Friday, December 31, 2010

At the setting of the year


I've been reading Alys Fowler's rather lovely list of things she wants to do this year (and rather envying someone who is still young enough to use words like 'moxie' and still be taken seriously).

It inspired me to make my own list: a little shorter but nonetheless one I hope will help me give myself a little direction in the months to come. In the interests of avoiding any mention of the word 'resolutions' - here it is.

1. Crack the secret of getting strawberry jam to set
2. Take my gardening to another level by going back to school again
3. Spend more time just being with my kids
4. Breed my first little bundles of fluff (chickens, in case you're wondering)
5. Acquire some sheep
6. Cook more muffins
7. Finish the never-ending rabbit fencing in the veg garden
8. Grow and eat something I've never tried before
9. Keep at least a few square inches of my desk free of paper
10. Make the time to stop and stare
11. Plant the beginnings of an orchard
12. Find out what disaster they're inflicting on Ambridge on Sunday
13. Join my local choir
14. Finish that book synopsis lurking in my computer for two years now
15. ...and send it off
16. Tackle the scary Kaffe Fassett pattern my husband wants for a sweater
17. Put down more and stronger roots in my adopted county
18. Get back in a boat and start sailing again
19. Harvest some elderberry flowers for making cordial
20. Find a little more space for people as well as plants

Happy New Year everyone and I hope your 2011 is everything you hope it will be.

7 comments:

Helen/patientgardener said...

Maybe you need to get Pam the Jams preserve book to achieve no 1? I havent made aa list since it would scare me too much - going to take each day as it comes
Best wishes for 2011

The Constant Gardener said...

Ah yes I've heard of Pam the Jam's preserve book - actually it's legendary and also on my birthday requests list... A friend who makes preserves for a living tells me I'm not making enough jam. Apparently strawberries set better if they're cooked in very large quantities. Sounds good to me!

and best wishes to you too :D

Diana Studer said...

Don't be scared of Kaffe Fassett. I've knitted quite a few. Er, like learning to read music, or a foreign language? Once you start the urge to see the pattern develop keeps you going, till it is finished.

VP said...

You must get Pam the Jam's book - it's my most used cookbook and makes jams and preserves a doddle :) I predict you'll also go out foraging a lot more as a result so you can have a go at intriguing recipes such as 'hawthorn ketchup'.

If you join a choir, it might be be involved in Sing for Water in Bristol this year - fancy joining me in a choir of at least 600 people?

Happy New Year!

The Constant Gardener said...

EE - actually I'm a Kaffe Fassett veteran already :D I knitted a bag from one of his patterns and it had me turning the air blue while I was doing it but was one of the most satisfying (if error-pocked) things I've ever done. As you say - like learning a foreign language, once you've got the hang of it it's not too bad! Trouble is you have to learn a different foreign language each time you pick up a new pattern...

VP - hawthorn ketchup... mmm. One to try this year perhaps? This book is moving up the list fast. And choir in Bristol - yes why not, can anyone join in? Or do I have to join a choir in Chippenham first? ;D

VP said...

Sing for Water will be many choirs drawn from the south west, so if you join a community choir near you (not necessarily Bristol or Chippenham), it's more than likely to be involved :)

The Constant Gardener said...

Right - you have just doubled my resolve on no. 13 :D

Hope to see you there!

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