Monday, March 16, 2020

brrr

When I checked the thermometer at 2 AM today, it was 20F. By sun-up and morning chores, it was a rip-roaring 22F. Water buckets were not just iced over, but frozen solid. This is why, even though I unplugged the two bucket de-icers in the barn, I left them in place so it would take only a moment to plunk them back into the buckets. And why I never unplugged the one in the more exposed paddock water bucket at all. This is not my first March in Massachusetts.

Although it was cold it was also nice and sunny today, and all the goats were very happy to spend the day in furry pools, nibbling hay, chewing their cud, or snoozing, until evening. A pleasant day in Goat World.

One nice thing about the return to quite cold: it prompted me to make a crockpot full of soup! And one nice thing about the habit of putting containers of "extra" food in the freezer is that making soup is just a matter of pulling out containers until enough contents have been identified to sound like good soup: turkey meat, candy roaster squash puree, carrots, a very rich broth made - also in the crockpot - from the bones of the whole turkey roasted a while back. All organic but the carrots. Add a little seasoning, leave it to simmer in the crockpot for a few hours, and that's it - lovely soup, served over rotini pasta, also from the freezer. I love that freezer!



A tiny but exciting bit of news: when I walk Piper in a few minutes we will carry up the package left at the bottom of the driveway earlier this afternoon. It is my first ever order from a welding supply house! (I told you it was exciting.) And you can guess what it is if you want to (Liz will probably get it in one) but you'll have to wait for the answer. I'm not going to confirm or deny until I've got pictures and a story to tell, whether successful or just a "learning experience."

Off to have a little walk, then chores. Too cold for the pond today, but a walk along the road here isn't bad. Lots and lots of things to sniff, and that - apparently - is what matters most. Get that sniffer ready, Piper!

~~~~~

13 comments:

  1. Okay, we'll wait to hear about The Exciting Package. Or maybe not, depending on outcome..

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    1. Oh you'll hear about it either way...just might be a very short story :)

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  2. Pretty sure I can guess what is in the package and what it has to do with the knitting you just finished...

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  3. It was 18F here this morning! And freezers are good things! Your soup looks delicious.

    I look forward to see what you'll be playing with!

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    1. Did you get this snow? I had soup again for breakfast!

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  4. That soup looks so good! Mmmm. Good comfort food.

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  5. That's too cold! Your soup looks fantastic, though. All of my leftovers end up in jars in the freezer for soup too!

    I have to admit it looks like we're getting an early spring here, so I'm planning a planting day in the garden soon. Hopefully, no late season surprises are on the way.

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    1. I'm a long way from planting the gardens, but I'm well into the envisioning stage. With special attention to shade-tolerant plants this year, though not in the vegetable garden :)

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  6. Soup is just the thing - for when it's cold outside or just because it's comfort food and that we need right now.

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  7. Such a nice post today. Massachusetts......My husbands home state. He grew up in Melrose. I grew up in NH. Soon, you'll be able to open your windows and smell God's good earth! You have a great rest of the week.

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    1. Linda, I have opened windows a couple of times when the temperature has gone suddenly high, out of desperation for Fresh Air. But soon I'll have to put a few window screens back on, because you're right - I'll want to have the windows open all the time :)

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