Free Range Friday ~ Culebra Bees, German Public Gardening, and More

Because I've been having connection issues, postings have been a bit - to say the least - sporadic lately. Mea culpa! So today's offering, if I can actually get this done, will be a mix of a few things food and life related. Is that oxymoronic? Do we want to go there? No, we do not.

Have you read lately about rosemary, how sniffing it is supposed to have healing properties? The aspect that stood out for me was that it supposedly can help increase memory ability. I can't remember why I thought that was important... but the practice can't hurt; who doesn't love the smell of rosemary? As I was reading about it, one idea is to use rosemary oil. That led me to wonder how one goes about getting rosemary oil beside a trip to the local health food/voodoo store or going online. Apparently, it's not that hard to make it on your own. And it isn't that hard to grow your own either. If we can grow it here, it seems it would grow just about anywhere!

Yes, you might run the risk of being called, soto voiced, a rosemary sniffer, but I can think of worse things. Oh yes I can.

According to Amy Stafford on A Healthy Life for Me, "All you need is Rosemary, Mason Jars, and bottles to hold oil." Ok, I'll say, jars of any sort will work - unless you've tried to find Mason/Ball type jars around here, you wouldn't know why I'll suggest saving jars on your own. There is no instant gratification here, it will take about a month before it is steeped, but after that you can use it in all sorts of things - Amy suggests everything from adding it to your body lotions to flavoring foods. A goodly range that will have you mentally alert and face happy too. I'm in!

I've heard a lot of talk over the years about having a community garden here on Culebra. Carmen Rosa and I even started, with a team effort, a garden over at the daycare by the playground, some raised bed gardens, years ago, but it didn't quite catch on, though we grew tomatoes, melons, spinach, kidney beans and yuca, to name a few things. From The Shelter Blog comes the story of one city that has given itself free range as to community growing. Way over there, in Andernach, Germany, the idea is a reality and flourishing. If they can do it, so can we. Really. You can see more of their garden photos here. So, you talkers, start the walk! Yes, there is land to use. Yes, water can be an issue. No, that is no reason not to go for it.

photo credit: unknown

As mentioned before, we're lucky here on Culebra to have plenty of honeybees who are, well, busy as bees, being bees. Without bees, we have no food (no sane food anyway), ultimately, so bees are a very good thing. Here are some that I saw yesterday.

I love this bee! 

Full of pollen!

What is the best thing I tasted this week? Red Head Anita's salsa. I was just leaving Cheli's market when she came by, a plastic container in hand. "You want to taste this and see what you think?" she asked. Hell yeah! Fresh peppers, fresh tomatoes, I'm not sure what else but I'll try to find out. The taste was alive alive-o!, the heat slowly built to an agreeable level, not too little, not too much. She was taking it to Dale at Dinghy Dock; apparently they trade peppers and goodies. Lucky Dale! I'm sorry I didn't get a photo of it, beautiful red living food!

Speaking of Alive AliveO! Playing for Change put out a new video yesterday. Savor this!

Have a feast not famine Friday. Do something forwardly.

Simple Sunday ~ Be the Bee

So much of our food,
abundant variety,
carried on bees' knees.

 ~ Eric Black

Let Me Tell You 'bout the Birds and the Bees

Ok, how about just the bees? But first (patience, Prudence), a bit of cleaning up. For some reason Blogger has been a little wonky lately (as in not letting me post Saturday). I am not really sure what's going on, but hopefully it will get fixed soon. Hence the changing fonts, messed up pages, etc. I don't know how it all looks to you, but it's driving me crazier. 

Also, I'm posting this early because Governor Padilla is going to be here at 11:00 this morning (Sunday morning) behind El Batey at the basketball courts. Now...why, on a Sunday morning when many people will be in the church of their choice, I have no idea and no one is telling me anything, but if you can get there, get there!

Speaking of those in high political office, I got an email that made me really happy and proud today. If you've been reading the blog lately, you saw some photos of the Lusty Mallard crew, including Dan, of the Navajo Nation in New Mexico. He left early because his college was having their commencement and Dr. Jill Biden was giving the address. Woot woot!!! This was covered live and is on video here, if you are interested. Congratulations to all!

Dr. Jill Biden and Dan
photo credit: unknown

After so much out and about time with the lads, I've been home the last few days, much to the delight of the cat, who is not letting me get too far from her - as in right now I'm having to shift her rear end off the keyboard...except aha! a cat and two big dogs just came into the yard and she leapt out the door to defend the home front. Good girl. An Attack Cat sign would not be amiss here, but since dogs and cats aren't the best readers I just let nature take its course. Get 'em!

Old Crinkle Ear

 Some colors of late Spring. 

I was down at the end of the yard by the water and saw this thing, and then realized it was the partial carapace of a lobster. The reddish color I get, but the blue? Unknown.

That little bit of green grass is filling in slowly but surely. I'm easily pleased. By Nature, that is.

Remember the compost pond and the plants I threw in there? They are the best growing things in my yard. Of course, I do keep the screen over them to keep critters out, but there is only about 1/2 inch of dirt in there, the rest is veg and fruit scraps with a few egg shells. Everything is really happy, including the avocado tree.

Now we get to the bees. I lied about the birds. Maybe later. The big genipe tree is in full flower and in the morning, while it is very still, the roar of the bees is amazing, seeming to vibrate the air with almost palpable waves of hummmmmmming.

Since the tree is literally right outside my door I learned a long time ago that they are way too drunk to be interested in me, so I don't have any fears walking under the branches where thousands of honey bees are drinking their faces off working hard at nectar and pollen gathering, though the pollen is more of a rubbed on side benefit they will use to feed their larvae. Clever, those bees.

Truthfully, I love to see them; knowing that we have a healthy bee population is a good sign of our own ecological health. I know when they get into the walls of my friends' homes, or bartenders fruits they are not feeling so happy, but...a good sign is a good sign and I'll take it.

I tried a long shot to take in how many were filling the air but it was beyond me.

This one is my personal favorite. I'm not at all sure why the sky looks white but I don't care. Did I just write that?

Have a supremely saturated Sunday! Do something sublimely sensate.

Another cool morning in Paradox

74 degrees, light mist. That's what the Culebra weather station says right now. There is no mist in my neighborhood, but that's fine, mist is too teasy anyway. What I want to know is, rhetorically speaking, is it winter again? The one we had for three days this year? This crisp air, dry and sharp, is making CWIM way too frisky; jumping around like water spattering on a searing hot skillet. A gusty wind is up, bringing a bit of wild to daybreak. The man who rides his horse by here almost every morning is passing now, whistling a jaunty tune. He must be feeling it as well...maybe I should send CWIM with him.

There is a gumbo limbo tree in the yard that acts like its own ecosystem, ignoring its fellow flora and acting as if living far north of our latitude. It sheds leaves in the fall rather than in spring, like its mates. In spring, it behaves as a proper tree should, with new leaves appearing among the buds.

As I walked down the yard I could hear bees humming from five feet away, industriously gathering nectar, doing the bee dances in choreographed herks and jerks that somehow seem fluid anyway.

I have so many things to do and none of them seem urgent. Before I even woke up, my dream was about burrowing under covers and that feels like what I want. I know as the day grows, this weather will all seem impossible: heat will rise to take dominion, humidity will leach from airy nothingness into its almost tangible self. But that will be then. This is now. And the covers look good.