It happens!

7th October and the trees were glorious, now 
after some breezy and frosty days the leaves have
all gone.

Another month goes whizzing by and I'm left wondering what happened in all that time. The nice thing about writing once a week is that I could remember what I had done. I also used to write everything down on an excel sheet for work, now my calendar is my memory because I have had so many meetings just lately that there hasn't been much time to sit down and read or tick off jobs to do. 

Vanessa looks more and more like her mother.
This was a typical, "We are not amused!" look
that her mother had.

There have been lots of wet miserable days but 
some days are glorious. A fog bow

I have been so busy that there are times I'm feeling rather scatty. It feels like a maelstrom of ideas whirling around my head most of the time at the moment and it feels a bit frantic trying to fit everything in, but it's a process. It doesn't help that a project is still running on from last year, another one started in October and I'm teaching on a new course, which has had to be built from scratch. Keeps me out of trouble - well that's the theory. I also got elected to a new role at work, a role I actually started in September, so it was good to get the confirmation that I could carry on in that role.

Ian has been doing lots of fettling just lately!

The girls. Won't be long before they are confined
to the paddock for winter.

In my scattiness I managed to leave my hiking shoes in a hotel in Poland, even though I thought I had packed them. It cost me €40 to have them couriered to me, which was nearly the price of the shoes. I also managed to lose my car in the car park, something I have never done before. I do remember looking back and trying to estimate where it was parked but had to hurry to the airport due to the time. It was also only just getting light when I parked up. When I returned the car park was still jam packed with cars due to the work being done on the RailBaltica terminal. I went up and down the rows many times and gave up. I talked to the guys at the carpark and bless them they were good. Apparently it beats having to sit around doing nothing. 

Betty is not quite so bossy now and they are all
getting along fine. 

Queueing up for the evening feed

All snuggled up on the fleece together

I wonder what Norman will make of his first
glimpse of snow? Or will there even be 
snow this year?

One of the guys took me in the courtesy pick up van to cruise up and down the car park. After a few minutes of doing that a lady came up as they were stuck and told the guy they couldn't get their car started. The car park attendant dropped me off at the entrance again to see if his colleague could find the car on the cameras and he also gave the lady my car number for her to look while he and her husband got their car started. She found the car and it was not quite where I was expecting it. Sigh! Not really like me at all. I used to be able to gauge where I had left a car quite easily, but I think I used to pay more attention to my surroundings, as well as having a good sense of location. I could worry about it being a sign of old age, which I guess it could be, but I think it is more a sign of me just being very busy.

Our conference room all summer. It has served us
well.

But, packing up time had to happen

Nearly all done!

It looks so bare! All ready for winter now...maybe

Karla looking bemused about something

On the plane on the way back from Spain, I caused a stir amongst the staff. I ordered a chicken and cheese panini. I opened up the package and tore a piece off the top. It was a bit hot, so I thought I would open up the sandwich to let it cool a bit. I was little shocked to find that my sandwich had no filling whatsoever, it was just hot bread. I called the attendant over and showed her, whereupon she exclaimed, "Oh my God!", which I thought was a little over the top, but I guess she was surprised. Pictures were taken for the record and I ended up having to pay another €1 to get a lasagne instead. I was a bit disgruntled at that and thought a small offering by way of apology would have been nice. I think the staff were new and so maybe not sure about the methods of keeping customers happy. I had no problem with the staff per se, they were attentive anyway and it was amusing. 

I love those mornings where the spider webs are
wet from the dew and capture the sunlight in a 
dazzling, sparkling display.

I especially like it when the whole field sparkles..

... where the dew drops look like a million crystals

One trip up to Estonia was a magical journey, 
where the sun burst through the mists making
the autumnal trees glow. 

As I mentioned I've been busy with meetings, more meetings, conferences, meetings, teaching and meetings, and so the autumn passed with barely a leaf on the trees now. The wind was blowing cold today too and it felt like a whisper of winter, although to be honest, up until today it has been incredibly mild. At least I managed to get my potatoes all dug up this last month. It took two weekends to get the job done, but at least that is finished. The tomatoes and the cucumbers were all picked and stored in our apartment and the chickens were put in the greenhouse for winter. They should be in the arks in the greenhouse, but I was greeted by two of them at the door this evening. They had managed to dig their way out under the side. I must sort that out tomorrow morning before letting them out of the hutch part when I feed them in the morning. 

Mari looking quite mucky as usual. Her fleece though
along with Jakobs her son spun up into a lovely 
speckled light-brown. I made some more hanks up
today to take to a shop.

The nights are arriving so early now. It is dark
now by 5ish but this was taken at 7:18pm on
the 24th October. It is amazing how quickly
the days get shorter at this time of year.

It did feel like I was processing grapes for ever though. We seem to have a lot and it takes time to cut them down and then steam them for juice. We talked about possibly getting them processed next year by a company that processes fruit into sealed bags and pasteurising them. It would save a lot of work but we would need 60kg of fruit, we might have half that in grapes if they are ready at the same time so we would also need to find apples and plums probably to add to that. It's a thought anyway. Either that or I need a bigger steamer or a fruit press. 

All the grapes in this picture have now
been processed. I'm sad to say quite a
few of the other types went to waste 
this year as there was just not enough 
hours in the day.

Of course, the autumn didn't last but it was a
colourful one.

Marvin and Norman just chilling on a frosty
morning. For some reason Marvin seems to be
feeling the cold in this damp, soggy November

I've been up to Tartu twice this last month, firstly to attend two small conference and meet with staff and then the second one to prioritise talking with students to see how they have been finding the courses at the mid-way point. The idea is to catch any issues early before they escalate if necessary. There will be a final review at the end of the semester too. It was good listening to the students and their opinions. It was a mix of good and some bad but it was encouraging to hear, that despite any issues we might have, one of the students is thinking of staying an extra semester rather than going back to his home university because he feels it's better in Estonia. The issues we do have are the reason for creating my new role as we need coordinators for the programmes we run. It is not to say we have major issues necessarily, just things can drift after a while and now there is a need for a re-evaluation - not surprising after two years of COVID restrictions. COVID of course has presented us with shifting challenges for education and workplaces in general. It will be interesting to see what universities all over the world will look like after a period of time to reflect on how much has changed.

Freddie with his mouthful. So pleased he's been 
castrated as he has calmed right down now and
doesn't start fights. He tends to stay out of them too
which is a relief. Not to say he never gets involved
but he doesn't generally start them and he doesn't 
really continue them.

Josefs on the other hand, tends to be the one
who starts and carries on the fights now. He might
be the next for castration but we have to see
what kind of babies he produces first I guess.
It was easy to make the decision with Freddie
as his fleece is not so good, but Josefs is 
rather nice.

I usually stay at a friend of mine's place while up in Tartu and it is lovely to return home after a day at the office to some hot food ready prepared - it kind of spoils me. The last time though my friend took advantage of me being around more for some cat sitting while she went on holiday. The cat and I got along okay and she would come and sit on my lap for a little while and let me stroke her. Every night I would kneel on the floor by the bed and bend my head forward towards the ground, this was not in prayer but to say goodnight and have a little chat with the cat who by this time was under the bed where I was sleeping. I wasn't so enthralled therefore at some very loud middle of the night, meow's on two of the four nights.

Despite his age, Tellus can alls start fights, 
usually with his son Brencis. Fortunately they
don't happen that often as generally they are both
fairly chilled alpacas.

The boys in their field

I've been on more field trips this last week and got to see more of Estonia. The first trip was to the very north near the capital Tallinn. It was just three of us, myself, my PhD student and her co-supervisor who has been working with her for much longer than I have. I'm just helping in the latter stages to help her finish up. We were looking at the characteristics of the landscapes in that area. I had never seen juniper as the main shrub to first take over a neglected field. It was quite fascinating. We also found a bog in an area that was private, but the owner let us in anyway. There were some fabulous cranberries that we snacked on while looking around. I also got to see the coastline and drystone limestone walls - something I'm familiar with from when I lived in Derbyshire. 

Maybe not so clear on this photo but the roots
of this tree were so interesting, Kassinurme, Estonia

Not such a nice idea. It might look pretty when 
these ribbons are tied to the tree but not so
nice later on in the year once they have faded and
worse some of them seemed to be made from
plastic so will not rot away. My colleague
was explaining that it is part of a neo-pagan 
ritual where people say they are reconnecting
with the pre-Christian past but often they are
imported rituals. Kassinurme, Estonia

Looking very mysterious in the mist, 
Kassinurme, Estonia

Who is this fellow rising out of the 
mist? One of the many carved
statues on a Viking site, Kassinurme,
Estonia.

The other field trip was closer to Tartu and quite different to the northern area I visited the day before. The weather was glorious on the trip up north, but damp and foggy the next day. The students all laughed when the organiser explained that on the right is - whatever he was talking about (it was in Estonian, so I didn't get what he said at the time) and all the students could see was a bank of fog. The fog lifted by mid-day though, so it wasn't too bad. It actually was quite appropriate for our first visit which was to a Viking settlement with the carved wooden statues rising out of the mist and an eerie Viking style wooden fort. The wooden steps were treacherous though and the handrails wobbly. I went down them, very, very slowly. We also saw typical villages, a restored windmill, some good views over the valleys from the drumlin and of course, since it is Estonia, another bog.

Breakfast anyone?Kassinurme, Estonia

A model of a Viking fort, Kassinurme, Estonia

Camping anyone? Kassinurme, Estonia

This last month has been a month of reconnections. The first one was from a PhD student who I had met a while ago at my university when I was still doing my PhD. He was studying bears in Latvia. He came with his family to see our alpacas on his wife's name day. I had forgotten what he looked like, but I did remember his topic. They had a good time and seemed interested in what we were doing. 

I love the use of non-straight timber for these
covered areas, Kassinurme, Estonia

A map on a wooden board, Kassinurme, Estonia. 

The other reconnection is with a pastor of the church we went to in the US. We last talked to each other nearly 15 years ago. Not that we fell out or anything, it was just we hadn't really connected in all that time. I sent an email with a concern I had and he suggested we talk. It was really refreshing to hear how he still has a heart to give people space to talk and connect, so important in this era of division. 

Entrance to a cemetery in Estonia

Restored windmill, Kuremaa, Estonia

Our other reconnection was with some friends we have seen a little more recently but not much more. They were a couple who came out to Latvia the year before we first did and they came back to our church to tell everyone about what they had done. We enjoyed it so much that we decided we would go out the following year and the rest, as they say is history. It was the start of our journey towards living here. Something we didn't really think about in that first year, even though we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It was hard work and Latvia was not as developed as it is now, but it did sow a seed in our heart and 8 years later we made the country our home. 

Walls of a manor house, Kuremaa, Estonia

Manor house, Kuremaa, Estonia

Kuremaa Lake, Estonia

Laiuse, Estonia

Laiuse, Estonia

To heat or not to heat, that is the question

Chilly days with frosty trees

A bit of excitement tonight, I got a phone call from our house manager - can we go up to the boiler house, there are two drunk people in there. I didn't really follow all the conversation but I did understand that our presence was required ASAP, so on go the wellies, on with the coats, the hats, the scarves and the extra socks and we walked up the boiler house, well it is rather chilly outside at -7C. Our heating has been a bit intermittent and rather lukewarm at times, which isn't fun when it is so cold outside. Admittedly we have our wood stove and can supplement the heat, but that was not the original plan to be using it whilst the communal heating is supposed to be doing the job, the intention was to use it for the times before the heating is switched on in the Spring or Autumn on those cool evenings. It is also not fun for those who have not got double glazing like we have and are on the end apartments and one such home has a week old baby in there and their house was only just registering 13C.

Stone cold skies!

Anyway we got to the boiler house and our house manager hammered on the door, no response. One man appeared to be working, but apparently he wasn't the one who should be there and the other man, who should have been working was in a room with bottles of vodka, and we saw the photos to prove it, although by the time we got there the curtain was firmly shut. Another phone call, this time to the company, the second phone call of the evening to the them. Eventually someone turned up, he hammered on the door, no response, he hammered on the window, still no response. Off he goes to get a key, by which time we are getting rather chilly, the wind was blowing making it feel much colder than the -7C stated on thermometers, so we sat in the house manager's car to wait. Another gentleman from a similarly poorly heated apartment block, kept coming to see what was going on, also waiting to get in to check on the temperatures of the water directly from the boiler. After waiting in the car for what seemed like an age, discussing the problems of the company and our village, the other guy returned but still no key, so we all waited yet again in cars for what seemed like another age. Eventually our house manager got fed up and went and hammered on the door again, success! We were in. The guy inside the building could barely walk, never mind work he was that drunk, the smell of alcohol wafting around. The company guy went to the thermostat and we all read the meter, around 43C out and 33C back, I think those were the numbers and certainly in that ball park and not the figures that our house manager showed us on the chart. According to the chart -7C outside means the water should be heated to 75C, vastly different to the 43C. Eventually the night shift guy turned up and the other rather blotto chap was to be taken home, at least the new guy looked alert, but we are still waiting for that heat to go up, and depends on whether they can get more than just frozen wood chips to burn. Our house manager made it all official and she had written down everything on a piece of paper which we all signed, I think the company guy was very uncomfortable at doing this but it was better to see the proper processes been done. It's also great to see a Latvian taking the initiative to fight back on issues that need to be fought. No longer should it be good enough to accept inadequate heating and then pay a lot for it.

Thick snow on our land too, and landscape features slowly
disappearing

We have had quite a bit more snow this week and it is beginning to look like a proper Latvian winter and so it was typical that Ian was not feeling too good; he wasn't very ill, but definitely under the weather and not up to driving around. I had three interviews to do this week, interviewing landowners about their damage from the pigs, one was in our apartment building and so not too far (he owns land elsewhere) but two of them were out in the sticks and I had to drive to get to them. The main road was bad enough and was like driving through sand but when it came to turn off the main road, there were big drifts across the road and in places I wasn't too sure where the road itself was, scary stuff. I made it though! I was worried about the trip back as it was snowing heavily but fortunately by the time I had finished the interviews the road was being cleared by one of the local farmers. I'm really enjoying these interviews as it is wonderful talking to lots of different people and hearing their stories.

Repurposed tablecloth

It has also been a fettling week again, just as it should be -the time of year to fix and make things. I taught Ian how to sew up his coat and he did quite a good job of it, I made a light shade for a lamp we brought across from America by recycling an old tablecloth that had got stains on it. The lamp had a light shade, but it was one of the few things that broke on the way across, so it has only taken me nearly four years to get around to it. I also fixed some pyjamas for Ian as there was a gaping hole in the neckline, so I cut off the collar and edged it with some extra fabric - waste not, want not! I have also sorted out my fabric stash into colours, I love to see studios with white box type shelving with all the fabrics folded up neatly on them, it inspires me and so just getting my fabrics sorted into basket temporary shelving is better than nothing. Ian also tried to fettle the microwave buttons that are rather temperamental again, and he thought he had done it but the buttons weren't working once reassembled and so the next step is to leave the buttons off and using a matchstick to press the contacts. Again waste not, want not! We will continue using it until it falls apart completely.

My newly organised fabric stash

I have been publishing the comments and trends on the Latvian population and this week the finalised figures were released. The figures show that 190,000 have left the country in the last 11 years, might not sound a lot over so long a period of time until you realise that is 8% of the population. The overall drop in population was 13% but that is because the death rate is greater than the birth rate these days. Some of the outer regions have seen even more of a drop in population of around 30% in some areas, which is pretty devastating really. The economist from Swedbank added his pennyworth to the discussions on the population figures and said that the Latvians shouldn't be moving abroad they should be moving to the cities. Now why does the phrase "Let them eat cake" come to mind I wonder? How moving to the city will make things better I'm not sure, If there are no jobs, there are no jobs and it is sometimes easier to live in the countryside where at least there is the possibility of growing your own food and housing is cheaper than if you live in the city where housing is expensive and bills for water and heating have to be paid. I know we have to pay for water and heating too, but that is because we live in an apartment with those things supplied, if we lived in our other apartment our heating is wood we cut ourselves and if you live in one of the old houses, wood maybe from your own woods and the water from the well - not an easy life but cheaper.

More snowy pictures

I have a heart for the rural areas too, you may have gathered, if you follow this blog and so the Swedbank economists comments do not sit well with me. The rural areas can be revived and indeed we need them reviving if we are to meet the food needs of the future, Latvia's population maybe decreasing but that is not always the case in the rest of the world. But who am I and what difference can I make? What keeps me doing the course I do in Managing Sustainable Rural development? I mentioned a while ago that I feel almost compelled to do what I do and it is because I believe in a God that can turn whole nations around, he can reverse the degradation of our planet, he can reverse droughts both physical and economic, but he is not a fairy godmother to produce this on a whim. He is shaking trade routes and bringing down the mighty, but we cannot be complacent. I am not sure what the outcome will be, but my trust is not in politicians, banks or businesses for my future or the future of this land or the future of the rural areas, my trust is in God alone. It appears I am not the only one who stake their future on a God who really can change things in a major way and willing to live by that, another person who I greatly admire for stepping out to do things differently, sometimes in a very physical way by walking, he has staked his colours to the mast so to speak and spoken out that he is going to trust God to change the trade routes and follow where that will lead. If you want to read more, here is Steve Lowton's blog, hope it inspires you in the same way it inspires me.

Our kittens are getting big, and cause much consternation
as they charge around the apartment after each other, but
then they look so cute all curled up together on the chairs.

One last thing to mention is a paper I saw published on the internet on the problems of mico-nutrient deficiency. This is a problem in Bangladesh, but it is also a problem in developed countries too. The reasons in developed countries is the awful diet that many have, leading to an overabundance of calories but a lack of essential nutrients. Obviously in places like Bangladesh it is a lack of adequate food generally. Industrialised farming also leads to problems as cows fed solely on grain and not the mixture of grasses of course will produce meat of lower quality and our lack of fresh fruit and veg doesn't help either. The stupid thing is that much research is being done on adding the micro-nutrients to foods such as rice which are just high in carbohydrates, when the answer is so much simpler as the above paper mentions. Eating a range of foods that are available locally and can be grown on a small scale to supplement diets is both cheaper and far more sustainable. Even in cities some foods can be grown to increase nutrient intake, from herbs in pots on windowsills to a few containers outside the back door. The other advantage in growing a range of foods is that if adverse weather hits, some will be more likely to survive than others. So expanding the range of foods grown will not only improve the health of people in Bangladesh, it could improve many local communities health and improve sustainability of whole communities.