Tonight we celebrated our 42nd anniversary with a very pleasant evening at the Bonefish Grill. We reminisced and talked about life.
Way back in the old days, June 24, 1972, I said “I do, I will, and I take…” to a handsome young man who has become my soul-mate, my friend, my love and my partner. That day with stars in our eyes we never dreamed where this journey would take us.
Now here we are, for better and for worse, in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, through lean and success, and we are still looking forward to many more years.
I am so grateful for a godly husband who shares the same faith and same values in life. I can trust him with my heart and know that he will faithfully stand with me. He is a good dad and grandpa to his offspring. I am blessed and look forward to walking into our sunset years together.
After the storm this evening I rode with Gene to put Wind & Rain mineral out to the cows. We pulled up to the gate and Gene revves the motor on the truck. That is his “call” to the cows. Instantly dozens of ears come up, mouths full of grass look towards the gate and across the field they come in a run.
Yum!
We went to another field and the brood cows with their calves were all standing at the bottom of the hill in a corner. Again he revved the motor and they came running.
Is this the same as “finger lickin’ good’????
They would bury their noses in the mineral and then lick it off their noses.
This poor little calf got his face at the wrong spot at the wrong time. Yes, that is fresh manure all over his face! His mama will probably lick him off later.
Sometimes there are things that get under your skin and pet peeve #1 is one of them. Take a good look at this egg carton and see if you can tell me what is wrong with it.
Let’s zoom in for a closer look.
Anyone selling eggs should know better but it boils down to being ALL about advertizing and appealing to the consumer’s misguided perceptions.
First of all it is illegal to sell feed with meat, meat by-products or bone meal in any form to chickens. So by saying it is “vegetarian fed” implies that some chickens are fed meat. This is not true. Period.
Secondly, it shows the stupidity of our world. Chickens love bugs, flies, crickets, grasshoppers, worms and will even eat a mouse or small snake if one happens to across their path. There is no way you can keep a chicken from eating any of the above “meats” unless they are kept in cages with very sterile conditions and use lots of pesticides. The customer then cries “foul” (excuse the pun!). They want cage-free, free-range hens that are running around outdoors laying their eggs. Ironically these same customers will buy meal-worms treats to hand feed their “vegetarian-fed” hens! The only part of the formula for free-range chickens being “vegetarian-fed” is what the human puts in their feed trough. Of course free-range is the most natural and healthiest way to raise chickens but just remember, free-range are technically not just ‘vegetarian-fed”!
It is also amazing to me the use of the word “fresh”. Webster says “fresh” means “just recently as in recently laid egg”. Now, really, who wants to eat something old? But have you noticed you can hard-boil eggs you buy in the store but not freshly laid eggs? That means means they are at least a week or more old by the time you buy them. So if “fresh” (farm fresh, country fresh) applies to eggs purchased in a grocery store, what word applies to true “fresh” eggs? There is nothing wrong with store-purchased eggs but they aren’t really “fresh”. The eggs in a store come from a poultry farm producing high quality eggs meeting the highest of USDA standards but it takes time to get the eggs from the farm to the consumer. It is amazing it happens as quickly as it does.
Just for the record, I am in no way questioning the quality of store-purchased eggs. After all, they originate from a hard-working farmer striving to provide a quality product for the consumer to eat. The grocery store is one avenue to get the product to the consumer. I am “pet-peeved” about the advertizing!
Sometimes I see ads for “vegetarian-fed” beef. Just for the record; NO COW EATS MEAT! Cows only eat grains and legumes or grasses. Again, it is illegal to put any meat, meat by-products or bone meal in any form in cattle feed. But the consumer sees the ad blip and translates it into a fact; “this beef is healthier and better for you because it was not fed meat”.
As a beef and egg producer it irritates me how the media is so subtle in how it misguides the consumer. I understand that most consumers are too far removed from the farm to know the “truth” but the same consumers are often a vocal voice and “experts” in their misguided information.
My friend Donna and I took a several hour Sunday afternoon meander through the back roads of Powhatan today just to take pictures. If you want to touch history, capture the heart and soul of the county, and catch a glimpse of the photogenic spots, leave the busy, main thoroughfare and cruise the back roads, the roads less traveled. I condensed my 75 pictures to these….
Come with us on our jaunt and enjoy the pictures.
Flatrock, Powhatan is named after this rock and it is on the little side road behind Davis-Merchant Equipment.
If someone knows the history of this rock….it would be interesting to post.
See the indentation in the rock. If I remember the history correctly, the Indians used this rock for grinding corn.
The second big indentation on the rock.
A large rock on Three Bridge Road by Millview Farm.
The golf course at the Foundry on Lee’s Landing Road.
Beautiful huge stately old oak tree on 522. I have always admired it’s ability to survive and look so good.
My friend, Donna.
The Old Cosby Dairy on Cosby Road.
An old store run by the Cosbys that they have restored.
Love the stone foundation pillars and big rock for the front step.
Old farm equipment resting in peace on the Cosby Farm.
Historic barns made into a beautiful equine facility.
While taking the above picture of the flower bed I was standing beside this small spruce tree. A startled bird flew from the tree. I looked and found her secret…4 little eggs nestled in the branches.
A crop sprayer sitting by the edge of a corn field.
James River
We call it the “Mighty James” but it is actually a very calm, beautiful river. It is not very deep west of the 522 bridge. A lot of it is waist deep or less but with a few deeper pockets.
There are a lot of beautiful rocks protruding from the river at different spots.
I wish I had looked at the signs, especially at Belmead, and gotten a little of the history. If anyone can fill in any history on these spots please add a comment.
Some comments:
Wanda Starke: We went to Belmead when they had something going on and they had a book with the people who were buried in the graveyard. It was real sad, because most were infants and I can’t remember seeing but one or two over the age of 34. I remember sitting in church there in the 50’s listening to the cadets doing drills. There used to be a row of shops where the men learned a trade. Otto taught the blacksmiths. I remember a tailor, barbershop and I’m not sure about others.
Linda Smith: The original owner and builder of the house was a distant relative of the Cocke family that I work for. They are and old Virginia family who’s forefather’s immigrated from England in the 1600s.
It’s lovely that it’s being saved, even though the pace is slow. My 92 year old neighbor well remembers when it was being used as a trainer center for young men from ‘the north’.
I am still learning there are some questions you do not ask a hard-working, dawn to dusk farmer. Did you do anything today? Is that all you got done?
On Saturday afternoon I went to the hay field to check on my farmer where he was mowing hay and to take him a cool refreshing drink of tea. He finished his circle around the field and stop by my car. I innocently asked, “Is that all you got done?” Sounded like a fair question to me!! There were quite a few mowed windrows but still a big uncut block in the center. I had expected him to be about done. After all, he had been there most of the day.
I got a little lecture about what he had to do before he started mowing, the size of the field, and also pointed out another piece he had cut over the crest of the hill that I had not noticed. End of conversation.
Wrong!
That evening at supper he informed me that Kenneth, the owner of the farm he was mowing, said that it was a 40-acre field and it takes 69 rounds to get it all mowed. Hum. Now I know that I not only asked a stupid question but my question was making headline news! I guess someone needs to give the farmers something to talk about. After all, going around the field 69 times can be rather boring but who cares. They are counting circles!
I am a country gal who enjoys writing, gardening, baking and my family. My husband and I own a retail feed store and it keeps us active and busy. We love living in the country and on our beef farm. We retail natural, Angus, dry-aged beef in our store and a local "natural" store.
My writings, called "From A Grandma's Perspective" are mostly inspired from our five delightful grandchildren. These along with "Life Perspective" can read on our web page at www.hffinc.com under the "Who We Are" tab.
By the way, I love hearing from people who read my blog!!!