Day 8: Dabbled in some farming

     Tried a hand at farming today, and so, I woke up relatively early to get a scope of some suitable fertile land. Didn't take long, it turns out: there was a great piece of flat land near to the back door, and a fresh water spring right next to it... it was perfect! The only problem was, coming down to the cellar, down the main shaft and back up through the back door is a hell of a way to get to it. It's secure, but it takes too long, so I had a better idea. I went back to my forest, wolf in tow, and removed a few trees to make a small staircase from the porch to the floor below. It didn't take anywhere near as long as I intially thought, especially as the dirt and stone hill was practically perfectly set so placing the stairs was childs play. I got the actual staircase fully finished and lit with torches a little after midday, by which time the wolf was pining (he REALLY needs a name, but I'm no good with coming up with them!) for food. This seemed an appropriate time to test the staircase: it stood firm and fast, and there wasn't a single creak to be heard. Next test: weathering!

     We sat there for a bit, the wolf chewing on a steak and me tucking into a ham sandwich. It was rather a nice scene! Afterwards I returned to the farm, shovel in hand, and began carving out furrows to allow water to rush around. I knew from my science that running water was better for growing crops, because still water stagnates and can eventually poison the plants. Not wanting that, I made sure the plot was slightly lower than the water source, and, once content with my work, I allowed the water to flow into the allocated furrows:

It went from this, to this:

     I've already planted my wheat to make flour for bread and other things, and the reeds may come in handy for making durable paper to write on. I could probably gather an assortment of dyes from natural sources such as flowers and the cacti down by the beach. I really hope that my farm flourishes as successfully as my forest did... although I kinda cheated on that one. Which reminds me; I may try the whole bone trick on my crops to see if it works as well, although I'm not holding any high hopes.

     I went back up to the house to try a spot of fishing; I want to know if that's what's got the wolf so riled up about the water. he keeps diving on in, scrabbling around and then comes back to the shore, shakes and trots back in again! I've just spent the better part of an hour constructing a basic fishing rod from wooden sticks, and string fibres from the wool. I'm thinking of spinning some of it to make cotton for clothing! About to head down to the beach and try my luck... Taking a few bones and a pork chop with me too; last thing I want is the wolf getting tied up in the fishing line!

Syeonyx signing off