comfortable as possible, even putting a llama blanket on her, but she had seisures and the blanket wouldn't stay on her so we finally gave up and just let her be alone. When we left she quit crying as much, almost as though she knew that it was time to go.

As a last resort, I gave Wes a call. He confirmed that star's arched neck meant, in animal terms, "I can't believe I'm dying!!!"

Star was gone by this morning.

My local neighbor is coming over with his tractor to help bury her today. I am very fortunate to have understanding farmer neighbors with tractors.

Those of you with pets, cherish them now because you never know when they'll leave you for the other side.

Jules

Wow, I didn't think it was possible...our resident burdock plant is over six feet tall and still growing. There are multiple types of bees, including bumble bees, honey bees, strange unidentifiable bees and even these pretty white moths, all supping and dining on the luscious pink burdock juices. Maybe I should try it.

Meanwhile, we are eating more veggies than ever before, and giving them to our favorite friends and neighbors. If anyone ever wonders how I got into llama rescue, and why we have llamas, just take a look at these pics.

The fact is, llamas make the best fertilizer in town. They also eat just about anything you can give them from your garden. Take it from me, if you've got some land with shelter and a fence, llamas as pets are highly recommended, and really, they only spit at each other.

Oh, and I have good news. The slug population is dwindling. Must have been that talk we had about how I really didn't mind slugs in general, just slugs in specific, so spread the word. Now for those Japanese beetles. The slugs seemed to be listening but I have yet to have a reasonable conversation with a Japanese beetle, so until we can talk, hunting season is on.

Whoever identified the cocoon I posted several weeks ago as a Monarch butterfly, thank you very much. Josh, you know your insects. We thought it might be an alien ship, but you set us straight and besides, my daughter squeezed some juice from the poor cocoon so at that point whoever may have been visiting us from a far distant galaxy met a sudden and probably painless end.

Till next time, keep on reading and we'll keep on writing.

Jules

Hello all. Today I picked another several pounds of zukes and cukes. The tomatoes are so almost ready that Jerome is actually drooling. Really! I declared war on the slugs, but have still been trying to reason with them, Perelandra style. Might as well cover all the bases.

We had a great time paddling on the North Shore of Long Island this weekend, and Jerome and I are finally getting our rolls! It's about time we got a clue after two full seasons of getting flipped in whitewater and swimming. We watched a film that was highly recommended by a Zoar Outdoors guide (Thank you Philip!). The film, an oldie but goodie is called Grace Under Pressure. Get it from White Water Video, they are excellent and ship your goods immediately.

Another cool thing that happened is that I won a Dagger kayak at the Charlemont kayak festival last weekend. I re-upped my membership with American Whitewater, as usual, and volunteered at the gate, as usual, then they called my ticket, the winning number 5023. I couldn't believe my ears! My new creek boat, valued at $1,000 is on order from Dagger as we speak. For those of you who don't know about boats, it's a primo creeker, the Nomad 8.5. Yes, it's a big boat but I plan to enjoy all that extra floatation. Besides, I already have a Necky Crux, which is a small creeker.

The Crux is for easy stuff, the Nomad is for the harder scarier paddling in bigger water where I want a more forgiving boat.

Ahhh, whitewater. I think I'll keep it. If you don't boat, I suggest you head on down to your nearest kayak dealer and test ride a few. There's nothing like the sun on your back and a wave to surf. Life is good. Jules

The garden is pumping, folks. Today we took a few pics and I found this thing growing on a leaf...I have no idea what it is and I hope the pic does it justice. If anyone can figure out where this "pod" came from, or what it is, I'd sure like to know.

Meanwhile, tomorrow is llama rescue day, we are heading over to Buskirk to pick up Noah. Wes Laraway, owner/operator slave to Northeast Llama Rescue is driving his rig down here from Middleburg, NY and will be taking Noah back to his farm for rehab and some TLC.

From his website: Northeast Llama Rescue was started by Wes and Darcy Laraway of Middleburgh, NY. Several years ago they rescued their first llama out of a tiny horse pen. Since that day, Northeast Llama Rescue has helped dozens of Camelids from several different states.

The primary mission of Northeast Llama Rescue is to educate owners on how to properly care for their animals.

We also offer assistance with a traveling chute to shear, worm, and trim toenails on hard to handle animals. A 'TRUE REPUTABLE BREEDER" should help out the llama down the road that is not being cared for by owners that understand the needs of llamas.

If you know of a llama owner who is no longer able to care for their animals, there is help available. Members of Northeast Llama Rescue will adopt any unwanted animals. Rescue animals will be relocated to farms of members for training and necessary vet work.

If a llama is able to be rehabilitated, he will be available after a careful screening process. All rescues are placed in homes with a contract that says they shall be provided for and can not be sold. In the event a rescue animal becomes unwanted, the llama MUST be returned to Northeast Llama Rescue.

If you share our philosophy and love for the animals, you are more than welcome to join us! There are lots of llamas that need a person to love.

Without Wes Laraway, many llamas and other farm animals would go hungry and die. Stay tuned for more about Wes, meanwhile, check out these pics!

Hello everyone.

I've been so busy with GlobalSpec's CR-4 that I have neglected my blog here. I will take some photos of the garden and post them soon, meanwhile, you might want to join us at Vermont Solarfest this weekend. Hope to see you there!

A few weeks ago I got nailed in the Gap, big time, so it's been challenging for me to let go of my fear (and residual pain from that awful beating) to get back into the creek boat and paddle. Luckily my whitewater friends such as Ray at Rolling Stoneworks Landscape Design (a true rock artist!) have gotten me into my boat and on the river. Yesterday, after yet another flip and swim I again forgot to pull the skirt and basically hung upside down in my boat for a bit before getting out. Luckily there were no rocks to smash up against, unlike the Gap which as I mentioned, can be a painful place for those of us who flail and bail.

There's some sort of mental block going on here with me. I aim to find out what it is and conquer it by learning to roll my kayak, sooner than later. This winter, rolling classes in Pittsfield will move my skills forward enough to keep me afloat without smashing my head anymore against rocks. And they call it fun!

I hope you are out there having whatever fun you enjoy most, whether it's tipping a few at the lakeside, or riding your mountain bike uphill for hours. Enjoy the weather! Someone's got to do it.

Pray for the honeybees, dear friends.

“Where the bee sucks, there suck I,
In a cowslip's bell I lie;
There I couch when owls do cry
On the bat's back I do fly
After summer merrily.
Merrily, merrily shall I live now,
Under the blossom that hangs on
the bow."

Prospero: “Why that's my dainty Ariel!"

William Shakespeare

The bumble bee.

What an absolutely stunning little flying creature, shown here on the comfrey flowers. She's probably a he, but for the sake of Goddess Queen Bees everywhere, I'll call her a she.

The lovely bumble bee buzzes around, and never bites. She won't suck your blood, or otherwise intrude upon your space. The much skinnier worker bee, who I chased but couldn't quite catch on camera, requires no special lotion, toxic or not, to preclude his awful embrace.

Bumble bees. They buzz and don't swarm. They follow their little bee noses to the finest flower, then flit away to the next offering. They fly swiftly and allow you to follow them with a camera. Bumble bees. You can entice them to your garden by planting comfrey and watching it spread.

The lovely and sweet little bumble bees, oh how I love them so. Thank thee for visiting my garden each summer.

Those dastardly slugs.

I'm discovering new ways to deal with them. First, of course, beer is the answer. I think I'll have one right now. Oh, that's for the slugs. Okay, pour it into a bowl, set it out and watch the slug stampede to see who can drown their sorrows first. I never knew how much trouble slugs had until I watched them drink and try to swim. Next on my list is egg shells.

I called up Mom up today (she's in Lawton, Oklahoma) to complain about the slugs and she tells me to crush egg shells and place them around the plants. My thought was mortar and pestle but she said a plastic bag and a hammer would work too. Might be a good way to get my aggression out just thinking about those slimy little devils eating my strawberries. Why just today I pulled one off the biggest best strawberry in the patch. Considering this is our first year for strawberries and we only have two small patches, each juicy red morsel is crucial to our finger licking satisfaction.

All slugs must go! Here ye, here ye. I think I'll get my favorite book out, entitled Slug Bread. It's truly a classic and funny too. I also found a new book by Sam Thayer entitled Foragers Harvest. Truly excellent reference that's unlike anything I've ever seen before.

Between eating fresh goodies from the garden, drinking beer, I mean giving beer to the slugs, and reading, I hardly have time to do anything else these days! Well, I do a little kayaking too and yes, I actually write something now and then for global spec and okay, I'll admit it, I'm a chauffeur every single day and true, the ten animals on our farm require feeding. But really, it's time to put down the laptop, pick up a book and figure out what to do about those bagworms.

Last year I sprayed Citrasolve mixed with dishwashing detergent on all the bags. A very concentrated solution mixed half and half, using window washing apparatus on the hose will permanently stop that caterpiller in his bag. I know I sound extreme but hey, someone's gotta feed us and someone's gotta feed them. If it comes down to a show of force between me, the slugs and the bagworms, you can guess that I will not quit without quite a fight, especially since this is an organic garden.

There. I feel better. I'm glad you now know that I am capable of doing bodily harm to entities who wish me no harm, are smaller than my thumb and probably have families of their own. They deserve to live, and if they'd all like to go live somewhere else, I promise not to follow them.

Until next time,

Jules

Spring's here with birds singing and cats frolicking (after the birds). Bunnies don't hop for long in the garden (cats eat them) and the mosquitoes are growing larger by the minute. The llamas are outside mowing the lawn but my husband is concerned as they don't think grass is good to the last bite and leave huge patches in spots. It's time to get out some cheap beer for the slugs as they've discovered our broccoli plants. Finished mulching the garden but those weeds are coming through the straw so I'm pulling, pulling....

Hey, wait a minute! This sounds more like triage than gardening. What about the enjoyment of it all?

Well, I guess with organic gardening there's some enjoyment watching the seeds grow into young plants, then helping the plants wind themselves around vines. Then of course there's the eating of the produce, which is UMMM yummy.

My greatest joy is watching the kids go to the garden and graze off the vines, every day of summer. It's worth it for me to deal with the weeds and slugs and bodies of dead bunnies (yech) to know that kids have have tasty organic snacks that are available for the picking.

Then of course, there are the watermelons...

I do plan to take some pics just as soon as I have a spare moment. Right now, I gotta go dump some pooled water out of the white buckets cos mosquitoes are breeding faster than I can apply bug juice.

Hello everyone. I wanted to share a wonderful book I found by Colette Baron-Reid entitled "Remembering the Future." I think we all experience the parallel universes around us, whether or not we realize what's happening. Look outside at the trees, at the birds, at the life around us and think about the Oneness of it all.

We are all One. We all share the same carbon make up, the same life form, the same life energy. Even the trees have individual personalities. Don't believe me? Go hug a tree. Feel its sap run through your soul. Sit with your garden, your flowers, or a curbside weed. Feel its energy, the life force that inhabits all of us. We are here on this planet together, and on an even larger level, we are here in this soul cluster together . We are one being, living, hurtling through space, and around us are others, yet they are the same as we are, created by the great Creator.

Are you ready for the amazing transformation of energy that is upon us now?

It's raining, it's pouring, the llamas are snoring...well, not exactly. They are actually humming at all the green grass that's suddenly sprung up. But they won't be humming for long, as we are having them sheared on Monday. Now, anyone who hasn't experienced a llama shearing hasn't truly lived....we are accepting applications for volunteers.

Basically, you halter the llama and get him/her into the chute, then Ray with the magic electric razor shears does his thing. Llamas HATE having their hair cut and they double hate having it sheared, and they will triple hate having a shot along with all the mess, but it's all over with in a few minutes as Ray IS A Professional!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. I'll also be covered with llama fur after this wonderful experience....

Now, as for The Hooch. I noticed that my little shelter was suffering from extreme wetness so I built a "porch" on it. Jerome didn't even say a word when he saw it. Looks like something Jabba the Hut would live in, and hey, why not?

Anyway, The Hooch now has an additional tarp and cattle panel so our little abode here in the boonies finally has an official Porch. I'm so thrilled!

The Garden: Currently adding straw to the garden like the local farmers, hoping that this year the weeds won't get to be five feet tall like they do every other year. There's a reason that mid-summer I lose steam and want to do nothing more than whitewater raft...the weeds! They are scary!

Besides, the new little plants deserve to have their say above the cacophony of the ever-growing, voracious weeds...I can hear the strawberry devas even now, they've been chattering all day long. They are saying "We are growing up to become sweeeeet!"

Till next time, this is Jules at night. Coming at ya.

Coolness! Bicycling Magazine just sent me the July issue with a one page article starring yours truly. The photo and the conversation are not what I expected but still fun just the same. In the photo I'm basically crouching on the grody shop floor amongst the miscellaneous parts at The Spoke in Williamstown, MA. I was hoping they'd mention the Spoke and the Odyssey (in Sausalito, CA) but nada, neither shop was mentioned. Oh well, I tried. I have to admit, the way Alison pulled the article together was pretty cool as she crammed a lot of advice into a small area of the magazine. I just hope women read it and realize that fitting and fixing their own machines is a super simple thing that will give them more freedom than they had before. Later, I'll post some bike repair tips from my unpublished manuscript A Woman's Bike Book. For now, let's get outside and enjoy the rain. I think I'll go for a bike ride!

Ah, Mother's Day, a time for reflection, family get togethers, a coming together for dear old Mom. Well, not exactly for all the mothers out there ... some of us can't sit still long enough to gather round the dining table, and instead we have to go out and get some action. Luckily, I have an understanding spouse. My husband Jerome and I decided that we'd rather go hang with our boating buddies and paddle the Deerfield River, so that's what we did.

Ah, Mother's Day, a time for whitewater, friends and a fun day had by all. Grimm Glen and Mike were playboating like friendly seals, while Nicole, Jerome and I stayed high and dry in our respective rafts. When it came time to run the Gap for the first time this year, I was feeling kind of iffy, but Jerome was fearlessly manning the front of the raft so off we went. What is not obvious in this photo is the hole we are about to dump into and the fat wave of harsh cold water that will slam Jerome in the face. Give a woman a paddle and let her steer the boat. It's a good way to relieve stress.

Thanks for the pics, Mike!

It's getting late in the day, the garden is sleeping but alert just the same. Rain may fall again and the plants will just shoot up another inch in the night!

Babette is eating out of my hand now, she's finally trusting me (Babette is a llama who was once wild). I was busy out in the yard today planting plants and just admiring all the greenery with my husband Jerome. We are both pretty excited at the prospect of pulling all those weeds!

I've posted photos of garden trellises we made from cattle panels. This cattle panel trellis idea is very popular at the Honest Weight Food Coop. As I discovered *after* the lightbulb went off and I had this great idea, it's been around for quite some time in the gardening world.

We also built a little shelter I call The Hooch. It's got a blow up bed in it and is quite comfy, with wind chimes, peace flags, and a great nice incensy vibe. You'll see a photo of The Hooch here, before I added all the comforts of home. I like the idea of having a nice three season shelter outside that cost very little and is fairly bombproof. Dwelling Portably is one of my all time favorite zines, and I know people who live lightly appreciate a cheap solid shelter that's transportable and can be taken anywhere. The place to get all your stuff is Tractor Supply.

Using the following plans, you can build a nice garden trellis that is high enough to walk under and strong enough to withstand whatever wind is blowing up here in the Berkshire foothill mountains of New England.

Item description is as follows:

Two cattle panels, each 16 by 5 feet, cost $20X2
6 strong steel fence posts, each 6 feet high, cost $4X6
Multiple nylon ties from hay bales, free

Tools: 1 post pounder, cost $20

What you do is you bend the two panels into an upside down "U," slide them together overlaping them by about 6 inches, then pound in 6 fence posts, 3 on each side of the cylinder. Using the nylon hay bale ties, you tie them at 6 points on each side, for a total of 12 ties, adding 3 ties in the middle where the two cattle panels are overlapping on the "roof" of the cylinder.

This will create a structure that can hold your heaviest fruit (we are planting watermelons again this year) and also remain in place throughout the season. Optimal placement is to have the cylinder trellis in a raised bed that will hold the plants. We have two of these in our garden, one is for tomatoes and squash, while the other is for watermelons. We also have 3 straight up and down trellises that are using several feet of the cattle panel that has been cut from the longer 16 foot original panel. On these we have planted and are still planting smaller sugar baby watermelons, cucumbers and snow peas.

For the shelter, build a cylinder just like what is described above, preferably against a embankment to protect against wind and rain, then cover it with a tarp, leaving the sides open for breeze. Both ends of the cylinder will be open also. We added a north wind tarp on one side to let down when it rains or is particularly windy.

More photos may be forthcoming once the veggies and strawberries and watermelons grow up and take over the garden. For now, these are the instructions.

Enjoy!