[DISCUSSION] Myriad of Activities (2022-2023)

Deleted • 25 June 2022 at 8:42 AM

This is an area to discuss about this thing that I'm doing, Myriad of Activities. Help in moderating, judging and gifting stuff would be welcome.. but that is something to be carefully considered.

Games : https://eggcave.com/forums/topic/76531
Main : https://eggcave.com/forums/topic/76532

You can talk to each other about anything here, but be polite. Anything since even I am unsure what I will do in the future.. if someone else ends up helping me distribute the prizes.. that would be great.. but that's for a later Layla to think of.

snowywinter • 25 June 2022 at 2:04 PM

Sorry to see you go, I've enjoyed seeing you around. Yet, at the same time I understand how very frustrating it can be playing this game on slow outdated equipment/barely functioning internet. And real life does take precedence.

I wish you a smooth transition and hopefully everyone will be helpful and polite : ) ❤️

- - - -

Question: In the GAMES what if there is a prompt that I find to be really fun and want to participate, but don't want to win the prizes?
May I put "NOT AN ENTRY" at the top of my post and play anyway, or would it be too confusing?

Deleted • 26 June 2022 at 9:01 AM

@snowywinter

Of course! Just put an X X X before you start your message. I'll be keeping an eye out for that.
Always glad to see more participation ❤️

snowywinter • 28 June 2022 at 12:12 AM

Cherry / Gardening / Agriculture discussion CONT...

@mightyeglantine

*Points excitedly* Hey! I've heard of them! (and they've been mentioned in a couple of the documentaries I've watched.
Mmmmm some of the older varieties of foods from the southwest are absolutely delicious! (We had a little restaurant up here, and the owner was an honorary member of the Hopi, and he brought some staples back with him each year. (He lived on the reservation most of the year, and lived here for a few months.) Years before I seen the documentaries he was talking about their efforts to save the foods they held sacred.

Best wishes in moving forward! Having a garden can be a very rewarding experience ^^ (lots of hard work of course. But it's work that feels good.)

@laylamocha
I've never actually been cherry picking (or if I have I don't have any memory of it.) The closest I've come are small year round produce markets and seasonal stands. (@fruitbat has ^^ ) I have been picking strawberries on an organic farm and absolutely loved the experince. I didn't like strawberries much as i kid until i discovered tiny indigenous ones that grow in the sand dune forests of my state. So sweet! No bigger than a wild raspberry. YUM! ...and every so often I'd try something with strawberry in it... I dunno, I kind of got used to them over time. (I'm one of the weird people that my tastes buds aren't tricked. They don't taste sweet to me.) Well long story short made plans to go picking and it was absolutely magical. I was distracted half the time by the rich thriving biodiversity. The bees, the "weeds", the frogs, a snake, sooo many birds... eating the many bugs. ...and the berries were not "buggy" themselves. And so rich in flavor! That first year we went, half our haul never made it home... I think I ate double the amount of strawberries in that trip than I had eaten in the entirety of my life.
But ummm... cherries... They're quite the drive to get to. It would be half a day's drive. (and orchard picking/u-pick farms just wasn't something *I* was exposed to growing up. ...Until the strawberry farm, it seemed intimidating socially speaking. And I was afraid of hurting the plants. I remember it being a learning process with the small garden my parents planted in my tween years.
And two years into getting into U-picking and planning on doing it a lot more often, my sun allergy ramped up to extreme... so there went that new adventure : / )

Been contemplating your question on comparing cherry and apple pies... and it's left me puzzled. I see stars as in they are the wonder of the galaxy. They're amazing. ... And All I can come up with is "they're delicious!"
I personally like that they can both stand on their own merit. They don't have to be doctored up a whole lot to be perfect. The fruit itself is sweet, so you really don't need a whole lot of sugar (just enough to get the chemical reaction with... um... fruit stuff.) Many of the same spices work well for each, but you'll generally find cinnamon used a lot more often with apple. Despite what some people think... Pie isn't just desert. Fruit pies can be perfectly suitable for breakfast 😊 (I'd say the same of pumpkin pie.) My favorite when I was growing up were the ones that had the crumble topping. (Cinnamon, sugar, butter, oatmeal, and perhaps a bit of flour I believe.)

I'm not sure if I have ever tried a crab apple, but yes they are the small green ones (not to be confused with the older types of Granny Smith's.) I have heard that they have a flavor closer to that of a pear, if not a bit bitter and tart.

Most of the year the white goldenrod almost looks like bamboo (which the first few years before it started to flower, we mistakenly thought it was. And it was a pain to try and rip out.) It's kind of unsightly when you're used to the "perfect white-picket fence Americana" type of yard. ...which we're surrounded by. But it's not so bad when mixed in as a backdrop for shorter perennials. ...or hiding chain-link fence.


.


Has anyone tried the yellow or white varieties of cherries? I've seen them online, but never had the opportunity.

mightyeglantine • 28 June 2022 at 1:28 AM

@snowywinter
I tried fruitlessly to get a small garden space going this summer but got a bit too distracted with graduating college and transitioning to full time working that I missed the planting season, although I still have squash, pepper and berry seedlings in my mini indoor greenhouse but I fear if I put them out now they won't survive the summer sun or rains because I've coddled them for too long lol

Also for the apple vs cherry pie the ingredient and chemical reaction you're looking for is pectin I believe, pectin is the substance found in some fruits that provides that jelly like consistency!

I've also experienced that fear of being too rough while harvesting plants but that was when I was a child as I'd spend my summers in New Mexico in a tiny town called Truth or Consequences(its a real place, look it up!) and every year we'd plant a small plot of crops like corn, squash, beans, peppers, melons and even sunflowers and tomatoes. I was always really stressed about going into the garden space because I felt like I'd accidentally hurt a plant or water too much or too little or do some other thing wrong that would ruin everything, but one big thing I learned in my study of botany is that plants are insanely resilient. Like growing in the cracks and crevices of concrete, living in the worst conditions but still somehow thriving against all odds. This made me realize that the tomatoes we planted in well draining and fertilized soil would survive a few shakes as I pushed them around to reach the juicy fruits they offered lol

Also not to be weird but are you in the four corners region of the US? (You don't have to answer this of course, but I'm in Northern Arizona and I am trying to build a mental map from our conversations lol)

snowywinter • 28 June 2022 at 12:19 PM

@mightyeglantine
Right with you there on missing the window. Usually by the time I got out there it was a bit too late (having to balance time between frosts and summer) There are plants that naturally germinate later in the summer, but from what little reading I can remember, some plants can be encourages with a little hormone and extra nutrient assistance. (I'm too lazy and would just wait until the next season. Let nature be the guiding hand. lol)

I know pectin is for the jelly-like reaction (still, GREAT to mention it for the people that may not be familiar! ^^ so thank you), but I wasn't sure if it's the same one/one-in-the-same that I was thinking of. A couple cooking shows I happened upon mentioned the sugar bringing out the natural sweetness of the fruit. That the granular sugar helped break down the cell walls, or worked like an enzyme or something like that.

Most plants are quite hardy (and even evolved to handle being grazed on by critters. Some going so far as NEEDing to be, to repopulate.) Unfortunately, the pea plants we had were a bit more delicate and rarely would recover once broken.
I was chuckling at the mention of tomatoes. (Members of the nightshade family,) they are some of the most resilient plants family (and extended family) grew. I really consider them a beginner's plant. One can do almost no wrong by them. They practically reseed themselves. They would pop up where they wanted in my grandmother's garden. (Then again, they composted before composting was a thing, and would till it into the soil at the end of the year. My favorites were the "suuuuurprise!" melons.)

We have quite a few interesting town names, and I always read the quirky name lists when I get a chance. Geography was one of my favorite subjects in school (well... that was a complicated on. I loved learning about new places, but I've always been horrible at remembering names and dates. ...but those quirky ones always stood out.) T&C definitely makes most of those name lists : )

I'm up in the Great Lakes ^^ ...I'd say "frozen north," but I think MN, AK, and CAN might take issue with that. lol.

@laylamocha
I just realized I never pinged anyone for this (honestly I've always been shy about pinging. ...and I'm am just getting back and learning who is doing what. I'll try to think who else might be interested. Most people I know are either long time players with most creatures, or newish players but don't really post in the forums. ...there is one person I may invite by PM though. ^^ )


Edit/P.S. Oh! we have wild black raspberries growing in our yard. Last year was the first year they produced enough to pick. This year they are darkening months earlier than they have in the past! (As blind as I am, I can even see the red dots from my back door.) Should be ready to eat soon. (My fruitbear has been foraging them early, he likes them tart. smh.)

Field Oriels came through on migration a bit earlier than the mulberries were ready. But we've had the birds a few years in a row, so I'm sure they'll be back.

Deleted • 29 June 2022 at 1:26 AM

@snowywinter
Oh, the more the merrier! You know, it's been like.. what 4 years since I discovered EggCave? And I have always loved it. Still do, but in my first year here I was mostly clicking for EC and spending a lot of time on here to obtain the newest creatures.

But then it got too repetitive, so I kept on taking breaks from EggCave. The main point is, I know that this site is welcoming, but extremely time-consuming.. and I felt it a little bit of a pity how I never really interacted with EggCave players. And the thing with advancements in technology, is how far it reaches and how diverse it's users are.

Lately, I found comfort in warm, happy communities on Discord. There, people could bask in a positive environment and relax in their time off. I came in on a Sunday, planning on leaving but part of me wanted to try and make EggCave a happy place where people can interact. So, my plans changed from leaving this site to leaving my creatures to those who would be happy to take them in.

My hopes are for Myriad of Activities to present a topic for people to constantly discuss things, or jump onto this forum [DISCUSSION] and start sharing some parts of their day! It really feels great to be able to just chat with someone about something.. but it absolutely has to be something you are okay with sharing and feel comfortable sharing!

Additionally, I wanted to learn more from others, since in our own small bubbles we normally aren't exposed to many things.. and to understand what other experiences someone else in a different background would have ❤️