Cindy from Virginia USA
Cindy from Virginia is taking part in our around the world household study and has sent in an email with photos. and description. Anyone can do this, read the post Grandma Around the World. It is located under tab living like the past.
This is Cindy's sink and she is about to make pear sauce and this is what Cindy has to say.
I have a double sink and a dishwasher. I use Palmolive for hand washing and Cascade in the dishwasher. I hang my dishtowel on the stove handle. When washing dishes in the sink I would have a drain rack and board where the Asian pears are. I have 2 jade plants and a Christmas cactus in the window. In the fall when we get more sun in the windows I will have rectangle boxes of mixed lettuce and maybe small carrots in the windows. I hand wash plastic, pots and pans, most of the knives, any dish or glass that has a picture or words on them, and anything fragile.
Cindy's Dishwasher
These are the pears I was working on. After washing, core and cut, trim off bad spots.
Place in pot with a little water and simmer until soft. I had 3 pots this size.
Then I ran them through my SqueezO Strainer. Pull the fruit in the top,
press down the plunger and turn the handle, good sauce comes down the
shoot and trash out the side. This one is 25-30 years old and all
metal. They went to part plastic, but recently I saw an ad for an all
metal one.
I ended up with 9 quarts and 2 pints plus a bowl for fresh eating. Pear sauce is really good when it is cold outside.
This is a picture of my garden. This is actually last years picture.
There are 5 raised beds and right now I have one with sweet potatoes,
one with tomatoes and green peppers, one with peas and turnips that were
planted this month, and 2 empty which I have broccoli and cabbage and
kale which I planted inside in cups and they are now on the porch ready
to transfer. The A frame has green beans on it and also some peas that
were planted this month have come up and also squash and watermelon
underneath.
We don't collect rain water. Our house has large
overhangs without gutters. We do have a well with pump, no city water
here, and a septic tank.
Cindy from Virginia
Thank you Cindy for showing us your garden, your kitchen and how you make pear sauce. Your raised beds look like they get plenty of sunshine and I really like your A frame for climbing vegetables!
Grandma Donna
Next
Pamela From Norway
Hello and good morning from a foggy, grey Norway G. Donna. A few notes on how I do my daily chores here. I used to hate housework, but after being bedridden with severe illness for years, being able to keep my own house in order feels like a big joy now. Firstly, collecting rainwater. We live beside a huge lake where we can drink the water and our pump costs very little to run, so we don't collect rainwater. As I have such a good water supply, I don't use a dishwasher anymore.
I have never met anyone in my generation who doesn't use one, but it is part of our quest to live more "unplugged" and be less dependant on gadgets. I have saved up and bought a Really good washing machine of the Swedish make ASKO which is meant to last 15 - 20 years. With four children and a husband bringing home a lot of work clothes, I also bought a dryer to use in Winter. I only use it for bedclothes and towels. Feel a little ashamed, but I really need it.
We really want to leave a lighter fooprint on earth. There is a lot to learn, but little by little, we get better. Learning every day. Please ask if there is anything else you would like to know. Blessings, Pam in Norway ( winkelscrazyideas blogspot)
I emailed Pamela back with question about do they filter the water? Do they have septic tanks? And Pamela replied,
Hello again from Norway. We don't need to filter our lake water. What is expensive is the heating of water. I never turn it off as there has been a few cases of legionella the past years due to older people turning the heat down in their boilers. I try to use as little hot water as possible. Our boiler is part of a system where the water is kept at 52 degrees C on a regular basis and then automatically boiled up at intervals to avoid dangerous bacteria such as legionella. Such systems are getting more and more common in Norway. I find it rather complicated and would be content with the wood burner and a regular hot water heater. We have our own well pumping directly from the lake and our own "green" Septiktank. It is emptied every 2 - 3 years. It filters and cleans on the premises and is one of the best environmentally on the market. Another thing I thought about is the wood burner. Found in most every Norwegian home. New of the last decades is that they are "clean burners" and pollute far far less than earlier. We have one and it is wonderful. We also cut our own wood. Pam in Norway. Looking forward to hear how things are around the world :)
Thank You Pamela for such good information as so many of us are trying to live a more simple life and as you say less unplugged.
Anyone can send in photos and or emails about where you live in the world and the things you do at your home. See my post Grandma around the world to learn more.
Pamela has a blog, and to fine her go to winkelscrazyideas.blogspot.com
