I was home sick today. I slept in, under the spell of cold
medication. I got up for work but by the time I dressed and brushed my teeth I
was in a feverish sweat, my headache had returned and I could not breathe
through my nose. So I returned to my pajamas and my bed.
After a pot of herbal tea and a nap, I awoke refreshed, but
weak as a kitten. Here is what I accomplished, even in that condition: I baked
two loaves of zucchini/chocolate chip bread; I picked a bushel of tomatoes off
my withering vines (and threatened to fall in out of dizziness); I cleaned the
cats’ communal litterbox; I battled with the failing washing machine and won; I
emptied and refilled the dishwasher; I removed the summer’s nail polish from my
toes; I read a chapter of my book; and I wrote a chapter of my book.
Oh yeah – and I wrote a column. All in all, it was a very
productive sick day. It’s a good thing I was home, too, because I helped to
avert disaster in the kitchen.
The Farmer was home, preparing a hunters’ lunch for opening
day. He had thawed goose from last season and was making a bourguignon stew.
Potatoes, beets and carrots from the garden were being steamed and he was
roasting a huge chunk of venison. This is how the hunters clean up last year’s
bounty before they head out to collect this season’s catch.
He was preparing to mash potatoes when he thought to call
out to me, “Hey. Any idea what this stuff is that I found in the freezer?” He
stood there with a melting, dripping container of calf colostrum. We freeze
some of that first milk, also known as liquid gold, so that we can feed it to
any newborn calves who are failing and weak. It perks them right up and gets
them on their feet. And the Farmer was about to add it to his mashed potatoes.
Mmmm. Creamy.
“No! That’s colostrum!” I yelled. He just gave me a look and
shook his head before firmly locking the
lid back onto the container. I’m going to make sure that stuff gets labeled
before it goes back in the freezer.
It’s time to change summer sheets for flannels and a quilt.
I put the summer quilt in the baby’s playpen for extra padding at nap time when
she comes to grandma’s house. I’m airing out the sheepskins to put on the
living room floor where we sit and watch Netflix. The baby has decided she
loves to roll around on the soft and fluffy sheepskins. They will make a cosy
spot in front of the woodstove – which we will also have to fence off so baby
doesn’t get burnt.
The Farmer has been busy cleaning up fallen trees so we have
a stocked woodpile and we are ready for the ominous Farmers’ Almanac prediction
of a nasty winter. We will get past Thanksgiving first, because we need our
back porch to host forty people for lunch. Then we will board it up and stack
the wood floor to ceiling within reach of the back door.
September flew by, and suddenly October is upon us. Time to
put away the sundresses and sandals – but not too far away because I am
optimistic that we will be heading south in the dead of winter – and dig out
the boots and sweaters.
My garden hasn’t quite finished yet – the severe drought we
endured all summer seemed to have no ill affect on the tomatoes, kale or
zucchini. We have actually filled a deep freezer with one bag of tomatoes a
day. Our resident sauce maker will be busy – especially if he wants to make room
for turkeys next week. The potatoes aren’t much bigger than the seed potatoes I
planted and the cucumbers are kind of boomerang-shaped from searching for water
but other than that, it was a good harvest.
The Marketplates event at the Kemptville Farmers’ Market was
a raucous success – it makes me proud to see so many people coming out to buy
from local farmers. We still have a few farm-fresh turkeys left so if you would
like to reserve one for Thanksgiving – just email me. A new shipment of The
Accidental Farmwife books has come in, so I will stock the shelves at the
B&H Community Grocer, Rooney Feeds and Grahame’s Bakery, where you can pick
up a copy.
Fall is here – now if I can just make sure the Farmer
doesn’t come down with a huge man-cold, we will be able to enjoy our favourite
season.
Email: dianafisher1@gmail.com
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