A Better Day

I have been trying to think of something to write about all day, and came up with too many options. We actually had a reasonably productive day, and have a plan to come up with an action plan for dealing with the house, life, and everything else. Well, maybe not everything else, that would take far too long and be rather speculative anyway. We had planned to talk while taking the kids for a drive to another city about an hour away from here. The plan was to warm up some ribs for lunch (leftovers from today), and make S'mores over a fire. Our grand plan has been slightly diverted since we discovered the park we were intending to visit doesn't have camp grills like we thought. Hmm. So much for getting out of town. Maybe we will have Plan B (or C or D) in place by morning.

Speaking of mornings, after breakfast today we took a walk as a family down to the river. We really need the exercise, and since Claire needs a LOT of physical input (or her behavior goes downhill and she acts out more) we figured it would be a good start to the day. It had warmed up to a brisk 21 degrees Fahrenheit, so the little people were bundled up nicely. It was probably a mile or so overall, and we didn't stick around long to throw rocks into the river like we usually do. I snapped a few photos; here is one of some ice along the riverbank.

This afternoon I tried taking a few new pictures of our pigs, since they have been growing up fast. They are now about 9 months old, and definitely of breeding age. We originally planned to use another boar (or try AI) for the girls, but we also didn't plan on having them here this long either. So we have to be flexible. We recently expanded their roaming area, which is bounded on several sides by electric wire fence. It gives a pretty good shock (really, ask me how I know!), yet the pigs seem to test it every single day. I wanted to get a good low angle on them, so I was really close to the ground. My piggies however, being the curious sorts they are, were wondering just *What the Heck* I was doing, and kept coming over to investigate. Forgetting all about the fence in the process. When they accidentally touch the fence, they give out a might squeal and run off about 10-15 feet. I am pretty sure all three of them touched the fence while trying to investigate what I was doing. Sigh. Silly piggies. The light was terrible, but here is one photo I have of our boar, Marley.

We also dealt with a long-awaited "Mothra" project that Claire has been asking us to do for her. She has been asking for us to make her a "Mothra" she can fly. It has been a fun project to figure out, and I know the kids willl love it when they are done. I'll try to put up a post or tutorial on it as soon as we finish one, but I have been taking some photos along the way. Today was cutting them out with the scroll saw, and here are some of the templates before being cut out.

Hopefully we can actually cut some stress soon and get out of town for a few days. I am SO looking forward to it!

Frustration Again

I really should change the title of this to "Frustration Still". It isn't as though our (or my) frustration level has changed at all in the last several months. There is so much we need to do, yet we are hampered by the lack of funds to be able to move and store all our stuff in any easy fashion. We don't *want* to stay with the IL's, but we felt like it was a logical stepping stone to finding land and being able to sell our house.

Now, I just don't know anymore. This environment isn't one that I want my kids to grow up in. My FIL is an ass, and has religious and political views I do not share. I don't enjoy my children being exposed to so much hate. The air is terrible around here next to power plants, mines, drilling for oil and fracking everywhere. The whole spirit of this place is toxic, and I feel it dragging our emotional and spiritual selves down.

We started on this journey because we want to have land where we can be self-sufficient, yet we just have so much to get accomplished before we can reach that point, it seems like such an insurmountable task right now. I guess I am feeling depressed about things, and I know it is a feeling shared by the family. We need a break. We need to be able to regroup and figure out a better plan to get out of here and on to a better place. I don't know if we will need to sell all our animals or not. I would feel really sad to, but I know we need to do something different so we can keep moving on to our goals.

My Little Monsters

We are huge sci-fi fans in this house. We enjoy watching a variety of genres from fantasy, action, to space fiction. Granted, we enjoy other styles as well, but science fiction is our greatest joy to watch overall. Even on the day my daughter was born, we watched the SciFi channel for hours while we all recovered. Through the years, my children have discovered their own love for watching monsters, spaceships, and magical creatures. They enjoy everything from Mothra Lives, to Doctor Who, to Star Wars (I, and II - the most recent ones) as a small fraction of what they have seen. We aren't big on the traditional "Disney-style" stories around here, so no princesses or cars or the like if we can help it.

As a consequence of seeing what might be considered advanced viewing for their years (although I know many, many parents who proudly declare their kids are rabid fans of Star Wars, etc.), we have spent a fair amount of time explaining the mysterious world of movie make-up and special effects. I think they enjoy picking apart the effects from the reality, and gaining a greater understanding of how much of what they see on TV (be it movies or the news) is actually faked or not quite accurately portrayed.

One of the ways we have helped to show the kids how fake these shows are is to show them. How, you ask. Well, by making our own fake blood and alien goo, showing them using their own bodies, and letting the kids play with it afterwards. It isn't for the faint of heart, as it is quite messy. But it makes for great photos! Oh no, a dismembered arm!! And so forth.

We had such a night recently, and here are some of the action shots. I can't wait until they get older and we can let them film their own movies complete with effects.

Oh No! My Memory Is Full!

I found out recently that the memory card on my phone is completely full. I was trying to download the latest software update, when it failed. I really should have known better. I knew the SD card would fill up fast with videos and photos, especially since it was only a 2 gig card. Since I haven't replaced it yet, I now have to go through all the videos and photos and delete all the irrelevant stuff.

As I was doing this, I ran across a number of photos reminding me of just how far we have come (and stagnated) this year. There were images of the kids making cookies last Christmas, and hubby using a chainsaw to cut down large tree branches. Photos of us fixing a young goats' broken leg, and the icy trip north to collect several mostly wild dwarf goats. I still have another 1500 pictures to go before it is down to a reasonable level.

Listening to Whale Songs

I am listening to whale songs tonight. I read an interesting article on the Mother Nature Network recently, located here which asks for people to listen to the recorded whale songs to help scientists analyze and match up songs from Orcas and Pilot Whales in an attempt to determine the different dialects. Pretty cool, huh? It is part of a recent effort of scientists to use the help of the general public to analyze particular sets of data in a way that computers and the scientists themselves cannot. There is a good Wikipedia article on crowdsourcing and why it works quite well for different fields of study. An article over at ScienceDaily relays how a group of gamers recently solved a medical puzzle involving the structure of a retrovirus enzyme that stumped the researchers for over a decade. The gaming group solved the problem in about three weeks through a collaborative effort.

For me, helping out these different scientists helps me feel at least a little more connected to my own science background. I always intended to stay working in the Anthropological/Psychological/Arts fields, and this at least gives me a connection to helping with the research while still taking care of my family and teaching my children as well as the hundred other things I do in a day. Even if I never get back into the field of study I had started in, I can at least help science along in some fashion.

Right now you will find me listening to the chirps, burps, and screeches of various whales located here. I figure I am already listening to similar noises from my own mammalian offspring, so I might as well expand my range a little and help a group of researchers out. If you are interested in trying your hand at helping science along, try here at Zooniverse or here for a bird survey, or here for other crowdsourcing projects open to the public.

Why don't you give it a try too?

Incorrigible and Not A Team Player. Yep, That Is Me.

A few years ago, I participated in a dessert competition. Now, I'm not normally one for entering competitions unless I feel highly motivated to prove myself, or I really think I can win it. Overall, I'm not one to seek out a competition just for the thrill of it (unlike other family members). This is probably the reason I always hated team sports, but I digress. I know I am a good cook and baker, and I normally wouldn't feel any particular desire to publicly prove it. If it wasn't for one thing, and one thing only. I despised the person running the event.

I am not usually a vindictive person. Well, no more so than anyone else, I suppose. This person, however, had gotten under my skin in too many ways and for too long a period of time. She decided to hold an event within the organization we were involved in at the time solely for promoting herself. She was one of those self-important people who seems to enjoy lording their own lofty (usually perceived) position over others. Even when they really have no status to claim. She also turned out to be someone who liked to talk poorly about others behind their backs, yet was perfectly pleasant and rather friendly to that same persons' face. I am not sure what I ever did to wind up on the malicious side of her. I try to treat people with respect until they show they are not to be respected or trusted. I like to give folks the benefit of the doubt. Yet I also know that I have no tact, and often say things that people take poorly even if they are not intended that way. Maybe this was just one of those times. Or maybe she was just an unpleasant little person and jealous or feeling unconsciously threatened by me. I will never know.. At the time, this event seemed like she was attempting to make others look bad so she shone in the light brighter than any other people.

As a way to shine even brighter than the celestial bodies themselves, the theme of her event was determined to be "Angels," which really had not a single thong in common with the organization at the time except in a peripheral fashion. If you were to squint a lot. Needless to say, her decision to hold this event rankled me, and I decided to do something about it. Part of her event was to have a dessert competition, also under the theme of "angels," where the attendees would choose their favorite tasty delight. Hah! I can do this, I decided, with just a wee bit of mischievous calculation. I combed my recipes for ideas, and felt disgust and disdain over the very idea of an angel food cake or anything remotely of the sort. This sublime dessert needed passion, depth, and lust rather than the traditional image of the lightest, airy, confection.

Then it hit me. Devil's Food Cake. Only I would infuse the cake with the richest dark (almost bitter) chocolate flavor rather than the pale, flat flavor of many a Devil's Food Cake. Rather than any traditional icing, I chose the style of a German Chocolate Cake, with a rich toasted coconut and toasted pecan frosting, where the pecans had been laboriously sliced in the perpendicular to resemble an angel's wings. It was a stroke of genius. I wanted my audience to feel as though they were being corrupted by even tasting a morsel of my divinely inspired dessert. I wanted to show off what an awesome baker I can be. I wanted to rub her nose in it and steal some of the glory she was trying to take all for herself. I called it my "Fallen Angel Cake," and it was glorious.

As I walked up to where the event was being held, I apparently caught her eye. She had been unaware up until that point, that I would be attending. It was not my usual type of event to go to, so it was a good assumption on her part. However, as I said, I wanted to put her down a peg, even if it was just to make her uncomfortable by my presence. I wanted her to even *try* to argue that my entry could not be allowed because it didn't fit into her predefined idea of what was acceptable. As I told her about my lovely Fallen Angel Cake, I could see her struggling to find a way to deny my entry. Her better judgement (or the realization that I would probably shame her publicly in some way) won out, and my entry was approved. I am sure she felt I didn't have a possibility of winning, so what would it hurt?

Apparently the bulk of the attendees felt so enlightened and moved by my fallen angels' passion, they voted my dessert the most noble honor of best tasting at the event. The woman putting on the event who apparently had no sense of humor was deflated by the wicked temptation of my offering, to which I found myself the owner of the most fiendish satisfaction. It pleased me greatly to watch her have to publicly congratulate me (and give me a small token for a prize) for my winning delight. Her words came out slowly, as though having to pass over a great blockage in her throat (the crow, maybe?). I felt vindicated by my win, and pleased to have my skills in the kitchen justified and enjoyed. That afternoon, my greatest pride was not in bursting her well-filled bubble of hot air, but in the plate cleaned of all but a few crumbs.

What makes me recount this story to you all? Well, today is my birthday, and I felt the need to indulge in a little devilish sweet delight for my birthday cake. So I am making another Fallen Angel Cake for the family to enjoy with me.

Making a Simple Bone Broth

One of the best parts of cooking a turkey, duck, or chicken is saving the bones and cooking it down into a broth. I love the rich flavor this homemade broth creates, and I try to make a lot and freeze it for use later. It makes a great base for beans in the crockpot, the most awesome gravy, and is good to use in any recipe that calls for broth. Broth that you make yourself is more nutrient dense, and has only the ingredients that YOU put into it. Commercial broth often carries with it a high level of sodium; since salt enhances flavor, the commercial broths must be pretty awful without it! An added bonus is that the broth is super easy to make, and gives your body a readily available source of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and trace minerals.

This bone broth is often made from the bones of a bird that was just eaten, and it is usually already seasoned so it needs little added to it for flavor. In my case today, I am using a chicken that we butchered and skinned about a month ago. Since it was skinned, it has none of that luscious skin and fat to protect the meat when baking and I felt it would be easier to boil it down for a nutritious and flavorful broth with a lot of chunks of meat in it. I started out with a whole chicken, and added the necks of two turkeys that we butchered for the holidays, as well as parts of the wings that were too awkward to keep on the turkey but had too much meat on to throw away.

Please excuse the poor photos, they were taken with my phone as I was in the middle of several things at once in a kitchen that boasts modern (1970's) lighting. Eventually I will work on taking fabulous food photos, but not today (or even tomorrow).

To start the broth, find the largest pot you can. Mine is an 8-quart pot I believe; the broth is still simmering on the stove so I can't easily check its size, sorry. Although I do have larger pots, this one is about the perfect size for making broth with leftover bones. Be sure to save the bones from your last fowl meal. They can be stored in a large gallon-sized Ziploc (or other brand) bag for a day or so until you are ready to cook them down. Put bones in the bottom of the pot and add water until about an inch (or two) shy of the edge of the pot. If you fill it too high, the water is likely to boil over. Add a splash of vinegar (apple cider is great for chicken), which will help to draw the minerals out of the bones. Turn heat on high, and let the bones come to a simmer. Once you have reached a simmer, turn down the heat just so the simmering is maintained. Be sure to check the water level occasionally through the day, and add more as needed to maintain the level above the bones.

I will often simmer the bones for at least 24 hours so the broth becomes as nutrient-dense as possible. A crock pot is a great way to make broth if you are going to be away from the stove for much of the day. This photo was taken as the broth was just starting to cool, so a little fat is starting to coagulate on the top. Once you have finished cooking the broth, turn off the heat and allow it to cool. Strain the bones out and compost or bury them if possible. If you are cooking a whole bird (like I am right now), pull the meat out and separate from the bones. This meat can be used for any chicken-based meal, or tossed back into the broth for a quick and nutritious soup with added vegetables. If your final broth seems too watery or takes up too much room, you can always reduce it by simmering the broth for a longer period of time.

Store the stock in glass jars for several days in the fridge or freeze for use later. Some people freeze it in ice cube trays so they can add them easily to any recipe for a boost of flavor.

Since this was an unseasoned chicken, I will eventually add some basic herbs and spices for flavor. Generally I will add what smells good to me at the moment, but a little sea salt, fresh ground pepper, thyme, and fresh garlic are my own absolute minimums for cooking a bird and its eventual broth. The flavors of the broth can be made as simple or as complicated as you like. This method can be used for beef bones as well, and also makes a fabulous tasting broth. What matters is that it is a simple and effective way to add a nutrient dense food to your diet, and it tastes good too!