Posts tagged ‘heathen homestead’

I’m still here!

Hello anyone who looks at my website! It has been a minute. I got hired to open and manage a cafe at St. Stephen’s church in Richmond, VA. Then they added managing the weekly, year round Farmers Market to my responsibilities. All of this also meant my partner David had to start doing more with our historic window restoration business. I also had to put herbalism school on hold. And you know, we got married and also did all kinds of fun activities with our kids in the meantime.

 We opened the cafe in the week before Thanksgiving, and there was not much sleep. Over a month in, and many of the kinks have been worked out, I have great cafe staff, and we are open 7 days a week to the public. The cafe serves as a Village Green, and we have a smoothie of the same name. I was also able to create a really fun drink menu that works with the Church’s mission of being good environmental stewards and promoting healthy, local food and drink. I even incorporated some herbalist aspects into things like the Golden Milk Latte and our tea selection! 

I am hoping in 2018 to get back to regular haiku. It has just been a 70+ hour a week thing for a bit.

I am #grateful for the #harvest from #motherearth and for the time today to continue processing some of the plant bounty we were able to grow and #wildcraft this year. #herbalism #herbalist #theheathenhomestead #rva #beaverdam #goldenrod #rose #cleavers #chickweed #queenanneslace #wormwood #plantain here is just a little of what we grew and gathered

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Just another Farmer’s Market Day

Today we are out at the Mineral Farmer’s Market in Mineral, Louisa. We are selling a lavender calendula lip balm, a chickweed Calendula yarrow goldenrod skin salve, a chickweed plantain lavender butt balm, a coconut oil chickweed lavender peppermint sugar scrub, a motherwort passionflower oatstraw lemon balm blue vervain tea, a mullein chamomile lemon balm wood betony and cinnamon tea, an Epsom salt cinnamon ginger patchouli grapefruit bath salt, a witch hazel rose calendula yarrow red raspberry heal all facial toner, a mullein red raspberry mugwort uva ursi chamomile smoking blend, and more!

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Recent Project – The Heathen Homestead

I have been suuuper busy lately, working with David on our farm, herbal medicine, furniture, and crafts enterprise, The Heathen Homestead.

We are starting seeds for herbAl medicinals we are growing.

We are also gearing up for our first couple events where we will be vendors.

Come see us this Sunday March 12 from 1-4. More about that event at the link:

https://theheathenhomestead.org/2017/03/04/a-day-for-us-sunday-march-12-from-1-4-at-the-lakeside-farmers-market/

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Support Our Businesses/ Buy Our Stuff

​If you are interested in showing financial support, you can do so via purchasing items from my Etsy –

The Heathen Homestead

there are books, earrings, tinctures, and other sorts of things available for purchase!

Also check out our Window Restoration Business – Karnage Creations LLC (I am a licensed contractor, jack of many trades). We can restore your historic windows, paint, etc.

And for the newest upcoming project of a farm, herbal medicine apothecary, and furniture enterprise, our website for the Heathen Homestead.

Thanks for any support you can offer!

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2017 – New Year, New Businesses

I am trying to figure out my post baby plan, but right now that seems to include a revamping of our first business, Karnage Creations LLC. I am a licensed contractor, and the work we like to do is restoring historic windows. We prefer to do larger jobs, more along the lines of being subcontracted in a home renovation project than handman odd jobs. We also do a variety of carpentry, painting, etc. Find out more about Karnage Creations LLC here: Richmond Window Repair

The other business David and I are trying to get off the ground is the Heathen Homestead. This is our farming, herbal medicine, crafting, furniture making enterprise. Our website and etsy are live, and our journey is just beginning. Keep tabs on that project here: The Heathen Homestead

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Gratitude 

I am thinking this week, in a stereotypical fashion, of things for which I am grateful. I am making a list, because I lurve lists!!! (Insert derpy face here)

  • Friends who are good at staying in touch and do so even though I am unworthy and do not reciprocate well
  • That inkling of uncertainty creeping into the minds of police and soldiers who are doing oppressive things
  • The patience to discuss political issues with people who I disagree with, with the hope to find points of unity and educate along the way
  • Water defenders at Standing Rock doing vital work I can not do at this time, fighting against the Dakota Access Pipeline
  • Chulainn, my 3 month old baby, who is just so sweet and easy and amazing and has changed my whole world
  • My partner David who is willing to navigate this crazy world with me
  • Indoor plumbing and similar amenities we take for granted but are not available to many people in the world. Despite my stress and how hard chores feel, I have it easy compared to so many and should always be grateful. I think about Syria, Libya, Afghanistan, Iraq, India, Egypt right now in particular.
  • People who let me bring my baby to jobs 
  • Plants and their medicine, and the knowledge I have gained this year about their uses which will help me keep myself, my family, and my community happy and healthy

Life has been stressful. Money, custody, divorce, marriage, jobs, moving, chores, broken vehicles, etc. Are some of the things I have to deal with in my life right now. Reflecting on the things for which I am grateful helps me gain necessary perspective and think more optimistically. I have a very good life and I am thankful for it and for all the people who are a positive part of my life.

I have several friends who make a practice of stating 3 things they are grateful each day, and I love that practice! I would encourage anyone who is feeling low to try this. It helps me a lot and seems like a healthy thing to do.

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Pros and Cons of Country Life

Pros and Cons of Country Life

Can have lots of Animals – Have to take care of lots of animals – Livestock equals deadstock

Annoying people rarely drop by your house — Friends rarely drop by

Quiet, there are no talking buses — No buses, must have a car to get around

Related,

Far away from other people’s nonsense — Have to drive for work and social and shopping

Room for plants and gardens — weeding and watering plants and gardens and lots of grass to cut

You can see the stars — There is actually no counterpoint to stars, they are excellent

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Heathen Vegan

Heathen Homestead

I am a very open minded vegan, in that I would 10000% people move to eating local and kindly raised animals and animal by products, over factory farmed crap. But I am not personally interested in eating it. My use of vegan alternative products is pretty minimal, they didn’t exist and/or weren’t accessible to me when I went vegetarian and then vegan. I’ve also been doing this a while – veggie for about 20 years vegan for like 15 of that. And I grew up with chickens and cows at home. My mom is a veggie too (like 35++ years) and my dad still slaughters cows he raises and I still prefer he do that than buy from stores. My mom calls em animals that have one bad day. They get to live a good life in fields with food, and then one day someone kills em in the field. I also don’t knock hunters, they are small fries in the cruelty world compared to the corporations. I still cry every time I see dead animals and stuff, but it is preferable to the emotional detachment most people have about their food. If you cant handle the death, which I can not, you really shouldn’t eat it.

We have chickens, and they lay eggs, and I am hoping my family and friends will eat those eggs over eating store bought factory farm eggs. I know how our chickens are treated and I do not see a moral/ethical issue with people eating those eggs.  It is better than purchasing processed crap from a corporation.

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Capitalism Invades Relationship

Capitalism Invades Relationship

A phenomena I have noticed, which may happen to other people aside from me, is that I find myself operating as an unwitting agent of the capitalist system. I’m against capitalism, I want to smash the state, and my politics in these areas are pretty firm. The anxiety that the capitalist system creates inside me, or that I allow it to create inside me, has the unfortunate effect of turning me into an enforcer. I see this play out most strongly in my relationship with David. When he is sick, or needs a day off of work, I kind of freak out. I worry about bills. A lot. My initial reaction when he is sick is to hope that he will still go to work. When he calls out of work to do chores around the farm or just have a day off, I struggle to not get really upset with him. It is so bogus. I care about him way more than I do about bills, I understand 1000% the need for mental health days from work, and that working 40+ hours a week is just a totally soul sucking enterprise. I don’t want him to suffer at a job he hates, to miss out on his hobbies and friends and family because of work.

But damn if the capitalism induced anxiety doesn’t still get me. Now that I have identified this issue I can talk to him about it, and also talk myself down internally when I start to get worked up.

I know we are just going to struggle financially for a while at least, and we still have it better than a lot of people. I just have to relax and not let capitalism destroy my life or relationship. I know starting a new family, dealing with divorce and custody, and moving and starting careers and pregnancy etc. are all just expensive and stressful. We are doing ok. We have good supportive families and friends.

I wonder if lots of people have capitalism as the other person in their relationships. I suspect this is pretty common.

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