The Tedious Side of Travelling -- Sinead's Place

Blue Couch, how I am going to miss your sinfully comfortable azure cushions.

My placement with Sinead is just about over. I have a full day of work today, I'm taking Tuesday through Thursday off to explore Dublin, am working Friday morning, attending a food festival in Kilkenny Friday afternoon and evening, throwing a dinner party for Sinead's friends Saturday night, and attending a Druid Halloween celebration Sunday night. Monday is another work day, and Tuesday (the first of November) I leave for Maria's.

I've been at this prolific vegetable farm for just over a month now, and I feel as if I'm finally starting to get the hang of things. I've found out just how I fit into this organic farm, and now I'm off to a new one. I've realized that I don't think this sort of vagabonding lifestyle is sustainable for me, in the long run. No matter how effective I am at commandeering a particular side of the couch and establishing little routines to give me a sense of regularity, I cannot compensate for the lack of community moving from place to place every month carries with it. It's very difficult to not really know anyone around you, and meeting new people on a consistent basis is a rather exhausting endeavor. Well, meeting the people is fantastic -- I suppose it's living with new people on a consistent basis that gets tough. All the little rules I have to remember about each house -- the rules the people who live there take for granted, but prove tedious for me to keep up with.

Tedious things to relearn at every placement

How long I have to preheat the water before I can take a shower

What is recyclable, what is compostable, and what is rubbish

What I'm allowed to eat out of the fridge

How clothes are washed and dried (drying clothes can be a very long process in Ireland. There aren't any drying machines and it's always raining outside.)

Working hours

What's acceptable to expect of my host in regards to food and transportation

Different techniques and rules regarding harvesting, watering, planting, and feeding the animals

I've decided to keep a little notebook for each farm, writing down all the little rules so that I don't mix them up as much as I did at Sinead's. That is one excellent aspect of changing living situations every month -- I get a brand new start. I've started to keep track of all the things I've done really well at Sinead's and all the things I should probably work harder on.

I've done really well integrating my specific skill set into Sinead's operation. Marmalade making, pumpkin carving, dinner parties, and yoga classes. That's grand. 

I've not done so well at interviewing people. I had one discouraging interview experience that totally deflated me, and I've been hesitant to ask people for interviews since. I will do my best to get one interview a week at my new placement. 

This weekend was rather uneventful. Kim went home to Wales for the weekend, so Sinead and I had the house to ourselves for a couple of days. I made 16 jars of beetroot chutney and 14 more jars of red onion marmalade on Saturday afternoon, and we set up a little stall at the end of the driveway on Sunday. We sold a few pumpkins, eggs, and preserves, and I made twenty euros out of the day. That should be enough to finance my trip to Dublin and scamper around the Hill of Tara in County Meath. 

At the Kilkenny market

Sinead's polytunnels

Sinead's polytunnels

There was a torrential storm last night that blew open the chicken coop door, so I have to go help Sinead chase all the chickens back into their enclosure.

Chicken chasing. Something I shall never be any good at.