Poison Ivy!

So, two weeks or so before Easter two of my sons got poison ivy. One case was extreme as it always is for him. I was with them cutting wood for next winter, but I only had a little spot on my arm. It never itched and I wasn't even sure that's what it was.

Fast forward 10 days later to spy Wednesday. Older son, who had worried the poison ivy would keep him from serving at the altar during Holy Week, was recovered enough to serve, as was his brother.

My little spot itched a little, but I thought nothing of it. By Good Friday, both my arms were crazy with itch. To make matters worse, Mrs. Curley caught it from me! By Monday, I had the itch from shoulders to ankle. Mrs. Curley went to the doc Monday and I went on Tuesday. We started a steroid last night. Some people in the family get "difficult" on prescription steroids. The joke around here is whether Mrs. Curley and I will still be talking come Friday!

Of course some in the family are totally against me taking any medication to end this torture. They say, "Dad, just think of the North American Martyrs!" They may have a point, but I go forward none-the-less. I will let you judge my character.

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

In lighter news, I sold a story to Back Home Magazine. It's not available online yet, but really long time readers of this blog (I mean back to the first few entries) will recognize the background issues involved in building better chicken coop protection from predators-including your own.

He is risen! Oremus pro invicem!

He is Risen!

Alleluia!

The latest at CL

Just a little article on Catholic Lane that I wrote. Here's a snippet:

But to go back to those healthy couples who choose to surgically or artificially limit the love in their families, I want to ask them: What if God limited His love, that is His creation, to just Adam and Eve? Those first two, after all, were a troublesome pair. They didn’t obey very well.

Read the whole thing here.

Oremus pro invicem!

Plowing the field

Update: Here's some pictures:

We’ve started plowing the field with our new walk-behind turn plow. I will say it is easier on the horse. He can plow more land in a session.

But it IS NOT easier on the plowman. If I keep plowing, I will lose a hunk of weight and get in better shape. It’s a real workout.

Will try to get some pictures this week.

Oremus pro invicem!

I made corned beef from the brisket of the dairy cow we had to put down this past August. I used the recipe in Charcuterie (rapidly becoming one of my favorite books-borrowed from a friend) minus the garlic.

I have never been a big fan of corned beef purchased from the supermarket, it is just too salty; you can’t soak or boil enough salt out of it. This corned beef was just right. I think it is the first time I really enjoyed it.

We also had pigeon this weekend. A friend was thinning out his racing pigeon herd and told us they were good to eat. They were okay. I think I overcooked them, but even so they were okay, very dense meat. Half of them I wrapped in homemade bacon and baked. The other half I soaked in milk and then battered flour and spices and fried. I think the one wrapped in bacon turned out better-but what else would you expect?

We started plowing a portion (~ ¼ acre) of the field we are leasing this week. I expect we will be planting some peas there by weeks’ end. Today I am purchasing a walk-behind horse/mule plow board with a turn plow, sweep, and shovel attachments. It is very good working order and reasonably priced. He had another which possibly had never been used, but it didn’t have all the adjustment features as this one does.

Our horse does a good job with the forecart plow, but it is an awful lot of weight to be pulling. We are hoping that the walk-behind will conserve some of his energy so that we can actually plow more territory in a day. However, this will present some new challenges. I believe a mule or a calmer horse would walk straighter lines than does our quarter horse. When plowing with the forecart, it is fairly easy to keep the wheel in the furrow, but once we get to cultivating, the horse doesn’t seem to want to walk those straight rows. So we will see how it goes. If we can get him to walk straight rows, the new sweep attachment will greatly assist us in cultivating and keeping the pigweeds down.

There is a big working horse and tack auction in Troutman, NC this coming weekend. Many of the horses/mules are Amish trained. AND I am told if you wait around towards the end, you can get some great deals on dead broke to ride and pull animals. Unfortunately I don’t think our budget will allow it this spring.

It has been so warm we took a chance and put a small patch of sweet corn 2 weeks ago. It is up now and looking good. We put in another patch this weekend. In another 2 weeks we will put in our final bit of sweet corn.

The warm spring makes me think we are behind in planting, but really we are doing okay with peas, lettuce, broccoli, radishes, etc already in and up.

Oremus pro invicem!

Weaned some piglets this weekend. Put the sow in with our new boar. If he works out, we can bring some of Tarzan's daughters into the herd and expand from our best sows (if that's what we decide to do.)

We should start getting our leased land ready this week. First we will cut down the tall, but dead weeds, remnant from last year. We will rake (plow) the field and then start plowing in earnest. We will start with a small portion and get in some early peas and then get going on the rest.

Am thinking of taking a small engine repair course this spring. I work on our cars now, but usually with lots of local advice. It would be good to become very good at small engine repair and get some income fixing mowers and chainsaws and tillers etc. Of course many around here to a lot of their own work, but I think this may work out.

Speaking of chainsaws ... this being a mild winter was a blessing since it was our first using only wood for heat. I hope I have enough wood cut later this spring to get us through a tougher winter next year. Here's a picture of Number 4 son with wood and a not so good pic of our stove taken during the Christmas season (as should be obvious from the background).

Oremus pro invicem!

Thanks for all the prayers regarding our "big decision". Don't you all know that I haven't let loose with the news to keep readership?

Without going into all the mechanics of it, because the whole process (not our doing) dragged out much longer than human patience can imagine, late last week we decided to stay here. I immediately approached our neighbor about leasing 6 acres again this year (affirmative answer).

God then immediately blessed us through two local farmers who offered us the equivalent of 10-11 truckloads of turnips from their fields if only we would harvest them. (Not a complete diet for the hogs, but every bit helps.)

Again, thanks for the prayers. The whole process made us revisit why we are here and how to go forward. God has been very good to us.

Oremus pro invicem!

Seen

on a Church (I think Methodist, but it could have been Luthern) billboard on the way home from Mass on Sunday:

Lent

It’s not just for bellybuttons!

Now, for most of us, this just doesn’t make sense. However (and it may be peculiar to the midlands of SC) there is an common accent which renders the short “e” sound as a short “i”. Therefore, for example: “pen”, is pronounced “pin”.

So here, “Lent” is rendered “Lint”, and thus how it makes sense-at least to some. We had a laugh because of the occasional miscommunication that has resulted with our friends over this regional accent peculiarity.

In truth we didn’t get it right away. We did a doubletake and then got it.

Oremus pro invicem!

The new view

Mentioned in the last post was that we had moved many of our pigs and breeding hogs to the front yard. Here is the new view from our front porch.

And here is one of our roaming gamecocks and game hens. The game hens lay and hatch 20-30 chicks each year without us doing a thing. They rustle their own food. We have almost 30 hens and some 8 cocks roaming around now. We need to thin them so they won't destroy our garden. With 8 hens and 2 cocks, they won't do much damage. We will sell a few and put a few more in the freezer.

Received our ashes this morning. Impressed by the homily's call to fast from entertainment and desserts so we can make more time for prayer. Here's to an initially painful but eventually uplifting Lenten season!


Oremus pro invicem!

First, no news related to my last two posts. We thought things would be settled by now, but I guess some wheels turn slowly. That being the case, we just need to plow ahead with our spring agenda.

We rotate our hogs from pen to pen and plant in open pens as much as possible. But there are some areas which have seen only brief breaks over the years. Our garden has been primarily in our front yard with some exceptions (most notably the tremendous corn we had last year in an old hog pen). This year we are rotating things a bit more. Since we have scaled down to three sows, we have more open areas and more options. So in the past few weeks we have been moving all of our pigs and hogs onto the front lawn/former garden. There is still some gardening space, but a good third of it is now occupied by some growers and most of our breeding stock.

Moving our breeding stock on Friday turned out to be quite an adventure. Moving hogs in recent years has usually not been a big deal. We have some experience and know the best way for each sow or boar. But our youngest sow, Sal, gave us a run for our money on Friday. We had a trailer which we backed up to the pen gate. Normally a hog will follow food into the trailer. We moved our boar and then our first sow with no problem. Then came Sal. She just wouldn't cooperate. First we tried to lure her; then we tried to push her; then we tried to back her in with a bucket over her head and a rope tied to her back leg. She didn't want to have any part of it. I now recall her mother used to be the most stubborn hog to move also (although now reformed). Finally we moved Sal into the shoot area between the gate and the trailer. But instead of moving forward, she overpowered the shoot wall and escaped. Two of the boys grabbed at the still dangling rope from her hind leg and quickly wrapped it around a tree-but not without some rope burns first. Finally, we hemmed her in with some hog panels. Since, the overgrown area she had escaped to would have been difficult to manuver the trailer into with the truck, Mrs. Curley and I disengaged it and manually pushed it over rough terrain to the ad hoc holding pen. Finally, here Sal decided she had lost, and boarded the trailer.

Instead of a 15 minute job, we spent almost 3 hours just on Sal. We had planned to slaughter a hog Friday afternoon, but it was too late (and we were too spent) to continue our plans. Such is homestead life. Plans are always thwarted.

We will (if all goes according to plans - ha!) put some onions, broccoli, romaine lettuce, and peas in this week. Our collards from the fall (planted late) are now doing well and are all that is left from the fall garden. I did harvest a small batch of carrotts last week. I didn't plant near enough-I never do.

The start of Lent always (at least nearly) coincides with the start of planting. I think it seems quite appropriate in some ways. The spiritual work we do in Lent (or lack thereof) results in the harvest of Easter. Likewise, with planting.

Oremus pro invicem!

My thanks for all the prayers. No decision yet-it'll be another week or so at least as we gather all the data.

Oremus pro invicem!

I've had a job offer which would be a full-time position. It would pay well, but would require a move and an end to all but the simplest of homesteading activities. Much to think and pray about. We haven't had "benefits" in years and certainly haven't had the kind of salary in the offing.

A friend was extolling to me all the pros of going back into industry full-time. He made many good points. He ended the sales pitch with this: "and all you'd have to give up is your freedom.", and then he chuckled.

Ah, but that last is the point. Please pray for our discernment and acceptance of God's will with joy!

Oremus pro invicem!

Something to think on ...

From Friends & Strangers by John Medaille over at Front Porch Republic :

I start my meditation with a true story that will serve as a parable. On his 21st birthday, the nature writer Francis Thompson was presented by his father with a bill for all the expenses of his upbringing including the costs of his birth and delivery. Francis paid the bill, but he never spoke to his father again. ...

We are immediately repelled by this story, yet at the same time, we have to concede a strange kind of justice to it. There is no doubt that the father was correct to point out to his son the obligation that he had, but in quantifying that obligation, he converted it into a debt, for that is the difference between an obligation and a debt: an obligation becomes a debt when you can put a number on it. “I owe you one” is an obligation; “I owe somebody $10″ is a debt. Obligations bind people together even after they have been “paid.” But debts bind us only for as long as the debt exists. The relationship dies on payment of the debt. We might say that obligations bind us together, while debts drive us apart. By quantifying the obligation, Thompson’s father offered him the opportunity to dissolve it, to discharge it, and in doing so to end their relationship; his son took the offer and was no longer his son.

I never thought of the difference between a debt and obligation in these terms, but in contemplating it this morning, I have found it to be true. I am so happy to be involved in so many obligations (one way or the other) among my friends and in our rural community.

Oremus pro invicem!

I'm tired of ...

calls from Mitt Romney and postcards from the superpac supporting him. It must be nice to run a positive campaign while having a superpac doing a hack job on everyone who might take a vote from you.

Unfortunately all the M.R. calls are recordings so I can only hang up. I can't get the satisfaction of telling the caller I will never vote for Romney.

Oremus pro invicem!

From The Church and the Land by Fr. Vincent McNabb:

It would be well to enumerate these primary needs if only for the sake of realizing how far we are from finding them provided by the present Industrial System. Our primary economic necessities are: (1) Food - i.e., bread, vegetables, milk, meat, malted liquors, etc.; (2) Clothing - i.e., woollen, linen, and cotton stuffs, well tanned or untanned leather; (3) Housing - i.e., a home of sufficient rooms, a homestead, fresh air, etc.; (4)Fuel; wood, coal, etc. All other things belong to man's secondary needs.

Now it may be startling to some men to be reminded that the present Factory System of Industrialization produces none of the primary needs of human existence. The land and the land alone gives us the simplicities of Food, Clothing, Housing, Fuel. Factory methods cannot give us these necessities of life; but they can give them a quality which makes them controllable by a small group of men who wish to make money by controlling them.

Well, we are far from relying solely on the land for our primary economic necessities, but we are farther along than we were 8 years ago. Virtually all our meat and 70% of our vegetables come from our land. Most dairy comes from our land. Bread .... well we don't grow or grind our own wheat, but we make at least some of our own bread. Clothing ... well, here is progress. Number 2 son had been hard at tanning deer hides this winter. Not much clothing has appeared, but it is in the works. And this year we are on all wood heat for the first time.

It is not that I believe one has to obtain all of his primary economic needs from the land as opposed to from the Industrial System, but doing so, or knowing how to do so as much as possible does provide some freedom.

Oremus pro invicem!

Happy Christmas!

Yes we are still celebrating. Mrs. Curley bought me a wonderful and useful gift: a Rapid Brew brand coffee percolator. We are also sporting a new red heeler puppy. Mrs. Curley also got me a book I have been longing to read: The Church and the Land by Fr. Vincent McNabb. Have just started reading it, I surmise it won't take me long to get through it.

Cold weather came in today. The pot belly stove is keeping up.

Not to brag, but I made a delicious duck sausage with lots of sage and a roasted garlic paste, courtesy of the book Charcuterie. It's a great resource. Several months ago I made some Canadian bacon also relying on Charcuterie.

This is really hog slaughter weather now-although we do it year round, we really get going now. And many new recipes to work on once the pork is in the freezer.

Oremus pro invicem!

I heard a supposed holiday comedy bit on the radio last night which reminded of some events in my own life long ago ....

Before Mrs. Curley and I were married, or even dating, we worked at a small high tech start-up. We didn't work much together, but somehow we seemed to be always kidding each other about one thing or another. She and a small crew worked 2nd shift. I was the shift problem solver or consultant but wasn't really part of the shift as I had other work to do. I was just there for them in case of need.

So one Christmas, the 2nd shift decided to do a Secret Santa deal where you picked a name out of the hat and bought a modest present. It was all to be secret until the present exchange.

Leading up to the name selection I gave Mrs. Curley a hard time about her planning on stuffing the hat with her own name so she'd get lots of presents.

When it was my turn to pick a name, I immediately turned to her and said, "So you DID stuff the hat!" In fact I had picked her name, but didn't let on other than an occasional kidding about fixing the game.

On other days, I would come up to her and say, "I'm having trouble deciding what to get my secret Santa; what do think of those Chia Pets you see advertised on TV?" She would raise her eyebrows and look at me with some skepticism, but say, "Oh I don't know. That might be okay."

Well Christmas came and I delivered a gift-not a Chia Pet. The following year we were both laid off and started dating. Now almost 20 years later and 7 children, I am still tempted to buy Mrs. Curley a Chia Pet when I see them in the store.


Oremus pro invicem!

I have been wanting to get in the shop to craft some Christmas presents, but so far my sons have been monopolizing the shop and my tools. There is only room for so many cooks. But I promised them I was kicking them out starting tomorrow as time is running short-although, I don't feel too much pressure to have everything made and finished by the 25th. Christmas is after all, a season.

Even better, I have been toying with the idea that I will have each one help me make their own present. The time spent together working and teaching may be more valuable than the gift itself.

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

A great friend of mine lost his mother in September and his father this week. We attended the Requiem Mass for the father yesterday in Columbia, SC. It was only the second Requiem Mass in the Extraordinary Form (TLM) I have ever been present at. A priest from the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter flew in to offer the Mass.

My sons being some of the few altar servers at our small parish, I go to several funerals every year. Very often there are very few communicants at these funerals. No wonder, we live in an area with few Catholics, so friends attending are often Protestant. But often times many of the family members themselves are not communicants. It may be the case that the deceased was a convert to the Faith, but also, I suspect, sometimes, the family members are no longer practicing Catholics.

This wasn't the case yesterday. The deceased had a large family and there were many, many communicants. Praise be to God for a life well-lived and a great passing on of the Faith to his children! May his sould and all the souls of the faithful departed, rest in peace!

Oremus pro invicem!

I am sure posts will be scarce the next week or so. I leave you with my latest article: here. Longtime readers here will recognize some of the content. Recycle you know!

Oremus pro invicem!

From the last print issue (ever) of Catholic World Report:

The US State Department reports that there is no Christian Church open to the public in Afghanistan.

The State Department has acknowledged that Afghanistan has seen a decrease in religious liberty in the past decade since American troops have been active there. The last know Christian church was demolished in 2010.

What a record we have. Most of the Christians have left Iraq also. Who's winning what wars????

Oremus pro invicem!

My latest at CatholicLane can be read here about Ayn Rand's influence on Congress. I conclude:

It would seem to me that Congress and the American people would do well to
think about Peter Maurin’s words rather than Ayn Rand’s.

Oremus pro invicem!

Smaller is better

The trend is mega-churches, and that all too often includes making larger and larger Catholic parishes. In the Church, I suppose the purpose is a consolidation of resources-both priests and financial resources. I think this is a mistake.

In a small parish, the priest can be a true shepard to all the flock. The priest really knows his flock, family by family, regardless of whether a particular person or family is involved in numerous committees and activities. I think this is critical to the spiritual welfare of the Church.

Likewise I think there are far too few dioceses. I think they should be smaller and more numerous. Thus the bishop can really get to know his flock.

In SC, the Catholic population is small, but the diocese is large geographically (the entire state.) When Bishop Baker was here, he spent his time tirelessly traveling the diocese and was very accessible. (I make no comment on our current Bishop simply because he hasn't been here very long and I don't know as much about his activities-although he has made the effort to visit every parish-but it took over a year. 90+ parishes over such an area is a tough job.)

Just another instance where I think smaller can be better....

Oremus pro invicem!

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.

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

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!

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

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!