Anticipation

We are in a state of anticipation here at Allelon Farm. We are eagerly looking forward to our first bit of fresh, home-grown corn, the first mess of green beans, and the first ripe tomato. We are keeping a close eye on all our cows. By our none-to-detailed calendar they could have calved two months ago, or it might still be two months away. They are looking so huge though; I expect the calves any day now. My brother is looking forward to lunch. Claire is anticipating the day when her current sewing project will be done. I think she hopes to have it done by the Lord's Day; she is making a short cape, anticipating the air-conditioning that will be "chasing away the humidity". I am looking forward to the time when I will be able to play a song in B flat well. All winter we have been like a spring that has been slowly pulled tighter and tighter. We are ready to let go and get started until this winter when the gearing up will begin anew. Perhaps, once we get going, we will be overwhelmed, but we won't know until everything starts.

A New Version

As Kyle was fixing lunch and Claire, Luke, and I were cleaning blackberries, Kyle was trying to get Luke to sing with him. Kyle would sing a line or two and try to get Luke to finish it. This is kind of how it went:

"Some glad morning when this life if o'er I'll..."

"...Die?"

---

Nettled

We've got these here... in great abundance. They are quite a grievance around the garden; the almost-invisible thorns tend to find their way into our flesh. It is tremendously hard to get the thorns out once they're in, and they are incredibly painful. I don't know that I want to get close enough to it to harvest any part of the plant, no matter what the uses are.

The Last Night

The Pick'n Parlor is closing. We're all sad about it, but we are determined to be there, for the last time, tonight. We're going to miss having that place to pick, but something else will probably come up. I've read lots of books where the main characters talk about the different "chapters" in their life. I thought when we stopped working at the Pick'n Parlor that that was the end of the "Pick'n Parlor chapter", but I suppose this really ends it. The Stacy's sold it, and I don't know what the new owners are intending to do with it. Maybe it will still be sort of the same, but I don't think it can ever be the way it was. I am glad I had a chance to work there. In doing so, we became a closer part of the people there. We probably would have never made it into the group like we sort of are now if we had not been forced to go every week for a while. It was great fun, and I'm going to miss everyone.

Quote of the Day

"I'm gonna play the downright bass!"

That was said by Luke on our way home yesterday. We think he was thinking of the tuba... maybe, but we straightened him out. Only, he doesn't want to play the upright bass either; he said the banjo. I have nothing against the banjo, but we could really use a good bass player here at home.

First Failure

Actually, that's really pretty good considering what normally happens when we try something new. This being our third kraut-making year, it is really good. When we kids and Mama got back home from our few days with my aunt, Mama checked on the kraut. It was bad. We can't really figure out what went wrong except that it may not have had enough liquid. Anyway, the cabbage was black, so the pigs got it. This is the recipe we've used every time though. It probably would have worked this time too; we just weren't home to check on it. We will most likely make another batch with farmers' market cabbage.

On to more interesting stuff..... ummm...... I got some new boots............ *think, think, think* uh, apparently Dickson has a nice Goodwill 'cause Mama and Claire spent a long time there yesterday........ umm....... Claire and I are learning a tune by Bill Monroe called " The Longbow". It's a fiddle tune, not a hunting song. Okay. I guess I don't really have anything interesting to post. We're back to our dull, boring life. The pace will soon be picking up as the garden is nearly ready to harvest. Oh, we watched "Anne of Green Gables" at Aunt Carol's last night. I am the only girl I know of who can honestly say that I don't like it!!! That may be putting it a bit strongly, but I don't really enjoy it.

I Have Been Remiss

I should have blogged about this earlier, but I didn't remember. I wasn't actually involved in it, but Kyle trapped a skunk the other night near the chicken house. Daddy killed it with the shotgun. Fortunately, it doesn't smell too bad, and the dogs haven't found it yet.

Daddy was at things early this morning. He was gone to Crossville before most of us were up! Anyway, he came back with the truck loaded with four barrels of feed! Almost as soon as he was home, he went off to get some more hay from a man down the road. Thankfully the man really is just down the road. The hay isn't exactly top-quality, horse-people hay, but it's good enough.

We are trying out a fly rub solution thing on Clarabelle. The flies have been getting around her feet and driving her crazy! We are trying one ounce of citronella in a gallon of apple cider vinegar. I think it may be helping some, but nothing will eliminate the problem altogether.

After lunch Daddy and Kyle moved the Freedom Ranger chicks outside into the newly-repaired, Salatin-style chicken tractor. The chicks seemed to be kind of amazed and unsure of what to do next.

We canned twelve pints of sliced peaches the other day. Aunt Carol brought them back for us. They were delicious peaches! Then Mama requested this pie done with peaches for her birthday "cake", and that was delicious. It's too bad we cannot find good peaches around here very often.

This morning Mama and Grammy (maybe others too; I wasn't there) started some sauerkraut. We only have one quart and three pints left from last year! I never really liked kraut until we made it; now I can't eat the store-bought stuff at all!

We'll have some squash soon from our lower garden. It seems a bit late, but we'll still probably have more than we can handle. The asparagus has been allowed to go to seed for the past week or two. We are have a bit of a better time with our corn than we did last year. We're suspecting any number of animals as being out corn thief; I just hope it goes to somebody else's corn patch this year. We had to use most of last years crop as cream corn to freeze it for the winter. We got to have corn on the cob last night!!! Sure it gets in the retainer, but at least I can eat it now! I went two years without being able to eat it on the cob, and I've always preferred it that way. I can't wait until our corn comes in!!!

I found one and five-eighths yards of denim fabric for $1.50 a yard at the Tullahoma Wal-mart! They're getting rid of the sewing section! They've already replaced the bulk of it with toys. I hope our Wal-mart doesn't do that! Where will we get fabric? Oh, what am I saying? I've got too much fabric to deal with now!

Claire and I are trying to learn "Black Mountain Rag", but it is incredibly difficult. Mr. Brantley said that fiddlers who usually play this carry another fiddle tuned to open A! He's teaching us a way so we don't have to re-tune, but that makes it harder.

I didn't really mean to make this into such a long post, but I just kept thinking about things I've been meaning to blog about.

I actually remembered...

... after a while at least. Here's a picture of Claire in her fairly new Regency gown and chemisette, made the Simplicity pattern designed by Sense and Sensibility. Sorry 'bout the red eye.

Ladies time

Nothin' much has been goin' on 'round here on the farm. Mama, Claire, and I spent a wonderful weekend away from the farm, the chores, and the noise. Still, it was very nice to get back to the men. While we were away Friday, we watched the BBC mini-series "North and South" and "Wives and Daughters", went to Joann's, stepped into a bookstore, and perused a Marty and Liz shoe store (they didn't have any boots for ladies unfortunately). We then splurged on lunch at Macaroni Grill; the mushroom ravioli was delicious! I don't recommend the veal though. "North and South" was really good, and it just keeps getting better! "Wives and Daughters" was good up until the very last scene, so I'm going to ignore that and just make up my own. :) Joann's was just a business stop. I needed a zipper, and we all wanted to look at the denim (ridiculously priced unfortunately). Marty and Liz didn't have anything desirable, and we didn't see any boot outlet. Mama got a few books at the book store, and she got me a set of really nice classics to go in my hope chest! Saturday we slept in. We needed to do a little grocery shopping, so we went out for lunch. There was a man selling bar-b-cued ribs, and they were delicious! Then we went into a jewelry shop! I've been wanting a ring since my sixteenth birthday, and we haven't been able to find anything suitable. We finally found something!!! It has to be resized, but I should have it by the end of the week! Then we went back to Aunt Carol's house, and prepped for the Lord's Day (made the brownie mixes, and laid out our clothes). Then we watched the mini-series we hadn't watched the night before. We turned in rather early considering the last time we did this, around 11:30 pm. The next morning we had a nice reunion with our men, and a lovely day with our church family and friends.

I have also decided that perhaps I ought to use this here "Labels for this post" thing. I don't know if I'll go back and label all my past post, but I think I'll try to remember to do all my future posts. I think I'll have a lot of posts labeled "stuff"; creative, huh!

Honorificabilitudinitatibus

... meaning. How do you pronounce it, I wonder? I rather pity the man who had to play Costard.

Disaster Strikes Again

I really wonder how people "back in the day" kept their chickens, geese, turkeys, etc. alive! Didn't they just let them roam free?! We lost all three of our geese while we were away this weekend. Considering our past reputation however, that's not too bad, being the first of our casualties. We most likely won't be staying over night anywhere as long as we have poultry, at least, not all of us anyway.

Grammy and Granddaddy are hot on the thistles again this year. Kyle, Luke and I have been out heading and cutting them down this morning, but I can't help but feel that it is a loosing battle. It takes forever; it's hot, and they're going to come back no matter what!!! Still, we're trying.