the weekend farmer

Motion of life ...Is this 'slow' or 'normal'?

2011-12-13T17:20:00.000-08:00

Wish I could leave town tomorrow and find a place like this. Maybe when the kids are all grown...Mrs. WF will join me to live in the woods like this. Gives me peace just looking at the 'slow' motion life.

COFFER from thismustbetheplace on Vimeo.

Orange says of winter......

2011-12-09T07:14:00.000-08:00

Just landed in Denver Airport. The airport was shrouded in fog. The captain was trying to figure out if the airport was shut down or not. I pulled down my hoodie on my face and took a nap. After a long wait we were allowed to the terminal. I have not flown SouthWest in a very long time. I was actually happy to see a refreshed view of flying. No seat assignments, no TV, friendly stewards, funny staff, more leg room. It was fun. Remember having to analyze a SW business case in grad school where their 18 minutes to turn around a flight was the epitome of operational efficiency. On my way to a Hematology meeting in San Diego. Here comes my call for Group A i.e I get to pick my own seat : ).

That was last night. COLD winter morning in San Diego. Old man winter is following me : (

Our 'farm' life continues in its own pace and style. Not much activity now. Last night, we heard a door bell late in the evening. After running around trying to figure out who knocked, I opened the door. There waited a huge brown box, just delivered by the UPS man. I wasn't sure what it could be. Someones Christmas gift got dropped off at our place by mistake?

Opened the box and out came these amazing gifts of wool and blanket. Our kindest sheep mentor Kris told us about this company in Michigan who creates all kinds of stuff from your home grown wool. Simply Amazing! Kris was kind enough to take the wool up to Upstate New York. We failed to sell even a pound of it at the NJ fiber festival...very humbling : ). Now, we have 3 blankets and a huge bag of roved wool for Mrs. WF to spin with. This company is amazing...they even make socks out of your wool. The wool is stuffed into a blanket with cheese cloth on top. Very exciting!

Little princess turned 6 in Nov. She was treated with a HUGE bonfire for her birthday evening. Poor thing...she was so sick with a stomach flu yesterday. I felt bad leaving her...but the job calls.

Well, have to rush. Sat morning and I am already running to catch the 1st breakfast meeting of the day. Leave you with a picture of something so seasonal. The orange peel is such a natural Prozac in these cold, dark days. Does anything say Winter more than a well ripe persimmon? I had planted 2 trees on our land, but they are yet to give any fruits. They had fruits when I bought them at the nursery. I like the trees...reminds me of Japan, of simpler times. Its okay to wait for something good. One can hope and wait. Its life!

Gratitude....

2011-12-02T15:01:00.000-08:00

Check out this video. It is amazing.

Simple Gratitude#.Ttjf427Ctp4.facebook

Back "Home"....

2011-11-17T22:54:00.001-08:00

We have been on the road for a while. Mrs and I went for a pilgrimage. The concept of "home" has been blurry for the last few days. We made it a home wherever we went. Five star hotels in Mecca, road side tents in Mina, sleeping under an overpass in Mujdalifah, peaceful nap in a Bedouin tent on the way to Medina, family home in Dhaka....now back to freezing Jersey which we call home.

I read somewhere many years ago...the story of an African nomadic tribe who carries their 'home' with them. The world is their living room. Interesting concept.

Winter is here. We missed the ice-storm where we were on our way to the Arabian dessert. The land is barren again and ready for the well deserved rest. Our neighbor's farmhand helped us out. The animals seem well fed. The 2 cats went missing. Manuel saw one next to the neighbor's garage. I am not sure where the other one travelled to. Home they come back home. I wonder if they got too lonely (?).

I am yet to dig out our potatoes and the Jerusalem Artichokes. The white leg horns need to cooped up. They like to roost on the high beams of the barn and made the whole barn into a chicken coop. The snowstorm dismantled the peacock pen again. More work there. Not sure if I am ready for winter already. I just have to keep thinking of those sunflowers this summer. Wildside - I am getting to those pictures...can't find my camera cable to download the pictures. All I have now is the i-phone to take pictures : ).

Well, back to unpacking and laundry. Its 2:30 in the morning and I have to get to work in a few hours : ). Talk to you over the weekend again.

Wordless Monday...

2011-08-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

On the wings of a butterfly...

2011-08-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

Summer is quickly migrating away .... on the wings of the butterflies. The ambassadors came all the way from the town of Angangueo in Michoacán in Central Mexcico. Not sure if this little visitor is a Monarch, but reminded me of the long journey of the Monarch.

I have been very busy at work. The 'farm' tended themselves with the kind help of Mrs. WF. It is sometimes hard to keep up with all the happenings. I made sure everyone is fed on time and sheltered, but beyond that it has been hard to keep with planning and arranging things so its a 'profitable' establishment. Time seems to be a rare ingredient that I don't have enough of. Hopefully, before fall, the barn will be cleaned, white leghorns secured, sheep pastures fenced in and the garden harvested.

The animals didn't feel that I have been away. They have gone on with their lives. The barn is a huge maternity ward with several characters deciding to sit on eggs. The brown Muscovy has been sitting for a month now it seems, the Barred Rock hatched ONE chick and several others are just sitting away, listening to their hormones. I am not going to be the one between a hormonal hen and her eggs.

It is also the 1st week of Ramadan. With temperatures rising in the 100s and a 16 hour fast...I will be happy if I can finish the month well. I am glad I am not in Alaska...their sunset is at 11:20 or so.

Princess stuffing grape leaves with minced meat and rice. Also there were peppers stuffed with the same. I had to teach the kids cigar wrapping without mentioning anything about a cigar. I have seen a Cuban artist in Dubai demo-ing on how to roll a cigar. It seemed to me the same concept.

Mrs. WF and the kids made stuffed grape leaves for a Ramadan meal. We also ate some tomatoes and basil from the garden (with Mozzarella and olive oil of course). It was phenomenal...not sure if anyone used that adjective for tomatoes before. A lot of the tomatoes have the bottom rotting disorder...however it does not get in the way of the taste.

It has been so hot...that the bees couldn't take it anymore. They came out in hundreds to hang out on the balcony of their high rise : ). The upstairs apartment is not doing so well. They have not really done a lot of building and I am getting nervous. If they don't have the 2nd super full before the 1st frost...this colony will not make it.

I took a walk this morning with the camera and these are some of the sights and 'sounds' around the land. If you hold still, you will hear the sound of the morning glories, the pigeons, the dragon flies over the Lilly pads, the frogs and the crickets, the neighbors corn field, the sound of the millets for the pigeons, the shifting sound of the tree house. The universe is speaking.

Home made pigeon loft. I am so proud of this loft. I couldn't sleep as Albert the pigeon needed a home and I worked on it in the middle of several nights to finish. It comes with its flower pot ...but the pigeons ate the plants and the flowers : ).

Does anyone know what kind of bird it is? Jr WF is looking through a 600 page book to find out the name of this visitor. We are guessing a Robin??

If it is hot in the kitchen.....

2011-07-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

This is not in the kitchen folks...this was in the car as I left the office last night! Yikes. I barely fed the chickens and came inside to pass out until dinner. After devouring the cold cucumber soup and omelet Mrs. WF made, I passed out again with the kids at 8:24. It is brutal. I don't want to be a sheep in this weather. Louis the ram has declined to leave the barn. Even in the heat of the day..he prefers a roof over his head. That roof is tin and HOT!

The heat added with my swollen bicep (No...no Gold's Gym for me - it was a bee that stung me while I was feeding them. Not sure why they always go for my upper arms) is making me miserable.

Stay indoors and away from the hives when its so hot. The bees are cranky too : ). Today the "feels like" index is 110 Degrees. Nice to know my aussie and kiwi friends are in mid winter. There was 8 feet of snow in Chile today. I am praying for some rain!

26th day of summer 2011

2011-07-17T19:43:00.000-07:00

It has been hot for the last few days. There has been no rain....and I am getting nervous that it will be a drought inflicted year again like last year. Hope we don't have to revisit that again. I love the Spanish barren country side...but I don't want it in my veggie garden and pasture.

The 1st Sunflowers of the year. Mrs. WF did an amazing job with them. Behind is my $10 Martin house. A Sparrow mom is nesting in one of the back 'apartments'. So, I can't get up there to fix it up.

I have been drooling over grass for a while now. Highway, neighbor's pasture, road dividers, movies, TV ...wherever there has been grass...I secretly wished my small flock of sheep could have access to it. Thanks to God, we have 'grass' this year. Not really grass - grass, but a lot of different kind of weeds mixed with some grass, clover...the sheep seem to like it.

Elizabeth's twins (girls) went to uncle Joe's farm yesterday. So, I am left with Louis and Elizabeth and 2 rams. The rams don't have names, they are dinner - ssshhhhhh! I found a local butcher, who will allow me to do the Halal way of processing an animal and then he will give me all the fancy cuts , you get at the super market.

The bees seem to be ok so far. Please, please, please lets not there be a colony collapse. I have been feeding them syrup and giving them fresh water. Hope they like our pasture. The white leghorns and the rest of the flock are together. There are 2 broody fowl in the barn. A Barred Rock and a Muscovy duck. Too late in the year, I would think. The peachicks are in the garage..securely far away from the rats in the barn. From a few cute little mice, to a whole 'herd' of rats...I need some serious intervention. They actually attacked and got some chicks that I had left in the barn. Mimi and Gigi (the barn cats) are still small. I hope they get their act together soon. I trapped a big one last week...but I am sure he left his cousins behind. WF - 1; Rats - ah well?

A boi and his horse - Jr. Weekendfarmer with Poncho

The children are enjoying the summer...swimming, horse husbandry, riding etc. Today the owner of the horse farm gave us a ride on the back of her farm utility vehicle and gave us a ride of her trails, hay pasture, creeks, old bridges. We stopped on the way to load up on blackberries, raspberries and aged horse manure. The kids had so much fun on the back of the ATV. What a generous person she is. I love the well water she has there. I loaded up 4 containers of cool, refreshing well water for the week. That was a nice experience -alhamduli Allah.

The Princess with Poncho

Our Summer 2011 Intern, tending to the Elephant Ear plants. The stalks can be cooked in a stew.

Spinach, Cucumbers and a lonely Tomato

The Turkey that visits us and shows off at the horse farm.

My little princess with the Cucumber harvest

Mrs. WF harvested this beautiful load of lavendar. The kitchen smells amazing.

The new veggie garden is doing well. We used the sheep bedding and cucumbers plants exploded into action. We had close to 30 pounds of cucumbers so far. Other harvests: Lavender, Tomatoes, Snake beans, Amarnath, Lambs Quart, Celery, Swiss Chard, Spinach, Basil, Bengali leaves (Jute), Peas, Thai peppers etc. I am really praying for the 2nd wave of sunflowers to do well. I planted a good 25 feet row of sun flowers in the new garden. Will post for you when they bloom inshAllah.

Now, how about a quiz - Where do you think we took this picture?

"The truth has many enemies...."

2011-07-08T13:36:00.000-07:00

Came across this clip on Cold Antler Farm. Its amazing that warehouse meat production is legal in this day and age!

On the 3rd day of Summer!

2011-06-23T23:01:00.000-07:00

My paper calendar at work has all kinds of printed reminders. One of those was that Tues was the 1st day of summer. Really? We have had 100 degree weather for a few weeks now. It has been quite hectic lately. We are drowning in all kinds of busy-ness.

Junior weekendfarmer turned 8!

The new bees arrived. They needed to be taken care of. Even after watching our bee-keeper friend for so many months/years, I am terrified when it comes to handling them. I managed to get the sugar syrup as their start up feed twice so far. Hope they survive!

The peacocks (actually the peahen) hatched 4 chicks. They needed to be separated. Last year we lost all the babies, as they had ventured too far from mom.

The new veggie garden has fencing and a door thanks to Naoki, my brother-in-law and mother-in-law.

Currently harvesting - Radish, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Eggplant (single), Green Peas, Lettuce, Lambs Quart, Cilantro. Work in progress : Cabbage, Grapes, Cucumbers, Sunflowers, tomatoes, potatoes, Jute, several kinds of Bengali gourds, Snake Beans, Celery, Basil, Thai Basil, Sweet Potatoes, Cantaloupe. Still to plant (late I know) - Loofa, more Sunflowers, Amarnath, Watercress, Elephant ears, Carrots, Rasberry etc

Muscovy duck sat for 2 months and hatched one cute little duckling.

One of the Barred Rocked hatched out 4 chics.

We had a full service maternity ward as 3 hens went broody at once .

The sheep has pasture now. At last I have some grass.

Naoki and I built a shelter for the sheep by the creek. It will also be a cabin for humans in the future.

Reduced sheep flock by 2. Nargis and Holly found new homes.

Built a pigeon loft. Now Albert the pigeon has a home.

Roosters processed. Sunday rooster curry. It was delicious!

Moved compost from the 3 year old compost pile into he new garden. Its like black gold.

Spent hundreds of dollars at Lowes and HomeDepot. Its scary when the cashier knows your name : ). This better be stimulating the economy.

I was wondering why we were so busy...now it all makes sense : ). And yes...if we didn't have enough to do - we went and rescued two barn kittens from a horse farm. Now, Gigi and Mimi are part of the weekendfarmer 'circus'.

Here is a photo journal of all the craziness.

Still to do:

Barn needs cleaning. All the animal bedding needs to be in the compost pile.

Kittens need spaying.

Need to pick up the swarm of bees Uncle Frank has promised.

Order bees for next Spring (yeah...I know ..thats crazy)

Wash sheep wool -> send for processing.

Plant more Sunflowers.

Finish the sheep pastures. Needs gates.

Finish the tree house.

Give White Leghorns access to grass.

Find new homes for the 2 rams.

Worm the sheep.

Plant fruit trees.

Set up 'pond' for Watercress.

Start the kids training with horses.

Spray the fruit trees. (Neem oil)

Pick up the wild berries from the woods.

Plant more Sunflowers : )

All the mornings of the world...

2011-05-07T03:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday Morning. Way before the sun rises and just a little after the morning prayers. Its 47 degrees. I ventured out to the front steps. The neighbor has 'harvested' his organic timothy hay. It is such a peaceful sight. He raises black Angus cows and this is their feed in winter months. As I stepped out, I got ambushed by a paparazzi of birds. Their morning songs, the roosters crowing in the barn...I had to pause. I could see the shade of crimson in the Eastern sky. The universe is in transition, however it is a peaceful integration of darkness to light. Do the birds know any secrets to this miracle? What are they signing? What a beautiful morning! Are all the mornings of the world so humbling?

There is a lot going on! I am suffering from allergies, an ulcer and a long commute to work. Its adding up to 2 hours and 30 minutes each day. Bit much?

Its the usual Spring activities here back at the weekend farm. Seedlings, Magnolias, new chicks, garden being tilled, spring lambs, Daffodils, Tulips, sheep shearing, fresh asparagus in the garden, broody ducks, hens, peacocks (peahens to be exact), 70 degrees weather followed by sudden frost at night. Enough to give anyone ADD : ). This year we are opting to create a new veggie garden closer to the barn. It has been hectic to get it started. I tried to recruit someone with an auger to do the fence posts for me. Everything is so expensive here! One gentleman wanted $600 and then changed his mind and asked for $900 for tilling the soil and fencing the garden and additional sheep pastures. No..he didn't get the job. Fortunately, one of my sheep customer has a bobcat and he came and helped me out for a fraction of the cost. My brother-in-law is in town from Japan and he helped finish the project. I am so glad to have him and my mother-in-law in town. The house is full of good spirits, laughter, good food and warm energy. My MIL has taken over the animal husbandry. Last night as I pulled into the driveway, I found her to be nervous, sad and upset. I got concerned as she always carries herself with zen like calmness. After a few seconds I realized she is perturbed over a dead hen. It had died in the barn. I have seen her the day before. Seemed like she was suffering from egg-binding. After all these years, I haven't been successful is helping a hen with this issue. Sometimes, one has to accept death with livestock and move on. Its not easy.

There were millions of twigs all over the yard. We made a huge bonn-fire when a dear friend visited from North Carolina and burnt it all : ). It was a huge success...sitting by the fire, catching up on life, cups and cups of tea and the warmth of family. We should do this more often. The ashes were good fertilizers.

I have started to reduce the sheep flock. I sold Nargis and Holly. Holly is a sweet ewe, so it was sad to see her go. But she got a great home with a loving person. Given last year was an official drought for us, I have no grass. Its all weeds. I tried frost seeding pasture mix and clover. Nothing is coming out yet. The hay farmer friend dropped by to investigate and said my pH might be off...so I did the lime as well. Now, I am waiting and praying. The season is 2-3 weeks behind. Hope I get some grass. Right now, the dandelion is much welcome. They can be a nice source of nutrition, I would think. The sheep are on the sacrificial land....where they are on nice hay. I have to give the land some rest. I am down to 2 adults and 4 lambs. After I sold their mothers, I was worried the lambs will be upset. Not even a baaaa !!! Elizabeth the other ewe seemed more upset. She bleated through the night. I think she missed Elizabeth or Holly. Didn't realize she was so close to them. Elizabeth's twins are growing fine. One is doing better than the other. Such complex dynamics of nature. She nurses one better than the other. I am glad human mothers are not like that. That would be a disaster!Well, I can see the sun is out. The rays are hitting the neighbor's bales of hay. The plastic covered bundles are looking like some alien droppings. I better stop being a virtual farmer and go tend to the animals and the land. Thanks for spending the morning with me. There is fresh baklava on the kitchen counter. Should have offered you some coffee or tea. Next time : ).

Wordless Wednesday...

2011-03-30T08:09:00.000-07:00

11th day of Spring...Who is counting : ) ?

3S Update: Simply Sunny Sunday....

2011-03-27T16:43:00.000-07:00

Aren't Sundays magical? I am jealous of some of you who have left the corporate prison and have become your own bosses. For us weekendfarmers and corporate rats who have sold their soul to the cubicle witch...Sundays are holy days.

Sunday called the Iris to bloom and it came with its friends the little blue flowers. Does anyone know the name?

We spent a lot of time outdoors. I started the fire outside in a old drum. I think I burned down 5-6 wheel barrow full of twigs, branches. I will use the ashes in the chicken coop as a sanitary agent on their poop pile. It will all end up in the compost pile later.

Mrs has this week off and she has been cooking up a storm. Empanada like patties stuffed with ground meat, homemade crescent rolls etc etc.

She made this amazing bread all from scratch.....stuffed with dates, molasses and chocolate.

I had some the next day toasted with a semi boiled duck egg. Delicious. When you all come to visit ... we will have it on the breakfast menu : ). For Sunday lunch, she cooked up a great meal of stir fired tofu and veggies, green beans. I grilled some salmon and we all sat out enjoyed a great Sunday lunch. We were all fighting over the grilled salmon skin : ). What was dessert you ask? Marshmallows roasted on fire made in an old drum. Then came the necessary siesta...... while mama weekendfarmer CLEANED out the veggie garden. She did an amazing job!

Then came the hawk looking for some organic hens.... The kids have been well trained to spot hawks.

I found my inner voice that my cavemen forefathers used to survive and scared the day light out of him/her.

I spent the afternoon cleaning twigs, collecting fallen branches, millions of dried out black walnut shells, cleaning out fallen hay for the sheep, collecting eggs, fixing fences (seems like that's what I do 90% of my time).....

Look at these eggs. Is it my eyes...or there are some pink eggs as well as blue ones and your basic boring brown : )?.

Nothing like ending the day watching the lambs. I wish they stayed so tiny and cute....but alas they have to grow up .......

Sweet dream little girls as you think of mother's milk ...the wild daffodil raises its head in the woods. Thanks God for such a blessed day!

Warm regards,

The weekendfarmers

Wordless Wednesday....

2011-03-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

On the 4th day of Spring!!! : (

Supermoon and Spring...

2011-03-20T15:39:00.000-07:00

Spring is such an exciting time, however even though the thermostat is flirting at 70 degrees these days, it is hard to focus on the beauty, when other parts of the world...people have lost so much and going through such a terrible time. I pray time heals their sorrows and sufferings and the "super"moon is done with its curse. All thanks to the Merciful that all our in-laws and friends in Japan survived the calamity and are in good health.

At home, the crocus has erupted as burning little bushes. These aromatic flowers definitely promise warmer days to come.

Nothing says Spring, like Spring lambs. Here is Ponyo, one of the twins. Elizabeth had twin girls and we will keep them as breeding stock. We are done with lambing for this year. We have 3 ewes and got 4 babies. Quite odd ...wouldn't you say? I remember cleaning the barn in the fall and praying...it would nice to have 4 babies next year. I didn't really think much. How can I pray for 4 babies from 3 mothers? But, God provides these little miracles. So, who am I to count : ).

Then, there is Babu the crazy peacock. Mrs WF and him have not been able to put aside their difference. He attacks the Mrs. every chance he gets and Mrs. puts him on Craigslist for sale..lol. Thanks God, no one actually came by to get him yet. So, his free ranging days are over and he is back in his pen dancing Paso Doble to his ladies. As usual, the ladies ignore him and go about their daily lives.

As April shower is on its way, we are thankful that uncle Andy has built us a roof over our head. The tree house has a roof! Andy did an amazing job with the tree house. From having a vision to actually building it...what a great gift of love he had given to the kids! The kids could not be any more excited.

They spend most of their outdoor time in the tree house shooting walnut canon balls : ).

I wanted some rustic siding, and so here is a glimpse of work-in-progress. More on the journey of the siding which took me across state line to Pennsylvania : ). On other activities, my friend CC (the dude in Yellow) and I have been trying to break ground to create a new veggie patch for Mrs. WF. The hens get an hour or 2 in the afternoon to venture out on the freshly dug promenade. Here I tilled the soil, incorporated sheep bedding and wasted hay and one whole wheelbarrow full of Rabbit goodies. In the course of the winter...the 2 bunnies have deposited a whole wheelbarrow worth of bunny pellets. I did deep bedding just like chickens (in their outside hutch) and it worked great.

Work that still needs to be done:

a. Hire someone to plough the veggie garden for us (CC can only go so far)

b. New sheep pasture

c. Needs better fencing done

d. Finish the tree house windows

e. Sheep flock needs shearing

f. Plant the veggie garden

Let the wind blow.....

2011-02-20T04:16:00.000-08:00

You will think I am whiner when I say I can't get anything done because of the wind. Trust me...it was so windy I felt it was dangerous to be outside this weekend : ). Rewind to Friday. I have been hearing about 65 degrees temperature for the last few days. I was so inspired I took Friday off and was all excited about working on the tree house all day Friday. Friday morning came ...Al Roker confirmed it was going to be 65...so at 6:30 in the morning I opened all windows, doors...every impediment to fresh air and O2..I opened up. Then did some work (yes I love working on vacation as well : ) and in a few hours had to get a jacket!! It was not warm at all! I was like a little kid who defies all common sense and goes out in the snow with minimal clothes. Ah well...the sun didn't come out...it was gloomy and cold 30 something in the morning. The grounds were muddy. Nothing could stop me...I started working on the roof of the tree house. Following Andy's models...I started to cut more wood for the roof. I enjoyed the work! I am sure I didn't do justice to Andy's visions for the roof...but I had something going on. By mid-day, as I had set out to leave for the Friday prayer we had a roof structure and the sun came out! It was a beautiful mid-day...with the sun and breeze it was WARM 65 Degrees.

I went to the prayer, visited the local Amish store to buy half a loaf of bread and then got "stuck" at the cinnamon/sugar pretzel stand. Oh.....the butter and the sugar was so sticky! The innocent Amish lady made sure I left with enough calories for 30 days. With pretzels for the kids and the Mrs. I went to get the kids while the Mrs. worked and came back home to finish enjoying my 65 degree day.

The kids had a presentation on Dr. King, so I had to stop at 5:00. Here is where I ended....

Then something told me to go to the back of the house...in case anything was blooming. People ...we had 12 inches of snow on the ground few days back.....but to my utter surprise...look what I found!

Snowdrops....they are the promises of warmer days coming soon. This is the very spot they come every year (MashAllah)....I do nothing for them...but they give me so much joy and warms my heart every year. Mrs. WF loves these too. So, fast forward to Saturday...it was sooooo windy...the tree-house cried all night and all day. Andy - this was a good test that our structure will hold : ). It doesn't get any more windy than this. The creaking noise you hear is the tree house.

Saturday afternoon we visited the Jersey Flower/Garden show. Our electric company was talking about "solar loan"at the show....This was quite interesting. You take a 6.5% loan for 10 years to pay up the installation cost for the panels. The payment you make is via the solar energy you create. Interesting concept. We could put panels on our barn roof and create some good, clean energy.

This one...I will have to think about a lot. I don't know where to start. My list is so long.

Things to do (Mrs. WF is dictating to me):

1. Clean up fallen branches - 2 acres of it

2. Prune the orchard & shrubs

3. Create a new Vegetable garden - I want a 75 feet bean row like Mr. H : )

4. Re-seed the pasture for grass

5. Make sheep fences

6. Mend peacock fence

7. Clean the barn

8. Hatch eggs for 2nd grade class

9. Make a 'real' compost structure

10. Order seeds

11. Plant fruit trees

12. Plant vegetables

13. Buy new hives and bees

14. Order new egg layers

15. Make chicken run

and the list goes on......Oh boy, I better get to work : ). Happy week everyone.

Warm regards,

Mr. and Mrs. wf

Journey of food.....

2011-02-13T07:22:00.000-08:00

As we are moving away to all fruits/vegetables in all season culture, it is fun and humbling to track the journey of food sometimes. I am sure you all will co-whine with me on the tasteless Chilean fruits in winter that we get at the supermarket. Nothing against Chile...but the fruit is just factory farming, mass production going on to meet the voracious appetite for Mangoes in the middle of winter storm in Jersey! Its our fault - the consumers. Anyway, few weeks back, I had the "luxury of time" to process two of the male Muscovy. From slaughtering, to CLEANING (hated this step), to making two different dishes from one duck was quite an adventure. Dish A: Tacos de Pato Dish B: Duck Breast Prosciutto Lets talk about Dish B - duck breast prosciutto....this was our first time and it turned out great! Thanks to foodielawyer who made this scary food preserving much easier to handle. I followed him and others like Mrs. Wheelbarrow on the web step by step and voila ...behold halal, organic, all natural duck breast prosciutto! It seemed month of Jan was duck breast prosciutto month...there were a lot of people experimenting with this : ). Step 1 : Processing the ducks...much harder than processing a chicken or even a grown sheep. Step 2: Cleaning....as you know me by now....HATED this step! I had to take breaks in the process. Our friend Ann talked about kosher dry feathering and I tried that....worked well on one and the other one had to be done the wet method....it was freezing outside and I have had had it : ) . Step 3: Almost there....take out the breasts. Step 4: A critical step...a 24 hour "nap" in salt. I used kosher salt. I deviated from the recipe a bit and covered the breast in a dry rub of coriander seeds, cumin, garlic, dry Kashmiri red chillies, 'fresh' herbs from the garden sage, rosemary etc and star anise. I ran it through the food processor and rubbed the meat well before it went into the salt. I was looking for Juniper berries...but none of the stores had it. There is a French grocery store in Princeton...I will try there next time. Step 5: After 24 hours the breast came out and into the 'mummification' process they went : ). I went to a local WalMart to get butcher's twine and cheese cloth...the lady gave me a look. They dont carry 'such' items...hmmm. Step 6: Weight. The finished product should lose 30% of its weight. It was amazing that 2 breasts gave me almost 1.5 pound of meat...that's just the breast from one duck! Step 7: WAIT!!! for 7 days to be exact : ) Hang them in the garage.

Step 8: Open and enjoy. Make sure it has lost its weight by 30%. I had to use an Excel sheet to make sure my math was correct : ). Hope you try this. I had fun working on this recipe and enjoyed the final outcome. You will enjoy it too. Let me know if you try it. If you need duck breasts....let me know as well...we have 4 more extra males : ).

Have a great week!

Warm regards, Mr.WF

Its a boy!!!

2011-01-22T09:00:00.000-08:00

In the middle of a snow storm yesterday...with temperature that feel like 10 degrees, we had our first Spring 2011 lamb! Mrs. WF gets very excited about lambs and she is always asking me about if the ewes had any babies yet. It is cute to see her maternal instincts when she cuddles the baby lambs.

When I first saw him yesterday, the first thing that came to my mind...was "Its a miracle from God." The way this little bundle of "life" developed in its mother's womb, survived in the middle of bitter winter storm and how he tries to find milk from mom....it is a miracle of epic proportion. The other miracle is the love of a mother.....initially I didn't know whose baby it was. We have 3 ewes this year. The baby is all white, cream color...so as I got closer, the brown ewe Nargis looked alarmed and baaaad out to her child and the lamb responded. I knew then it was Nargis's baby.

This is mother and baby. Nargis is not as maternal as Elizabeth or Holly. She is getting better, however, its not her thing : ). She is doing much better than last year. She is more attached to the baby, looks out for him, calls out and makes sure he is ok. Mrs and I are worried that baby might not have gotten enough milk. This morning, Mrs. WF and I tried to introduce the baby to the udder...hopefully the baby is getting enough milk.

Aunt Elizabeth checks in. She is more of a mom type!

Aaaah the term "Spring lambs"......now that the lambs are here...Spring can not be too far off : ).

Warm regards, wf

Winter of our discontent....

2011-01-16T17:54:00.000-08:00

Basho writes....

"I like to wash, the dust of this world In the droplets of dew. With dewdrops dripping, I wish somehow I could wash this perishing world "

What is life - collection of moments? In that, we go to school, ‘learn’ a series of set knowledge, and earn a living to sustain ourselves. What is it that we need to sustain ourselves? How much can you consume in a week? Do we really need all these expensive mortgages, the home insurance, health insurance, gas and electricity bills etc etc? In spiritual sense, we are here for an earthly experience, do good to others and then one day return to the creator. So, what’s the point of these expensive mortgages and running in the hamster wheel, we call a career. If we could live off our land, cover our food and living….is there really a need to sell our soul to the ‘cubicle witch?' The universe speaks to you when you hold still. In the rat race of life….there is no time to listen to the silence. ….where is the rest stop on that hamster wheel? Don’t get me wrong. I think work is honorable! We should work and be productive citizens of our communities. However, sometimes, all of it is just ‘noise’, pure busy work and does not really add anything to the bottom line. It takes guts to make that choice, that you will have limited demand on earthly life and make a living by what you ‘create’ with your hands and soul. It is almost a vow of poverty in earthly sense….but life can be rich …. in a different brand of richness. It always reminds me of Basho(17th century Japanese poet) ..…never met the dude…but I can close my eyes and see him sitting under the persimmon trees and writing his haiku. Weird I know. : ) It would be fun to live a life like that with inner richness and translate nature’s language onto paper.

Talking about richness, I have been savoring this book, A Different Kind of Luxury, where Andy Couturier showcases 11 folks in all parts of rural Japan who seemed to have found ‘nirvana’ in their choice. What an interesting topic! I could easily relate and wish I could live in such simplicity! Hope you enjoy the book as well. With prayers for simple lives for all. Regards, wf

Another year? Time is like a swallow....it flies so fast!

2011-01-09T17:07:00.000-08:00

Another set of 365 days gone....good year, bad year, its all a part of the fabric of our lives! We humbly accept these days as a gift.

We didn't grow up hugely celebrating New Years in Bangladesh. It was obviously a fun day. Dad stayed home, mom made some special dishes and we enjoyed the day. Our tradition in the U.S is becoming Japanese traditional meal for New Year's breakfast. Mrs. WF makes this amazing dish with "mochi" and sweet bean paste. Mochi is a "cake" made of rice flour. Its boiled like a dumpling. On new year's day...I tried out something new. For lunch, I smoked some trout on the stove-top. I marinated two whole trout in soy-sauce and maple syrup* (*you can add brown sugar as a substitute). I left the fish outside in the snow for several days. For smoking, I used the following:

a. old Earl Grey tea b. handful of rice : I felt bad about burning the rice though c. pinches of brown sugar ( "gur" -- Bengali molasses) d. wood chips - hickory

The ingredients a,b,c, and d 'burns' and maked the smoke. I took a turkey roasting pan and lined it with foil. Arrange the ingredients (a,b,c,d) at the bottom of the pan. Put a rack...place the fish on top and cover the whole tray with foil. Use extra foil to make sure its pretty sealed. Place the pan on low flame and let the smoking begin.

This is the first time I tried it and it turned out great. Let me know if you try.

On other topic, I was trying to 'create' more from things with elements from around the 'farm.' For the office, I brought together a picture of Babu - the peacock, one of his feather and may I say...it looked like a piece of art. For a dearest friend's 80th birthday, we bought him this handsome hat. I incorporated various feathers from the animals and I fell in love with how it looked. It warmed my heart! I tried a Guinea hen feather first .... & a peahen feather. Peahens are less colorful, but they have an interesting set of feathers. I got my trusty model to showcase it around the house. This evening, we gave it to the birthday boy & may I say...he looked stunning. Happy Birthday dear Hans!

On other 'news', the chickens started laying again! Call me crazy, but I am so excited the new windows my father-in-law made for me in the barn. Now, there is more light in the hen section of the barn. These windows are some of the ones we rescued from our window renovation project. My FIL is an amazing builder and I can slides the windows down in the heat of the summer.....It gets 105* in the barn....oh...how long till summer???? Our red satin bunnies are doing great in their outdoor dwelling. They seem to love the snow. A quick shot of Elizabeth... Here are the other girls, Holly, Nargis and the boy Louix IX.

I will end this week with the picture of these geese that flew over the barn as I was hiking in knee deep snow. It felt so liberating to see this flock in their Chevron. I offered them to take the old man winter with them to Canada. They replied back that they will be back soon with reinforcement and take him away. With hopes for an early Spring : ). Regards, wf

Lonely Shepherd......

2010-12-27T06:03:00.001-08:00

Came across an interesting article from USA Today the other day....I never get to sit down and read the newspaper anymore. Too old to focus and too busy to sit down : ). Was able to read the article as we went for a quick snow tubing and skiing trip to the Poconos. It was fun to relax with my gang. The kids did great with their Ski lessons, I survived without breaking any bones on my first lesson and Mrs is a pro. So she had a lot of fun as well. Anyway, the article chronicles the lives of migrant shepherds who spend their Christmas on lonely valleys surrounded only by their flock of sheep. It was a sad article and I could visualize the loneliness of these fellow shepherds. On a bigger picture, farming seems to be a lonely job! (I borrowed the video code from the newspaper website. It doesn't seem to work. Using few skills I learned from a programming class at LSU (I HATED that class)...I was able to 'fix' the code, however its a little messy. Any of you who do programming for a living, you have my admiration. I couldn't rescue a program with errors if my life depended on it. )

On other news....a minor detail...we are in a state of emergency with BLIZZARD conditions. The snow was up to my waist (ok..I am short..I get it)...and had to 'swim' to get to the front door of the barn to feed the animals. The animals are all fine...they are looking around and wondering what happened to the sky...it all came down. The sheep had taken shelter in the barn as well. The wind is coming from the west and wiping everything off on its path and making amazing snow dunes.

The kids had a blast in the snow.

I enjoyed my time by the fire. We are using up all the woods from the fallen trees, branches. Free heat!Junior picked up a few jug of fresh snow. Its a Japanese summer treat to have crushed ice with various kinds of syrup. We didn't need to crush anything....the powdery snow was soft as cloud. Amazing! We put melon syrup and enjoyed the fresh bounties of God.

Where did the year go..........?

2010-12-12T18:32:00.000-08:00

How is everyone doing? Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are all set for the upcoming holidays. Its a great time of the year. I enjoy the sense of harmony in the air. I am so glad I don't have to buy gifts and run around in the mall....but I enjoy the festivities, the tied up Christmas trees on the car top, office holiday potlucks, people rushing in and out of the mall....the community seems to come together.

We had a great Eid. Lots of friends came to celebrate. Here are some items from the menu. Fresh, organic lamb leg from the backyard and Turkish sweets made by a friend.

Then came Thanksgiving! I had promised a friend that we will deep fry a turkey. It was scary and FUN! On other 'news' - Babu the peacock ran away again. This is the 2nd time. I had let the peacocks roam about. I think the noise of our leaf blower scares him. He ended up on a neighbors porch 1/3 mile away on the day of Thanksgiving. I had given up hope that we will see him again. Animal control left a card on our door and then brought him back the next day.

My tax money is use!!! yay! Actually I love this animal control official....really kind person. This is his second visit in 3 years.

Fall brings unique items to your food store baskets. Pomegranate, chestnuts are some of the exciting items. Pick up a pound or 2 of chestnuts if you see them. You can grill them on the grill, roast them in the fireplace etc etc...its a great dessert after a lunch of grilled pumpkin and trout : ) ! We had a visit from my father-in-law and we had so much fun! He built so many things for the house and the land. I wish I could be handy like him! Talking about building, Andy, a genius in building things is building a tree house for the kids.

I will finish with a cute picture of my father-in-law and Mic (Andy's best friend). Love is such a global language.

Have fun holidays and spread the love! Talk to you soon......

We are back again ......

2010-11-14T04:57:00.000-08:00

The way we are travelling, its a miracle that the house still stands and the animals are still alive, thanks to the kindness of friends and family. This time the whole family got a glimpse of much awaited Espana. Mrs. WF has been waiting for this trip for 8 years and at last it came true. We almost didn't make it to the airport given the chaotic road work to JFK. Spain welcomed us with sun, friend sip, kindness, generosity & tranquility! It was much, much better than I remembered in 2001. This time I came with 2 kids and a wife. It was a boat load of fun!

In other 'news', Mrs. WF successfully put up with me for 8 years. Time flies...it seemed she walked into my life just the other day.

I also had a birthday....Thanks to Gerda...got the most delicious birthday cake...with passion fruit.

The 'farm' is still here. The yard is drowning in leaves. The broiler chickens are growing well. The egg layer flock is half of what I had. The foxes and hawks had been busy. The Muscovies have grown and now they are roosting on the roof of the house...(not recommended). Eid is on Wednesday, that means 4 of the ram lambs will be processed and that leaves us with 4 breeding sheep. One ram and 4 ewes. Given, the pasture is bare...I am looking forward to a smaller flock.

The 'veggie' garden does not exist. Given the massive drought this year and thanks to my new job - its dead! Nothing grew this year. Just to mess with my brain, the Brussels sprouts overgrew and now giving out leaves like cabbages. We ate some...stir fried...very tasty. There is plenty of mint in the garden and few springs of arugula and scallions.

This winter, I am planning on sowing some barley as well as garlic. Last year's garlic was a success. More than the bulbs, I enjoyed the leaves of the garlic made into a chutney.

Will leave you with our 1st day in Madrid. Plaza Mayor ...a magical place!

Paella. Gazpacho. 'Matador'....for tourists : ) See you next week. I will be back. Promise : ) !

We are back.....

2010-08-20T22:02:00.000-07:00

Ok...did I say, see you next week? Well I guess I meant next month and plus some. It has been so busy! I have been off to Virginia, California and then Bangladesh. The family was away in Bangladesh as well. I gave a surprise visit to my parents. That was awesome : )! Mrs. WF and my high-school friend Sajed helped in the plot. Travelling for us is hectic with four people....eventhough the kids travel very very well. Its like moving a tribe from one land to the next pasture! The 'farm' is pretty much dead when it comes to veggies and plants. We have had weather in the 90s and then 100s. The sun and the heat burned everything to the ground. I guess parts of NJ has been under drought conditions. I have no grass...having to buy hay in the middle of the summer...quite a shock! It never happened in the last 3 years of keeping sheep.

I have had some success with the peacocks. A mama hen (Mrs. named her Pekoe) hatched out 3 babies. The first on our land. However, the chicks ventured away too far from the mom and didn't make it. What can I say!

The Muscovy mama hatched out 9 beautiful babies! It was a 100% success rate! Yes ...and alhamdu li Allah, they all survived.

The K-22 broiler project was a huge success. Even the roosters taste amazingly juicy and flavorful. If any of you want to try this breed, let me know. The hatchery is based out of PA. The chickens don't grow as fast as the broilers....but doesn't taste like paper either. It had a lot of flavor.

Here are some pictures from the road:

View from our roof-top in Dhaka.

Colorful trucks. A terror for pedestrians.....The signs on his butt says "Stop", Give Horn" " Thank you" and " Plant trees - save the country." On the side it says " General Transportation (?) all over Bangladesh - 5 Ton" we used to think as kids that the whole of Bangladesh weighed 5 Tons - ha ha ha. Amazing clouds!

Local 'Starbucks' : ) Low lands drowning in rain water. Ever so colorful road-signs. Clouds again!

Friend Sajed took us to an amazing Japanese restaurant for dinner. The chef is from Nagoya, Japan. Produce are shipped in from Japan to Dhaka. The kids made friends with the chef. The middle one is Uzaair! What a great kid (Sajed's son)! The other 2 are my trouble makers.

A view of someone's garden by the road. Maybe 5 feet from where that colorful truck zooms by! Most probably a loofah or pumpkin patch!

Here, the kids playing games with the driver of the car behind them. Yes - for the 7th time, I failed to show them the Bay of Bengal! It is just impossible to do anything on such a short time.

I will leave you with a view of the sun-set from the roof-top. Amazing - isn't it? Will write more later.

I am alive : )

2010-07-11T10:52:00.000-07:00

It has been so HOT...I dont know about the poor animals..but I am going crazy!!! It has been 100 - 104 Degree for few days last week. Now I know what it must mean to garden in Australia.

Nothing helps in the summer more than a cool, refreshing Watermelon/Feta cheese salad.

Things are going well. Life goes on in parallel to the fire-flies. As the sun sets after a long day of rendezvous with the earth, the moon sends its ambassadors - the fire-flies. With the last of clover flowers all over the yard, and the fire-flies floating all over...it makes it a magical moment.

On harvest - I have strated to process the K-22 broilers. Much, much better in tase than the average broilers. Not as fleshy like store brought chickens, BUT the flavor is amazing! In other news - after many many attempts on growing garlic, this was the year. Behold, I give you organic garlic from the backyard : ).

If you are growing garlic, do not discard the leaves. Take a bunch of corriander, salt and the garlic leaves and put it through a food processor. Serve it over a piece of fried fish. Here in the picture, a piece of 'Hilsa' fish from Bangladesh (Shad in the U.S) and boiled rice with garlic, corriander chutney. Almost a national Bengali dish : ).

I will leave you with a picture of the yard.... India Blue peacock on the top of the car...you know pretty average scene around here : ).

Stay cool. See you next week!

Fire-flies....

2010-05-25T18:43:00.000-07:00

I saw the 1st fire-fly of the season last night. It is such a miracle, the fire flies. I do enjoy sitting out and watching them when I do have a few moments to sit down. I don't think we get to sit down much and enjoy ourselves in our surroundings. Nature's mystery unfolds without us noticing...like it has been for ages.

Life goes on quietly as summer is around the corner. All the lambs have been born, a crazy chicken is sitting on TWO eggs, the muscovy duck is sitting on some peacock and duck eggs, the quails started killing each other and I let the the door to their hutch open one day...nasty birds!

Some photos from around the land:

This little rooster is so funny. He barely has any meat in him, but will chase a full size hen down. Very funny guy. I guess he is a bantam. The meat birds and the layers are all together now...grazing whatever grass is left.

ANOTHER rooster...this one reminds me of the phantom at Mozart's apartment : ).

Talking about apartment...Mrs. WF found this abandoned nest...hopefully mama Robin had some luck with some of her eggs.

This little gal is so noisy...its unbelievable! Most of the flock didn't make it through the winter. Lone survivor. And here is Mozart - the Polish rooster. I ofter wonder if he can see well from under his 'wig' : ) .

My favorite hen. She is so proper...so timid ....so gentle. Reminds me of a little Japanese bride. She is 1/3 the size of a laying hen. Her eggs are pretty funny too. One more bantam rooster...Boy..we have too many rooster.

Here, the geese gets in on the action. I wish they were QUIET and not so bossy! Lastly - my most favorite view of the spring. My neighbor's hay bales. I can watch them all day...even though they dont move much : ). Happy Summer Everyone!

3S Update: Simply Sunny Saturday....

2010-05-02T07:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a scorcher! Yikes...it was HOT...reaching in the high 80s. It was a packed day starting with the morning hike with our local "friends of open space" - a group that promotes and work towards preserving open spaces in our town. It was a guided hike and to my amazement we learned so much about plants and wild-life that is in our 'backyard'. The grapes I was confused about last year are actually edible and are called fox grapes. We saw birds that flew over the gulf of Mexico to breed here. I was told there is a place in that location where the Monarch butterflies will actually come to breed from South America. I learned a new name of a tree called Autumn Olives...heard about natural usage of wild plants..i.e. one stalk of a plant used to card wool...because of its thorny seed pods, learned about Owl habitat. The kids enjoyed the walk as well. We saw streams, clear- clear water, wild flowers, American Elms, benches made by our good friend Clem....a peaceful morning!

That's Mrs. WF with the kids in the back.

Look at this bench! Clem - a local artist friend makes them from fallen trees. They are simply a work of art!

Noon called for a cold soba lunch. Mrs. WF made cool soba. According to Japanese tradition she put a raw quail egg in the soba. We have started to get eggs from our quails...so that was a treat.

Cold soba with grated daikon, sea-weed and raw quail egg.

In the evening we went out to the canal for fishing. This is the children's 1st time going fishing. The boy caught a fish in 30 sec. The fish basically jumped to his rod as he dropped it in the water. Victory!!!

The children were amazed with the house 'in' the water. What a beautiful view! The boy caught one more fish in the time we were there. The grown-ups caught zero : ). Good thing there was the halal Chinese place for dinner. Needless to say...a good day was had by all. Alhamdu-li-Allah!

Life goes on ............

2010-04-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

This is my week at home. After 9 years with the same company, I quit last week. So, I am getting to be a stay home dad and a week-farmer for a few days.

Sitting next to Jr. Weekendfarmer who has very high temperature. He picked up a bug from school yesterday. He needs more rest and doesn't want to be alone. My poor child. I think he is a miracle baby. Born at 35 weeks...he is such a bundle of joy in our lives.

Spring is in full force at the house. The goslings are here again...or what the children will name "fuzz-fuzz". We can not have any more geese. That means I have to be on Craigslist again to find them new homes.

Our resident peacock "babu" is dancing again. Nothing says Spring like a dancing peacock. He is very mean at this time. The other day he jumped at me as I was giving them water and made a nice 4" cut on my thigh. I don't know why he gets so violent at this time. One of the peahen that we raised in our house is sick. I rushed her to the vet. I am trying "Baytril" and hoping she recovers. I had my share of peacock fatality. She doesn't eat, so I am forced to feed her with a syringe. This morning, I gave soaked bread, half a egg yolk mixed with honey through a syringe. Oh boy! Worse than feeding an infant with a spoon : ) .

It has been windy and chilly lately. First it was the rain and now the cold that goes through your bones...so I am always tempted to run back inside. Loads of things needs to get done.

1. We need a new pasture fenced for the sheep.

2. The quail house needs to be finished.

3. The veggie garden fence needs to be done.....Mrs. WF's seedlings are waiting.

4. Gooseberry plants needs to go in.

5. Tree trunks from the storm needs to be cleaned.

6. Ducks need to be relocated. They are messing up the barn.

7. Animals needs to be processed for dinner (you can see that is one thing I am not fond of and keeps going to the bottom of the pile of my to-do list). I have 3 roosters, 3 Muscovy ducks and a pair of sheep that needs to go to the freezer.

On other news, the egg production is back up again. We have chicken, duck, quail, geese eggs in various different shapes, size and color!

I am sure you all are busy with Spring and Fall (the other side of the world). Happy farming!

Enemy at the gate ......

2010-04-24T02:13:00.000-07:00

.....or, 50 feet from our dining table to be exact. I heard foxes don't venture out at daytime. Look at this. Look at his face!!! I would like to think that his red coat, his tail is so cute...but (enlarge the photo) and look at his eyes. Isn't there something sinister about them? He came out of the woods...took a stroll by the maple tree and Mrs. WF's compost pile and started walking...he posed for my camera and then headed towards the barn....our barn !!! full of broiler chickens, egg-layers, peacocks etc etc. So - I stepped out and gave him the scare of his life! He looks well nourished and his coat looks healthy....so I am sure I contributed to his dinner menu already!

Making your own fiber?

2010-04-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

Cute Mrs. WF has been spinning for a few months now. As I got home, I was greeted with this tonight : ). She had spun the wool and dyed it.

I am so pround of her! She had taken Quince and Azalea flowers and made her own color by boiling them down.

It seems she was not happy with the colors and so she took the Tamales spices her friend has given her and used it in the mix to die the wool. Came out great! Here is a cool picture of some of our fiber providers. We say thank you : ). & here is a cute shot of Vanilla : ). Her tail healed so well. My first time docking the tail. My Wall St. Analyst friend helped me. Thanks B!

Spring 2010....

2010-04-11T14:03:00.000-07:00

Lady Spring has been here for a while now. She has been destructive and yet full of surprises and bounty. The land is on fire with flowers everywhere!

As if we didn't have enough to do, we found an orphan hare under the pine brushes. I have read long time ago that they will not survive in captivity. I had to rescue it, otherwise it would have been dinner for the rooster. He was chasing after it....thinking its a mice. I fed it some milk through a syringe. It made a squeaking sound and drank half a syringe. Waiting to call animal control tomorrow to see if they have any ideas.

On livestock on the 'farm', we lost a sheep to some unknown cause! She died in 30 secs before I could figure out what to do. She was pregnant as well. I was sad for few days...its hard to come to terms with death...but we have no control on life!

On the meat chickens, the K-22 are really something! They are like feathered Piranhas. I think if I sat down with them to watch how cute they are ...they will nibble me to the bones in a few hours. They are ALWAYS hungry!

We still have some active hives. I think we lost a few though. Not much activity in the corner ones. We will see. The bees were stuck in their hives in all those winter days and rainy weeks....

Yesterday, a co-worker/friend came to help cut some fallen trees down and we sat out and had our house soup, Lobster claw bouillabaisse on the grill and grilled Tandoori Chicken. Sunday...I am fixing fences (it seems that's all I do), planting bulbs, Mrs. planting potatoes, napping (allergies are terrible), the kids went around picking some dandelion flowers for tea. The day is coming to an end. Tired yet happy to have been so close to the land for the weekend.

This should be criminal!!

2010-03-29T11:07:00.000-07:00

Strawberry Farmers Destroy Crops - ABC News

2010-03-25T16:56:00.000-07:00

I think, I am falling in love with sheep and lamb! I cant seem to get enough of them. The lambs are doing well....hanging out under the black walnut trees. Nargis, the brown mother needs some training in motherhood. Snow will cry and cry for her and Nargis will be doing her own thing and then all on a sudden, she will remember her child and cry out. Snow is funny on her own...she is having a hard time going under Nargis to drink her milk. Its funny to see how the others are 'pretending' to eat hay. Its adorable!Mrs. WF told me she felt Holly and could feel her back bones. So, I am putting some extra item on Holly's list of food. Sliced bread! Its amazing how she can swallow one down so effortlessly. I also gave her some chopped up carrots and green apples. I read in an old American farm book that farmers would have extra patches of turnips for their sheep. I actually gave the flock some pumpkin skins the other day...they LOVED it!

A quick look at the garlic patch. I have had horrible luck at growing garlic...Hopefully, this time, we can grow some bulbs.

Just some other pictures around the land that speaks Spring language.

Muscovy Duck eggs ...MUCH better that Khaki Cambell eggs.

Geese nest...they cover up the eggs after they have laid. Its amazing. I took a look at the pasture and it seems the clover is doing well. I bought 4 pounds of red clover seeds and walked through knee deep snow and spread it all across the yard. Lets see how it turns out. Hopefully the sheep will like a treat of clover here and there. Nothing says Spring like ...Crocus. The last bloom...the sweet smell still lingers in the air!

Meet Vanilla!

2010-03-20T21:03:00.000-07:00

Greetings on the first day of Spring! After a beautiful 70 plus degree day...when I didn't think things could go any better...here comes Vanilla!

I was rushing to get hay before we have to go to a friend's place for dinner. I notice that Holly is on the other side off the fence..i.e outside the maternity ward. I am amazed how sheep can be Houdini sometimes. So, I stop the car, run back to the back and to my utter surprise..it was Elizabeth, calmly nursing her new born. SubhanAllah..what a graceful sight..full of mercy!

This is the 1st time, I am home when a baby is born. So, needlessly to say...I run in terror back to the house to find the wife who has done it before. She runs with the bottle of Iodine (Thanks Chris) and manages the process. The neighbor came to visit and the 4 of us.....divide and conquer to separate Elizabeth from the herd and find her some quiet quarters. She is such a great mother!!

As we drove to our friend's house (friend from the 7th grade!)...we go through names...and I lose to my junk foodie family....Here she is ..Vanilla! : )

a bit early ..............

2010-03-13T03:22:00.000-08:00

The northern wind came with a message...and left it on the petals of the crocus. The old man Winter has to move on…and come back next year. “A bit early”, said the grouchy old man Winter as he packed his bags. I collect his belongings…the white, cold shawl on the yard, the chill cologne in the air and bid him a warm farewell. He melts a little in my warmth. “Will miss you”, I lie and see him off. Time for the next guest and yes…she was early alright …arriving on the wings of the wild birds and rain …Spring 2010!! She is full of excitement having missed me for a while. Boy...does she travel with baggage or what.....flowers, rain, pollen, grass, birds, breeze, bees, eggs....she is still unpacking! 6:00 Thu morning. The blackberry rings. Mother!! I think. She usually knows the time difference. She would call after her evening walk in the park, while it is still 5:00 in the morning here. “This is the post office….sorry to wake you up….....your chicks are here” Off I run to the post office barely collecting my thoughts. She hands me the box with the 50 chicks. Jr. WF walks out as he is ready to go to school...wow...chicks...what are we going to name them? "Dear Lord" I say..."we can't be namimg meat poultry and there are FIFTY of these!! " This is the meat-poultry project for this year…..hoping to sustain the family from poultry raised just off the land. The last time we tried the broilers. ....I was not too excited about the taste. They were allowed to free range, but still had this very ‘ordinary’ taste…not so much flavor. This time we picked a K-22 red broiler ..…which will grow slower and promises to be more flavor. I used an old pool that I had brought on Craigslist (shhhh! Mrs. WF knows it was a free pool) and never put it in the ground and obviously it cracked. Such is my life : )! So, for now…we will use it as a chick brooder. On the poultry meat project for this year are Muscovies and Quails….(inshAllah – God willing). Hopefully…this way, we will get off the grid for poultry for a while. I know it can be done, if I am not lazy. I sold the Khaki Campbell ducks to this wonderful couple I met on CL. They are starting their farm here after moving from VT. They also have 3 ponds where the ducks will be happier. I think we will focus on less animals this year. It is getting hectic with 8 different species of animals and their individual needs. ..specially when I am on the road and Mrs. WF has to manage on top of her very hectic day. Well....off to making a shed for the sheep...the non mothers are left out in the rain and there is more rain to come this weekend...then friends for tea and 10:00, Taxes at 1:00, (Taxes ...Brrrrrr!), build a house for the quails, process 2 roosters and 1 Muscovy for family meal for the next couple of weeks...ok..better run : ) !

3S Update: Snow, Snowdrop and Sheep ....

2010-03-03T01:37:00.000-08:00

Sorry...It has been a while. Hope everyone is doing well. I have been on the road again and this time South Asia for 2 weeks.

While I was away...Mrs. WF 'delivered' 3 beautiful bundles of wool. Meet " Snow" " Cookies N Cream" and "Cookie Dough". I seriously need to talk to the kids...(our naming committee, about these names : ). Snow is the girl and the others are boys. "Cookies N Cream" That's "Snow" with her mom.

Holy - our expert mom had some severe complications before she gave birth to twins. Thanks to Kris and the Vet...Mrs. WF was able to safely manage this process. I felt terrible as she was snowed in (see below) and had to manage 2 super-active kids, chickens, ducks, geese, peacocks, bunnies, quails, hatching chicks, piegons (whew...tired just typing) and then spring lambs in the middle of blizzards.

Our "Maternity Ward"And ...at last, a sign of hope. This winter is almost over! Snowdrops...like little girls in Sunday dresses all over the back yard. Enough to feel warm inside and praying for the Crocus to bloom with a safron smell.

The geese started laying again and as I came home,I was greeted with a refrigerator full of geese egg. These eggs are HUGE! One egg omelet can feed 4 people. For scale ...look at the chicken eggs on the right. Yes...the chickens finally decided to lay again...after tormenting me for this winter.

Hope you are all busy with seed catalouges, hoop houses, wool, eggs, broilers, bees, compost etc. Happy Spring everyone!!

Life in the slower lane...

2010-02-02T16:47:00.000-08:00

You really want to be a farmer? People ask me all the time, when I tell them I am close to making a career move and walk away from being a corporate rat and give up my dream of being a General Manager, or a high profile executive some day. I used not to think much and say…...Sure! I would love to do that. Be my own boss and spend my days in the dirt with the animals. Lately, I am trying to understand the economics of farming. The other day, I got a call to join a panel of Pharma rats and make $140 /hour for my time as a consultant in an area this new service provider was venturing into. I declined, but the price-tag was bothering me. That’s a price of a sheep organically pasture raised which would take me 8 months to raise to get to the $140 price. Let’s compare the price of hay in winter, the unexpected vet bills, worming, fencing, shelter, grains, and 6-8 months of physical labor that you would put to raise a little lamb to a sheep that is ready for the table, or someone's flock. I know that is a simple calculation, but what would you put for price tags for these items? Hay – $6/bale T-post - $4/piece Fencing $35/roll Grains - $9/bag Vet bill - $20/avg ‘visit’ – the sheep never visit the vet. I visit and bring home the ‘remedy’ and administer. Worming - $10/tube Shearing - $20/per sheep Hoof shearing knife, docking bands, penicillin, syringe etc etc etc Just doing the calculation in my head….I am already in the red raising 'a' sheep, compared to sitting on a panel, in a boring, icy cold meeting room of a fancy hotel in a fancy town. As this debate goes on in my head…I know I am overlooking economies of scale, streamlined production, organized LCM etc which can make it a “profitable” venture to be a farmer. It doesn't take a whole lot more effort to raise a small flock of sheep than a single one. Anyway, if that dream of being a real farmer never comes true, I do enjoy my 20 min each morning with the sheep being pushed around for hay, (having an asthma attack from the spores in the hay), getting their water, running my hands through their fleece, the smell of their pen and their greedy joyous rampage when they see me coming up the driveway. Its priceless, if I were forced to put a price-tag!

A global family....in need.

2010-01-15T14:34:00.000-08:00

I am following el and Kris's lead on this. Let's keep our global families in mind. Please lend a hand to Haiti via your choice of charity.

An injured child at a Hotel in Port-au-Prince, Haiti Photograph: Ivanoh Demers guardian.co.uk

Here are some links. Red Cross/Crescent, Doctors without Borders/Medecines Sans Frontieres, American Red Cross, Islamic Relief, Save the Children.

Egg Curry.........

2010-01-15T00:00:00.000-08:00

I meant to post this long time ago. Given, lots of you are Vegetarians...I thought this might work as a dish for some of you. Here we have a egg dish made with Muscovy duck eggs and potatoes grown at the house. Its usually a fun dish, my mom used to make when she ran out of groceries back home : ) . 1. Boil eggs (if it is home grown...use few days old eggs. Fresh eggs are impossible to peel.)

2. Peel the eggs, leave them whole and brown them in a little oil with a pinch of salt and curry powder. Leave them aside.

3. Saute some onions (the more the onion, the sweeter the dish) with curry powder, salt, loads of garlic, crushed ginger and let it breathe. Add a little water. At this time you can add potatoes, carrots or any other veggies of your choice. Cover and let the veggies soften.

4. Add the boiled, sauted eggs and let it all come together for 5-10 min. You can add water for extra sauce, or keep it on the drier side...depending on what you prefer.

5. Cut the eggs in halves for visual effect and dust with freshly crushed cumin.

Serve with boiled rice or any flat bread. Enjoy!

2010.....

2010-01-10T08:48:00.000-08:00

How is everyone doing? I am sure by now a lot of you are suffering from green fever : ). The soil here is FROZEN! Nothing is growing in our 2 little acres. The chickens have stopped laying as well. I don't do light bulbs and so they are enjoying their natural molting process.

We don't celebrate new years in any special way ... but this year we had a new tradition of a lot of delicious food based on Japanese customs. I thought this was an interesting twist to our daily, simple life. Mrs. WeekendFarmer went all out starting on the night of the 31st. We had beautiful soba, with clear broth and topped with shrimp tempura. Yum!!!!

Poor girl worked hours and hours while I recovered upstairs from some kind of bug I picked up. She made sushi, cold vegetables, roasted chicken, traditional Japanese soup with fish balls, Lotus roots, Gobo roots (burdock). I am sorry, I don't know all the Japanese names for the dishes. They were amazing!!

Burdock & Lotus roots

Have an amazing 2010 all! Wish you and your loved ones prosperity, progress, a great garden & farm year and much much tranquility! Thank you for visiting, reading and sharing your lives with us.

3S Update: Another Simple Sunny Sunday.

2009-12-28T10:24:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, we had another simple, sunny, Sunday. I think the weather is playing a game to show off that I am given enough sunny Sundays : ).

We had good company, good food and a very nice afternoon in our small dining room drenched in sun. Alhamdu li Allah! On the menu, we had roasted Muscovy, sticky Japanese rice, salted cucumber, pickled plum, biscuits, carrot/Shitake soup. Mrs. WF made this amazing lemon tart and Fini, our chief guest from Wien/Vienna made her famous Apple Strudel. Boy - that was a lot a food : ).

The soup, served in curved out grape-fruit.

The duck marinated for 5 days in grape-fruit, cranberry juice combined with some house spices. I think I overcooked it....but all the fat was out and one of the tastiest duck, I ever made. I have had terrible luck with ducks in the past. I put some pine leaves in the final few minutes in the oven to give it some extra layer of flavor. et voila...monsieur Canard..... I think, the guests were pleased. Ah...the sun drenched lemon tart. Mrs. WF candied the lemon slices with honey. Its a pity we forgot to take a picture of the strudel before we ate it all. We took our princess to see " The princess & the frog"...and I started missing Louisiana after watching it. So, for Sunday lunch I had started a Beignet dough earlier in the day. I had hoped to have served them with the soup...but given the house temp is 62 all the time...it took a while for the dough to rise. The dough doesn't stay well overnight...so we had Beignet for dinner!

The Ghost of Kim-Chee.

2009-12-26T06:33:00.000-08:00

It was 1997, one weekend morning 9:30 or so ....as I was trying to collect my brain cells after agonizing over an accounting test the whole night and looking at the beautiful Arizona sky....this smell of something 'dead', something 'violated' started coming from the kitchen. Sungwook, my Korean room-mate had done some very exotic things in the kitchen...BUT this was beyond 'civilized'. I open the door, trying to find out what un-Godly event was taking place in our kitchen...and I find Sungwook, with his perennial smile enjoying a bowl of rice and some UFO (unidentified food object) that was giving this 'smell', that I have never experienced before in my 20 something year life : ). I know about acquired taste...BUT this?? how can you acquire this??? Fast forward 12 years....I find myself craving for the very same thing. I find myself ENJOYING it! For the last couple of months...the ghost of Kim-Chee has been haunting me. I have been wanting to make it myself. I spoke to many, many Koreans in all walks of life and it seems there is not one single recipe. Each family has their own recipe and it varies from grandma to grandma. Sungwook, if you are reading....I wish you were here, so we could make this Kim-Chee together. What we need for mise en place: Napa Cabbage, Daikon - Radish, Fish Sauce, Sesame Oil, Kosher salt, Cucumber, Apple, Garlic, (LOTS of it), Scallion, Boiled Rice, Paprika, Chilli Paste, Rice flour.

Here is a simple technique. 1. WASH the napa in icy cold water. Chop. Salt it generously and set aside 2-3 hours. I left it overnight. 2. While the Napa is taking the salt bath, prepare the sauce. In a food processor, combine the boiled rice (I am not sure how the rice will turn out, the recipe called for rice flour only),rice flour, chili paste, garlic, chillies, salt, rice vinegar, sesame oil, *fish sauce ( I also added a can of sardines), and garlic. Blend and make a fine paste. *If you are vegan, vegetarian - you can leave this item out. 3. Chop (julienne) the radish, cucumber (discard the seed section - too watery), scallions and mix in the sauce. 4. Chop (julienne) the apple and mix it in the salt bath with the napa. 5. WASH the napa and apple well, after 3 hours. Wash it 3 times to drain out all the salt. 6. Put the napa and apple aside for all the water to drain. I used a salad spinner. 7. Mix the napa and the apple with the sauce. Use your hands to mix the sauce well into the vegetables and transfer the good energy to the food, which will give the extra flavor : ). et voila....Kim-Chee. I put the final product in this container and left it in the snow. Usually, in Korea they leave it buried to the neck of the pot and cover the top with straw until the Kim-Chee is needed. I was told, there are special Kim-Chee refrigerators that you can buy...which will replicate the earth's unique controlled temperature for the Kim-Chee. Serious stuff : ). I will dig it in the ground, once the snow melts. Try your own, you can use ANY veggies you want...any level of heat you want. Enjoy!

3S Update: Simply Sunny Sunday

2009-12-20T12:44:00.000-08:00

I used not to have much recollection on how the weekend went! Now...with the blog, I can track and see actually, we have a lot of fun days, esp Sundays. Believe it or not...a lot of the Sundays are actually Sunny! I am more grateful with that information even though Sunday night, I still have a hole in my stomach feeling...I don't know why : ).

The creek behind the house.

Today, Sunday was simple and sunny alright.....with 13-14" of snow on the ground. I enjoyed my morning cup of tea while reviewing the sales brochure from the Japanese supermarket up in Edgewater, NJ. They ship a weekly mailer to our house and it makes me relax looking at all the produce, fish they import from Japan. I LOVE Japanese packaging and marketing. My 'shopping' was short lived as I had warmed up enough to face the snow and feed all the animals. Talking about the animals, I lost a lot of the juvenile Guinea hens and other egg layers that I had bought. For some reason they didn't make it. I think this is the worst year in winter fatality to the flock. I lost close to 8 young hens and rooster. It made me very sad as I tried to bring them in the house, in the garage...but nothing seemed to work. I have learned in the last 3 years....you try and then you surrender. I can't dictate life and death. I can drive myself crazy about it....but the hours of life and death are a Divine decree and who am I to control it?

The sheep doesn't like to go inside the barn even in freezing temp.

The older feathery flock did just fine...they enjoyed a treat of snow : ).

Here is a quick shot of the bunnies...they are pets, not part of the livestock. Something about orange bunny pee on the snow...very interesting. And THEN...it was time to clean the driveway. I called for back-up and they came to help.....I tried here...there...everywhere...after a while it seemed obvious....the David vs. Goliath war is not going in my favor. It took me 30 min of non-stop shovelling just to clean 5'*5' space as it meets the state highway and our driveway. The state salt trucks had piled a 3' high 'mountain' of snow...as you would get out of the driveway to the public road. It was a painful 30 min just to clean that section as Mrs. WF tried to clean in front of the garage. I waved trying to stop several trucks with snow blade in front of them so that I could hire someone and get the job done. They looked at me while driving and simply ignored me : (....not even a wave back! They were busier than Santa at Macy's!!! Finally, Mrs. and I looked at each other...and I went inside and called Uncle Jay. He will come after his Chef job at the country club and dig us out tonight!! Aaaah...Alahmdu Li Allah...Thanks God for friends and well-wishers.

I must admit...it gets very lonely at the bottom of the hill with just a shovel : ).

************Caution: Discussion on Butchering, not appropriate for some of you*************

With my afternoon, freed up...I went and focused on food. I am very late on processing the ducks. There are too many male Muscovies and if I don't do anything they will kill each other in the mating battle. I gathered up enough courage to slaughtered one. The Halal process of slaughtering takes a considerable amount of time. Its not just chopping or ringing the head off. There is a prayer of thanking the creator for the life I am about to take to sustain my family, then the animal gets a drink of water and then a very very sharp knife. It took me 20 min to restrain a duck. These Muscovy males are HUGE!! They are vicious as well...I think its easier to process a sheep than a duck. Then came the worst part ever!!! The feathers....It took me an hour to take care of all the feathers of one duck. Couldn't I just get a duck at the store for $12??? Well...this is organic, free range and raised with care and consideration. So, its well worth it.

I will cook it closer to Confit de Canard without all the fat involved. Well, time to go and marinate the duck. It will be dinner tomorrow (inshAllah). I always have a hard time eating anything the same day. Psychologically...it seems easier to handle if it comes from the refrigerator ...as if it came from Wegmans sans the shrink wrap : ).

Is it over yet?

2009-12-13T18:02:00.000-08:00

Sitting in a hotel lobby and typing. I have been away from the house and the animals for TWO whole weeks with a small break in the middle for 7 hours where I was able to be home. It is so crazy now! I had a presentation this morning at 7:30 and it was bad. The room felt like a morgue with all the dim lights and the people were exhausted from days of meetings. It wasn't the ususal cheery style, however, I felt I had the connection I needed to get them where they were comfortable with the materials. That is all that matters I guess. Anyway - onto something positive, meet Louis I. He is the resident ram for this year. Last year it was Pepto and we got one lamb from him and Princess. I am not sure how Louis I is doing with the ladies. I hope we do get some spring lambs, running in the yard next year.

I love the way the sheep stroll around the yard.

I might be losing my mind...but I find it very reassuring, seeing them walk about, do what sheep do. It makes me feel grounded. Only problem is you can't pay your mortgage doing that activity : ). Its all good. I will feel better once I get some decent, un-interrupted sleep. No alarm clock, no wake-up calls, no fancy hotel beds, no buzzing blackberry, just sleep until the body/mind is ready to wake up and meet the day !!!

A perfect evening .....!

2009-11-25T14:21:00.000-08:00

A perfect evening for us is a long table full of good friends, some food and loads of stories. I also love surprises and so our latest victim got a good surprise when we gave her a birthday party ahead of time and had some of her favourite people to come wish her well. I love these expressions on faces....when you know you have got them good: ). This is priceless! She still looks the same : ) !What a lovely privilege to share life with friends who are families.....Its sad that we dont get to do that more often. The pace of life can be so hurried and busy.

Happy B-day again Gerda. I look forward to surprising you again next year and years to come !!

-------

For the foodies out there : on the menu, we had lobster bouillabaisse, 5 herb crusted salmon, leg of lamb, rice with pomegranate seeds, shitake mushroom sauce, and Mrs. WF made a beautiful French cake! Baking is not my department and so I stay away from it : ).

3S Update: Simply Sunny Sunday ...

2009-11-15T07:34:00.000-08:00

The sun came out today. Hopefully it dries out all the mud. Did I tell you ....sheep, mud and rain is not a good combination? ! My back is still hurting from wrestling with the sheep in the mud yesterday.

All the animals came out for breakfast on the yard.

Meet Luciano.....he is our latest rescue. He was to go to the auction or the butcher. He is just too cute, and I couldn't say no to him, against my better judgement. We already have a beautiful ram and I am sure there will be trouble when Luciano finds his groove!

Inside ...the human breakfast was underway. Rising dough is such a winter scene around this house. Junior baker pitched in and delivered some cool looking bread.

Mrs WF is the real baker in the house. She makes wonderful 'pan' with all kinds of filling. These had broccoli and cheese.

Mr. Peacock is shinning under the sun this morning.

Meet Mozart....our Polish rooster. Another rescue. Lately...we have been getting a lot of rescue animals. I am not sure how they are finding us! I still have 2 more ducks on the waiting list....Mrs. will kick me out if I get more ducks: ). Cool picture of my favorite jam! I don't know Mrs. Miller...but if you are reading...I think of you often : ). Have a great Sunday everyone!

Thursday Thoughts : )

2009-11-12T05:57:00.000-08:00

What is my race – you ask Where I am from - you ask I dive deep in my soul to search for answers to your queries Where am I going - you ask I ponder on the journey ahead I don’t know how far and where My silence worries you… As I look for that answer How long am I here for - you ask I look deep inside again The universe is silent

A rainbow....

2009-11-03T22:40:00.000-08:00

My neighbor's pasture this weekend. He is an organic beef farmer. The best neighbor you can have!

3S update: Simply Sunny Sunday...

2009-11-03T22:39:00.000-08:00

Lately, sunshine has been a premium in NJ. Rain, rain and more rain and strange weather with not so much sun. Poor chickens are on strike and decline to lay any eggs. Last Sunday was one of the rare sunny days ...so out came the children, the food, the grill and a beautiful afternoon to soak up the sun. We are truly blessed!

The Grill is always out. ...and I think I grill more in winter than in summer.You can cook the soup on the grill after the main meat is grilled. It gives an extra layer of richness with the smoke. Next to it are our peppers.

I am a frugal buyer. I usually wouldn't buy lobster...but these claws were on sale. Check in with your fish monger. They sometimes will run a special on all the 'misplaced' claws. Also, the price/pound of lobster had taken a nose-dive given the economy. Not a good thing for our Lobster farmer friends in Maine! (I used these claws for the lobster Bouillabaisse...)

Jr. WF crushing the leftover lobster claws for the chickens with a hammer. They LOVE it. Calcium anyone ?

Miracle of life!

2009-10-27T04:11:00.000-07:00

Did I say ...I didn't even know why we have roosters? Well....I guess he wanted to show that he earns his living here. We hatched out 9 chicks in the middle of this winter weather!! A good friend let us borrow his incubator and I put in 12 eggs...not sure what to expect out of it. Just like a well calibrated Swiss watch - they started coming just at 21 days.

This is the best hatch we ever had. Every time Rosy or the other hens would sit...we would get max of 2 chicks out of 12 eggs. The wool that we got from our sheep is coming handy as Mrs. WF is using them to keep the weaker chicks warm and cozy!

Do you ever feel like this??

2009-10-26T10:39:00.000-07:00

Where has the summer.......

2009-10-23T16:20:00.000-07:00

........gone? I can't believe its over! Thats the first fire of the season. This week...we had 71 degrees yesterday ...today it feels like we are in the North Pole. Its 50 some degrees now...but the wind and the lack of sun makes it really miserable. This house with its 200 year old frames and maybe 60 year old windows...doesn't do much to keep the cool breeze out. I was gone to Monteal for work...it seemed winter was already there. I love the cities of Canada. It has a European feel where you can walk to places and just soak in the culture. View from my hotel window. I stayed at this same hotel 7 + years ago. Great memories with friends Arnaud and Jaimi!

Shops with beautiful paintings....

View from the air...a small patch of park/garden in a major city.

Back home...this week...one of the chicken (Easter Egger) had a double yolk egg. We never had a chicken egg with a double yolk before. Dora the duck used to lay double yolk eggs. It was a welcome surprise.

Here is a fun picture of Sunday dinner. I have been trying to transfer him to the table for a couple of days now. I am having philosophical issues and questions about taking a life that seems promising, BUT I know we cant have him for too long. I cant have any more roosters!!!! The hens look abused and violated with the patriarch rooster. I am even wondering if we should have any rooster anyway???

1st shooting star....!!!

2009-10-21T03:23:00.000-07:00

Well....it took me 30+ years to see my first shooting star/s. I went out there around 4:00 a.m. I could not see anything moving. I was upset that FAA lets out all these aircrafts when I am eagerly waiting a shooting star opera : ). Closer to morning prayer time....something happened...the universe opened itself and the show began. It was like a 3D puzzle that only opens up when you are really in-tune with it. I have never seen anything like this! I found myself gasping for breath...when one of them seemed like it was about to land on the driveway. I dont know anything about stars, meteors...saw this cool photo on the web and keeping it as a place-holder as a memory of this phenomenal experinece. aaaaahhhh : ).

Eating wild things ....

2009-10-13T15:15:00.000-07:00

We have these wild 'grapes' growing in the woods. I am not sure what kind of fruits these are. I did venture out and tried some of these. So far so good. I have not had any GI issues or any other health issues I know of : ). They taste acidic and almost like red currants.

I did harvest a lot of it and waiting to get a green light from someone who had been in these woods in the past.

On other wild things...we have walnuts...walnuts everywhere! The little helpers pitched in to pick some. Now I have to process. These are black walnuts.

A days harvest of eggs and walnuts. Note the brown eggs and then EXTRA brown almost chocolate eggs from Mrs. Madelaine....our French hen : ).

I am back : )

2009-10-07T01:22:00.000-07:00

Well....Happy Wednesday everyone. Greetings to visitors from Australia, Esfahan, Japan,Turku, Sudan and all our local US visitors. I always wonder what folks google "weekendfarmer" for? I will never know : ).

It was Ramadan and we travelled back home to see the grandparents to celebrate Eid. Surprisingly, our little "farm" is still going....thanks to all our friends who helped us with the animals while we were away.

Summer is officially over. All our tomatoes are gone for the year. It was sad to see them go. Honey has been harvested and uncle Frank gave us 25 pounds of it! We still have a lamb leg in the freezer and plenty of summer vegetables frozen is perfect precision thanks to Mrs. WF. For poultry ...I have 9 ducks to slaughter and a few volunteer roosters that need to move to the freezer. Good luck catching the ducks....as they roost on the roof of the barn and at night on the tallest branch of the walnut trees. I have never seen anything like this. How can these ducks fly so high and have such beautiful flight across the neighbor's 200 acres. It is amazing!Egg production is back on track after a strange zero eggs for 2 days scare. It WAS scary: ).

Check out the Chocolate colored egg. Its from the French Cuckoo Maran hen. The brown eggs pale in comparison. Here you see a 'blue/green' egg and normal brown egg and a Maran egg.

We got some good pears this year as well as some peaches. The fruit and vegetable production was behind schedule and not to the level of last year. Too much rain and inconsistent weather.

I thought we could get some nice melon this year. There were promises...but again with all the rain it didnt turn out like last year.

I feel there is a complex system in nature, where the soil and plants go through a period of unwinding and things are not run on schedule like a factory supply chain. You let go your agendas and follow the lead. Then again...it is a matter of sustenance that is provided to one. We are thankful for all that we receive.

Oh before I forget, last month one of the hens hatched a little chic. She sat on 12 eggs and hatched one. I am glad I am not in the hatchery business : ). Baby is cute and doing well! Wish you all a wonderful Fall! I guess in other parts of the world its still Summer or Spring. Enjoy!

Harvesting honey...

2009-08-23T11:26:00.000-07:00

This was our first year with the hives. We harvested the frames last weekend. Uncle Frank will process and give us 25 pounds.....I have never had honey from the front yard and it was a surreal experience. The taste was neutral and color was that of 24 carat liquid gold. I was expecting a lot more 'wild' taste....given the bees have been sleeping on the Oregano bush for days.

That's how many boxes we collected from our yard. Each box yields around 30 pounds!!!

The frames were dripping honey as he was picking them up from the hives to the truck. We had honey dripping all over the yard. I couldn't believe it. What a mercy...what a bounty! There were bees flying everywhere....100s of them 1000s of them focused purely on the frames. I stood amongst the bees and closed by eyes....BZZZZZZZ...bzzzzzzz.....bzzzzzz.....sounded their little fans buzzing around in clock-wise circle. It had the feeling of being up on a hilltop in the clouds. It was a humbling experience!

I devote this following picture to Wilside. Hope you are doing well! These sunflowers did well next to the bee hives...giving the tired workers a place to rest while they bathed in the golden pollen. Some of them grew up to 8-9 feet tall.

Summer 2009 Continued....

2009-08-23T08:41:00.000-07:00

We had a good harvest this year even with all the nasty rain. Potatoes, tomatoes, okra, corn, onion, summer squash, zucchini, red amarnath, plenty of oregano, lavender. We did not have much luck with peppers, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage (never works!!!). The kids pitched in and found some missed potatoes digging with their little fingers. We got 5 different kinds, colors of potatoes.

We actually managed to get a wheel barrow full of potatoes this year : ). Instead of selling at the farmer's market, we decided to share with friends and keep it for our own use at home.

We also have more tomatoes than we know what to do with : ). If you are in the area, drop by for some amazing sun-kissed tomatoes. They burst in your mouth with a acid/sweet taste and you can taste the sun in your mouth. Price-less : ).

How old am I?

2009-08-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

So - the old Cherry tree came down and this is the harvest from it. Looks like we will have plenty of warm evenings in the winter thanks to her.

Can anyone guess how old she is? 5-10 years? I wish I could read the rings.

-Before-

-After-

Now, we can actually see the whole front yard from the kitchen window! Made a lot of difference.

Sayonara!

2009-08-15T10:28:00.000-07:00

The Sakura that broke the chain saw!

I am not a big fan of cutting down trees, esp fruit or flower trees. When we came to look at this house for the 1st time in November...we saw this Cherry Tree and it had cherry blossom in the middle of winter! Mrs. and I thought ...it was a good sign. We did end up winning the tug of war of buying this house. So - this tree has been family to us. "I dont think we should cut this tree down." "......But, its too bushy and old!" "I think it will be a bad thing to do to cut a tree down." "Its ok, they cut down old Cherry trees in front of the shrines all the time and plant new ones. " Me...think for a few days and this morning start the massive task of cutting her down. It is a massive task...as my chain saw is very moody. Some days it works...other days...well you guessed it. It took 45 min to start the saw and I progressed pretty fast....Down came the limbs, the branches that Mother Robin rasied her youngs, the other branch where Mrs. Dove waited patiently for her eggs to hatch. After all that....Mr. Chainsaw had a fit! He gave up on me and now I am stuck with this : ). There were parts of the trunk that fell and I couldn't move them an inch. I looked around for the family elephant (not : ) and decided to use the mini van instead. Before Mrs. could see me...I have tied up the trunk and hauled it across the yard! I myself was amazed at this acheivement. Now, back to Sears...to get another saw. I have the rest of the tree to go. And this time, I AM buying the warranty : )

Eating raw okra !

2009-07-29T18:35:00.000-07:00

Cut them in thin slices..avoid the 'old' okras. Fresh, green, juicy..served over cold tofu/soy sauce with dried fish flakes (bonito) and/or dried sea weed.

This is the 1st time we were able to grow our own okra! Cajun delight is the name of the variety...would make great Gumbo for sure.

Mrs. WF suggested her native Japanese recipe...Okra Nato (a sticky and stinky, fermented bean dish) . I thought for a second and agreed to try. It was amazing.

Boy ...are we glad, we have children that will eat raw tofu and raw okra. They enjoyed it and wanted more. Wow : )!

I hope you all try...Let me know if you like it.

Summer '09 ~

2009-07-23T20:24:00.000-07:00

No - This is not a Cialis commercial ....this is our summer hide-out off the coast of North Carolina. It is an amazing small island with simple people. This is the view from the road side vendor where we get our shrimp. watch the wild flowers

eat a lot of freshly caught sea-food.

Hang out on the balcony

watch the wild residents

Play in the sand all day ...

read a book..or not : )

and my favourite part - an outdoor shower : ) !

Whats for lunch?

2009-07-23T20:07:00.000-07:00

Remember the Eel from Lake Carnegie. Well, we got around to preparing it this weekend and it was amazing! Mother-in-law prepared the fillets similar to how a Japanese Eel restaurant would prepare them and I grilled them on open fire. Challenging yet very rewarding. The burning smell or soy sauce and sugar was yum! Step 1: Open up the body and make flat pieces like this. Step 2 : Skewer them and grill them on open flame.Step 3: Baste them with a mix of soy sauce and sugar.

Step 4: et voila...serve warm with Japanese sticky rice. "Ita - dakimas"

A boat launch and ultimate foraging.....

2009-06-20T20:02:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine "built" a boat...yes I know..I have never met anyone who built a boat by hand. He is quite a builder. So, last weekend it was the launch at Lake Carnegie outside Princeton. He named her Tinef ...in Yidissh it means a little piece of "junk"...that is what Einstein had named his boat. I have never seen a more beautiful boat than this one. .....and after some wait...the breeze came from the North and off Tinef went on her maiden voyage...

The launch party became an ultimate foraging spree for me. I had seen this recipe of elderberry on El's site and I was drooling over them. Lo and behold...at the bank of the lake...there it was in big bushes....elderberry flowers..(atleast I think they were: ).

Then I came across this lady who was fishing and throwing back these nice eels. She doesnt like to eat fish : (?? Once she found out I was interested...she kept on calling me as soon as she caught one. Here we go...we came home with two amazing eels.

I tried to keep them alive..but alas they were not interested in life outside Carnegie Lake...maybe the fresh water from the village of Skillman was too much a shock for their system. They gave us quite a scare as they tried to escape out of the kitchen sink...with movements as creepy as that of a snake..."brrr..." Mrs. WeekendFarmer stood their while me and the kids ran out of the kitchen screaming like girls...She was quite amused.

I cleaned and froze them and now waiting for mother-in-law to come and cook a nice Unagi dish.

Eel dinner with Elderberry champagne (non alcoholic of course) and all from the nature...How does that menu sound? Do leave a comment if you have been grossed out by this post : ).

Milk continued....

2009-06-20T18:39:00.000-07:00

It has been a surreal experience to have home produced milk. Milking sheep is one of the annoying things I had to do on the "farm" ..I must admit. She kicks, she moves, she is irritated and I am trying to get a clean cup of milk. Also, milking the sheep twice a day, rain or shine doesn't really co-exist well with a full time (12 hour/day) corporate job. Mrs. WF was very generous and helped me out a few days...and then we decided to let her dry out. We made several dishes with the milk we got. We made some yogurt, I made some scones with the sheep milk, had some "dahi bara" and the children enjoyed a cup of milk before school.

It was a humbling experience. Maybe, if we have 2 pregnant ewes next year, we will try it out again.

I checked out some milking machines online. Quite interesting and EXPENSIVE : ). The least expensive one was $1K.

Got milk?

2009-06-06T18:29:00.000-07:00

Last night was very very difficult. Before I could get my common sense part of the brain to work, I had sold the new baby lamb and another pair (the long tail ones) to a customer. The whole evening was painful. I kept on worrying about the baby. I gave the new owner a pack of very nice lamb feed, some nice hay that I have saving for him and gave the kind old lady specific instructions on what to do with the sheep. My heart sank as they drove away. I sell animals all the time. However, this was different. I kept thinking, I was doing a bad karma that is going to haunt me.

Well, the worst part of the evening was not over yet. By the time, the guidance from our sheep mentor became clear in my dense brain, it seemed I had bigger problems ahead of me. The mother also had to be weaned! She kept bleating on in the darkness of the night calling for the baby. The noise echoed through the silence of the night and I just prayed for morning, so the new day would wash away her loneliness. Well, that didn't work. She was miserable the whole day today as well. Apart from the emotional pain, there was the physical side, we needed to worry about. She needs to be milked, or, a drastic change in her diet to dry off her milk. We thought about it and my poor wife volunteered to help. et voila...here is the milk!!! We could have had more, but double the amount than this had to be given to the chickens as the ewe had stepped into that pan. I was able to rescue my side of the milk (we divided and conquered the udders: ). Folks...I must admit...like the vet said, it wasn't easy!

We are back to my smaller flock of 3 sheep and I am happy as I can focus on their needs better.

Now, onto research on how to make sheep milk cheese.

Anyone have any ideas?

a clean yard ......

2009-05-23T05:12:00.001-07:00

Hope you all had a good week. It is beginning of summer for most of you and end of summer for some of you. Any other weather pattern I am missing? How is it in Africa? I know there are some visitors from Africa. Would love to hear about some of your projects as well.

I survived a complex work week in the midst of rumors of lay-offs, re-orgs, CHANGE, and other fancy words the consultants could come up with. What can I do...it is what it is...cant worry about sustenance..it is provided for, from who has created me : ) ...I just have to work hard. I love my job...and hopefully not much changes.

Father-in-law was here from Japan for 2 weeks and he CLEANED up the mess outside, given I am always overwhelmed with all the yard work. He also built us a house for the bunnies, and one for the ducks. He is amazing with his hands! He cut some trees down and chopped the fire-wood. He mended some of the sheep fences and helped me move the flock. He even played soccer with the kids : ).

The duck house is a big help. Now I can have them in the "orchard" section all by themselves so they cant ruin the chicken waterer for me. They make a mess with the waterer and the chickens go thirsty. Geese on the other hand are cleaner...but I do LOVE my duckies. We have a friend who has breast cancer and we are supplying her with a lot of duck eggs (duck egg manages your bodies pH...as it is more alkaline then acidic (?))and also she has wild ducks on the list of things they are trying to feed her as a regimen. (I need to research more on this...I didn't have the time)

Father-in-law gave me a gift of a saw that can cut through metal....so now I can make roofs for the various projects out of the leftover tin in the barn. I had great fun using the saw last night. It is an amazing tool.

We had some nice food when he was here. We made his favourite Bouillabaisse, pine-apple fried rice [nasi-goreng (Malay word?)], and steak. Mrs. made an amazing pizza..with home-grown asparagus...yum : )!

It was fun working with him. I will miss him.

Meet Fuzz-Fuzz : )

2009-05-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

That's what the kids named him/her.Our geese have been great hatching machines...but TERRIBLE parents. I had seen one baby under one of the goose few days back. After several days it went missing. The papa goose is a mean old animal....he sheared two of my ducks with his beak. Poor ducks survived as I intervened in the assassination attempt. I am not sure if he has done something funny to the goslings. So - when I saw the next baby - I didn't want to take any chances. I gave it to Mrs. Weekenfarmer who gladly takes care of any orphaned chicks. What would we do without her. Well Fuzz-fuzz follows her around the vege garden...pecks at her hands and sleeps in her sweater pocket : ). I was getting worried that it was lonely by itself and behold I found two other goslings under the mother which I kidnapped again and now Fuzz-fuz has 2 other siblings named Sunshine and Cheese (!!). I told them any other obnoxious names like Cheese again and the naming committee will be fired. Update: I kidnapped one more gosling from under the mother today. Dining room population went up to 4 : ).

The 2 geese are still sitting on 10 or more eggs and so if the mothers are not ready to come out the hatchlings can not just wait and stay there in the barn. They need to go out and get food and water. So - Fuzz-fuzz and company is stinking up the dining room again.

On other baby news...Milkyway is doing well so far. I have no experience is raising lamb and so I am praying that we get over this bridge soon. I am actually glad that we didn't have more than one lamb. I think I would be officially overwhelmed. He is a funny little lamb. He chases the chickens and the ducks around like a little puppy.

We have started eating from the garden again. Asparagus and Mustard green. Our bee-keeper friend tells me that the hives are doing well. We have lost one hive already. The bees all died in it for lack of food. Here is one hive that is doing well. These bees ran away and parked themselves on an old grape vine. I didn't even know we have a grapevine on the land. Father-in-law discovered it. It looks promising.....but then again...I am not that hopeful. Anyway - our beekeeper friend and I got on top his truck and cut the whole vine down with the bees and parked them in front of an empty hive. I am still waiting for them to claim the new 'hotel'. Bees are amazing. I don't know why they do what they do...I have so much to learn. My dear poppies are back again. Last year was not so great...but this year the prince and princesses woke up with eyes wide open and smiled gracefully at the heavens above. They dance in the breeze nodding their heads. I would like to think they are wild...but I am sure someone planted them here. Someone lived here at this house for 70 years. Sometimes I give thanks for all the nice things he/she have planted around. The Lilacs, the Strawberries, the Asparagus, all the Crocus and Daffodils, the horse barn they have left behind...is truly a blessing to have. Enjoy your week. Will be back next Saturday with news around the "farm" : ) Happy farming!

Meet "Milkyway" .....

2009-05-01T19:08:00.000-07:00

Most of the exciting things on this "farm" happened while I was away on a business trip...like this one. I was in the middle of a breakfast with a client at the Four Seasons in Chicago while this little one arrived at our "farm". It is the first lamb that was born here and we are all very very excited. Kris drove an hour each way just to give it the Iodine dip that it needed. Thank you Kris! The little one is a miracle. I watch him in sheer amazement. He walks around, sleeps by his mom and follows her around. The mother is the best. She is such a good, caring mother...leaves me speechless. I hope Milkyway does well and have a good life. Did you know lambs shake their tail as they are drinking their mother's milk? I just noticed it this week...

Is it full moon in Mexico...???

2009-04-16T00:45:00.000-07:00

Lately I keep saying that to express my feeling of craziness with so much to do ....with work related people calling me non-stop..I start the conversation ".....is it full moon in Mexico or something?" I dont actually know why I say that ...but get a good chuckle from my co-workers : )

I am sooooo far behind on being a farmer this year. I am excited that Mrs. WF has taken charge of the vege garden. She has successfully planted potatoes already. I am bit cautious about putting some of the seedlings out in the garden...we have a lot of wild bunnies and other not so cute intruders. {don't worry - I am not going to harm the bunnies - I just have to dig in and make a fence that is 6-10' burried in the ground.} Mr. and Mrs. Opossum/Groundhog - if you are reading....I cant assure any security for you if you attack our vege garden this year. You will be promptly relocated to a golf course somewhere. That is where your cousin Vinny went : ).

Good thing the animals have their own routine and don't have 60 hour week corporate job. The goose or is it geese : ) have started sitting on eggs. I have no idea what she is sitting on...goose egg, duck and chicken eggs most probably. The odd part is ...it was the white one that went broody first and then the grey one came in and took over when the white one went away and carried on with her rendez-vous outdoors. Sometimes, I think she feels bad and comes back and sits with the grey one. Chickens would never allow that. They are very very territorial...esp the ones in our barn. Geese seems to have a communal/'socialist' approach to hatching eggs. They share the duties. The grey one is really vicious now...if you didn't know any better you would think we have a BIG snake in the barn with all the hissing noise she makes as you get near. Lets see what turns out. Rosie on the other hand has started doing her thing again....she is sitting UNDER the nest box...i.e in the basement of the nesting box with a dozen of eggs. Last time she tried this - she hatched 2 out of 12! But - she is an excellent mother. We have 2 new sheep to the flock. These are a mix of Borderleister and Romney (sp?)...and I am selling a pair of the Cormo sheep ....too many sheep on such a small pasture. (their tail is still bothering me : ). Go ahead call me a Tail-ist. Our original girl from Kris is possibly pregnant (inshAllah)...God willing. I actually have no clue if she is really pregnant and am feeling very very nervous about this. We have spent several hours looking at you.tube videos to see lambing and it doesn't really seem that easy...whew! Do you think I can call 911 when the time comes? We will have to transport pepto to the freezer before that given he is really very very violent with everybody....just a big bully. I made a mistake of keeping the friendly ram and processing the nervous one first. Rookie shepherd mistake : ).

Our master bee-keeper has kindly allocated 10 hives to us. We have them at the front of the house. I simply LOVE looking at these hives. I admire the colony from a respectable distance. Subhan Allah - what a miracle! I have seen few of the residents venturing out and going about their business. They have been in their old location for 9 years and I am saying an extra prayer that they like our old house and stay here and call it a home. We really could use some honey at the end of the season.

Quick check on YTD progress on WeekendFarm:

1. Egg *self-sufficiency - check

2. Poultry meat self-sufficiency - half way there

3. Red meat self - sufficiency - check

4. Honey self-sufficiency - check

*(I use the term self sufficiency not literally...I am not self sufficient on anything. It is our creator who created us who has also given us sustenance. I depend on Him for our sustenance. I can dig, plough, plant all day...I might not produce anything if it is not in my destiny. I often pray for a good garden this year, ask for the health of our flock of animals and a good productive year as I put in my effort to the best I can. I am grateful for the miracle of food that He gives us from the land and the work we do with our hands. Its a blessing! )

We had a few days away from the 'farm' as our kind friends helped us out with the animals. I don't know what we would do without their help.

Wonderful bakery (@ Niagra-on-the-lakes). I still remember the almond cookie!

View from the balcony of our room.

Wild Crocus...or did someone plant them by the falls? What a treat that was!

Bundled sheep...

2009-04-05T19:00:00.000-07:00

That is what we got today at the end of the day after the shearer got done with our tiny 'flock' of 4 sheep.

Last year we were invited to our first sheep shearing. It was an unforgettable experience. Kris - we followed your tradition and invited some of our neighbors to come watch, 'help' and have lunch. After all the howling wind yesterday - today turned out to be a perfect day. The children ran around while the grown-up all watched the shearer in amazement. She used old fashioned scissors to shear and did an amazing job with the animals. Pepto seemed he was going to give us a hard time..but we managed.

Our sheep turned into little goats : ) ...Pepto (the black one) doesn't look so scary anymore.

Mrs. WF baked beautiful bread, homemade cheese and lemon squares from home grown lemon in Arizona. Relationships were finalized : ) I told the boy ..he can have a sheep as a 'dowry' ....He seemed pleased.

Spring has finally made its way to the house....The land is stirring and manifesting its force of life. Birds, broody geese hatching eggs, freshly shorn sheep, wild flowers in the woods, running around kids .....so this is how life is supposed to be lived. As I worked with the wool I kept thinking of the nomads living in Mongolia and how their lives must be, moving with the animals from pasture to pasture. I am glad we have been given a place where we can anchor ourselves and call it a home..... a perfect day....alhamduli Allah.

First day of Spring.

2009-03-20T19:19:00.000-07:00

This morning the sky looked foggy from the bed. I rolled over and tried to think of a great memory of me and dad in the mountains of Nepal - 7,000 feet above sea level lost in the fog. As the fog cleared it unveiled valleys after valleys of rice field below. It was such a joy to take that morning walk with up-hill to go back to our rest house. rrrrrrrrrrrr....interruption..."its snowing". What? Mrs. WF repeats ..."it is snowing". Can't be! It is the first day of Spring!!! Alas - yes - it was snowing. The ground was white and wet on the first day of Spring! Old man winter has not left us yet...even though we have given him a farewell reception for the last few weeks. He wants a closure!

Rewind to last few weeks....we had beautiful weather with the advance R.S.V.P of Mrs. Spring at the annual WeekendFarmer's ball : ). She usually sends Mrs. Crocus as a messenger to make sure we are ready for her highness. Subhan Allah - (all glory to God) - I have never seen such beauty anywhere. As you pass by a gentle smell of honey comb arrests your senses. You pause and wonder...is this a dream? and with humility accept the gift of God. The animals are all well so far. It is not fun when the livestock turns into sick or dead-stock. A pair of sheep arrived few weeks back. These are a pair of Cormo that came from a horse farm. Apparently the kind lady forgot to mention that she had not docked the tails on these pairs. Horrid, horrid first impression. I have NEVER seen sheep with the total tail! Yikes. Our sheep mentor (that's you Kris : ) has found us a sheep shearer and we are scheduled for our annual hair-cut next month. I am expecting another pair of sheep from an artist in the west of the state before then.

All the male animals...peacocks, roosters, ram, ducks have turned all hormonal and one needs to be careful around them. I get attacked by "Pepto" every single day and every single day I wrestle him down. I can't believe he forgot the care and kindness I had given him to nurse him back to health.

On the food front - we are getting a dozen eggs every day including chicken, duck and goose eggs. Mrs. WF have been baking with goose egg now and bread is excellent. We tried some goose eggs in omelet which was great as well. Our home raised chicken is almost over. I guess I will have to go back to the butcher for 8 weeks until I can get my broiler chicks ordered in and raise them. We have not bought red meat from the store for the last 4 months or so. The ram we slaughtered for Eid has given us plenty of meat even after we gave away 1/3 to the needy and 1/3 to family and friends. Our 1/3 has been enough for us for the last few months. I think one ram will take us through the year. I will need to raise at least 40+ broilers to last us a year. I need to do LCM -life cycle management - properly so I can meet the demand here : ). We have successfully passed the interview from the local bee-keeper. He has promised us 15 hives in Spring. I bartered 2 jars of raw honey for a dozen of eggs. These are the most amazing honey I have ever tasted. Its amazing! Try to locate some local bee-keepers and get unprocessed honey. It will also act as an antidote for hay-fever/seasonal allergies.

Wish you all warm evenings by the fire with your cup of Earl Grey. Happy simple living : ) !

How many days of winter : ( ?

2009-02-26T17:39:00.000-08:00

Look what I found in the barn the other day! For the first few moments .... I couldn't realize what it was? It looked like a duck egg and then I thought I must have a dead duck somewhere who had to lay this monster. I started to walk back to the house and then it hit me ...hey we have geese too : ). Possibly geese egg(?) These are HUGE...JUMBO...MEGA: ) One fits in my whole palm. For comparison - that is a large chicken egg, an easter egger egg and a large duck egg. This geese egg dwarfs all of that! Mrs. WeekendFarmer went to action fast and have already baked bread with one and used the shell as 'pots' to grow sunflower.

MashAllah - she is so talented : ). She never reads this blog so I can praise away here. She has been knitting socks, baking the bread for the house, growing ALL kinds of seeds and is ready for Spring. I am so lucky to have her as an accomplice.

On a sad note: Mr. Rooster was assassinated yesterday.

He was the BEST rooster that ever was. He never ate before the ladies ate...he never attacked me once. The assassin was a hawk and I think he gave up his life to protect the ladies under the lilac bushes.

We will miss him. He leaves behind two sons who looks exactly like him!

Life is like a campfire...

2009-02-22T09:40:00.000-08:00

The weather has been hovering around the 30's but with the sun out ...we got tempted to go out and enjoy the sun. These are from last weekend....While sitting by the fire-ring - I was thinking- is life not similar to a camp fire? ...you have to put some kindles here and there to keep the 'fire of life' going? Without some twigs here and there...you will have the heat but not the flame (?) whew...that was deep : ) So, what exactly does it mean to put some kindles and twigs in the fire of life ? I am still thinking : )

We had a nice camping with home-made bread, campfire chicken (got the idea when I went camping in Bar Harbor, Maine as a single guy), and soup. All home made and 80% home grown.

The earth is waking up and moving.....

2009-02-14T07:16:00.000-08:00

.....and life is manifesting itself from a dead, barren land. Subhan Allah. It is spring 2009!!! I got another chance to be see the beautiful miracle of life where hope raises in the shape of a small blade of grass, a bud of a magnolia, or the song of a wild bird. Have you noticed how there are no bird songs in winter. Or, it is just me?

Nothing says spring more than a dancing peacock : )

Spring is here even though we have some snow on the ground and today there is more snow in the forecast...but romantic minds don't wait for weather forecasters : ). The male peacocks are dancing away beautifully and the girls are ignoring them routinely. Its is such an enigma. (This was few days ago - view from the front door) Back of the house .... the snowdrops are blooming. The earth after being "dead" for such a long time is stirring and breathing "life" in full force. The blanket of white snowdrops looks like a group of little girls dancing away in their Sunday dress. The chickens had attacked most of the tulip patches and have dug out the bulbs in an attempt to look for carnivorous options...worms. I don't think we will have much spring flowers from bulbs.

Mrs. Weekendfarmer is planning her garden away for this Spring. She has decided to quit her job and focus on Spring activities. She has seeds growing all over the house in little containers, mini green-houses, egg-shells !! Yes - she devised this cool idea to start seeds in egg-shells. Smart woman.

And to save on grocery bills - she is baking with a zeal....Delicious breads of all kinds.

(left - thats pickled cherry blossom on the rolls stuffed with red bean paste)

We have soooo much to do...

1. The sheep needs shearing - Mrs. is waiting for some wool to make socks

2. Wool needs to be sent to be processed

3. Make room for a new pair of Cormo sheep

4. Order broiler chics for next year's meat project

5. Interview local bee-keeper's and start a bee project this spring

6. Clean the vegetable patch

7. Make fences to keep away the vege thieves.

8. Move all the barn hay to the vege patch

9. Order more egg layers (not sure if we need more)

10. Get ready for our table at the farmers market

11. Ignore this to-do list : ) oh boy my head is spinning ......Like they say - you reap what you sow....no harvest for a lazy farmer. Better get to work. Happy Spring on this hemisphere...and happy summer in the down under...or is it? Lets hear from some kiwis and aussies ;).

Life gives you winter....you go sled - ing : )

2009-01-25T20:59:00.001-08:00

I went to the local COOP to buy a sled as I was picking up sheep, chicken food...The guy behind the counter declines to sell it to me!! Come back when you get snow. If you buy it now...you wont get any snow. eh? what? I go back the next morning...get a $3.00 discount and acquire one of the sleds before he changes his mind : ). It seems they sell 2 pieces/year : ) HOT ticket item. This was last Sunday...

sled - $10.00

snow - free

land - property tax - dont ask ; )

the hour having fun sliding down towards the frozen creek - priceless*

(T pulling H on the sled - our driveway: )

(I wish the creek had some water life...nothing that I can see. )

weekend rambling ....

2009-01-24T08:54:00.000-08:00

"Whats the plan today..? " Mrs. Weekendfarmer asks. This question used to make me nervous when we first got married. I didnt know what I was committing to with my answer.

I travel between sleeping...to trying to figure out what day of the week it is. I answer - well - I have a long list of things to do today : ). I can do all of them while being in bed in my head.

1. Find a solution to the MiddleEast Crises...

2. Offer an economic solution to the new administration...

3. Write a letter to the Dalai Lama ....

4. Discuss property tax reforms with the local govt ....

She laughs and leaves me be.

I postpone those lofty goals and start the day by chasing sheep with peptobismol, feeding the chickens, peacocks, ducks, geese, rabbits before settling down for a breakfast of aloo roti (roti stuffed with potato) and ginger tea with the family. I am a simple weekend farmer ...who cares about my thoughts on such big ticket items : )

I leave you with some last pictures of great grand father's house in Japan. The northern wind brings change...with it comes younger generations..their ways of life and style. Time to move out of the way and make room for the new. This house was old (post WWII) full of memories and character accented by the burning smell of soy sauce. The resident was always warm with her stories and gliter in her eyes. She made it a nice home and now that she is gone...and the house is gone...it will simply be a memory in our minds. I will miss her.

(father in law cutting down ancient trees)

Missing summer....

2009-01-17T17:34:00.000-08:00

Pepto is doing well (Alhamdu Li Allah). If you run into issues with bloated sheep..."attack" him with a bottle of peptobismol, epsom salt, banamine. He started limping on the 4th day where I thought his organs were failing. He could barely walk. Four days of banamine shot did help. Disclaimer : ) - I am not a vet....please consult with your vet for advice as well. Kris - Thanks for taking all my pesky phone calls during the last 2 weeks : ).

Well...warm weather is faaaar away. Digging up some older pics to remember the warm days. Thought I show you a Tagine dish ...with Salmon. I had this in a restaurant in Granada Spain....my friend Adam's restaurant to be exact. It was phenomenal. Anyway...I tried to replicate it. You will need a Tagine cooking pot...i.e. clay pot. I think 80% of falvor can easily be contributed to the way the food is cooked in this pot. The aroma of the clay gets infused in the food. Make a sauce ...of tomato paste, lemon slices (here marinated in honey), olive, oregano, onions, garlic etc etc. You can add anything you like. Loads of cumin, saffron, salt to bring out the flavor.

Start a fire...do NOT put the Tagine dish on direct flame. It will crack. Create a fire and let it cool down. You will cook in the heat. Add the salmon and put some fresh herbs and cover with the lid (see at 9:00 O'Clock). For a fish dish...you do not want to over cook it. I would say 20 mins...let it simmer and come together and serve with couscous. For a meat dish...you will have to cook for hours.

You can mail order Tagines in the USA. I bought one and cooked with it on a stove top and killed it. Then.... got this one while on a business trip to Paris. I had to negotiate in French...so that didnt go very far : ). I think I paid less money for it than buying it here in the US though. If you ever get some time while in Paris...visit the open air market in Aligre...Amazing! Do not negotiate with the food vendors though : ). The Tagine seller was a Moroccan gentleman...so I ventured that direction knowing it was culturally acceptable.

Life on the "farm"....

2009-01-11T09:36:00.000-08:00

Hope you all are enjoying your winter and yes other parts of the world, your summer. We managed to get away for a few days to the beach. Boy...6 hours drive made a huge difference. The sun, the water, the people ...it was a great break.

We are covered in fresh snow today. The temperature is teasing around low 30's. (feels like in the 10's)The fresh snow is FUN, however the aftermath is not that good when the driveway becomes like a skating rink.

The animals are doing well except for Pepto. Pepto ATE and ATE all the corn he could find in the barn while we were away for a few days. The animal sitters were overwhelmed with their naughty behaviour. They had broken through the chicken section in search of junk food. Chicken feed has copper which is a poison for sheep. I have been treating him with pepto bismol and banamine and praying that he comes around. I am not that hopeful. Any day now : (

The ducks/Geese seems to enjoy the snow. The chickens make dirt baths inside the barn. We are getting closer to 8-10 eggs a day between the ducks and the chickens. Yes! we got some BLUE eggs. I have been wanting to get some Easter eggs and they ARE fun. The pea family seems to be doing great. The boys are not at all interested in the girls and the girls seem to care less if the boys stayed around or not : ). L.T still is missing. I was hoping and praying he would come back.

The seed and the poultry catalogues are in. We are seriously thinking about the farmer's market this year and see what products we can bring to the table. The garden is frozen...I am hoping the garlic do survive. I managed to buy some garlic seeds from e-bay and did plant them in early Nov. Hope they make it.

How is everybody? Eid Mubarak!

2008-12-06T06:18:00.000-08:00

It has been BUSY to say the least : ). Hope you all have been doing well. I am sorry I have not been posting. [I had blog fatigue maybe. ]

The Jr farmers dressed for a Japanese festival with a speacial candy. Arigato Kanachan!

The old man winter has come in unexpected even though I try to be a generous host...this is one guest I am ready to see go. I am sure he/she will overstay his/her welcome. I don't mind the warm, cozy evenings by the fire but the green monster in me revolts and gets very nervous with the short dark days and windy outdoors.

We had a nice Turkey day (3 days later:) . Friends came from all over...the farthest being Japan. Kana-chan - more Karinto please : ).

I made a little success on cutting woods for the fire. The youngest in the human family turned 3!!! Yes - she is the princess of the farm. The farm slaves er children helped me clean up the sheep bedding. We used it on the garlic patch as mulch. New hay were down and fit for human bedding : )

The ducks have started laying and we are drowning in eggs again. Being the LCM (life cycle management) guy I am (not!:) - I introduced younger generation of hens to the older flock. They waited until the farmers market was over and started laying when I dont have the regular egg customers. I miss the English ladies who used to come early in their hats all proper asking and waiting patiently for the eggs. Right now we have 3 generations of chicken. I think the first acquisistions have STOPPED laying....but they are the matriarchs of the farm and so they stay despite their zero productivity.

Duck Herder - if you are reading - These KC eggs are much better than the Pekin eggs we had. Now I know why you like your ducks so much. They are fun to have around.

no more CNN for you !!!

2008-11-02T12:53:00.000-08:00

hah? what did you say? That's what Jr. WF declared as I was making the Sunday supper....Jambalaya to be exact. I look at him and not sure where he is coming from....continued with my cooking. Afterwards this is what I find taped on the T.V. Apparently my watching of the election coverage is getting in the way of his one hour cartoon shows per day : ). Poor Jr. WF ...his Arabic language training is confusing him...he writes English from right to left as well. I hope he gets over it soon : ). I wish they didn't grow up !! such innocence....I remember the day he was born ...too early for the world to receive him at 4 lbs and few ounces. The smell of his body..the warmth...the cocoon shape as he slept on my arm....priceless!

This should read " NO to CNN" "Yes to Cartoon" : )

on wild things....

2008-11-02T12:33:00.000-08:00

A friend invited me for a walk at one of the local natural reservation. He is a natuaralist (?) there. If you know me...you know that I have self invited myself to a walk as soon as I heard there were wild persimmon trees there : ). What persimmon trees in the wild...in NJ? SubhanAllah ....what a treat this was. The fruits were almost ready. They were beautiful trees. Brought some home for a friend's birthday bouqet this week. She is sure to like them. Happy Birthday Gerda! At 6 O'Clock those are the clay persimmons from our visit to the Japanese Poet Bashu's home in Kyoto.

Talking about wild things....here is this guy/gal who showed up in the living room, landing right on top of Jr. weekend farmer's masterpiece : ). The composition could be a great subject of a "still life". And Yes - after several efforts - it made its way out of the living room and onto the wild again. I think this was the 2nd wildlife visit. The 1st one was a squirrel that Mrs. WF handled: ). I wasnt around.

Silly peacocks....

2008-11-02T12:15:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday - I started to rake in the leaves....so I let the peacocks and peaehens out for the day. They played nice...followed me around and ate BIG bugs! I was so happy to see them run around. Well ...repeat that Sunday and came inside for a nap ( Sunday naps are such a luxury! : ) By the time I came out, the boys were GONE! They had left. I looked everywhere and was so sad! Fast forward to Thursday - The blackberry rings...."this is your animal control officer" a friendly young voice on the other side ! Ah - what ???? Why is the animal control calling me? One of the boys had crossed the major highway (its a tame highway but still a highway) and had claimed a lady and her house as his next place. He had travelled close to 3 city blocks and settled there. She loves the bird but annoyed by all the mess he was making. Thanks God - no lawsuit of damage and the animal control officer was so kind. OOOOOPs I see a hawk landing on the backyard tree...must run!

ok...I am back...so one of the boys took a ride in the big white animal control van and is back with his friends. Animals are unpredictable....you would think they would know where home is...but then again ...who knows what they are thinking. I think peafowls have a tendency towards going wild....I am not sure.

L.T - if you are out three - Please come back. We miss you : ( . You can climb on my wife's van as much as you want. I will not tell her.

friends...

2008-11-02T12:00:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful gathering of friends 2 weekends ago. The weather was great ...the fire, the children, the animals - what an amazing time! We had simple food by the fire and got to catch up on life. I wish we could do this more often....

Done for the year!

2008-10-29T03:21:00.000-07:00

View outside the office window this morning. Needless to say - we are done for the year with any kind of gradening : ). We are officially in fall....but the old man winter came to visit earlier than expected. It is quiet, the color is black and brings a sense of finality ( is that a word?) and closure.

What a day .........!

2008-10-13T04:50:00.000-07:00

Atlast - one day in the weekend where I could "play" like a weekend farmer. Something about this day was full of so much blessings. We got so much done!

The day started even before the sun was up.

I ploughed a section for the garlic...nothing like a freshly tilled ground. Gundi - I kept my promise : ). The peacocks and peahens are OUT! They have a pen to enjoy the outdoors. I am sorry it took me a whole 12 months. It is last October we met. Jon and you will be happy to see the birds. A special thanks to our friends who spent their weekends helping us build it. A break for tea. Mrs. WF fried these fresh home-made Bengali "Pithas" - with sage tea. I processed 13 broiler chickens before we left for holidays. These are few extras that are just hanging out. They are HUGE! but, completely "normal" chickens. The other layers hanging out under the maple tree. I thought they are black sex links....but now I see pictures where they are similar to marans. I am confused. Here is a little 'thief' helping herself to the corn.

While the geese made a hole to China.....Midday - we harvested trays and trays of basil and last of the leeks. Then took the kids out to get hay and straw for the sheep and for bedding. Stopped by to check on the persimmon trees at the nursery next door. They are still quite expensive!!! I will have to wait when I can afford a perssimon tree. Thats okay.

Afternoon we spent "playing" with the kids : ). This video game is called tilling the garlic patch, putting more straw for the sheep, giving water to the animals : ).

The day ended as the round Roti moon rose on the east. The cattle gate is shut meaning we are done for the day : ). What a peaceful day full of blessings - alhamdu li Allah - its like a dream. Nobody wake me up please ; ).

Eating local .....(Bhaji and Roti)

2008-10-12T02:56:00.000-07:00

from the backyard to be exact : ).

I combined pumpkin, zucchini, green beans, leeks, purple potato from the backyard and prepared a bhaji (Bengali term to mean stir fry or fry of something.) Really simple dish - yet full of flavor. .... and ALL from the backyard. These small pumpkins almost taste like sweet potatoes.

on Roti - for the life of me - I cant make a circular roti : ) but it taste fine. The flour came from the super market though. I wish I could be like Kevin who grew his own rice or other folks who processed local grown wheat. Here are some pics from whats still growing. These are the gourds I talked about earlier. They will get much much bigger if only we can few more hot days.

I have always failed miserably to grow these western style (for lack of a better term) pumpkins. I have never seen a yellow, orange colored pumpkin in Asia. This year seems different Thanks God! We are seeing some of these big pumpkins growing here and there. These better not be decorative : ). The dill plants got BIG - upto 4 feet. No problem, the sheeps love 'em. The aroma is amazing!!

Okay - duck and chicken customer will be here as the sun rise - so gotta go : ). I have to also cut firewood, get hay for the sheep, change the animal bedding, plant the garlic, recover from the jet -lag, play with the children, give anti-biotics and worm the peacocks/hens.....anyone wanna hang out with me today ? : ).

whats growing?

2008-10-10T08:28:00.001-07:00

It is difficult to come from 80 degrees to 30 degrees. The garden is almost done. We still have pumpkins, snake beans, habanero, tabasco, dill, basil, mint, sage, tomatoes, potatoes, zucchini, watermelon, beats, arugula, gourds, wild amarnath, elephant ears, purple beans, broad beans, & leeks.

Here is today's harvest! Alhamdu li Allah (Thanks God) - in 20 minutes - I picked up $25 worth of fresh, organic veggies and eggs. Egg production has been poor for a few months. We are getting 3/day on average.

Today's harvest - watermelon, 2 pumpkins, snakes beans, broad beans, arugula, sweet potatoes, daikon (radish) greens, gourd leaves, habanero, tomatoes, zucchini, cucumber, basil, sage, eggs, leeks. I will freeze some of these for the winter, sell some to the market tomorrow and eat the rest. I think I can easily avoid the grocery store for the next week if I wanted to : ).