The sun sets on another beautiful day!

Photo Walk

One of our local camera shops holds these amazing "Photo Walk" events.  Basically, a bunch of people get together at a specific location and take photos.  It is open to all ages, all skill levels, any type of camera, and it is free.  The staff from the store is on hand for tips and advice, and you will meet a ton of people that are willing to help you out.

Who could ask for anything better?

I have owned a decent camera for over a year now.  It may be two years, but whose counting.  I tend to shoot everything on AUTO!

Blah!  

Boring!

I know my camera has tons of buttons and knobs that control all sorts of settings, but for the life of me, I do not understand what any of it means.  It is like learning a new language.  I haven't had the time to try to figure it out on my own, and I really doubt I could.  These photo walks are held at different locations and at different times of the day.  I have always been busy, exhausted, or if I'm being honest, intimidated!  This time, I decided to be a grown up and sign up.  It also helped when I found out one of our family members had signed up for the same event.  I was certain she knew more about her camera than I did, but I found confidence in not being alone in the crowd.

It was so much fun!

I met a lot of people that speak camera, and were willing to help me out.  I was even lucky enough to bump into a guy who owns the exact same camera I do.  He had a ton of knowledge.  He was willing to share.  So I humbled myself for the experience.

I admitted to one of the staff members that I usually shoot about 100 pictures and feel lucky if I get one good one.  He laughed, and then pointed out that I only have a 1% success rate.  He was committed to helping me improve on that.  He gave me some pointers and then with the help of my fellow Canon owner, I set about executing my new found knowledge.

One of the first shots I took in manual mode.

Then my new Canon friend showed me another angle to try.  The illuminated snow flakes on the ground are a result of some pretty impressive lighting around the square.

Then we tried to play with the water a bit in front of the tree.  I really wanted to go move that umbrella in the shot, but I refrained.  Let me tell you, it was really hard not to move that umbrella.

Then we went super crazy playing with the shutter speed and focusing in or out!

Then we moved back to the front of the tree and tried it again.

Then we played around with this cute little gingerbread girl.

Then we moved to the other side of the square and played around with this water fall.  You can't really see the water, but the lighting was really cool.

Outside the square, we took a different view.

Love the light tracer from the car that had just made the turn.

Back around to the tree again, and yes, another umbrella.

The last one is probably my favorite.

Can't wait to do another one!

Life is Good!

I love it when things work out.  I posted previously that I was going to build a honey warmer.  I know, some of you were like, "What?"

As a beekeeper, one problem we all deal with is honey that crystallizes.  All honey will do it at some point or another.  It's just a question of when.  This has never been a problem for me before, but before this year, I've never had honey left in December.  It flies off the shelves as soon as we harvest it.  I still have a decent supply, and I actually have customers that want to give it as Christmas Gifts.

The problem - cold honey does not bottle well.

Crystallized honey is even worse.

The trick with getting your honey back into its most beautiful liquid state is to do it slowly at a low temperature.  If you heat it at too high of a temperature it will caramelize.  Caramelized honey is no good. If you get it to the point of caramel, it will never liquefy again.

Think "Making Candy" - it is sugar at this point!

I've been looking around for an old refrigerator to use as a honey warmer.  Then it dawned on me.  I have a mini fridge the girls used to drag around in college.  It hasn't worked for a while, and I primarily use it for storing pollen substitute for the bees.  After I looked it over, I realized it would be perfect.

Today - I broke out the tools.

I had a plan.

I had supplies.

It all came together.

Exactly like I had envisioned.

(Please excuse photo quality, the garage does not have the best lighting.)

Here is the fridge in question.  You can tell it's been moved around a bit, but it's not too shabby looking.

The view of the inside...

I had to make a few adjustments.  For one, the freezer section was in the way a bit.  It had to go.  Second, I needed a heat source.  Keep in mind, I need low heat over a long period of time.  This is where the genius of my plan comes in.  I won't take all the credit because I had help from some great guys down at the local hardware store.  When I say local, I mean small scale store, no big box stores could have helped with this project.  

They just don't understand me.

The freezer removed, and the light fixture installed, I think I'm in business.  Removing the freezer was easy enough. Adding the light fixture just required drilling a few holes in the bottom and a little wiring to supply power.  No worries, the wiring part was easy.  It was all color coded and pretty simple.

I always knew color coordinating was important to men.

Everything fits perfect.

I'll be bottling honey before you know it.

Really sorry about the photo quality.

Just super excited this actually worked!

Productive So Far...

I've been doing my best to get some spring cleaning done.  I know.  It's not spring, but I'm running on Bee Light Savings Time, and there's no time like the present.  If you have no idea what Bee Light Savings Time is, catch up on the post I wrote previously - Solving The Problems of the World! 

I missed my spring cleaning this past spring due to the endless amount of work my bees required.  I am trying to get caught up and get a jump on the new year.  So far, I have pulled everything down from the attic and gone through the garage.  Not your typical spring chore, but I had to get the Christmas decorations down anyway.  So, I just pulled it all out of there.  I moved the Christmas decorations to the guest room, and hopefully I'll get them up this coming week.  I also went through every box I hauled down.  I packaged a lot of it up and took it to my favorite donation spot.  In the process I called a couple of hooligans over to go shopping as I was hauling it down.  One of them didn't take a single thing, but the other left with a truck load.

Thanks Willie T.!

I always knew you were good for something.

In the process of cleaning out the garage and attic I realized there was something that needed to be moved to my closet. This prompted a quick closet clean out.  I only went through the clothes that were hanging in there, but I managed to part with about six bags of pretty nice stuff.  Those bags also made it to the donation drop off.

The attic and garage may seem like a random place to start, but there is a method to my madness.  For one thing, there is zero insulation in the attic above the garage.  I don't know why, but I'm going to change that.  I have a lot of DIY projects that need to get done before Christmas.  I want to be warm out there if it decides to get cold on us again.  Plus, on the particular day I made my way into the attic, it was in the seventies.  Not a bad day for such a chore.

I'm also trying to be a little proactive on the coming bee season.  Each season starts with the building of additional equipment.  Well, not each season if you quit expanding.  I have not quit expanding.  For the past three years I have been caught in the peak of the season building equipment.  I have yet to be prepared with what I need ahead of time.

Not 2015!

I want to get all of my wooden ware built by February.  Texas weather is always unpredictable except for January and February.  You can pretty much count on the fact that these are going to be our coldest months.  I mentioned buying a heater for the garage, but the Man in Charge said it would be pointless without some insulation up there.  If there's one thing in life I don't want to be - it's pointless!

I've just resolved myself to the fact that it's going to be another crazy week.  Crazy because I will be all over the place.  I've got to finish my closet, insulate the attic, build a honey warmer, bottle honey, put up the Christmas decorations, go to the dentist, go to the doctor, and don't forget all the usual stuff.  I know there are not a lot of things on this list that may interest you, but I am super excited.  Especially about the honey warmer.  I'll try to post some pictures of the process.  I know you're just dying to see what I'm talking about.

Such is the life of a retired SAHM, empty-nester, do-it-your-selfer, beekeeping, crazy person.

Success or Failure!

I committed to posting on this little blog of mine for the entire month of November, and I almost made it.  I missed the last two days!  I was really bummed about this, but this is the closest I've ever come to actually doing it!  I posted something every day!  Days that were crazy busy!  In the end, we were just having too much fun!

Both the girls came home for the holiday weekend, and it was a packed weekend of events!  They both rolled in on Wednesday evening and the games began.  We stayed up until 2:00 in the morning cooking for Thanksgiving Dinner!  It was fun and there was a lot of chatter and cooking happening.  Our dinner was perfect this year.  I'm not just bragging on the food.  We also had the cutest two year old at our table this year.  He was very entertaining.  He brought his mother and his baby brother, and we had a blast.

My new worker in training.

We took him out to feed the chickens and he was a little hesitant at first.  After dinner, we asked if he wanted to feed them again and he was all over it!  He ran across the yard, calling them up and throwing out bread.  When the bread was all gone, he ran back to the house giggling and wanting more bread!  The girls ended up having an awesome Thanksgiving as well.  I think they ate about a half a loaf of bread!

Friday, we put Thanksgiving behind and went to Ft. Worth to watch the Parade of Lights to kick off the Christmas season. We met everyone at the train station and made our way into the big city.  This time we had two of the cutest two year old's in tow.  This was their first train ride and their first parade!  The weather was brisk, but pleasant, and we had a great time. We finished with dinner and after we made it back home, we stayed up into the wee hours of the morning playing cards. Saturday started out a little slower, but we finished strong with a late night movie with friends.  So again, another late night.

Sunday - I took a long nap!

This week has been a struggle to get going.  I am so far behind on my life, but oh well!  I did celebrate my wedding anniversary yesterday.  The Man in Charge and I decided to have a quiet evening in with take-out!  Some may say, "Boring!" For us, it was perfect!

Today, gulping coffee and trying to get myself together!

This stinks!

I have made it two days without using my wrist/hand.  Well, for the most part.  I mean, almost.  It is really hard and it stinks.  The facts are, if I have access to my thumb, I am using it.  If I take my thumb out of the equation, I still use my arm to hold things.

Stupid.

This is boring.  I don't like it.  It is depressing.  The only fun part is making up stories when people ask what happened.  So far, my favorite...

"Left Cross."  

I have caught up on half my shows that I've missed.  It is nice outside, but who cares.  I don't want to take a nap.  I don't need help drying my hair.  And NO, I don't want anyone to cut up my meat.

Ugh!

I did have an interesting conversation with my Full-Timer regarding the new year.  She is really excited about hers because this will be the year she has been waiting for.  This will be then end of school.  The end of living at home.  The beginning of everything new.  That is exciting.  It is exciting for me, too.  It will be the end of a lot of things for me.  It will also be the beginning of a lot of things.  For some reason, I just have been feeling a little "meh" about the whole transition.  Not regarding her,  I am thrilled for her.  That is not it at all.  I just don't know, looking back, what I feel about 2013.  

Was it good?  

Was it bad?  

Do I have an opinion at all?

Nothing stands out either way. and I don't think I like that.

Since I am pretty much on lock down, I have been on the computer a lot.  I spent some time catching up on emails and blogs that I follow.  I have recently started following a blogger in the Boston area.  She is cute and funny.  She likes the same foods I like.  She is a runner.  We have nothing in common in that area, because she is a real runner.  You can check her out if you like at www.leafparade.com.  In my reading, I came across a link that had me laughing out loud, all alone with my computer.  I am still undecided about where I fall when it comes to 2013, but wherever I land on the issue, I now feel better about it.

Check it out - How do you feel about you year?

Waylaid by drunken carrots!

I do not like hurting. I don't like sore muscles.  I don't like sore joints.  I just don't like to hurt.  Period.  I have been very lucky in my life to have never broken any bones.  I have done stupid things like drive a piece of wood into my hand with a hammer.  That injury was the result of a candy cane attack, and took over a year to completely heal.  I have also whacked myself in the head with a post driver.  I am sure I will forever suffer the consequences of that injury.  For the most part, for me,  it has been sore muscles.  You know, from trying to kill yourself.  I did go through a spell of back pain that radiated down my leg once.  I went to the chiropractor and he informed me that one leg was two inches longer than the other one.  Do you suppose that was due to throwing 50 lb. bags of feed over my left shoulder, over and over?  I had basically compacted one side of my body.  He cracked me pretty good a few times.  Then, good as new.  Even he was surprised at how fast it worked.  He said that was pretty unusual.

As you can see, I have been pretty lucky.  Except for this one thing so far.  This one stupid thing that just won't go away.  My left wrist.  Weird because I am right handed, but I have had an on going battle with my left wrist for the last couple of years.  I lose the ability to grip anything and I have pain that shoots from my ring, middle, and index finger up the back of my hand and wrist, up to my elbow.  At first, I did the traditional thing.  I went to the doctor.  He simply explained it was over use.  Prescribed anti-inflammatory medication that came with some serious warnings.  He also had a compounding pharmacy mix up some cream that I was to use several times a day.  Then, told me to use a brace or wrap when I was working.  The last part was the only part he got right.  You see, he knew I wasn't going to stop working.

I used the cream and took a few of the pills.  I also have a nice collection of braces and wraps.  I have gone through various periods of no pain and serious pain.  Then, I really did something crazy.  I changed my diet.  Like serious changes.  No sugar.  No grains, including corn and rice.  Then, I added a healthy dose of good fat.  You can Google Paleo Diet or Primal Diet, and read more than you ever wanted to regarding this way of eating.  I tended to lean more towards a Primal Diet, but you should check it out yourself.  So, then amazing things started happening.  I lost weight.  My skin started looking fabulous.  I also had a lot less joint pain (knees and hips), and my wrist pain completely went away.  I was shocked.  I went to my doctor for a check-up, and he was shocked.  After asking what I was doing he said,

"Oh yes.  A lot of the foods you have eliminated do create inflammation in the body."

When I asked him why he never mentioned that before, or, I don't know, recommend a diet change?  He said,

"Oh, you know, most people won't let go of their dinner roll."

That is when he just became a drug dealer to me.

As amazing as it was to feel so good, the real truth has come from when I eat bad food.  When I load up on grains and sugar, I can feel it.  My fingers swell and get really fat.  My joints (knees, hips, and hands) start to throb.  I usually take a huge dive in the energy department, and in general just feel really bad.  I am not perfect, so I do indulge in these foods occasionally.  I am still always shocked at how bad they make me feel.  That is why I call them bad foods.  Hopping off the wagon every once in a while is bad enough.  Let me try that for a few days, and there are serious consequences.  It is safe to say that I have hopped on and off quite a bit through this holiday season, and now I am paying for it.

This is so stupid.

Christmas Dinner Menu

• Beef Tenderloin
• Garlic Mashed Potatoes
• Whiskey Glazed Carrots
• Wedge Salad w/ Tomatoes and Buttermilk dressing
• Rolls
• Pumpkin Pie w/ a Gingerbread Cookie Crust

The beef and the salad are the only safe items on this list for me to eat, but it was Christmas Day and I was ready to indulge.  It doesn't help that I also had a cheeseburger the other day.  I over indulged at a Christmas party last Saturday - In a BIG way!  Plus, I had to do quality control on four different kinds of Christmas cookies that we shared with friends.  

There.

My confession.

My name is Candi.

I am addicted to sugar.

Sorry.  

(laughing)

It is just funny every time I write it.

I was destined to be a sugar addict.

Any - who...

Normally we cook these drunken carrots in an iron skillet.  I was making a double batch, so I grabbed a really big iron skillet.  My Full-timer said, "Don't we normally use the dutch oven?"  That is not what the recipe says, so I argued.  Once on the stove, these carrots were swimming in whisky, butter and brown sugar.  Then, I noticed the recipe said to cover and let cook.  There is no lid for this extra large chunk of iron.

Crap.

I tried foil, but once they started making a mess of my stove, my Full-Timer said, "This is why we use the dutch oven."

Ugh!

Can someone please write that on the recipe?

I grabbed the dutch oven.  Then, I grabbed the oven mitt and the super large Iron skillet.  When I picked it up to dump my woozy carrots into the dutch oven, I felt it.  That old familiar pain in my left wrist.  Not horrible, but there.  I proceeded with my day of cooking and then feasting.  Boy, did we feast.  It was delicious. 

I ate a lot of really bad food.  

So, later last night, after watching a movie with the family, I grabbed a blanket and folded it up.  Seems innocent enough, but when I went to put it away, I felt another pain in my wrist.  This time, it radiated from my fingers all the way up to my elbow.  It hurt.  Bad enough that I thought I might get sick.  Nausea is a real signature of pain level for me.  I, of course, did what I always do...I tried to ignore it.  I then grabbed some glasses and headed for the kitchen.  Just the simple act of placing a glass in the sink sent another wave of pain.  This time, I dropped the glass.  I just simply could not hold onto it.

I have spent all morning on-line self-diagnosing myself, and I have a plan of treatment that is totally conflicting with my plans for the rest of the year.  I am going with the PRICE treatment plan for at least a week, and also throwing in some old school methods, and applying some apple cider vinegar wraps.  If at the end of a week I see no progress, I am headed to the doctor.

Stupid.

This is why carrots should not drink whiskey.

P.S.

PRICE treatment plan:

P - protect

R - rest

I - ice

C - compression

E - elevate

P.P.S.

I have done the Whole30 diet challenge, and I mainly stick to meat, fish, eggs, fruit, and vegetables now.  I have started indulging in too much honey, and will have to cut that out for a while.  I tend to start off with a bit here and there, and then before you know it I am having it all the time.  Addict - remember?  Plus, honey stores are running really low.  I also cut out dairy.  I have indulged here and there, but this one is not hard for me to let go of.  

 

No luck!

You will understand my surprise the other morning when I went to the chicken barn and opened the door, fully expecting to find a skunk in my live trap, and instead - NOTHING!  I have no idea how he managed to get away.  He must have been small enough to squeeze himself under the door.  I am however, happy to report that I have not seen the neighbors cat - at all!  I am certain he is trying to recover from a few bruises here and there.

So, here we are two days away from Christmas, and I have no idea where my skunk went.  This concerns me because we had that one skunk that showed up on Thanksgiving morning a few years back.  Who needs an uninvited guest like that?  Certain days are stressful enough.  I need no added pressure.  Just so you know, for me, having a skunk roaming around is like seeing a snake and then running to get the hoe, only to find him gone when you get back.  I hate that feeling.  You know, 'cause then you are constantly looking for it, and every little thing scares the crap out of you after that.  

And, as if all that weren't bad enough, I have a very brazen coyote running around.

I was hoping to tell you the story of his demise, but that story has not been written yet.  So, in the interest of a million things to do, I will just leave you with the link to the Thanksgiving Day Skunk!  If you haven't read it before, you will be very surprised.  Go ahead (Click HERE.)

Are you ready for Christmas?

I have to say, earlier today, I was sort of surprised at how much stuff I have done.  It doesn't feel right.  You know what I mean?  It kind of has me worried that I must be forgetting something.  Something big.  I keep looking at my list, and as far as I can tell, I only have a few things left.  I have to wrap up my cookie making.  Make some hot cocoa mix.  I need to wrap a few gifts.  Then, go do some grocery shopping on Monday.  I guess that may sound like a lot, but to me it is totally manageable.  Can things really be going that smoothly?

Who am I kidding?

Nothing goes that easy.

You know why?

I went to the chicken barn tonight and found a dead guinea.  I didn't see any marks or bites on the thing.  It sort of appears that the little thing had a heart attack or possibly ran head first into something and broke it's neck.  Weird.  I looked around and quickly spotted the neighbor's cat in a panic.  You see, the cat couldn't get out because I was in the way.  I promptly shut the door behind me and grabbed the broom.  I may, or may not, have beat the crap out of that cat with my broom.  I can say that he made it to the door and was headed for home the last time I saw him.  After catching my breath, I went about filling feeders and gathering eggs, only to turn around and have my heart jump out of my chest.

A skunk.

Hiding in the corner.

Can this be happening?

I don't know how I didn't get sprayed while I may, or may not, have beat the crap out of the neighbor's cat with a broom.  I am certain there were some words spoken rather loudly while that incident was, or wasn't, taking place.  I mean, I seriously dodged a bullet on that one.  After regaining my composure, I locked my chickens and guineas up in the main section of their coop.  I then proceeded to bait and set the trap.  I then placed the trap in the same section as the skunk.  Feeding the rope that I keep tied to the trap outside, and securely attaching it to the latch on the door.

Guess what I get to add to my list of things to do?

I hope things aren't taking a turn here.

What does it take to melt ice?

One would think that the temperature just has to rise above 32 degrees and ice would melt.

Nah!

On Sunday, I dealt with even more ice.  Yes, this was exactly one week and three days after the initial event.

As you can see, there is a ray of sunshine here.  It just was not hitting where I needed it to.  I broke up as much as I could with the shovel.  Then, I grabbed the ax again.  This ice was actually blocking the door.  It was over six inches deep up by the foundation.  Once I got the doors open, I had to halter my girl and walk her out.  There was still enough ice to break a leg.  She had been in there so long, I don't think she believed it was true.  She promptly bucked, kicked, stomped, and had a mini-rodeo.  Then, she ran across the creek and went to visit the neighbors.  Two hours later, I got to do this all over again.  Deuce was equally excited, but once his door was open, instead of walking out...he jumped.  He wasn't really sure what that crap was on the ground, and he wasn't taking any chances.

We were well into the 60's today, and there is still ice on the ground.

What a Week!

This past one has been a killer.  We had a trip out of town.  We had a massive ice storm.  I had some place to be every single day of this week, which is so not me.  I like to be home a little.  I have crap to do.  I can't run around all the time or things start to stack up or back up or get messed up or whatever you want to call it.  Then, if that wasn't enough, I ran the local feed store on Friday and Saturday.  BUT WAIT, that's not all!  After all that, I went car shopping with my Full-Timer.  We hit three dealerships after work on Saturday.

whew!

I am poopered out!

Before the storm, I had made time to get the barns ready.  I had filled water tanks, chicken water, added extra shavings to the stalls and to the chicken barn, and hauled in extra bales of hay for the horses.  Well, who knew this crap was going to last for so long.  We had been hauling warm water from the house for the horses.

I know.

Some of you are saying, "What?"

But, it is important for horses to drink water during this crap.  This is prime weather for colic and if you have ever spent a night out in the cold with a colicky horse, you know it is not pleasant.  I may be a slow learner about some things, but for me, this is a no brain-er.  Every time I go out the door, I haul two five gallon buckets of hot water.  I mix it with water from the water tank, and TA DA - spoiled ass horses that drink a lot of water.  After a week it will wear out your elbows - plus I think my arms are a few inches longer - but, it is so worth it.

Any-who-da-lolly!

By Thursday, we were out of hay in the horse barn and the chickens needed their water things filled up.  They have two five gallon water containers and one three gallon container.  I put on all my gear and headed out the door.

Now, mind-you, this is one week after the ice storm hit.

This may be crazy, but chopping the ice with the ax is sort of fun.  I would not want to chop ice in a pond, like what you would do for cattle or something, but this seems relatively safe to me and does help work out some frustrations.

Then, I opened the door to the chicken barn.  The girls and the guineas have been in there for quite a while...

All the white, slippery stuff really messed with the guineas.  They have so much to learn about this world.  I still had to haul in some hay bales, so I went around to the door.  This is what I found.

I could not get the doors open.  This was a little more challenging to chop through.  You see, I was standing on solid ice.  Yes.  Standing on solid ice and swinging an ax.

You did not know I was so talented.

To be cont.

One More Day.

It has been another long day.  I am exhausted, but I am at least in bed.  Every one has been fed and tucked in.  I know I said I have things to share, but my words have failed me all day long.  If I tried to tell you anything now it would be a jumbled mess.
Night.

Friday the 13th.

I got nothing about it being the 13th.  I believe in Jesus and we don't play that.
I do have a million things to tell you.  Well, maybe just ten, but still.  I just can't do it now.  I am late for bed.  I am exhausted, and I have a crazy schedule for Saturday.
Check back with me tomorrow.
Love you guys!

Super Encouraging!

I have been worried about my bees with this ice pack that Old Man Winter dropped on us.  My sane self realizes that worrying does no good, but I never claimed to be sane or sensible.  It's not like I can just open the hives and look because it is just too dang cold out there.  Even if I could, what could I do for them now? 

This was one of the topics of conversation at my dental visit earlier today.  You see, I am quite certain my dentist and his office are my biggest honey customer.  Only running a close second to my bank.  The difference being that there are quite a few more employees at the bank.  I think there are only six or seven at the Dentist.

I think my dentist wins.

This morning, getting my teeth cleaned, among the many other topics of conversation we covered, we talked about bees.

Can I just say something?

I love my hygienist!

She is awesome.  She is good.  She is fun to talk to.  She makes the whole experience enjoyable.  We also see eye-to-eye on certain things.  I love the whole office, but today was our one-on-one time.  As we were brainstorming new and inventive ways to actually see inside a hive, she cleaned my teeth.

Thank you.

We basically decided we need a little camera.  Maybe one of those cameras that the S.W.A.T. team would use.  You know, on a scope.  Like what they use in a hostage situation on T.V. to see into a room through a vent.  Maybe we didn't discuss all of those details, but the camera was definitely her idea.  All of the rest, I was thinking even if I couldn't share them out loud.

You aren't supposed to talk when your mouth is full.

Any-who! 

I made my way home still thinking bee thoughts, when you are not going to believe what I saw.  You see, I have a hive up close to the house.  This is by far my smallest hive.  I had actually combined two really small hives to make this one.  It is by the drive on my way in, and I always look at it as I go by.  Today, I was super surprised!  I hopped out and shot some video with my phone.  This is a super short video.  ONLY 26 seconds.  I will explain why after you watch it.

 



As you can see, on the front of the bottom board, there are some dead bees.  I would imagine that since we are getting warmer  today, they are moving around inside the hive and cleaning house.  This means out with the dead.  I would hope that these dead bees are drones that were just pushed out, but I couldn't get close enough to tell.  The workers do not like to feed the males through winter.  There is no point.  They are of no use and they offer nothing.  Come spring time, they will just produce more males.

Sad, but true and very pragmatic.

The fact that they have just shoved them out on the front porch is interesting.  Normally they would take the dead and fly them out away from the hive.  Possibly it is still a little too cold to be moving around that much.

You can see that I have reduced the entrance to this hive to a small opening.  As the video shoots, you start to see more and more bees coming out of the hive.  My truck is running behind me, and I think the engine noise is alarming them a bit.  Whatever the reason, it did not take long before I got my fly-by warning. 

One bee.

Flying really close to my head.

Buzzing super loud.

You can call it what you like, but I know a cussin' when I hear it so, I got the heck out of there.

I think I am in LOVE.

Okay.  Enough with the ice.  It is still there, but I am tired of talking about it.  It is so there, that last night they showed the ice pack visible on satellite.  I'm sorry, but that is just crazy.  Guess where it is the thickest.  Go ahead.  Guess.

Stupid.

Instead, let's talk about something amazing.  A few weeks ago I cooked dinner and mistakenly ate a rather odd sweet potato.  I say mistakenly because it was very different from the other ones that I had purchased.  I must have grabbed it by mistake.  I was, however, pleasantly surprised to find that the inside was yellow and the most creamy, sweet, amazing thing I have tasted in long time. 

Well, I have kept an eye out for odd sweet potatoes ever since. 

Yesterday was the day. 

Yesterday, I found them.

 

 

I grabbed a couple of these little babies on my morning outing yesterday.  When I finally made it back in, I grabbed a couple of grass-fed steaks from the freezer and let them thaw.  Then I proceeded to get these little ones ready for the oven.  For me, this has become super easy.  I washed them.  Then, I slathered them up with some coconut oil. 

 

My Favorite Brand....62% MCTs!

 

Yes, slathered is the correct terminology.

 

I then placed them on a baking sheet, and baked them at 450 degrees for about an hour (unwrapped).  At the end, I had a nicely cooked steak and a nicely cooked potato.  I pealed it, chopped it up a little, added a little butter, salt and pepper, and life was good.  These little beauties were so good that when my Full-Timer finally paused to take a bite of hers, she completely stopped talking.  As you can see, these babies were grown in the U.S.A.  That makes me want to do a little investigating.  I may want to give it a whirl in 2014.

 

I am not even kidding.

 

These things are so good!

 

You have to try one!

 

Or two.

 

Or more.

 

I already went back and bought some more today.

Still Thawing

The sun is out!

Yay!

This may look fun but...IT IS SOLID!

You can skate on it.  Literally.  I know because I have been doing it.  It is pretty thick, and starting to melt a little with the sun.  That just makes it wet and really slick.  I feel certain that it will be gone by tomorrow.  The roads out here are still a little challenging, but once you make it to the major roads, they are good to go.

For me, it is all about the sun.  I can take the cold.  I can take the ice.  I can not take the gray, dreary skies for long.  A few days, and I am okay, but after that I start to get a little nuts.  The horses are starting to get a little more than crazy, but it is going to be a stretch for them.  Once this melts, it needs to dry up a little before they can go charging out.

The funniest thing to date has been the cat.  He does not know what to do with all this ice.  The other night we let him out to run around a bit, and when we went to get him he was all fired up on crack.  He kept trying to rub up against my Part-timer's leg and his front feet kept slipping out from under him.  He kept at it, but you could tell he was getting mad.  Then, he just gave up and bit her on the leg. 

 Like it was her fault.

He is such a brat at times.  This morning I kicked him out of the mud room so the dogs could eat breakfast.  I then got a little busy and sort of forgot about him.  When I came back through the kitchen he was on the back porch with his forehead pressed against the back door looking in.  It was the funniest-saddest thing I have ever seen.  I am certain he was wishing the maid would wash the dog slobber off the window so he could see in better.

Seriously going to fire that maid when I get my hands on her.

We Made It!

Against the wishes of a  lot of concerned family members - we made the trip home. 

I had to give it a try.

It really was not that bad.  We made it all the way to Ft. Worth before we started seeing anything of concern, and those concerns were minimal.  As you would expect, the bridges and overpasses were the worst. 

Funny, but it was hard to get accurate news about what was happening up here.  I kept hearing terminology that I was unfamiliar with. 

Like...freezing fog or pebble ice. 

These may be common in other parts of the country, but around here, not-so-much.  Once we hit Ft. Worth it became clear what pebble ice meant.  Although, I felt it was grossly understated.  You see, the ice was so thick on the bridges and overpasses that when they came across with the sand and melt products, the results were more like an off-roading adventure.  I was shocked at the use of the word pebble.  It was more like boulders.  The traffic was pretty good to creep across it, but there were remnants of drivers that were not so smart.  These were the vehicles with flat tires that were pulled over to the side of the road promptly following every bridge.  I guess if you hit that stuff with enough speed - you're gonna blow a tire.

Once we made our way through the city, we had to take our turn to head out to the country.  My Full-Timer took this shot once we made it off the highway.

This was affectionately referred to as:  "The Road Less Traveled."

Can I just say, the road less traveled is always the path I want to be on.

It got a little crazier the more we traveled North and West, but we made it no problem.

Can I just make a few observations here?

• If you don't have to go anywhere - Don't.
• If you do get out, you should travel with caution and pack provisions.
• If you are the only one on the road going 5 mph and everyone else is at 40-50 mph...

                YOU ARE THE HAZARD!

• If you realize you are the hazard, please get off the road.
• No need to turn the caution lights on - We all know to drive with caution!
• If you are in the middle of no-where, it is not necessary to stop at every stop.  Slow down and proceed with caution.

Just a few tidbits that I picked up on my drive home. You can take 'em or leave 'em.

Am I secretly a City Girl?

This is a little disturbing.  What does it mean?  I have always lived in and out of the city, but I always felt my heart was in the country.  I believe that it is still.  It is just that I have been in the city the last couple of days and I have been enjoying it.  I have been chauffeured around.  I have been taken out for dinner and breakfast. I have been cooked for.  I have slept in.  I have not had to encounter any mud.  I have not had to run out to feed *fill-in-the-blank*.  As a matter-of-fact, I don't think my shoes have touched anything except concrete.  I certainly have not put on any coveralls or work boots in the last 48 hours.

Is it wrong?

You know...that I have liked this?

Does this mean that I may not love the country as much as I thought I did?

I doubt it.  

I am already starting to miss it.

If I don't get my work boots on and go stomp through some mud pretty soon - I don't know what may happen.  The Man in Charge has been on duty and every time I talk to him, he has concerns about something.  Either the dog or the horse, or the fact that he is going a little bit stir crazy himself.  It doesn't help that he worries about something, then I worry about it, and I am here, not there.  Which only makes it worse for me because I am an O.C.D. sort-of control freak.  As cold as it's been, I am worried about all of them.

I saw that it got down to five degrees.

That is crazy for our neck-of-the-woods.  I don't worry much about the horses.  They are in an insulated barn with blankets and they can eat hay to stay warm.  Plus, the Man in Charge is probably hauling warm water out there for them to drink.  The chickens are another story.  They have three heat lamps and plenty of feed to keep them warm, but their water may be freezing at those temps.  My big worry would be the bees.  I did a few things different this year, and while all the experts assured me this was the proper thing to do, I don't know.  I could have taken some extra precautions to keep them warmer, but was advised against it.  I should know by now to always go with my gut feeling, but I didn't.

Did you know...

• Bees huddle together for warmth.
• The queen is in the center.
• They rotate to keep each other warm
• If the huddle is not located over food sources (honey) - they will starve.

Yes!  They can be an inch away from a food source but still starve!

Now. I know that there is nothing that I can do for them now.  It just does not help that I am here.  I know as I type this that it makes zero sense, but I can't help it.  Remember - O.C.D.  In some weird way, if my bees are freezing to death, I just think I should be home.

Does that make me weird?

Country meets city.

Country eggs making breakfast nice in the big city.

What a difference...

One day later and we are freezing with ice everywhere!  Crazy.
I did something I usually wouldn't do during a winter storm.  I got the heck out of dodge.  I ran as fast as I could.  Then, I drove as fast as I could.  I headed south.
We have a chance for ice here, but it won't last long.
Don't worry.  I didn't just bail on all my responsibilities.  The Man in Charge is, well...in charge.