So, Just How do you Make Hay when the Sun Doesn’t Shine?

 

Weather Weird-ing, I think that sums it up the best.  The Meteo service in France are telling us that the average temperature for May here is running at at least 10C down and we’ve also broken the record for rainfall too.  I can’t believe it’s almost June and I’m still filling the hot-water bottle.

Haymaking is also on hold; the grass has grown and was ready for cutting a week or so ago but the rain and the low temperature even when the sun does peek through means it’s impossible to make hay.

But the good news is that summer is supposed to start next week!

Work, What Work?

continued from post The Wheel Turns Even Faster…

So now I have no income stream – not that I really had one before.  Once the cost of producing the crop and the cotisiation to MSA so that I could sell the crop is taken into consideration I’ve probably broken even over the last 6 years and that was due to a good crop and price for sunflower seed last year.

While I’m still tied to the farm with the alpacas I want to develop various craft items; felted alpaca, knitted and crochet items and basically anything else that might sell.  Once I have the freedom to spend time away, then I can look at any local work where my limited French isn’t too much of a problem.  One advantage of going out to work is that I’m sure my French would improve rapidly.

In the short term I’m aiming to increase my harvest from the potager and work towards becoming more self-sufficient food-wise.  In addition I’m hoping to finally have time to renovate the house, in fact that is a priority.  I’ve also come to the conclusion that long-term planning is a waste of time as goalposts seem to be moved every time you get within striking distance, so going with the flow is my new mantra. 

So another ‘new life’ is about to evolve; bring it on, onwards and upwards as the saying goes, it’s time to learn more about other things, and with luck I will also get round to blogging about it too, (I think I may have said that before but hopefully I will this time.)