Deer: Accomplished!

Fuzzy got a deer on Saturday morning! A little button buck, bedded down in the snow. We hung it from the clothesline pole in the backyard and got to processing on Sunday morning (it was too warm to let it hang longer).

Processing was so interesting! I really love seeing how everything works, the different muscle groups and ligaments. I got totally into it, dividing the meat into chops and roasts and big piles for grinding and stews. Fuzzy ground meat with our fabulous KitchenAid meat grinder, a very cool little machine, then I weighed and packaged the meat into meal-sized portions swaddled in cling wrap and freezer paper. Now it's all labeled and packed into the basement freezer.

We set aside the tenderloin and marinated it overnight in a little Italian dressing. This evening, Fuzzy grilled the little slabs, and it was delicious! Tender and tasty!
I am so proud of us! And also grateful to the little buck. Thank you for the nourishment, little buck.

Cranktastic

Just a little update to let everyone know I'm cranky as hell. No particular reason, just generally dissatisfied with anything and everything I'm in contact with at the moment. I know, I'm a sweetheart. Fuzzy is a lucky man.
Bitchy? Check. Ungrateful? Check. Generally snarly? Double check.
I don't know if it's some seasonal shit or what, but I am deep in the funk.
Any suggestions to help me pull my head out of my ass before Fuzzy moves into the camper?

The photo is a darter (Rainbow? Not sure) we caught at a workshop last Spring. It is also how I feel right now. Put me back in the goddamn water!

Woodland Ungulates:1, Bipedals:0

So, it's the end of buck season, and no buck. That's ok. We still have till the 31st to get a doe, and you know what they say, "You can't eat antlers." Or maybe that's just what us buckless folk say.
Regardless, Fuzzy had a good time in the woods. He got to spend time with his brother and his friends and everyone came back unscathed (deer included, hehe).
In other news, well, there isn't any news. Things are ticking along at a fairly even keel here: work, home, eat, sleep, rinse, repeat. After such a gut-wrenching year, it's nice to have the routine back. I'm sure I'll be pulling my hair out by Spring, though. Time to start planning a road trip!

Deer Flesh!

So in a twist of events, my vegetarian husband has decided to take up hunting. He hunted regularly as a kid, but stopped in his 20's. He's out at the camp right now, preparing to wake up at 4 am and sit in the tree stand with his dad's .270 for the opening of rifle season.

And that's what I think it comes down to. Fuzzy's dad passed away a few months ago. It wasn't sudden or unexpected, but it was hard. And gearing up for hunting season has brought Fuzzy and his brother together and made them feel closer to their father, who loved anything even remotely related to the outdoors.

Fuzzy has decided that he will now eat venison, or any other meat we hunt or raise ourselves. A wonderful friend from Fayetteville has come into town, also for rifle season, and has promised to teach me how to "process" the deer. Is it weird that I'm actually excited to learn? Tomorrow I'm buying a vacuum sealer the meat grinder attachment for the KitchenAid mixer.

This should be interesting!

(Oh, and if anyone has any suggestions for cooking venison, now would be a good time to share them!)

Calling all Yellow Jackets

Fuzzy and I picked apples today at the orchard across the road from PineTop. It's been an incredible year for fruit, so our neighbors gave us free rein to pick as many as we could stand. We bought one of those little wire fruit picker baskets that fit on the end of a tent pole and picked about 20 lbs. in about 20 minutes.

So now what the hell am I going to do with 20 lbs. of apples? Applesauce, I guess. And I'll try canning some apple pie filling. Apple Jack? Maybe?


Regardless of what becomes of the apples, it was a day well spent, and a beautiful one at that.

New Arrivals

Meet the two newest members of the PineTop family:





This is Frida. Frida enjoys scratching our already destroyed furniture and blending in with the lint balls rolling around on our floor.











This is Tommy. Tommy enjoys batting at my legs and confusing our dog.





These guys are littermates. Frida will stay with us, but Tommy is our foster-child until my mom can take him in November. She has a weakness for marmalade kittens.

People underestimate the joy and hilarity that kittens can bring. These guys are seriously the light of my life right now (no offense, Fuzzy).

I am Weak

I always swore I'd never buy a new car. Too frivolous, too expensive, used is good enough for me.
Well . . .
I think a retraction is in order.
We bought a brand-spanking-new Honda Fit Sport and I am smitten.
More updates later, right now I'm feeling the urge to drive to Wisconsin!