the 30 day challenge

Yes it’s here! The end to the 30 day challenge!!!

How’d you do? I think it’s fair to say the challenge has been different for all. It’s truly been an individual experience for everyone. I myself had many challenges, yea in spite of having a garden full of food, I found myself twice at the local Mexican food restaurant, I’m not being hard on myself but I was there because of poor planning. For me personally its mind over matter. I did really well with using left overs and reducing my waist. I did terrible at planning meals this month. All in all I was anything but perfect and I’m the one who called the challenge. I think the real challenge now is keeping face.

Really I wasn’t all that bad, two Wednesdays in a row I went to the Stillwater farmers market, I bought several bushels of different squashes and as many potatoes as I could buy, I had picked up a case of sweet potatoes and a bushel of green beans to put up at the last Brookside market, and purchased a ½ hog from Stephen Green (Pork and Greens) so my fridge and freezer is full with lots of local goodies. But what I’m craving is the space and time to cook, to cook in a way that is intentional and meaningful, but it’s been hard. October, I’ve been so busy cooking for other people I didn’t make good time for myself, and frankly just didn’t want to cook. I did of course but I was expecting more Martha Stewart moments.

It’s Sunday, the last day of the month and the first day of the rest of my life right? LOL !
November is going to be even better! Frankly it was a good primer for me.

Tell me your story, remember if you signed up for the challenge you could win dinner for two at our ‘Like water for chocolate’ Valentines farm table dinner. So tell me what happened. You’re not being graded for punctuality or writing skill (obviously), so just let it roll!

Send your short essay of 500 words or less to me by the strike of midnight tonight at Livingkitchen@gmail.com The lucky winner will be notified by Tuesday November 2nd and their essay will be published on the blog livingonthisfarm.blogspot.com
Good luck and thanks for coming along on this journey with me.

First Freeze

Its happened! the first freeze of the season. I've been anticipating it of course but with all the remarkably warm and beautiful days we've been having I was wondering if it wouldn't be mid November. In many ways its a relief, the anticipation over. I spent the entire day from about 9:30 to 3:30 harvesting what was left of the summer crops; green tomatoes, about 60 pounds, red, green, yellow peppers, about 150 pounds, eggplant 60 pounds. jalapenos 25 pounds and padron peppers a mere 5 pounds. And last night round chore time I have never felt so beat. Every muscle in my body was screaming, nothing 4 advil 2 margaritas and a plate of fajitas wouldn't cure.

But this is it folks, the summer is finally over! Yea the market ended weeks ago but when your still harvesting summer crops it really doesn't seem like anything is over. But the freeze called it!

Today I have some pep in my step, a jib in my jab and my sense of humor might just be making its way back home to me. Now I can focus my energy on other things like my most beloved GREENS! yum yum!, the green house looks amazing and I really look forward to spending some time in there.

But today, I'm gonna chill a little try to repair my body, I have a bunch of work to do today but tomorrow I take the day off! its been so long since I've had a day off. It feels like months. I'll do my rounds and chores and then I'm headed to the chair with the three books I'm almost finished with.

Wild Persimmons

Interwoven within these 400 acres are hundreds of wild persimmon trees. Near ponds, on hillsides, in thickets and in pastures standing naked and alone.

All of the leaves are gone and the branches look like a haphazardly decorated Christmas tree with small apricot colored balls here and there. Many have fallen to the ground and these are good too eat if they have not been violated by nature or foot. Sometimes they are all you get because the small pink, red and orange colored balls dangling are too high to reach. Ask the coyote, these are a mainstay this time of year. The tree I was at had hundreds on the ground and then one tree I found later had none, all of them were gone. Eaten by coyote, bird, squirrel, rabbit? I've joined them now.

A ripe persimmon looks rotted, bad, the skin from a distance looks to be dehydrating and puckery, something you would toss away. Smooshy to the slightest pressure between fingertips the skin slips off. its sticky and custard like and there are beautiful oblong seeds. The whole thing goes in my mouth and only at that point do I know for sure I have chosen a ripe persimmon.

If not I go on the hunt for the ripest one immediately with out hesitation I eat it as fast as I can swooshing it around in my mouth on my tongue and teeth. This is the fasted cure for the hard to describe effect an unripe persimmon has on the mouth. Its awful! but a ripe one will cure you.

I've found several trees that I will visit later today, I'm bringing my cherry picker, ladder and bucket and if I am successful I will have persimmon jam in the larder come sundown.

A time to talk

The last couple of months have been like running the marathon that seems to never end. Let me stress this is not a complaint, it’s really such an amazing achievement and honestly it’s been a struggle and I have never had a better year as far as accomplishments. But I’ve been on this roll, speeding though one task to get to the next and so on. What’s left behind is a trail of unfinished odds and ends, the byproducts of being a little over extended.

This week I have no parties scheduled, no farm table dinners, no, sheep to move, no cooking classes at the Wellness center, no harvest, no CSA drop off. I get to clean up my mess!!!!! I cannot wait to tackle the laundry, clean the house, scrub the toilet, shampoo the carpets, put tools way! Ugh! Let me tell you. Ahhhh! I’ve never looked so forward to cleaning the house!

The last two days I’ve gotten so much accomplished, I still have a huge list to get through in the next two days and you know what, I am taking Saturday off! I’ll still milk and feed the animals of course. But there is this really comfy chair that I intend on sitting at most of the day and finally finishing some books. Maybe some target practice and several walks in the woods. What a dream!

Yesterday morning I returned a small animal cage that I had borrowed from some friends. These people are very dear too me and I haven’t had time for a visit since before summer. As we got the cage off the back of the truck my instinct was to jump back in the truck arm waiving goodbye out the window and hurry off as fast as I could so I could get to the next thing on the list. But as we stood, leaned up against the tail gate on such an amazingly beautiful fall day, my friend’s flock of sheep in the background peacefully grazing, I was reminded of a poem that is very important to me.

A Time to talk

When a friend calls to me from the road
And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
I don’t stand still and look around
On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
And shout from where I am “What is it?”
No, not as there is time to talk,
I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
Blade end up and five feet tall,
And plod: I go up to the stone wall
For a friendly visit

Robert frost

packin'

The question often comes up. Do you girls have a gun? The answer is always no and is always followed with a dramatic gasp of surprise. "you don't!?".

We'll no, we've really never needed one. only once to put down a very sick and dying sheep and for that I borrowed a 22 from a friend. I was pretty uncomfortable with it but the need was great and I had to step up to the plate. I do not regret it. But I returned the friends riffle and went about my business.

Things have changed. With the recent coyote attacks I've found myself in the defensive roll of protecting my livestock. Its my responsibility to keep my animals healthy, happy and also safe. I was loosing a lamb about every four days. This must stop. So over dinner one evening a friend offered to help me out. Doug and Jelena would come Saturday night and he would get up in the middle of the night and see if he could take care of the problem. He brought with him a coyote call, several riffles all with different scopes, power, range, etc. and went to work. He was unsuccessful but did see tons of coyote scat very close to the fence line along the pasture. He did see a bob cat. I saw one also in broad daylight crossing the road by the upper hay barn.

This has been the year for lessons, horseback riding and now riffle lessons and yes I'm balancing the barrel of the riffle on a blanket. The dang thing was so heavy and hard to keep on the target. I did well , I actually hit the target. He left me with his 22 to practice with (much lighter and easier to handle) and get comfortable with. He also left this blind. I can sit in it and wait for a coyote to come traipsing by and POW! Jelena and I getting loading instructions.

I never thought it would come to this. But the more reading I do on the subject the more I learn that protection is a team effort. Its not all just up to the dogs or the llama when things get to this point its time for the shepherd to step in. If your looking for me check in here.

makin' thyme

I’m no martyr, nor do I embrace righteous deprivation. I’m just from the school that believes the least amount of moving parts is better. A screw driver instead of a power drill, an old saber tooth saw instead of a circular saw. A walk rather than a ride. Although I realize a project can take me at best twice as long, I enjoy the quite. The two things I revere (besides my sweetheart who tops the list) is my hoe and my Honda Rancher, the 4 wheeler I got last week that my brother in law gifted me. So the flip to my quiet methodical workings is now contrasted by the ripping engine full tilt boogie through the fields to check on lambs and hopefully scare the crap out of coyotes.


I see nothing wrong with striking a balance between the two. Lately, I have to admit I’ve been in a hurry. I’ve had to rush through one project to the other and the work just never seems to be done. The other morning I walked outside to start work and I heard the strangest sound. What was it? I stopped and cautiously listened. Head tilted, ear cocked, eyes shifting north, south. It was birds chirping and singing! Why was this sound so foreign to me? How long had it been since I noticed the world around me? Probably not that long, but my greatest pleasures are when I am quietly harvesting, listening to the wind move through the trees, and watching the killdeer scurry and socialize. I like hearing my own heart beat while I thin arugula.


I’ve still got two more weeks of crazy busy and believe me I am not complaining. But I can’t look at time the same way anymore, because it just goes so fast when I do. If I am lucky I’ll always be busy like this however I know I’ll need a new approach to dealing with it. I want my sunrises, and bird and cricket orchestra but I also want gas in my 4 wheeler. What decadence!

I got your back Jack

This post is inspired by a blog I read regularly called coldantlerfarm.blogspot.com Jenna is a young writer and a kick ass blogger and you can read about her homesteading and farming experiences. I love her blog because so many of her experiences I have experienced myself while learning how to transform myself from professional chef to humble farmer. But anyway…. Her post a couple of days ago talked of being the jack of all trades and master of none. It wasn’t 24 hours ago Linda and I were talking about the same thing.

There are so many facets to Living Kitchen, there are the goats and the milk and cheese, there are the chickens and the absolutely wonderful eggs and there are the sheep and the delicious lamb and then there is the garden currently popping with greens. Then of course there are the farm table dinners this is where all of the previous things mentioned come into play and dance around celebrating farm life. That might sound very cheesy but there is no greater joy for me. Now these are the items that generate income. But to keep these things going also takes cats to get the mice, llamas to guard against coyotes and guard dogs again to detour coyotes. Then there is fencing, and feeding and stocking up on hay for the winter. And vet care, and dishes ….Yada yada yada….

When I think about it I am amazed at the amount of things I know how to do. And all of these things I love. But concentration on one of these skills doesn’t run a farm, at least this farm. Maybe if I just made cheese I could be the best cheese maker, or if I just raised lamb I could be the best Sheppard. But I think I’ve concluded real homesteading is a balance or juggling act of many well rounded skills. You might be an expert at least one of them (me cooking) but it takes not being overly invested in one thing because you just won’t make it through a winter. It takes knowing a little about a lot of things, Betting on your strengths to pay the bills, and having the confidence to do things you’ve never attempted. Sometimes you fail but you learn in the process.
I think about what my life would feel like if I just did one thing, like raising goats and making cheese. It seems like a nice dream but an impossible one right now. Although, it’s what I hope for, but I just can’t imagine it, at least right now. But living Kitchen is not about just one thing, it never has been. It is a whole-istic farm. It’s about food folks! It’s this chefs dream to be able to create a menu off of what I’ve raised, grown foraged and crafted. Yes possibly narcissistic, absolutely. But I’m driven to do this.

I do realize farming and homesteading are two different things but often they work in combination. It’s profound self sufficiency and interdependency on others but utmost vulnerability. It’s the opportunity to survive by your own hand by the most basic and primitive means. Hunt and gather so to speak. Gather fuel for the fire. Survive against all odds and help your neighbor out. The benefits can be great but sometimes material things and vacations we go without, by choice but also necessity. I’m over dramatizing here but it feels big time. What I mean is my whole body feels it, head, toe, brain, arms and back and spirit and most of the time it feels amazing and other times I’m beat down to powder. There is nothing I want to give up. I just have to face it. It all makes sense to me, and someday I know it will pay off, in the form of what? I don’t quite know yet. But for now, I’m with Jenna and you can call me Jack.