Work

Mike and I jumped right back to work after our really really great Christmas time off.  Christmas Eve was spent in Freedom with old friends eating Jack Knife Beef and a myriad of delicious appetizers.  I tried this out in my Insta Pot Artichoke Dip and was very pleased.   There was also a blue ribbon sour cherry pie to finish off the feast!

Christmas brunch with Todd and Janet, a bottle of wine at (gasp) 1 in the afternoon and a vigorous game of Pitch.  Mike and Janet won, dang it!! 

Christmas Dinner at Spotted Horse where we all have celebrated together for 18 years now (we were absent last year, in the Adirondacks with the Trumbowers).  Mike perfectly fried an amazing turkey (best one yet!), we sliced up the delicious smoke turkey sent every year from the Beckers, a cranberry sour cream salad was enjoyed as well as a hot loaf of rosemary sourdough bread.  Plus what everyone else brought!!  Janet gave us a tray of her amazing homemade cannolis which were half gone by dinner time!! 

Back to eating salads.  Please, please!

Off to Freedom for the weekend.  Cutter Races on Saturday.  Painting the barn quilt.  Entertaining our neighbors on Saturday.

Here is the lemon tart for Saturday dinner.  Dust with powdered sugar, top with whip cream swirls. Want the recipe?  It's kind of fun to make!  Lemon Tart Recipe

Happy New Year Everyone!! 

Holiday Greeting

Our Holiday Greeting to You!

Ten Below Zero

There are very few reasons why one would walk outside naked when it is ten below zero, but Mike and I both did just that this morning.  Thank goodness our hot tub is just out the door!!  Slipping into the 104 degree water, a ring around the moon, and steam freezing to our hair, it was truly delightful!  I love our hot tubs (yes, we have one in Freedom too). 

Today's news below, hot off the press.  This is our town.  It is an amazing and very expensive place to live.  I have been working on 16 radios for our volunteers in Wilson.  Their association bought these radios with fund-raising money; ie, no county tax dollars were spent!  Total bill - $33K.  A local donor has indicated they would like to purchase a wildland fire truck for our organization as a donation.  They are willing to donate $400K for this vehicle.  Another family wants to say thanks and may put up $250K for a new handheld radio for every firefighter.  This is an amazing, generous community.  We have our fingers crossed that these donations will come to fruition.

And this week's awesome story from Prevention - we are delighted Chief Hansen jumped on board for this wonderful award!!

Goodbye Cosmo....

I remember the day at the sale.  A tall, lean cowboy was riding around a tall, lean appaloosa mule.  This mule had a head so ugly, he was handsome!  The auction time came round, and the mule was priced right.  Cosmo joined our herd.

A summer pack trip, not long after Mike added Cosmo to our herd, Ruby - young and willing - was invited to jump up on the saddle and join Mike atop Cosmo.  Now this is not something one does without potential consequences, but Cosmo stood there as Ruby jumped up to the saddle and the three of them rode on.

Miles and miles that mule took care of Mike.  Miles and miles.  One gives their trust to their steeds. 

There have been a couple of incidents.  Once, Cosmo gave up in a gully and Mike ended underneath the saddle horn and the mule.  A giant bruise and thankfully no broken bones.  They both survived the incident.

Then, last summer's swim in the Elk Fork roiling river.  Somewhere in the middle of that flooding torrent of water, Cosmo got his back left leg tangle in rock and down he and Mike went into the cold spring runoff.  The mule survived only because Mike held onto a rein. 

Hunting, this last fall, Cosmo stepped over a log and got that same leg tangled.  Down he went.  The signs of trouble were mounting up.

Today, friend and veterinarian Griggs announced a stifle issue which sent Cosmo to the hole at the Walton Ranch.  Good bye old friend, good bye.  You need suffer no more.

Until you have pulled yourself up onto the back of a mule or a horse, you will never understand the relationship that is built between animal and man.  Losing your riding mule is a tough tough thing and today was not easy for Mike.  Cosmo will be missed.

 

Three Publication Week!

Wow.  Wish I had more time to write!  All three of these articles out in one week.

The one I am happiest with -
International Association of Fire Chiefs Piece

This one came out yesterday; (Yes, I have asked to have "shoot" changed to "chute" - I should have caught that one!!)
Fire Rescue Magazine

And this just out in Wildfire Magazine:

Very Vacation-Like!

Surrounded by family and loved ones, Mike and I celebrated a very festive and wonderful Thanksgiving.  Seth and Alden made the long trip from Cody, Wyoming and stayed until Sunday.  Dani and Evan joined in for the festivities.  For Thanksgiving dinner, neighbors and renters Russell and Lisa brought their farm-raised turkey; aka, Tom, to the table at a whopping 39 pounds!  Alive, Tom registered in at a whopping 50# weight.  Good living over there at the white house!! 

Aerial views of Thanksgiving Dinner! 

We took on a DYI project making environmentally-friendly beeswax wraps. They looked awesome drying.  Our technique might need to be perfected a bit, but we all had fun with the colored fabrics and results.

The other project, our 8' x 8' barn quilt, is coming along.  Three coats of two different colors have been applied.  It's going to be SO cool, this barn quilt!!  Everyone got a hand at painting and signed their names to the back of the boards!  So great to have group participation!

(Yes, there is a mistake on this board...no worries, it will easily be fixed by the next darker yellow paint!!)

It was a really great break and topped off by an impressive winter storm with a whopping foot of snow that needed moved around in both Freedom and Hoback.  We are all plowed out now, waiting for the next winter round of white stuff.  Togowotee Pass is reported to have received 29" of snow in this storm. 

Saturday, we all watched friend Coralia win her Cutter Race.  She raced neck to neck with another woman driver and we all are pretty sure this was the first time ever two women raced side by side. 

Here she is after the race, cooling off the horses.  Always a fun thing to do on Saturday!  We ate a big burger, shared some adult beverages, and stood in the snow, watching the horses run! 

Here's the whole gang on, as Seth observed, the Ultimate Dude Launcher!  Thanks for taking the photo, Neighbor Pam!

New Blog Site Possibility!!

Life leads us right where we are supposed to go!! 

This blog has been a great way to practise other blog opportunities.....ladies and gentlemen, my first International Association of Fire Chiefs' publication!!  Ta dah!!

Read My Piece!

Barn Quilt, Step 2

Once the boards are primed, one must translate the quilt square to the giant board.  Happily, the sunflower quilt square is 8"x 8" and the board is 8' x 8'.  This makes the process a bit easier although I drew one line the wrong direction and made one square 2" too big.  Easily fixed.  Although it is hard to see, if you look close, you will see the giant sunflower pattern! 

Today's mission is to pick the paint colors.  All help on board over Thanksgiving!!  We will start with the light colors and work to the dark.  Three coats for all colors.  It's going to be the biggest sunflower in all of Star Valley!!

I'm already scheming the next barn quilt!! 

Time For Loved Ones

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday which should be celebrated often through the year!  Mike made his holiday visit a few weeks early this year, spending time with his family.  A drive to Pennsylvania made it possible to reconnect with his Dad's sister, Anna Mae, and the rest of that side of the family.  The picture below shows that reunion with Michael in full-pontificating mode!

We all look forward to the week ahead.  A few days less work. A reason to gather, cook and share great food, and pause.  Pause to give thanks.

Someone the other day said a phrase which I am still thinking about.  "The tyranny of living in the United States," and he went on to note we don't spend our days worrying about getting bombed by our neighbors, we don't worry about famine and disease.  We suffer from the tyranny of many wonderful things to have and to do and never enough time to do them!

This year, take stock in these real facts.  Make sure you have your priorities in the right order.  Remember, each day YOU make your life what it is; yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  Things and people will make an impact, no doubt.  But it is up to you to weave these things into the fabric that drapes your very being. 

We live in an amazing time.  A phone can direct you to an address.  How cool is that?!  A link can answer any question you might have about any thing.  Take just five minutes, sit, and be with all these blessings.  It's an amazing life!

Family Visiting.

Superstition

Was it because I wore that old brown sweater with the zipper in the back?  Or that I didn't take my binoculars?  Maybe because our mule Dinah was along.....

Finally got my elk today!  Thanks to the good grace of my boss who covered for me this morning, Mike and I were able to hunt on the very last day of my long-season tag.  I put a big sneak on this herd.  This fat, young elk will be a bonus for some empty shelves in our freezer.

It was a great hunt, the mules did wonderfully, my guide was in a good mood, and I landed back at work by 1pm!!  A fire AND an elk within 24 hours.  Life is good.  Life is good!

Goodbye Rusty Parrot

The Rusty Parrot.  An icon of Jackson Hole.  For years, the only 5 start inn in Wyoming.  Built of sturdy logs, shiny and strong, the fire won the battle.  Jackson loses this iconic hotel, tucked in the corner of the town, a get away for many travelers.  I'm sure they all remember their visit; the helpful staff, the delicious food created in the small but ambitious kitchen, the wall of wonderful wines to choose, the soft bed linens, the quiet restful nights.  Here is how it looked before last night's late night fire.  Pre Fire Rusty Parrot

My heart aches for this loss.  The family built their place of business in 1990.  Their lives are woven into the fabric of this address.  They watch the night through, wrought with loss and uncertain of what will come next.

A neighbor businessman stops by to see the destruction.  His eyes fill with tears when I grab his arm, saying there is only one address that would be an even more terrible loss, his famous Blue Lion Restaurant.  We stand, embraced in Miller Park, tears welling up in our eyes, reminding each other that no lives were lost.  No lives were lost.  Fire marks those who are forever branded by its sear.

Here is one of the many news reports.  I have been quoted saying the word "shit".  At first, I was aghast and then I thought about it.  Shit happens.  It is really shitty this happened.  Mom says shit is not a swear word.  I hope our community will understand my use of this word to describe, well, this shitty fire.

One Of Many News Articles

Casper, Wyoming

The drive to Casper Wyoming from Jackson is 287 miles.  The prettiest part is on the west side of the mountains.  After one pulls up and over Togowotee Pass, the landscape flattens out and stretches for miles and miles.  A break in Dubois and Shoshoni gives one pause, a chance to stretch legs, and look over the shelves in the convenience stores wishing there was food that wasn't chuck full of salt and/or fat.  I picked up a piece of jerky and ready the ingredients.  370 calories.  270 in fat.  Pass.

After the 3pm meeting, networking and drinks ensued.  I learned more at the bar and at dinner than I did at the meetings!!  An early morning meeting with our radio supplier and back on the road.  Here are some pictures from the west side of the mountains, leaving and coming home.  The feathers are from our two wildland fires this year.  Each found at each fire.  Redtail hawks. 

Barn Quilt, Step 1

And so, history accounts, Donna Sue Groves wanted to honor her mother Maxine, by having a painted quilt hung on her barn in Adams County, Ohio.  One presumes Maxine was a quilter, but so far I have nothing that actually says so.

Anyway, Donna worked the idea for awhile and it blossomed into a community event rather than just one barn quilt.  She spawned the idea of a Quilt Trail through the countryside where travelers could drive a "trail" and see all the barn quilts.  There are now over 7000 quilts in the US and Canada registered as a result of Donna's idea sprouted in 2001.

Our Freedom place is in what is called "Star Valley".  This long and wide valley sits between two mountain ranges and runs north/south. 

Mike saw the ad in the local paper.  The Star Valley Quilters Guild have decided to join up on this nation-wide activity and are conducting a Quilt Block Contest.  There are prizes for winners!  First prize is $1500, second $1000 and third at $750.  Quilt block must be installed by July 1, 2020.  Although our address is in Freedom, Idaho (one mile from the Wyoming line), I received verbal confirmation that our Barn Block will be considered.

Our winter project; building a barn quilt to honor Mom, maker of many many quilts.  As sunflowers have been an every-year planting at our place, and one of my favorite quilts Mom has made is a sunflower quilt, it has been determined this will be our barn quilt pattern.  The pattern will be translated from inches to feet, drawn and painted on two boards which will combine to make one giant 8' by 8' square for the side of our shop next to the road. 

Not that anyone here is competitive...but.....I'm thinking we will need to build a pullout along the road and a stand of some sort telling about this barn quilt and the awesome woman it will honor!  Perhaps some sunflower plantings below the quilt....?  Looking for ideas here!! 

And so we begin.  Step one.  Mike bought the 3/4" sign boards.  Two 4'x8' pieces of board.  I found some very good primer and went to work.  The front, backs, and sides have now received three coats of primer. 

My task is to figure out how to take an 8" pattern and turn it into an 8 foot pattern.  Mike has to figure out how to get the 8'x8' block hung on the north side of the shed!!  This will be an adventure, for sure!!

Take a look at some other barn quilts at Barn Quilts

Sunday

The sky was filled with blazing pink clouds, edged with wintery gray.  I probably should have arrived a bit earlier.  Up the hill, a bull elk bugled.  Then another on a nearby ridge answered.  It is exciting to start your hunt out with elk bugling.  I loaded the rifle, grabbed the shooting sticks, heaved on my heavy pack (ever knife I own plus a bunch of other stuff - you never know what you might need), and started walking up the hill.

Although it seems less successful, I really like to hunt afoot.  Carefully placing each step, looking forward, looking sideways.  Today, I walked up on four deer at about 150 yards.  They were clueless of my presence.

The deer would be all I see.  Tracks.  Lots of tracks in the snow.  Elk tracks.  Big dog tracks.  I don't think those were from any other dog than a wolf.  I trudged up to the saddle; always a destination in mind.  The sun had crested the ridge.  The grasses, brown and golden and moving in the morning breeze.  The forest, quiet.  I checked my phone.  No service.  8:39.  I sat, drank water, and took these pictures.

This year, hunting feels like hunting. 

Lists

DONE - 

• Monday work until Officers' Meeting, home by 2100 hours
• Tuesday 0530 Mike to airport, work, go to Alpine/Freedom, come back to Jackson, vote, visit friend in ICU that night
• Wednesday work until 1900 hours; meet Mentor Mary for lunch
• Thursday, work, go to Ready, Set Go presentation; home by 2100 hours
• Friday, all day in Womentum presentations; give Bee Talk at lunch in front of about 100 women (nail it!), join Station 2/6 for Banquet at Mill Iron Ranch.  Eat big T-bone steak
• Saturday, on duty.  Go to 0703 residential alarm.  Get help from caretaker (who has nice bird dog).  No fire, panel reset.  Groceries in town, clean dog poop out of yard (at least 10 pounds of poop!), clean house, make bread-cook butternut-chicken on the grill-frost pumpkin bread and cupcakes made in the morning.  Write blog cause people are tired of looking at the same post day after day after day!

TO DO - 

• Go hunt in the morning
• Go to Freedom.  Relax.

I continue to work toward sourdough perfection.  This one is nice!  You can almost hear that crust crunch in your mouth as the butter drips down your chin! 

Confessions of a Food Hoarder

Cold weather and short days push everyone inside.  Being on duty on Sunday, usually a quiet day, I tackled the back room.  The animal room, the storage room, the miscellaneous room.  The back corner has a food storage shelf.  I found four bags of brown sugar as I sorted and organized.  You never know when you might have to bake 25 batches of chocolate chip cookies!  An unreasonable amount of canned tomato sauce was sorted and noted.  Time to make spaghetti!!  I am a food hoarder.  It is true. 

Then I cleaned the room.  Dog hair, cat hair, cat litter, and dust were wiped away, vacuumed away, and swept away.  The vacuum bag was stuffed and changed.  The floor got mopped.  Much better, thank  you.

Meanwhile, cooking ensued.  Two batches of really great lentil soup from my go-to Insta Pot site Lentil Soup Recipe which fed the Family at work on Monday.  Three loaves of sour dough bread as I continue my quest to conquer this bread type.  A loaf of bourbon banana bread from a great recipe go-to site  Food 52 Browned Butter Bourbon Banana Bread Recipe  This site is my unraveling for kitchen gadgets.  Mike noted the other day that I had every kitchen gadget made and although this is not 100% accurate, it is close!  My latest can be viewed here Coolest-Ever Spice Grinder

We hunted on Saturday.  This was before the cold snap swooped into Jackson Hole, shivering even the toughest hombre.  The day was comfortable, however, only elk tracks were found.  Still a great morning and a nice ride.  So nice we share this love for the outdoors.  And we have the truck and trailer and stock to make it happen. 

An unusually cold front is coming through the valley sending morning lows in the minus readings.  So much for planting any more bulbs in the ground!  Trick or treating will be cold come Thursday night.  And we all moan as we prepare to lose an hour on Sunday, turning our clocks back.  I always feel cheated that day.

Tuesday night after-work activities included un-crocking a variety of ferments made from my garden cabbage.  They have been bubbling away, turning into various flavors of deliciousness.  Here are the flavor combinations:

Johnny's Kraut.  Named after Johnny Robinson - who loves this recipe - this is green cabbage, dill, and thinly sliced lemons.  Tart and a bit bitter from the lemon rinds, this just tastes healthy!  Great on a burger.
Holiday Kraut:  Fresh cranberries come around this time of the year.  I was pretty sure it would flop when I created this recipe last year, but no, it is delicious!  Green cabbage and sliced cranberries make for a subtle flavored mild kraut.  Lovely in its color and delicious all on its own.
Baseball Kraut:  A bit of green cabbage and a lot of onions and red pepper, this kraut is a home run every time!  It's Mike's favorite.  Spiced with paprika and mustard seeds, it tastes and looks awesome on a brats! 
End of the Season Kraut:  This new recipe is my 2019 Winner of the Year!  I literally cleaned out the refrigerator on this one.  Cabbage, carrots, zucchini, red pepper, red onion, garlic, and caraway seeds.  Wow!  This one throws a pack of flavor and deliciousness.  I'll be making another batch soon!

Fermentation draws me these days.  Every week, I bottle a new batch of kambucha, fermenting away in half gallon mason jars in the bathroom, building their SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) layer by layer until there are so many layers I have to throw them away.  My sourdough culture bubbles and brews almost jumping out of the container waiting to be folded into another loaf of sourdough bread or sourdough pancakes.  Here is my most favorite-ever recipe for pancakes; these things are amazing ever single time Best EVER Sourdough Pancakes    Am I going to make beer next with my prolific hop crop?  Probably not.  I doubt I will be making wine either.  Still, there are lots of multiplying bacteria in my life adding flavor and health benefits to those who partake. 

Handy Man

Here is how it usually works.....I find something so unbelievably cool at the ReStore, and well, I just can't leave without it.  It's usually very unique, but I know it will require The Handy Man's  some way or another.  I buy it anyway, with hesitation and consternation.  And then I wait until the Handy Man is in a relatively good mood...."hey, Darlin', I have a small project for you."  He huffs and puffs.  He has to make a zillion trips back and forth getting the right tools, things don't fit, pieces are needed; all the time, I'm feeling like a real imposition in the Handy Man's life.

These projects have included the hanging of many lights.  This one, is, by far, the most unique light I have ever seen!!  When the whole escapade was over, I think even the Handy Man was pleased!!

It was a relaxing weekend, for sure.  The weather was snotty.  Cold, rainy, windy then snow.  Nothing to do outside unless one wanted to be miserable.  Which is how the horses and mules looked as gale force winds threw sheets of stinging snow eastward bound.  We watched from the comfort of the inside, wood stove crackling. I always feel bad for our stock when winter arrives.

Saturday morning, just at daylight, Ruby growled.  We figured she was growling at the passing mules and horses.  We were up and about shortly after and there, in the hay field, just out from the house, were at least 100 grazing elk!  It was so cool!!  We snuck out on the deck and slipped into the hot tub watching them graze down the cut plants.  The horses grazed nearby.  And then a coyote came along hunting the pocket gophers.  What a treat!

Chlorine Gas

It doesn't take much chlorine gas to kill you; only 10 parts per million.  When we got called to respond to a gas leak at the Town of Jackson Public Works well house, the risk to mitigate the hazard increased exponentially when we learned that gas that was leaking was chlorine.

Thankfully, Teton County has a team of highly-trained hazard mitigation members and because they are local, they were able to respond quickly.  The tanks were turned off within two hours and the hazard abated.  No evacuations were required. 

This high risk, low frequency event reminded us, once again, the value of good training.  This team trained on a scenario just like this real-life event last year.  That training was put to good use yesterday and everyone has a happy-ending story. 

Well done, Team!!

The End of the Summer Season

Fall can be such a beautiful time of the year.  Lows in the teens, highs in the sixties; the days are blue skied and glorious. 

Time for bulb planting.  Thank you Friend Janet for the box full of bulbs.  They are nestled in the dirt waiting for spring.  Your generous gift makes me certain many will be a surprise when they poke their spring ware up out of the ground.  I did not map where I put these bulbs....!

This weekend, I planted another 50 cloves of garlic.  That is 150 cloves of garlic waiting to make full bulbs ready by next August.  A local gardening coop sells one head of garlic for $2.  With some luck - and some sacrifice to our personal garlic stock - another 50 will get planted this weekend and finish out the year. 

Be Generous

I've been working on acts of generosity.  Last night, I made a batch of chili to bring to work, but it did not turn out as I wanted and I nixed that idea.

So today, I donated some hair!  I've been in need of a trim for awhile.  All it takes is 8" to donate one's hair. 

Here is the lock that was cut.  I hope it will help someone.  I wish it was thicker, but it is what it is!!

I keep my hair pulled back and in a braid 99.9% of the time.  The ends are good.  The whole lock should be useful for someone.  I hope so....

Here is what is left!  Taking bets.....when Mike returns from Cody, will he notice?  I'll be $20 he won't notice for weeks!!  Haha!

Optimistic Opening Day

We arrived as the moon, weighted down by a waning crescent, sunk to the eastern horizon.  The constellation, Orion The Hunter, stood out boldly in the southern sky.  As we heaved ourselves atop our trusty steeds and headed down the trail, Sassy - the white pack mule - glowed in the morning darkness ahead.  She and Cosmo carried pack saddled; just in case we got lucky.  A sparky-red meteor zipped straight down through the sky in front of us.  It seemed like very good luck and I had on my boots I always wear when I kill an elk, my black silk scarf, my camo pants and coat, my binoculars, and my riding helmet.  Not that I am superstitious or anything!! 

Up and over the ridge and down the other side.  The yellow aspen leaves shuttered in the morning diurnal breeze, cold and in our faces.  Things began to light up as the sun pushed over the horizon's edge in the same place the moon sank.  The forest was quiet. 

Our optimism for the day translated in a nice ride with our stock!  Nothing showing today.  There will be another time, another opportunity.  For today, it was a good hunt and a great ride.  We were ready!!

Really Great Salad!!

The thing about Swiss Chard is it isn't really Swiss.  No one seems to know how the word "Swiss" got associated to this plant.  The other thing about Swiss Chard is you have to kind of love it.  Most people saute it in a bit of butter with some shallots and it turns out to be a spinach-like side dish.  Good for you, for sure!!

Last night, I tried the below recipe with great success!! If you happen upon, or have some out in your garden, try this out!  Delicious!!  I want to have this salad every night with dinner, please!!

Delicious Recipe!!

Enjoy!!

For the Love of Swiss Chard and Rifles

Every year I plant rainbow swiss chard in at least one of my gardens.  It comes up in plants sporting yellow, red, pink, and white stalks.  Their big green leaves tower over the garden and practically sing out, "I am full of goodness!"  And so they are.  This relative of the beet is full of antioxidants and vitamins.  Slice it thin into a salad, add some pine nuts and thin sliced onions, top with a just-made vinegar/oil dressing and call it good and good-for-you! 

But I plant it for the visual effect.  The yellow stalks are especially noteworthy and the pink laced stem a real show piece in the garden lineup. Keep the slugs away and you will see giant leaves, firm and lush.  What a delight.  Here is tonight's harvest.  What they don't take at work, I'll turn into something good and good for us!

 

This garden harvest happened tonight as the sun dropped below Munger Mountain and the day grew now shorter.  Welcome fall.  There are so many things to like about this time of the year.  The manic life style becomes tolerable.  The days become longer.  The promise of white snow, cold air, and sharp blue winter skies lures one into almost being ready for the next winter season.

Thursday is opening day for elk season.  Mike and I renew one of the fundamental pieces of our relationship and meet at the shooting range to ensure our rifles shoot properly.  This building block of our attraction toward each other - starting a way way long time ago - sparks that ol' feeling and we are happy and shooting next to each other.  I shoot.  He looks through the scope.  I shoot again.  He looks again, examining the target.  An adjustment is made.  I shoot again.  He looks in the scope.  I aim for the metal platter at 200 yards.  Shoot.  Wait.  "Pling" goes the target.  We cheer!  I have hit the target and am content.  My rifle is ready.  And so am I.  He shoots.  Checks the target through the scope.  He shoots again.  Checks.  He shoots the 300 yard metal platter.  Shoot.  Wait, wait.  "Pling"  We cheer again, together! It is the little things that bond us together.

I tried being a vegetarian once in my 30s.  When I continued to get turned down to give blood because I didn't have enough red blood cells, the light finally turned on.  Hey, no one is really that smart at 30!!  As a meat eater, I would much prefer a freezer filled with wild, organic meat.  We consider ourselves extremely lucky to have this opportunity to hunt in Wyoming.  To seek the elusive wapiti, and to simply be out in the back wild country. 

I took a vacation day on Thursday and hope it isn't pouring rain when the alarm clock goes off (far too early, I'm sure).

Happy Hunting, Friends! 

One Twelveth of a Teaspoon

One hard working honey bee will collect and process 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime, contributing to the survival of the colony and the continuation of the gene pool.  New bees will chew out of their waxy room and carry on after her work ceases with her death, six maybe seven weeks later.

Last year, I harvested about 3/4 cup of honey from my first hive.  I wanted to be sure the colony had enough supplies to get them through the winter.  They survived while many other local hive owners opened their boxes this spring to see no living bees.  It was a long hard winter.  If a colony does not have enough stored, they starve. 

This year, the girls gave us six cups of honey.  Think of how many bees that takes to make six cups of honey.  A local bee keeper - one equipped with many hives and is afforded the luxury of more than ample funds - harvested 50 gallons of honey this year!  Wowzah!

I have learned much about bees this year.  One colony lost to disease.  The Freedom colony wraps up its second year.  Two colonies here in Hoback and I am not certain how to get them through winter - more learning.  They are amazing creatures.  As the aspens turn yellow and the mountains white, I hope my bees have a good winter supply in their boxes.

Apologies

Dear Fans:  I sincerely apologize for my lack of blog postings of late.  Tis the end of the season for so many things!!  Mike's brothers and their gals all came west for an awesome Labor Day Weekend visit.  We had a great time of drinking, eating, fishing, and relaxing. Here is a rare photograph of all three Trumbower boys having their eyes open for a photograph!!

Mike and I have enjoyed fishing the Salt River down by our place.  Last weekend, Friend Janet joined up and we made a great 4 1/2 hour drift.  It was great!!  I was making the last cast of the day when this happened!! Caught myself with the fly on the end of my line!  Mike got to practice some EMT skills - his first try was not so good.  We worked a different method and the fly was released from the very big Fish!!  Too bad the barb had not been flattened.  Extrication of the black ant fly might have gone a bit easier.  I am happy to report there is not infection and I am healing well.  Now I know how those little fish lips feel.

They say this is a big fish for the Salt.  I have been the big-fish catcher on most of these trips.  They are fun to catch, for sure!!

Off to Big Sky, MT tomorrow for a presentation on Wednesday!  Stay tuned; I'll try to post more often!

Big Deal Fire

Not much time to write for me!  You can read the news.  Big fire in town yesterday.

Saddle Butte Fire

Sun is Shinin'; Make Hay!

The sun has been shining.  As the landscape dries, so does the hay.  Mike is finishing up the 2019 hay crop today.  It has been a good year. 

Second cut hay is known for its green and vibrant color.  Mike says, "this is what cows eat in heaven," describing the protein-packed bales of animal food.  Thankfully, our ground has water very close to the surface and this three year old alfalfa (some of it is that old), has roots tapped down to that water source.  This is good because Farmer Mike has yet to figure out how to make the shiny new diesel pump work for the tinkle of water running through our ditch.  "Houston, we have a problem."