We have indeed been working for our meals the last few weeks. From gardening to barn-cleaning to patio-making, we have been happily engaged in a variety of "homestead/small farm/countryside" tasks since our arrival in Maine. And I speak for both of us when I say that we'd way rather be doing this than sitting in a high rise somewhere staring off at the high rise across the street (no worries, not a snide jibe at Mind Busyness, just a comparison with our own past experiences). We very much do enjoy physical work, we enjoy sweating and swatting bugs, feeling muscles strain and knowing that we earned our dinner and our rest. It is just who we are and it is why we are where we are now. That said, I figure it'd be fun to run through some of the things we've been doing and things we've learned to do since we arrived in late May.
First off, I'll start with today's adventure, taking twelve broiler chickens to the slaughterhouse. Not exactly the most fun activity, nor one that is high on the list for us part-time vegetarians, but certainly one that is important since we are only part-time vegetarians and would rather eat home-raised meat than factory-raised meat. We were surprised at how un-bothered we were by the whole process, from shoving them into cages in the van to packaging the 'meat' upon our arrival home. Honestly, the worst part of the whole thing was dealing with the smell and sounds of the live, pooping chickens on the way to the slaughterhouse. These chickens started out as cute little chicks just like all chickens do, but as of late they have become rather large and gross; seeing them unloaded from the van is kind of a "this needed to happen" moment. I'll not debate the pros and cons of raising meat-specific birds right now, but trust me when I say that you are not especially sad to see them go. They are not the pretty, energetic, egg-laying type of chicken. The process is simple, though. Basically, you take them to the slaughterhouse, watch them unloaded as chickens and, ten minutes later, receive boxes of meat. Then the meat must be taken home, allowed to cool, bagged and frozen. Allison and I took care of the latter part and, though gross if you think about it, wasn't any more gross than dealing with any raw meat. And now we know more about the entire life cycle and processing of a barnyard bird.
We've also been working outside. This past weekend, we cleared a trail from the pond to the back field, thinned unwanted trees from the area near the fire pit, and unfenced and mulched fruit trees, not to mention applying for a few real jobs. We are excited to get jobs, but will also be kind of sad to leave our current schedule and task list behind.
Over the past few weeks, we've done a number of other things. I won't bore you with all the details, but I'll include some highlights:
-We semi-watched Allison's dad build 5 large raised beds, then filled said raised beds with dirt and compost (it takes waaaay longer than you think it should to do this-- 1-2 hours per raised bed if you work straight through!!!).
-We weeded, de-sodded and mulched the front garden area, lined it with pavers and built a patio in a corner of it, where we set a trellis and a bench.
-I mowed the back of the garden, an area that we're turning into an 'orchard.'
-I helped Allison's brother haul dozens and dozens of flat rocks from walls around the property in order to make patios, pathways and other flat things. Hard work, but rewarding when you realize you don't have to pay premium prices for flat rocks from elsewhere. And the work feels good.
-We emptied, cleaned and organized the barn out back. It desperately needed to be done and now it looks great, thanks to our overhead storage system and massive reorganization. Plus we moved all the garden tools and wheelbarrows from the garage and woodshed to the barn, so now the barn can serve as a convenient storage area for anything having to do with the adjacent garden.
-We stacked five cords of firewood. Tedious but rewarding.
-We weeded and mulched several of the raised beds. Again, tedious but rewarding when you think of the end result--fresh veggies!
-We're also helping with maintenance chores, just the typical 'keep your place running smoothly' type of stuff.
Over the next few weeks we hope to build a brick oven, revamp the fire pit area to be a patio, weed more, mow the lawn more, haul more rocks out of the woods, re-clear trails in the woods, cut down some unwanted trees, ready the mini-coop for the ever-growing new layer chickens (it had housed the broilers until today--see above), and maybe apply for a few more jobs. To some, this might sound awful, but to us this sounds like the only way to live. Hopefully we will continue to live this way for ever and ever.
First off, I'll start with today's adventure, taking twelve broiler chickens to the slaughterhouse. Not exactly the most fun activity, nor one that is high on the list for us part-time vegetarians, but certainly one that is important since we are only part-time vegetarians and would rather eat home-raised meat than factory-raised meat. We were surprised at how un-bothered we were by the whole process, from shoving them into cages in the van to packaging the 'meat' upon our arrival home. Honestly, the worst part of the whole thing was dealing with the smell and sounds of the live, pooping chickens on the way to the slaughterhouse. These chickens started out as cute little chicks just like all chickens do, but as of late they have become rather large and gross; seeing them unloaded from the van is kind of a "this needed to happen" moment. I'll not debate the pros and cons of raising meat-specific birds right now, but trust me when I say that you are not especially sad to see them go. They are not the pretty, energetic, egg-laying type of chicken. The process is simple, though. Basically, you take them to the slaughterhouse, watch them unloaded as chickens and, ten minutes later, receive boxes of meat. Then the meat must be taken home, allowed to cool, bagged and frozen. Allison and I took care of the latter part and, though gross if you think about it, wasn't any more gross than dealing with any raw meat. And now we know more about the entire life cycle and processing of a barnyard bird.
We've also been working outside. This past weekend, we cleared a trail from the pond to the back field, thinned unwanted trees from the area near the fire pit, and unfenced and mulched fruit trees, not to mention applying for a few real jobs. We are excited to get jobs, but will also be kind of sad to leave our current schedule and task list behind.
Over the past few weeks, we've done a number of other things. I won't bore you with all the details, but I'll include some highlights:
-We semi-watched Allison's dad build 5 large raised beds, then filled said raised beds with dirt and compost (it takes waaaay longer than you think it should to do this-- 1-2 hours per raised bed if you work straight through!!!).
-We weeded, de-sodded and mulched the front garden area, lined it with pavers and built a patio in a corner of it, where we set a trellis and a bench.
-I mowed the back of the garden, an area that we're turning into an 'orchard.'
-I helped Allison's brother haul dozens and dozens of flat rocks from walls around the property in order to make patios, pathways and other flat things. Hard work, but rewarding when you realize you don't have to pay premium prices for flat rocks from elsewhere. And the work feels good.
-We emptied, cleaned and organized the barn out back. It desperately needed to be done and now it looks great, thanks to our overhead storage system and massive reorganization. Plus we moved all the garden tools and wheelbarrows from the garage and woodshed to the barn, so now the barn can serve as a convenient storage area for anything having to do with the adjacent garden.
-We stacked five cords of firewood. Tedious but rewarding.
-We weeded and mulched several of the raised beds. Again, tedious but rewarding when you think of the end result--fresh veggies!
-We're also helping with maintenance chores, just the typical 'keep your place running smoothly' type of stuff.
Over the next few weeks we hope to build a brick oven, revamp the fire pit area to be a patio, weed more, mow the lawn more, haul more rocks out of the woods, re-clear trails in the woods, cut down some unwanted trees, ready the mini-coop for the ever-growing new layer chickens (it had housed the broilers until today--see above), and maybe apply for a few more jobs. To some, this might sound awful, but to us this sounds like the only way to live. Hopefully we will continue to live this way for ever and ever.
I can't wait to join you guys!! One of my future hopes is to have an orchard with fruit trees and berry bushes. And I'm learning tons about growing vegetables from my volunteer work :-) Get jobs and save up so we can do this full time in the future!!
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