Bill warned me.
"It's icy outside," he said as he saw me going through the usual ritual of hopping and dancing around the living room, trying to urge my feet all the way into my low cut LL Bean barn boots.
I tend to destroy the backs of the boots because I'm too lazy to bend over to pull the ridge away from my foot.
Once the framing inside becomes crushed, I end up having to to bend over anyway or sit down and stick my finger between my heel and the boot to get the darned things on.
You'd think a person would know better by the 70s not to ruin those boot backs.
Bill's announcement meant I had even more work to do before heading to the barn for morning chores.
Yup, it was a Yaktrax morning.
Took three times while sitting on the couch in the garage to get that one studded track on my boot.
It's really fun when you almost have it on the boot only to see it shoot across the room.
Only said the "s" word once, though.
The next few minutes of maneuvering the cart filled with hay across the dark barnyard AND going out to get the paper reminded me of the scene in the movie 1917 where the two soldiers enter an enemy bunker and discover the place is filled with booby traps.
One wrong move, and "poof" they'd be gone. So, they remain extremely cautious with each move but not so with the thieving rat which triggers an explosion.
Fortunately, the soldiers survive, even though one has to be dug from the rubble.
Well, back here at the Lovestead, as I labored my way through the barnyard distributing flakes of hay to clean, snowy areas, I knew I wouldn't blow up.
Instead, my feet sure could get submerged in yucky, cold manure water OR I could stumble and fall down so my whole body could hurt all over and I would need a bath.
Happily, I survived another morning in the barnyard but now know that I won't do that again, for a while.
Instead, I'll have to trudge my way, one careful step at a time, up plowed snow piles and throw the hay over the fence.
The rest of the outside morning experience continued in that 1917-like scene as ice, rough ridges and even deep mushy water required moving slowly and with care every step of the way through the driveway.
Once there, in the dawn light, I could see the masses of potholes to the north and to the south. Best speed bumps ever for any vehicle trying to get from one place to the other.
Yup, they did look like mine fields, but I could see well enough by that time to avoid stepping in them. Then, with paper in hand, it was back through the driveway taking more slow, careful steps all the way back to the house.
By 6:30 a.m., I had already experienced a feeling of great achievement: surviving morning chores.
Only six more days of January!
On another front, yesterday afternoon I went to Winter Ridge Natural Foods store to get acquainted with an individual I'm interviewing for a story.
On my way out, I spotted Brad, Tyrel and Jaden standing behind a sample table, which included a few items the store offers for sale.
The trio was there offering samples of their specialty cheeses from Selle Valley Creamery. Learn more by visiting the link.
Turned out my trip to the store offered an added bonus as I got acquainted with Brad and his sons and learned more firsthand about how they got into the cheese business.
Brad, who works as a builder, actually spent more than a year in Pennsylvania learning the science of cheese and how to make it.
He now lives on Selle Road, and pretty much every time we drive down the road, we see his ice chest at the end of his driveway with cheese offerings, sold on the honor system.
The "ends," off from larger cheese blocks, sorta like the heels on a loaf of bread, include several flavors including huckleberry cheddar.
Third time was a charm on this latter flavor as Brad and his cheese mentor experimented. I can attest, after trying a sample, that the huckleberry flavor doesn't come right at you.
Instead, it's pleasantly subtle, which I found to be a lovely palate experience.
Brad, an Indiana native and the father of seven children (by the way, today is Jaden's birhday) packages the ends and sells them at his driveway and at several businesses in the area.
We enjoyed a great get-acquainted visit, and I'm looking forward to seeing Brad and his family more often as they are in the neighborhood, and I enjoyed the my "3-year cheddar" enough to pick up an end every so often as I drive by.
More and more, I'm learning and enjoying some wonderful and flavorful experiences, thanks to the folks here in Selle Valley who offer homegrown products.
My goal this summer is to try a week of eating nothing but foods grown here in the valley. I'm thinking, as I learn more, that this will be a fairly easy and "yum-yum" task.
Good luck, Brad, as you follow your dream. Looks like it's off to a great start.
The rain has stopped, the fog is hovering. My plan is to make the most of this day and top it off watching the ZAGS taken on Pacific.
Unfortunately, we are victims of corporate selfishness once more as now our DISH provider does not have the Fox 28/ROOT channel where the game will be broadcast.
As always, the root of all evil has reared its ugly head, and the paying customers lose out.
So, we're looking into other possibilities.
GO, ZAGS!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment