The Payoff and Full House

On Sunday I finished the chicken coop and then sat around for a bit watching the animals.  First the chickens, then the goats, and then the chickens again.

At some point during this sitting and watching time, I got hungry.  Not in the mood for anything complex, I pulled some things from the fridge, cheese that I made, toasted bread that I had made with butter that I made on it, and some wine and crackers.

"Aah," I thought, as I enjoyed my lunch.  "Here is where the payoff begins."

I've been working hard on chickens and goats, and plants, and cheese and hard cider, and other things, but haven't enjoyed terribly much of the output so far.  I've been learning about a zillion skills setting myself up for a payoff ... ... some time in the future.  It was nice to sit still for a moment and experience the beginning of the payoff.

The reason I can have bread so easily is because I now have a stove for bread cooking!  The feeling of finally having a stove reminds me of when I was married and we finally got a washer and dryer.  Up until then, I had been taking 10 loads of laundry every other week to the laundrymat.  For years.  Having a washer and dryer was life-changing because it gave me something I didn't realize was missing.  The ability to stay at home and do these home things.  I've never taken having a washer and dryer for granted since then.

Having a working oven satisfies me in similar ways.  I can survive just fine without one.  But with one, I can do things so much more easily than before, without thinking or plotting how to get things cooked.  It's like a key just clicked into a slot.  Now, with a working stove, my house is full.    Replete.  Satiated.