Shopkeep

My great grandmother owned a wooden-floored country store in southern Indiana back in 1930-1960-s. I remember visiting it once at the age of 8. She was a mean old gal as she gave no special treats from her glass candy jars but she did give me a heavy broom with which to sweep off the front porch.

She had a rocking chair on that porch.

Now, nearly 50 years later it's my turn for a country store complete with rocker. ( a gift from my daughter years ago) I don't sell candy in there yet but I keep a stash for my grand kids in the house. When I give my 8 year old GK the broom to sweep the stores front porch she does it but not without the age old childhood mantra "Why me? Wesley's not doing anything"

Ah. yes, the country store. How I love mine. Measuring just 12 foot by 20 foot inside it could be bigger but it serves our needs well as is. Last week, I got a hair in my grass and decided to rearrange items that had been in the same place since we opened the store 3 years ago.

 

 So the counter moved from the east side to the west side , the old recycled display cabinet took the counters old place. The little egg frig was defrosted, cleaned and moved closer to the meat freezers. Soaps were moved away from window (great for wonderful smelling breezes but colors fade more quickly)

 

All items for sale were dusted and moved and spring flowers brought in. The floor was swept and washed and all the little ones hand prints and lip prints were washed off the freezer doors. Price lists were redone and hung closer to the calculator.

And the front porch was swept. Without complaint. Finally time to smell the roses , I mean tulips, I planted behind the store last fall.

Open Monday through Saturday 10-6  Closed on Sundays. No charge for rocker sitting.

Scrap Palace

Back in March when we hauled Sophie's bottom out to PA. Keith built her a nice little cabin that fit on the back of our pickup. That way we did not have to take our whole livestock trailer for just one pig.

Several of you saw pics of that pig palace on my post about the trip and asked for more photos of it. So, being the always agreeable, ask and you shall receive type of giver I am...here you go. The pickup topper for pigs was designed and built by Keith with some help from our teen intern turned part time employee, Aaron.

 

Every piece of the creation was made with recycled wood from one farm project or another.

 

 

 

 

 

You might recall a post I did about another pig shelter (painted black and white like a Holstein, don't ask me why) that got blown apart from the inside out when Max the boar went after yet another girlfriend and the shelter couldn't contain them both. Well we used the remains of that hutch as the sides of this new deal.

 

 

The back doors were made of even more found lumber and the hinges were leftovers as well.

 

 

We took Sow Sophie on her cross country trip without the box yet being painted but after we got back home we assigned that task to niece Bridget who did the primer coat and Aaron who did the final barn red coat. Gotta love those teenagers in need of pocket cash. !

 

 

So there you have it.

 

 

 

Raw Milk Monday...Review of the May 1 Meeting

Please note: If you are new to my blog you can catch up on the reasons for my raw milk passion and the struggles our own farm have experienced, by reading any of the previous posts on the topic I have written over the last 3 years . To do so, simply enter "Raw Milk" in the search bar under the picture of our house, on the right.

Patra, age 5, Brown Swiss, lifelong resident of
South Pork Ranch and raw milk producer.

Five days ago on May 1, was the Dairy Work Group of The Illinois Department of Public Health(IDPH) met for the fourth time.  This was the meeting raw milk advocates had been preparing for since I first learned of IDPH's plan to restrict raw milk sales back in February.

For the last 9 weeks, raw milk farmers, consumers and those who believe we should be allowed to eat and drink as we choose have been preparing for this meeting. We did our research, we checked our sources, we consulted with those brighter than us and we spread the word across Illinois that IDPH had plans to pass laws that would make raw milk production and sales nearly impossible.

And on May 1 we showed up.

What an amazing day that was! Consumers and farmers from all over the state drove to Bloomington Illinois to listen to the Dairy Work Group discuss the pros and cons (mostly cons) of the proposed rules. Reporters attended from several publications and in the afternoon testimony of raw milk lovers was heard. One of those was Dr. Mark Rosenbloom of the Chicago Medical Society who read his groups proposed resolution in support of raw milk.

Yes, that is correct, physicians in support of raw milk

In addition, testimony supporting raw milk consumption was also heard from attorneys, a minister, young mothers and a retired Indiana Health Department Director of Foodborne Illnesses.

AMAZING.

But even with all the very positive actions that took place that day many of us left the meeting frustrated, and with good reason.

Despite our well researched, well prepared stance against the proposed rules, IDPH director Molly Lamb did not remove a single one from the list.

Despite her reassurance to the standing room only group of supporters that 'We are just in the discussion stage" IDPH director Dr LaMar Hasbrouck sent a letter to the General Assembly on April 9th without the knowledge of the Dairy Work Group, telling our Representatives in both the Illinois House and Senate that " unpasteurized milk cannot be considered safe under any circumstances."

Despite the fact that Dr Hasbrouck also said in his April 9th letter "The department and it's Dairy Work Group proposes the following main focal points..." and he goes on to list additional proposed rules that WERE NEVER DISCUSSED by the Dairy Work Group in their last meeting Feb 22. Two additional proposed rules were (1) Institute a maximum sell by date from the time the container was filled and (2) Allow for sale targeting animal consumption.

So while on one hand we are being told by the meetings facilitator Molly Lamb,  that we "must work together" and we need to be "professional in our actions" her own boss is submitting information to the law makers of our state without the knowledge of the group who is supposed to be proving invaluable input.

So much for IDPH's own Mission Statement which lists as a principle

"Partnership and collaboration to achieve coordinated response to community health issues"

Obviously our work has just begun. The Dairy Work Groups next Conference call is scheduled for June 11. These are open meetings that any consumer, farmer or interested citizen can call in and listen to. To get specific information on how to do this please go to IDPH's Web Site where you will also be able to review the minutes of the May 1 mtg which must be posted as well.

 Please continue to contact your representatives, the Illinois Department of Public Health at 217- 782 4977, and your local news paper via letters to the editor. Please complete the comment page also on the IDPH website (click on "calendar" then go to the May 1 Dairy Work Group Paragraph for the link to the comment page) Tell them how restricted access will affect you and your family as well as your farmer. Remind them that Illinois is broke and doesn't have the money to enforce areas that do not need enforcement.

Tell them there is no reason to fix what is not broken.

Saponification Sunday Scraps

We soapers end up with pounds and pounds of scraps. Some of us like to trim the edges of our bars with knives, potato peelers or in a pinch...our teeth, you know, for that "rustic look." Or we have end pieces that aren't big enough to sell as whole bars. Or as is more often in my case, just plain ugly soap.

Fortunately soap is very versatile. I will fill a spray bottle half full with soap scraps then fill it the rest of the way with hot water. I use this concoction for dish soap, to wipe off counters, clean my store, basically whatever needs a good wipe.

I also will take my scraps, add equal amounts of baking soda, washing soda, borax and grind it in my food processor for laundry soap.

Sometimes I will throw all about two pounds worth of scraps into my crock pot, add a half cup of water or a little Castor oil and rebatch it into more bar soap. It's not always that pretty but hubbie is happy taking it to the shower with him.

He's always favored function over form anyway, just check out his bride.

And then there are times when  I'll take some of my prettier scraps, the curly ones from soap trims and just sprinkle them on top of just poured soft and wet soap or even push the bigger soap curls into the soap batter. When I do that I leave part of the curl sticking out of the top.

Sure, if the bar is handled a lot in our little farm store, the soap curls will break off, but no big deal, as enough of the curl is still buried in the soap to give him interest and texture and when I add some water to the soap pieces on the store floor it just makes cleanup that much easier because it is after all...soap.

Lucky Duck Pigs

Sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don't because all the nuts are prepaid. Which was the case with Mrs. Dalloway's litter. More or less.

It's tricky when folks want to buy baby wattles before a litter is born. We take deposits but explain that if piglets born are not up to registration standards (only one head, no third eyes, no big white stripes down their backs) they will not get a piglet. They will of course get their deposit back.

Tis herself doing some pre-op teaching that wasn't needed after all.

 

Lately we've had a bit of a run on piglet requests. From Mrs. Dalloway's litter alone we had deposits for four little boys.  Fortunately she had a good sized litter but as of today we had not yet counted the sexes. To do so, mama pig is escorted onto the livestock trailer lured by milk soaked grain (this is also how Keith gets me to go to bed at night) , then babies are corralled with straw bales.

 

We take turns scooping them up, holding them outside down while official body check occurs.

 

Ears? Tipped. ( can be tipped, lopped or erect)
Wattles? Two  (must have two )
Nipples? 12  (must have 12 or more)
Sex? Boys must have two testicles. Girls must have the ability to multitask
Spots?  NONE! (must be solid color from light red to near black)

Any pig who meets the criteria is eligible for registration application. If they don't meet the minimum they are raised for chops, sausage or sold for $125 as feeder pigs. Those who meet the best of the best guidelines are sold for $300 plus vet fees if they are traveling out of state and need health papers.

In this litter we had 6 males who met registration criteria but they are still too young to send in those papers. We like to wait until they are older to see how those ears and wattles and body shape mature. But since all were looking good none had to lose their little packets. This is very unusual to have so many males look so good. Sometimes we'll have a litter where we don't think any are good enough to register.

 "What a relief!"   I am sure they were muttering to themselves once they realized all would escape going under the knife.

From left, scapels, betadine, more scapels and official wattle documentation form

When the first buyer comes in June he'll have literally the pick of the litter for the two boars he wants since he pre-ordered his piglets almost a year ago...while serving in Afghanistan!

Soon, he'll be discharged and then will travel here to get his pigs and start his new homesteading life.
We're very happy to help him and his family get their start with this very keen breed.

Turkey Love

When she was three she insisted on bringing home a dead caterpillar. It didn't  start out dead it just sorted of ended up that way after being played with all day. A woolly little cutie we thought she'd forget about it on the 30 mile trip home to her mothers house.

She did not.

So I left it in the bathroom and prepared her bath and figured after she wound down and was ready for bed she'd forget about it. She did not. She went to sleep with it close by and I believe she kept it close for a couple days until my daughter, her mother, finally said "enough" and pitched the creepy crawly.

So when a friend of ours gave us a turkey baby last summer and our grand daughter attached herself to it, we were not surprised. Although Allana does love puppies and kitties she is equally happy about baby bugs, tiny snakes, squeeling piglets and a goofy turkey.

The turkey was named Banana and she believes Allana is her mother. When the GK's come to the farm that ridiculous turkey runs across the yard to meet her . They are such chums that Banana even allows Allana to cuddle her, pick her up and carry her around. She has been so tamed she was an easy mark for last years Christmas card. She's the one in my lap.



Now weighing about 30 pounds the turkey is a monster compared to our 8 year old granddaughter  but this fact bothers neither of them. Bing hauled around by a human is a great way for the child to strengthen her upper body and a an even better way to make a bird feel loved.

Have you hugged your turkey today?

Drive By Gifting

In the midst of fighting City Hall, so to speak, there is nothing more encouraging than those who stop by and leave random gifts. Really. I step away from the farm a few hours...again...and come home to a piece of craftsmanship that far exceeds my own artisan abilities.

I don't even sew, let alone weave. If my hems are long I turn to a stapler. If a button need attached, I reach for the superglue. Most buttons are only decorative anyway, right?  Button hole? I use scissors and one of the paper hole protectors. Yeah, you think I'm kidding.

I tried cross stitching in the early 80's and ended up sewing my fingers to my stomach.

You get the picture.

But I am not so dense when it comes to thread not to recognize real skill which is what Martha, my blog buddy has.

Twice now she has dropped by our  farm but we have yet to meet. I'm always running errands. Like organizing raw farmers against governments who have THEIR own best interests at heart, so after a long day of trouble making it is a sheer joy to come home to a gift like this.

 

To learn more about this amazing woman and what she is capable of doing with a loom please check out Martha Wickerts  ETSY PAGE   page. I shouldn't be the only one enjoying her creations. Just wouldn't be fair.