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Wally hasn't taken his phone off the farm yet so none of the pictures I've been taking have been sent to my phone. Boooooo! I have some really good ones I wanted to share with you but it looks like they'll have to await my return from FL.

On the way home from work, I was asked to bring beer. This meant finding a store on the way that wouldn't charge an arm and a leg (although 1/2 a big fat thigh would happily be donated...lol) for two 12 packs. We had company at the house - Curt, who had been doing fence repairs all day and his wife and daughter. You already know who I'm talking about. So I pulled into this store parking lot where the only signs posted are "Ice Cold Beer" and "Live Bait." Sounds like a good place, right?

There aren't many options and since they did advertise Ice Cold Beer, what choice did I have? The parking lot was full. There were guys/farmers/construction workers/red-necks/hillbillies, old trucks, a kid on a bike, a Pepsi delivery truck and lil ol' me. Nice. And I'm buying two 12 packs of "Ice Cold Beer." I was feeling pretty darn popular at that moment I must say. One guy opened the door for me, another one offered to carry the "Ice Cold Beer" to the counter for me and another one offered to let me take his place in line. True, true, true I swear! They were so nice and polite I felt like a princess, well maybe I wouldn't go that far... but you get my point.

I don't really get nervous in those situations, I just don't like standing out in the crowd. I'm more of a behind the scenes person. In this instance, I totally stood out in the crowd whether I liked it or not. It just goes to show, you can't judge a book by its cover. The "Ice Cold Beer" was kind of pricey but the service by far made up for it. I won't even mind stopping there again should I be asked. On down the road I went :)

To my complete surprise, the guys had already brought Jimbo to the house. If you didn't read yesterday's post, you'll need to in order to see who I'm talking about.! He had already been introduced to the horses and was happily grazing his way around the yard, the outdoor kitchen, the driveway, everywhere he could find grass. He never lifted his head while I was watching him - nope, just kept on eating. That's exactly what he needs to do too because he is really, really skinny. I'm a little worried about leaving him to come down there but Wally says he'll be fine. He's already better off than he was. Through no fault of their own, his owners just didn't have what he needed to get him back in shape. I hope we do.

We visited with Curt and family for a little while and we watched comedy central, some hilarious guy was on there. He cracked us up but I don't remember his name. Our company loaded up and left us about 4:30ish. I went and brought my clothes in off the line and started making dinner. I seasoned the rabbit with some bbq rub and then browned it on the stove top. I poured a little beer into the pan and covered it and put it in the oven for about 30 minutes. It was a little too long in the oven as some pieces were a little dry. The pieces I had were tender and juicy but Wally said his were kind of dry. It did make a perfect gravy on its own though, so he just dunked his pieces into that and it was all good.

I steamed some of the Napa cabbage from the CSA basket with some scallions and added a can of red kidney beans to it. We both loved it! It was a totally impromptu throw-together that worked out really well. We talked about using pinto beans next time... this little discovery just opens up a whole new world for me.  Woo Hoo!

I guess I'm getting anxious about the trip because I woke up at 3:30 this morning and couldn't get back to sleep. I got out of bed at 4:00 and was dressed and out the door by 4:45. That included shaving! Not bad at all. I'm not even sure Wally heard me leave. He was working in that heat for most of the day yesterday and was really exhausted from it so he was sleeping good when I left.

This morning he wormed the horses, which entails shooting some apple-tasting juice down their throats, gave them the remaining sweet feed and then him and Curt finished the fence repairs. If only I was off work today, I could have us already packed and ready to hit the road. Oh well, that'll come later on.

As I headed out, I looked for Jimbo to see how he was doing after his first night on the farm but he was nowhere to be seen. It's a good thing for him that I feel sorry for him because he ate the top of one of my tomato plants! ugh!! It may come back because the stem is pretty thick and it was one of the taller plants. It still has leaves - just no top. I'm 100% sure it was him because Smokey and Rebel would have already eaten all of the plants since they've been mowing freely all along. Now that I think about it, I didn't see Smokey or Rebel this morning. They are almost always somewhere in the front yard or along the driveway when I leave for work. Maybe it was too early for them!

I asked Claudia to pick up my CSA basket for me this Monday since I'll be out of town. She was more than happy to oblige and I told her to eat out of it anything she thought might go bad before I get back. She said she was looking forward to seeing what all comes in the basket. It really is a basket too - a tan colored, woven one with a metal handle. Again, the picture will have to wait... darn it.

Yes, it's a little strange thinking about going to FL for vacation... all these years I've come to TN for vacation and it's finally the other way around. Pretty cool. Well, actually, it's pretty hot everywhere you go these days... ha ha!

The weekend we get back, we're having a 4th of July cook-out. We're putting that outdoor kitchen to use, aren't we? I think we're just going to have bbq chicken this time around and whatever else everyone decides to bring. I'm planning on a fruit salad since the blackberries should be in by then and also so I don't have to worry with mayo going bad in the heat. Ew that's nasty. Of course you're welcome to come join us. Just give me some notice so I can plan for you :)

It's not hard to plan for someone...basically I show you where your room is and your bathroom down the hall. Unless you're Dizzy Debbie and we all know where her room is... ha ha! Smokers smoke outside and it's preferred that you drink from cans rather than bottles so we don't have to clean up glass when it breaks. And it does. All the time. That's just the cold, hard truth of it and I have no idea why. lol

I found a new website today that is pretty darn interesting. Well, to me it is. It's called The Pioneer Woman and it can be found at http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/. Ree is the lady's name and she has all kinds of stuff on the site from living on a ranch, to raising 4 kids, home-schooling, photography, cooking (including a cookbook) and managing everything in the world. She refers to the kids as punks (I should tell her about the twerps!) and to her husband as the Marlboro Man. She fell in love with a cowboy and moved from the city to the farm and has been there ever since. Her story is on the website. The way she writes is pretty funny - I enjoy reading it. Her cooking isn't as wholesome and nourishing as Jenny's cooking at The Nourished Kitchen but she has good pictures and good directions along with the recipes. Let me know what you think.

Sorry the blog is short today but I gotta get outta here, get home, get packed, get on the road, get down there to see YOU!! 

"Tis easy enough to be pleasant, when life flows along like a song; but the person worth while is the one who will smile when everything goes dead wrong." - Ella Wheeler Wilcox