New Photos of My Country Kitchen

My farmhouse kitchen is large huge, about the same size as most rooms in this house...20'x20' and eight people can sit comfortably before resorting to perching on the hearth or moving a dog off their bed. The kitchen is painted Martha Stewart's Bee Balm Red and curtains were never used because the window valences allow the 9'x3' windows to let the outside in. 

The cabinets, hand built on site, are birch and have piano hinges; some cupboards have glass windows. The pass through, to the living room, was made to allow both conversation and light to pass between both rooms. Hand made baskets are lined up over the sink and most were made either by my Grandmother or me. The metal dipper is for grabbing a drink of water so I don't dirty a glass (well, that's the way we've always said it). 

The table came out of the old Pembroke Bank in Giles County VA and still has the leather top and screw holes that held down an antique adding machine and two drawers are on one side. 

On either end of the table are sturdy chairs; one is a Morris type Chair and the other is a chair with heart cut-outs. I've had the heart chair for, maybe 40 years, and the Morris chair was given by a friend 10 years ago. Alongside the length of the table is an antique three seater choir pew and when additional seating is needed, I bring out the bench Daddy made two decades ago.

If you're getting the hint there's nothing much new in this house, you'd be right. I believe the wormy chestnut rocking chair is newest and it's made of re-claimed barn wood.

The stove is a refurbished 1914 Acorn cook stove; it has seven propane gas burners and three ovens with a warming oven on top left. For the story behind the stove, click here and here. 

The fireplace was re-built using slave made brick from the original farm house (which burnt during Christmas 1899) and in lieu of a mantle, now boasts a slab of wormy chestnut. The original lithograph is The Gleaners, an oil painting by Jean-Francois Millet, finished in 1857 and hanging in the Musee d'Orsay in France. The three peasant women glean a field of wheat after the harvest and remind me of Ruth in the Old Testament. The story behind the painting is here and I hope to visit the original at some point in the future.

The mantle is lined with trip treasures...a copper coffee container Dave purchased when he visited a Romanian Gypsy village (I stayed in the vehicle due to feelings of unease about our belongings being left alone...a good thing, as I was in the back of the van, a man climbed aboard and was quite startled to see me!), sugar and tea containers hand crafted by the nomad Bedouin's in the Sahara Desert. Dave bought those while we were in an antique shop in the Marrakesh souk. The kerosene lantern is from the 1800's but the hand thrown pottery flower vase is newish, purchased from an old friend who was laid off from the coal mines then taught himself to throw pottery. The vase is only 15 years old so it's almost brand new -lol.

The gas log insert broke and was replaced with a propane fireplace that brings more heat into the room and I enjoy more than the gas logs insert.

All the crocks are original and handed down through Daddy's family; the smaller crock sitting on the propane fireplace, and the larger crock to the far right, are both from my Great-Grandmother and still in use when I churn butter. The smaller crocks are used to make pickles using my Grandmother's Bread and Butter recipe.

The rocking chair on the right is made of re-claimed wormy chestnut barn wood and was Amish made to sit alongside Dave's Amish made casket at the wake. It's a nice, sturdy chair and gives me good memories amongst the painful ones.

So, that's part of my kitchen and a portion of the stories. The Welsh type cupboard can't be seen and if anyone is interested, I'll post about it of if you'd like to see something close up, let me know. The kitchen is a Working Kitchen and everything in it earns a living by doing what it was made to do. Someone asked, "Aren't you afraid you'll break _____?" and I replied, "If I do break it, it'll be broken while in service and not being dusted.

Life was meant to be used, hearts were made to be broken and, when we're most blessed and fortunate, all put to rights again. Please don't put "whatever" on a shelf or keep in wrapping paper; put it into service today! Have your memories be good ones...when you were on holiday and bought ___ or the family said, "Sandra would enjoy having that rocking chair" or salvage something from your family...or even the thrift store...give it a home and make your own memories so you can tell your own stories.

Because memories are the key 

to both our past and our futures.

Blessings ~ The Gleaners ~ 1914 Acorn stove ~ Morocco ~ holidays ~ memories ~

Travel Tales and Pacsafe Giveaway!

"I am not the same 

having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world."

~ Mary Anne Radmacher ~

~ Dave and I in Russia ~

Dave and I began traveling in 2008 when "Dr. Jammy", a professor at Bluefield State College, asked me to go to Russia and teach Agritourism which is, simply put, agriculture married to tourism. Dr. J. had written a US State Department grant, which was accepted, and there was room in the budget for me...woohoo! Dave went, paid his own way, and for that I am forever thankful. Long story short...Dave and I flew into the Sheremetyevo International Airport where we were...not greeted...hmmm. Dave plopped me down to guard our luggage while he went in search of our group who had flown in the week prior. He didn't find them but he did find a couple of men who looked like "alphabet soup guys". Of course, I wouldn't put my hand on the Bible and swear to it but there's a certain swagger (and sometimes bulges, iow guns) that ABC (what I call alphabet soup) guys, maybe women but haven't met any of them, have that sort of screams CIA, FBI, DHS, NSA and, in this case, KGB. gulp.

~ Dave and I in the Sahara Desert ~

One man spoke better English than I do Russian (I know about six words in Russian) and said, "Jammy said you come with us." I looked at Dave...umm, I don't think so and now that I've thought about it another second, I know we're not going with you! The Russian gent showed us a photocopy of our passports and I said, "I need to speak with Jammy." Only then did he led me to a phone booth and dialed an out of country number for Jammy. Turns out there'd been a slight problem which resulted in more than a weeks' delay and Dave and I were to get in a van and these men were going to drive us five hours to another city. GULP.

~ Dave and I, with Pacsafe purse, in Alaska ~

It turned out, as far as teaching, I was on my own for a day or three longer than a week so Dave and I made the best of it. We had each other, we had each other's backs and life was very good, fun and exciting! Although, our Russian/English translator did have a slight problem with alcohol...meaning he was gripping the table so hard his knuckles were white and this at 10:00 in the morning. That man could put away some alcohol and if that sort of thing impressed me, I'd be very, very impressed with his abilities. However, I was never really quite sure what he was translating. No one ever got angry with me, some were really excited and I hope that was in a good way -grin- and, in one word, the trip was fabulous! That was the first time I'd ever had a passport and, four years later, I had to get a new one because the old one had so many stamps that border guards and customs folks were peckish when they had to thumb through the pages looking for an empty spot to stamp. Oh la, get over it!

~ Dave and I, with Pacsafe purse, in Tarifa, Spain ~

Over the years, I've gotten better at packing and, toward the end of our travels together, Dave and I had one rule...never carry more than we could run with. Dave could travel for a month with his "man bag" (as he called it) and an under the seat case that he could fit three pairs of pants, three shirts, socks, undies, some toiletries and a few other goodies. I had a Pacsafe purse and a twenty-one inch carry-on suitcase on wheels and we each wore travel vests with about a dozen pockets where we'd stuff things we needed at hand. Now I have added another rule which is..."if it don't roll, it don't go" which is horrible grammar but helps strengthen the point. (I've strolled London streets, alone, at 1:00 a.m. searching for my hotel and loving/cursing my rolling suitcase for the noise it was making over the cobblestones.)

~ Dave and I, with Pacsafe purse, in the Azore Islands ~

There are some things that, in addition to passport, credit cards and money, always, always, always go with me on my travels: my Pacsafe purse or wallet, my Macabi skirts (look silly on me but love the convenience) and Mephisto walking shoes. As an aside, Mephisto shoes are expensive but I bought mine on sale about ten years ago and they still look new and an added plus is Mephisto will resole the shoes when needed. I have literally been in those shoes for more than twenty hours and my feet were the only part of my body that weren't screaming in exhaustion. They are...the best shoes I've ever worn!

The Pacsafe purse is a dandy and looks new due to the care it's been given. It's not new but it is now out of production.It has two straps with a velcro strip that encloses both straps and gives a cushion when thrown over the shoulder. The sleeve in the front of the bag is open, top and bottom, so it can be put over a suitcase handle and rest on top, letting the suitcase bear the weight.

The opposite side of the bag has a large pocket, with velcro, where travel tickets, agenda, maps, book, etc. may be stored within reach.

Inside the bag are more pockets with velcro, slots for credit cards, identification, pens, two elastic pockets on either end of bag and an inside sleeve that zips shut and is the length and height of the bag. This zippered sleeve is where I kept passport, boarding passes and other things that needed safe keeping.

Safety features include top zipper locks to keep anyone from dipping into the bag

and locks to secure the bag to a chair or table.

What makes Pacsafe THE bag to carry can't be seen because it's the eXomesh beneath the fabric shell (that may be cut) and prevents the bag's contents from falling out or being removed. Click on eXomesh for full story on the many security features. I know a woman who was targeted for a slash and grab in Rome; she was getting off a bus and a man offered his hand to help her down the steps. She accepted but didn't realize his true intent was to step into her personal space, slice the bottom of her handbag with a box cutter and steal her wallet. By the time she realized what had happened, it was over and he, with her money and identification, had disappeared. I never travel without my Pacsafe bag or wallet (sometimes both); they give me added security for keeping my money, credit cards, identification and my precious passport safe.

The Giveaway: You must be a follower of this blog, you must leave a way for me to contact you, you must answer this: where is your dream vacation/holiday and why? If you win by random drawing, you'll receive the Pacsafe bag shown in this post and a few goodies for good measure that will aid in your wanderlust. A week from today, Monday, April 6, at 5:00 p.m. a name will be decided randomly. You'll have 24 hours to respond to the e-mail stating you've won; after 24 hours, another name will be drawn.

May you use for many travels in good health and happiness!

Blessings ~ travel ~ Pacsafe ~ Macabi ~ Mephisto ~ Dr. Jammy ~ travels with Dave and now by myself ~

Get off the Boat

Jen, Finding Heaven Today, has a post on...fear which is what I call most of the unknowns in life. She talks about leaving the boat which reminds me of the card someone sent Dave and I when we bought this farm. The card showed two people, standing at a crossroads, with a sign that pointed "Normal" and "Off the Beaten Path". The couple stood at the lane that lead to "Off the beaten path" and the caption said, "George, are you sure we should do this?"

Dave used to say, "Once you get off the boat, you can never go back." He and Cathy were going to sell out, move to Hawaii and raise blood hounds except cancer changed those plans and she died. Eleven months after she died, I met Dave and he and I moved to Hawaii and lived for a while (separate bedrooms) because he needed to find his bearings. Little did either of us know it would take six years for him to regain equilibrium but he was worth every day of wait. Evidently, he thought the same of me.
We bought this farm and moved from Richmond where we'd each lived for years. It was a great decision; it taught us to rely on each other, to depend upon each other and it was the beginnings of a foundation that stood us in good stead over the years. What cemented that foundation, that trust, that love was when we began to travel. 

The first time I ever needed a passport, I was invited to teach in Russia. Thankfully, Dave decided he wanted to go and the two of us landed in the Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport where we wandered around for a while. Long story short, the people who were supposed to meet us were detained...for a week...and Dave and I were on our own. The man who'd put the trip together had arranged for a car and driver; eventually, Dave and I were found and, after a phone call to ascertain it was legit, we loaded our luggage into a van with two Russians, one of whom was ex-KGB. Oh yeah, talk about fear factor -smile-. We drove for about five hours before we arrived in Yaroslavl where I was to teach first. It didn't take long for Dave and I to surmise our translator, the ABC no-neck guy as he was quickly labeled, was a severe alcoholic...by eleven o'clock in the morning! God knows what he translated that week but our reception was warm and I still correspond with some of those people we met, so it might not have been too bad. I think. 

Dave and I "got off the boat" to make that trip and it was the beginning of a lot of trips, most of them mild adventure that made for wild adventure and a lot of memories. Were we frightened? Oh yes...but we did it anyway. Like I told my mother when she had a panic attack over our going to Russia, "If God can take care of us in Virginia, He can take care of us in Russia. It's not a problem for God." In the years since, He's taken care of us, and now me, in almost thirty countries and in situations that were sometimes...tense. (Remembering here the Russian Mafia in Gori, Georgia and camping in the Moroccan Sahara Desert nine clicks from the Algerian border.) Since Dave's death, God has kept me safe in Sint Maartin and I feel confident He's also kept me safe each and every day since.

A few years ago, a friend told me she admired me and I was surprised. I asked her why and she said, "because you're not afraid of anything." Again, she surprised me and I told her, "Oh yes, I'm afraid. I'm afraid if I say "no" to God, He'll stop giving me opportunities."  Getting up in the morning takes a lot of faith and courage. How do people who don't have God in their lives manage? I mean, why bother? Life is full of unknowns; it's full of what if's and, for me, it's full of Jesus. 

I don't know what the future will bring, heck, I'm not sure what all I'm doing tomorrow but I do know my future includes Jesus. 

And that means I can step out confidently, in the direction of my dreams. What's your dream and will you join me?

Blessings ~ Dave ~ travel ~ mild adventure ~ Jesus ~ 

To One of the Rare Ones...

Dave, second from left, sitting with Bedouins and Tuareg of the Sahara, aka Blue Men, in their tent, in the Moroccan Sahara Desert, about 9 clicks from the Algerian border.

HAPPY BIRTH DAY, Beloved! 

click - At Last

"Thou art my life--I the brook, thou the spring.

Because thine eyes are open, I can see;

Because thou art thyself, 'tis therefore I am me."

~ George MacDonald, Diary of an Old Soul ~

Blessings ~ 22 years of friendship and love, including 16 years of marriage ~