Tracking the Deer

Saturday around 4:45 I finally got my chance. Four deer came running across my path. I was able to take a good shot at the biggest one. Unfortunately my shot wasn't good enough. The deer was able to run for a ways. I was able to track the blood trail into the corn field behind us. By the time I got that far it was getting dark. I kept going for a while but had not asked permission and did not want to go too far into the field. It would have to wait until tomorrow.
Sunday morning I got up and drove around the county block to ask permission. No one was up yet, so I came back about an hour later. No problem.
The kids and I went out to the field. The weather was not helping. It got warmer, the snow melted and it started raining. Maybe in the old days people were good enough to track a deer under those conditions, but I am not. We looked for several hours until finally giving up.
Oh well, there's still the late bow season!

Opening Weekend

This weekend was opening weekend of hunting season.
Many hunters dream of the trophy with the large rack. Dressed for the occasion and well equipped they take to the woods and fields. Hoping for the best.
The deer run and hide. Often only to wander into other sites.
Bang. Tonight we feast.

How to listen to politicians

In a democracy politicians should be "trustworthy always, trusted never".

There are a few things you need to be aware of when listening to politicians.

1. They will say anything to get what they want. The truth is not a factor.
2. They will never tell you exactly what they want. There is always an agenda.

Keep these points in mind. Pay more attention to what they do than what they say.
Think, don't just believe.

The First Snowfall

Last night we got the first snowfall of the season. It always brings some excitement of many kinds; thrill, fear, and anxiety. This one especially so because they are predicting a very cold night to follow. The animals are anxious too.

I still need to put the heater in the horses' water trough. I don’t think the water will freeze from one night of cold, but it might. Bring in the concrete projects the girls were working on, put the rack for our firewood on the porch. And do we have enough wood cut for the winter? It’s harder to get it back to the house after the snow is on the ground.

About two o’clock I woke up and looked out the window. It seemed like I was watching a black and white HDTV. The snow was still falling and because it had started out as rain everything had a coating of white. It was quite bright outside even though it was the middle of the night. There was no color, only black and white and the grays in between.

The snow was glowing, or so it appeared. An almost full moon and dense clouds created a feast for the eyes, sans color.

Cast Iron Cooking

Cookware is one area that we have clearly gone backwards. The fry pans and griddles our grandparents used were in almost every way superior to what most people use today. Here’s the disclaimer... As long as they are used correctly.

There are a few simple guidelines to follow when using cast iron cookware.

1. Never, ever, ever, ever use soap on your cast iron pan. Wipe it out with a towel (cloth or paper) and put it away. If you get some burnt crust building up on your pan you can scrape it with a metal spatula.

2. Make sure the pan is hot before putting food or cooking oil in it. Put it on the stove and turn on the heat. Give it a few minutes then add your oil and food.

3. Use metal utensils. I always prefer metal utensils, modern cookware with non stick coatings can’t handle metal.

That popping sound

I just figured out what that strange sound is. Have you heard it too?
It's this sucking - popping sound, almost like the plunger coming up out of the toilet.
George Bush's approval rating is sinking. More and more people are sorry they voted for him.
Some have even come to realize that he is lying scum.
I think it's the noise made when people pull thier head out of their ass.

Passive Circadian Management - The Tao of Chickens

Chickens are wonderful animals. They are easily as entertaining as fish in an aquarium, with benefits. Now on my second year of raising chickens I have learned a lot.
What chickens eat does affect the quality of their eggs. When they are only eating chicken feed, the yolks are a lighter yellow color and the shells are thinner. The best seems to be allowing them to roam about eating whatever they like. Bugs, greens, seeds, etc.
Allowing them to wander freely about the yard does bring its share of problems. They like to hide their eggs, finding them can be a challenge. Then once they are found you don’t really know how old they are. They do like the tomatoes when they are getting ripe and do some damage in the garden. Poop in the yard has not been much of an issue. It dries and breaks down quickly.
Getting them back in the coop at night is never a problem. As long as the coop is open, they just go there. All I have to do is close the door right after dark. They like to roost at night, perching on what ever is in the coop for them.
Cleaning the coop is not my favorite task. The chickens do a lot of pooping at night when they are roosting. It dries and sticks to the floor of the coop.
I have come up with a system that makes having the chickens almost all pleasure with very little effort or problem.
First is the coop. I designed and built mine with branches for them to roost on one side and boxes with hay for them to lay eggs in on the other. The floor under the roosts is chicken wire and under that is an old wheelbarrow. At night they poop as much as they want, it falls through the chicken wire right into my old wheelbarrow. Every few weeks I empty the wheelbarrow in the garden. Easy.
There are two doors in the coop a large one for me to use when gathering eggs and a small one for the chickens that opens into a fenced yard. I have a gate so I can get into the chicken yard.
Every morning I check the food and water, then open the small door. The chickens spend all morning eating and scratching inside the fence. Because they are fenced in they don’t hide their eggs they just lay them in the nesting boxes.
Around noon I go out and gather the eggs and leave the gate open. Now the chickens can go wherever they want and eat what ever they want.
For the month that we have ripe tomatoes I don’t let them out they stay in the fenced in yard all the time. I do give them all the left over seeds and skins from making tomato sauce. They also love the squeezin’s left after making apple cider.
Every evening I close the doors and say good night.
All together I spend about 10 minutes a day taking care of the chickens. With 10 laying hens we get 6 to 7 eggs a day. Our yard has less bugs than before. And they are fun to watch.