And then I lost May and June!
This one won't all fit in your inbox.
I took the week off from my demanding full time job. Not to go to the beach to lay under a cabana enjoying a cool breeze and sipping on tangy strawberry margaritas or go tubing in a cold mountain stream in the Great Smokies. I took this week to give myself some space and grace, to manage the abundance from our farm, to experience the simple, low-key life I dream of living when I retire where I won’t have to figure out anyone’s problems but my own. There are many at present and have been for the past couple months. First it was getting it all planted and cultivated. Now it is figuring out what to do with it all and learning to just let some of it go back to the earth.
Today’s situation:
From the past few weeks…
The struggle has been real! It started with the massive potato harvest that my husband, Ken, decided to dig the weekend before the hottest week on record here in south Georgia. They were then transported to the porch of my Swamp Sanctuary where they proceeded to liquefy and smelled like a dead body by the time I found them at the end of the week.
Next, there were two weekends of corn. Hubby planted two patches a month apart. We were nearly too late picking the first batch and a spell of rainy weather almost ruined it. By the second batch we were tired, so we tried this new method of putting up whole ears in the husk without blanching. I’ll let you know how that turns out.
Then there was a week of pea picking and staying up until 1AM every night to get them all shelled. Working a full time job and having a big garden does not go well together. My edges were really fraying at work.
In the midst of all this, I had routine blood work done and became aware that my thyroid was tanking again. I’ve had hyperthyroidism since I was 21 years old following the birth of my son. When this happens, I experience hair loss, sensitivity to temperature extremes, brain fog, and severe fatigue. As a bonus this time, I’ve had a case of the “internal zoomies” which I assume is from anxiety and leaves me completely wiped out by the time I get home from work. For the last week I’ve been coming home and crashing but I would still wake up exhausted the next morning barely able to struggle through the day. That’s when I knew I needed to take a week off to give my nervous system a break from the stress of figuring out other people’s problems.
The issue at hand this week will be how to handle the blessing of these harvests. We managed our farm stand for about a month but then it got too hot and became too cumbersome so that has been abandoned once more. I think it will stay abandoned until we retire and then we may try it again. I told a friend the other day,
“Farming was ruined when we all had to leave the farm to go to work to keep the farm and all the crops were sent overseas to make convenient processed food for the home cook and fast food joints that kills our health and makes Big Pharma rich. The deck is stacked against us.”
How I manage squash overload:
I’ve been chopping them up, stewing them down, and freezing them in gallon bags for my favorite recipe…Squash Alabama…see below.
SQUASH ALABAMA (from Brenda Gantt)
Ingredients:
2 lbs fresh or frozen squash
1 stick of butter
2 eggs
1 cup mayo
1 large onion (chopped)
1 bell pepper (chopped)
1 and 1/2 cups of cheese (cubed)—I prefer Cabot’s extra sharp
1 sleeve of round crackers (Ritz are my favorite)
Step 1: Cut, boil, and drain fresh squash.
Step 2: Mix squash with eggs, mayo, and cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Step 3: Saute onions and peppers in 1/2 stick of butter.
Step 4: Add to squash mixture and place in casserole dish.
Step 5: Melt remaining 1/2 stick of butter.
Step 6: Crumble sleeve of crackers over casserole. Drizzle with melted butter.
Step 7: Bake in 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes.
How I manage hot pepper overload:
With my abundance of thai chilis, I’m making pepper vinegar that hubby enjoys on his peas and in the fall is a must-have for his greens. (Can you believe it will be time to start seeds for fall/winter brassicas in a little over a month???)
PEPPER VINEGAR
Ingredients:
1 cup white vinegar
1 TBSP sugar
1 tsp salt
Around 30 hot peppers
OPTIONAL: 1 tsp olive oil for more heat
Bring vinegar, sugar, salt and optional olive oil to a boil. Pour over hot peppers in a jar. Store in refrigerator.
How I manage small harvests of cucumbers:
I have only a few cucumber plants growing in the high tunnel along with a few tomatoes and squash. This is my first time attempting to grow in there throughout the summer and I am AMAZED. If not for a horn worm invasion, I think these would’ve been the best tomatoes we’ve grown.
SMALL BATCH BREAD AND BUTTER REFRIGERATOR PICKLES
(adapted from my Granny’s recipe box)
Ingredients:
5-6 cucumbers
3 cups white vinegar
3 cups sugar
3 tsp salt
3/4 tsp tumeric and mustard seeds
OPTIONAL: Add onions or peppers.
Step 1: Slice cucumbers and place in the jar.
Step 2: Bring vinegar, sugar, salt and spices to a boil.
Step 3: Pour over cucumber in jar.
Step 4: Refrigerate.
Thank you for being on this writing journey with me. I’ve been working on a Writing Update post for awhile now and my Spring Farm Newsletter over on my other page is way past due. Hopefully, I will have both of those out to you before the end of the week. Enjoy a few of my favorite blooms from the garden this season on your way out.
Blessings Y’all,
B
I guffawed at "the author and her zucchini triplets."
Wow! Im amazed you found time to make and share this beautiful post.