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Published: September 14th 2009
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Tinker
The boss of the farm How shocking it is that autumn in Europe seems to arrive overnight. Just the other day Angelika was commenting on how hot it was in the loft. Today she asked me if we were freezing up here because the weather had taken a chilly turn. I suppose it's a bit funny for me to be walking around in August wearing a fleece while Sara is riding the "Hotter Than Hell" bike tour back in Texas. But one of the reasons I came here this summer was to escape the Texas summer, and I've certainly accomplished that in spades.
The weekends here are quiet and nice. I had some time working in the kitchen, which is great fun for me. Yesterday I was put in charge of making a big batch of potato salad for the six people eating dinner here (two other people who were attending a seminar with Axel were staying here). I made a delicious salad of potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta cheese, boiled eggs, red onion and garlic aioli. When asked what the dressing was, I had to explain aioli and step-by-step how I made it. As a result, I've been put in charge of making a dinner
Stupid chickens
I maintain that, if you were to plant a chicken, it would qualify as a vegetable. They really are that dumb... next Sunday for when Angelika's mom comes to visit. Oh, and no pressure, but it's also Angelika's mom's birthday. After surveying the ingredients available, I decided that Brunswick Stew would most definitely be the way to go. Here's hoping it turns out well. Today we were helping to make batches of tomato sauce for canning. It reminded me of the time when I was younger that my mom had too many tomatoes and we did the same thing.
Apples have started falling from the trees, and we've picked 5 large crates full for juicing. I'm curious to make my own apple juice, as they have a pretty nifty machine for doing it. Most people, when they think "organic farm", think that you don't use machines here. However, Axel and Angelika have all the comforts of a modern home, from the washing machine to the stick blender. We even have satellite TV in the loft, where I spent some of yesterday watching Scrubs dubbed into German. This after experiencing a German Flea Market. The town of Bevert gets together and throws a giant flea market on the last Saturday of August every year. It's quite the social event, reminding me
Greenhouse
The tomatoes from the greenhouse are really bountiful right now of the annual VFD auction back at Lake Gaston, complete with a giant bake sale. As I had no interest in lugging a trombone or Dukes of Hazzard slot car set around Europe for the next 2.5 months, I opted to just add a little money to the town coffers via the bake sale. Very funny how similar this flea market was to the ones you see back home, complete with tables upon tables of useless crap that nobody in their right mind would buy.
I thought I might do some gear reviews tonight as well, given that I've been on the road for a while. Of course, you have to realize just what I'm doing is not your usual backpacker style of traveling, with movement between hostels every few days and tons of train travel. I'm setting up home base in a place for weeks at a time, with no quick packing really needed. With that being said, here are my impressions of some of my gear:
Most underrated piece of gear that I absolutely love - a washcloth. Think about this: hostels and the like don't have washcloths. It's nice to be able to scrub down
Trusty Steed
My other trusty steed at the end of the day. It's light, can be packed in with your towel, cheap to replace and usable for scrubbing down your bag if there's a spill (I still remember those damn REI 'leakproof' bottles).
Thing I thought was a great idea and is really pretty useless - packing cubes. Great for organizing, but I generally just roll up and toss my dirty clothes where I can and keep the clean clothes in a bundle pack. So...why do I have them? The small one was ok for collecting and keeping all my electronic stuff together, that's about it.
Best last-minute purchase - The Acer Aspire One netbook. I am really glad I brought it, as it makes connecting and Skyping from hostels a cinch. Plus it won't break the bank at under $300, so if it gets busted up I will just pull the hard drive from the case and leave the rest behind.
Shoes or sandals - Both. I like having the flexibility. I stuck to a lightweight pair of Tevas for the sandals, and wear the shoes while traveling. Speaking of shoes, I'm really happy with the Cabelas-branded walking shoes that I wound
Bakehouse
The bakehouse is older than America... up with. They're ultra comfortable thanks to the addition of a pair of Superfeet insoles, have held together nicely and are fairly neutral and inoffensive to look at. Definitely better than a pair of trainers would have been.
T-shirts? Yes, please! And make mine the Cabelas ultra-dry sweat-wicking shirts. They're cheaper than REI's brand, look better than the Champion shirts available from Target and have held up well. A few stains adorn my older shirts, but that's pretty understandable given what they've endured.
Thing I was advised to take that I left home because it's useless - swim trunks. Just take some shorts and swim in briefs. Swim trunks make fugly everyday shorts.
Great purchase from the "July Restocking" mission - I switched out my Camelbak Rim Runner backpack for a much smaller Baggallini messenger bag and am much happier with my mobility. The messenger bag and everything in it can fit inside my backpack, which means I have a smaller cross-section than I did with the Camelbak strapped to my front. It's big enough to carry a few groceries in, can be carried on the front or back and has lockable compartments if you need.
Food - don't carry a lot with you unless you're camping. Don't try to take all the comforts from home, either. It's great fun for me to go into grocers across the areas I've visited to see what they have available. And if you're traveling in Europe, I highly recommend picking up a jar of Nutella to carry in your sack. It's dirt cheap over here and makes for a quick lunch (just pop into a bakery, buy a roll, add Nutella and enjoy on a park bench).
I have firmed up some plans on this end, as well. I decided to take a short break from the farm stays after leaving here, and purchased a ticket from Berlin to Prague for September 17th. I probably will have a few nights in Berlin before that, then maybe spend a week in the Czech Republic/Bratislava, a few days in Budapest, then head back to Munich for Oktoberfest. Then I'll pick back up on a farm in Italy in October.
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