1. This is our local community garden. Yesterday there were 18 beautiful heirloom tomato plants. When I arrived at 8am to water the plants this is what I found. Someone has pulled up/broken/destroyed all of our plants. This is the second time this season we have experienced vandalism. I went to speak to the police who wouldn’t even come down to the garden & take a look. Clearly we are not high enough on their priority list. I do not understand what kind of person would find fun in destroying a garden. It is clear that they did not take one minute to understand the hard work that went into planting this garden or the food that they were taking away from folks who really need it. In my 8 years of living in Chicago I NEVER ONCE saw a community garden get vandalized. No graffiti, no destruction, nothing. Now, I live in this tiny supposed “Christian” community full of family values & this is how community property is treated. I am so hurt, disappointed & angry. Countless hours & so many dollars have been poured into this garden and we have yet to see any edible crops come to fruition. Fencing seems like the easy solution but the funds just do not exist & I honestly don’t think a fence would keep vandals out. What do we do now?

  2. This year I’m growing the heirloom variety Purple Plum radishes. I think the color is just gorgeous & the flavor is delightful too. I got my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company in Mansfield, MO. Radishes are one of the easiest things to grow if you’ve never tried to grow something before. They even do just fine in a flower box and most take only about 24 days to produce an edible radish. 

  3. 8 quarts of strawberries, a giant bottle of chardonnay, 5lbs of sugar and a whole lot of pectin later…. and I have 36 half pints of amazing preserves. 

    and yes, I swear all the Chardonnay went in the preserves not in my mouth :) 

  4. Pale pink peonies from our front garden in my amazing “beaker” vases that Jared bought me for Xmas

    Pale pink peonies from our front garden in my amazing “beaker” vases that Jared bought me for Xmas

  5. In this town if you walk or ride your bike somewhere you’re automatically labeled in one of the following ways 1) under age 16 or 2) lost your license due to DUI or 3) mentally challenged in some way that makes it impossible to get a license.

    I don’t fall into any of these categories. I walk/ride for personal enjoyment, environmental reasons, exercise, etc. often I get strange looks or outright pity when I tell people “oh I walked over” they gasp in disbelief or somehow think Jared is mistreating me by not chauffeuring my ass. God forbid I do something good for the earth AND my body!!!!!

    Anyway, today I did a walking tour of town - I walked to the bank, the chamber of commerce, the local lumberyard, the school where I teach Spanish, the newspaper office and the health food store. And by golly I survived without a car! Imagine that… Here in a town that’s a VAST six square miles it is actually possible to walk. Holy shat!

    Seriously peeps get off your ass and walk somewhere. Nothing is more than a few steps away…

  6. Two photos I snapped of the gorgeous sunset last night. Southern Illinois can be quite beautiful in its own way. (Taken with iphone)

  7. Sitting on our miniature balcony, relishing in the juxtaposition of hot air and cold rain on my skin. Listening to rolling thunder to the north. My stark white legs were longing for some late afternoon sunshine. The din of the air conditioner drowns out the melodies of birds. Its raining harder now and I won’t go in because the scent of moisture on hot pavement hasn’t permeated my nostrils in 8 years. This is summer in Southern Illinois. This is my new home and my new life.

    Sitting on our miniature balcony, relishing in the juxtaposition of hot air and cold rain on my skin. Listening to rolling thunder to the north. My stark white legs were longing for some late afternoon sunshine. The din of the air conditioner drowns out the melodies of birds. Its raining harder now and I won’t go in because the scent of moisture on hot pavement hasn’t permeated my nostrils in 8 years. This is summer in Southern Illinois. This is my new home and my new life.

  8. what’s not to love about that southern illinois sky? oh how I’ve missed thee. 

  9. Found this little guy while we were cleaning out a bed & prepping it to plant bush beans. Snails are not great for the garden (they eat all the greens) but they’re excellent to have in your compost. So, I carefully picked all of them up and moved them to the compost pile. I’ve always been a huge insect/creature/any kind of animal nerd. I’m sure I wasted more time fiddling with snails than I actually spent helping my mom but there’s no way I could just smash them. 

    Found this little guy while we were cleaning out a bed & prepping it to plant bush beans. Snails are not great for the garden (they eat all the greens) but they’re excellent to have in your compost. So, I carefully picked all of them up and moved them to the compost pile. I’ve always been a huge insect/creature/any kind of animal nerd. I’m sure I wasted more time fiddling with snails than I actually spent helping my mom but there’s no way I could just smash them. 

  10. a week in review

    So, I’ve been living back in Olney for less than a week but it really has felt like coming home rather than moving somewhere new. Even after 8 years of absence it really is just comfortable. 

    Living with morrison-in-mono is easy & enjoyable. Its been so great to cook dinner every night & relax together. I’ve yet to have a mental breakdown in the grocery store, but I’m keeping my cool and laughing at the lack of selection so far.

    We are staying in his apartment right now until the house closes next month. I finally got to see it this week & I’m really excited to move (again!). At least I’ll just be moving down the block this time. The yard is lovely & I expect many leisurely evenings spent out there this summer. 

    It seems like I have a few event planning jobs on the horizon already so I’m optimistic about that business. However, I’m still planning on getting a part time job while working towards the ultimate goal of opening a restaurant. 

    The farmer’s market begins this weekend. I was able to help my mom get prepared for the first market this week. It was nice to work in the yard with her, potting up plants & chatting. It will be good to have family close by once again. I haven’t gotten much of my own stuff ready for market yet. This week has been a whirlwind. Looking forward to having jams & pickles & other artisan items for upcoming markets soon. 

    The weather has been gorgeous. Chilly for early May in Southeastern IL but sunny & the birds are chirping. I’ve missed nature. I honestly feel more whole already. Seeing the stars, walking barefoot, sitting in the grass. Don’t get me wrong, I love Chicago. I miss things about it already. 

    goinghomeagain is home. 

About me

farmer's daughter, friend, partner to jared, professional cook, real food activist, part time library lady, former Chicagoan embracing life in rural America once again.