Cardboard art and floods

Working on sequencing my genetic data as I am, I have been spending more time online than normal this week. And it just so happens that today is a good day for interesting internetting.

Find #1: Cardboard collective
This makes my attempts at costumes look rather passe. I particularly like the Luna moth costume, but check the rest of the site out, too. This lady has made upcycling cardboard into an art form!

Find #2: 21 Pictures of Politicians in Wellies Staring at Floods
I particularly like that the fashion advisers have not let any of them wear Hunter wellies, in case they look posh or something. Much inappropriate laughter was had in a very quiet office.

Find #3:  Global warming is about hotter, drier weather... not flooding
I got this through my ABSW feed this morning, and I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry. I think for my health it had better be the former. It is the worst piece of journalism I think I've ever read.

How to make stress your friend

I don't often make such sweeping statements, but watching this video by Kelly McGonigal and TED might just save your life.

She talks about how it is the belief in the negative effects of stress that affect your health, not the stress itself.

In other words: if you believe stress is bad, it will negatively affect your health.

Mental, huh?

I love science.

The link again? Oh go on then...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcGyVTAoXEU

No poo #3

Yeah, I know right! Third time's a charm though - isn't it?

I haven't had much luck with cutting out shampoo. I read the blogs of these amazing women who haven't washed their hair for years and have beautiful hair, and I cry inwardly. WHY DOESN'T IT WORK FOR ME? Why doesn't my hair co-operate?

So, in light of yet another story of a lady who hasn't used shampoo for 3 years, I'm giving this one last try. This time with scarves. 

That's right. I'm just really hoping that by having something pretty on my head, rather than a mop of slightly greasy hair, I will be able to stick it out for longer. As previously stated, I may be a little bit of a hippy, but I do care about my appearance.

So, this time – out with the bicarb and lemon juice approach, out with things that make a complete mess of my shower (I'm looking at you, lentils) – in with… wait for it, WATER!

Yup. 

For a week now I have been showering for 5 minutes every morning (rather than 15 every three days) and just not using any shampoo. I give my hair a good rub-over to make sure it's well rinsed, and when I'm out it goes up in a bun, then gets wrapped up in a scarf.

So far, it's a horrible greasy mess. It looks ok if I ruffle it up, and has more volume than my hair has ever had, but to the touch it's horrid. If this keeps up I'm canning the experiment.

So far the major up-side has been the discovery of Andrea Grinberg's website. As an Orthodox Jew she covers her hair for other reasons, but has turned it into an art form. A scraggly kerchief over the head? No-siree. 

I am in awe, and blatantly copying some of her ideas. I have had more compliments in a week over the head scarves than I have in a year for my hair. At this rate I might just wear them all the time, and keep up the no-poo until either my hair gets nice, or I run out of scarf-related inspiration.

Please do check out her blog, it's SO inspiring!

Love, Bee x

Kimchi

When I wasn't feeling too hot in January one of the things I did was to go a little bit hobbity and decide to cook all our meals from scratch. And 'from scratch' I mean getting the vegetables from the allotment before I even started cooking. Don't ask me why, but sometimes doing small things with great involvement makes me feel a whole lot better.

Thus commenced a week of stews and Asian-style noodle soups. But the thing I find with growing my own veggies is that I'm unwilling to throw ANYTHING away if I can possibly help it. So, having stripped the kale and chard from its stems I was left with a heap of greenery I had grown from teeny tiny seeds, which I didn't want to just chuck on the compost heap.

Now, I've made kimchi once or twice before, but that was the result of going-out-and-buying-everything-I-needed-beforehand. You know, good quality veg – not tough, stalky leftovers. But, as I discovered from those first kimchi experiments, the process of fermenting softens the veg somewhat and I thought I'd give it a go. 

So, I dug out my copy of Sandor Ellix Katz's Wild Fermentation and found me a kimchi recipe. Of course, I'm incapable of following instructions unless I'm in the lab (perhaps because I'm not in the lab) so I adapted the basic principles to the resources I had to hand.

The process goes thus: 

1. Soak veg in salty water over night.

2. Drain and dry veg (but hang onto salty water).

3. Make up a mound of chopped onions, chilli, garlic and ginger in a bowl. Add a glug of fish sauce. Add soy sauce - or tamari if, like me, you're wheat intolerant.
 

4. Add pre-salted veg to bowl. Stir.

5. Pack everything into a container (I use an old Innocent veg pot) ensuring no air bubbles. Top up with salty water if necessary.

You then have to wait about a week, poking it down from time to time to get rid of any new air bubbles and to mix in any water that comes out of the veg.

I am always amazed that it tastes so good. How on earth can kale stalks, salt, spices and time taste so buttery and delicious? But it does! Over the past few evenings I've been scouring Amazon for more kimchi books, and discovered a few in the 77p Kindle range (why are they all 77p?)

If you have any recipes please do share them below!

Bee x

Wheezy chooks - update

A couple of people have been asking about how the chickens are doing since I (ahem) de-moulded their roost box, and I am happy to say that they're looking much better!

I've been working on the assumption that had they been born free they would most likely have learned to nest in a tree (with unlimited ventilation) so have been leaving their pop-hole and little window open (though the door to the run is closed). This helped, but didn't cure it completely.

So I rang up the BHWT helpline and asked their advice. The lovely lady I spoke to suggested I put a bit of cider vinegar in their water – an old folk remedy – and do you know what? It only flipping sorted everything out. 

So yes, now we have some happy, healthy hens!

The downside is that now they're feeling better they're on a mission to get into the house :)

Bee x

My favourite thing this week

At the moment I am trying to finish my thesis, which I am finding incredibly stressful. When I am stressed I don't sleep. When I don't sleep I melt down.

I'm sometimes not sure if having kids would be a good idea.

So, in an effort to de-stress I somehow stumbled across a spate of videos on YouTube where people have simply recorded the sound of -rain- or -the sea- or -birds singing in the countryside- and put them up.

To these people: I LOVE YOU!

I can now fall asleep to the sound of rain, which for some reason conks me out in minutes.

If this is you - go search! Go now! Free stress tools on the interwebs!

Bee x