Photos from 1985

Here is the house before it collapsed.These photos were taken around 1985 when I first came to Flores and visited my father during summer vacation.

Solstice is Coming

We are back online after Dink stepped on our camera and broke it.

Thank you Steve for the great new camera!

We are clearing land with every sunny day in preparation for the planting season rapidly approaching.

Hyacinths and Irises are already beginning to shoot up from their bulbs in anticipation.

We invested in a Rodent Slayer who is very entertaining during the long evenings and eventual nights.

His name is Millhouse and he is quickly learning how far the dogs chains can reach!

I have been using my vast knowledge of martial arts and dog training to form this young fellow into a killing machine! Kung Fu Kitty is on the prowl.

Making Wine with Psidium Cattleianum

One of the joys of the "gloom season" is the abundance of these little fruits. Commonly called Strawberry Guava, they are native to South America and grow wild on Flores.

These little fruits are high in Calcium, Iron, Vitamin A, B, and C...even surpassing citrus!
They also contain high amounts of phytonutrients, including carotenoids and polyphenols that can protect cells from damage, lower risk of cardiovascular disease and provide other health benefits.

We have been brewing up excellent wine using a Saccharomyces bayanus strain of yeast that produces an effervescent pink brew that is fruity and dry at the same time. Vey nice to drink day or night, especially when you cannot tell the difference for all the black clouds hovering overhead!

With all the nutritional benefits of this wine you never catch the flu or have a hang over either.

Money and the Illusion of Security

For some time now, I have been trying to come to terms with living without money. In theory I know that money is nothing but paper that is accepted as inately valuable for as long as the government controls it´s people and forces them to use their special money. If you don´t have their special money they will take your property or freedom in place of their special money. Just try to pay your taxes with corn and see the results you recieve. You will lose your farm.

I believe that the universe or god is unlimited and full of potential, and therefor I put my faith in the universe rather than the government to provide for me. All I must do is plant my crops and take full advantage of the opportunities that are presented to me. If I follow these basic rules then I will never go hungry or be of need.

So, that is the goal, the philosophy that I live by, but I still cling to my old habits and try to keep a little stash of cash for a rainy day. Just in case, god forgets about me or I miss the hint that I should have acted on a given opportunity and did not.

Now is the time to take off the training wheels and live without money and trust completely in god to provide us with what we need to remain healthy and happy. It is an exciting time, I expect to fall down once or twice, but in the end I am looking forward to the freedom of living in the NOW and not worrying so much about the future. The illusion of security that money in the bank can give you is being discarded.

Tree Cutting During Autumn Storms

This is Marco, a neighbor in Fazenda, using his rock climbing gear to scale our massive Eucalyptis tree in the back yard.




Once in position, he attaches a pulley and steel cable to the branches, so that Konswan and I can lower them down after they are cut. It is tedious and dangerous work, but it must be done before these giants come crashing through our roof!



Our other neighbor had a mudslide on his property after an Acatia tree gave way and started a chain reaction that broke away 20 meters of the hydro-electric canal system.


Here you can see the break from the street across the valley.


Acatia trees are a real problem on this island for everybody, although their lumber is beautiful once safely cut into planks.

Chicken Disaster and Easter Egg Hunts

Autumn winds and rain brought down a huge acatia tree in our backyard.

We planned to cut it...but mother nature did the job for us.

Unfortunately it landed directly on our chicken pen, killing four chickens instantly and flattening their chicken penthouse!

So now, our flock has dispersed itself into the surrounding woodlands...allowing me the pleasure to hunt easter eggs on a daily basis.

Ahhh the joys of country living!

Turk´s Turban Peppers

These hot peppers came from our dear friend, Sabine Ortman. They are an heirloom variety, I believe they come from Germany. They are very tasty and hot when green, getting sweeter as they redden. The shrub is taller than I am, that is they are over 5 feet tall, and still growing, with fruits about the size of a golf ball. The real bonus about the pepper is that the surface area of the flesh to the seed ratio. There is more "meat" to it than say a jalapeno of the same weight. They are excellent roasted over an open fire and mixed with other roasted herbs, such as parsley, onions, cilantro, and garlic--all mashed together in a mortar and pestle ensemble. All we need now is some fish sauce.

Black Beauty Eggplants

Magnus and I have nine plants, all producing rather well. I read in one gardening source to expect 2 to 6 fruit per plant. We´ve sampled two fruits last night and they are delicious, sauteed with leeks, garlick, Turk´s Turban peppers, cherry tomatoes, romas, and basil over rice or pasta! Magnus cannot believe how his tastes have changed since we´ve started gardening for self-sufficiency. It is one of his favorite vegetables now.

Bitter Melon

The bitter melon we started from seeds from my mom and sister, Vong-Maly. There are three separate vines on one trellis. The seeds were sown on June 11, and are fruiting now, just three months later. The blossoms are just so delicate, the males emerging before the female flowers. The fruit in the photos are the same, just at different stages. Magnus is looking forward to eating the fruit, just to see how bitter it really is. It´s supposed to be good for diabetes and cancer. Perhaps, the awful taste would drive out any pathogens!

Squash Harvest

Magnus and I harvested these beauties. The pumpkins came from just two plants, we´ll plant more next year. With the minimal effort we put into them, they grew bigger than the 6 to 7 pounds we expected from the seed packet. We harvested 9 acorn squash from 2 vines, and 3 butternut squash from 2 vines. The butternuts are our favorites, but we did not plant them in the sunniest spot, so they produced minimally.

Heavy Rains of Early Autumn in Florés

Our usually lazy river, that is more often a trickle, has grown fat and strong with all the nurturing rainfall. Here she is in all here beauty as she races to the sea.

Mount Francisco

Panorama video from the peak of Mount Francisco behind our house.

Hiking on Mount Francisco

Fajã de Lopo Vaz

My parents, Steve and Barbara, arrived this week for a visit from Virginia, USA.

Our first hike was to Fajã de Lopo Vaz, seen here from the trail head.

Upon reaching the ocean, 1200 meters from the trail head, you stumble into a tropical microclimate planted with bananas and pineapples.

Chickens Everywhere

Amazing little fellow, pecking his way out into the world.

Proud mother hen being molested by curious Konswan.

We built a penthouse apartment for the little ones, Pintas, to keep the rats and wild cats from eating them....plus they get a great view!

Solanum muricatum

Also known as the melon pear, tree melon, or pepino melon, this evergreen shrub is a native to South America. In the same family as the tomato, pepper, and eggplant, it is a sun lover. A perrenial plant, sensitive to chilling, it is sold in farmers markets in Chile and Peru. The fruit is of variable shape and size, more or less rounded or oblong, and can be up to about 6 in (15cm) long. As it ripens, the pale green color becomes more yellow-cream, with purple stripes. With juicy and moderately sweet flesh, having the same texture as a melon, its flavor is quite similar to a cantaloupe. Propagation is via cuttings, as the seeds germinate poorly. Delicious in chutneys, it is great for pickling, and I am curious to add it to gazpacho. We have five plants, just now forming fruit. Apparently they do better in a greenhouse, growing to two meters and swarming with fruit. Ahh, next year!

A little history...squash seed were found on archeological digs in Mexico, dating between 9,000 and 4,000 B.C. When the first European settlers were introduced to squash, they originally thought it to be a type of melon since they had never encountered them before. Now there are hundreds of cultivars all over the world.

We grew our acorn squash on a hill, enriched with horse and cow manure, fish parts, and compost. We covered the hill with black plastic to increase the warmth factor, and as a mulch to conserve water. Now you cannot see the plastic unless you get close enough to pollinate the flowers! It keeps the fruit clean and free of soil born disease. We simply water by drip irrigation directly under the plastic. They are thirsty plants!

Acorn Squash

We have two acorn squash vines in our vast and varied garden, each with five huge fruit on them. Each fruit is over four pounds and amazing! We've never grown these beauties before, so we are quite proud of our success. They are Table Ace Acorn Squash, I believe the seeds are Burpee, but I've thrown the seed package away. We will save seeds from the maturing fruit for next year and hope to have even more vines growing next season.

Spear Fishing

We finally took a day off and went to the ocean. WOW! I have never seen so many fish. After swimming in the Caribbean and Bermuda, where every fish over six inches has been caught and eaten, I was simply amazed at the abundance of large yummy fish everywhere.

Konswan got to snorkel for the first time, which she is now hooked on.

I shot us some lovely Parrot fish and a Pig Fish, man, I forgot how good fresh fish is!

We also toured the coastline by boat from Santa Cruz to Ponta Delgada. Simply amazing, the cliff walls are dotted with natural springs and waterfalls, leaving a trail of flowers in their wake.

We also explored several caves that are only visible from a boat at low tide.

Next time we will take the camera, although I don´t think photos can do justice to the magnitude of 1000 foot vertical cliffs shooting up from crystal clear waters, speckled with bright fish.

Dog Demonstration

We had the opportunity to make a Dog Demonstration for the largest event in Santa Cruz, the Sao Joao festival.
The dogs all performed wonderfully after such a long break in their training. Izzy is still resting her sore muscles, and Dink is waiting eagerly to get back out on the field.
In the photo is my new "bad guy" from Flores, Cesar Furtado. He is a quick study and seems to have the dog training bug. I have been training his Dogo Argentino for the past few months and the two of them are making rapid progress.
I have a few new clients lined up after making our demo, now I just have to brush up on my Portuguese.

Solar Electric "Mad Max" Style

I managed to salvage two old 10 Watt Solar Panels from a friend. Using some styrofoam, an old pallet and a sheet of glass, I made a new housing for them. Then with silicon sealer and duct tape, I waterproofed it. So far, it is holding up to the torrential rains of Summer.







Inside the house, we have a huge truck battery to store the sun for night usage. Now we can enjoy music while we have dinner, and even watch DVD movies. More panels will be ordered as soon as we can organize it. Having a little electricity makes such a difference!

Next, I will rig some 12 Volt lights and we will be "modern".

The big project is a water turbine to generate enough power for a Deep Freezer and a Subwoofer to rock the forest.

Sarah

This is Sarah, our first milking goat. She´s very ornery, yet sweet when it suits her. It mostly suits her when Konswan bring her some fresh greens from our garden. Sarah´s a bit picky, about her greens though, prefering sweet young greens, turning her freckled nose at those that have gone to seed and therefore take on a more bitter taste. She stands well and cooperates during milking time, however she demands lots of loving caresses and scratches along her sides, neck and top of her head after the milking. She´s not satisfied until all her hard to reach places have been attended to. She indicates these areas with a swish of her head, pointing with her freckled nose. This spring, she gave birth to two kids. Only one survived, little Edison. He is now four months old.

Visitors from Norn

We had a lovely surprise this week. Friends of ours that live aboard a sister ship of Venus, the boat I grew up on, dropped by Flores for a visit.

They are on their way to England from the Carribean.

Happy Feet

Konswan´s hand knitted socks are the best ever!