(Above: The morning of 11/10/2022: Tropical Storm Nicole was here. Gusts of wind went up to 40 miles per hour, and rain fell in constant waves. Temperatures remained in the high 60s and low 70s.)
11/6/2022: Today began in the mid 60s and warmed into the mid 80s. Sunny until afternoon when it got cloudy.
Dawn of 11/6/2022: A full-feed-Sunday-morning. This is the massive Lantana-sprawl located just west of Jacobhouse. Recent research for Forage Science class revealed that the ripe berries, though poisonous to many animals, are not poisonous to people. I tried a few and found the flavor nearly identical to sweet tea. The juice in the berries is almost a greyish black in color. Lunch today consisted of a green salad topped with ‘pizza croutons’ (leftover pizza cut into squares and ‘crunchified’ in a toaster oven). Delectable. Lunch dessert: A sliced Granny Smith apple accompanied by 2% Milkfat Greek yogurt topped with sizeable blueberries. Dinner of 11/6/2022 consisted of bone-in F1 Wagyu shoulder steak accompanied by a couple large heads of steamed broccoli and a little mixture of homemade BBQ sauce and mustard. An untraditional apple arrangement adorned with cinnamon.
11/7/2022: Today began in the low 70s and warmed into the low 80s. Mostly cloudy and a bit drizzly at some points despite the forecasts calling for no rain.
Dawn of 11/7/2022. Central beef pasture at late morning. Lunch of 11/7/2022: Sushi and cabbage-&-spinach-garnished Miso Soup. Looking west from the south-easternmost pasture at 4:41 PM. Due to the time change, the sun is setting much earlier. On my way out to fortify the dilapidated structure over the central beef pasture’s water trough, rain swept in from the east. By the time I returned to the haybarn (had to keep the tools dry), the precipitation had stopped. Dinner of 11/7/2022: Belgian Blue burger-steak complemented by a cabbage & Romaine salad and a diminutive bowl of sour cream for dipping. Dessert, like last nights, was a sliced & cinnamon-coated Granny Smith accompanied by Greek yogurt and blueberries.
11/8/2022: Today began in the mid 60s and proceeded to warm into the low 80s. Breezy and partly cloudy throughout.
Morning of 11/8/2022: This is the central water trough after I reinforced it with a new 2×6 and three water-logged boards of varying size which had been floating in the ‘drink’. Lunch: A healthy and delectable repast of fried eggs and Padre-wrought & Madre-dressed salad. Dessert consisted of blueberries and apple – the latter being coated in cinnamon. Before venturing indoors for the evening, Padre and I spent a few minutes drawing on his container with pieces of charcoal. These charcoal pieces were byproducts of utilizing the electric smoker quite some time ago. The Belgian Blue chuck slow-roasted for our dinner on 11/8/2022. It was spiced with diced onion, a couple fresh cloves of garlic, Worcestershire sauce, fresh rosemary sprigs, fresh ground black pepper, a few crumbled chiltepin pods, and some Kosher salt. The full dinner spread of 11/8/2022: Belgian Blue chuck (pot) roast accompanied by cucumber & cabbage salad along with a slice of Padre-made cottage bread (bread made in cast iron skillet). Postre: Granny Smith apple slices coated with cinnamon.
11/9/2022: Today began in the low 60s and warmed into the low 70s. Breezy.
Morning in the central beef pasture on 11/9/2022. For lunch of 11/9/2022, we ventured to Latinos y Más. There, I loaded up on carbohydrates (I had been fiending for some) in form of a Burrito Grande con Pollo. Fue excelente. Central beef pasture at mid-afternoon. The breeze had grown into a fairly steady wind, and mist was beginning to fall. Delectable dinner of 11/9/2022: 7 sautéed eggs topped with garden-fresh chives. Accompanied by a Padre-made green salad. A dessert of thinly-sliced Granny Smith apple, blueberries, and about 3 tablespoons of 2% Milkfat Greek Yogurt.
11/10/2022: Today began in the high 60s and proceeded to warm into the mid 70s. Windy and rainy.
The morning of 11/10/2022: Tropical Storm Nicole was here. Gusts of wind went up to 40 miles per hour, and rain fell in constant waves. Temperatures remained in the high 60s and low 70s. This was our temporary solution for keeping the grain-room door from opening in the heavy winds. Padre and Wag heading toward the tractors. Despite the inclement weather, it was bovine-feeding time. Lunch of 11/10/2022: A pot of Padre-made stew containing Jacob-browned / roasted beef. We garnished it with fresh red cabbage and a little bit of steamed broccoli. A post-meal snack of cinnamon-coated apples, blueberries, Greek Yogurt (2% Milkfat) and cinnamon. In a fortunate turn of events, the power was back on before 7 PM, and I was able to make a pan pizza. The dough was homemade, as was the sauce, and the cheeses consisted of: Swiss, mozzarella, and Parmesan. The full dinner spread: Homemade pan-pizza accompanied by a green salad. A nutritious dessert of sliced & cinnamon-sprinkled apples, blueberries, and a garnished spoonful of 2% Greek Yogurt.
11/11/2022: Today began in the low 70s and warmed into the low 80s. Mostly cloudy.
Lunch of 11/11/2022: Sautéed eggs along with a Padre-made & Madre-dressed salad. For dessert, I enjoyed a sliced Granny Smith apple, blueberries, and a dollop of 2% Greek yogurt. Late afternoon in the central beef pasture (11/11/2022). Before the sun went down, I re-fastened the sail shade above Jacobhouse’s front porch. I have found that by shading the entrance, insects are far less likely to enter my abode (flies especially seem to avoid shadows). Coffee-encrusted Belgian Blue short ribs. Cut into individual ribs, halved, and reverse seared (cooked to 125 F internal temp before searing on all sides in a blisteringly hot cast iron skillet). Accompanied by a cucumber, cabbage, & tomato salad, some homemade no-sugar-added BBQ sauce, and a glass of Merlot. Another angle of the same meal including a better shot of the Merlot. To finish the meal, I enjoyed a thinly-sliced Granny Smith apple coated with cinnamon. Just before going to bed, I found a cavern cricket in my abode. Thus, Dolores received a midnight feast. She was still supping upon it the following morning.
11/12/2022: Today began in the high 60s (foggy) and warmed into the low 80s (sunny).
The exceedingly foggy morning of 11/12/2022. Two F1 Wagyu sirloins being seared in a cast iron skillet for lunch. The F1 Wagyu sirloin was accompanied by a large Padre-made & Madre-dressed green salad. The savory beef and the acidic vinaigrette made for an excellent combination. For dessert, I enjoyed a sliced Granny Smith apple with cinnamon and Greek yogurt. Late-afternoon field repair: I bent a piece of old tin around an exposed waterline to protect it from bovine blunders. I also fortified another second of exposed pipe about 6 feet away with the two “new” boards that are clearly visible in this picture. A slice of Swiss, Parmesan, & Onion pan pizza accompanied by a cucumber salad for the evening meal of 11/12/2022. A dessert of cinnamon-dusted green apple slices accompanied by a small heap of blueberries.
Final Note: Being that we are not in Mexico, it is safe to say that not all went as planned since last week’s post. Fortunately, despite our travels being impeded by a certain ‘Nicole’, she decided to leave the farm mostly unscathed. That… and we still have a Mexico trip to look forward to in the near future.
Definitely not Mexico, but this week was certainly an adventure. Thanks for the great pictures and videos