Ummmm…how is it September tomorrow?

This month has truly been bananas; I’ve been pretty much skittering all over the place with no work-life balance to speak of. Everything…just…collided. But I did submit the first draft of a new manuscript to one of my publishers, I wrote a couple of articles for a magazine I’ve long freelanced for, and I worked with my co-author Janet on another round of edits for a book that will be published in spring of next year. And a bit more than that…

A huge thank you to the Town of Okotoks for inviting me to talk about preserving and storing the garden harvest for their August Green Living Workshop on the 19th. Food safety and reducing food waste are big messages I am passionate about getting across and it was fantastic to have the opportunity to do this.

Spent the evening of August 20th at the Crossroads Community Garden talking about growing haskaps, saskatoons, and sour cherries. Many thanks to the Calgary Horticultural Society and Crossroads Community Association for hosting. I met so many wonderful people there, and as a bonus, the mosquitoes didn’t completely consume us all!

CTV News Calgary surprised Janet and I this month and asked if we would pop in for a little spot on the morning show, which we were delighted to do – you can see the clip here. Janet brought in some freshly-harvested garlic and onions to show as we chatted about harvesting the bounty of the garden.

My author copies are here! My author copies are here! My author copies are here! Ahem. Not Just Dirt: How Soil Supports Our Planet will be out and about in the world in 16 days. I loved researching and writing this book and I think Orca Book Publishers truly made the magic happen once again!

Plied a new-to-us prairie lake with the boat and traipsed along the banks of the Livingstone River this month….

….took in a jousting tournament and so much more at the Military Museums’ Summer Skirmish here in Calgary….

…and, as a Board member of my local community association, helped host a Music in the Park session featuring country music artist Mya Kate. This was our first crack at an event like this and we were really pleased with the turnout, especially on a holiday weekend. Mya was fantastic – you can follow her here. The CA also did a school supply drive and a clothing giveaway this month. We’ve been hopping!

I’ll head out with a quick suggestion: grow chocolate mint in a pot and then harvest this insanely yummy-smelling herb for tisane. You can use the leaves fresh or dried – just steep them by the cupful, adding a drop of cream or milk to taste. It’s wellbeing in a cup!