days in the life of a
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September 2, 2008
HONEY HARVEST...part 1: Robbing the Hives
Welcome to our bee yard. "Apiary" is the correct, scientific term, but since we aren't correct scientific-types, we refer to it as the bee yard. We currently have 7 hives, or colonies. We started this spring with 4 strong hives and 1 very weak hive, but after catching some swarms and babying the weak hive, we now have 7 strong colonies. We actually gave 2 other new hives that we started from swarms to friends of ours who are just getting into beekeeping, Chris & Robin Sanders. This is just a hobby for us...if we get too many bees, it will become work!
Each colony is composed of 2 brood boxes, or "supers". They are the 2 deeper wooden boxes on the bottom of the colonies. Each super contains 10 frames, narrow rectangles with honeycomb in the middle where the queen bee lays her eggs and the baby bees, or brood, hatch out. These 2 hive bodies also contain stores of pollen and nectar, as well as some honey, which feeds the bee larvae and sustains the hive. This is basically the bees' home, and we try not to disturb them any more than necessary to take care of the hive.
The shallower supers on top are solely for honey. Most summers, the bees make much more honey than they will ever need or use. After they sufficiently fill up their brood boxes, they start putting extra honey in the top shallow supers. These supers also hold frames on which the bees build honeycomb and fill the cells with honey. As one super fills up with honey, we stack another empty one on top for them to start working on. You can see that some hives are much better producers than others. We actually got about 2/3 of our honey this year off the last 2 hives alone.
We always harvest our honey at the end of August. It's a long afternoon's work, and we try to get some help if we can.
Emily and Zach were the "lucky" helpers this year...don't they look adorable in their bee suits?! They were terrific help!
Kim and I did the actual work on the hives, while Emily and Zach took the frames of honey out, brushed off the bees, and loaded them up for extracting. The rest of the photos in this post were taken by Zach. He's a good photographer, don't you think?
A smoker is a necessity to calm the bees down before opening up the hive. When the bees smell the smoke, their instincts kick in and they think it's a forest fire, a huge threat to bees in the wild. So they immediately start filling up their little bee tummies with honey so they'll be prepared if they have to evacuate their hive. And, when they're eating they're not flying or stinging, so that makes things much easier for us beekeepers.
After puffing a little smoke in front of the hive, this is another tool we use to make our job a little easier. This liquid "Honey Robber" has an odor that bees don't like. We put a little of it on a felt-lined cover, put the cover on top of the hive for a few minutes, and the bees scoot down out of the top supers to get away from the smell. When we take those supers off, the fewer bees inside them the better! And this stuff does the job easily. And, I agree with the bees, it does stink!
That's Kim on the left and me on the right. I'm putting the Honey Robber cover on top of a hive, while Kim is taking
honey supers off the other hive. He carries the super of honey over to Emily (and Zach, when he's not taking photos)...
...Emily brushes off any lingering bees and places the frame full of honey into an empty super to take to the house.
You'd be surprised how heavy a frame full of honey is! And a super full of honey is very heavy! That's why I've got Kim!!! Okay, he does play other useful roles in my life, but his biceps do come in handy out there!
One other thing that I hate doing, but a necessary evil to keep bees these days, is medicating them. While I despise
putting chemicals in the hive, I despise a hive full of dead bees even more. Back in the old days (when my dad kept bees), medications were not necessary but, with transportation as it is today, many diseases have been brought into Indiana that never used to be here. So we do the very minimum needed to keep our bees healthy. We put 3 chemicals on the hives before we close them up, to fight off mites and hive beetles and the dreaded foulbrood diseases. You can see the 4 green wafers and the bag of menthol on top of the hive. There is also a white powder that I have sprinkled on it, but you can't really see it since the frames of this hive are also white. In about 5 days, I'll go back and retreat them again, and then they should be good for the winter.
Close up the hives, and we're done with the hives. Now, it's on to the sticky fun part! See part 2 later in the week....
September 2008
September 4, 2008
HONEY HARVEST...part 2: Sweet and Sticky Job
We robbed the hives of all the extra honey...and none of us got stung, not even once! I don't think that's ever happened in our 10 years of beekeeping!
Now it's time to get STICKY!!! We brought the 10 supers that were full of honey into the garage and closed the door, to keep the bees out. Time to get down to the sweet, sticky job of extracting the honey.
Kim is holding a beautiful frame full of honey. The bees have built the honeycomb out and filled the perfectly hexagonal cells full of honey. After the honey cures in the hive, the bees "cap" it, which means they make a cap of beeswax and put over each cell to seal it. In order to get the honey out of the cells, we have to uncap them.
Uncapping is done with a special electric knife that heats up. Kim runs the hot knife just below the surface of the caps, and the wax gently falls away revealing the golden honey in the cells beneath. It smells wonderful...a mix of hot wax and the delicious fragrance of warm honey...there's nothing like it!
These capping fall into a lined tub which strains out the honey and leaves the wax behind. After the honey drains out, this wax can be melted down and used for making candles, lipgloss, or other items.
The uncapped frames are then placed in an extractor, which uses centrifugal force to spin the honey out of the cells.
Here Zach and Emily load our small, hand extractor with 4 frames at a time.
Then it's time to crank. This is where the work comes in. After cranking it for a minute or so, the 4 frames inside have to be rotated and then cranked again. We had 90 frames to extract, so you can see it took some time and some serious cranking! Thank goodness for Emily and Zach!!!
We also used this motorized extractor that I bought for $5 at a beekeepers' auction this spring. Some inventive beekeeper designed this homemade extractor which, despite it's primitive looks, really works pretty well. It only holds 2 frames, but you don't have to crank, so we used it as well as the other extractor.
With both extractors, the honey comes out with some wax pieces mixed in, so it has to be strained. The honey drains through fine metal sieves to get rid of any wax debris. The result...beautiful, golden honey ready to bottle!
It's really amazing how much honey is in those frames! The little bees have worked hard this summer! We try not to waste a single drop. We harvested 23 gallons of honey total this year. That's a lot for 6 producing hives!
The honey always looks a little cloudy at first, because of the air bubbles. But after it sets for a day or two, it's light and clear and gorgeous! And, yummy too!!! So, if you're in the market for honey, we've got plenty for sale!
September 6, 2008
THIRSTY EARTH
It's been weeks since we've had rain. The earth is thirsty, crying out for rain.
Leaves on trees and bushes are curling up, trying to conserve what little moisture they have.
This poor nectarine tree poured all its water into producing fruit, and the leaves died. Without leaves feeding the tree, its survival is seriously in doubt.
Rain is critical for the soybeans in the field to fill out for a good harvest. The leaves are curling, begging for that
life-sustaining rain!
And then, praise God, yesterday it rained. Soft, steady, cool, wonderful rain!!!
Leaves that had been curled opened wide to soak up the delicious showers!
Once again, we are reminded what a delicate balance there is between too much water and not enough.
And we can be thankful for an awesome God who provides exactly what we need when we need it.
Sometimes, there's just nothing more beautiful than a rainy day!
September 8, 2008
SUNSHINE ON A STEM
Sunflowers make me smile. I mean, how could you not love a sunflower?! Their big, bright yellow blooms brighten up the summer landscape. And once they start blooming, they just keep at it!
It's a good thing I love sunflowers, because we've got LOTS of them this year! The window on the right is my kitchen window, right over my sink. Guess what my view is?! SUNFLOWERS...and all the butterflies, bees, and birds that they attract! I lovingly (well, maybe not so "lovingly"!) refer to this as the Jungle, which I nag Kim about letting get out of control. Somewhere in the middle of that mess is a beautiful goldfish pond with the friendliest fish we have. Only you have to wade through the jungle to see them! The wild things love it, though! (Does that make Kim a "wild thing"?! )
Why so MANY sunflowers? Here is one of the many culprits! The birds rummaging around in the birdfeeders causes some of the sunflowers to fall on the ground, where they start to sprout. And keep sprouting! With 3 different feeders around the pond, it doesn't take long for sunflowers to pop up everywhere.
The bees love them! Look at the pollen sacs on this little guys legs...plumb full!
The butterflies enjoy them too! Here a bee and butterfly share the same little sunflower.
My favorites are the goldfinches! They perch on the sunflower and peck the seeds right out of the head! Crafty little fellers, aren't they? Beautiful, too!
Yep, I've gotta love the sunflowers! Especially when they hide an ugly corner. I do wonder how these sprouted up here...can't blame it on the birds! I think Kim must have cut off some dead sunflowers and threw them in this catch-all-garden-debris corner last fall.
One more fun sunflower fact...they always turn their faces toward the sun. If you check out a sunflower at different times of the day, you will see that it turns toward the sun as the sun moves across the sky. Well, actually the SUN doesn't move, the EARTH is the one moving, but you know what I mean.
There's a lesson in there for us. We should always be turning our face toward the SON...Jesus Christ!
Enjoy a glorious, Son-filled day!
September 10, 2008
MYSTERY BUG
Last week, I happened upon this strange little critter crawling across our driveway. When I first spotted it, I thought it was a pinecone...but it was MOVING! As I got closer, I saw that it was actually a worm fastened inside a pineconish
pod of some sort. Kind of like a snail in a shell, this was a worm in a pinecone! Strange, indeed!
Now, I've lived in the country all my life and I've never seen a critter like this. So I picked it up, put it in a container, and kept it to show the "experts" in my life.
My father-in-law, Kenny, a nature buff himself, said he'd never seen a bug like that before.
Kim, my husband who knows a lot about a lot of things, said that even though he'd never seen one, he knew just what it was. He didn't know the name for it, but he knew it gets in trees and kills them. A bad bug!
My son-in-law, Zach, happened to come over. He immediately said it was a type of "bag bug" (which is also a BAD bug) and he used to have to pick them off of pine trees.
Then Kim said it wasn't a bag bug, but he agreed with Zach that it destroyed trees. Of course, I had to chime in that there are probably many types of bugs that we generically call "bag bugs". I always have an opinion to add, even though I know nothing about insectology or entomology or buggology, or whatever it is called.
Just a side note, I had a high school classmate, Mike, that went to Purdue and actually got a DEGREE in entomology, the study of bugs. He is now making a good living as a bug professional!
Having confered with the experts in my life and coming up with nothing conclusive, I decided to investigate on my own.
What I found is not good. The evidence suggests that this is a bug that does hang around in trees. This guy is hanging in a locust tree. There were several just like him on nearby branches. My theory is that the worm grows inside and then the pod with the worm inside falls to the ground. I have no idea where the little guy starts out, how the pod forms, what happens when the pod/worm fall on the ground....a lot of unanswered questions.
How come I've never, in my 51 years, noticed them before? Are they a new phenomenon...or am I not very observant?
Is this the same type of fella, hanging around in our pine trees? Maybe a close cousin?!
I guess if I REALLY cared that much, I would dig into this nasty bag of webs up in this tree and try to find what a real, genuine bagworm actually looks like. But...I don't really care THAT much! I'll leave that disgusting job to my entomology guru-friend Mike, who loves bugs. And, besides, I wouldn't want to burst the bubbles of my other "experts"...you know how fragile the male ego can be! Even when it comes to strange bugs...
September 12, 2008
PROUD PEACOCKS
Kim likes birds. One day several years ago, he got a "wild hair" and, unbeknownst to me, ordered some baby peacocks as well as some baby miniature ducks. (Did you know you can order chicks through the mail??) At supper that night, he nonchalantly mentioned that he had ordered them and I was furious! What in the world was he thinking?! We didn't need any peacocks or ducks!!! He shared his vision with me...peacocks casually strutting around our property, showing off their beautiful feathers...miniature ducks serenely floating on our goldfish ponds. It was a dreamy country scene, I had to admit. But my vision was quite different... I could only see peacock and duck poop all over our driveway and sidewalks and lawn! Of course, the deed was done, the order was in, and all I could do was fret and pout about it.
A few weeks later the baby peacocks arrived. (The baby ducks died enroute...Kim accused me of wishing them dead, making me feel guilty...but, so far, he hasn't reordered any!) Kim was delighted and, I had to admit, they were darling little things. He lovingly raised them to adulthood, with the plan of releasing them on our property after they were old enough to take care of themselves. When that day finally arrived, he released the 5 peacocks to strut around our 40 acres.
Well, they promptly strutted down to the neighbor's house and roosted in the tree in their front yard. The neighbors were thrilled and happy to share the peacocks...until a few days later when the peacocks decided they preferred to perch on top of their shiny, new, red car and scratch the paint off it with their sharp claws. So, they called Kim, he caught them (not an easy task...you'd be amazed how these huge birds can FLY up to the tops of our enormous pines!), and they've been penned up ever since.
Our flock of 5 has grown to the present number of 11, 5 boys, 6 girls, and 2 babies that we can't yet tell. That doesn't count the several babies he (with the help of an old hen!) has hatched out and given to his dad, or the many eggs he gave to Peggy's dad, which he hatched out and is now raising.
Our female peacocks love to lay eggs, but so far their motherly instincts have not kicked in and they haven't been inclined to set them and hatch out the babies. So Kim has enlisted the help of several old hens to serve as surrogate mommies to the peachicks. These babies were just a couple of days old when I took this photo in July.
Here they are today, about to outgrow Mama at nearly 2 months old. They have the biggest, most expressive eyes!
At night, they roost up high inside their pen, all lined up on the pole for the night, where they "sleep" squatted there.
And, beneath their roosting pole...a nice (?) big ridge of peacock poop. Yep, apparently they poop while they sleep.
But they are gorgeous, especially the mature males with their long iridescent tail feathers and brilliant blue heads.
And, even though Kim's vision didn't quite materialize as he planned, we've both enjoyed watching the peacocks do their peacock thing! Beautiful, unusual creatures, they are! Another testimony to God's creative ability!!!
September 14, 2008
A SMILE FROM GOD
"And God said,...'I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the
covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and
the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and
you and all living creatures of every kind.' " Genesis 9:12-15
Rainbows are not that common where I live in Indiana. Maybe a few times a year, are we blessed by the amazing arc of colors stretching across the sky. And when we do get to see one, it always feels like God is smiling at us!
As I was driving in a light rain to a tennis match one evening last week, suddenly the sun broke through the clouds and I just knew there must be a rainbow somewhere in the eastern sky! I peered into my rearview mirror, and there it was! I drove into a parking lot, pulled my trusty Coolpix camera out of my purse, and started shooting. Rainbows
are hard to photograph...they are so large and the colors are often so subtle that they don't show up as well in the photo as they look in person. But this was a vivid one, a BRIGHT smile from God! Or maybe it's a laugh?!
Why would God smile at us? We must disappoint him daily, with the way we live and the choices we make, how we don't love each other like He taught us to do. He should be sighing, or scolding, or even just giving up on us.
But, amazingly, our Heavenly Father keeps on loving us, regardless of all that! He never gives up on us, no matter what! HE LOVES US!!! The Creator of the universe loves and cares for us! And he never wants us to forget Him!
So...once in a while, He reminds us...with a SMILE that stretches across the horizon! And it makes me smile back!!!
September 16, 2008
STINKY BUSINESS
An unwelcome family has moved in under our deck...a family of skunks. An extended family, it seems, have made themselves quite at home there. We can hear them at night, scratching and squeaking around. Occasionally we see one, though I think they sleep most of the day and do their prowling at night. And once in awhile we can smell them, the rancid, stinky, musky odor that is unmistakably skunk! Although, considering how close they are to us, you'd think we'd smell them more. I think they've gotten way too comfortable around us, we don't even scare them!
So Kim is on a mission...trapping skunks. His theory is to catch them, then figure out the rest later (like what to do with them and how NOT to get sprayed! Details, details...Kim can't be bothered with details!!!)
Apparently, skunks love peanut butter. At least our skunks seem to. So Kim prepares his bait (and licks the knife!).
He sets the baited live trap behind some bushes at the far corner of our deck, right before dark. Then, as soon as he gets up (it's still dark out!), he quietly walks out on the deck to check his trap and...
sure enough, a skunk is inside, just staring up at him. I snuck outside and took this photo, hoping he wouldn't spray...and he didn't! He didn't even seem scared of us!
In fact, if he didn't have such stink-potential, I'd think he was even kinda cute...in a skunky sort of way!
Kim stealthily picked up the trap with the hoe handle, keeping his distance for the inevitable spray, which fortunately didn't happen! The skunk had no idea he was meeting his demise! Don't fret...he didn't suffer.
Then, the next night, he set the trap again, and...ANOTHER skunk! Two skunks in 2 nights!!!
If you're a skunk-lover or have a weak stomach, trust me...you won't want to see the next few photos. Just quit right here and go back to the pretty pictures on another page. However, if you're a TURKEY VULTURE...you'll just LOVE the next photos! Because, what a scrumptious meal awaits...
Yummy! If you haven't had lunch yet, doesn't it just make you hungry right now?!
Seriously, give me some skunk intestines! A delicacy only a vulture could love. And stomach...
Off he goes! These birds are huge, I'm telling you! Big ole black creepy birds! Check back tomorrow, Mr. Vulture...maybe we'll have another skunk for your breakfast!
September 18, 2008
FORLORN WINDMILL
Just a few miles from my home, along a narrow, dusty gravel road, an old rusty windmill proudly turns in the breeze.
.
Covered with vining weeds and rust, this relic of Indiana's farming history reminds us of days long gone, when all farms needed windmills to pump water for their homes and livestock. Before electricity powered our lives, the energy of the wind was geniously harnessed to provide power for Indiana's original homesteaders.
I've always loved windmills, especially the rustic ones that have stood the test of time and still keep on turning. How many lightning-filled storms and tornadoes, blistering heat and blizzards, gusting winds and thundering rainstorms have threatened its destruction? And yet somehow it managed to survive.
What changes this windmill has witnessed! When it was young and shiny and new, horse-drawn plows furrowed the fields below it, instead of the huge, noisy tractors that till that same field today. And cars cruise by where wagonwheels once slowly tread. It must have been so peaceful and quiet those years ago, with only the smooth clicking of the windmill blades or the call of a bird or the snort from the horses breaking the silence of the afternoon.
Towering over the cornfield, it still stands watch...a forlorn sentinel in the middle of nowhere. And it keeps on turning...
...a nostalgic reminder that no matter what changes and storms life throws our way, we too can stand tall and strong, survive them, and keep on turning. Like this windmill, we may become a little rusty, squeaky, and weathered around the edges...but, hey, that just adds to our charm! I just love an old windmill, don't you?
September 20, 2008
COUNTRY QUIZ
Our little homestead is full of weird sights, some beautiful and some...well, just plain gross! This is in the latter category? Do you know what this is?
Makes me just want to reach out and touch it! NOT!!!
Ugh! Yuck! Nasty! Its only redeeming quality...I do like the pastel blue color, don't you? Have you guessed what it is yet?!
Oh, my! What in the world is that hole??? Hint: There's another one just like it on the other side.
Now, this should give it away! Here's lookin' at you, babe! Hint #2: This fella will be in my freezer in 36 hours!
And roasted on our table on Thanksgiving Day!!!
You GOT it!!! It's a big, old (well, actually only 5 months old!) tom turkey. Tomorrow afternoon, this big boy and his
14 brothers and sisters are finding their way into our freezer. He may be ugly, but he'll be some good eatin' this winter!
September 22, 2008
AUTUMN AIR
Autumn is in the morning air, I can feel it! Today is the first official day of autumn, when the Autumnal Equinox does its thing...whatever that is...and, just like that, summer is over and fall is here. Fall is my very favorite season!
The goldenrod is in full bloom, to the chagrin of allergy-sufferers like my husband. I think it's beautiful, coloring the country roadsides, a sure sign that fall has arrived.
Soybean fields are turning from green to golden brown, and soon the combines will be busy with the harvest.
This maple tree is always the first to change colors on our place, and I noticed that the leaves at the top are beginning to put on their autumn reds and oranges and browns. When we first moved here, this young tree was only about 10 feet tall. Now, 26 years later, its branches reach way up there!
The apple trees are loaded down with a bumper crop, and we're making cider every week.
And, this is one of my favorite signs of fall, the woolly worms are on the move! You don't see them much during the summertime, when they must be fattening up their bellies. But this time of year, they are everywhere! I especially notice them constantly crossing our country road, in a big hurry to get somewhere, searching for the perfect spot to spin their cocoon for the winter. Sometimes when I run this time of year, I count the woolly worms I see crossing the road. Hey, it doesn't take much to entertain me...any diversion during a run is welcome!
Autumn air has a crispness and distinctive smell that I just love, replacing the humid heavy feel of summer air. Cool mornings and evenings are perfect for running or walking. And the days...not too hot, not too cold...JUST RIGHT!!!
Yes, I enjoy the fall season more than any other. But I have one complaint...it's way too short! And you know what follows... Savor the moment!!! Autumn is here!
September 23, 2008
ETERNAL OPTIMISTS
If ever there were a group of optimistic people, it has to be Indiana University football fans (okay...maybe they are in a tie with Chicago Cubs fans!). Once upon a time, way back in 1967, IU had a great football team that played in the Rose Bowl. Since then, there hasn't been a lot to cheer about. Every few years we have a good team with a winning record and maybe a bowl appearance, but "great"? No. Not in modern history.
When Kim and I first got married, he promised me that when (if!) IU went to the Rose Bowl again, we would go. I'm still waiting...and there's really no realistic hope in sight. I guess he figured that was a safe promise!
But IU fans are always optimistic, always sure that NEXT year we will have that GREAT team. And, even though we can't fill the nice stadium we already have, they are doing remodeling and adding SEATS, of all things! I guess they want to be sure that when visiting teams come they will have plenty of places to sit. I'm so glad our tuition and tax money is paying for this project! But maybe, just maybe, the IU athletic department is onto something. "Build it and they will come." Or "Build it and they will win." Eternally optimistic! Gotta love IU football fans!!!
When the late Terry Hoepner came to coach at IU at few years ago, he created a new excitement and enthusiasm for Hoosier football. He instituted some new traditions at IU for alumni and students to help rejuvenate a stagnant program. Memorial Stadium is now known as "The Rock" and the slogan is "Defend The Rock." It hasn't made the football players win more games, but the fans are definitely more excited!
"The Rock" stands guard (and guards guard "The Rock"!) outside the Hoosier locker room. I don't know the whole story behind "The Rock," but Favorite Son-in-Law Zach was an athletic trainer for the football team the year "The Rock" made its appearance, and he told us that the players thought the whole thing was a little dorky. But a tradition has to start somewhere, doesn't it? I suspect that one of the numerous local limestone quarries donated it to the athletic department, and thus "The Rock" was born. And now, it's a tradition!
So touching The Rock before each game is supposed to bring good luck, I guess. Anyway, every player touches it on the way out of the locker room. It hasn't brought the team a lot of luck yet, but eventually that luck will kick in, right?!
The painted logo in the middle of the field is also a new tradition. (If you think this is a weird photo, it is! Your eyes do not deceive!) There was a big controversy when it all came about. The first logo was much like this one, in the shape of the state of Indiana...except, the little dip in the top left corner that is Lake Michigan was not there. Someone created a big ruckus about it, Lake Michigan was added, and all is well in the world again. (I gotta believe it was some of those rabid Chicago-ite alumni who threw such a tizzy! Why are there so many Chicagoans at IU??? I've always wondered that! They love to come down to hicktown Bloomington and flaunt their big city ways, I guess.)
But some things never change. The IU Marching Hundred is awesome as ever. That's one of the perks of having one of the top music schools in the nation, a terrific marching band. One of my college roommates was in the Marching Hundred, and I can tell you that they put in a LOT of hard work into their precision routines. It's really amazing!
Cheerleaders are timeless, cut from the same preppy sorority and fraternity patterns today as they were when I went to IU. Not a big fan of college cheerleaders....
Yep, some things never change! The scoreboard may be fancier, but the result is usually pretty predictable!
But, hey, WAIT UNTIL NEXT WEEK (or year or decade...)!!! I LOVE INDIANA FOOTBALL!!!
September 24, 2008
THANKSGIVING TURKEYS
The turkeys are in the freezer! After 5 months of care and nurturing (and hundreds of pounds of feed!), these 15 young turkeys realized their life's purpose...to provide the main course for Thanksgiving meals for our families and friends.
It's a cold, hard fact of country living. Farm animals are raised to produce food; that's their very purpose on this earth.
So, if you are a vegetarian, vegan, turkey-advocate, or extreme animal lover, stop reading right here and check back in a couple of days!!! Consider yourself warned: the following photos are a bit graphic. Maybe even more than a bit. I've tried not to get too gross, but butchering turkeys is simply not pretty or fun. It's just a fact of life and something that needs to be done. I hate the job as much as anyone, but I've come to terms with it. And, if you have the interest and/or the stomach for it, I want to share the experience with you. You know how misery loves company! Believe me, YOU have a much better seat than I did!!!
One by one, Kim caught the turkeys and loaded them up. They are big dudes, heavy even for my macho man!
Kim rigged up this contraption of a pen to haul them up to Kenny's (his dad's) place, where we do the butchering.
If they had half a brain, they could easily escape! But they are so docile and tame and just plain dumb, they don't even try. But surely they have to know something's up!
The actual killing is the worst part, so close your eyes and turn your heads and put your hands over your ears. The turkey is put in an old feed sack with its head sticking out (the sack makes it easier to control the turkey so the meat doesn't get all bruised up with its thrashing around) and with a very sharp knife, the turkey is dead in a second or two.
I'm sure you've heard the saying, "Running around like a chicken with its head cut off!" I saw that actually happen once when I was a child and we butchered some chickens. They are dead, but their bodies are still moving for a few minutes and they will flap and even run around until they eventually just collapse. Well, the same is true for turkeys...only on a much huger scale. That's the reason for putting it in the bag, to help contain it. The turkey is dead, but it takes a few minutes for the muscle contractions to stop, so the men have to hold it down until it stops moving and bleeding. Notice I said "men." This is a job I DO NOT DO!!!
The dead turkey is carried in for Kim to scald. Kenny has a special tank for scalding that holds the water just below
boiling, at about 180-185 degrees. It's important that the water is the perfect temperature...too cool and it doesn't loosen the feathers, too hot and it causes the skin to tear. This is an exact science, not just some run-of-the-mill operation!
This step requires skilled labor, and Kim is the perfect man for the job! It takes someone who doesn't mind getting dirty and wet and bloody, who has strong arms and body, who has a suppressed sense of smell (nothing smells worse than hot, wet feathers!), and who has just the right knack for scalding...all qualities Kim possesses. It's a talent, I tell you! Put THAT on your resume, Kimmie!
Let the plucking begin! Bud (my dad) and Kenny (Kim's dad) did most of the plucking. If the bird has been scalded right, the feathers come out fairly easily. The big boy is just too heavy to hold, so Kenny rigged up a noose from the ceiling to hang him from. Ingenious, isn't he?! It must be in those Gray genes (along with a lot of other crazy characteristics that we won't go into right now!).
Okay, Terry, put down your camera and get to work! This is where I come in, the fine-cleaning phase. Cut off those big feet (yuck!) and then start scrubbing his skin to remove any loose skin or pinfeathers or whatever else needs taken off. This is the most important job, that's why they assigned me to do it (not really, but I like to think so!). It is important, though, because who wants to cook a pinfeathery, nasty-skin, gross-looking bird for Thanksgiving?! I'm not sure what the big deal is, because I don't eat the skin, so who cares? But it has to LOOK appetizing, doesn't it?!
Thought I'd just throw this photo in. Now you can say you saw turkey feet up close and personal. Actually, they are really cool to play with. If you grab the tendon where it's been cut off, you can make the toes open and close. My kids loved to do that! Did you know a turkey has 3 toes?! I've never really noticed before! Learn something new every day!
Not only is Kim the Scalder-Extraordinaire, he's also a fantastic Gut-Man. He reaches way up inside the turkey body and carefully pulls out all the guts. He cleans the liver, heart, and gizzard (delicacies...yum, yum!) and the rest goes...
...into the gut bucket! Yes, we have a specific bucket just for the juicy, slimy, gooey, yucky guts! These get hauled out to the field where the coyotes and foxes and who-knows-what-else have a fabulous feast.
The finished bird goes into a tub of cold water to cool out for a few hours and then we bag it up and into the freezer it goes! We had some very big turkeys this year, the largest one weighing about 37 lbs. and several were at least 25 lbs. A lot of good eatin'!!! But after the exhausting butchering ordeal, I'm really NOT hungry for turkey for a LONG time. At least until Thanksgiving Day!
Can you stand one more gross-out photo? Check out Dad! And this is AFTER he washed off his hands and arms!!!
You could say he threw himself into his work! Or, you could just say, "Gross!" Anybody want a big, old hug?!!!
September 26, 2008
ROADSIDE BEAUTY
I've got a thing for weeds. Not in my yard. Not in our garden. Not in the flower beds. But along the country roads...I just love the weeds!
Maybe it's my way of living a little on the wild side! I like the untamed, haphazard way God planted the weeds. They have a graceful, soft look that is deceiving. Weeds are tough plants, strong and rooted deep. It's how they survive.
Love the feathery purple petals on this roadside weed...an unexpected burst of color along the roadside!
Goldenrod thrives this time of year. And the butterflies and bees love it! Remember the "Goldenrod" notebooks we used in elementary school? The sheets of paper were this very same color of yellow (hence the name...).
Daisies! I've always been a daisy girl! In fact, daisies were the flowers I used for my wedding. This wild version is scattered among the other weeds. Apparently the bees like daisies too!
Another daisy-type weed... these are like miniature black-eyed-Susans!
Bluebonnets! The individual flowers are not anything special, but a patch of bluebonnets...beautiful bursts of periwinkle that bloom all summer long. There should be a crayon color called "Bluebonnet", don't you think?
Milkweed pods add in a weird texture and shape to the roadside bouquet. A few years ago, I hardly ever saw milkweed because roadsides were so aggressively sprayed. But people are beginning to realize the importance of "useless" roadside weeds like milkweeds. Did you know that monarch butterflies need milkweed to survive? I'm seeing more and more monarchs around here, which means that milkweed is making a comeback.
And the lowly thistle. Yes, it's a pesky weed, spreading quickly and causing havoc in fields and pastures. But I still think they're beautiful, as their dried pods release hundreds of light feathery seeds into the breeze.
Weeds remind me that there is beauty in all things (and people!), if I just look for it. Weeds are untamed and undeterred, growing strong wherever their seeds happen to fall. And, well, weeds just add a wild beauty all their own to the countryside, living life on their own terms...much like the country folks who thrive here too!
September 28, 2008
THE SWEETEST LITTLE GUY
We made it safely to Minnesota...and fell in love all over again! Karter, our grandson, is now 3 months old and the cutest and sweetest little guy in the whole world. He has changed SO MUCH from the last time we saw him in July. He smiles and "talks", tries to stand up, and loves to chew on his fingers. He's a dollbaby!
Grandpa Kim loves smooching on his chubby little neck rolls. That's where all the sugar is made (according to Grandma Lois!)!
That tickles, Grandpa! But little Karter puts up with Kim's silly shenanigans. And the babytalk that Kim comes up with...priceless! Kristoffer and Dana are threatening to do a YouTube video of that!
His daddy Kristoffer is pretty cute and sweet himself! Guess that just comes with being a Gray man!
Karter listens intently while his daddy and grandpa critique the college football games. Will we have a future Peyton on our hands? He does love to watch football games already. Another trait of a Gray man!
He loves his bath...except when Mommy squeezes water all over his face! The boy loves getting naked! (Should I say it??? Another Gray man trait?!)
He is definitely our little bundle of joy! And we're spoiling him to death for a couple of days...sorry, Dana!
Football, a full tummy, and a Saturday afternoon nap...yep, for sure he's a GRAY MAN!!! Nighty, night Karter!
