on today's list

the bathroom, and the fridge, with a side of living room

i was up all night thinking of the house, what i need to do next, wondering if we are going to get permission to see bernie's mom, deciding workflow in the kitchen, pondering winter veggies without the cold frame, (we didn't get it finished), picturing where to put 3 more cords of wood...plus finding extra for a tank of oil...oh and the car insurance is due next month too.- going to rhinebeck with ducks.....
(need to plan safe indoor pens for them NOW, )
too much swirling through my mind

tylanol is my new best friend

as i am also very sore, which i can't figure out why?
i still have to clean the budgies too
now why isn't any of the house cleaning crap done more regularly, maybe i really AM lazy
oye
anyway, i am finishing my coffee, waiting on the dishwasher to go off
while captain cuttle sits on the perch closest to me and tells me all sorts of stuff about his day and the other budgies.....he's a riot that one
(oh and i need 2 more boy budgies.....i would like a sky blue one and a gray one)

now when i get through the biggest part of my to do list (if i am still alive after) i think i am going to run through a few weeks on big batch cooking for canning and the freezer
stuff that you can pull out or open at the last minute and throw in the oven or just reheat
would anyone be interested in reading about how i go about mine?
i don't actually follow recipes but the methods will no doubt get you through.

i'm italian, we don't actually follow recipes, we're taught methods or techniques .... you take what you have on hand, whatever is ready in the garden, or what is on sale, and figure out the amount of folks you have to feed, (do you also want some leftovers?) and that sort of decides what and how you cook

ie: lets say we got leftover pork and leftover rice....... i did in the spring along with fresh garlic scapes, and a few dried veggies..... i made a pork fried rice stir fry, it fed us wonderfully supper plus two lunches
OR
we have three tomatoes, and three people, two chicken breasts, cheese, pasta, and some odds and ends veggies
tomato and onion salad, chicken slivered with cheese over pasta and steamed veggies
there's dinner
see what i mean?
maybe i don't have eggplant.......... ok i got zuchinni and mushrooms.........

anyway let me know about the big batch stuff

you know i'm upset when i am cleaning

and i can't stop
we are waiting out getting permission to talk to bernie's mother
there is a bunch of burocratic shit you gotta go through
*this is a crock, it shouldn't be like this*
anyway in the meantime
i am cleaning the house
deep cleaning
like tear shit apart and scrub the grout cleaning
i only do this when i am unsettled
so far i am in the kitchen but i am eyeing the bathroom, dining room and living room
i am going to take a swipe at the studio as well
and of course saturday morning will do pens again, instead of friday
as my nephew, sister in law, and my adopted neice will be coming saturday so i want to make sure they are clean
i am still not sure what to cook
and what to bake or what
icecream?
soda?
fruit punch?
OYE
i hope they feel welcome and have an enjoyable visit
meanwhile i am cleaning

now my cousin nick and my sister in law alice were conversing on facebook, and nick told me to rest
alice told nick that i don't know the meaning of the word
meanwhile bernie says i'm lazy
now who do i believe?
sometimes i feel lazy when i am not busy going from one thing to another
and i also feel lazy when i see my to do list and it's not getting shorter
how does a person judge how lazy or busy they are?

i'm not sure!

i will tell you this much, i have discovered that i ran out of space for cookware.......before i ran out of want for cookware......(oh and i got a lodge preseasoned cast iron 5 quart covered dutch oven to do the no knead bread, which i plan on making with my tweeks to make my regular loaf.........)
yet did that stop me from lusting and bidding on other cocottes on ebay........??
what do you think?
oye
i won't rest until i get that oval one in matt black i think
ok so
that's all folks

ttyl

hmmmm

i woke up this morning dreaming of my deceased brother in law... well i suppose with all that's been going on...yeah
but towards the end my dad appeared.... and my brother in law faded away
it was almost like dad was protecting me
we still haven't heard about the visitation from the 'legal guardian' for bernie's mother
she told me one or two days
then apparently went out of town
the girls called her
so we'll see
it's been my experience that the 'public' guardians are corrupt.... so i am hoping that this is not the case here

it's got me a bit depressed

now as to hurricane earl...it seems that nothing is happening here
except humidity......so i got the ac on
i was going to bake some cookies for bernie for the weekend but i can't figure out where he put the flour!

(oh and a mouse chewed through the feed bags for the ducks..... stream of consciousness, cause i also have wheat down stairs..... the feed bags are on the other side of the basement)

i am trying to not think 'victim' type thoughts right now
meanwhile my little monster cat is in my garden basket pulling zip ties out
oye

i canned tomato salad yesterday, and should see about pickles today..... the salad tomatoes are coming on
and i do realize that this post is disjointed
i am disjointed today

and a bit upset that bernie is working AGAIN tomorrow, i am so worried about him

oye
happy labor day to you all

today is thursday

i got some sleep.
and i actually overslept getting up at 20 after 5!
i was in such a deep sleep that i thought bernie was still home.

today is the usual, ducks, chores, canning, harvest, dishes..... cooking and possibly doing some pizza dough ( but bernie had to knead it, i can't do that anymore, so i may wait to the weekend depending)

yesterday evening when doing chores i let the babies out to graze, the garden had to be watered but they are big enough now to graze outside the fence without too much worry
lilli was not happy nor was phoebe.
i picked up little bigfoot a few times, she isn't as nasty as she was, but she has to learn to come when she's called for me to pick her up, like the big girls do
malcom had to tell me all about it
he is my talker....... just like babette the chicken is my screamer....... malcom talks.
i am going to miss his peeping when his voice changes to the hiss sound
it may be my imagination but it seems even poindexter is down a peg since i clipped wings
i have to say poindexter is beautiful........ he is going to a farm here near town, him and may
they are beautiful birds
i so wish i could keep them but i don't have the pen space nor the time to do that much extra
if i could keep a drake pen without them fighting it would be fine but that won't happen so i have to cull
i believe that thumbprint/kevin is not going to last long, nor will he ever be a fertile drake in my opinion....... he'll always be a somewhat bumbling pet
malcom is going to be an ok drake i think....... not the quality of poindexter, but not the difficulty in handling either

i think that bigfoot is pretty and we may name her after my aunt fortuna.
that left a decision between prudence and may
we are keeping prudence as she seems more willing to bath
although at times she needs prudence as she likes to rile up the other ducks
 the stories are starting up again no?

i went yesterday with jen down to the lehigh valley, i think it was good for me
we passed bernie's new fleet
he'll be 40 mintues away when he locates there permanently......
i am still having lingering after problems from that adrenal crash thing. slightly shakey, still depressed.
i am going to sit later and knit i think but i have morning chores and a bunch of other things to do
i fully intend on keeping busy
besides as i went out for most of the day yesterday, i blew off some stuff that must be done today

and i am also trying to find the pictures for my nephew and sister in laws

today is september 2, i have to get another load of wood in and a tank of oil
plus 150 pounds of potatoes......then i think we are mostly set for winter

ok everyone ( and thank you so muck vicki for your sweet comment) i hope to have happier and funnier stories again soon, plus drawings over the winter

life with adrenal problems

today i found my mother in law..... bernie's long lost mother
ok so she sure wasn't mother of the year....
damn she would take first place in a 'how to abuse you kid and screw them up for life without really trying'
however i found her
i searched for 10 years for her
now between friday and today, and the dentist etc......
my adrenalin has been working even more over time then normal
but then there comes.........
(drum roll)

THE CRASH
and i'm there

the crash pretty much sucks
who needs to be a drug addict when you have an adrenal hyperplasia
oye

i am sick, seriously........ to my stomach
and shakey
and depressed as all hell
and weepy
and my mouth tastes funny
and i am craving salt and sweating

lovely isn't it
i think i smell too but it isn't the duck shit that 'bigfoot' so nicely deposited on me
i will take yet another shower today

i will also withdraw a bit
cause in my head it's better if i keep out of folks way, cause in my head i think i am annoying them

ah life with cronic illnesses

but at least the poultry pens are clean

chicken pens are done!!!

yeah!
yesterday was a busy day, feed store/post office
duckies out....
chicken pens (thanks to my sister in law alice for talking to me while i mucked pens)
harvested tomatoes
scanned pictures to the family on facebook
dishes
and collapse into the computer chair
i even did thaddeaus' messy ears and looked for the herron family photo albums


today i have to do ducks (that's a given) laundry
dishes
and start the table excavation and clean the budgies
isn't it amazing what taking your thryoid meds regularly will do for your energy levels?
oye
i have to make ribs tonight too
hopefully today will be as productive as yesterday
(one could hope no?)
i also would like to get a video of the ducklings today if possible... or the chickens or someone
ok it's late and i goofed off now for three hours

oh wow

well this was a most eventful weekend!

with our nephew kevin friday,

bernie working all day saturday

a very early roadcall sunday

oye

meanwhile i got duck pens done, night crates done and today....CHICKENS

of course all that will need to be REDONE friday but still...

and day pens for ducklings will be redone almost daily..... i am thinking of making the pen bigger again...... however with 6 in there it's going to be a sloppy mess daily anyway

very soon poindexter and may will leave for their new home.

and the drakes will be seperated out. so the work will be in smaller chunks ( and lighter chunks)

my nephew is supposed to be back sometime in september, with his mom and sister.

he mentioned this weekend but the house is a mess, and then he made plans with a friend of his.

i am going to try to unearth the house in the meantime..

we are behind on work because of bernie working both days over THIS weekend.

we don't have all the wood in either. nor the heating oil

oye

yesterday i clipped wings on ducklings. they weren't happy but that is what needed to be done.

one little one is seriously feisty.... that is the last one to be named too. the one we refer to as big foot who isn't really anymore. she tried to bite me! hahahaha, i held her up on her little duck back, no one bites mommy.  here are the pictures with their names in them.

all in all i think it was a good weekend. i didn't get to see bernie much, and i do miss him. i got a lot done, and i got a new relative. i have to find the photo albums for the boy too.

he is going to be coming back up, with his mom and sister so we can meet his family.  i am hoping to get the house excavated before they get here......

hahahahaha

yup all in all a good weekend

we went on a road call first thing this morning

a critical care unit ran out of fuel.
got back
i dragged out the night crates and cleaned them, pitched hay for day pen bedding, filled ponds, fed and put the ducks out
oye
bernie meanwhile ran to town for me, feed store, got milk at the grocery ( we really need GOOD neighbors cause i really need a milker)
i am doing dishes
i still can't believe my nephew came up....he is so beautiful
so wonderful
and such a miracle to us
i really didn't want him to leave
even though i knew he had to go
i was so upset yesterday that i actually swept floors and cleaned the house (bernie had to go into the new shop and start setting it up so he was gone all day)
WHY do i get family and then boom they are gone again
i was hoping this boy would stay overnight at least
i was loving how bernie and he talked
and the things they had in common
bernie said it is a bit of a blur for him as he was so tired from work
so this handsome young man better get his skinny butt back up here soon


now in a minute i am going to finish up the pots and pans......
then most likely start lunch and get stuff together so that tomorrow i can muck chicken pens which are WAY OVER DUE

and sometime this week i need to can salsa, and vinegared tomatoes
i also have eggplant to deal with
but sadly the DEER ate one of my spaghettie squash.....
damn deer

and the answer is

miracles happen.

i find the timeing rather miraculous......i am thinking folks will too

i was asking why yesterday
and yesterday afternoon, ( while mucking a ton of duck pens)
we got a phone call
now let me fill you in
bernie has a convoluted family tree, he has 4 full siblings and who knows how many halves
(his parents got around)
his youngest brother tommy crossed in 1992, no one knew until 1997 or 1999
we tried to find out if there were children but never heard
so figured no

well yesterday we found out that tommy had a son! the boy is 20, he's in the army reserve
and he came up from philly to meet us
(i fed him spaghetti- and he's a doll)
we didn't have all the answers for him though but he knew a lot more when he left then before he came
i like him!
bernie likes him
no one here slept all night

why?

do you ever wonder why?
or ask why?

why do some folks try so hard and seem to always be kicked in the teeth?
why do people have to suffer?

why do 'acts' of god always describe terrible things (and involve non payment by insurance companies)?

why do governments exploit their citizens and get away with it?

why DOES the toast always fall butter side down? ( that one i think is a physics thing, the butter is most likely heavier)

yesterday i had another encounter with the relatives of the jackass neighbor.........who is gone but who's vandalism and dumping legacy live on........ the pig of a person told me 'you got too much time on your hands honey'
cause i caught him dumping..... bernie's got the path back there full so i can't get back there, but i know it's a mess, as i have seen them dump before
i also know that the whole 'too much time on your hands' crack was just a jab to cover up that he WAS doing something wrong
but it pissed me off big time
and kicked in the adrenal thing for the second time in what ? two days ( the fear at the dentist kicked it in very bad too.....i was shaking)
now i know that the over active adrenal gland thing makes me very sick with the slightest bit of stress.
normal folks would need to have been in a serious deadly car accident to get that amount of adrenaline pumping in their blood..... me i only need a tiny bit of stress
then i'm sick for a while
i shake and sweat, and my insides crawl
it's the worst feeling
oh and the TASTE i get in my mouth isn't too pleasant either
then of course there are the stomach pains......followed by 'gastric distress' acute

lovely huh?

i was up all night, i was shaking with frustration in again being victimized and not being able to do anything about it
i know that the back part of our property is a mess from these people
the knowing gets me physically ill
legal recourse didn't work either........ partly as the lawyer is not really happy with litigation and partly because the judge was paid off......that is the only explanation for letting a litigant off a suit after four years and a BINDING arbitration judgment against them
who had more money to take it to appeals?

now i don't believe that we are put here to suffer, nor do i believe we are created and exist just to worship a vengeful, and egotistical supreme deity
i am thinking that the definition of a supreme and ineffable deity would sort of make that an oxymoron
so that whole religion answer to why doesn't cut it with me, when you honestly think it through there are too many holes in it.
now that doesn't mean i don't believe in a creator- oh boy do i
i can on a small scale relate to the sheer joy of the creation process, and the inevitable moment of AH HA in a successful completion- believe me that hooks you... it's a total rush.
SUCH a total rush that you just want to create the next thing and the next..
how much more awesome is it to create worlds and universes?
no wonder the physicists tell us that the universe is ever expanding...
i am thinking that 'god' is out there...... creating and having a blast

so who's minding the store?

from what i have observed, we live in an open/closed system...
the ultimate recycling
so maybe the answers are here all along?
hidden clues? waiting for us to uncover them if we really want to?
nothing too obscure or hidden...... maybe just a maturation of species to allow us to focus?
i mean look, during the middle ages a bi-polar person was tortured and killed......as they thought that person possessed by the devil.
today we know it's a brain chemistry thing and meds can help
our focus changed
so the answer was there
and we opened it

i tend to think of our world mostly like that
but in a more national geographic 'star nursery' sort of way

how would that come down to translate into my tiny area........with this jerk dumping on my land, my kitchen being a nightmare.....and my poor little hormonally battered body giving me fits?

and how not to feel totally insignificant when you follow this line of thinking out there and back. like a speck of dust on the universe..... duh...... can you GET any tinier and unimportant?

(oh and btw, welcome to the inner workings of my brain....... this is the sort of dialog that i live with all the time)

i just don't know why, and i would really like a reasonable explanation that isn't full of holes, hot air or rhetoric-
boy when i die and get to heaven, i want a LONG appointment with customer service as i have a LOT of stuff i want discussed

shared from Luann

http://luannocracy.blogspot.com/ shared THIS on facebook-
now it makes total sense why i spend the time i do on the ducks.
why i can't stand tv or noise

i think in pictures and as an artist i was trained to observe...... EVERYTHING
sometimes it gets too much and i need time out
no tv is good
i HATE THE NOISE
yesterday at the dentist i was seated in front of a tv........with (get this) the FOOD CHANNEL!!!
while i can appreciate the irony
i didn't appreciate the tv
the noise
RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY FACE

the dentist, who btw is VERY GOOD...i was shocked at how good actually....
would watch tv between stuff... if he waited for the assistant to light cure the filling, he was watching tv
she was doing the same
yet they didn't get all caught up in it either

but the noise drove me nuts

i couldn't WAIT to get home to duck shit
***i have pens to muck again***

also in other duckie news...... i am still not totally decided if malcom and thumbprint are boys...
poindexter is huge......masculine ......the schwarzenegger of duckies... the other two more like the skinny geeks that get sand kicked in their faces at the beach...
so i am about 90% sure they are boys, but there is that tiny nagging doubt in the back of my mind
otherwise poindexter and may would be at their new home already
poindexter led the babies on a merry and totally unsafe chase
i was not happy
and poindexter is not going to be either.......

he'll be separated out again, i can't have that

oh also, i have to go back to the dentist september 9
this is where they tell me 'you have bone loss'
hahaha REALLY? i did NOT know that...you mean THAT'S WHY that root canaled tooth wobbles around so much? ( weebles wobble but they don't fall down)
i suppose i do need to actually DO something about that though, as i do occasionally get abscesses and when they drain it tastes like skunks smell........ewwwwwwwwww
so i should no?

the fall rains have started, and with them the tomatoes are finally thinking of ripening
i pick them when they are just showing some red and let them ripen in the house- if i don't do it this way the birds peck them.
i also need to get to a farmers market soon
if our teeth will allow us to actually take funding away from the dental issues,  to be able to spend on food.......
don't think THAT irony hasn't escaped me.

quick update on my quest to replace all the non-stick with either stainless or cast iron...
i have decided........some used cast iron is the way to go
i need a good skillet
so i am on the hunt for one
i want older so that they have the polished surfaces
i don't want to pay a lot
*duh*
and i am thinking i need at 11'' one
and i need to convince bernie this is superior to his long awaited teflon electric grill......
ha
oye
ttyl

off to the dentist

if i do not return, someone bring in the ducks please

i love my ducks

last night as i was putting the ducks away, i took lilli and phoebe on a walk through the veggie garden.
hahahaha
oh man were they every happy....slugs EVERYWHERE

lilli and phoebe ran around scarfing up slugs like crazy.
i helped them, as every time i found one in the raised beds i called them over to eat the hapless slug
DEATH TO SLUGS is the motto around here
and we found a lot
i love my big girls
they are so sweet, so loveable....so muddy
and they listen pretty good for ducks

now the babies on the other hand....
malcom talks....... all the time
he looks you in the eye and tells you all about his day, your day, everyday
oye
thumbprint is still in his own little world.....you can pick him up and he won't realize for a while
little bigfoot we may name prudence because she doesn't have any... but she is so feminine and sweet
may and poindexter are going to live by vicki staples......
unless poindexter is the only boy, then malcom will be maryann, and may will go with one other girl to vicki's
oye

last night for supper was leftover braised beef put into a pie shell with it's gravy reduced to thicken and baked in the oven.....with a cheddar cheese top
i am a very good wife to bernie.... his supper was ready when he walked in the door

meanwhile the rain keeps coming down, the ducks aren't too happy about it
i need to rearrange day pens but have to wait for the weather to dry up a bit

oh and there are 'killer' dogs on the loose down the street sorta
poor things they've been on their own a while but they have a pack mentality now so i am thinking they will be put down when caught
meanwhile they are killing deer and cats
so i worry about the flock

this weekend is chicken pen cleaning.. i can't wait
(seriously i want these pens done, i did them during the summer but they are overdue... i like them cleaned monthly)

meanwhile i continue to try and figure out the kitchen, it's discouraging though. one minute i think 'we can do this' the next minute i think.....'am i out of my mind, we can't do this'
oye

anyone of you guys go through stuff like that?

rain rain.......don't you DARE go away

it's dark and humid and raining
the ducks are unhappy
the ducklings haven't ever actually SEEN rain
they aren't impressed
i think the only one that is happy is my little frog friend out by the woodpile
good thing bernie got the wood up too

meanwhile........ still with back issues
now bernie's got some from stacking the wood
his tooth surgery is healing though

i have been dreaming every night of kitchens
how the cabinets fit, what should go where......how does the traffic flow work
and for some odd reason.......PINK kitchens.......
oye i guess i am seeing this kitchen thing through rose colored something or others no?

i don't know exactly what we are doing today
maybe the bookstore?

oh and btw, i used the new lecreuset soup pot the other night...... made baked ziti.
i am offically in love!
now i want a 3.5 quart LC in round
and i want the staub stuff in oval
and i WANT MORE


that's all she wrote today

i have to make a rice sock

cause using the cat's snuggle safe isn't working real well
onto day what? 5007? of the bad back thing?
or so it feels
meanwhile that little shit of a cat thaddeaus is trying to get my attention by annoying the budgies
not the easter budgies, mind, the older ones that are CLOSER to MOMMY
i am considering relocation of the cat to the crate in the living room

bernie is a hair better.. but he's got a HUGE hole in his mouth were there used to be 4 teeth
me, i feel like the summer is totally wasted with this back thing

bernie plans on stacking the rest of the wood this weekend
which would be a good idea as i have to get the next three cords in october, and a tank of oil in september.
then i think, with the possible exception of emergency water (we don't have enough) .....we should be ok.
oh and paper/kindling to light the fire

winter preparations are almost done, however they are a bit late for my tastes this year, as i like the wood all in by july.
we also still need to make a cold frame, oye...... i forgot that one
it would so help the winter 'fresh food' for us to have that, however if worse comes to, i may have to hoop a raised bed- it won't be nearly as efficent though

ok i hope everyone elses summer is going much better then mine

bernie isn't getting any better

i told him he has to call the dentist, i can't do it for him as they need to talk to him.
meanwhile i am starting to suspect that possibly this back thing of mine, isn't
i am thinking, it may be something else entirely?

is nausea normal when your back hurts?
i had a terrible night, ending up down here for an hour with my friend tylanol
then went back up and slept until 8 am.
i still haven't gotten dressed or put the ducks out yet

the pain is bareable at the moment and i am afraid to trifle with that
but i have to get them out soon

meanwhile i am to go to jen's while she's on vacation to pick roma tomatoes
i don't know if i can drive!
i am currently on the heating pad and ice

thank you for the well wishes everyone
i still can't understand how i end up so sick all the time
(bernie i understand, he doesn't listen or take care of himself- me i try to take care of myself)

anyway
after i get the ducks out i am probably going to go to bed again
i feel useless and unproductive when i do that though

bernie is still not doing well since his surgery

monday, and me, well tylanol, heat and ice are my new best friends
(and ty cindy for your thoughts)

bernie is going to work but he came home early yesterday, and is trying to get home early today due to pain. meanwhile life and chores go on
so i added bedding to the babies day pen, and pickled some cuc's
also vinegared some salsa tomatoes.....they're in the canner now
i have to do dishes in a few minutes
then start supper

apparently everyone's good thoughts have helped a bit as i found a small stash of my thyroid meds so i have a few more days/weeks? reprieve
we still have to do something about getting a new rx for me however
i have to run now
everything is taking forever for me

yesterday four teeth

today my legs and back

bernie's dentist trip cost us 250.00 and he had four root tips extracted

today i got to go to the chiro where i get to tell him i can't afford to come back, while my back is sitting there spasming......and everything hurts
of course having run out of thyroid meds so not being on my meds doesn't help much either huh?

right now i am not fit for man nor beast so until i am in a better mood
(or i get a shit load of thyroid meds which will stop the pain and put me in a better mood--)
i am going to just have fast postings if at all

i dreamt of my best friend again

it was nice talking to her
i also saw an old boyfriend and was happy to see that he'd moved on
what a weird dream though
i dreamt my best friend had gone back to her Xhusband
meanwhile i threw my back out again
and today is the oral surgeon for bernie
tomorrow is the chiro for me
gees. when did i get this old?
i have the insurance to deal with today as well..... as the insurance just paid something on the lab bills i been paying off (but that didn't stop the lab from sending me to collections!- in spite of the insurance still paying things and ME paying huh?)

well one of the bright spots of the weekend besides the much needed rain, was roast chicken with leek sauce, fresh marvel of venice yellow beans and baked potatoes.......
oh wow
bernie was very impressed
which makes me very happy
and with all the rain i think that the turnips and the kohlrobi should do ok in the garden as well as some of the other things i got tucked in out there
i do have to pick beans and cucs today though and i hope also tomotoes
so meanwhile i am sitting with the heatting pad to be followed by the ice pack
and then i will pray for tylanol to ease the worst of it

i think part of this is from the road call and trying to climb out of the big rig
and part is from me twisting funny this morning trying to get out of bed without upsetting cats
oye

fully feathered babies....... it's almost fall

soon, oh soon the back........

soon my back will be back.......

ok i went for a second appointment with the chiro, and i am getting better.
it's all from that fall in april
i did a good job on me
i messed up my left shoulder, heel and hip and my right knee and ankle
that was a terrible fall
i also broke the roots on a tooth i am just finding out now
oye

anyway it's better but not great
HOWEVER i am better enough to have put up some cuc's into kosher dills. have i told you all i love canning
6 pints of kosher dills-heavy on the garlic......... salty too
i did half sandwitch stackers and half hamburger chips
i haven't opened one yet to see if i got the balance right but that will happen later
these are for burgers mainly
bernie loves burgers, i like cheeseburgers with pickles on them
sooooooo we got kosher dills
bernie USED to like bread and butter pickles.....but since i started to make them, he doesn't eat much of them once a year or so
he does prefer the homemade to the storebought but now he's really into my kosher dills

ok what all else?
i haven't pulled my spaghetti squash vines yet although they too look like squash vine borer got them good
the one lonely little squash is still growing so i'll wait and see
i plan on growing hasta lapasta next year with a maturity date of 73 days, so that i can put them in some time mid july
i would prefer the longer vegetable spaghetti variety but with the vine borers and no really GOOD organic way of fighting them, we'll have to resort to tricks and shorter days to maturity (and added heat i suspect)

it's time to put in spinach now, along with beets, kohlrobi, turnips, chard, lettuces... mmmm
i wish i had that cold frame built already. anyway i am going to put in more beets and start the chard , and other greens now

how does everyone's gardens grow this year?

ok i have to go
this is a fly by posting
but i will BE BACK

still out to lunch

remember that fall i took in april.....
well my back is finally out from it
i went to the chiro yesterday
the good news is, while i am still in pain.... and still can't do anything, it's a bit better
AND my legs are a bit better
i have to go again tomorrow to the chiro
hopefully this is it now
but maybe not
that was a pretty bad fall
and i do tend to work hard (even though bernie thinks i'm lazy)

my brain is out to lunch

hopefully it will be back soon

so how's summer going for you all?

it's hot here
and dry, really really dry
that didn't stop the vine borer from hitting my pattypans
and sadly, yesterday i started to yank my beautiful big bursting with squash buds plants out
the bottoms were all exploded due to squash bug
i thought i was so careful with them
i put one in a bucket to see if i can get it to root or something but i think it's a goner

i am going to try to put in a trap crop of hubbard squash next year early, then put in my beloved spaghetti and pattypan (and pumpkin) in july

july 1 seed directly

july 8 or later to transplant seedlings

i won't get squash until late but maybe i WILL actually get squash?

i am also a bit dry, seriously, even with all the fluids i been drinking..

div>
i am out sweating so much that i get so hot and dry, i don't rehydrate fast or easily lately.

well, today i am up early. wood is coming.

i didn't sleep however, as fawn caught a mouse bringing it squeaking into the bedroom

i could hear it

in much more pleasant news, the cucumbers have come on!!! so pickles are getting done

small batches right now 5 pints at a time
however that does add up over a growing season so pickles will be stocked up,
nice salty garlicy kosher dills
then later i will make half sour 'chips'

the heirloom beans are coming on as well. i have to get a ladder out there to pick them though, but the tomatoes in the main garden are NOT turning red, which i don't understand!

but tomatoes take a very long time out there to turn red. the ones on the deck turn red fast

the ones out there stay green it seems forever!

lilli and phoebe are good little ducks, i am realizing just how good they are after dealing with unruly teenage baby ducks.

i love my big girls so much

they are over two now and have a bit of a 'musky' smell to them, but i love them dearly.

today i have to clean the big crate that the babies are in, plus if i can do part of the chicken pen
oye

and the wood is coming,

i need to stack but bernie still hasn't told me where he wants it yet......i doubt he knows where he wants it yet
i am considering one stack on the side of the house......so it's close for me during the winter to bring in the wood
heating with wood can be hard work, but oil is running out, and i don't think solar is up to the point yet where we can be assured that the house will stay above freezing all the time.

now i have a question of you all- see that picture of the floor plan of our little house? (it is VERY TINY with NO closets)
we need to think of something to do to improve traffic flow and to gain some more space. we're also thinking of maybe seeing about an addition. does anyone have any ideas?
the biggest problems are that the living room and kitchen are actually giant hallways, the poor kitchen with 4 doorways! it is the hub of this house but it's a nightmare to cook in
and the house is solid stone, so just moving walls isn't going to work. the studio is an add on from the 60's, we mostly live in there. anyway, any one have any brilliant ideas for us?
cause right now..... i don't, not one.
but it looks like we have to stay here for a while. so we have to do something.
oh and the wall between the kitchen and dining room is 6'7'' long. that is the ONE non load bearing wall, but it's also the only wall in the house without either a door or two or a window in it!
THE ONLY wall.........
oh man
ok i am going to go and make the coffee now

ttyl
stay hydrated, stay cool and have a good day

today is the dentist for bernie

and in a nick of time as i am about to pound him with a frying pan
cause i can't sleep either with him up all night
(if this guy is any good-i'll be going to take care of my abscessed teeth as well)

now on to the good stuff
that le creuset i got a huge deal on (off ebay) came
it's got more then a 'minor' chip on the handle but considering i got something like 80% off
and it is brand new..... i'll use it and not worry too much
it's a soup pot, a 4.5 quart soup pot, and i don't think they make them anymore!!!
it's also red.
and is surprisingly lighter in weight then the no name stuff from china
i still want my staub cocotte (oval) actually i am thinking of a few staub rounds and ovals.
i want a matte black oval stab for no knead bread...

today i am having a rough time getting it all together and getting going
i have to move wood and i'm not getting to it
3 new cords are coming friday
with another 3 new cords coming in i think three weeks
that should hold us if the wood is good
i still need a tank of fuel oil as back up though-just in case

this morning thaddeaus puked up before breakfast, then i fed him
good thing he nailed a cardboard box, that will make clean up really easy
oye
CATS

i made a pork loin last night and rice, bernie couldn't eat.
he said he was hungry then started to eat and gets nausea so i hope that the dentist will have something for that
i am also hoping he feels well enough to take down the antique bed that we used to sleep on while my sister in law was here. it's now officially in my way. it's got one of those old iron springs (remember them things?) weighs a ton.
so maybe this i don't also have to do myself

last night as i was struggling to get into bed (it's WAY higher then my ass is)
bernie finally realized, and even commented 'you need a step up to get into bed'

ya think?

what finally made you realize? me flinging myself up on my belly like a whale beaching?
oye
i have to say i am getting so frustrated with almost everything in this house too heavy or too high up for me
i swear i know what a midget feels like in a giant world
(i thought i was over this crap when i grew up into an adult- kids deal with this a lot too)

i am also getting fed up (*like i haven't been for years) with the kitchen or lack of it
to the point where i am thinking.... can we move it out of the kitchen 'room' and put it in the studio...or even in an adjacent SHED......i'm getting to be a desperate woman now- i am going to start to take matters into my own hands..... bernie won't like the results i can guarantee you that. i am about to start ripping out shit in that kitchen and replacing it with just shelves of all kinds and half ass doors over them
with wood block counter or even plywood or anything

oye
i swear i am a desperate woman..........

watching the sun come up on monday

it was again a quiet weekend, bernie has a toothache that he won't go to the dentist for so he couldn't do much around here
he did jump start my van though
as the battery was dead as a doornail

we got hay for the pens saturday so sunday i got to finish that last few feet of the babies pen and also do falstaff's pen
it rained

we went to the bookstore on sunday

all in all a very quiet weekend

this week there is a sale on bacon, 1.88 a pound, plus i need to start calling wood guys
i am thinking 4 good cords should be ok
i would LIKE to get them for under 100 but i doubt it.....i will be ok with under 150 per cord too
as long as it's good wood
there are a few people i am going to call.
our regular wood guy had his prices go way up and his quality go way down so i need a new one
PLUS he did cheat me on price, quoting me one on the phone and then charging me a lot more in person
i really don't like that
no one does
so he'll be my last resort wood guy.

let's see what all else......
i think my spaghetti squash has been gotten by squash vine borer. i was looking at it and it looks like there are holes in the stems now. but way up high which doesn't make sense.
vine borer normally gets the stems near to the bottom.
so instead of yanking them i am going to watch them, if they wilt.....then i'll yank
which is going to break my heart

this week i hope to get down to the provisioner for the 40# box of .49 a pound chicken legs (with thighs) i would have liked to get 80# but i will be ok with the 40...
as the bacon is going to take up a lot of money but then that will be it for the year.
so that's the stock up goals for this week
chicken, bacon and start getting my wood in
i also need a tank of oil but that will cost over 400 (however that should last me then 5 years so i suppose it isn't all that much huh?)

after the oil and the wood then the last stock up for winter is the potatoes....... 50# bags, normally 150# for the winter.... usually 15$ per bag
that's not cheap i think but at least they are mostly yukon golds
i am going to try and find a 50# bag of the leigh potatos again, they were fantastic that one year
superb bakers but not much good for anything else. but wow amazing bakers

i didn't grow pumpkins again but i plan on getting pie pumpkins as usual
NEXT YEAR for growing pie and i think jam pumpkins
remind me to start them inside and plant them out after july 1 with aluminum foil around the bases and covered with reemay to keep out the vine borers.

the cucumbers are really starting to come on nicely now
i am please with there progress
and i saw my beloved heirloom pole beans starting with baby beans.......
i am still watching my one eggplant.....the other plants have flowers but no fruit yet
tons of flowers though
i got two peppers
NEXT year i plan on at least 30 plants if not more even if i have to grow them in hoop houses over 'hot' manure

the turnips and kolhrobi in the garden have sprouted so we'll see how that all goes
i need to transplant or thin or something some of the turnips

ok so that's all the news by me?
everyone have another cup of coffee and please catch me up on what all is going on by you folks?

with rain you get slugs

all over the damn garden .......BIG ones.(not the banana ones out in the pacific north west thank goodness but big slugs anyway)
i got one bugger on a bean plant.... didn't have salt but dumped a bunch of diatomaceous earth on it
then bernie spred some fresh hay in the babies and falstaff's pens...... lilli went back to the big pen behind the duck house to lay her egg
phoebe followed her


oye

ok today's breakfast was my almost french toast...WHY? (cause i am not supposed to eat the bread)
well......... we have a lot of eggies (remember when i had none?)
soooooooo my almond french toast it is

here is what passed for a recipe sorta

5 or 6 or 10 eggs depending on size
1/4 c or so of sugar
a bit of milk
a good glump of vanilla X
two good glumps of almond X

butter
potato bread
cinnamon sugar
syrup

ok you heat the pan, and melt the butter over low/med heat
whisk up the eggies with the sugar, milk Xtracts
put your bread in one slice at a time
turning to coat, ..........watch it now cause it soaks this stuff up like a sponge
add to the pan to fry up to golden brown, do NOT let this burn

to plate, overlap them slightly
sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and then add your syrup

they are very good
they are very addicting
don't say i didn't warn you


anyway since we got rain, rain, humidity, rain, and overcast darkness out there... i am thinking that it's a bookstore day.........no?
we'll see how bernie feels with his toothache (although that hasn't stopped his appetite)

BTW, speaking of bernie's appetite, yesterday at the feed and grain we were looking at cat food for thaddeaus in cans as he seems to be allergic to his nurta max
soooooooo
bernie says (what a freeken idiot) 'the cat eats better then me'
i hit the ceiling and informed him, he will now eat the cat food and sleep with the messy drake with the hash marks on his butt

every man in the feed store laughed at him, KNOWING HE was in the dog house...

way to go bernie

oye
the only reason i didn't kill him was cause he has a toothache and OBVIOUSLY it's affect his brain
oh man

MEN!

i have a gift certificate

and i am going to save a bit more money and purchase a staub cocotte for us
(an oval one)
i want it for the no knead bread
for roasting meats
etc.
i am planning on a 5.75 or a 6 quart size
(and i am watching for a good sale too)
now
bernie likes the grenadine color which is a wine color
i like that but i also like the matte black which looks like plain cast iron
i actually like both but i was thinking that the matte black will never look dated..
anyway i am planning this purchase within i hope the next two months
as i continue to watch for a good sale on them...
but could you all tell me which color you would get and why?
the grenadine is very shiny and the matte is well........ matte!!!
hahahaha
i am dying for this cocotte- i bought the cheapo ones from sam's club (china) and while i love them i want something with a decent warrenty on them
because we are really starting to use them constantly
anyway, please everyone
please let me know what you all think? and help me make up my mind (if they were 30 bucks i would get one of each hahahahaha)

i separated out the drake

poor little baby drake

but he was leading the others astray, i tried to tame him and i will continue

but he doesn't want that

soooooo i threw him in with phoebe..... she 'explained'

he didn't listen

she 'explained' again

he still didn't get it

so now he's by himself

waiting on that second baby that i think is a drake to declare itself either way

i already have decided that if possible (due to the sex ratio of this nest) baby drake and the little white girl will go to a 'not so tame' pet home

while the rest will stay here

now if thumbprint is a boy.....( i hope not) we'll have to rethink night crate/day pens but we'll work it all out

i have to run to put out the babies now but i wanted to post fast

i most likely will post later with stuff i don't have time for

but i'll also leave you with a picture of yesterdays kosher dills heavy on the garlic... i love canning

today is a nice cool day,

so mucking is going to finish i think
i may even do chicken pens today,
i have one tiny area of the babies day pen to do then i have to decide how to reconfigure it
hmmmm
i am still trying to tame those babies down. yesterday afternoon, thumbprint greeted me at the day pen gate with a tail wag and the characteristic muscovy head bobbing........ i was thrilled,
as that one and bigfoot who is definitely a girl.....are both staying.
and the one boy who i know is a boy i am seriously trying to tame
he will replace falstaff (who is older then fossils in duck terms) when the big guy goes
(and i will miss that madly infuriating drake when he does eventually die, although most of the time i want to strangle him myself)

when i get that little boy out of the flock i find them much more tractable. there are three that are really difficult but i think they will come around. one of those three is a boy i believe
and now i am thinking i got two boys and all the rest may possibly be girls.....although thumbprint could go either way but thumbprint is smart....and likes mommy

ok last nights supper was a HUGE success... roasted chicken with creamy leek sauced rice
such a huge success that i am going to make it into a soup or a casserole for the winter
i used pink pepper corns too
i roasted the chicken with a bit of butter (like half a teaspoon! really just to grease the bottom of the enameled cast iron pot), some garlic, salt and pink peppercorns, then took the drippings mixed that with flour to make a roux, then the leeks and a bit of milk, and added leftover cooked rice...
it was simple and fantastic
i also cooked this in an enameled cast iron 'french oven' (this one was from sam's club and is made in china, it's a 3.5 quart one) i heated it on the stove for about 5 minutes, melted that tiny bit of butter in there, put the chicken in, threw some garlic granules and some fresh crushed pink peppercorns, covered it and put it in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes
took it out on a plate while i added flour to the pan drippings and the 'dried' leeks
i used dried leeks reconstituted in about 1/2 cup or so of hot water (these are the last of my home dried leeks)
then added some milk to thin it down, (stirring the whole time with a wooden spoon)
added the rice, stirred again, over low heat.....put the lid back on for like 3 minutes or so

we basically licked the pot.

i am slowly introducing bernie to foods that i haven't had in a while, but that i either have grown or want to start growing, (stuff he wouldn't eat before)
my discussion with him goes something like 'we need to do this, for not only our health, and our money, but also, you know...... this stuff has been revered by cultured gastronomes for thousands of years- and you got it FRESH---- it doesn't GET any better then this, and money CAN'T BUY IT
you have to grow it
hahahaha
it's true though, and it is slowly converting him
he does eat really really well, he always has. ( hey i ain't italian for anything you know.....)
both his sister's have high BP and high cholesterol, he doesn't.
i can only think that the reason he doesn't is that i make sure he eats well
the way my people have eaten for hundreds/thousands of years

and besides that i really like going out the back door and walking back in after 3 minutes with supper in my hands (just like MOM did- i remember her digging dandelions, which i intend on putting in NEXT spring)

oh my the THINGS i get up to
i am still thinking about solar.......(yes dorothy i haven't forgotten, it's always back there in my mind) i am still wondering about a closed sort of hoop house tilapia/salad green thing too...

and no i haven't stopped drawing totally, but i will be doing more closer to winter when i am actually in the house more, as raising ducklings as you can see, is for me a full time job.
but now you all know why lilli and phoebe are so tame, and the babies i imagine will be as well

ok off i got today, it looks to be a nice day so i hope you all have a good time

night crates and mucking pens

there is my little frog friend, shhhh we won't tell him we see him ok?>>>

i been mucking all week, it's either hot or raining.....even though it's been cooler then 90, when you are mucking pens it's hot


i did the babies night crate, the duck room floor, and part of the outside pen


i need to go and get a bale of hay but the van has a dead battery.... hahahahahaha


i finally think about going to town and the van can't!





let's see, i just put up the dried leeks, 5 quart jars worth (that's a pound of dried leeks)


tonight i am going to make a sort of sauce with onions, dried leeks, pink peppercorns, garlic and a bit of the dripping from the baked chicken


i am also thinking of doing a black barley/mixed grain casserole side..... maybe baked it under the chicken? hmmmmmm


but doesn't that sound good?

i am puttering around as usual, i won that le creuset soup pot and can't get to the po to pick it up
i WANT a staub, matte black 6 quart oval cocotte, as i want to do the no knead bread, and my cheapy imitations can't handle it, plus my tiny staub is too small.... i am wanting to bake weekly or twice a week again.
a mixed grain bread that is whole grain and i can maybe also eat?
i can't afford that much soooooo we'll just have to see what we can do no?

ok i got to get back out to clean the rest of the duck floor and the night crate for the big girls

ttyl

another semi cool morning!

yesterday i started to tear down and clean the temporary duck pen(only 3 years up so far- yup that's temporary around here)
the babies were out and wandering around while i was doing it.
actually they were pretty good! they sort of stayed close and together so i didn't have to keep stopping and round them up.
i got it 75% done.
i left the back part as a tiny pen just so i could stop and pee or sit for a while, and still have hawk proof pen areas for them.
i have to move the tiny part down i think, and shorten up the pen, i am also going to put a second opening at the other end. (cause lilli likes to lay eggs down that end..noooooo lilli

i am anxiously waiting on that lecreuset soup pot i won on ebay, as near as i can figure, costco was the only ones that had/has that soup pot in the 4.25 quart size

i also that my staub that i have has the 'spoon rest' knob on the top....have i mentioned i love that oven? now i want more staub........and lecreuset is my second choice!

my legs have been hurting really bad. not only my knees (since that last fall) but my legs-the bones in them. i am having a lot of trouble climbing the stairs, getting in and out of bed.... stuff like that. i am also having lower back pain so maybe it's a lot from the new mattress? stuff loosening up and realigning?
my shoulders and neck aren't hurting! first time in over 7 years!
but my lower back down is enough to make me want to jump

every morning i put the ducks out and while the pond that is out in the garden pen is filling, i walk the garden itself..... i count cucumbers.
yesterday i had 4 promising ones.
with about 30 looking like a week would be enough to wait for them
i want at least 5 so that i can pickle two pints, but i would really rather have 30 or 50 to do a whole batch...... actually 20 pints worth would make me happy, and if i can do that twice i will just plotz.....

my yearly spice order came yesterday ( and if that happened, autumn can't be far behind) i order in bulk once a year. stuff i either can't grow such as cinnamon, or haven't grown enough of such as leeks...
this year the big treat was black barley, and one whole pound of wild rice!!!!!
i am thinking of a mixed grain casserole for tonight... as a side
i would love to have that with roasted turkey
anyway i was putting it all away, (except for the leeks do you have any idea how much volume a pound of dried leeks is? try 4 quart mason jars!)

anyway there is something so very satisfying to me to do these things, put up the yearly spices ( and yes i got us peppercorns and even PINK ONES)
lay in a supply of wood-which i need to call about.....
i can't imagine NOT stocking up simply as it's the rhythm of the seasons-how better to celebrate, appreciate and experience the season then to do seasonal things?
no one really wants to have a summer cold right? (ok no one wants to have a winter cold either but at least you don't mind the hot soup then)
and i am thinking woolen mittens at the beach just doesn't quite work not in august in new jersey ... see what i mean?

what else happened? oh i know, i picked every single baby up yesterday and checked them over. i made my first cull decision too. one of the big boys is just not ameniable to being held or anything. so he's first. i want to be able to handle the ones that stay, to cut nails, and primaries and give meds if i have to
falstaff desperately needs his nails trimmed, he won't let us near him to do it
i am considering taking him to the duck vet to do this
which may just stress him enough to kill him......
cull decisions aren't easy, but they are necessary.
oh and phoebe is grudgingly allowing the babies around her... but lilli still wants no part in them at all
oye
ducks!

charlie horse wake ups are never a good thing

we got woken up by me,
and screams in the night
i work us up, the cats up, the chickens up, the budgies up and i am pretty sure the ducks and mice up
today's show is brought to you by leg pains

(yes i am drinking a gatoraide RIGHT NOW)

i also got up to a dead mouse in the trap on the stove... THAT was a good thing for me if not for the mouse

bernie has my cold from hell now
he's sick as a dog but is going to work......actually i think he's sicker then i was!

now in what may end up to be HUGE news, i bid and won what looks like is going to be a le creuset soup pot for me!! a big 4.25 on.
it was on ebay as le creuset but within the listing the picture and copy was of a sitram cast iron pot. i emailed them, they said no it's le creuset
so i bid 41.00 and shipping was 19.99........ which if it is actually le creuset i got a huge bargain
actually i got a huge bargain even if it's sitram but i will complain if it is

i am starting to convert to cast iron now, long and slow is something i do already (*get your minds out of the gutter- i am talking about cooking)
so cast iron works, as does pyrex, & corningware----- both of which i use in the oven as when i first got married bernie bought us a small set of some off brand glass bakeware, and i got a fireking set of casseroles (brown ones, and i loved them until they shattered)

now i am wondering how much of my cooking was influenced by the cookware i had as well as the slim budget we lived on? slow cooking was best for cheap food

now what is exactly so freeken hard about tossing a small cheapo roast in a bit of water (or red wine) with garlic and onions and putting it in the OVEN at like 200 for like 2 hours... you don't really have to do anything - that takes like NO FREEKEN time
if you scrub a couple of potatoes and prick them over and nuke them for 6 minutes then toss them in the oven for the last 15 minutes to get them crusty you got bake potatoes.....
and if you throw some frozen green beans in a small pot of boiling water for 4 minutes.....there's your veg!
add up all your prep time i think it's maybe what? 10 minutes tops?
if you need the meat faster, raise the temp to 350, then depending on how thick.....it's like 20-30 minutes
take a freeken shower while it's in the oven
( that is the other secret to my cooking... everything is timed to come out of the oven when bernie gets out of the shower)

now when i worked full time outside the house ( and sometimes two and three jobs) i did once a month cooking..... then ( a milliontwo years ago) it was called 'freezer' cooking
buy whatever was on sale... say chopmeat ( ground beef)
make up meat loafs, sauce, hambugers (not cooked, just formed) stuffed peppers, stuffed cabbage..... freeze it
next month do the same with say chicken
do marinades on parts in freezer containers
then say next month pork
and keep going
before you know it you got a full freezer, and varied meals all taking less time during the week
i did it monthly and our monthly food budget was 120.00 a month
i think our monthly food budget now is about 200
and now i stock for the year
it's not hard, but it does take changing your thinking a bit.
and let's face it you would take just as long getting in the car and driving to the fast food place, placing then waiting for your order
if you got that time, you got time to make one of my fast suppers
there is no excuse
i do find it so interesting that with more and more and more cookbooks being published ......more and more people are eating OUT
during a recession that is really a depression!

ok anyway, i love to cook, just not every day so this works well for me
as we still have to EAT everyday

now back to my legs....... they hurt but i think the gator aid will help
and on to the garden
i am so insanely excited about the baby pattypan squash i can't tell you all.......and watching it makes me soooooooo happy
it's about 1/4 of an inch long
and i got 5 new BIG cuc's coming along
with what looks like hundreds of 1'' ones coming as well
i been doing little stuff around the house, as i didn't get a lot done before colleen came
(who btw, i can't get a hold of again)
oye

we met a couple in the bookstore

briefly, while they were looking at the bargain cookbooks
i started to talk to them ( i am so bad, i talk to everyone)
the husband had just had a triple bypass ( he looked all of 45)
they were sick of eating chicken........ so they told me

i love chicken
i love having chickens and eating chicken...
so i told them about roasted sweet pepper sauce, and marinating chicken with red wine and onions/garlic
i didn't tell them about the cranberry rosemary chicken, or the orange rosemary chicken, nor did i give them the URL to this blog and then post the recipes for them
i feel a bit bad about that since it seems sooooooo many people don't seem to have a clue about cooking anymore.
i did give them a brief outline on how to make a sweet pepper sauce, and how to make a sort of veggie thing to put over the chicken, ...... i hope that helps them a bit
i also wish that instead of all the boxed and frozen crap out there that folks do start to experiment and learn how to do stuff on their own
and there are a billion cookbooks out there..... but that in itself is too much, too overwhelming
oye

ok off the soapbox and onto the cat tree

we clipped fawn-
not totally, as i still have one side to go on her and a bit on her stomach and chest
but the good bulk of the mats on her back and butt
i am now determined that she not only gets a yearly clip, but two baths a year a least.......we been letting her slide as she doesn't enjoy them but that isn't good for her sooo two baths a year it is (she looks funny but feels better)

as to the chickens.... everyone insists on sitting on fudgie, and i am not sure why! seriously, they sit on her head!
i am always getting chickens off of fudge and making her get up
wonderful, i get 'unique' chickens
maybe they are just trying to calm her down by smothering her?
they need to go out again, but with the heat i haven't wanted to..... folks are losing chickens in this heat and my guys are deffinately not used to the heat.

in duckling updates, there appears to be only two ducklings that are all white!
i ordered white ducklings....i seem to have gotten 4 colored ones
they continue to crack us up... last night we let them out to graze and they saw bernie's feet
they gathered AROUND bernie's feet
he of course was confused
i told him
they are waiting for you to do that 'foot/dirt' thing...... you know for the worms
hahaaha
then into the pond for a bath, then off to bed
the 'off to bed' thing isn't a real thrilling idea for the babies..just like any other kids
meanwhile they are all still plopping down to eat etc..... which is such a boy thing i can't tell you
i don't ever remember ANY girls doing that and this is now my 3rd nest to raise, as well as i don't know how many ducks....

ok now a question..........
how long does it take to get used to a new mattress.... the first week was good-now i have lower back pain
so does bernie
what advise does everyone have?

ok off i go now..... the pickles are looking to come on nicely very shortly
the pattypan has babies, the spaghetti squash started to flower.......
i love my garden even if it is tiny

it's SATURDAY and the living is hot as hell

we went to town today.
we had a bunch of errands and a big list
cat food
chicken and duck food
organic fertilizer
bone meal
blood meal
jute twine for the garden
cotton string
BT for the cabbage loopers
a waterproof mattress pad (i had a coupon for 20% off at BB&B so we got it there)
bernie needed a new book
more of those rootbeer float mugs (we got 4 more) and some glass canisters as well as a few... ahem..... skeleton garlands
and finally we stopped at shoprite for stuff on sale such as coffee, cheese, tissues (8 boxes as we go through at least two per cold....OK OK, I GO THROUGH two per cold..... bernie barely uses them)
odds and ends stuff mostly

we stopped at pier one, gees the salepeople were annoying, every freeken 5 seconds 'can i help you' (mostly asking bernie- that always cracks me up- the lady in borders with the cake samples offered it to him, looked at me and walked away!)
we stopped at arbies and had a fast brunch/lunch/snack thing.....soooo bad for me

we also got that copper 'steel' wool to seal up a hole that the mice were coming in through

then we bathed all the ducks, and i also walked the garden. i weeded a bit......got a tomato out
threw some kohlrobi and turnip seeds in...... pulled a bush bean out, tied up some squash leaves that were invading the eggplants
tied up a few eggplants that laid down.......
found a WHITE eggplant, when all i planted was purple (i love those kind of surprises)
discovered a baby pattypan squash!!!!!!!! counted two cuc's getting ready
and at least 45 of the tiny 2'' gerkin size on the vines

i tell you all, if i had a tiny bit more land, and a better house and kitchen, this would just be heaven here.....( i would have the goat and sheepies, a rooster, a milk cow, larger garden, better kitchen and STORAGE space)

the raised beds in the garden make things a lot better out there, if you don't have them and are thinking about them... DO IT
even if you have to do two beds a YEAR...... do it
you will not be sorry
it's made a huge difference in the whole health of the garden
it's also made it a pure pleasure to be out there (in spite of the heat and the fact that the garden isn't done yet!)
ok now i will upload a video for you of the babies bathing..... for me it doesn't get old, but i think most of you folks are either bored silly, or just not around
btw, i was talking to some folks in borders today, the husband had a triple bypass, and they were looking for ways with chicken, so i told them some of the stuff i do, i almost gave the wife my number and told her to call and i would tell her more ways around 'boring' chicken...all low fat, low cholesterol..... even though i do use butter etc, i also do low fat/low cholesterol too, depends on the day and what's in the house. the husband was telling me to stop talking about food as i was killing him
but he is going to make my roasted sweet pepper sauce and put it over chicken.
which reminds me, i put in the annual spice order.... i am treating us to pink peppercorns!!! hahahahaha
and a whole pound of wild rice!
cool huh?
ok here is the duck video......

babies, and stuffs

i took some stills yesterday, i though you folks would like to see them......some from a baby eye view.

as you all can see feathers are growing in!!!

meanwhile the hot weather goes on unabated. i worry about wood for the winter. (seems funny to worry about wood now....when days are in the high 90's) i worry about winter pens and if these babies are going to have to be turned into dinner ( i am really hoping not, as i raised them and i hate to have to butcher them)

ok on to other stuff

today i have to harvest cuc's..... 5 are on the vine, i am so hoping to find a 6th one out there, as i think that would give me two pints of slicers.

i would prefer to have half a bushel at a time to harvest so i could put up a full canner load.......but if i have to do the two at a time thing,i suppose i have to for now

i know that shortly they will come on enough to do batches

i yanked the bush beans yesterday, i am a bit disappointed in their yields, as well as their growth habit, as they grew like half runners, so next time i put them in, i trellis them

the cucumbers who were also supposed to be 24 inch bushes are now up to about 5 feet and climbing. they look to be a good yield so i won't mind too much

the pattypan so far has a lot of male flowers not too many females, so no squash yet, while the spaghetti squash looks to begin flowering soon as does the butternut.

i hope that the spaghetti squash does well

i have to figure out how to store it for the winter, i would like to eat it at least once or twice a week if i can.

my beets were disappointing, they didn't bulb up! got some greens, which i gave to the ducks as i don't think bernie would eat them.

chard is something he just STARTED to eat

i am slowly adding more veggies to his diet, all new to him......and nostalgic to me, as i ate them as a kid ( wait until i start with the italian dandelions-he'll be sure i lost my mind then)

ok i am going to start my day now, so i'll leave you with pictures of the duckies....

i hope you all enjoy

ok yesterday i loaded the wrong video

here is the video showing the babies as daisies......

i have been so neglectful on taking still shots of the babies, getting videos for everyone but no stills for me to work off of. i have to get software that will let me capture some stills off the videos - anyone have any ideas?

meanwhile you all saw my garden, i don't know if you heard my frog voice but damn i sound bad

ok now fast updates all around

garden: we got 4 cucumbers, and i ate a ripe tomatoe from the plants in the main garden. looks like we did get hit with the vine borer but it may be ok as i have back up plants. today i have to harvest beans again, for the freezer. and it sure looks like the garden should be super productive in the limited plantings i got out there.....eggplants look nice too

duckies: they are very clingy right now, but are starting to be trained to go in and out to the day pens and the night crates, plus the grazing. the big girls are not fighting as bad, and phoebe came out to be petted the other day, SHE CAME UP TO ME.....so she's feeling better. falstaff is falstaff

house organization: i am actually getting some things done!, i did the mildew on the front door, cleaned the coffeepot, vacuumed the stairs!, i have a ton of other stuff to do but that's a start. i am also trying to reorganize the food shelves, but it's all very slow

so meanwhile i am sitting here all snotted up

i didn't sleep as the bank called while we were out, and didn't tell me it was a telemarketing call....so i was up worried all night, and i also had accidently locked myself out of my online information so i was panic-ed all night

oye

let me get back to the green stuff coming out of my nose

the babies are now daisies

the visit is over

my sister in law left yesterday
i am going to miss her
she was so sick while she was here though it's better she's home now

i got a head cold as well, that started with a sore throat thursday and got progressively worse
we also just put the NEW MATTRESS on the bed yesterday
it's awesome
it's awesomely awesome
i love it
i didn't think we'd get a new mattress in my lifetime.
***we got it on qvc when it was a today's special value, and paid a bit less-don't be a hater***

morning with the babies

i dreamt it snowed

i am sick of the heat and humidity
and the SLUGS
i am so very sick of SLUGS

and one of the squash got vine borer, i see the holes but i am going to destroy it
and NEXT YEAR plan on planting in mid july for vine borer free cucubits

i believe this is the duckie's ancestors

today with duckies

squash vine borer has arrived

my friend charlie plants pumpkins on july1
smart man that charlie as the vine borer is around but the pumpkins aren't up yet.
(although in this heat maybe they are)
i saw my first adult squash vine borer moth yesterday
so today we wash the squash plants carefully......... and we also replant them today
from now on we plant cucubits after 4th of july and use hot caps if we need them to extend the season.
i am going to reseed the spaghetti squash and the patty pans but i think that the butternut and the climbing zukes will be ok........ i can reseed them too if i have to though
maybe i'll put in a san pasquale zuke too...... or a pumpkin?
i am going to reseed the cuc's just for good measure. i put in boston pickling just in case and i think maybe i will do the other three varieties

the weather here has been brutal, 102 more or less
it's 5am and it's like 78 or 79 degrees out even now
the babies are loving it but i am stewing in my own juices
i worry about bernie at work

july 5 video of the babies

happy fourth

i know i didn't get pictures yesterday or so far today of the babies.....i am so sorry
colleen missed her flight due to a mispellling of her name on her ticket and airport security wouldn't let her in
so she's coming today at 1:15pm
i am hoping that the babies will be ok... at night they sleep (so if she would have come in last night it wouldn't be a problem)
but we'll be leaving at 11 and most likely not get home until around 3 or 4
so that means the babies will be a mess
i think i am going to get bernie to bring the big duck crate up and we'll put them in there
if i can put a coop cup on the door maybe they will have water and access to food?
i am so worried about them while i am gone
we slept in the studio overnight cause i put the new sheets etc on the bedroom bed
i really like sleeping in the studio
too bad the even the 3/4 bed takes up so damn much floor space ( and we have only windows so no wall space for a murphy bed)

it's to be 90 today so getting the birds out especially the chickens may not happen
are we ready NO.
that is due to me being so lethergic and tired all the time........
if the insurance gets straightened out i have to go and get new thyroid meds
and all the blood work i am so behind on (due to the insurance)
oye
ok i have to drink coffee now
everyone have a wonderful 4th

my sister in law missed her flight

there was a mistake in her name on the ticket and the security wouldn't let her board
however someone DID board with her MISPELLED name as delta didn't let them change her ticket as it was shown that she was already in the air

meanwhile i am exhausted
and i want to sleep
she is to come in now tomorrow............in the afternoon.......

today colleen arrives...we aren't ready but that's ok

sister in law alert

tomorrow night, 9pm newark!!! (yes i know i spelt vegetable wrong, i can fix it- but i wanted you all to laugh at me goofing off yesterday)>>>>>>>>>>

i spoke to her on the phone for a while last night. she's got a problem with some disks in her neck. we laughed about the ducks, the family, our husbands.

we talked about the new mattress that's coming on july9

(she said ' how good are the memory foams' and i told her, i don't know but since you will be first to sleep on it, you'll let me know-that cracked both of us up)

i harvested beans again-(going to seed some for a second crop) plus i got 5 eggs yesterday from 6 chickens, only henrietta is missing laying now, which- i think if we put a timer on the lights, she would start up again too

the babies didn't go out as it was way too cold and breezy, but they ARE getting huge now

one got out standing on my cutting board calling me, bernie found him. two had gotten out earlier that ended up in my harvest basket!

when i go to the little brooder they are in ( a laundry basket) to talk to them they allow me to pick them up and cuddle them a bit... so i do

i have a tendency NOT to handle them too much, i do handle them, but not constantly, enough to keep them tame but hopefully not to spoil them ( never mind about lilli and phoebe)

SPEAKING of lilli and phoebe, they were helping me in the garden. LILLI is having real clingy issues since she was the new babies. she follows me around ,coming for hugs and attention. phoebe is phoebe, she divides her time between being all scared of me, lilli, the universe, and finding delicious HUGE worms

i was out getting beans, weeding, and just enjoying the ducks in the garden.

ok now i have to run, as i haven't had coffee yet......i will try and post as much as i can over the next two weeks