My Off-grid and need to be frugal diary

AnimalTribe

DH and I have been out doing the tourist thing again today. We ended the day with a lovely meal in an Italian restaurant. Is it weird that my favourite food is pizza, even more than chocolate?

AnimalTribe

It seems that the problem I had posting has been fixed.

Today's been a mixed day, some tidying and some gardening. I've ordered an oven thermometer because I’m going to get back into bread making by hand and I want to make sure the oven reaches the right temperature. It’s been fine for all the other baking I do, but I just want to check and the thermometer is cheap at £3.99 for one that goes from 100-600F. Being out in the sticks I use Calor gas bottles for the oven. Calor gas ovens are slightly different from a standard gas oven, as they burn hotter so need tougher steel for the burners and a thicker hose

rachmac3

A really good properly made pizza is soooooo good!
I think a few of us had problems getting on this site and posting. 

AnimalTribe

rachmac3 A properly made pizza is absolutely excellent, but in a pinch, for me, any pizza will do as long as it has loads of tomato sauce

I've let my e-mails build up to a staggering level, so I've spent some of today clearing my inbox down. 

At lunch time I went into the garden to pick a handful of large, juicy strawberries that I've been keeping an eye on and knew would be fully ripe today - but no strawberries as birds, mice or something had eaten them. I was so disappointed. I'll have to net the largest strawberry pots. I've some old net curtains that I bought at a charity shop. They do the job and still let light through. I can take them off at the end of the season, wash them and re-use them for a few years.

AnimalTribe

It's been very windy today so there's been lots of free energy. Lots of rain too so no need for me to water the garden.

DH and I have been out most of today, wandering around a village, mostly window shopping, but we did buy some nice cakes. We also, found a good cafe and had a lovely lunch.

rachmac3

I feel your strawberry pain, I've had none this year. I put net over so the chickens couldn't pinch them but something has gotten in. I managed to rescue a handful of raspberries today. A blackbird has been pinching the ones higher up, and my chicken has pinched the ones she can reach from the ground. I don't mind sharing but I think it's only right I get some!!

in_need_of_direction

Our previous dog used to eat raspberries off the canes.

weenancyinAmerica

With our dog, it was cherry tomatoes. She would even do all of her tricks to get some.
I think we are all being asked if we are human. At least we know we passed the test.

AnimalTribe

rachmac3 I managed to get 1 large strawberry today, but it is frustrating. My gooseberries are non-existent as they've been eaten (including leaves) by hundreds of caterpillars. My raspberries are not anywhere near ripe yet, and I'm keeping a close eye on the black and red currants as they are nearly ripe. I still miss having hens and ducks they are such characters. One of our dogs would be a terror with poultry though so I can't have any more. Still the dog is such a darling I wouldn't trade her for anything.

in-need-of-direction I hope my dogs don't develop a taste for them - they'll have to make do with apples and bananas.

weenancyinamerica - tomatoes gave me a laugh, with my dogs the seeds would probably end up everywhere I can just imaging the mess. With our dogs it's bran flakes they love them more than anything else.

We had sheep in the garden this morning. This hasn't happened for a long time. DH made a temporary fence repair, while I watered the garden. Then I helped him fit a rubber gasket on a piece of equipment - it was a difficult job, even though he put the gasket in very hot water to soften the rubber. It was one of those fiddly jobs that needed another pair of hands, but my hands were aching keeping part of it in place while he persuaded the rest of the gasket into the recess.
 
A DVD I ordered has gone astray somewhere, but the delivery company are trying to sort it out. I'm hoping they're successful, if not I'll be able to get a refund, but it was something I was looking forward to watching and it's hard to get hold of (An American TV series).

I made some date and sunflower seed flapjacks this afternoon, and they are already disappearing a fast rate - it's not all DHs doing as I have had a couple.

Today has been overcast, with little wind, so DH will be plugging the freezer and fridge into portable power packs that we charge when we have plenty of electricity for just this kind of day.

foxgloves

Gooseberry sawfly caterpillars? They are a nightmare for stripping gooseberry bushes to twigs in the twinkling of an eye.
F