Today, as you read, I will be wending my weary way home. Hopping planes, trains and and automobiles plus a bus or two until I am all the way back home. Door to door is about 15 hours. This has been such a lovely break and the unBloggers have been stunning. And here is Lyn!
Good Morning Farmy Friends!
Our very good friend Celi has asked me to write a ‘guest blog’ whilst she is on her trip to sunny California. So with butterflies in my tummy (never done this before) I will attempt to do so.
First a real quick background on me and where I come from.
I was born in England just after WWII. The reason I mention this is to put a little nugget in your mind regarding my up bringing during a time of ‘rations’ and hard to come by food people have now become used to. The staples around at that time were things people now turn their noses up at, namely ‘OFFAL’! Yep I eat liver, kidneys, heart, tongue and other unmentionables! Good source of protein! Also what ever you could grow in your gardens, as fresh vegetables were also a luxury.
Fast forward 50 some odd years and guess what, I am eating that kind of food again. Now not because of the restrictions of war, but from choice.
The years in between, like most people, I abused my body with all sorts of crap (am I allowed to say that word?). Mostly due to my lifestyle and chosen career of a Project Manager with an international computer software company, that kept me on the road most of the time. This career was the reason I found myself, back in ’94, embarking on a fork in the road that bought me to theUSA. Here on a 2 year work contract I found myself living in New Jersey. I also found myself dashing around from State to State, living in hotels and eating from fast food restaurants more often than not.
In 2005, my then husband and I moved to Bedford Virginia, and bought a house at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and I retired from my travelling. Sad to say life then threw me a curve ball and one messy divorce later I was to find myself alone in this wonderful part of the country. With my share of the divorce I did manage to buy myself a little cottage that was just my size. It has 2 acres of land and had a lot of potential. I moved in with one dog, Shelly, one cat, Nala, 2 suitcases of clothes and a blow up bed. That was basically all my worldly goods. Oh and I was unemployed.
My little cottage
This was my back garden just after I moved in – not a lot going for it!
After surviving my own little war I reverted back to my childhood and decided I needed to provide for myself as we did back then. I was lucky that I had a father who filled my brain with all his knowledge of growing stuff. A friend made a number of raised beds for me and I started growing in earnest all the food I could want to eat.
Obviously I wasn’t equipped to just live off this alone, so got me some chickens to help with my protein needs.
Money was still an issue; therefore I embarked on a new career as a ‘Pet Sitter’. Initially this was walking dogs and feeding cats, but I live out in the boonies somewhat and soon I was asked to look after horses, goats, ducks, chickens, the list goes on! My love of animals saw me through thankfully and the only problem I ever had was a Pot Belly Pig called JD (short for Jimmie Dean) who, whilst I was walking him on a leash, decided to bite me! Needless to say I haven’t looked after him since.
After reading numerous books on what is actually in the food we buy from the grocery stores and how the animals are treated, I have now done things I never thought I would. Make my own bread, can my own produce and stay away from processed foods. I also only buy my meat from local farmers that I know treat their animals well, and they are more than happy to provide me with the ‘offal’ that local people turn their noses up at LOL..
Finding Celi’s blog has also been a wonderful help as she has given me the courage to continue my new lifestyle. No where near the scope of her little farm, or the wonderful things she does day in and day out, my little cottage and animals are my life now and I am so happy to be away from that Corporate world I worked in for far too long! Oh and the back garden is filling up fast!
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The Kitchen's Garden 
86 responses to “And last but not least – Lyn of Virginia.”
oh.wow.
i LOVE this post.
the honesty of where you’ve been and where you are now.
i thank you so much for guest-blogging at the request of celi.
[i wish you lived close to me….i would ask you to pet-sit for my animals!]
Thank You – it has had its time of struggles, but I sure have learned an awful lot (especially about myself!)
Wonderful! I love your cottage and two acres…and what you’ve done with the back yard!
It certainly looks a lot different from the day I moved. I have been blessed to have some really good friends – one in particular that is also a contractor. He has built me a hen house, green house and shed, and he and his wife have helped me in so many ways.
What a lovely cottage. Isn’t it wonderful therapy a garden provides! I loved your post.
It certainly is! In fact another part time job I have now is to look after three other gardens of friends. All work and don’t have the time, so I weed, plant and do general maintenance for them. One of these friends I have even put in a veggie garden for, and now they can go pick their own produce! have to give them plenty of notes though as (bless them ) they don’t know a weed from a plant!
What a pretty house and garden your veggie patch is looking lovely too. You have made some very brave choices, so inspiring, poor but happy is the way to go!
Believe me I learned not to sweat the small stuff, and not to get attached to ‘stuff’ at all LOL. Most of my furniture now is what friends have given me (I no longer sleep on a blow up bed!)
Your little cottage and back garden look fabulous, must say my Paddy would love to have a babysitter like you (rather than go to a kennel) and would happily share all those delicious meat treats (raw) with you. Did I read in a comment that you had a fall – hope you have fully recovered now. 🙂 Laura
Thank you Laura. Yes I took a tumble a few weeks back but all is good. My left knee is still sore and kneeling down to weed is a bit of a problem, but nothing I can’t endure. I love all my ‘charges’ when I pet sit, and have made even more friends this way with their owners. Like you, the people here hate putting their furry friends in the kennels and by visiting their homes to look after the animals, I in fact kind of house sit too. Watering plants, bringing in the mail etc. helps these people as well.
What wonderful tale! We love offal too and hopefully one day more people will get around to trying it. e could do with some of these endless TV chefs using it and then it might become ‘fashionable’ once more. Your wee cottage is straight out of a story book – perfect! Good luck to you in all your plans.
Christine
Christine it actually helps that not too many people around here likes offal, as the farmers tend to give it to me for free LOL. I slow cooked tongue the other day and me and the dogs had a wonderful dinner! I don’t buy commercial cat or dog food, so we all eat the same in my house.
Lyn, Thank you for sharing your story. I was also born in England at the end of WWII and growing what I can and making do comes naturally to me after the frugal times of my childhood. I dont eat all the things you like but I used to love liver and bacon. I am now vegetarian but I still enjoy bacon (from Sally at Red Box Gal) because I know how she cares for her piggies. I just adore your cottage and your lovely garden. Just enough to keep busy. I would like our next home to be just like yours. Joy
Hi Joy, whereabouts in England? I lived in a town called Rickmansworth (near Watford) which is only about 20 miles outside of London.
I was born in Brentwood, Essex and lived most of my childhood years in Loughton, Essex, which is on the Central line east of London. I emigrated to Australia at 20 as a ten pound pom in 1966 but still have a very soft spot for the old dart.
What a lovely cottage and garden you have!!! It looks so peaceful and you have really changed the landscape with your lovely gardens. Thanks for sharing today!!! Nice to “meet” you!
Nice to meet you too Beth. Wish you all lived closer than we could have an English Tea Party in my garden!
We definitely could do that!!! Lifting my cup from afar!
Wonderful! Makes me wish you had a blog, because I would love to read more. 🙂
Hi Lynda, when I first visited Celi’s blog I changed my name to Lyn as I am also a ‘Lynda’ spelt with a ‘Y’!! Not many of us around are there?
No there are not. Funny thing is, when I was just beginning school I kept trying to change it to “Linda”. Now that I’m older I get irked when people don’t notice and spell it with an “i”. Silly, yes? 😉
Me too!! LOL Although a lot of people here see the ‘y’ and call me Lydia, which is even worse!!
LOL,ame here! What is it about the y that throws them off? Dunno… 😉
Yours is a very pretty cottage. I also think that heart and tongue are very good. I need to try more recipes to like liver, as it is, our Collie benefits from our not eating it!
Lovely that you have created a niche in minding pets. How lucky your pet visitors are that you do what you do. Thank you for sharing your post with us.
Kim
Tongue is very good and like you what I can’t bring myself to eat, my dogs benefit from!
What a transformation! You have certainly taken lemons and made lemonade out of them. So much better than the corporate world.
I trust JD became pork?
LOL no JD is still alive and kicking and being treated just like the family dog. But he is very temperamental and luckily they have not asked me to pet sit him again! Reading Celi’s posts on the problems she had with Charlotte brought it all back to me how we should never underestimate animals, as much as we give them ‘human’ qualities, they still have their animal ways.
You are truly an inspiration! I, too, would love to read your blog, if you had one!
I will think on it LOL. My days seem quite full at the present, but then winter is on it’s way and maybe this will help fill in the cold dark days. Problem is, again living out in the boonies means my internet service leaves a lot to be desired!
Beautiful post! No need to be nervous!
Shucks, thank you!
Hi Lyn! I just love your cottage! It’s right out of a fairy tale and looks so lovely and cozy! You have certainly made a paradise out of your neck of the woods! Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
When I first moved in it was a mess, orange walls and they had painted the wooden floors a dark grey! But it has given me many projects to keep mind and hands busy and now I only have two rooms left to tackle. It helped that I was always the tom boy in my family so Dad taught me a lot of ‘boy’ things, like painting, hanging wall paper etc. So I able to do most of the work myself. Heck I’ll try anything once anyway, and I am the one that has to live with it, so what if it isn’t perfect LOL But yes I love my little cottage!
You sound like me! I was a tom boy too! LOL Then around 16 years old…a diva arrived for a while til I hit my twenties! My mom was convinced (I think) that I was the reincarnation of Sarah Bernhardt! 😉 She must have been so relieved when I finally grew up! Renovation is a lot of work, but it can be a labor of love! 😀 I can see the love in your home!
I’d LOVE it if both of you could manage to blog!
All of the guest posters actually 🙂
This has been such a good idea Celi.
Safe trip home.
What a great post Lyn. Love your cottage and backyard. Chickens are the next project for me. You should consider writing a blog…I would enjoy reading more!
My ‘girls’ are great little bug eaters a well as giving me great eggs. Only warning I would give is they can also destroy a garden in minutes, so I have lots of chicken wire that gets moved around to protect the vulnerable plants.They love this time of year though, as the wire comes down and they get free rein in the veggie plats to clear up all the bugs left behind. Plus I throw on new compost and they dig it in for me!