(Above: The dusk of a tropical winter’s day.)
12/29/19
Active Summary: This morning began with over an hour’s worth of creative writing time on account of rainy weather and was ensued by some ‘window shopping’ for the Master Blend freezer room (and finding a place to stay in Catania, Sicily). This was followed by an eventual beef pasture check with Padre after the rain stopped.
After the pasture check, I helped Padre with a couple minor farm activities and then ventured up to Oldhouse where I prepared some hamburger buns and hamburger patties for lunch. A journey to the Harbison farm market came next whereupon I procured the weekly vegetation, fruit, and eggs and then put it away at Oldhouse. The morning’s final task consisted of making a delicious lunch of Master Blend beef coconut-oil fried burgers on homemade buns and served alongside a farm fresh fruit plate and braised Caesar salad.
(6:18 PM Update:) Afternoon activities included: feeding many buckets of corn and grain to calves, feeding buckets of feed to cows, treating a couple sick calves – one of which flicked some yellow excrement onto my face, running a couple cows through the treatment chute, and performing the duskly beef pasture check with Padre. Now, I am once again in Jacobhouse… thankfully clean.
TIL: Today I have been reviewing some Italian words that will likely be utilized on the impending trip to Sicily. Here are few of the more useful ones.
- Please – per favore (pair fah-vor-ey)
- Thank you – grazie (grat-zey)
- You are welcome – prego (prey-go)
- Hello (morning/afternoon) – buongiorno (boo-on-jorn-oh)
- Hello (night) – buonasera (boo-onah-sair-ah)
- Goodbye (all day) – arrivederci (ah-reev-ah-dair-chee)
- Goodnight – buonanotte (boo-onah-noat-ay)
- I eat – mangio (man-joh)
- Food – cibo (chee-boh)
- I drink – bebo (bee-boh)
- Water – acqua (ah-qua)
- Diet Coke – Coca Light (just like in Mexico!)
Commentary: Dawn was dark and grey, and at first, the only thing to be seen out of the window was the ever-increasing presence of miniscule raindrops spattering against the pane. More rain. I will not complain, though, for despite the weather being rampant with moisture as of late, I am quite content with the accompanying temperatures. Indeed, neither the air conditioner or the heater have had to be used in Jacobhouse for the past two days*. Perhaps this has to do with the fact that it is 29th of December with the forecasted high being 79 degrees F and low being 67 F.
Either way, it is comfortable weather excluding the less-than-favorable farm conditions (mud), and I am able to enjoy the outdoors while wearing only a shirt and shorts. The garden agrees with me, I think, for as I look out the window while writing this entry, the plants therein appear especially verdurous and lush.
Final Note: Tomorrow, if it is not raining, I plan on adding another coat of primer to the Master Blend freezer room doors. If it is raining, I may procure a ladder and see about cleaning the gables (the space between the top of the outside wall and the underside of the roof**).
* Only the dehumidifier has been putting time in, and it has been performing excellently.
** It’s good to finally know what a gable is.