Kyle Hayward

Tess Misch wrote:I have to be out in Nature. Not just a 'local park' but IN Nature.  Surrounded by trees, sounds of birds & other critters, a river/creek/brook trickling near by.  We have a few nice parks with that to varying sizes.  But if I could actually get OUT in Nature everyday, just walk out my door and all is see are trees, mountains, and fields of flowers that is my joy.

Mother Earth is the only place I KNOW I heal.  So being outside is my home, my space of safety.  I take what I can now, the larger 'foresty' parks, until I can get my own bit of paradise to call home.  --Tess

Exactly, this is how I connect with my spirituality and serenity as well.
The forests, deserts, canyons and rivers are my holy cathedrals.

Also recently read about Awe, something I experience every time I take my dogs for a walk and am outside and how expressing and feeling it creates a positive feedback loop that helps us mentally and physically.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10018061/

In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life—no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground—my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or parcel of God. The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental; to be brothers, to be acquaintances, master or servant, is then a trifle and a disturbance. I am the lover of uncontained and immortal beauty.

—Emerson (1836/2009, pp. 3-4)

weed

I powerwalk my dogs at least a mile per day during the week and then 3-4 miles per day on the weekend, always on trails in the state park behind my house-summer lake swimming included. they are also let out supervised to run free on our two acres...and also have a large penned area they spend the rest of their outside time in.
I always try to remember that I am their guardian AND their world is only as big as I can make it and so always try to enrich their lives in all ways.

Crisp breaths of icy winter air, sharp and minty and invigorating.

The quiet solitude of sound muffling snow that covers everything and sticks to the tops of every branch three inches deep.

Short winter power walks with my rescue dogs when my cheeks freeze and then coming back into a warm welcoming home, makes me appreciative of what I have there.

https://bmcinfectdis.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12879-018-3187-5

Case presentation
A 25-year-old female with a two-year history of erythema, papules, nodules, and scales on her sole of left foot was presented to our outpatient center. Samples were obtained by the scraping of lesion and for light microscopy. Hyphae were observed by microscopic examination. We carried out a skin tissue biopsy, which showed multiple granulomatous nodules. Biopsy specimens were also inoculated onto media. After being cultured on SDA at 27 °C for 7 days, spreading-woolly-white colonies grew on the inoculation sites of media containing chloramphenicol only and there,s no other colonies grew. S. commune was identified by morphology methods, biochemical tests, and PCR sequencing. Pathological findings also aided in diagnosing cutaneous fungal granuloma. Oral itraconazole was applied. After 1 month of therapy, rashes on her left foot and pain were improved.

Hi Mariya,

   I would recommend visiting the Lama Foundation north of Taos. I went there for a few days and ended up staying for a week and would've stayed longer but for a prior engagement. You can reach out to them and see if they might be what you're looking for via their website, but they are closed for the season (only residents now) and open up again in late spring. there are opportunities for stewardship and eventual residency.
I had such a wonderful and spiritual experience there a few months ago, that I am planning on going back again this coming spring.

PS) You could purple moosage me for more info as well.

"Happiness is not a destination but a path"

Flora Eerschay wrote:I love garlic! But I rarely eat it because my mother hates it :( so I planted it everywhere around my garden, both regular and ornamental varieties, and it looked so beautiful!

I recently made a fantastic pesto from garlic scapes.

Oh, and I never once ate anything with garlic in it and uttered the words "There's too much garlic in here"...never will either ;)

Well AI found this:

Pemmican and Norwegian expeditions
Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen, known for his expedition to the South Pole, famously relied on pemmican. The rations used by his team and sled dogs were specifically formulated for the high-energy demands of polar travel.
For humans: Amundsen's pemmican included oatmeal and peas to add more fiber and nutrients.
For sled dogs: The dogs were given a special pemmican made with fishmeal and extra fat.
Modern Norwegian rations
Instead of traditional pemmican, contemporary Norwegian military rations (known as "Arctic Field Rations") feature a wide array of freeze-dried meals and high-calorie snacks. These rations are designed for cold-weather operations and have a long shelf life. Common items include:
Freeze-dried entrees like Chicken Tikka Masala
Snacks such as dark chocolate, peanuts, and protein bars
Energy drinks and instant coffee
Homemade pemmican (Amundsen-style)
For those interested in making a version of pemmican inspired by Norwegian polar explorers, you can adapt Amundsen's approach.
Ingredients
4 cups lean meat (venison, beef, or bison), dried and ground into a powder
2 cups rendered beef or bison suet
3 cups dried fruit, ground into a powder (e.g., cranberries or blueberries)
Oatmeal and peas, dried and ground into a powder (optional, for extra fiber)
Instructions
Render the fat: Melt the suet over low heat until it turns to liquid. You can strain it to remove impurities.
Combine ingredients: In a large bowl, mix the ground meat, fruit, oatmeal, and pea powders.
Mix with fat: Pour the warm, liquid fat over the dry mixture. Stir thoroughly until everything is well combined and has a packable consistency.
Form and store: Press the mixture into a pan or mold and refrigerate until firm. Cut the pemmican into bars and wrap them individually in wax paper.
How to use pemmican
Pemmican can be eaten cold as an energy bar or rehydrated in hot water to create a nutritious, warm stew.  

Hey, thanks for sharing, did you ever try making it with dried fruit?