The Crisis

Probably the crisis in America to which almost every other ill can be traced is the absence of fathers in our families. Why doesn't our democracy work properly now? -The absence of fathers. His role can not be over stated: (from The Thinking Housewife via Jeff Culbreath

The ideal citizen in any high-functioning democracy is the father. He is more important politically than the mother; more important than the young man without children or the single woman; more important as a type than even the property owner. If I were to build an infant republic, I would limit the franchise to fathers, possibly making ownership of property an additional qualification.

.....For a woman, the world is too personal and parochial; she seeks security first. For the man without children, the future is sterile; even property or personal wealth will not make him care for those who will live many decades from now. The father is more apt to possess both public-spiritedness and loyalty, dispassion and compassion.

Oremus pro invicem!

What a glorious week full of blessing-too numerous to account. Praise God!

We have heat! After heroic efforts by my sons, the flue system in the chimney was taken down and a new Class A chimney installed. The potbelly stove arrived and was hooked up. As our Thanksgiving guests can attest-we have heat.

Our sow Sal gave farrowed last evening, giving birth to 13 live piglets. These piglets are the composite of the best of our herd. We are very excited about them.

Thanksgiving week was eventful with loads of work early and loads of fun late. Our turkey had not quite reached full size, so we supplemented the 14 pounder by adding a duck to the mix. Not much leftover turkey, but it was good and tender.

Our annual Turkey bowl with the boys ended in a tie. But Saturday everyone got in on the action. Mrs. Curley threw the winning touchdown pass to number one son (over my head and my coverage) to pull out a victory. Lots of fun.

We had several special visitors this year, but most special was having my Mom here at the homestead for the first time. She didn't hold any piglets, but she provided much joy, laughter and warmth to our holiday. (And just to avoid any confusion, my Mom was NOT the Mrs. Curley who threw the touchdown pass.)

Now to Advent!

Oremus pro invicem!

Here is my latest at http://www.catholiclane.com/ .

In other news, my town recently had a town council election. Living outside town limits, I do not get a vote, however the election reports were very interesting. The article stated that the top vote getter received 78 votes. The last sentence in the article stated that there were 73 registered voters. A misprint? or small town voter fraud?

Oremus pro invicem!

Waiting over

Mabel calved Friday night around 9:35 PM - a bull calf. She licked him and licked him. We got in there and dried him off a bit too. It was really cold out. I think it got down to 28 F that night. We saw him stand, but we went in before he found her udder. Saturday he couldn't figure out how to get milk out of the udder until late in the afternoon. We tried to teach him or get him to drink from a bucket, but he is a slow learner.

Harry the sow farrowed Saturday afternoon. We think she had 13 live births, but will confirm this morning. The sun was going down as she was finishing. Harry is a trooper. I think this is her fifth litter. We raised her from a weaner.

The other things we are still waiting for. The boys are manually taking the masonry flue out of our chimney so the new Class A chimney can fit. We are hoping to finish the installation and have heat by Monday night ....

Oremus pro invicem!

Blarney

The difference between blarney and baloney via Fulton Sheen (paraphrased):

When meeting for the first time a woman of 40ish:

Baloney: You don't look a day over 18!

Blarney: Tell me your age so I know that age when women are most beautiful!

Another way he puts it:

Blarney is flattery so thin you love it. Baloney is flattery so thick you hate it.

Oremus pro invicem!

Waiting

.... for Mabel to calve (due on the 10th, but nothing yet).

....for Harry the sow to farrow-any day now, but not overdue.

... for my wood stove to come in (due tomorrow), but first we have to finish installing the chimney and masonry.

... for the peanut harvest to end-making progress everyday, but the frost last week hurt the hay yield.

*******************

This weekend we started the simple chore of replacing our front door with one given us. The new door had a window which will hopefully lighten our electric bill and bring some much needed sun in on cold winter days. Alas, we found a whole lot of old termite damage. But there was a hidden blessing. After ripping out all the damaged wood, we had an opening large enough for a double front door. What's more, someone else had given us a set of double French doors which were sitting idle in the garage. So while the job isn't completely finished, the doors are in and so is a lot of light. Thank God for hidden blessings and generous, helpful neighbors!

Oremus pro invicem!

Feeding Hogs Dairy

From Pork Production (1928 by William Smith):

The by-products of the dairy are more highly prized by hog-men than perhaps any other form of protein supplement. The value of skim milk and buttermilk is such as to make pork production a valuable adjunct to profitable dairying when either of these products are available for swine feeding.

...or in other words 4.18 pounds of milk had the equivalent of 1 pound of corn. (for weight gain-ed)

We don't feed our hogs much pure corn. However, an added incentive for feeding milk is the taste of the pork. The pork from hogs feed milk as a supplement has a sweet creamy taste not found elsewhere.

Oremus pro invicem!

I am not a hippie!

Here's my latest: http://catholiclane.com/is-agrarianism-just-for-hippies/.

Oremus pro invicem!

Why Peanuts

I have mentioned frequently we are harvesting peanuts from 4 acres leased from our neighbor. Why peanuts? Here are some reasons from Practical Farming For the South (1944 by B.F. Bullock):

Peanuts belong to the great soil-building legume family, and are one of the most useful crops grown on American soil. ... Peanut hay that has been properly harvested and handled in a way to preserve the leaves will rank along with any of the other legume hays as a high class roughage for dairy cows. Hogs will develop more rapidly on peanuts than on any other single crop grown on the average farms. ... Chickens are also very fond of peanuts and will thrive on them. In fact every creature on the farm, from the children to the watchdog, likes peanuts and will thrive on them if not permitted to eat too many.

So there you have it.

Now remember to pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory everyday, but especially during November.

Oremus pro invicem!

A Modest Proposal for our Economy

So what about the “Occupy X” movement? Granted there seems to be all sorts of people there without a real focus other than ‘down with corporate greed’. I am not going to argue the merits or lack thereof of the variety of complaints and participants. But I do think the “Occupy” movement and the Tea Party movement considered together are signs of discontent not really seen across middle-class America in some years. The Republicans’ (partial) embrace of the Tea Party and disdain for the Occupy may be a serious political mistake. At the same time both movements don’t bode well for the current administration either. If the Republicans nominate someone who looks like he’s in bed with corporate/financial America, Obama will win a second term. If however they can come up with a viable candidate at this late stage who can come up with a jobs plan which isn’t merely an increase of taxes on the poorest and a decrease of taxes on the wealthiest (think “9-9-9” and “Flat Tax”) then they may capture the imagination of worried Americans. Under the current conditions, both parties will come out losers in the long-term regardless of the outcome of the 2012 election unless there is a clear break from the past.

America is discontented. We only know one system, and we know it is broken for most of us. The issue is jobs. Manufacturing jobs continue to go overseas. Trade jobs (with a few notable exceptions like plumbers and electricians) have disappeared as people will settle for cheaper but almost disposable goods, for example shoes. Small shopkeepers have disappeared as they can’t compete with big box stores who get cheap (and disposable) imports from overseas. Small farms have disappeared as government regulations and government subsidies for big Ag have made it practically impossible for small farmers to make a living. College education has become high class and high expense job training. In the current economy graduates carrying $40K to upwards of $100K of student loan debt can’t find jobs. Increasingly, the low paying service economy is the only remaining option for many Americans.

No national candidate is proposing a turnaround to this trend. Even if we pull out of the current recession, the future is not bright. But we can turn this around. It may take some time and struggle and sacrifice, but we can arrive at an economy where a family can earn an honest and rewarding living and have greater control over their life and destiny. The modest proposal is not a quick fix, but a journey, a process towards a more just economy.

Returning manufacturing to America can be achieved through the introduction of tariffs on imported goods. These tariffs must be steep enough to allow American manufacturers compete with cheap imports while paying living wages for workers. Some may argue that trade wars may erupt, hurting our economy. However, the loss of manufacturing in this country is a worse fate.

Encourage the creation of small businesses, both retail shops and manufacturing endeavors by tax policy. The lowest taxes will be levied on small businesses. If a business expands to multiple locations, surtaxes are levied. As a company expands to locations outside its original region, more surtaxes are levied. These measures will allow local and regional businesses. Employee owned businesses would also enjoy a lower tax burdens. These tax policies will encourage both small, local retail businesses and return viability to local craftsmen and trades. Small manufacturing endeavors will also be encouraged to flourish. Jobs will be created which provide real living wages to owners and employees and invigorate local and regional economies. As businesses grow and become more profitable they can expand, but will contribute more to the community as their profits rise.

End government subsidies to large (factory) farms and big Ag. Restrict FDA regulations to where they are needed, i.e. the large farms. Let the free market work locally. Locally grown food will be fresher, tastier and safer. There been numerous e coli or salmonella outbreaks in recent years which have affected millions of Americans, and which have been difficult to track because the infected food has come from miles and miles away from those who are affected. Local problems will affect less Americans and will be quick to track down. Enterprising small farmers will once again feed Americans good produce and meat while earning a living wage.

Government must begin to operate on the principle of Subsidiary. Federal and State governments should return control of education and other regulations to local communities and to the family. Surely there are areas where the State and Federal government has a role, sometimes a primary role, but family, town, and county authority should not be usurped unless necessary.

In all this local and regional economies can thrive. Trades can make a comeback and regulate themselves. Small shopkeepers and small farmers can make decent wages. College will not be the only ticket to be a property owner with a semblance of control over one’s life.

The local community will be strengthened. Small rural towns have seen an exodus of young people to cities where money and jobs are more plentiful. This weakens the family and thus the community and ultimately the entire country. One of our greatest challenges in America presently is the absence of fathers in family life. While there are many causes, one cause is the transient way we live with no job security and constant relocation. Extended family communities can be the glue to keep troubled families together.

Another benefit to more robust local and regional economies is a lower consumption of energy resources.

The modest proposal hasn’t covered all aspects of economy and society; it is a proposal seeking more ideas and discussion. There are aspects which may be hard for some to adjust to. The plan requires a national will to become less of a consumption society. While it proposes more and better jobs, with better wages and more control for most Americans, at the same time, many goods will be more expensive. However, these goods will be made to last.

In America we value the ownership of private property. This has become to mean that we own our own home. But few of us really do, as many have found out in recent years. Ownership of private property also should mean that we own the means to production, that is that we really own our homes and for as many people as possible our own source of employment, whether it be a private business or as a shareholder in a larger business. Our economic system has come to a point where workers are merely tools for greater profit, to be acquired or discarded as the quarterly numbers dictate. Workers have a dignity which is not respected by too many corporations. Corporations must remember that they exist not just for profits but to provide fulfilling work and wages for their workers.

This is not just an economic plan, but also a spiritual plan for the human person.

Oremus pro invicem!

My first piece at Catholic Lane is up today. While we should remember to pray for the holy souls in purgatory every day, November is dedicated to this spiritual work of charity.

Here's the intro:

I lost my Dad in 1999. He was a wonderful father and certainly considered by all to be a good man. He and my Mom passed on their love of God and love of the Faith to me. As a Catholic, I knew about Purgatory; that place or state where a soul which dies in God’s grace, but is not completely spotless must work off the punishment due to confessed sins and unconfessed venial sins. While my Dad was a knight in shining armor to me, it was also probable, or at least possible, that he was doing time in Purgatory. The thought that he may be suffering inspired in me the deep desire to relieve that suffering.

Read the rest here .

Oremus pro invicem!

We started harvesting our 4 acres of peanuts last week. We have a long way to go. Rain this week delayed progress. Some of the peanuts are not ready yet, but others have begun sprouting prematurely due to the excessive rain (finally) we've had the past few weeks.

The whole family participates. Some of us dig the peanuts with pitchforks, lifting the plants out of the ground and shaking the dirt. Others follow behind to find any peanuts left in the sand. Still others gather the plants and bunch them in groups of 10 plants, while another binds the bunches for hanging. Near the end of the session, we load them into the truck and bring them to wherever we are going to hang them for drying.

The plants dry for 2-4 weeks and then the peanuts are separated from the hay.

There's much work to be done. We still have to winterize the barn, fence two new areas for the Jersey cows (one is due to calf in a few weeks). With all the rain we've had, the fall garden is looking pretty good with broccoli, rutabagas, radishes, collards, mustard greens, turnips, and carrots.

Now back to work. Oremus pro invicem!

Picked up some turkeys on Saturday. A Bourbon Red Tom who is about 15-18 pounds and two bronze turkeys (tom and hen) who are about 12 weeks old. We may pick up another couple next weekend.

We were ready for them as we built the pen on fresh ground earlier in the week. This is the first year in a bit where we haven't raise turkeys from day-olds, so we are happy to be back in turkey again.

We may keep the bronze's as a breeding pair for next year, but who knows?

In other homestead news, our first Jersey is now dried off-anticipating freshening in early November.

We have greatly down-sized our hog herd, but our sow Sparta had a litter a few weeks ago. Even though we know of no red hogs in her ancestry, she had one red/white-belted piglet. We had been hoping for a red hog for several years out of one of our red sows (now sold), but no luck. Now we have one by surprise.

Am starting some new projects and hope to be posting more often in the coming weeks and months, but that's all for now.

Oremus pro invicem!

We've been raising Muscovy ducks for over a year now. We initially bought some 5 week-old ducks at a local small animal auction. They haven't been so prolific as we were led to believe, but we have had some clutches hatch and have had duck on the table and in the freezer. In fact I found a recipe for a sage duck sausage I am yearning to try.

We (or should I say Number 1 son) built a new duck pen last week. We planted greens in their old pen so we can turn them back when they use up the new pen. We've lost a few to fox (we believe).

Here's a picture of some of the ducklings.

Oremus pro invicem!

For months now I haven't been able to answer comments on my own blog. So, I will answer the comments to the post below here.

Regarding the quote: in many respects life on the farm or homestead (as is more accurate) presents many diverse challenges requiring humor, prayer, ingenuity, energy, perseverance, and the ability to adjust. However, at the same time I don't favor dull priests, doctors, and so on.

I have yet to dry up, (drought, 3 weeks of good rain, then drought again) but so much to do that all my writing is in my head and never hits the page. It has been a very challenging month, losing one of our milk cows, selling much of the hog herd, etc. But there has been much good (all is blessing). We had a litter of piglets last week (finally a red pig.) We are painting the house and have some other serious projects in the works. Not much time to get all the thoughts in my head onto the page.

This year the family is re-instituting "writing night" where we will write essays, poems, etc. on various topics. Perhaps I can get some of those unworthy thoughts posted.

God bless you all. Oremus pro invicem!

Wisdom of yesteryear

Clipped from The Agrarian Nation:

Of all the callings to which man has ever turned his attention, farming requires the most actual practical experience. The custom in the New England states in the olden time, as it is said, of sending the dull boys to college, and putting the bright ones to work on the farm, was a sensible one. A boy of ordinary mind can be educated to the standard of the so called learned professions, but it takes a bright brain and an energetic hand to manage the soil as to make it a willing, profitable servant. [1885 Maine Farmer's Almanac]

We were talking our livestock today, and I commented how interesting it was that the craft of taking care of livestock is called "husbandry". I wonder if there's some kind of connection ....

On the feast of the Queenship of Mary ... Oremus pro invicem!

Prayer of Thanksgiving for graces received from the Infant Jesus

I prostrate myself before your holy image, o most gracious infant Jesus, to offer you my most fervent thanks for the blessings you have bestowed on me. I shall incessantly praise your ineffable mercy and confess that you alone are my God, my helper, and my protector. Henceforth my entire confidence shall be placed in you ! Everywhere I will proclaim aloud your mercy and generosity, so that your great love and the great deeds which you perform through this miraculous image may be acknowledged by all. May devotion to your most holy infancy increase more and more in the hearts of all Christians, and may all who experience your assistance persevere with me in showing unceasing gratitude to your most holy infancy, to which be praise and glory forever. Amen.

It's been a looooong time since my last post. Can't catch up with everything, but here's a quick list:

Number One son graduated from high school; learned how (2X) to really BBQ a hog; drought, drought, drought, pig weeds, pig weeds, pig weeds, heat, heat, heat, and finally some rain!; peanut yield will be low, but we'll have some; been listening to "Joyful Service" a CD recorded by the brothers of the Missionaries of the Poor (MOP) - great stuff; more hot dogs!; 1st attempt at Canadian Bacon - great stuff; okra starting to come in, Dixie-Lee peas (crowder) coming up, tomatoes been okay despite drought, most everything else burned up, including my "drought resistant" Swiss Chard; and of course pig news-have weaned 3 litters since last posting-many sold; have a litter due in a few weeks; bought a new Jersey milk cow named .... NewCow for the present.

So there you have the highlights.

Grain prices (thus animal feed) have gone up something like 60% in the past year. There's no way to make money in pigs unless you either grow your own feed or sell the meat. While we are investigating the latter (as it comes with all kinds of regulations), the former is our focus now in growing the peanuts. Even so, we are thinking of downsizing our herd-even as we were just getting up to the size we have been working towards.

Number One son spent a few weeks working and praying with the MOP in Monroe, NC after his graduation. While we missed him for those weeks, it also occasioned us to spend some time with the MOP brothers. Number One son's experience and our own has enriched the whole family.

Hope to check back soon. Often I read something or hear something on the news that I would like to expound upon here. But I am been doing more important things than spreading my "wisdom" here. But I will leave you with this which I culled from the Catholic Worker website. It is an "Easy Essay" from Peter Maurin:

Passing The Buck

1. In the first centuries of Christianity
the poor were fed, clothed, and sheltered
at a personal sacrifice
and the Pagans
said about the Christians:
"See how they love each other."

2. Today the poor are fed, clothed, and sheltered
by the politicians
at the expense
of the taxpayers.

3. And because the poor
are no longer
fed, clothed, and sheltered
at a personal sacrifice
but at the expense
of taxpayers
Pagans say about Christians:
"See how they pass the buck."

One comment I have heard (and I was reminded today when I read something TS posted here ) is that when as a society we let the government do our charity, we rob ourselves individually and as a society of the opportunity and obligation of doing God's work. I say what I mean poorly. Perhaps the following recollection of Stanley Vishnewski on his first meeting with Peter Maurin (grabbed from the Catholic Worker website with my emphasis) says it better:

I finally asked the question that was on my mind. "What is the purpose of The Catholic Worker?"

To this day I do not know what color his eyes were but I know that he looked at me more intently than anybody had ever looked at me before. Peter leaped up from his chair. He looked down at me.

"The purpose of the Catholic Worker," he said, "is to create a society where it will, be easier for men to be good. A society where each person will consider himself to be his brother's keeper. A society where each one will try to serve And to be the least. God wants us to be our brother's keeper. He wants us to feed the hungry at a personal sacrifice. He wants us to clothe the naked at a personal sacrifice. He wants us to shelter the homeless. To serve man for God's sake, that is what God wants us to do!"

Some things to think about ....

Oremus pro invicem!

Thank God for .... Pigweeds?

Turns out that pigs love pigweeds! And we have plenty to "harvest". Our peanut acres are overrun. But we are making progress. One day this week we fed our hogs over 50 pounds of pigweeds. But we have many more pounds to go.

Our sweet corn is going well. We either need one more good rain for the sweet corn or we will till and irrigate.

Now our field corn is stalled. This week we tilled, spread cow manure in the rows and then began mulching with old straw. This should keep the moisture in (if it rains-no way to irrigate this field) and keep the pigweeds suppressed.

Pigweeds!

We finally finished planting the peanuts last week. Then we got some much needed rain (almost 4 inches in 2 days.) Most of the peanuts are up ... but the pig weeds are growing at about 3X the rate of our peanut crop. My sweet corn was saved by the rain. It sure looks good now.

Remembering my Dad today-he would have been 91 this May 31st. May his soul, and all the souls of the faithful departed, rest in peace!

Was reminded today that John Senior (Restoration of Christian Culture) recommended we (as lay folk) tithe our time for prayer (about 2.5 hours a day!). I have been frustrated of late that so many things have taken me away from my work on the farm (and the pig weeds). Perhaps I should be more concerned about things pulling me away from prayer!

Oremus pro invicem!

In my last post, I forgot to relate (or brag on) the Curley family exploits at the annual Bethune Chicken Strut Rodeo a few weeks ago. First up: Number 2 son tried his hand at bull-riding again. On the first ride, the bull got caught up in the gate, so he was granted another ride. Same thing happened. He could have asked for another ride, but was a little shaken up and (wisely) opted to quit the bull for the night.

Then came the women's calf chase: The idea is that the participants chase a calf around trying to claim the greased ribbon tied to the calf's tail. Number 2 daughter was off to the races. She caught the calf and was hanging onto the tail when the ribbon slipped off and someone else claimed it. It was quite a sight to see the usually demur Number 2 daughter push her way through the throng to catch the calf. Maybe next time she'll come home with the prize. (Personally, I thought if Mrs. Curley had entered the arena with her, they could have teamed up and shut out the competition. But Mrs. Curley didn't want to create an unfair advantage to the rest of the field!)

Finally, Numbers 1, 2 & 3 sons participated in the wild horse saddling challenge. Here there are 2 teams of 3 men trying to catch, saddle and ride (briefly) one of two wild horses, each sporting a 20-foot lead line, roaming the arena. No team had successfully caught a horse the previous night. The Curley boys showed better. At first it appeared the horse would win again. But in the final minute, Number 3 son caught the lead line and actually brought the horse to its knees (inadvertently), allowing Number 1 son to grab the halter. Number 2 son, limping from his bull-riding earlier in the night, hobbled the length of the arena to get the saddle, scrambled back, saddled the horse and mounted on the second try-but alas, 3 seconds after the buzzer.

A valiant effort by all the Curley's that night even if no prizes were brought home. Quite a night with many good stories to remember and to tell-better than prize money any day!

Oremus pro invicem!

Just a quick update on our progress ....

On the 4 acres: We have about 1/2 our peanuts in, with at least 1/2 of that already up. Our field corn is up, as is our Swiss Chard. We still have a small area to plow, but will wait til the plowed area is planted.

In the home garden, our sweet corn looks great (planted on an old hog pen), our okra is up (planted in a former cow pen), brocolli has been (and still is, but winding down) great, early peas have been more than plentiful (I figure we have a week or two left of the early peas). Romaine lettuce has come and gone, as have the radishes. Chinese cabbage, Swiss Chard are in full swing. Zuccinni, yellow squash, (some) beans, peas, tomatoes, cantaloupe, and cucumbers are in and up. We still have peppers, more peas, and green beans to put in. I planted some eggplant from seed this year, but it didn't come up. I will try again before buying some plants.

Big Spot farrowed in mid-April (12 survive of 16), Dixie in early May (12 survive of 14). Harry is due to farrow any day now.

Big Treat: Our former paster, Fr. John O'Holohan SJ visited the homestead last week. He came over from Ireland to give a series of talks on the Divine Mercy devotion in the Orlando area and decided to visit his parish in SC. It was great to see and hear him again!

We have a fox in the area which has been feasting on some of our free-ranging game hens. We haven't figured a way to catch up with him yet, but plans are in the works to interupt his dead-of-night raids.

We finally had a successful litter of rabbits (5) and two clutches of Muscovy ducks (9 & 5) hatch this past week.

Things are really hopping around here these days. God is blessing us greatly.

Oremus pro invicem!

Progress

We haven't finished plowing the 4 acres yet, but both the horse and the driver(s) has made progress. True to my speculation, number one son is better at handling the horse and plow than I, but I still take my turns now and then.

We made some adjustments which seem to work well. We lifted the plow a bit so as not to plow so deeply. We also set it off to one side so that when the wheel is in the previous furrow, the plow is right on course for the next furrow. Before the furrows were slightly spaced apart.

We are taking Old Man out 3x a day now for about 45 minutes each session. By the time the field is plowed he will be in good enough shape that we could have had it done in 3-4 days.

We got out there as a family on Monday afternoon and planted 1/8 acre in field corn. We plan to do another 1/8 acre Friday, and continue to stagger this till we have about 1/2 - 3/4 acres planted.

So on our 4 acres of leased land, we will have about 1/8 acre in Swiss Chard (which is good in salad or cooked like spinach, or Mrs. Curley likes to make pasta out of it), 1/2 to 3/4 acres in field corn, and the rest in peanuts.

After we finish the field (probably on Saturday) we will level it with the spike harrow attachment. This will go much quicker. Old Man should be able to do the whole field in a day or two with the spike harrow.

It's been quite a learning experience and enjoyable. My digital camera is seemingly dead, but there is a great picture I took of Number One Son plowing with the rest of the children walking along. Every time we plow, any of the children available walk along.

Big Spot is due to farrow on Saturday. We sold off Mij's litter this week. Two sows are due in May, one in June, and one in early August.

Our homestead has never been so beautiful or productive. God is good!

I am still behind in my promise to build an outdoor shrine to the Infant of Prague who has provided for and protected us so much this past year. We have cleared a place under one of the cedar trees so there a space but still shaded. Soon I will get to work on building the structure and landscaping the area.

Back to work ...

Oremus pro invicem!

New Things

No, I am not moving to Maine, especially with 4 odd acres of land next door to get ready for planting.

About 1/8 acre, where we have planted peanuts in the past, has been manured and tilled with a walk-behind rear tine tiller. We will be planting an heirloom variety Swiss Chard in this area.

But now to the 4 odd acres left ... we are plowing with the boys' horse! Yes, we bought a forecart, harness, etc. with turn plow and spike harrow attachments a week or so ago.

Saturday we hooked up Old Man (the boys' Quarter Horse) and tried him out pulling just the forecart. He seem a natural-possibly he'd done this before?

Monday afternoon, we hooked up the turn plow and brought him to the field. Son number one walked beside Old Man while I drove the cart. Okay, there was a bit of zig-zagging at first, and I haven't got the hang of keeping him right next to the furrow, but for a first time, it went well. We only did six lengths on this first day, but that was enough for both of us. Once we build his strength and stamina up, we should be able to plow about one acre a day.

We took Old Man out again this morning and did a couple more turns on the field. We had to get his pony pen mate to walk along side for motivation.

I have a feeling that Number One son will be better at this than I-so I plan to let him take the reins the next time out.

We had access to a tractor, but I think this investment will be more valuable. It certainly it quieter than a diesel engine. You get a workout (even in the cart). And I think it will be more attractive work for young men (and an old man), certainly more exciting.

Hopefully we will have pictures soon.

Oremus pro invicem!

Maybe I should move to Maine?

From http://reason.com/blog/2011/03/22/food-nullification:

"With a unanimous vote in a town meeting, Sedgwick, Maine, has approved a "food sovereignty" ordinance. David Gumpert reports:

Citing America's Declaration of Independence and the Maine Constitution, the ordinance proposed that "Sedgwick citizens possess the right to produce, process, sell, purchase, and consume local foods of their choosing." These would include raw milk and other dairy products and locally slaughtered meats, among other items.This isn't just a declaration of preference. The proposed warrant added, "It shall be unlawful for any law or regulation adopted by the state or federal government to interfere with the rights recognized by this Ordinance." In other words, no state licensing requirements prohibiting certain farms from selling dairy products or producing their own chickens for sale to other citizens in the town.What about potential legal liability and state or federal inspections? It's all up to the seller and buyer to negotiate. "Patrons purchasing food for home consumption may enter into private agreements with those producers or processors of local foods to waive any liability for the consumption of that food. Producers or processors of local foods shall be exempt from licensure and inspection requirements for that food as long as those agreements are in effect."

Elsewhere in Maine, similar laws were adopted in Penobscot and narrowly rejected in Brooksville."

Oremus pro invicem!

P.S. - It seems I can't comment on my own blog or others recently. To answer the comment below, The Family That Overtook Christ is published by the Daughters of St. Paul. You should also be able to get it on Amazon.

My 12 year old daughter handed me a book the other day and told me to read a certain (short) passage. It was so intriguing that I read on, and then went to the beginning of the book. An hour later Mrs. Curley urged me to return the book to my daughter before bedtime. The book: The Family That Overtook Christ -the amazing story of the family of Bernard of Clairvaux by M. Raymond, OCSO.

I don't know how I missed this one. The copy my mother had as a child was in our house growing up, but I never read it, even though it got rave reviews from my sisters.

Even for an adult it is a powerful book about following Christ in your vocation. Sure Bernard and his brothers and sisters all became religious-but it is about his parents too and how they lived their vocations.

Not just a biography, it has plenty of spiritual weight as it is often written almost as a novel with conversations dramatizing the spiritual life and struggles of this heroic family.

A great Lenten read to be sure.

Oremus pro invicem!

Truth

I read the following quote (and it struck me deeply) in the context of an article by Dr. Christopher Tollefsen on Speaking the Truth (read the article here) I give the Dr. Tollefsen's intro to the quote, but it is the quote which stays with me:

Those .... would do well to read the work of those brave individuals who struggled against the lies of totalitarian societies precisely by means of radical honesty: Vaclav Havel in Czechoslovakia, Adam Michnik in Poland, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn in the Soviet Union. Michnik’s words can stand in summary for the three:

Start doing the things you think should be done, and . . . start being what you think society should become. Do you believe in freedom of speech? Then speak freely. Do you love the truth? Then tell it. Do you believe in an open society? Then act in the open. Do you believe in a decent and humane society? Then behave decently and humanely.

Oremus pro invicem!

homestead, books, and family vocation

Sold off the Hampshire X Tamworth litter this weekend. We kept a gilt to be a companion to the sole litter survivor of our Christmas Eve litter. Our Hamp X Berk litter will be ready in about 5 weeks. We have a litter due in April and 2 litters due mid-May.

We have our broccoli, Romaine lettuce, and some onions in. We have planted quite a few rows of early peas along with kohlrabi and Swiss Chard. With the heavy rains last night, I am hoping the seeds weren't washed away.

The brussel sprouts planted in the fall are looking good now. We planted too late for a fall crop of brussel sprouts. They survived the winter and hopefully will provide a spring crop.

We've also replanted 3 empty pig pens with various greens; one more to go.

Good news! It looks like a neighbor will lease us 4 acres of his 28 acre field. I plan to plant most of it in peanuts so we can start growing most of our feed for the pigs and chickens. Four acres should yield us about 4 months of hog feed and several bales of peanut hay for our cows. This is a conservative estimate as I plan on another drought year. Planting, and even more so, harvesting, by hand will be a challenge on 4 acres. We are contemplating trying to get the boys' horse to help till the field.

We are actively trying to sell our Guernsey/Jersey Heifer born about 20 months ago and ready to breed. Also on the market is an Ossabaw Island hog breeding pair.

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I received an inquiry the other day about Requiem Press' first publication Daily Prayers for the Church Suffering. After 6,000 copies either sold or given away (a copy was given with every order placed with Requiem Press), we are out of copies, except our personal ones. It is the one booklet we published which I would reprint if I had the funds. The spiritual need is great to pray for the holy souls in purgatory. However, funds just are not available. We have tremendous deals on our remaining inventory (If you want quantity, the deals get even better. We sunk much of our savings and all of my retirement into Requiem Press to start. We still have some outstanding obligations we would like to clean up). If there is one book I would continue after all inventory is cleared, it would be the "Daily Prayers" booklet. But God's will be done!

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We started a (hopefully ongoing) family discussion the other night about our family vocation. Of course all of us as individuals have a particular vocation, but we as a family have one also. How could we be a better family? a better domestic church? What apostolates or what works of mercy can we or should we be doing more of-considering our talents, abilities and state (geography, finances, resources, etc.)? Going into Lent, I think it is particularly appropriate that we discern in this area. Sometimes we get off-track. With all our responsibilities on the homestead, sometimes we let some of the reasons we are here slip by. (How many times have we missed the Angelus-even though we moved here in part so we could have "Angelus time" together?) Already some good ideas (some new, some resurrected) have been voiced.

Oremus pro invicem!

As amazing as it may seem, here in South Carolina, we are not too far from planting our onions, kale, lettuce, broccoli, kohlrabi, etc. I spent a few days last week spreading old cow manure.

In getting ready for planting, I again consulted Practical Farming for the South by B.F. Bullock 1946. This is a great book. Not confined to planing, but also to livestock and philosophical about the importance of rural society to the survival of our nation.

Last night I read this opening ode aloud to Mrs. Curley and my oldest sons. All were moved by the truth it portrayed.

Oremus pro invicem!

Scalding, Scraping and other things

Got some pics to share below, but before that let us welcome our newest litter of piglets born to first-time mother, Mij, our Berkshire yesterday morning.

First up is a snow picture. I think this was from our December snow (only 4-5 inches). You can see both Mabel (our Jersey) on the left and Dolly (our Brown Swiss) on the right, along with our still roofless barn.
Next is a series of pictures with us scalding and scraping a hog. In the past we have mostly skinned our hogs, but with the right technique (demonstrated here) scalding and scraping is actually easier, albeit the prep time-that is heating 40 gallons of water to 145 F takes some time. Leaving the skin on is more esthetically pleasing, helps with flavor, and preserves the fat. And it is more classical.

Unfortunately the pictures don't show the "before" hog. In the first picture, the hog has already been 95% scraped. This hog was primarily black, but all hogs are white under the surface pigment. The pigment comes off with the hair. So what is shown in the pictures is our re-dipping the hog in 145 F water for 3-6 minutes to get some loose ends which didn't loosen on the first dip.

And just so you know, this is hard work, but it is wonderful work. I think we all look forward to pig slaughter days, and are tired and happy when they are over also. For the first time, number 1 son stunned the hog, and did an excellent job-better than my first time. We work well together.

Note that the head is off the hog. We didn't throw it out. We dipped it and scraped it separately. Then I boiled the meat and fat off. Layered it, rolled it up and refrigerated it. Sliced, dipped in egg and flour and then fried, it is delicious with scrambled eggs. Credit CT for the recipe.

Oremus pro invicem!

Prayer For The Canonization of Servant of God Dorothy Day

Merciful God, you called your servant Dorothy Day to show us the face of Jesus in the poor and forsaken. By constant practiceof the works of mercy, she embraced poverty and witnessed steadfastly to justice and peace. Count her among your saints and lead us all to become friends ofthe poor ones of the earth, and to recognize you in them. We ask this through your Son Jesus Christ, bringer of good news to the poor. Amen

Snow, Pigs, and Milk

9 inches of snow Sunday night through Monday noon or so! The most we've every had in the 16 years we've been down here. Couple that with 4 inches on Christmas night, we are having some kind of winter. The snow is beautiful, but it sure makes for a mess as it melts-which hasn't started doing yet. We had ice last night and the roads are dangerous still.

We did find a hill on our neighbors property and used the tops off some plastic 55-gallon drums as coasters and did some sledding yesterday. With the ice-over, it should be even more fun today.

Tammy, our Tamworth gilt had her first litter on Saturday night-8 healthy piglets, still hanging in there despite the cold, snow and ice.

Over the past few years we've had constant requests to sell raw milk. I have strangers approach me at the gas station asking if I will sell them milk. This weekend we sold the last of a 10 week-old litter of pigs and both parties who came by for the piglets also asked for milk. Of course unless we have a Grade A-Government inspected dairy, it is illegal for us to sell our milk. In keeping with the principal of subsidiarity, I read a comment on a homesteading forum recently which sums up what the government's role should be: we need the government to inspect a dairy when the consumer can't. If you are buying milk on the farm and can see the conditions for yourself, then you don't need the government to do it for you. However, if buy in a store, and can't inspect the dairy, then you may want some assurances of cleanliness, etc.

Oremus pro invicem!

Think you need more land?

I always do. With more land I could really make a go of it... but this story by Leo Tolstoy got me thinking again. Isn't that grass always greener?

Oremus pro invicem!

P.S. Merry Christmas! We're still celebrating, I hope you are too!

Peter Maurin on Usury

Peter Maurin (of the Catholic Worker Movement) wrote an easy essay on the usury:

Legalized Usury

Because John Calvin legalized
money lending at interest
the State has legalized
money-lending at interest.
Because the State has legalized
money-lending at interest
home-owners have mortgaged their homes.
Because the State has legalized
money-lending at interest,
farmers have mortgaged their farms.
Because the State has legalized
money-lending at interest,
institutions have mortgaged their buildings.
Because the State has legalized
money-lending at interst,
Congregations have mortgaged their churches.
Because the State has legalized
money-lending at interest,
cities, counties, States,
and the Federal Government
have mortgaged themselves
in all kinds of financial difficulties
because the State has legalized
money-lending at interest.

Advice (paraphrased) given to my son from a brother of the Missionaries of the Poor during my son's mission trip to Jamaica:

You have plenty of time in this life to do lots of things. But, you don’t have enough time in life to serve the Lord!

Oremus pro invicem!

I have one!

I was reading the chapter entitled The Family by Rev. Vincent McNabb OP, STM in Flee to the Fields (IHS Press). Here Fr. McNabb is quoting a report from the Sub-committee of the Inter-Departmental Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Board of Education, 1928 (England):

They (women) are in a position to be either a drag on, or a spur to agricultural development.

Attention may be drawn to the women's part in the rural exodus.... There is no doubt that a most potent factor in driving the men city-wards has been the discontent of women. .....

Smallholders ... are largely dependent on the assistance of wives and daughters for the working of the holding as well as of the house.

So, what do I have? A good woman who is a "spur to the agricultural development" on our small holding. My woman lives a hard live without all the comforts we could have, but she sees the fruits and appreciates them like many women would not.

God bless her! And praise God for the gift He has given me and our children!

Oremus pro invicem!

A chance encounter

Saturday I happened to run into Reid Buckley at the feed store. We had met only once before, more than a year previous at the same feed store, but he remembered me. I greeted him with the standard “How are you?”. He responded with the more provocative and much more meaningful: “Have you done anything good today?” Caught off guard, (and not known to be quick on my feet) I offered some kind of lame response.

In our short discussion, Mr. Buckley mentioned his new book (due out today on amazon) The Idiocy of Assent and a recent interview he had given about the book. I checked it out and clip these comments of his, which are very much of my own heart. (Bold is my emphasis of what I believe is the most important statement in the interview.)

We have to find out some way to reduce the size of the government without actually attacking any of its agencies. I think the way to do that is to emphasize the policy of subsidiarity. That no public agency should do what a private agency could do better, and that no larger public agency should do what a smaller public agency could do better. That’s the principle of federalism and that’s what, I think, we have to get to.

If we want to have a Department of Energy, this should be through the states, not through the federal government.

The way to do it is to start from the premise that the indispensable social unit in any republic has to be the family and that the family has to be made responsible for its members. In other words, sons and daughters should be responsible for their aging parents. Their parents should be responsible for their sons and daughters.

If any member of that family becomes ill, the other members of that family should be the first people to respond, not the federal government, not even the state.

If someone happens to be so unfortunate as to be completely alone, then we should rely on the church, the community hall, the county, and then — only then — move onto the state in cases of total neglect.

And later …

People who are raised in urban circumstances have very little appreciation of natural beauty. Their aesthetic sense is largely blunted by their upbringing.

There was an example of children raised in New York city, many of whom didn’t know where milk came from and had never seen a live chicken. I think these were serious problems.

Read more: here

Oremus pro invicem!

This morning we dressed out our Thanksgiving turkey. The boys are betting it's over 40 lbs (dressed), and I concur. One thing you should know if you do your own poultry, and that is to refrigerate them for at least two days before freezing or cooking. It ages/tenderizes the meat.

Mrs. Curley and the kids have been making ice cream this week. Boy the homemade stuff is good. Last night it was mint chocolate chip. A few days ago it was French Vanilla.

Oremus pro invicem!

Monday, Harry had her 3rd litter, this time 13 piglets. Although she has a lot of Yorkshire in her, all her piglets look like their Hampshire daddy. Harry is known to hop fences (in fact she hopped one on Saturday in front of guests). Her piglets have always been escape artists also. I'll never forget the time I arrived home and went to check on her 2-week old litter and found them all gone. After some frantic calling, they emerged from the woods, and one by one ran across the road, through another dry lot and into their own pen.

We had our first fall square dance on Saturday just past. A wonderful gathering with 1/2 hog on the grill and families from our current parish and old parishes. A few people stayed to sing around the bonfire in the evening. Mrs. Curley and I danced the Virginia Reel, and it was a wonderful time.

Since coming 'back to the land', I have read many books about practical skills and livestock. In the years preceding our move, I read some more philisophical books on the Catholic back-to-the-land movement: Flee to the Fields (IHS press) and The Rural Solution (Traditionalist Press, Ireland) to name two.

It is good to revisit these books now; at least one, to see if the reasons given have proven valid for our family. If I can carve out the time, I may review these books, or parts thereof, and add my own two cents based on our experiences.

Oremus pro invicem!

So, what’s going on? Fall has finally hit. We were very late in planting the fall/winter garden, but because of the continued heat, maybe we didn’t lose much. Turnips are up and the broccoli is in the ground. The Swiss chard, of which we planted and replanted, has not yet made an appearance. We have almost finished separating the peanuts from the hay. Last year the peanut hay itself was more valuable than the peanut crop. This year we harvested late and much of the hay dried in the field. I am not sure it will be as valuable this year.

I love the change in weather, late as it came this year. As my neighbor commented to me, “It’s time to slaughter a hog.” Indeed it is. We’ve already done two this fall, another slated for this week, and a bunch more come December and January.

Feed prices have been going up and up. For the pigs, I can pass this increased cost onto buyers. However, this doesn’t help us with the chicken and cow feed.

We have a litter of pigs ready to wean in a few weeks. Most are looking good. One was injured in his first week and while he still lives and is active, his growth is very stunted. He wasn’t a runt when born, but is now. We will probably keep him on the sow for a bit longer than the pigs we are selling.

Our sow Harry (short for Harry) is due this coming Friday.

I have been desperate to find a Jersey bull to breed back my Jersey, breed my Jersey heifer and soon to breed my Brown Swiss. We had the Jersey AI’d twice, but it didn’t take, thus the need to find a bull. She has been a trooper, still giving 3 gallons a day even 18 months after freshening. But all this good milk will end. Monday evening I went West to look at a Jersey bull. He looked good, but a bit younger than I wanted…. But the price was right. He arrives before week’s end.

For the first time in many, many years we celebrated All Saints Day alone. We went to Mass in Camden (not our regular parish) as they had noon Mass which fit our schedule better. After coming home, we all got costumed and told the stories of our chosen saints. I portrayed John Kemble (possibly remembered more for the expression of “having a Kemble smoke/pipe” – the last pipe of a sitting, and for him, his last before execution, than for he being the oldest of the English and Welsh martyrs). We also had a Margaret Ward, and others.

Now, the commercial interruption: We have some great deals at Requiem Press. Traffic at the new website is practically nil, but remember us when looking for gifts in the next couple months. Thank-you.

I usually never miss posting on All Soul’s Day, but computer time, especially ‘recreation computer time’ has been hard to come by (not necessarily a bad thing). However, as a reminder, go to a cemetery and pray for the Holy Souls. You can earn a plenary indulgence (under the usual conditions) for a suffering soul on the 2nd and during the 8 thereafter.

Today we prayed the Office of the Dead as this is the 11th anniversary of my father’s passing-may his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.

Oremus pro invicem!

We woke Friday morning to a new litter of piglets (14 - 13 now as the runt has since died). This is Big Spot's third litter with us, and her smallest! We just slaughtered a gilt from her last litter a week ago. We could call her "old reliable"-she breeds easily and has high quality offspring.

This morning while feeding the hogs before going to Mass, our expectant sow Harry jumped her fence. She wasn't in any hurry to get back in. Usually a hog will follow a feed bucket, but Harry wouldn't follow until she took a tour around the grounds.

Was at the library on Friday; tried to find a book by the master of locked room mysteries, John Dickson Carr, but couldn't find a single title. I settled for "The Yellow Room" by Mary Roberts Rinehart. I recall reading and enjoying this one many years ago.

Finally, another plug to clear our inventory: Everything is on sale at Requiem Press.

Oremus pro invicem!

Sweeeeet Pork

Finally the weather has cooled a bit ... cooled enough to slaughter a hog. She was farrowed in Feb and was probably 275+ lbs. Since the end of July she has been on a diet of milk, grain, watermelon, pears, greens, and hay, and did I say milk every day?

Last night we had a crown roast (from the loin where the chops come from). It was the sweetest pork I have ever tasted. It was the milk, I am convinced.

After today, I am going to leave Friday's "New Requiem Press website" post on top for a while. If I have any readers left, please spread the word. We really need to raise some money and clear out our inventory. Here's the new link: http://www.requiempress.blogspot.com/ .

Oremus pro invicem!

New Requiem Press Website!

Unveiling our new Requiem Press website!

No hidden costs! Shipping included in the listed price.

Everything is on discount!

Pay by PayPal!

Thanks - Oremus pro invicem!

It’s impossible to give a 2 month update. Just a few highlights:

Introducing Dolly, our new ¾ Swiss Brown (1/4 Jersey) milk cow. Mostly the milk goes to our pigs (and the calf-see below). She is so gentle, and even though never before hand-milked, she took right to it. We don’t even restrain her legs (like we do for Mabel). We also still have our Jersey heifer from Mabel. She is halter-trained and ready to be bred. We may sell her as how many cows can our small holding support? Speaking of cows, we purchased a Jersey bull (Bart) calf. We will raise him to breed back our milk cows next year and then fill our freezer with him.

Our plan to sell some surplus turkeys this year was disastrous. Out of two batches, only two survive (Thanksgiving and Christmas). These will be the most expensive turkeys ever!

On the other hand, raising meat birds is going well (though we are not selling any). We have been eating Dark Cornish, Gamecocks, and some surplus roosters of various strains all summer, and we still have some two dozen left to butcher. We also have a dozen Dark Cornish hens (with rooster) to hopefully perpetuate our meat flock (along with the game hens).

We also have a diversified egg layer flock developing for the coming year: RI Reds, Amberlinks, Silver-laced Wynadottes, NH Reds, and some mixes. The old ones will go to the crock pot or the sale in a few months. (Was slightly disappointed with the White Leghorns and Comets we had this years. They did okay, but I expected better.)

Okra! Okra! Okra! We are getting plenty and learning to love it. Mrs. Curley makes a mean soup of okra, tomato, corn, and lentils, with chicken broth. It’s good in the summer-being lighter, but really I can’t wait until we have some in the dead of winter.

Put up over 30 quarts of corn. Most was not from our own field as the drought hit it, but from a neighboring farmer who let us pillage his field when he was done. The pigs got quite a bit also.

Watermelon was a wash, but the cantaloupes come faster than we can eat them. The green beans were a total loss (I managed even to lose the hay). Butter beans (Lima) are being harvested now-okay, but I was hoping for more. Zucchini was great while it lasted. Tomatoes have been so-so, but not finished yet. Egg plant is doing well now … and Cayenne peppers, more than we will use in a few years!

Dixie Lee peas are coming in like crazy. Looks like we’ll have a bumper crop.

It looks like our peanut crop (graciously on a neighbor’s field) is bigger and better than last year. I think I posted before that the peanut hay for the cows was a real boon.

Twice we went blueberry picking, some 18 gallons in all. These will taste good throughout the year in muffins, pancakes, jams, etc. It’s almost time to pick our own muscadines too.

And now it’s about time to start the fall garden. Broccoli, brussel sprouts, Swiss chard, collards, and turnips will go in as fast as I can manure and till up the spent garden space.

Now we have a flock of ducks, mostly Muscovy, but a few other species are roaming around. We also have a half dozen Guineas. (We went to the local small animal sale a few weeks back and go some deals).

With all these birds hanging around, our front yard is full of poultry tractors. Some of the poultry (gamecocks and guineas) roam totally free (no feed cost either).

We had an excellent spring with four litters of pigs. So far the summer/fall production is slow. We’ll have some, but things haven’t worked as well as planned. More to come this fall.

Requiem Press …. The old website will be coming down soon. We are going to try to clear out our inventory with some stellar pricing real soon. Our new site will be the requiemreader.blogspot.com site where transactions will be by Paypal only. Stay tuned on that one.

School started for us this week. Should be an exciting year. St. Michael, pray for us!

Plans before winter? We need to repair and finish (roof) the barn. I’d like to convert totally or partially to solar heat for our water heater with a homemade unit I am planning. An outdoor solar heated shower may be in the works too. (Don’t worry family members if you plan to visit, we won’t be dismantling the indoor plumbing anytime soon.) We’d like to get our wood stove (or more precisely our chimney) working again soon. A local builder has some ideas on how to make it safe again without spending an arm and a leg. (I don’t recall if I ever posted about our chimney fire back in early 2005, but we haven’t been able to burn wood since then.) Also, a couple of new chicken coops for our upcoming laying flock need to be built.

We really need to paint the house and repair the roof soon too. But we have some other minor, but urgent repairs or jobs to finish first.

God has been very good to us this year. We have been blessed with many family visits from the North. Food has been in plentiful supply. Money hasn’t, but we are together, working and playing (mostly working).

One final note: I was struck particularly but the second reading this past Sunday:

And you have forgotten the consolation which speaks to you, as unto children, saying: My son, neglect not the discipline of the Lord: neither be wearied whilst you are rebuked by him. 6 For whom the Lord loves he chastises: and he scourges every son whom he receives. 7 Persevere under discipline. God deals with you as with his sons. For what son is there whom the father does not correct? -Hebrews 12: 5-8

This was something I need to be reminded of this week!

Oremus pro invicem!

Tore up my ankle a few days ago ... twisting it in a hole I had tripped in three times the day before. Guess I am a bit hard-headed and don't learn quickly.

However, it has been good for me to try to be a good patient and to let go of a little control.

We've been eating well. Broccoli, Brussell Sprouts, Lettuce, Peas and Kohlrabi are finished. Zucchini, Green Beans, Swiss Chard (still) are in. I am told we have a few ears of corn are ready now (but we desperately need rain or we will lose much of it) and okra, watermelon, cantaloupe, tomatoes, peppers, are on the way. We need rain, but God's will be done!

We haven't done our yearly Enthronement of the Sacred Heart yet. We were going to on the feast, but realized we hadn't prepared properly. So we are on day eight of a Novena and will Enthrone on Sunday. Usually this also entails something we do called (for want of another name) family forgiveness. (What this is and the origins can be found in this older post post, about half-way done.

Oremus pro invicem!

Just a quick note .... For some reason I can't comment on my own blog anymore. Every time I try, I get an error message. So, to Mr. Hand: Good to hear from you. I missing posting, but feel the time away from the computer is more fruitful these days in many ways.

The Requiem Press website will be going away in a few days. I have replacement in mind, but haven't figured out how to get control of my domain name. At any rate, this is the last week to order books at the old site. The new site will use PayPal until our stock is diminished.

Oremus pro invicem!

Lots been going on these weeks. Often I remark, "I'll have to post about this ....", but these days things are just hopping. I don't get much computer time-which I think may be a blessing. So a quick update; in the last three weeks:

We've had 2 sows farrow (12 each) and one due to farrow on Monday;

Our dark Cornish flock is on the front yard in chicken tractors eating and fertilizing;

We had our annual square dance this past weekend-loads of fun!;

We're just about finished with our broccoli-next year we'll plant more, same for the Romaine lettuce;

Peas are almost ready to harvest;
corn is up and looking good, as are the zucchini, watermelon, beans, etc.;
we have a bit more to plant and we desperately need RAIN!;

We picked up an Ossabaw Island boar and two gilts to start a new Ossabaw herd;

I also picked up a Berkshire gilt this week to complete our regular herd; she'll be ready to breed in a few months.

I am sure I've missed something significant, but must go. We have Turkey chicks and more dark Cornish day-olds coming in next week, and I have to get ready for them.

Oremus pro invicem!

This is what we were doing last Friday night!

Happy Easter!

He is risen!!!!!

Posts have been sparse ... have been planting, working and many things. I hope to post more later in the week, but will leave you with this picture of my youngest son on the neighbor's horse.

Oremus pro invicem!

Deja vu

Here I am today rushing around, polishing brass (candle sticks and thurible) with Brasso and then shining shoes-all in preparation for tonight's Mass of the Last Supper. Reminds me of my days at the Citadel-rushing around polishing and shining.

God bless you all!

It was during Holy Week six years ago that I discerned what I thought was a call to start Requiem Press. As we begin Holy Week six years hence, I announce that Requiem Press will be closing its doors over the next few months. It was a good run and I learned a lot and met some fantastic people.

We will be selling out inventory (if possible). The website is still up, but things will be changing as we go through this process.

You know, I thought my books would help change the world-bringing people back to Christ-perhaps a few did, but I learned (once again) that I need to be more like the potter's clay, letting Christ make the model and just be His tool-not trying to do it all by myself.

I hope we can still sell some books, cause there are bills to pay.

More on this later.

I have a couple other good stories up my sleeve, but they will have to wait until we get past this holy season.

Oremus pro invicem!

Last week I returned to my old Men's Prayer Group at my former parish after some 5 years absence. We pray the Liturgy of the Hours, discuss something (scripture, the sacraments, etc.) and then go to Mass. I think I'll try to make it from now on when I am in the city. It is very valuable for men to pray together. I have missed it unknowingly.

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We finally made some peanut butter from our fall harvest. I also made some 'diabetic' peanut butter. Both seem to be hits. We have a bunch more to make. We haven't decided whether to plant peanuts again - it may depend on whether the land made available to us again. The peanut hay proved very valuable as a supplement for our cows (still getting almost 4 gallons a day from Mabel). In truth, besides some peanut brittle at Christmas, we haven't really used the peanuts as much as the hay. But this is changing.

******************

Our litter of 13 piglets is coming along very nicely. I will start weaning them in another week or so. I think we are going to hold a few of these back to sell as bbq pigs around July 4th. But we'll see.

In the meantime, we have litters due April 15th, April 18th, and May 17th. We have a gamecock hen setting on a clutch of eggs in one of our farrowing houses. Fortunately, those eggs should hatch a few days before I need to move a sow into the farrowing house.

I mentioned we are raising some Cornish/Rock broilers .... but in the meantime, we had eaten one of the gamecocks hatched in October. Boy, now that was a delicious chicken-maybe the best I've ever had. Methinks that I won't do C/R broilers again. We are going to build our gamecock flock.

I looked yesterday and some radishes, swiss chard, and peas are poking their heads out of the ground. I spread some more manure yesterday and tilled some more garden plot.

Oremus pro invicem!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Instead of writing a new post, I will post a link to my best previous post on St. Patrick's Day: 2007 St. Patrick's Day post

In the mail today came a request from the Mary Mother of God Mission Society -Reviving the Catholic Church in Eastern Russia. I have scanned it and reproduced it below. I have met one of the priest (an American) who has served in Vladivostok since 1991 and can recommend him and his work without question.

Unfortunately, I don't have the money to add my support to this worthy mission at this time-so I bring it to your attention. (http://www.vladmission.org/ )

Oremus pro invicem!

So, we planted peas, Kohl Rabi, Swiss chard, broccoli, lettuce, strawberries, radishes, beets, carrots, and onions this week. A good start, but we have more peas and Swiss chard to put in. Most of these will be done in May/early June, so we can plant some other stuff then. And of course we have other garden areas to plant, which won't be ready til April.

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Went to the Kershaw County Friends of the Library sale today. It always happens when we're broke, but we manage to scrape together what ever we need. Mrs. Curley found a Sheed & Ward book circa 1955 enticingly titled: Catholicism Protestantism and Capitalism by Anmintore Fanfani. Here's the blurb from the jacket (I am too lazy to retype it, but please do read it):

I also picked up The Lore of the Land by John Seymour with original illustrations by Sally Seymour. Finally, I picked up a book: Producing Your Own Power. This has two chapters on generating power from bio mass (Methane gas from manure.) This is of great interest. Our dairy cow and her heifer generate many pounds of manure each day. This winter you could see the heat coming off the manure piles. We need to harness this somehow. I'll keep you all up to date on my research.

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And we unexpectedly had time and caught the noon Mass in Camden. We really weren't dressed for it, but I figured it was better to go to Mass dressed down for a change, than not to go at all.

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We have Cornish-Rock broilers in our brooder. They came last week a day late and we lost 3/4 of them (the hatchery will replace our loss). Six weeks from now we should have chickens to sell (and some for our own freezer.)

Piglets are 5 weeks old this weekend. We have 2 litters due in mid-April and one in mid-May.

Tomorrow we will all be here for a change (the older boys have been in great demand as workers around the town), and if the weather holds up, we need to get some pens made, till some ground, build a new chicken house, and much much more.

We've moved our Lady of Fatima shrine and the girls will be planting flowers. I am looking for a site for an Infant of Prague shrine at the back of the property.

Lots of work, lots of joy.

Oremus pro invicem!

Over the years we have met, corresponded with, read about, etc people who yearn for a Catholic community of 'like-minded' folks. You would hope that being Catholic and 'like-minded' were synonymous and that a local parish community would fit the bill. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. The Catholic Church in America (and very likely other places as well) has seen great upheaval in these past decades, with theological and philosophical factions, scandals, and the like. We can lay blame at numerous doorsteps, but I don't have time (and possibly not the knowledge) to cover them all.

Thus many (and this is particularly desired among agrarian-leaning Catholics, but not limited to this group) want to find/form/join a community of "like-minded" folks. However, the definition of 'like-minded' itself is often the downfall of such planned communities. Philosophical attitudes often arise from the culture one is raised in. And thus when you put together Northeasterners, Southerners, people of Anglo descent, Eastern European descent, Mediterranean descent, 1st generation Americans, 5th generation Americans, ...., middle-class descent, children of poverty, etc. (you get the picture) AND then you add in (even among faithful Catholics) Vatican II, Latin, Novus Ordo, etc. you have a cauldron ready to boil.

(Not to be nostalgic but) In past times more people were born, raised, married, raised a family and died in the same parish surrounded by family and extended family. The importance of this stability can not be ignored. (Of course the industrial revolution and centralization of power has helped destroy the overwhelmingly agrarian culture.) These folks shared faith, family and culture. All three have been damaged. Let's leave aside faith for a moment.

The melting of ethnic cultures over several generations produces no culture. What has taken the place of traditional culture is the Protestant/now secular culture that is America. This has been facilitated by wealth, but even more so by mobility-which may in part be because of the seeking of wealth, or the American dream.

It is funny that many today (and I speak specifically of those seeking 'community') want natural foods, but seek an unnatural community. For true community is based on the family and then the extended family, created by the intermarriage of local families who share faith and geographic and ethnic culture who remain in the community to make it grow.

If I want a Catholic community in Bethune, SC of like-minded folks, it will happen if my children stay in (or return to) Bethune with their families and bring their talents to bear in this community-and their children do the same.

Rural communities have suffered because the younger generation has left. But you can still see the remnants of community in most rural areas stronger than other places because few people move into dying rural towns-thus the people left have roots there.

And who am I to preach stability? My wife and I left the communities of our youth to seek a better job-the American dream. Now being wiser (but poorer) we can only hope that our children see the folly of mobility. (This is not to say that we are unhappy where we are; this is a wonderful area, just lacking a nearby Catholic Church. But we also realize that more geographic stability would benefit our country. See the web magazine Front Porch Republic for more on this topic.)

That is not to say everyone must follow the same cookie cutter. However, the majority would do better staying local. When we send our children off to college (a whole other can of worms), it should be so that they come back to our community with new knowledge and skills.

Oremus pro invicem!

Snapped a few pics today. First is the new litter 3.5 weeks old, trying to steal mom's food.

Next is Tarzan (our boar) and Cordelia, a Hampshire gilt we hope will be bred soon.

Finally is Big Red, a Duroc/Tamworth gilt. She is bred and due end of May.

Off to the Stations of the Cross.

Oremus pro invicem!

From the Small Holding ...

From Practical Farming for the South by B.F. Bullock 1946, from the introduction to the section on Field Crops, in which Professor Bullock argues against the common practice then (and even today) of planting and specializing in only a few "cash crops":

The southern farmer must be convinced that his farm is a better place on which to live than it is on which to make a living. ... American farms were once made to produce almost all the basic needs for a happy and prosperous life, and they must be made to do so again if the true spirit of American freedom is to survive.

We've been doing much planning for our current year of planting. Last year we put in our peas and onions by this time. But it has been colder than usual. We did till some garden areas this weekend, but with snow on the menu for Wednesday morning, I think we have a few more weeks.

We moved our heifer calf last week and will be planting our early crops (peas and onions) on her old pen. We will be planting on the pen we raised turkeys on last year and are extending the garden in the front. (I think and aerial plot is called for. I will work on it for the next post.)

In our main garden area, we are planting entirely in corn. We are going to let some hogs harvest it, one section at a time, moving the fencing. I hope this works out. As each section is hogged down, we will come back immediately with greens. We are pretty excited with all the extended garden area.

Big Spot still has 13 piglets thriving at 3 weeks old. They just started to steal their mom's food. I need to cut the males this week. I will wean in another 4-5 weeks. We have 2 more litters due in mid April, one towards the end of May, and hopefully one in June/July-but the last is too early to predict yet.

Mrs. Curley and the girls are making a new area/grotto for Our Lady of Fatima 'shrine'. They got quite a lot done on Saturday. Now they just have to plant the flowers.

I am looking for a good spot to create a shrine for the Infant of Prague image we have. I owe it to Him.

Sorry for the long absence, but get used to it as the busy arrives. (Oh yes, we have 100 day-old chicks coming this week-Cornish/rock broilers.)

Oremus pro invicem!