Thursday, June 26, 2008

Broken Promises

If y'all will recall, (wow that's a lot of els), when I started this blog I promised an update a week. I overestimated the excitement of our lives I guess. So, an update every month or so ought to do it I think.

Bonnie is doing great. She went into heat for the first time this week and has decided that I am not welcome in her barn when Dad is in there. She probably smells the testosterone. She should come out by the weekend cause today was her standing day. I would have had her bred today if she was old enough but it'll be quite some time before that happens.

We got some turkey chicks last Saturday, six of them. They are Bronze turkeys. If they are broad breasted ones then all six are going in the freezer around November. If they are the unimproved variety, a heritage breed, then I'll probably keep two of them to be a breeding pair since the prices for chicks will not go down for next year. Dad is worried about them being siblings so I'll probably look into the hatchery that's in Sterling and see what they have in the way of turkeys. We're getting a pig later on in the summer to finish raising and then put in the freezer. I guess Dad's fears of being married to the farm are coming true. It's not like we ever go anywhere anyway. I can't wait to cut into some home-grown turkey and to be able to have pork all year long will be awesome. Pork is really expensive up here so we don't have it very often.

Charlie is still living in Wasilla.

Dad is digging a cellar behind the house. With the prices of food set to skyrocket it makes a lot of sense to be able to store some when it's cheap. He wants to can some more fish and moose. I have to admit that I was not that excited about eating canned moose but it makes a great base for a quick stew. The juices are sealed in, have been getting nothing but better since it was canned and it tasted so much better than store-bought canned beef stew. Mom isn't thrilled about more canned fish cause she would rather eat tuna than salmon but it's hard to catch tuna up here. You'd have to have a really long net.

Mom took a second job at the Kasilof Mercantile for the summer. She goes to work for the School District from 6:00 am to 2:30 pm, if she take a half an hour for lunch, then works at the Merc from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm. She usually stops at Kathy's to give her the mail and wind down and then comes home, eats supper and goes to bed around 10:00 pm. I'm exhausted just typing it! Thankfully it's just for the summer.

The weather up here has been cold...colder than usual anyway for those of you in subtropical climates. We haven't had as much rain as we would normally get and that, combined with the temperatures, has made things really slow to grow. My lilac hasn't bloomed yet and may not until August. Dad's apple trees are blooming, the two Norlands anyway. the Parkland that he got to cross with them isn't blooming so Mom and I went the the nursery today and bought a Freedom apple tree that has set some fruit and has some unopened flowers. Hopefully it will be able to pollinate the Norlands before it croaks over the winter. We've got the Arndt Family Farm and Orchard developing up here. Y'all should come check us out!

Okay, that's all my news for this month. If you have any questions or concerns then write your congressman. No really, you should write. That way they won't be so out of touch with the people that they supposedly represent. By the way, y'all should check out Bob Bird. He's running for the Alaska Senate and I really like his take on things. Let's hope he can beat Stevens this year!

~Pam

About Me

We're a family that came to Alaska in shifts. We've been here since 1995 and don't plan to leave any time soon.

For Jaime

Comment from a SMART President

" The government that is big enough to give you everything you want is strong enough to take everything you have."

Thomas Jefferson President 1801-1809
Died on JULY 4th, 1826

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