The Quiet Life

I've been asked a few times how I can stand living in the country, far from the excitement of a city. One friend told me he would go crazy in my shoes. My mum keeps saying how she's amazed that I'm still happy with my life in rural Cape Breton. But I am, by and large, happy and stimulated. I guess it's my personality to just accept things, let go of things, not have too high expectations. Maybe I'm lucky.

I think it's also my age. I think I'm looking to have some stability after close to a decade of wandering, moving house often, getting on airplanes and the rest. This stability shouldn't be equated with lots of possessions, which I've always avoided. Having said that I do find myself purchasing a lot more things than I ever did before. However, I'm trying to make sure they are all useful to me and my community. I'm just looking to finally build a home, deliberately and passionately.

And the promise of the summer to come keeps me happy too. This place is so beautiful now, I can't imagine how it will be in the summer. Then there's my allergies.

But let's talk about some projects. I'm making beer. Well actually I have very little to do with it. The yeast are making the beer. I bought a kit and mum helped me to mix everything together and seal it up in two of Dan's carboys (my carboy, found at a thrift store, is now full of Dan's apple or pear cider). I had to use two because they weren't large enough on their own to hold the amount, 23 litres that I was making. They are bubbling away under their air seals. I'm looking forward to drinking the beer in a few weeks; yes it's that fast. Kevin had a kit this summer and if I'd only known how straightforward it is, I would have pushed him to make it. It would have cut some of our beer costs at least.


Ultimately I want to be able to make beer from scratch. Make the malt, grow the hops (tall plants!). It's made with well water so that's nice. But if I can't do it myself or without the aid of a yeast package then it's probably unlikely to be a regular thing at our place. But if I think of hard cider or wine, I reaabout how easy it is in comparison to get the fermentation one desires. The yeast is already on the fruit when you mash it up into juice or cider. So you have your fermenting yeast already along for the ride, since many yeasts live in the air. So perhaps cider and wine are more realistic for someone who doesn't want to spend, and likely won't have the money to spend, on beer kits and yeast. Maybe beer will just be a treat.



And I finished my scarf this evening! I expect winter will hang on a bit longer so I'll have a chance to model it (and most importantly, keep warm) before next winter.