2022, animals, Automotive, Business, Farming Update, Nature, Uncategorized, Weather, work

Which Came First?

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Today’s post comes from Ben.

There was supposed to be a hard freeze Thursday night. Only got to 35°.  We’re down in a valley so whatever the TV says the low will be, we’re going to be about 10° colder. It’s coming. Sooner or later. Minor cold spells, I unhook the hoses and put the pressure washer in the barn. Once it gets seriously cold, I’ll have to get more things picked up and put somewhere warm.

Driving to Plainview for parts last week showed a lot of farmers harvesting soybeans. Sounds like they might get to mine in the next few days. Good to hear. It was fun to see all the different combines. Some John Deere’s, some Case IH, even one Claas. You don’t see many of them in this area. I’m not even sure who the dealer is for Claas. That’s a big thing when buying equipment; who’s going to support it when needed. I really liked the Deutz tractor I bought back in 1986. But eventually it was hard to find mechanics or parts locally. There was a shop over in Wells MN that did good work on Deutz tractors, but 86 miles is a long ways to go for parts or service.  

I’m bummed all the sweetcorn froze last week so that’s done for the season. What a shame; one cold night and that’s it. Glad we got some froze a month ago. It felt early when we did it, but this is why I guess.

We drove to Plainview so I could pick up some oil filters for the lawn mower and gator. My local dealer has most of my equipment in their records, but they didn’t have the gator for some reason, and I have a hard time remembering all the equipment model numbers. I knew it was an 835, but was it an “E”, “M” or “R”? And there’s a serial number break that uses different oil filters… shucks. I don’t remember. Eventually I found an email on my phone from the insurance company that had the VIN number so we got the right one. I wrote it down. In my phone where I have a file of oil changes on equipment.

All the tractors and machinery have model numbers. I know a lot of them but sometimes I forget. Is the soil finisher a 714 or 716? Wait, it’s a 724. The chisel plow is a 714. Or 716… Know there’s a 7 in there. Maybe this weekend I can get the oil and fuel filters changed in the truck too.

We quit filling the bird feeders this summer when the avian flu was going around. I filled them again this week, but so far nothing has come back.

Rosie and Guildy are still fine. The chickens seem to think those two have better food than they do. It’s all the same food, but it’s inside a pen so it must be better. One of those ‘grass is greener’ things. Right up until this happens.

See what happens when you do things you shouldn’t be doing? You get hung up and need to be rescued. She wasn’t there long. Kelly and I were out picking pears and then having a gator date when we spotted her. Once rescued she ran off to the pen and didn’t even appear too dizzy.

I haven’t seen anyone harvesting corn yet. The kernels are probably a little too wet yet and it’s early enough no one wants to pay for drying the corn yet if they don’t have too. Shelled corn (really, any crop) must be 15% or less moisture to store without spoiling. I’m guessing most corn is still upper 20’s. The ears are mostly still standing upright. The old timers used to wait until the ear had tipped down, then it was ready to harvest. I was just reading that corn on the stalk loses about .5% moisture / day. Course that depends on the weather. It dries a lot more at 70° than it does at 40° of course.

This is a good looking ear because of how it’s filled all the way to the tip. If the plant had any stress it would abort the kernels at the upper end. And there are some ears in the field that are not filled. But it’s neat to see this ear and know the crop had everything it needed to make good ears. Enough rain, the right nutrients, and no stresses. Think about how we could all do if we had no stresses and everything we needed to prosper?

DRUMSTICK OR BREAST?

51 thoughts on “Which Came First?”

  3. For the first 25 years of my life, definitely drumstick. Now I prefer boneless, skinless chicken breasts fixed in a variety of ways. But I’ll still eat a drumstick if the opportunity arises.

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  4. You may have answered this before, Ben, but tell us more about “gator date”.

    Depends on how it’s fixed, I guess. For cooking, I’m with K-Two – boneless skinless breast is faster and easier. But I love just about any part of a rotisserie chicken…

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    1. A gator date is whatever you and your special person find to do in the gator. (The gator is a UTV – Utility Task Vehicle.) You’ve seen them, 3 or 4 person vehicles with a box on the back. We use it for all sorts of things. Our date that night was opening some gates and driving to the back of the pasture, just to look at things. Hadn’t been back there all summer. We have lots of gator dates looking at crops, or getting the mail or, picking up rocks or sticks. Whatever.

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  6. Oh, bone-in breasts for flavor. I like to use them and bone-in thighs in Chicken in Onion Tomato gravy, a Julie Sahni curry recipe we have made for years. I also poach boneless, skinless chicken breasts in white wine and have them in the freezer when I want to make chicken enchiladas. I loved drumsticks as a child.

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  8. I typically cook a slower meal around 8 but I don’t dare right now. Got called over again around that time last night. By time I get home too late to roast or make soup. Roasted half breast or skinless quarter to make soup. These days my poultry is ground turkey or chicken. Cannot bring myself into fast food drive in on way home.
    So my next question: what brand and flavor of coffee do you buy? For brewing? Ground or whole bean?
    Clyde

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    1. We get our beans from Kool Beans in Brookings, SD. The send me 6 lbs of dark roast beans from Bolivia/ Peru at a time. I am exceedingly spoiled.

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    2. I get my coffee ground from Berres Brothers in Wisconsin. They make all kinds of coffees with additives (hazelnut cream, vanilla, chocolate torte). My favorite is Highlander Grogg. I know most people don’t like the smell of these coffees, but when I’m by myself, I admit to loving then.

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  9. My first job was at a KFC. We didn’t have to pay for the food we took, and I did like the original recipe. Customers who didn’t specify white or dark meat generally got either a rib and a drumstick, or a wing and a thigh. I thought the rib and drumstick combination made a perfect lunch. Probably with a little cole slaw or baked beans.

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    2. Before I met my friends, Alan and Julie, with whom we share Thanksgiving every year, I did the original Tofurkey for a couple of years. Interesting but hardly enough to write home about. During pandemic, when we didn’t go to Alan and Julie’s, we did our own carb overload feast at home. Basically every side dish that people love atThanksgiving -just no turkey.

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  11. Mostly drumsticks or thighs, although I do like marinated chicken breasts as long as they aren’t dry. For some reason I have trouble cooking them so they don’t dry out. I might try poaching in white wine, thanks for the suggestion, Renee! I prefer chicken to turkey, although the smell of roasting turkey is so calming and enticing.

    I have enjoyed both whole bean and ground coffees. I just really enjoy coffee. I like it almost any way it’s prepared. These days I buy ground coffee and I have a special affection for the Arco coffees that I can’t buy around here. I usually pick some up when I’m in Duluth. I don’t know why but I really like their Highlander Grog.

    What a beautiful day! I’m so grateful. My friend had knee surgery on Tuesday. She’s doing just GREAT. She had a total knee replacement. The orthopedic surgeon explained to her that she had gone on so long walking on that knee in so much pain that she had caused her bone structure to change and she had 15% contracture. He was able to cut away some of the bone which had become deformed and she will soon be able to stand straight for the first time in years. She is an active person who loves to ski and bike and walk. I’m very happy that she will be able to enjoy these things again. I’m going over to see her tomorrow. She says she’s hardly even taking the Tylenol she was prescribed. She’s just doing so well. I’m very happy for her.

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    2. The better condition you are in the better it goes.
      Caribou seems to have discontinued the two roasts I like. They are pushing flavored coffees more, which I bet beets the market. I hate them.

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    3. I’ve heard it both ways on knees and hips. I sure am looking forward to my knee replacement in December to relieve the pain. And I know the follow up PT is important. But boy, I hope to make a lot less grunting and moaning noises after it’s replaced. Well, after a few months anyway.

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      1. Yes! I imagine you’re doing it in Rochester. Get a good ortho surgeon. Do the PT exercises faithfully. My friend rented an ice machine for a month. $350 and not covered by her Medicare but she feels it’s worth it. I tend to agree based on her results. She has begun PT. She said the therapist pushed her right to the point of pain on the first day and gave her exercises to do. She is one of the most type A people I’ve ever known and does her exercises religiously, possibly more than required. I would definitely look into renting the ice machine. The way I understand it is that it ices your knee for 30 minutes on and 30 off. Icing is very important so that you reduce swelling. Getting up and walking is important to prevent blood clots. The worst threats post-surgery are blood clots and infection. Do exactly what they tell you and you will have a great result!

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    6. Krista, like you, I can drink my coffee any ole way. Black, with just sugar, with just cream — although left to my own devices, I do add sugar and cream normally. I can drink it hot and I can drink it cold. I learned at the bakery decades ago, that you drink what you got, and you drink it the way it is because you don’t have time to mess with it.

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    1. Thanks for asking, Bill. Today for the first time in a week, I finally feel as if I’m over the worst of it. Missed two Sunday visits with Philip, though, as I didn’t want to risk transmitting it to him. Should be back in the swing of things tomorrow.

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  15. Our next door neighbor went hunting this weekend and just brought us two large pheasant breasts. We will freeze them and I will make them into pie sometime.

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  18. ᴛᴏ ɢᴇᴛ ᴘʀᴏғᴇssɪᴏɴᴀʟ ᴛʀᴀᴅɪɴɢ sᴇʀᴠɪᴄᴇs ᴡɪᴛʜ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴛʀᴀᴅɪɴɢ sɪɢɴᴀʟs, ℭᴏᴍᴍᴜɴℑℭᴀᴛᴇ. ғʟᴏℜᴇɴℭᴇ ᴊ ᴛℌᴇᴏᴅᴏℜᴇ ᴘʟᴀᴛғᴏʀᴍ ᴏɴ ғᴀℭᴇʙᴏᴏᴋ

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