- white-tailed visitors

Deer are not exactly an unusual sight around our home, but they still cause us to stop and take notice when  they get close to the house.  When these two came within 50’ of the house we all simply stood and watched them as they ate a little grass and then moved on.

- the life cycle of our turkey

Last summer we purchased 3 turkey poults; only two made it out of the brooder to the field, and only one made it to adulthood.  While we enjoyed having her around, we never lost sight of her real purpose for being on the farm - food.

I had processed quite a few turkeys in the past, but I had never done it at our home...  I knew our lack of proper processing equipment would make things a bit more challenging for us.  I opted to skin her rather than scald and pluck; it went ok, but I hope I don't have to do it that way again.  She turned out fine, but didn't look quite as nice and it took me much too long.

My wife opted to put her in the stock pot and let her simmer for about 6 hours.  This method of cooking allows us to get EVERY scrap of meat off the bird and also makes great stock to be used in other meals.

I must admit that I miss her a little bit; it was always fun to see her come running (along side the goats) when I was moving them to new pasture.  She followed us around sometimes, like a pet and was all-around entertaining, but she is in the freezer now and we are all looking forward to eating her.

It is hard to explain, but it is very gratifying to have raised an animal, taken care of it for its whole life, and then used it to provide for my family.  Knowing exactly how it was cared for, what it was fed, and how it was processed.  One of our goals for this year is to provide all of our own meat, which will be mostly chicken, with an occasional goat and turkey.  I encourage you all to raise/grow your own food if possible; if not you should at least make an effort to find out how your food is being raised and processed - if you want you can come visit our farm and purchase some from us.  :-)

After just arriving at Liberty Pastures

Running free in the field

Protecting the farm against a new "intruder"


Getting ready to "say goodbye"












Beginning to skin













Almost finished processing

The finished product in the stock pot













The 6 quarts of "stock" she produced for us

- way too much logic

I just got this in an e-mail from my father and I thought I'd share it with you all.   As I told him, it makes so much sense that even if it were to be formally introduced, it would NEVER get passed and ratified...  It is nice to dream a little though.  It would cross party lines and if it were added as an amendment, I think it would solve most of our nation's problems.

-- Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States  Constitution --

      

"Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States ."

- game camera

I broke down and purchased a cheap game camera.  It is mounted in a water-tight case that mounts on a tree, has a motion activated camera that takes a burst of 3 photos or 9 seconds of video, has an infrared flash for darkness, and records moon phase and temperature.   A few years ago this package would have cost a thousand dollars, technology is absolutely amazing!!!!

I bought it too late and missed dear season, but it is still interesting to see the activity throughout the day around our property.  I got one fuzzy picture of what may be a coyote, I have seen a rabbit, and a whole lot of deer (no bucks yet).  By the time dear season comes around next year, I should have their patterns down - in the mean time we will just enjoy seeing the activity of wildlife.

- my other career

If you follow the blog or know anything about me you know that I a reservist in the Marine Corps.  In addition to my required Marine Corps duties, I have taken to volunteering for many different opportunities, some of these take me around the country, but most of them involve military funeral details.  I just thought I’d share a few pictures my life when I am not working in the fields.

- woodworking

In my constant (and constantly unsuccessful) effort to get organized, I decided to make a little “tool box” to store my hoof trimming gear.  It would also allow me to easily transport  my stuff  and not have to throw it into a 5 gallon bucket or milk crate on the back of the tractor.

I did not really have a plan (like most projects of mine), but I had a vision of what I wanted.  I bought some sanded pine from Lowes and assembled a box that was 8” tall, 6” wide, and 14” long.  I wanted to ensure that it was just large enough to hold my shears, file, knife, etc…  The edges even got sanded/rounded to make splinters less likely.  I also opted to make a little divider to hold my bottle of Iodine; that stuff makes a horrible mess if it spills. 

Anyway, I was so happy with the way it turned out that I decided to make a few more.  They are not as pretty or sturdy as my dear friend would make, but for my level of woodworking skill, they are perfect.  I am sure that if you wanted a nice one with your family or farm name engraved on it, Jim could make you one; he can make just about anything.     :-)

- indian winter

I  got this 3rd hand from a friend and loved it,  so here you go...
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It's late fall, and the Indians on a remote reservation asked their new chief if the coming winter was going to be cold or mild.  Since he was a chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets.  When he looked at the sky, he couldn't tell what the winter was going to be like.  Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he told his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold, and that the members of the village should collect firewood to be prepared.   But, being a practical leader, after several days, he got an idea .  He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked, 'Is the coming winter going to be cold?'

'It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold,' the meteorologist at the weather service responded.

So the chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more firewood in order to be prepared.   A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. 'Does it still look like it is going to be a very cold winter?'

'Yes,' the man at National Weather Service again replied, 'it's going to be a very cold winter.'

The chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of firewood they could find.

Two weeks later, the chief called the National Weather Service again.  'Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?'

'Absolutely,' the man replied.   'It's looking more and more like it is going to be one of the coldest winters we've ever seen.'

'How can you be so sure?' the chief asked.

The weatherman replied, 'The Indians are collecting firewood like crazy.'
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{This is obviously a joke, but this is how they work sometimes, remember this whenever you get advice from a government official!}