Carla Burke

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since Oct 29, 2013
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Biography
A Christian & devoted Patriot, wife, soap maker, herbalist, formerly a homeschooler, baker, truck driver, and more. I was born in the South, but actually grew up around the Great Lakes. Both of my childhood families had big, lush gardens,& preserved everything they could for the winter. I carried that into my own life. But, change happens and for over a decade, it just wasn't an option. Now, retired in the Ozarks, on 29 heavily wooded acres of mostly ravines, our best crops are nearly inaccessible wild blackberries, rocks, wild herbs, and ticks. We're utilizing our burgeoning small-livestock collection, straw bales, raised beds, and containers to build soil, and a better, healthier life for ourselves and our beloved critters, who provide us with eggs, meat, milk, fiber, honey, beeswax, fertilizer, tick control, brush control, 'lawn' mowing, loads of entertainment, and even help turn the compost.
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Recent posts by Carla Burke

Struggle meals for me (alone) are often a tortilla or other flatbread, with 'pick-a-cheese', 'choose-an-herb' (or blend), and an egg, sardines, or tuna, with a side of grab-a-veg, possibly select-a-fruit, and either lemon water or herbal iced tea. Sometimes, it's a handful of nuts, a chunk'o'cheese, and a couple dates.

If it's both of us, or most frequent are quesadillas, crustless pizza, fried rice, or leftover soup.
1 day ago
Oh, those are the shmexy trucks... the new one have no soul.
2 days ago
Other permie options could be rug twining, and rugs made on a peg loom - just depends on how/ where you source the fibers, but both are adaptable to anything from fabric scraps,  yarn, and rope, to raw wool twisted as it is woven.
Twining:  


Peg loom:  [youtube]https://m.youtube.com/shorts/UOQCzX08FNE[/youtube]
3 days ago
This whole permie/homestead is a huge thing I do for fulfillment, as much as anything else. The critters bring me joy. Every harvest, no matter how small brings a measure of joy. But, the critters, the gardens, the land, the buildings... they're also a LOT of work, and often, as is the norm, in farm life, they can leave me bereft.

So, my joy comes from my faith, singing in our church choir, visiting with our kids & their families, my friends, and my maaaany artsy/ craftsy endeavors. As far as why these things bring me joy... They fill & heal my soul.
3 days ago
I like both my red stuff and my neon green. The red has awesome batteries and allows me to use them all over our property, for longer times than my own body will go. The only neon green we have on batteries is a small chainsaw that doesn't hold power nearly as long as I would like, but the corded neon green stuff is great, where I can get a cord to go. Both have tolerated our many abuses far better than I would have expected.
3 days ago
I'm seriously thinking about the snail method, too. But, (zone 6), my real preference is simply direct sowing.
4 days ago
Montana has been warmer and got less snow this year, than Missouri... I truly HOPE this is not the new normal.
4 days ago
I wear a lot of skirts and dresses. Proper waist size doesn't often work for me with pants,  because even at my smallest adult size, there was a 10" difference between my hips & waist, so if the waist  (should have) fit, the britches wouldn't go over my hips. 🤷‍♀️so, when I wear pants they have to accommodate my hips, first and be drawn in to fit my waist. So, elastic, or drawstring with the spring snap Jay described are my go-to, if I'm wearing pants. Suspenders & overalls tend to ride on the damaged nerves, tendons, & ligaments in my shoulders, reinjuring them. Our usual solution at home, is 'pants optional', as long as it's just us.
5 days ago
In this last freeze, we had a small pipe freeze, but no outlet was available near it, so I heated up a rice bag, and wrapped it on the pipe. It took 3x, but that's only added up to about an hour - and I didn't have to sit there and hold anything, there was no danger of fire, etc. But, I did have power, so heating the rice bag was easy, in the microwave - my otherwise last favorite item in the kitchen - but it's great for the rice bag.
5 days ago
Look into 'earth bermed houses', too.
6 days ago