(Above: Today I made the garden rows. In the rows on the left, I planted radishes and arugula. In the rows on the right I planted a lot of carrots.
Hoy formé las hileras del jardín. En las hileras de la izquierda, planté rábanos y rúcula. En las hileras de la derecha planté muchas zanahorias.)
10/13/2024: Today began in the low 60s and warmed into the mid 80s. Sunny.
Early morning of October 13, 2024 in the southeasternmost field of the ranch. La madrugada del 13 de 10 de 2024 en el campo más sureste del rancho. 
This morning while inspecting the pasture, my father and I found a huge fallen oak tree. The cows were enjoying the leaves. Esta mañana durante la inspección de los pastos, mi padre y yo encontramos un enorme roble caído. Las vacas estaban disfrutando de las hojas. 
Lunch consisted of Wagyu sausages accompanied by a green salad made by Padre. El almuerzo consistía en salchichas de Wagyu acompañadas de una ensalada verde hecha por mi padre. 
This afternoon I spread six buckets of compost in the garden. I’ll be planting carrots soon. Esta tarde esparcí seis cubetas de abono en el jardín. Pronto plantaré zanahorias. 
Dinner consisted of a Belgian blue ground beef steak encrusted with coffee and salt. This steak was reverse seared and accompanied by a spring mix salad drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. La cena consistía en un bistec de res molida de azul belga incrustado con café y sal. Este bistéc estaba dorado al revés y acompañado de una ensalada de lechugas primaverales rociadas con vinagreta balsámica. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and accompanied by a dollop of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
10/14/2024: Today began in the high 50s and warmed into the mid 80s. Mostly sunny.
The dawn of 10/14/2024 in the central field. El amanecer del 14 de 10 de 2024 en el campo central. 
For lunch we had a platter of sushi and a bowl of mizo soup garnished with green cabbage, spinach and avocado. Para el almuerzo comimos una bandeja de sushi y un tazón de sopa de mizo adornada con repollo verde, espinaca y aguacate. 
This afternoon my grandmother visited us, and during that visit she petted Señor Borrego. Esta tarde nos visitó mi abuela, y durante esa visita acarició al Señor Borrego. 
This afternoon I spread some more compost in the garden. Tomorrow I will water that compost to prepare it for planting. Esta tarde esparcí un poco más de abono en el jardín. Mañana regaré ese abono para prepararlo para la siembra. 
For dinner we had leg of lamb. This leg was roasted in the oven and then browned in the pan. To accompany it, there was a green salad and a mixture of mustard and olive oil for dipping. Para la cena comimos pierna de cordero. Esta pierna estaba asada en el horno y luego dorada en la sartén. Para acompañarla, había una ensalada verde y una mezcla de mostaza y aceite de oliva para mojar. 
This is a sliced pink lady apple sprinkled with cinnamon and accompanied by a dollop of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana dama rosa en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
10/15/2024: Today began in the high 60s and warmed into the low 80s. Mostly sunny.
The refreshing dawn of 10/15/2024. El amanecer refrescante del 15 de 10 de 2024. 
Lunch was a fried egg mixture and leftover taco beef. This mixture was accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a spicy vinaigrette. El almuerzo consistía en una mezcla frita de huevos y sobras de res de taco. Esta mezcla estaba acompañada de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta picante. 
An afternoon activity: My father, my uncle, Victor and I set up four posts on the west side of the Guesthouse. Una actividad de la tarde: mi padre, mi tío, Víctor y yo colocamos cuatro postes en el lado oeste de Guesthouse. 
After work, I leveled two of the placed posts. Después del trabajo, nivelé dos de los postes colocados. 
For dinner we had reverse-seared Belgian blue short ribs. These were accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a vinaigrette of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and mustard. Para la cena comimos costillitas de azul belga doradas al revés. Estas estaban acompañadas de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta de vinagre balsámica, aceite de oliva y mostaza. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and accompanied by a dollop of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
10/16/2024: Today began in the high 50s and warmed into the low 70s. Mostly sunny.
Morning of 10/16/2024: I took this photo because I thought this combination was a little odd. (I also wanted to learn the Spanish word for “Deodorant.”) I don’t think the flavor of beef would pair well with deoderant. La mañana del 16/10/2024: Tomé esta foto porque pensé que esta combinación era un poco extraña. (También quise aprender la palabra en español para “Deodorant”). No creo que el sabor de la res combinaría bien con el desoderante. 
This is a picture of Padre with his favorite son named Grimace. He was petting his ear. Esta es una foto de mi padre con su hijo favorito llamado Grimace. Él le estaba acariciando la oreja. 
This is a photo after we filled the Magic booth with bags of fertilizer. Esta es una foto después de que llenamos el puesto de Magic con bolsas de abono. 
Today I made the garden rows. In the rows on the left, I planted radishes and arugula. In the rows on the right I planted a lot of carrots. Hoy formé las hileras del jardín. En las hileras de la izquierda, planté rábanos y rúcula. En las hileras de la derecha planté muchas zanahorias. 
Dinner consisted of a Belgian blue ground beef steak encrusted with coffee and salt and then reverse-seared. When plated, it was accompanied by a coleslaw and a bowl of sour cream for dipping. La cena consistía en un bistec de res molida de azul belga incrustado con café y sal y luego dorado al revés. Al emplatarlo, estaba acompañada de una ensalada de repollo y un tazón de crema ácida para mojar.
10/17/2024: Today began in the low 50s and warmed into the high 70s. Sunny and dry.
This morning of 10/17/2024 I spied the Moon looking at me through the branches of the huge oak tree in front of the central barn. Esta mañana del 17 de 10 de 2024 yo espié la Luna mirándome a través de las ramas del enorme roble al frente del granero central. 
This morning I watered the garden. It looked very bright in the light of the rising sun. Esta mañana regué el jardín. Parecía muy brillante a la luz del sol naciente. 
Lunch consisted of a lettuce and cabbage salad topped with avocado, pan-seared ground beef, leftover coleslaw from the night before, salsa verde, and a little sour cream. El almuerzo consistía en una ensalada de lechuga y repollo cubierta con aguacate, res molida sazonada a la sartén, sobras de ensalada de repollo de la noche anterior, salsa verde y un poco de crema ácida. 
This afternoon I dug four more holes for the posts that will support the roof of the Guesthouse. Esta tarde cavé cuatro agujeros más para los postes que sostendrán el techo de Guesthouse. 
Dinner consisted of roast chicken accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a vinaigrette made from chicken juice and red wine vinegar. La cena consistía en pollo asado acompañado de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta hecha de jugo de pollo y vinagre de vino tinto. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and accompanied by a dollop of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
10/18/2024: Today began in the low 50s and warmed into the low 80s. Mostly sunny.
Lord Prometheus in the early morning of 10/18/2024. El Señor Prometheus en la madrugada del 18/10/2024. 
A photo of Padre and Wag removing old fodder from Mr. Prometeus’ feeders. Una foto de mi padre y mi tío sacando forraje viejo de los comederos del Señor Prometeus. 
For lunch, we had pan-seared Wagyu sausages accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a spicy mustard vinaigrette. Para el almuerzo, comimos salchichas de Wagyu a la sartén acompañadas de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta de mostaza picante. 
This is the nood-less lasagna I prepared for dinner on 10/18/2024. (Not cooked). Esta es la lasaña sin fideos que perparé para la cena del 18/10/2024. (No cocinada). 
The sunny afternoon of 10/18/2024 in the green hill lot. La tarde soleada del 18/10/2024 en el lote del cerro verde. 
The ‘nood-less lasagna’ of 10/18/2024. (Cooked). La ‘lasaña sin fideos’ del 18/10/2024. (Cocida). 
The ‘nood-less lasagna’ plated with a green salad, both drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. La ‘lasaña sin fideos’ emplatada con una ensalada verde, ambas rociadas con vinagreta balsámica. 
This is a sliced green apple sprinkled with cinnamon and accompanied by a dollop of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana verde en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego. 
The rising Moon on 10/18/2024. La Luna naciente del 18/10/2024.
10/19/2024: Today began in the low 60s and warmed into the 80s. Partly cloudy.
On the morning of October 19, 2024: Inspired by a recipe that Luna gave me, I made these cookies. More details are in the endnote of this post. La mañana del 19 de 10 de 2024: Con inspiración de una receta que me dio Luna, yo hice estas galletas. Más detalles están en la nota final de esta entrada. 
Lunch consisted of scrambled eggs with chiltepín, mozzarella and fresh rosemary. These were accompanied by a green salad made by my father. El almuerzo consistía en huevos revueltos con chiltepín, mozzarella y romero fresco. Estos estaban acompañados de una ensalada verde hecha por mi padre. 
An afternoon activity: I took a chiltepín from the east field and planted it in the container that Victor made with an old water trough. Una actividad por la tarde: Yo tomé un chiltepín del campo del este y lo planté en el contenedor que hizo Víctor con un bebedero antiguo. 
Dinner consisted of Belgian blue flank steak, reverse-seared then topped with sour cream. This was accompanied by a cabbage and carrot salad. La cena consistía en filete de flanco de azul belga dorado al revés y luego cubierto con crema ácida. Este estaba acompañado de una ensalada de repollo y zanahoria 
This is the underside of Lady Esmeralda. And yes, she is a female. If she were a male frog, her hands would be larger and have “nuptial pads.” Esta es la parte inferior de la señora Esmeralda. Y sí, ella es una hembra. Si fuera un rana macho sus manos serían más grandes y tendrían “cojínes nupciales”.
Final note: Luna gave me a recipe for a specific type of cookie that many Venezuelans enjoy around Christmas-time. The recipe required a bit of sugar, and sugar has different properties than Splenda when heated* so I had to further modify the recipe by adding eggs. Despite these changes, the final texture of the sugar-free cookies seemed quite similar to what she described: a cookie that crumbles easily, leaves a little bit of butter on the fingers, and melts in the mouth. In other words, they were quite delicious.
*Sugar becomes a liquid binding agent at high temperatures. Splenda seems to remain dry.
Recipe: Venezuelan Polvorosas (sugar-free version)
Cookie Ingredients:
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup butter (softened to room temperature)
1 cup Splenda
2 Teaspoonful ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (beaten)
Honey-Butter Glaze (optional but much recommended):
3-4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp honey
A sprinkling of cinnamon, to taste
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 305 degrees F.
2. Mix the flour, butter, Splenda, cinnamon, and salt. This can be done with a fork, but hands make the job much easier. The mixture will be very crumbly at this point.
3. Slowly add the eggs, mixing gently. It is important to mix gently, because gluten must not be allowed to form.
4. Once the dough is in a cohesive and slightly crumbly mass, form about 25-30 balls of dough. Each cookie takes about 2 tablespoons of dough.
5. Place these dough balls on a cookie sheet and flatten each with the back of a spoon or spatula until each is about ½-inch thick.
6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. It will depend on the oven utilized. Remove when they start to turn golden.
7. After removing the cookies, heat the honey & butter in the microwave. Stir, and then dip each cookie into the glaze before returning them to the tray to cool. Sprinkle each with a little bit of cinnamon.
8. Enjoy!
Okay, a few comments this week, Grimace is my 3rd favorite son just so you and C know. The food this week was tremendous, las galletas es muy muy buena… And ‘nuptial pads’ is a new entry into my vocabulary. Muchas gracias por compartir esta semana.