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We’ve pruned the trees for a better view.
This is the third part of my ongoing journey of slowly transforming the land I bought in Guatemala and adapting to my new life here. You can catch up on Part 1 and Part 2 if you missed them.
As we enter the third week, let me introduce our new residents: three hens that have been living on the beach for the past few days. We set up a thatched roof with four pillars and enclosed it with cage wire to keep the hens from escaping. On the first day, the roof wasn’t properly secured, so they got out and hid in the neighboring bush, which made it tough to catch them. Now, they come back around 4:30 PM and roost in the roof.
For all the vegetarians out there, you might want to skip the next couple of paragraphs.
I’ve named them Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. You can’t get too attached to them. Breakfast is the youngest and lays the most eggs. Lunch is a bit older. Dinner was initially meant for eating, but after we had another hen for soup recently, the handyman looked after her for a while. We figured she would be fine here in the meantime. Who needs a deep freezer when you can keep your food alive until you’re ready to eat?
Sorry if that bothers any vegetarians (I did warn you), but for those of us who eat meat, it’s a good reminder that chickens aren’t just the neatly packaged parts we see in the store. I don’t mind handling freshly slaughtered meat, but I still can’t kill anything larger than a scorpion. I either want to get used to it or go meatless; it feels strange to eat meat without preparing it myself.
The entrance wall and gate are done. BF almost fired the mason due to repeated mistakes, but the job got finished. We added six layers of blocks, raising it 1.20 meters, and put wiring on top, which we’ll cover with bamboo and ivy or some other climbing plant.
We wanted the wall to be green, envisioning a darker shade, but I’m not a big fan of the result. I painted the wall white with lime, which is very cheap (about $5 for the whole wall) and helps deter insects.
Inside the house, we did a thorough cleaning and noticed a lot of debris falling from the thatched roof. We removed many leaves, and a host of unwelcome guests started appearing. Cockroaches are gross, but scorpions can sting so painfully that your tongue might go numb for days. After spraying a good coat of Baygon, we put the furniture back in the kitchen and bedroom, and tried to set up a makeshift ceiling using plastic and wood found around the house to catch the dust.
While we’re still deciding whether to re-thatch the house roof, we fixed the deck’s holes with new leaves. The mix of green and brown leaves looks a bit funny now, but they’ll dry out soon.
I managed to do the thatching myself! It’s not too hard once you get the hang of it.
This week, we’re starting work on a safe room—a room sealed so insects can’t get in. We’re still debating whether to tear down the house and build a new one or keep the current one and make do. The house is better than expected, but it needs to be safer for people and bug-proof. The windows are just mosquito nets, so they’re not secure.
A big help for my November zero food waste goal has arrived: a deep freezer! We also got a new blender, perfect for making ice and blending frozen margaritas.
I love cooking, and since the supermarket is a long drive away, the freezer is going to make life much easier. It cost $300, and the blender was $100, but we got a deal because we also bought a motorcycle for the handyman, which he’ll pay back through his work, so we got the blender for $30.
I’ve stocked the freezer with a whole lamb BF brought back from the ranch, some fish from the lake, and some amazing grapefruits from the ranch. They’re so big they barely fit in my hand, and they’re super juicy and sweet. I peeled them, took out the flesh, and put it into small sandwich bags. Now, I can take a bag straight from the freezer into the blender, add a little water, and have fresh juice in the morning.
That’s it for now! How’s your week going?