The only hard part of returning to work has been this:
An empty backseat. Having to leave Cole behind is the hardest part of every day. We try to make up for it when I am home.
We've been busy harvesting pecans. Yes, we. I have to sit on my bucket because he'll help himself to those rather than finding his own. He thinks it's some kind of hunting game where he wins if he grabs one first. I don't mind because he then cracks them open. I eat the half that hasn't been slobbered on and give him the other. A perfectly symbiotic relationship. We'll both be 20 lbs overweight by Christmas...do you know how many pecans we ate in a one hour picking?
One for me.
And one for you.
He even lays at the shower door when I'm bathing.
Stuck like glue.
Jinx, on the other hand, is not a joiner. Here he is giving me the "close the dang door, it's cold outside" look.
And it has been getting colder in Alabama. Perfect for staying in on Saturday morning and baking.
What to do with a mess of pecans and California dates???
The fresh dates gummed up and almost killed the food processor. I didn't have much luck with traditional hand chopping either...until I pulled out the ulu given to me as a birthday gift last month. Wow. Alaskan Inuit technology saves the day!
Date muffins, date bars, date crispies, date bombs (they pack a punch, nutritionally dense energy bites).
How to work off 4000 calories in one day? Try digging 14 post hole in rock hard ground.
One project that had been on the back burner was to build a perimeter fence around my truck and trailers and feeding lanes for the livestock. It started with salvaging a lot of downed pecan limbs back in September.
Using my trusty dually to snake out the logs.
The sign reads "Jamie's Lumberyard (pardon our progress)".
Taaaa Daaaa.
Esthetically, the nicest thing one can say is that it looks rustic. I guess I'll need a lot more practice before I build my log home!
But, it does work. No meandering livestock can poke or kick my equipment and no squabbling at feeding time. The oxen don't have their extra feed stolen by the horses nor do the oxen steal the horses' mineral supplements. One big happy family.
Mobs of crows have been making off with what appears to be a slimmer harvest of pecans than last year. I had been dying to try this Ukrainian recipe for crow pie. It gave me an excuse to try out my .22 after a friend had tuned it up.
Cole wasn't keen on retrieving it!
Eating crow isn't all that bad. I didn't even need the ketchup to kill the taste. Never fear, if you come to my house, you'll not be served any mystery meat! I like to think that I'll never starve, nor squander any smidge of food!
