New year, new goals... and all that nonsense!

First off, let me wish everyone a happy, successful and BORING (as opposed to "interesting") 2019. It's only the 2nd day of January, so most people are still sticking to whatever new year's resolutions they have made two days ago. I think...

I'm not one of them.

To me, new year's resolutions are much too wishy-washy: lose weight, stop smoking, stop hitting the wife... really?

I like GOALS. And PLANS. And really cool rewards at the end of it all. However, that takes ACTION, a step that most people forget exists by week 2. The cool thing about goals is that one doesn't have to wait for January 1 to get going. And if you missed the date, that's fine too! You can start at any time you wish.

That said, a goal has an end date. And action steps with "do-by" dates (Mini goals, if you wish!) to keep you going and motivated while you eat your own, personal elephant.

The other thing about goals is that you get to have an "accountability team" to keep you on the straight and narrow. After all, once you declare your goal and your date, that means that people are going to start watching your progress and ask questions of you along the way. Some people keep their goals and team personal and private and others go big on Facebook or some other social media platform for everyone to see their trials and tribulations and to comment on everything they do.

I am somewhere in between. I want more people than simply my nearest and dearest to know what I am up to, but displaying myself to the whole cyber-planet is definitely not my mug of coffee. Therefore, I shall use this blog as my personal goal setting and -reaching forum. That way, I can be held accountable, but not while displaying my unmentionables to all and sundry. PLUS most of my personal goals are also Permaculture and Homesteading goals, so everything will still match up perfectly.

Here goes...

• I want to have my food and herb (practice) garden established to the point of where I can take a good harvest of "first fruits" to church at the end of January 2020. Actually, I just want to see my pastor's face when I put fruit, vegetables, eggs and home canned goods in the basket!
• I want to complete two modules of a language course by June 2019 so that I can qualify to enroll for a teaching certificate in 2020. I want to be able to help (older) kids with reading problems, as many of them slip through the cracks of our education system.
• By the end of 2019, I want to earn an income from writing, blogging and various side businesses that equals or even surpasses my salary income so that I can bid my boss farewell without having any regrets or suffering a cash flow setback. It doesn't necessarily mean that I WILL resign - merely that I won't be dependent on the job for all of my income.

And that's it!

Yes, I want to remove a lot of weight as well, but that's going to happen anyway, once I start getting active in the garden and eating more fresh fruit and vegetables on a daily basis. I haven't smoked in almost 15 years and in the unlikely event that I ever find a wife to beat... you will be the first to know!

Measuring up! The first step in planning my food garden

My mom was gracious enough to allow me a corner of her property to use as an experiment in food gardening. However, the stipulation was that I am not allowed to remove any of the existing trees from that corner. So... That means I have to include quite a number of (indigenous) trees in my planning.

The other problem with that particular corner is that the soil is clayey and compacted and as hard as concrete. That means that most of my plantings would have to happen in raised beds and containers if I don't want to rent a pneumatic drill to break ground. As it is, I shall probably have to struggle to dig a few holes, anyway, to set fence posts and to plant the odd fruit tree that I don't want to keep in a pot. That all needs to be planned out well in advance as I do not want to struggle unnecessarily later on.

To give me some idea of where to start, I spent some time on Google yesterday, and came across a really informative blog, Daily Harvest Designs. It is run by Rachel, a rare breed of person who has both formal horticultural and Permaculture qualifications, but who also has a heart for helping other people succeed in their own Permaculture endeavors.

With Monday the 17th being a public holiday here in South Africa, I shall drive over to my mom's place with a clipboard, pen, paper and tape measure and take careful triangular measurements of every existing tree's placement on that bit of garden. I'll borrow an old tent peg as well, to mark off the exact area where I shall be working.

I'll also take some altimeter readings. It being my mom's place and considering the hard soil, I doubt that I'll be digging swales, BUT then that's pretty much a part of Permaculture so that's also something to plan for.

In the meantime, I'll do some research on tree canopy sizes, to see how and where to put my raised beds and vertical garden structures and if there would be a good space to place an aquaponic system and a small greenhouse.

I am also waiting with bated breath for my Amazon orders to arrive. My late dad always said that if one could read, there isn't much that one couldn't do. None of these books will replace the practical knowledge that I plan to pick up on my journey, but it will be good to learn from the mistakes of people who have done what I am planning to do. Some mistakes can be expensive and I don't have money to throw away needlessly. And tips and tricks are always welcome.