Oooh, Robert Downey Jr., You're Such a Dreamboat

Woo hoo, I saw Iron Man on Wednesday with Andrew and Carol (Lisa isn't into Hollywood films). I realize this is not the day that it opened on, so I'm slipping in my geeky ways but I did get in for free (Andrew, the host, paid for me). There was a sufficient amount of explosions, gadgets and testosterone to keep me going until The Incredible Hulk opens next month (then I'll be saying "Oooh, Ed Norton, you're such a dreamboat").

Yesterday, I took a break from working in the gardens and went touring around downtown Ayr which is only a 15 minute bus ride from where I'm staying. Unfortunately, it rained in the morning but I was able to take cover in Carnegie Library and read World's Finest. After the rain subsided, I ventured south to the Maclaurin Galleries at Rozelle House. There were quite a few watercolours that I liked and an interesting temporary exhibit by Jacki Parry which focused on paper .

Other than Wednesday evening and yesterday, my days have been pretty routine: I get up around six (approximately 3-4 hours before anybody else), feed and walk the dogs (Poppy and Mr. Patches), shower, break fast and check my email. By that time, it's after 8 and I head out to weed. There's surprisingly quite a bit of land for this small house and the lower third of it is overgrown in weeds. We're clearing out the weeds, so wild flowers can be planted. The goal being to attract wildlife to the area (a pond will be added to the middle third of the yard to promote wildlife as well). I have been lucky enough to have access to a portable digital radio which I can listen to BBC 6 Music on while I uproot plants.

Another comfort I have here is unlimited access to Wi-Fi, either via the iPod or one of the hosts' laptops. So, in the evenings, I've wasted quite a bit of time comparing train and bus rates and planning my future destinations (or just veging out watching Funny or Die).

I have also had the pleasure of watching a couple episodes of a Scottish skit comedy show, Chewin' the Fat; I do not recommend it.



Here are the lovely pups that I get to walk each morning:


Mr. Patches (Arthritic Dog)


Poppy (Three Legged Dog)

Happy Mother's Day,
Kasza


The Rose Cottage


An Ent




Anchored

Ayrshire By Way of Newcastle

Well, I have been in Coylston, Ayrshire for a full day now.

My trip here from Scarborough had a six hour stopover in Newcastle which was something. I decided to take a 10pm train from Scarborough on Friday because it was considerly cheaper than the other trips. The downside I found out was the stopover. I had figured I could nap in the train station but it turns out that they don't allow people in the train station after hours, so at midnight I ventured into Newcastle. I quickly realized that the Geordies enjoy their night life. I might have considered going into one of the clubs or pubs and joining in the revelry but I was weighed down by my backpack. So, I wandered a bit, waited in a cafe for a couple hours, wandered a bit more and finally was able to go back to the train station and catch my train to Scotland.

Apparently, my bearded face accompanied by my backpack gave the appearance to one of the locals that I was homeless person, or homely, and I was offered £2. Pride took over and I told him I had money but in retrospect I should have taken the money, considering it's more than $4.
I've started taking more photos this past week. One of the reasons that I wasn't taking too many photos was that I was limited to only two lenses, neither of which were telephoto. On Denzil's recommendation, I ventured into Scarborough to a used camera store and purchased a lens for £90 (I almost bought a cheaper one for £70 that I liked quite a bit more but the damn thing didn't work on my camera).

I worked with another WWOOFer for the first time this past week (Simon). Up until now, I had always been the only WWOOFer at the places I was staying at. From talking with Simon, he seemed to have the same feeling about the SWP as I did, a general question of "what does this have to do with woodland conservation?"

Well, I actually got a day of work, as close to working with the woodland as I was ever going to on Wednesday. Denzil was back and he had suggested to Louisa that she get the WWOOFers, Simon and I, to work on the woodland area where he had a planted a few fruit trees and copiced some willows. Before any work could be done though, the area would have to be cleaned up. These photos are the finished product (the garbage used to be dispersed about the cleared area).

Another job Simon and I spent a good portion of the week working on was leveling and staining cold frames. Considering how muddy the area is, it was good fun leveling them.

But the highlight of the week would have to be burning the two 40 foot caravans that were dismantled by request of the planning inspector.

Well, I've stayed up until 1am, getting this post ready, so it might be a bit rough (and unedited) and I'm quite tired.

- Kasza

PS. for the Alberta boys

PPS. randomish pics from last week available at http://www.flickr.com/photos/78683190@N00/

A Full Week in Scarborough, UK

I have now completed a full week at the Scarborough Woodland Project. Some things about the experience have frustrated me but I'm taking a positive outlook and living by the saying "if it doesn't kill ya, it only makes you stronger". And since I'm not dead, I must be stronger.


Some highlights of the past week include:
- using a mixing bowl to bathe myself (didn't feel that much cleaner)


- listening to 13 year old Cathy mouth off to her mother, Louisa

- receiving my iPod Touch on Tuesday (thanks to Justin, the previous owner, and Andrew, the sender)


- finally finishing the chicken pen with Denzil


- finding a new hobby - wandering around densely populated areas trying to steal wi-fi signals with the iPod


Probably the biggest highlight of the week was having two proper showers this past weekend. I took the weekend off from WWOOFing and visited York. I had hoped to stay at the hostel but didn't book ahead because I don't have a telephone to them and you can't book online for York's YHA. So, I figured I'd wing it. Stupid! When I found out it had no vacancies, I walked around York for two hours with a list of guesthouses/B&B's, trying to find a cheap one with vacancies. Finally finding one, I paid promptly and headed for the shower. A week plus without a proper shower had left me quite filthy. I probably spend thirty minutes trying to get clean.

Trying to avoid spending money I mostly just walked around the city. The York Art Gallery was free so I stopped in there. I did feel it was necessary to spend a little money, so I took a tour of the York Brewery and sampled some of the ales. And I had lunch today at a vegan eatery; unfortunately the food wasn't up to Fressen/Urban Herbivore standards.

So, I can't believe it has been a month already. I figure I'll post a pic monthly to show that I am indeed still alive and healthy. Here's the first (taken today; would have been better/grosser if I had of taken it Friday):


Temporarily Clean,

Kasza




Southernly view from woodland


My accomodations at the woodland


A disclaimer accompanying art in the Shambles in York


Public footpath gate (based on the foot and half width restriction, I'd say only skinny people are permitted on the footpath)

The Scarborough Woodland Project

I have been at the Woodland for three days now and I'm smelling quite ripe. The shower in my caravan is broken, so I haven't showered since Thursday morning when I left Nottingham. There are no other showers presently but an outdoor shower was received on Friday which will be installed soon.

Unfortunately for Louisa, the proprietor of the Woodland, things are fairly chaotic here. Zoning officials have demanded that the two 40' caravans that her and her two children (17 year old boy, Bill, and 13 year old girl, Cathy) were living in be demolished. They have been told that there should not be permanent buildings on the woodland lot. They have moved into a small shed-like home comparable to early North American pioneer homes.

While I've been here I've spent all of my time building a makeshift chicken pen to keep the roosters (or cockerels as the locals refer to them) from raping the hens.

I've learned to hate chickens while I've been here; they're basically filthy and noisy. I've come to this point of view after being woken up at 4:30 by cockerel and seeing the young chickens that Louisa is keeping in her home (they generate lots of poo).

I have to apologise for the lack of photos; I haven't had a chance to take any while I've been here. I'll be sure to make next weeks post more interesting.

Peace,
Kasza

Last Post from Nottinghamshire

This post is on time!

Next Stops

My evenings for the past week have mostly been spent on Trinity Farm office computer planning the next steps of my travels. After calling a couple places and being told that they were all booked up for a few months, I realized that I should get my UK and France placements confirmed as soon as possible. The next stop proved to be the most difficult but I finally secured lodgings at the Scarborough Woodlands Project. Here's the breakdown for the next little while:

17 Apr - 3 May Scarborough Woodlands Project
3 May - 17 May Rose Cottage, Ayr, Scotland
17 May - 7 Jun Living Ark Animal Sanctuary
7 Jun - 21 Jun Hillswick Wildlife Sanctuary (awaiting confirmation)
22 Jun - 25 Jun Jules Ferry Youth Hostel

After getting a taste for biodynamics at Trinty Farm, I'm hoping to stay at farms that have a focus in permaculture methods or veganic farming. Permaculture seems to be a necessary practice to ensure sustainable agriculture in harmony with our surrounding environments (and obviously I'd be interested veganic practices because I believe in animal rights).

Nottingham Squat

Yesterday, I decided to get active in local politics, so I participated in a squat in downtown Nottingham. There are several articles about the action on Notts Indymedia but these two contain photos: [1] [2]. I was informed about the action by George, a guy who volunteers at Trinity Farm on Fridays; he was helping organize the squat.

The planning seemed to be crumbling a bit while I was there yesterday due to external and internal complications but eventually dinner was served, beer flowed and films rolled. I spent a good hour sipping beer and contemplating the conventional, top-down, vertical management model to the horizontal, decentralized model seen frequently in grassroots campaigns with George.

It was nice to get and socialize compared to what I usually do in my evenings here. And the vegan food was very much enjoyed!

Talking and reading about squats recently got me thinking about it's relevance to the "homeless situation" in Toronto. A solution proposed by Tash, one of the Notts squat organizers, is to have homeless people learn trades while repairing and building residences on government (city, province, or federal) owned property that is not being utilized. It is a solution that has two benefits: giving homeless people hands-on training in a trade and giving them housing.

I think that type of community project could have more reaching benefits as well including community centres for continued learning and training, community gardens and host of other services to promote sustainability.

The action also got me wondering about previous squats in Canada. The one that immediately comes to mind is the Tent City squat. Unfortunately the residents of Tent City were evicted in September 2002 and that area of land has been left unused for over five years now.


Follow-up on the Ugg Boot Observations

While walking around Nottingham and nearby Ilkeston (catching a bus to Nottingham) yesterday, I realized that the Ugg boot phenomenon witnessed in London is not limited to London. Apparently, this disease is afflicting all of the young women of England. I will continue to observe how far north the problem is occurring as I travel to the Shetlands.


Pictures of Trinity Farm and Surrounding Area

future residence for when I move permanently to Nottinghamshire
a decent portrayal of the local weather (one minute sunny, next minute hail)
area of farm where I clean up garbage every morning
some field and polytunnels at the farm
the greenhouse
my caravan: exterior and interior
front of the Trinity Farm shop

- Kasza

Oh Ya...

Thanks to everyone for the positive responses to my previous posts. As I hit more locations, meet more people and take/post photos, this blog should get more interesting.

And to the people who claim to miss me: I will be back in ~8200 hours; no time at all.

See ya then,
Kasza

I've Learned the Secret of Farming!

Well, this post is three days late because the stupid internet cafe in Nottingham was closed on Sunday. Supposedly their internet provider was down (I bet they just wanted a day off). I am posting this entry from the Trinity Farm office. They have been nice enough to let me take over the office for a bit.

So, after only eight days working on the farm I am confident that I know what the secret to farming is. It seems that you put a seed in dirt, make sure sun shines on it and put water on it periodically. Eventually, this seed turns into a plant. That's how they do it. I shit you not. Plus (here's the amazing part, at least for me), you can EAT parts of the plant. I'm considering just cutting the trip short because I don't know what else there is to learn.

So, my days consist of some combination of the following:
- put seeds in dirt
- move seedlings from seed trays to pots
- move seedlings to polytunnel garden beds
- pick vegetables- weeding
- picking up garbage
(none of the images at those links are mine; I do plan on uploading some of my own photos soon)

The people I work with are pretty awesome. They put up with my relentless, ignorant questions about agriculture and the UK in general.

In the evening when I'm not working, I'll either stroll around the public footpaths and Nottingham Canal or sit in the caravan reading Thoreau's Walden (I expect that this and Into the Wild are going to impact my life post Euro-trip) and Lonely Planet's Western Europe guidebook (have to plan where I'm gonna go next).

This past weekend I checked out the Erewash Museum in neighboring Ilkeston for some local rural history (Saturday) and the Nottingham Castle of Nottingham (Sunday). It seems that is going to be how the majority of my leisure time is spent whilst in Europe; wandering around and loitering in museums/galleries (no complaints obviously).

It has been mighty frigid the last couple nights, so I'm going to head back to the caravan to get the fire going. Hopefully tomorrow morning is more like last week (~10°C) than this week (~0°C).

- Kasza

Farming Isn't a Metaphor for Watching TV

Well, this post is long overdue.
I finished my first day working at Trinity Farm just outside of Nottingham today. Maybe I misunderstood when I signed on for this but I thought farming meant that I sat around a hotel room and watched satellite television all day. I guess I was wrong. I moved "black cherry" tomato sprouts from sprouting containers to larger pots then I planted 624 (48*13) leek seeds (I'm nowhere done that task; it continues tomorrow).
I have a caravan (trailer for us Canadians) all to myself. It includes a shower and kitchen but the toilet is just outside. I didn't stock the wood stove enough before I went to bed, so at 5:30am I was quite cold. I figured there wasn't any point going back to bed because it would have taken an hour to warm the place again, so I waited for a bit more light and went out taking pictures.

The previous four days since landing in Heathrow on Thursday morning have been spent touring London. I was in quite a posh area, which confused me a first because I thought that maybe it was a requirement that all girls in London wear Ugg boots. The hostel I stayed at, Holland Park YHA was set right in the middle of Holland Park and the only way of getting to the building was by foot; no motor traffic. One portion of the hostel is a former wing of 1600s mansion. It was very scenic and peaceful.
I checked many museums while I was in London but would have to say that my favourite was the Wellcome Museum. The namesake, Henry Wellcome, collected historical medical related material and much of it is on display at the museum. I saw for the first time a chastity belt and antimasturbation ring.
On my Mother's suggestion, I checked out Harrods, "the Queen's department store"; I left five minutes later. It would have been sooner but the crowd of elite consumerists swallowed me too quickly.
The best time I had in London was meeting up with Jason and Nicole who happened to be on their London portion of their year long Northern Hemisphere tour. They were staying at Nicole's cousins place, so we had pizza there on Friday night and then went to a friend of the cousin's 31st birthday party (she had rented the top portion of a pub; guess she was popular).

I hope to post once a week probably on Sundays or as often as I can get to an Internet Cafe. I had planned to bring my laptop but realized that carrying it as well as my camera was going to be a hassle.
By my next post I should have gotten to know my hosts better, so I can tell you all about the organic farmers.

Peace,
Kasza

Last Visit to Toronto for a Year

Whew, what a trip to Toronto this past weekend. Very fun. I got to hang out with mostly everybody one last time.

I had dinner at Terroni on Saturday and Kalendar on Sunday. It was my first time at both places and each meal was excellent.

The Fresh staff party at the Beaver on Sunday night was pretty funny and definitely made more enjoyable by the drink tickets that were being handed out.

I've got one last night in Uxbridge to spend with friends and parents and then it's down to Toronto tomorrow to write the exams for my Athabasca correspondence courses. And then off to Pearson for a lovely eight or so hour flight.

I'll be waking up in London Thursday morning. Joy.

I wonder if London will have anything fun to do. Probably not; I hear not much ever goes on there.

- Kasza

Two Weeks of Uxbridge

I've been in Uxbridge for the last two weeks and I'm starting to miss the comforts of the city. It's been good hanging out with Ken though; I rarely got see that guy for last two years. I got to play hockey with him and Heath and some Newmarket skaters which was slightly embarrassing/frustrating. Years of working at a desk have not maintained a body that can handle skating quickly for more than thirty seconds. It was fun to be out on skates and shooting a puck again though.

I, Ken, Heath, Mandy and whoever else happens to be at O'Grady's tonight will be celebrating St. Patty's Day early this year; should be a good time. They better have green beer.

Kurt and James are coming up to enjoy the awesomeness of Uxbridge next Thursday and then I'll head back to the city with them on Saturday for the last goodbyes and the Fresh party on Sunday. I've also got to grab a few things from MEC for the trip.

Departure is eleven days away.

-Kasza