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Saturday swim

September 29, 2018
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Camille Slowing Down

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Felt like a chore to get outside today. Even in th Felt like a chore to get outside today. Even in the beautiful snow. Walked 6k - about 4K on roads and then maybe 2k through some woodland so the hounds could stretch their legs off the lead. Feel like I’ve run a marathon. Back in the van, heater on, kettle on, snacks on, cooking the hounds’ dinners, then maybe a nap. #100outdoordays day51 #snowfall #getoutdoorsevenwhenicantbearsed #walkthedogs #goneforawalk
Knitting is therapy. Socks from the borderlands. Knitting is therapy. Socks from the borderlands. #slowdown #slowlivingactivism #sockknitting #cwmchwefruwool #chesterwool
#100outdoor day50. Halfway through this challenge #100outdoor day50. Halfway through this challenge I set myself as a way of celebrating a return to Cymru for an extended period of time (until autumn by the looks of it). I didn’t envisage mostly documenting hikes in this small area of north east Cymru when I began, but blogging daily has cultivated an appreciation of the subtle beauty to be found in every corner of this place of my birth. I realise that some people find photographing their walks creates a disconnect - but it has the opposite effect for me, at this time. And I suppose this is the elusive truth our culture is only just coming to grips with - that there is no universal truth, that ten people can have the exact same experience and leave with ten wildly different impressions of what just occurred, filtered through their own unique lived experiences. Definitely a mantra for me for 2021 is ‘more love - less judgement - more nature’. #mud #musgloriousmud #takingthedogsforawalk #womenwhohike #outwithmylove
One day I wake and my child is a grown woman with One day I wake and my child is a grown woman with two children of her own. Just standing in the yard chatting is the simplest and yet most splendid thing in these strange times. Family is a work-in-progress, we grow a bright future from the fertile soil of our friendship. So grateful that this woman is part of my female lineage, with her tenacity, intelligence and kindness. I knitted this poncho for her a few years ago when she said she liked mine. I love that hand-made things become so much more than just an item of clothing - they’re stories we pass down, part of the poetry of our ancestry. #daughter #motheranddaughter #family #daughterlove #daughtersarethebest #lovemydaughter #slowfashion #knittersgonnaknit #rowanyarns
Tucked away here in the folds of these giants I li Tucked away here in the folds of these giants I listen to the rainfall playing across the psyche as she hammers on the van-roof. The ground shapeshifts into a series of streams gnawing at the solid ground beneath. With the weather’s untameable onslaught the Earth offers a reminder that she is vibrant and alive. Even as I give thanks for this warmth and shelter, I invite the wild world into my heart. #wildwoman #100outdoordays day48 #vanlifers
I was talking to someone about this poem yesterday I was talking to someone about this poem yesterday which made me dig it out... and here I found some words written with it from June 2019 in France. Ah the road is calling. The wild is calling. These stationary times feel increasingly strange: “This poem is a good eight years old, but still, I’m thinking of it just now because I’m lying in bed, in a van, in a heatwave in the north of France. When the wild first came alive in my mind I did my best to ignore her, did everything to walk a different path from the one she was calling me down, and yet years later here I am, my entire worldly possessions fitted into this van, parked in the shadow of a giant beech tree under a delicate & starry night sky. Yesterday, I lay naked in the clear water of a shallow river flowing thick with bright green weed tendrils, mud oozed through my wiggling toes & I laughed at the deliciousness of it all. Gripping hands full of long grasses & nettles for leverage, I scrambled ungainly up the steep mud bank back to my crumpled clothes, & as I pulled cotton around my body I felt a deep sense of belonging, of finally beginning to understand my place in the world. I think this poem was a prophecy to myself. Maybe it’s also a prophecy to you. The wild hunts - she’s been calling your entire life. Some of us are remembering how to listen, others still avoid her calls. Regardless of this, she hunts, and I promise this, when she finally catches you up, your life can never be the same. Link in biog if you want a listen to the full piece. It featured on a Dark Mountain compilation album as well as on BBC radio3 Late Junction.” Text reads: The Wild Hunt Stories spoken Wheels spokes Shuttles takes Woven throats The Wild Hunt And omens roll ominous And wilderness And wild in this The Wild Hunts She hunts Wilder now Stronger now Gaining momentum now Tearing the walls down Smashing the throne Thrashing around #poetry #thewildhunt #storyteller
Tides. Poem for my wild sisters, and for the trees Tides. Poem for my wild sisters, and for the trees who love poetry and song. #100outdoordays day47 #wildwoman #feminist #spokenword
His and hers jumpers. Yes. I went there. #couplesw His and hers jumpers. Yes. I went there. #coupleswhodressalike not even #accidentalcouplewear #knithappens
Does everyone have what I call ‘The Pot Luck din Does everyone have what I call ‘The Pot Luck dinner’? It’s the meal you make when you’re going food shopping the next day and so this dinner is basically all the veggies you have left in a pot. The magic formula (in my opinion) is to sweat your base veg for ages - in this case red onion, celery, carrots... then add garlic with another veg - I diced a couple of purple potatoes, but sweet potatoes or squash, or even courgette/aubergine works really well. Also add some herbs - I had some sprigs of rosemary and thyme and a few dried bay leaves in the cupboard, but anything you’ve got in will do. Then add a form of tomato - either a tin/passata/tomato paste/chopped sundried tomatoes and a couple pints of veg stock with loads of salt and pepper. I also added a tin of sweet corn, because I felt like it, you could add any collard greens too (I just didn’t have any in), sometimes I add cooked beans (pinto, black eyed beans) or even red lentils. Bring to the boil then simmer for as long as you need to make it taste good and everything to been properly cooked. I made this earlier then we went for a 10k walk. I was so grateful to me to walk into the van and have this ready. It always tastes better after sitting for a bit too. Makes four large bowls - so enough for lunch tomorrow too 😋 Served it with the end of a v dry sourdough sliced really thinly and chucked in a hot pan drizzled with some oil from the jar of sundried tomatoes and salt. Oat milk hot chocolates and ginger biscuits for dessert. Yum. #vankitchen #plantbased #cookingontworings #veganfood #zerofoodwaste
A poem to start the week. #feminism #feminist #wom A poem to start the week. #feminism #feminist #womensupportingwomen TEXT READS: The Gathering you are weary stripped of bark you have been shedding leaves resolve is blossom snatched by the wind sometimes it is too much to know you have been hacked & pruned fashioned into furniture oiled & shaped for utility (or fantasy) your heart is not inanimate she is the tree whose roots run rich with connection when you are felled the Earth grieves with the heat of the sun still, your daughters rise from dirt-packed seeds each day you teach them to hold ground celebrate together in light when the moon is new she proclaims the song of the women who stand as a forest.
Andy’s been getting creative in the van kitchen Andy’s been getting creative in the van kitchen more lately. He used to do a dish of egg fried rice with spicy tuna and peas. Then we went veggie and he had to sub the tuna, then we went vegan and he had to sub the eggs. Finally he realised it was time to just reinvent the dish. Which I’m delighted with as this is what’s it’s evolved into (photo of last night’s meal). This is his spicy, sticky, sweet sesame tempeh, with crispy cálvalo nero, mushrooms and steamed rice. Marinade is sweet chilli sauce, soy, agave syrup, chilli flakes, then fried in sesame oil and dipped in toasted sesame seeds. Tasty AF. #vankitchen #vanlifefood #vanmeals #vanlifecooking #vanlifemeals #vanfoodcreations #vanlifers #plantbased
A grey day to match my mood today. A pleasant but A grey day to match my mood today. A pleasant but uninspired excursion outdoors. The hounds had fun though. Sometimes just the actual getting outside feel like a triumph. @100outdoordays day45 #walker
So this finally got finished. I adapted a #lieblin So this finally got finished. I adapted a #lieblingsweater pattern by @camillavaddk for Andy as he loved my jumper so much. This is only the second jumper I’ve knitted (the first being mine) so it was a bit tricky to figure out resizing the yolk and underarm to fit. The arm and torso bits were easy as they’re just straight on the circular needles for as long as you want. Anyways - a couple of massive unravels, and then a mad hunt for one more ball each of the #rowanyarns kidsilk mohair in orange (thanks @yarnoclock2!) and brown, and it’s finished. I still need to do some sewing in of ends but that’ll just take an hour this evening. I’m not going to be self-depreciating here. I absolutely love this jumper and feel beside myself with joy that it turned out like this. Hand-making is such a nourishing (if at times frustrating) process. Tonight I will watch Lupin on Netflix with a big grin on my face. #knittersgottaknit #knitstagram #knitters #knithappens #knitwear #knitboldly #knitted #knittingismytherapy #handmade #handmadewithlove #handmadewardrobechronicles
Walking has kept me sane this lockdown. To be hone Walking has kept me sane this lockdown. To be honest there’s been plenty of days I didn’t feel like leaving the van but two large hounds in a small space are great therapy because you’re going outdoors whether you like it or not. We’ve been averaging 5k a day in the week and 10k at weekends so I feel a certain low-level fitness is being maintained and even today I’m starting to notice a deeper, underlying energy return, which feels so good after an exhaustingly long winter. As an aside, this week is finally the week I properly fell in love with my Scarpa mountain hike boots. Last year we did some great hikes in the Swiss alps and aim to return to go bigger again. I found these boots in the sale online but this is still the most I’ve ever spent on a pair of shoes (£180 - I’m expecting these to last for years). I’m a UK size 6 and I know you have to size up so I got 6 2/3. We went on some 25k hikes last autumn and although these boots are gorgeously comfortable (once you get used to the stiffness) and amazingly waterproof, my god did they cause me trouble. I nearly lost both big toenails (they’re still a bit black) from my foot slipping forward when I jumped down hill. It hurt so bad I saw stars. I tried breaking them in again on some smaller hikes and still my big toenails took a battering. I nearly gave up and thought about selling them, but then Andy saw a post online about lacing boots properly for hiking. I tried it yesterday. What a difference! I appreciate that seasoned hikers will know about this but I’m a novice at bigger outdoor hikes and I suppose sometimes you just have to learn through trial and error. So now I use a surgeon’s knot on the three ankle lace-up points and make sure the laces are really tight (my ankle ties were far too lax). My feet don’t slip! My toes are at the end of the boot (I couldn’t have gone for a smaller size) but my feet are held firmly and comfortably so that I could now hike for miles in these boots. Can’t wait to get back to Switzerland to give them a good try out. #100outdoordays day44 #scarpa #womenwhohike #hikingboots #walker #rescuehound
Today’s #veganuary brunch. It took a while for u Today’s #veganuary brunch. It took a while for us to get used to not having eggs with all weekend breakfasts. We do occasionally have eggs from our grandson’s pet hens but they’re not laying so much in this cold weather. Anyways! Flavour is key. This is cold small potatoes (left over from a mid-week dinner) gently crushed and fried with good olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika. Served with tomatoes softened over heat with olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano; and mushrooms fried with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, lemon juice and fresh parsley. Serve with a big mug of chai with oatly barista milk. Yum. #plantbased #plantbasedfood #veganbrunch #zerofoodwaste #zerowaste
As you can see Kit is absolutely delighted with my As you can see Kit is absolutely delighted with my visible mend on the tear in our linen pillow case. ‘How on Earth did it get there?’ you may ask... If Kit knows he’s not telling. 😂 #mendandmakedo #mending #mendingmatters #mendingisbetterthanending #visiblemending #buylesslivemore #vanlife
I was reminded of an old poem on today’s walk (i I was reminded of an old poem on today’s walk (it’s from the pamphlet, Prophecy: conversations with my Self, which you can download for free from my website - link in bio). For the trees There was a place she visited one With forests that s t r e t c h e d Planted, regimented, ruled And when she spoke The trees did not know her And when she spoke with the voice of the mountain The trees did not know themselves And she raged And mountains wept For the soulless trees. #100outdoordays day42 #treesarelife #plantspirit #lifeisart
I wrote this poem after weeks spent swimming in Sl I wrote this poem after weeks spent swimming in Slovenian rivers back in May 2019... is anybody else missing their outdoor swims just now? So I will relive these moments through the poems - that’s what they’re for - and keep making apples. #slowtime #riverswim #poetlife TEXT READS: Swimming in Slow Time Drop a stone into Slow Time & ride each ripple to the green water’s edge. Forget which day of the week is tomorrow – beauty anticipated is too soon spoiled. It is not for you to judge who has need Of your gift – To create in slow time is to be an active part of The Abundance: the apple tree does not discriminate over who eats their fruit. To immerse in Slow Time is to sit by the sparkling riverbank netting each mellifluous moment as the diving birds & the wading birds fish generously together. When everybody takes only what is needed The whole world has enough. This is the alchemy of Slow Time made manifest in the world.
Surprised myself with this so thought I’d add it Surprised myself with this so thought I’d add it to the grid... an experiment to use up the (almost) final bit of the Xmas dinner cranberry sauce. Sliced aubergine in half, scored, sprinkled mixed spice, chilli flakes salt & pepper on the flesh then slathered in the cranberry jelly. Put skin-side down in a hot iron pan with the lid on for about 15-20mins or until it’s really soft on the top and crispy-charred on the bottom. Top with chopped walnuts. Served with boiled small potatoes that have been drained, crushed, sautéed with olive oil, garlic and spinach. This was really tasty. #veganuary #zerofoodwaste #vankitchen #cookingontworings #plantbased
Rainy afternoon working. #vanlife #homeoffice #h Rainy afternoon working. #vanlife #homeoffice #homeiswhereyouparkit #adoptdontshop
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