(Above: After lunch, I worked with the cured egg yolks, removing them from the dry brine and placing them in the oven. Después del almuerzo, trabajé con las yemas de huevos curadas, quitándolas de la salmuera seca y metiéndolas dentro de horno. )
12/21/2025: Today began in the mid 40s and warmed into the high 70s. Sunny and dry.
This is a beef order that I prepared on the morning of December 21, 2025. Este es un pedido de carne de res que preparé en la mañana del 21 de diciembre de 2025. 
Lunch consisted of a fried mixture of duck eggs, beef, and sweet potatoes. This was accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a spicy vinaigrette. El almuerzo consistía en una mezcla frita de huevos de pato, carne de res y batata. Esta estaba acompañada de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta picante. 
It contains several cuts of beef, sweet potato, red onion, bay leaves, and the spices I usually use in homemade barbecue sauce. Instead of ketchup, I used Sicilian tomato passata. Tiene varios cortes de carne de res, batata, cebolla roja, hojas de laurel y las especias que suelo usar en salsa barbacoa casera. En lugar de salsa de tomate, utilicé salsa de jitomate siciliana. 
The original backup program wasn’t working, so I needed to start using a different one. I had to pay for this program, but it’s worth it. It’s very easy to use and very secure. El programa original para hacer copias de seguridad no estaba funcionando por lo que necesitaba comenzar a utilizar otro programa. Tuve que pagar por este programa pero vale la pena. Es muy fácil de usar y muy seguro. 
The dinner consisted of barbecue-style stew topped with a slice of cheese bread, avocado slices, and finely chopped green cabbage. La cena consistía en guiso al estilo barbacoa cubierto con una rebanada de pan de queso, rodajas de aguacate y repollo verde finamente picado. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a spoonful of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
12/22/2025: Today began in the low 50s and warmed into the high 70s. Mostly sunny.
The dawn of December 22, 2025 in the central field. El amanecer del 22 de diciembre de 2025 en el campo central. 
For lunch, we started with a bowl of miso soup garnished with avocado, green cabbage, a piece of cheese bread, and spinach. Para el almuerzo, empezamos con un tazón de sopa de miso adornado con aguacate, repollo verde, un trozo de pan de queso y espinaca. 
The main course consisted of a platter of sushi. El plato principal consistía en una bandeja de sushi. 
This is the female connector we use to supply electricity to the freezer truck. I’ve been checking this connector every week since I discovered it was overheating. It has been working very well recently. Este es el enchufe hembra que utilizamos para alimentar la electricidad al camión congelador. He estado chequeando este conector todas las semanas desde que encontré que se estaba sobrecalentando. Recientemente funciona muy bien. 
Dinner consisted of leftovers from the previous night’s stew, garnished with green cabbage. There was also a green salad drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette. La cena consistía en sobras del guiso de la noche anterior adornadas con repollo verde. Además, había una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta balsámica. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a spoonful of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego. 
This is the plan for the roof of Jacobhouse; I will need 27 pieces of sheet metal. Este es el plano para el techo de mi casita; necesitaré 27 pedazos de lámina metal.
12/23/2025: Today began in the low 50s and warmed into the high 70s. Mostly sunny.
The dawn of December 23, 2025. El amanecer del 23 de diciembre de 2025. 
Lunch consisted of leftovers from the previous night’s stew, accompanied by a salad garnished with green cabbage. El almuerzo consistía en sobras del guiso de la noche anterior acompañadas de una ensalada adornada con repollo verde. 
A photo I took during the inspection of the fields on the afternoon of December 23, 2025. Una foto que tomé durante la inspección de los campos en la tarde del 23 de 12 de 2025. 
Dinner consisted of a Wagyu hamburger steak seared in a pan outside my little house. This was accompanied by a green salad prepared by Padre. La cena consistía en un bistec de hamburguesa de Wagyu sellado en la sartén afuera de mi casita. Este estaba acompañada de una ensalada verde preparada por mi padre. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a spoonful of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
12/24/2025: Today began in the low 50s and warmed into the high 70s. Sunny and dry.
On the morning of December 24, 2025, I prepared a London Broil for dinner, seasoning it with blueberry-infused balsamic vinegar, black pepper, salt, and mustard powder. En la mañana del 24 de diciembre de 2025, preparé un London Broil para la cena, condimentándolo con vinagre bálsamico infusianado con arándano, pimienta negra, sal y mostaza en polvo. 
The lunch consisted of a fried mixture of beef and duck eggs. This was accompanied by a green salad. El almuerzo consistía en una mezcla frita de carne de res y huevos de pato. Esta estaba acompañada de una ensalada verde. 
An afternoon activity: Padre and Wag were tagging and castrating some lambs. Poor creatures. Una actividad por la tarde: Mi padre y mi tío estaban etiquetando y castrando algunos corderos. Pobre criaturas. 
The sunny afternoon of December 24, 2025, in the field at the southernmost part of the ranch. La tarde soleada del 24 de diciembre de 2025 en el campo al más sureste del rancho. 
The plated dinner: Two slices of London Broil from #575, accompanied by a salad garnished with two pieces of Tomme cheese. La cena emplatada: Dos trozos de London Broil de #575, acompañados de una ensalada adornada con dos trozos de queso tomme. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a spoonful of Greek yogurt. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogur griego.
Una foto de Jacobo con un cordero.
12/25/2025: Today began in the low 60s and warmed into the high 70s. mostly sunny.
A very pregnant sheep on the morning of December 25, 2025. Una oveja muy embarazada en la mañana del 25 de diciembre de 2025. 
On the morning of December 25, 2025, I made coconut and chocolate cookies to share. En la mañana del 25 de diciembre de 2025 hice galletas de coco y chocolate para compartir. 
And of course, for eating. Y por supuesto para comer. 
A photo of Betty the Belgian Blue on the sunny morning of December 25, 2025. Una foto de Betty la Azul Belga en la mañana soriada del 25 de diciembre de 2025. 
For lunch we ate tamales and soup prepared by Claudia, Victor’s wife. Everything tasted delicious. The broth was especially tasty. Para el almuerzo comimos tamales y caldo preparados por Claudia, la esposa de Víctor. Todo sabía muy rico. El caldo estaba especialmente sabroso. 
These are apples, pears, and pear cider that my brother gave us as a gift. Estas son, manzanas, peras y sidra de pera que nos regaló mi hermano. 
After lunch, I worked with the cured egg yolks, removing them from the dry brine and placing them in the oven. Después del almuerzo, trabajé con las yemas de huevos curadas, quitándolas de la salmuera seca y metiéndolas dentro de horno. 
Later in the day, I removed the egg yolks from the oven and put them in boxes to sell. Más tarde en el día, retiré las yemas de huevos del horno y las puse en cajas para vender. 
The Christmas dinner consisted of beef short ribs, a green salad, a slice of sourdough bread topped with Tomme cheese, a bowl of homemade barbecue sauce, and a horn of red wine. La cena navideña consistía en costillitas de res, ensalada verde, una rebanada de pan de masa madre cubierta con queso Tomme, un tazón de salsa barbacoa casera y un cuerno de vino tinto. 
This is a red apple that my brother gave us. I ate it for dessert. Esta es una manzana roja que nos regaló mi hermano. Comí de postre. 
The apple was quite sweet and had a good texture. La manzana era bastante dulce y tenía una textura buena.
12/26/2025: Today began in the mid 50s and warmed into the high 70s. Sunny.
The dawn of December 26, 2025. El amanecer del 26 de diciembre de 2025. 
Lunch consisted of a fried mixture of eggs, beef, and sweet potatoes. This was all accompanied by a green salad drizzled with a vinaigrette made with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and Cholula hot sauce. El almuerzo consistía en una mezcla frita de huevos, carne de res y batata. Todo esto estaba acompañada de una ensalada verde rociada con una vinagreta de aceite de oliva, vinagre balsámico y cholula. 
These are puff pastries that I made using Sicilian semolina flour. Estos son hojaldres que hice utilizando harina de sémola siciliana. 
On the night of December 26, 2025, I went to two dance classes and also enjoyed some time at a dance party. En la noche del 26 de 12 de 2025, fui a dos clases de baile y también disfrute un rato en una fiesta de baile. 
Dinner tonight followed two dance classes and a little bit of party-time. It consisted of a red apple, some nuts, and two puff pastry cookies. La cena esta noche ocurrió después de dos clases de baile y un poco de fiesta. Consistía en una manzana roja, algunas nueces y dos galletas de hojaldre.
12/27/2025: Today began in the low 60s and warmed into the 70s. Cloudy morning. Sunny afternoon.
These are the peanut butter cookies I made to share with Master Blend customers (and family and friends) on the morning of December 27, 2025. Estas son las galletas de mantequilla de maní que hice para compartir con los clientes de Master Blend (y familiares y amigos) en la mañana del 27 de diciembre de 2025. 
Lunch consisted of beef sausages and canned sardines accompanied by a green salad garnished with onion slices and pickled cucumber. El almuerzo consistía en salchichas de res y sardinas enlatadas acompañadas de una ensalada verde adornada con rodajas de cebolla y pepino encurtido. 
This is one of the pears my brother gave us. It was truly one of the best pears I’ve ever had. Esta es una de las peras que nos regaló mi hermano. Verdaderamente, fue una de las mejores peras de mi vida. 
The sunny afternoon of December 27, 2025, in the southeasternmost field of the ranch. La tarde soleada del 27 de 12 de 2025 en el campo más al sureste del rancho. 
In the afternoon, the firefighters put out the fire that our neighbors had started. I think this is the second or third time they’ve done this. Por la tarde, los bomberos apagaron el incendio que habían iniciado nuestros vecinos. Creo que es la segunda o tercera vez que lo hacen. 
The dinner consisted of a ground beef steak made from Belgian Blue beef, topped with Swiss cheese, bacon, ketchup, mustard, onion, and tomato. In addition, there was a green salad garnished with a pickle and a slice of toasted sourdough bread. La cena consistía en un bistec de carne molida de azul belga, cubierto con queso suizo, tocino, salsa de tomate, mostaza, cebolla y tomate. Además, había una ensalada verde adornada con una rodaja de pepino encurtido y una rebanada de pan de masa madre tostada. 
This is a sliced red apple sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a spoonful of Greek yogurt; the apple was quite large. Esta es una manzana roja en rodajas espolvoreada con canela y acompañada de una cucharada de yogurt griego; la manzana era bastante grandota.
Final Note: Dance lessons. What an experience they have been thus far! (A true use of an exclamation point if there ever was one.) Let’s make this week’s final note about the ability to intentionally express one’s self and the benefits of doing so:
It is a gift to be able to create, and more, to express that creativity. It is a way of letting the internal and external worlds mix, allowing for the birth of something that did not exist before. It is a filter-magnet and a continuation of luck’s relationship with consciousness. By intentionally putting one’s self out there, the bits of life most in-tune with that self are attracted while those that are not so viable are sifted to a point slightly farther away.
Just a simple example: I create cookies to share every Saturday at our on-farm store. One effect arising from this has been the frequent presence of a fellow named Ray. Ray enjoys chatting, spending a few moments in the rural air, buying a little beef, and trying out the new cookie-creations that I offer to our visitors. Even more, he enjoys critiquing those cookie-creations. When it comes to that critique, he’s always honest, often bluntly so. He tells me about the sweetness (or lack thereof), the moisture, the dryness, and et cetera. And you know what? I wouldn’t have it any other way. His critiques grant me insight into a truth. It may not be my truth, but it is a truth that would not have existed if I had not shared the cookies, and it is a truth that would not have existed had Ray not decided to share it.
Creativity and truth. These, like two individuals performing a basic ballroom freestyle, with feet moving in time, with hands sometimes pushing, sometimes pulling, and sometimes to the heart, are two systems of energy with an opportunity to become one. That opportunity is expression.
What a great way to put what is nearly indescribable in to words. No matter the impetus, creativity, dance or the taste of a cookie; expression is the key to a life well lived when done some semblance of consciousness/truth. Spectacular week.