Bottled Verjus

Remember the verjus I started back in September? Well, it felt like the time was ripe to strain, filter and bottle it. Besides, I needed the gallon jar in which it was macerating.

The color is gorgeous, the bouquet is magical, and at the first wee sip I began - without hesitation - to recognize the medicinal and mystical extremes within this very tart, remarkably astringent, fragrantly potent and oddly delightful elixir. Now that it's bottled my hope is that the flavors will mellow over time like with my other more conventional cordials and liqueurs.

We shall see. We shall see.

That's what I made today. Peace.

A Giveaway - Enter It!

To celebrate my six years of blogging, the upcoming calendar flip, and some new Walk in the Woods offerings … I'm running a giveaway through next wednesday and I hope you'll enter to Win a Whimsy. The winner will be chosen and announced in a random drawing next wednesday morning (January 4, 2011) at 9:00 a.m., eastern time.

What might you win? Well … I'll be adding new Nature-inspired mini journals to my ArtFire Studio this week and the winner will choose the one they want from those listed!

So … to enter this giveaway …

• Have a public profile, otherwise leave your email address with your comments. If I can't contact you, you can't win.
• Post each of your entries in separate comments on this post. Otherwise, entries combined in a single post will only be counted as one.
• Any comments determined to be sp@m-r-sp@mish will be deleted and not counted as an entry - so please don't leave links unless they're relevant to this giveaway.

How to enter? You have up to seven ways to enter for up to seven separate entries. Do one, or some, or all of the following, leaving a separate comment for each, each comment being a separate entry/chance to win a whimsy. Make sense?

• Leave a comment - any comment at all.
• Visit my ArtFire studio or my Zibbet shop and leave a comment about your favorite thing(s) there.
• Blog about this giveaway and leave the URL to your blog post as your comment.
• Tweet this giveaway and post the URL to your tweet as your comment. You can use the twitter button (below) if you like.
• Be or become a follower to this blog, leaving a comment to let me know.
• Be or become a walkinthewoods1 Twitter follower, likewise leaving a comment.
• Stumble this blog giveaway page and leave the URL to your StumbleUpon profile page as your comment.

So there it is ... Best wishes!

Peace.

A Silly Six Year Milestone

Six years ago today I posted my first blog entry ...

Wellness Journey . . . Here and There

Welcome to my blog! No telling where this may lead. For me, herbs encompass one day, spiritual guidance the next, shamanic journeys another, maybe time spent with Nature, or drumming, and so on . . . you get the idea. To me, this diversity is at the heart of the people's medicine. We have choices. We have the will to learn about them. We have the power to choose. And we have the right to change! A regular entry in a blog, like any journal, may force me to focus on one aspect of wellness or another (something many of my peers have "encouraged" me to do, and yet I resist!). On the other hand, this practice may simply allow me to organically explore the diversity of life, healing, spirit and energies that make up my being and offer me the experiences and opportunities that I am able to share with others - in the hopes to nurture holistic wellness and growth.

So, join me in this journey, wherever it may lead, and - please - add your comments, for they are food for me! I invite you to offer your experiences and insights, as well as your challenges to my perceptions! So that is where I am today. I wonder where I will be tomorrow? Be well by Nature!

12/29/2004

In those six years things have changed, some quite a bit and others not much at all. One constant is that I'm still honoring where I am each day and still wondering (dreaming) where I will be tomorrow. I hope you are too.

To celebrate this silly milestone - and the upcoming calendar flip - I'm having a giveaway. After all, it is Wednesday … Win a Whimsy Wednesday (remember Win a Whimsy Wednesday?- so watch out for that post!

Peace.

Time to Share

See Santa peeking around the tree from the window?

The other night my dog Halley got very agitated and started barking at something and she just wouldn't stop. I thought maybe the neighbor's cat had been on the windowsill, but I didn't see anything. I thought maybe someone was coming to the front door, so I put on the light and looked out. No one, no cats, nothing and Halley kept barking.

Then I realized that my ridiculous dog was barking at my old childhood book depicting Santa on the cover.

I'm still chuckling.

And I had to pause to share the chuckle with you before too much more time had past.

Peace.

This ...

… the mincemeat pie. Well, yesterday. But we ate it today. Well, part of it. Among other feast foods. ::yawn::

That's what I made today. Peace.

A Midwinter Offering

On this first full day of midwinter the dried peony and calendula petals that I had reserved from high summer were returned to the earth. All but a handful. As I scattered them around my mostly-snow-covered little acre I asked them if they recognized this landscape. They did. It's all one, they assured me. Equal opposites. Opposing harmonies. Contrary balance.

Winter food for polar thought.

That's what I made today. Peace.

Mince Meat

Life is bland without new experiences. I like change. I like variations. I like the occasional pleasant surprise.

So today made manifest a new experience, one born from a dream to make something classically traditional to Yuletide festivities … something I'd never made before. I originally had my sites set on plum pudding until I discovered what a close cousin it was to mince meat. So that oddity - one that I know as loved by more than a couple loved-ones - mince meat, became the solstice day food project.

I chopped beef suet, dried fruit - including my own honied orange peel … I peeled, cored and chopped green apples … I measured brown sugar, cinnamon and apple cider … grated nutmeg and pulverized mace … and The Boy minced the beef.

It all went into a pot and simmered together until it was time to add the cognac. I must say that this seemingly odd blend of foods creates a culinary alchemy that is really quite surprising.

So now I look forward to making a classic holiday pie and who knows what else.

That's what I made today. Peace.

An Introduction to Crocheted Little Things

This weeks On Fire for Handmade Featured Artisan is Luisa of Crocheted Little Things, who creates really cute crocheted cupcakes, faux foods and self-care/spa items too.

You can visit her handmade shops at Artfire and at Etsy. You can learn more about her at her Blog and you can follow her at Facebook and on Twitter.

Go on, You know you want to!