Pentathlon Sunday, Marathon Week

The modern Olympic Pentathlon features 5 events:  shooting, swimming, equestrianism, fencing and cross country running.  We had our own variation on Sunday.

Saturday night, I finished a landscaping job by moonlight, because, by George, I was taking a day off on Sunday.  The dog and I had, perhaps, too much fun.  He was able to recuperate on Monday while I was back at work.

Shooting:  Morning squirrel hunting.  Cole treed a few, but I couldn't see the varmints through the foliage to get a good shot.  To add insult to injury, Sunday was the first day of Canada Goose season and none were seen around the farm.
The judges gave Cole a 9.1 score, I only got 2.2 .

 

Next event:  Swimming.  In the evening, Cole and I jumped in the pond in between laps running around the farm.  Cole...5.6 .  Jamie...7.2 .

 

 

 

 

Cross country running:  Colemeister and I went trail running in the morning.  I ran 10.6 miles, he must have logged, minimum, 25 miles.  Judges say Cole gets 9.9.  Slow poke only reels in an 8.3.                                                                                                  

 

 

Equestrianism:  I spent some time grooming my horses...

 

...but chose to ride my steel steed (bicycle) around the pastures.  Cole, once again, outdid me on the mileage.  Cole:  7.5, Jamie:  6.5.                                                

Fencing:  A fence is a barrier, right?  This is a bit of a stretch, but humor me.  I started building a rock wall around the front of the house delineating the shrub beds.  Two purposes, one being esthetics the other is to keep rain run-off from rushing under the house ( is where I keep all my tools).                                                                        

In progress...it goes 40 feet one each side of the front steps.  Jamie:  5.5, didn't get full points because I didn't finish.  Cole:  2.4, penalized for tinkling on his opponents rocks.  

To add more merriment to the day, I also stained the front deck.  Then took Cole for our daily 20 minute canoeing workout.

And I finished my first batch of fig/banana/pear fruit leather.  I've had a bounty of pears covering every horizontal surface in my kitchen for two weeks now.                                

 

 

 

 

 

Having the inability to open the freezer has meant that I've been unable to raid my pesto stash...probably a good thing!                                                                                         

 

 

The first batch of leather was too thin and it didn't want to roll properly.  I used peanut butter as a glue.  I know it's hard to believe, but as unappetizing as it looks, the fruit roll ups are one of the best things I've ever tasted.  Batch #4 is in the dehydrator today.        

 

I've procrastinated enough this morning, I need to address myself to drawing water up from the well to water the garden so I can get to work.                                                

 

 

                                              

Who needs to go to the gym when you can draw up 40 lbs of water from a well for an hour?                                                                                                                      

 

One last bit of good news.  Tommy had been going lame again over the weekend, so I rushed him to the vet school.  We've been working so hard at healing their feet that I didn't want to chance any relapse.  We caught the bruised soles in time, drained off the pressure and he's walking fine again today.                                                          

 

                                                                             

 

 

Once he was up the table, I jumped in to help because they were short staffed.  The time limit is 15 minutes for Tommy to be strapped down on his side on the tilt able, so we had to work quickly.                                                                                                       

 

The excessive rain this year has caused the pasture grasses to be too lush and the ground stayed wet, both causative agents in the decaying of all my hooved animals' feet.            

Times like these, I miss my old farm.                                                                               

 

I miss my 9 stall barn where my horses could go to get out of the elements.

 

 

 

 

I miss the workshop and trailer garage I built.

 

 

 

 

I miss the house I built with my own two hands.

 

 

 Cole missed the doghouse Dad and I built for him with air conditioning and radiant heated floors.                                                                                                                           

 

But, I only had 14 acres.  Now I live on 100.  It's been a trade-off.  I don't miss my mortgage!  I am working on getting us another spread.  This time, when I build my barn, I'm putting in my apartment on top.  My heart belongs to my livestock and close to them is where I need to be.                                                                                                          

 

 1975...supposed to be getting ready for church, instead I was readying for what I wanted to do for the rest of my life! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meet And Greet

Before introducing you to my flock, I need to make an announcement:

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaack!

7.6 mile run

Finally back to running.  Injuries are for the birds! 

Speaking of birds, look what the girls have been up to:

 

 

Golf balls were placed in the nesting box to teach them to lay there and not on the ground.  My girls are fast learners.


I have nine new hens from this Spring.

Not easy to get individual pictures of them.  So, here are some Google photos.

Lily is my one Delaware hen.  The breed is the on a Critical Conservation Status due to its shrinking population.

Kharma and Dharma are my two Indian Brahma hens.  They can be distinguished from the Delaware by their feathered feet and the fact that they're one of the largest breeds of chickens.

One All-American girl, Ruby is a Rhode Island Red.

A French breed, Marguerite is a Faverolle, another on the Critical Conservation Status.

Daisy and Poppy are my two blue tinted egg layers.  Sometimes called Easter Egg hens, the true breed name is Ameraucana.


Lastly is my new favorite breed:  Sussex.  My Aven and Tulip are originally from the UK.  On the Threatened Conservation Status list.  These hens are the friendliest and most inquisitive of all the breeds I've had in the past. 

I chose my breeds based primarily on their laying ability, but also taking into account their temperament.  I had Ancona hens a few years ago that went ballistic every time I entered the coop.  Unpleasant memories of being beaten in the face with wings and projectile poop. 

The hens are working overtime producing an average of 8 eggs a day.  I had planned on selling eggs this year, but due to the chicks' late arrival, thus later maturity, egg production started late and I'm hoarding these eggs to ensure a constant supply through the Winter when they take a break from laying.

I freeze my eggs...didn't know that was an option, did you?  I put one per Ziploc and mash the yolk up with my thumbs through the plastic.  They keep well for a year!

The girls get repositioned over fresh grass every day.  The Hyundai pulls double duty as a chicken taxi.


More about the birds and the bees.

Bees everywhere are under assault by disease, pesticide use, urban sprawl---you name it, their populations are being decimated.  I always try to provide them with one dependable source of nectar.  The Torch Tithonia (Mexican Sunflower) is a large annual that blooms straight through the Summer and seems impervious to hot, dry weather.

Do a bee a favor and plant Tithonia next year!

Tommy and Mack Go to School

 

Mack:  "Mum says we're supposed to get in the trailer to go to school.  I'm not getting in, you?"

Tommy:  "No way, Jose, I hate school."
"Did she say in-flight meals provided, OK, I'm coming!"

Mack:  "Brother Tommy, don't leave me!"

Angus:  "Hey, Axel, they fell for it again."

How many Indians does it take to squeeze one big chief into a chute?

Tommy got a recheck and Mack got his feet trimmed.

Tommy:  "Duped again, next time she says vet school, we're hiding."

Trips in the trailer are hard on me too!  This is my way of dragging out the very heavy rubber mats:  a pair of Vise-grips provides, well, grip.  A few hours of labor and the trailer's clean and reloaded with farm implements.

Unfortunately, Tommy's wide posterior blew out a window when he turned around.  This makes window #3 that he's taken out.

I briefly entertained the notion of buying a friend's trailer. Lighter, easier to clean, easier to park, no need to unload and reload all my implements.  Sounds like a winner.

The reality of what one ox could do to an aluminium trailer, if they could even have been compressed into it.

As for my foot issues, the news continues to worsen.  My boot cast was easing my foot  pain for the first couple weeks.  But, because I'm walking at work all day long, welts were developing all around my calf, my toes began aching and my heel was really bothering me.  I chose to go to my chiropractor for an X-ray recheck. He's awesome, charges a tenth of what a set of X-rays cost elsewhere, causes me to lose only an hour of work instead of an entire morning. And he's showed me (later gave me) my X-rays. 

My chiropractor charged me $60. Previous two other appointments with different doctors: $545.  I do have health insurance, but it has a $3000 deductible, which thankfully, I haven't met this year. First doctor didn't see a fracture in my metatarsal, second doctor did see it and prescribed the Boot.  $545.  $60 got me the same, plus I was shown why my toes hurt so much -- arthritis and why I hate to put pressure on my heel: a heel spur the size of a dragon's talon.  He's referred me to a foot surgeon.  We'll forgo that appointment until I have the money and time for what will surely be a very unpleasant experience --like after the Boston Marathon next Spring.  So, it's been almost a month that I've been unable to run and the side effects are terrible.  I may need to padlock the freezer so I can't raid my pesto stash on a daily basis, otherwise I'll be having to shop for bigger clothes!   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wiling the Time Away

Until I can resume running, I have about 10 hours a week to dedicate to other pursuits, or mischief, whatever you want to call it.

Firstly, the ortho boot needed some retrofitting to fit my life.




Waterproofing, manure-proofing.

 



Hiking crampons


Last week, my new dehydrator arrived and it's been running ever since.



Before





After



My idea is to cut back on my sugar intake by reducing the amount of jams I make with my harvested fruit and to retain more nutrients in the vegetables by drying versus canning.  Added bonus:  less storage space required in pantry and freezer.



Grape and muscadine harvest



Pocahontas would be proud of my foraging skills.  I picked 5 gallons of wild grapes and muscadines at an abandoned property.  I only ate about a gallon's worth during the THREE HOURS it took to separate the tiny grapes from their stems.  Nevermore shall I waste a single raisin!  My grapes are now in the dehydrator and should be ready by Monday morning.  At approx. $2.50 of electricity/ 24 hrs use, the dehydrator will soon pay for itself.

The kitchen's been a happening place lately.  I've been on a pesto making, pesto eating frenzy.  The bounty of basil has helped yield about 3 gallons of pesto.  I would have made more but I used up the last of my garlic stash.  Unless I break down and buy more, my next harvest of garlic won't be until next year.  I'll cave -- life is meaningless without pesto.  A friend gave me 2 lbs of pistachios from CA that I gleefully substituted for pecans (which ran out a couple months ago).  I happened to look at the price of organic pesto at Earth Fare the other day.  6 oz for $5.  A 3 gallon fortune of pesto sits in my freezer!

Week two of giving up caffeine.  Mostly gone off without a hitch.  Strangely, I don't miss the coffee.  The decaf is just as satisfying.  I'm definitely less agitated, almost zen-like.  I still drive mostly +20 mph faster than the speed limits, but I no longer gesticulate madly at people hogging the passing lane.
Giving up on chocolate has been harder.  Chocolate milk is my ambrosia.
Never say die.  I've been experimenting with recipes using carob powder.  Conclusion:  it ain't chocolate, but if you add enough honey anything tastes good.
Carob malt balls are pretty good though:



Deceiving little orb


Take one insipid briefcase...



$1 thrift store find



And convert into Cole's Portable Dehydration Monitor:



 I prehydrate before long runs, alas Cole doesn't understand the concept of tanking up before we take off.  I'm especially concerned about the heat and low humidities out West.  A 2% drop in weight loss would indicate that he's close to becoming moderately dehydrated.  Secret agent 44 (my Dad) will be toting the briefcase as he crews the ultramarathon for Cole and I in Utah this Fall.  If only I could convince him to wear a suit and tie!  The case has a plywood bottom, so I can stand in the case on uneven ground and a calculator for those tricky calculations.

Final note:  the lotus water gardens have new residents. 



Chorus frog

 I love my amphibians.  When I use my trimmer around all the flower beds, I proceed very slowly.  (If I had been doing this on my old landscaping crew, I would have fired myself!) But, being more careful means that I can relocate any toads, spring peepers, tree frogs and skinks that I might otherwise injure.  It ruins my day to have to put one out of it's misery if I catch it with the trimmer line.  We all have our weaknesses.