tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post406581479809817622..comments2024-02-15T19:34:03.944+00:00Comments on The Hermitage: The Orchard Tales and the Orchard Toils of the First Few Days of Two Thousand and Nine ...Rima Staineshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10044701472535300254noreply@blogger.comBlogger48125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-66217782738266503812009-01-19T21:38:00.000+00:002009-01-19T21:38:00.000+00:00I am glad to be reading this update of your advent...I am glad to be reading this update of your adventures. I, too, have lived with a woodstove through one very cold winter in central Alberta. Keeping warm occupies your mind and ensuring the woodpile is well stocked. Coal is a dangerous substance to be using in a woodstove, it burns hotter and the fumes are toxic. My blessings are sent to keep you safe on your journey.Barbara Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00610140328527165017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-67550590342642554372009-01-18T15:41:00.000+00:002009-01-18T15:41:00.000+00:00I have just discovered your fascinating blog via A...I have just discovered your fascinating blog via Annette Emms. I love your work - it's romantic yet down-to-earth at the same time, modern but with a medieval look. Our heating broke down during that very cold spell and I was very glad to have it repaired. I have got so used to central heating now, it would be very hard to do without it. We didn't have it when I was a child and I can remember ice on the inside of the bedroom windows on winter mornings. I hope I can find my way to you again - my daughter will love your paintings.Heatherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06826501916623305535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-82724220038233769972009-01-18T03:31:00.000+00:002009-01-18T03:31:00.000+00:00What more can be added. Wonderful, how many fasci...What more can be added. Wonderful, how many fascinating people are following you along the way. I admit that things like creosote, coal soot, cemetary water, sinking temps, and the like, hinder me from adventure. I grew up seeing all the bad things that can happen, and so, alas, I go not out into the world as you and Tui do. You WILL figure it out, streamline it, invent, expand, recreate - how can you not. I am humbled and inspired by your bigness of life, even if there've been many held-back tears to avoid the burn on the weathered cheeks. I am so sorry for the impediments and burdens and seeming impasses, but I cheer you on, as you are so courageous and visionary. NO couragio ever blazed forward without temptations to stop or turn back thrown in their way. Forge ahead. It's the only direction: forward. I look forward to reading. I have turned down my heat in solidarity, hoping that somehow, I can add even one wee bit of encouragement from here, very far away, where it has been -30 (Fahrenheit) for days until today. I thought of you, as the air was a frost factory, making sparkles in the night sky constantly. But, it was a deathtrap for any without a source of heat. I will pray for invention and wit to visit you by day and by night with solutions unforeseen! Best. Best. Best.<BR/>SolvaySolvayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03550634075969288572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-66899756828973565112009-01-15T22:34:00.000+00:002009-01-15T22:34:00.000+00:00Thank you so much for sharing this part of your li...Thank you so much for sharing this part of your life so graciously. For someone like me that can only enviously dream of living such an adventure, it fills a little space in my heart. I absolutely love your art.. it is magical!!:) Best Wishes...AmyRosesRadishesandRubbishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05948390902520213146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-4069161520047140162009-01-15T15:54:00.000+00:002009-01-15T15:54:00.000+00:00i love your blog, it´s amazing, i dont understand ...i love your blog, it´s amazing, i dont understand english, but i can dream in this site...thanks for this magical trip...<BR/>from Canary islands,a lot of kisses<BR/><BR/>i admire you...hadanevadahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09025709148910105231noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-79640662262930220532009-01-14T14:18:00.000+00:002009-01-14T14:18:00.000+00:00Hello Rima,Long time lurkers here. I just wanted t...Hello Rima,<BR/><BR/>Long time lurkers here. I just wanted to drop a line to let you know that you have a couple of ladies in Canada (well, probably a lot more, but we can only speak for ourselves!) that absoloutely love what you are doing.<BR/><BR/>If you ever stop on through our neck of the woods, stop on by for tea ;)<BR/><BR/>Slàinte!<BR/><BR/>Aymi & Laurelnefaeriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04068749178602795562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-88173477905099112662009-01-14T09:30:00.000+00:002009-01-14T09:30:00.000+00:00So good to hear from you, and happy tales too ... ...So good to hear from you, and happy tales too ... despite the cold ... take care of yourselves.<BR/><BR/>I look forward to the next installment.<BR/><BR/>Happy New Year! ... a little late I know - but better than never ;-)<BR/><BR/>-Gail XGailhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12480023031281581371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-43911780819322138562009-01-14T02:51:00.000+00:002009-01-14T02:51:00.000+00:00.magic..magic.Flying Whalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09640963420532887158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-83197133993996811662009-01-13T20:33:00.000+00:002009-01-13T20:33:00.000+00:00Everything has been said already, so I just want t...Everything has been said already, so I just want to wish you warmth and good weather and lots of inspiration. It's great to see someone living the life many can only imagine. Cheers to you both!Vitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08246144783750454106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-89463729456290658282009-01-13T02:52:00.000+00:002009-01-13T02:52:00.000+00:00quite remarkable ... all of it ... art, story, lif...quite remarkable ... all of it ... art, story, life. one of your prints remains on my mantle with my children's photos and my icons. lovely.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-28831626083208261992009-01-12T17:23:00.000+00:002009-01-12T17:23:00.000+00:00Hello RimaIts been a while since I was in touch, b...Hello Rima<BR/>Its been a while since I was in touch, but here I am. I rememebr the days when i lived on an old barge and one winter the stove overheated and a very silly pal decided to run up on deck and put a shovel of snow down the chimney which cracked it and we were without heat middle winter in kent..it was hard but you know now many many years later I look back and remember those days with fondness and glad that I did all that when I was young. Now at my ripe old age Im still going over at weekends to sit on a boat on the west coast of Scotland in the middle of winter! .. there must be a bit of gypsy in me. I just love to be out in the landscape.. I think you are both just great and love reading your blog.<BR/>please visit mine again and say hello eh.. tales of travels on a boat.. keep well keep happy and enjoy ;-) xxxMorag Lloydshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14708702942663952853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-52778268542129801862009-01-12T13:20:00.000+00:002009-01-12T13:20:00.000+00:00Hello Rima been checking your blog most days..so g...Hello Rima been checking your blog most days..so glad to see you've managed to surmount the difficulties with the stove, I wonder how you finally managed to get back with that gas thingy..my word you are both awe inspiring in more ways than one!! How grateful we are that you are sharing your journey with those of us not so brave! As they say in Scotland (I believe) 'Lang may your lum reek!' which I believe means, Hope your chimney always smokes, therefore you always have a home. But in your and Tui's case I mean.. May you always have heat and that your chimney smoke goes out in the right way!! :)) Stay safe, hugs.<BR/>JaneHalf-heard in the Stillnesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01840301617199033576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-15094552091281741682009-01-12T09:01:00.000+00:002009-01-12T09:01:00.000+00:00Life is an adventure..and you are living it..I wan...Life is an adventure..and you are living it..I wandered in the mountains of spain,with bagpack. It was a "survival" tour sometimes.<BR/>Wish you luck and a great sence of humour..Take care..(And there will come an end to these very cold winter days)The Dutchesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03417068949346419906noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-48043542824261200612009-01-12T05:29:00.000+00:002009-01-12T05:29:00.000+00:00I would hesitate to get drinking water from the gr...I would hesitate to get drinking water from the graveyard tap unless its tested. Bodies, ground water is not a great combo.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-81133300285808526512009-01-12T05:04:00.000+00:002009-01-12T05:04:00.000+00:00Yes, we do forget how it is to warm ourselves thro...Yes, we do forget how it is to warm ourselves through our own efforts when we sit in centrally heated splendor! I'm wondering how many people can even build a fire these days, no less find and haul the right kind of wood. <BR/><BR/>I hope things stay marvelous and romantic and inspiring and not too smoky :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-45871602825239444442009-01-12T02:29:00.000+00:002009-01-12T02:29:00.000+00:00While it sounds romatic, I do lov my central heat....While it sounds romatic, I do lov my central heat. I admire you though for following your dreams.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-34315506291108518242009-01-11T22:27:00.001+00:002009-01-11T22:27:00.001+00:00It does sound lovely and romantic, but very back b...It does sound lovely and romantic, but very back breaking, I remember days I was draged out to go net fishing for our dinner in the middle of the night and to collect wood for the fire, mind you it was in New Zealand, a lot warmer!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-30480685116049538442009-01-11T22:27:00.000+00:002009-01-11T22:27:00.000+00:00Oh yes, I can relate to that - our cottage is heat...Oh yes, I can relate to that - our cottage is heated by one woodburner with a back-boiler, so wood-gathering has all but erased creative activities from my world the last months. By mid-December, the novelty of heading out (again) after sunset into the rain with bow-saw and axe was wearing thin enough for me to invest in a small chainsaw, an object I had been ambivalent about in the past, to say the lease. Now, it is one of my most cherished possessions - it is actually making life possible and sustainable. Otherwise, wood-gathering becomes a full-time job, and one that doesn't pay the bills.<BR/><BR/>As for seasoned wood v. green - yes, it's true: take care of your chimney if you're burning unseasoned wood over a period of time. <BR/><BR/>Somewhere in me is the knowledge that Spring will come - it will be glorious, and all the more for having felt the bite of Winter - but it feels a long way off, still.<BR/><BR/>One thing - when I've been out fasting in the woods in cold weather (not this cold!) I've found that one of those heat pads from the chemist attached to my shirt between the kidneys helps keep me warm like you wouldn't believe (just don't sleep with them on - they can burn). I remember from a previous post that you are getting acupuncture - the heat pad goes over the ming men point, which is like the pilot light for the whole body's heat system; putting the pad over it kind of super-charges it. I guess it would probably be really bad for you over a long period of time, but it's a winner for the really cold times.<BR/><BR/>Okay, enough of Tom's Winter Tips... I hope your journey onwards is blessed with endless stacks of well-seasoned and fragrant wood chopped to the perfect size for your burner... (and glorious clear skies full of Winter stars)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-60251242066610521522009-01-11T20:58:00.000+00:002009-01-11T20:58:00.000+00:00A lot of what you relate strikes a chord with me, ...A lot of what you relate strikes a chord with me, Rima. We have one old Stanley stove to keep us warm and hunt for wood to burn on an almost daily basis. Since the builders knocked the conservatory off the back of the house we feel we are living more 'outside' than inside at the moment. <BR/><BR/>It really does make you much more aware of the weather, the cold and the seasons in general. Like you, I expect, we wear more clothes to keep warm and go out when others would think us mad. Today we walked Buster to the lake and it was pouring with rain.<BR/><BR/>Lovely to hear of your adventures and so pleased you are hooked up at last.<BR/><BR/>Happy days both of you,<BR/><BR/>GinaBThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16800917080090010655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-64958115914942143912009-01-11T05:54:00.000+00:002009-01-11T05:54:00.000+00:00Happy to see the update Rima, I think of you and y...Happy to see the update Rima, I think of you and your adventures often! Please do stay cozy warm!<BR/><BR/>CatCat (darklingwoods)https://www.blogger.com/profile/06191107705895656760noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-61809627112670170372009-01-10T23:14:00.000+00:002009-01-10T23:14:00.000+00:00valonia is right make sure you have a carbon monox...valonia is right make sure you have a carbon monoxide alarm please !!!!!busylizylonglegshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08662431757653204084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-47998904315786185632009-01-10T23:08:00.000+00:002009-01-10T23:08:00.000+00:00This comment has been removed by the author.busylizylonglegshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08662431757653204084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-59488765580182754632009-01-10T23:03:00.000+00:002009-01-10T23:03:00.000+00:00what an inspiration and breath of fresh air you ar...what an inspiration and breath of fresh air you are, fantastic to see you last week, relieved that the fire is now operational its been so terribly cold, so glad now that the internet is once again within your grasp is just so nice to hear of your wonderful life tales and happenings sending luck hugs and happiness your way xxbusylizylonglegshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08662431757653204084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-67471009442580114412009-01-10T20:34:00.000+00:002009-01-10T20:34:00.000+00:00Stay warm. The pictures are incredible and your wr...Stay warm. The pictures are incredible and your writing sings, as usual.Barryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13824632356834631279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6810156851531185584.post-41283974325764554892009-01-10T19:53:00.000+00:002009-01-10T19:53:00.000+00:00such wonderful images you paint in my mind Rima, m...such wonderful images you paint in my mind Rima, my thoughts turned to you both over the past weeks when the frost sat on my windows. thank you for this tale, we live these experiences through you & tui, in the luxuries of our modern day living, but we miss the first hand, exquisite, bitter sweet experience of your days. i admire you so. wishing you peace & contentment on your travels x x *ruthie* p.s i stumbled upon this work (the sculptures anyways) and it reminded me of yours - www.jessicajoslin.comRuthie Reddenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09544345949078281235noreply@blogger.com