Bhandara and harvest time.
September 15, 2008
Hi friends! I hope all is well with you. It’s been awhile since I posted. Been taking a hiatus from the ol’ computer and internet to focus on my book and art and garden. The weather is ultra perfect here, too. I love Fall.
This weekend was the big Bhandara festival at the temple. 108 Hanuman Chaleesas were sung from 4 am to 4pm while a maha-feast was prepared for hundreds of guests. The t-shirts turned out so fun! The four colors are below — the top design is small and centered on front, the bottom design is BIG on the back. By chance anyone wants one, they should be available soon through the ashram puja dhukan. The brown is men’s, pink + teal are kid’s, and lt blue is women’s.
Patrick and I made one of the 12-gallon batches of chai for Maharaji. Mmmmm. Here he’s smashing ginger (and sporting his new shirt). We also picked lots of flowers from our garden for the festival, including thousands of marigolds that we strung and hung. It reminded me so much of being in Nepal. Ah, I miss it so. The second picture on the top row (below) is Didjyu picking marigolds for a puja celebration at Sunshine School in Nepal. The others are of our garden. The last picture is a floating dhalia, which we’ve been doing a lot–they look like lotuses and last so long that way.
We’re in full-on harvest mode now, and I’ve proudly earned the name Little Miss Canner, storing up garden freshness and ‘summer’ for the long, cold winter. (Patrick overheard a local saying this winter is going to be ‘really’ cold because the ant hills are abnormally high and insulated. Uh, oh.) Frederick the Mouse is my inspiration! My grandmother was also a big canner so it must be in my genes. The funnest part is admiring your work as it grows — so far, 50 plus quarts of summer veg soup, green beans, pickled beets, and carrots. Yesterday was ‘Operation Pesto’–about 20 batches joined tons of broccoli and greens in the freezer! The winter squashes are stored, and the potatoes and remaining carrots will be dug up soon. Hopefully salsa and pasta sauce will be next — if the tomatoes ever ripen — the peppers, corn and onions are waiting patiently!
A friend told me a funny thing about My Travelin’ Eye. Her 3 year old son has been saying, “I LOVE Jenny Sue!” when he reads my book. Then, the other day, he declares, “I WANT TO WATCH DR. DAVE, MOMMY!” Her response, “Well, Quinton, Dr. Dave hasn’t made it to the big screen quite yet.” Hee! That cracked me up. I’ll have to work on that one.
I’m really getting excited about my next kid’s book. I love what’s happening, and I’m just having so much fun with it. I’ve also been really inspired (personally) by my dreams lately and will try to post drawings soon — if you promise not to analyze them! Ha. Have a beautiful week, y’all.
9 Responses to “Bhandara and harvest time.”
Leave a Comment
© 2012 jenny sue kostecki-shaw · coloredsock@mac.com · 575 586 1726
September 15th, 2008 at 11:32 am
I’m so glad to read that you had such rich days! I would have loved to go and show my children the big Bhandara festival. Your tee-shirts are really beautiful, my favorite being the brown one :)Are they organic cotton tees?
I can’t believe all you did with your garden products… at least you won’t be starving this winter! ;)
Your traveling eye as a cartoon… it would be a quality program, for a change. That would be fun ^^
September 15th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Your garden is to die for. I am envious, as it has been a whole new experience for me to figure out what to plant here in the high desert. Most of my favorite flowers were eaten down to the ground by rabbits, and the antelope ground squirrel finished off the roots. I don’t have the heart to even ATTEMPT a food item. I’ll just admire yours, for now.
Your t-shirts are wonderful! Congrats. I love the lt. blue and brown combo, but they are all great.
September 16th, 2008 at 4:56 am
Wow – all kinds of yummy stuff and beautiful flowers…. and we all love Jenny Sue!
September 16th, 2008 at 8:58 am
I managed to make beginning tomata stock sauce, lightly cooked and then into freezer bags. I’m so impressed with your canning extravanganza. I have so much to learn about veg. gardening! ALthought the tomatos are exceptional this year.
September 16th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
the tees and the shots of the harvest are so so pretty! these colors look good enough to eat!
*)
September 17th, 2008 at 5:41 am
This is beautiful, what a great life you guys have there!
September 22nd, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Jenny! Everything you wrote about is so cool! It’s awesome how you guys grow your own veggies and all, isn’t it great to see them bloom and ripen! Oh boy! I also love the shirt designs. Take care and enjoy the season change:) The pictures are beautiful! P.s. Scoot is glad you liked his little oompas, he laughed when I read your post, hehe.
September 24th, 2008 at 1:36 am
ooooo, just LOOK at that garden of yours. so beautiful! and it looks like you’ve done a hell of a lot of work with all the canning and stuff. i can’t believe you ever have winters when your picts are so bright and lovely.
September 29th, 2008 at 4:22 am
Hi Sweetie,
I have sooo many questions for you about canning some cold winter day when we are both stuck inside watching snow fall and our gardens are dormant. I prefer beets roasted. Want to think about canning roasted beets. Take up so much room in the freezer. This weekend I picked six gallons yellow pear tomatoes which I am dehydrating. Picked 20 gallons of pears and a wheel barrow full of black walnuts. Back at it again today and loving it. Cloudless sulphurs flit between zinnias and celosia with the occasional monarch floating past my nose whilst I dig and pick.
hugs from Missouri,
Kelly