Have you ever stopped after a seemingly simple moment and thought to yourself, “I think my life just changed”? I had this feeling last week, and it was such a distinct feeling…I was immediately in awe of how my future could have been drastically (okay, I’m being a bit dramatic) different had this one second of life not happened. I hope the following doesn’t come off as too creeeeeeepy…maybe Halloween has an influence on this post!
Mmmm, look at that fatty goodness!
Several things occurred in building up to this moment. First, Evan bought me a new chef’s knife. He’s super into techie websites that find the best of everything without being painfully expensive. So, he found this knife and got it for me because I’m always complaining about our dulling knives. The first thing I cut with it was a big four pound rutabaga, and with the first effortless slice I let out an audible gasp.
You see, I have been envious of those with great knife skills for a long time. It is so impressive to see expert chefs break down a duck or perfectly fillet a large salmon. The knife appears to find the perfect spot to slice through. When watching a good knife handler dice onions or even cut an apple, their skills are apparent…but I’ve discovered that a lot of this skill is in the knife! Now that I have used a truly sharp, nice knife, I am not intimidated by whole chickens or thick skinned winter squash. The beautiful halibut fillets I’ve butchered in the past will be no more. Squished tomatoes will be but a memory. I will no longer be intimidated by whole meats and other foods!
Thank you, amazing new life changing tool.
The height of this epiphany came last week when I decided to finally roast a pork belly I’ve had in the freezer for awhile. It was from a pig that I helped raise a little bit–a nice fatty heritage breed. I’ve been a lifetime fan of bacon, even going so far as to be one of those lame vegetarians who still eats bacon! However, I’ve heard here and there that a well roasted pork belly is superior in many ways to the salty deliciousness that is cured bacon.
{Commence drooling}
To prepare this pork, I had to score the fatty side of the belly. It was AMAZING to do this with the new sharp knife. The responsiveness of it was incredible, I could feel where the fat layer ended and the meat began, allowing me to score it deep enough but not too much. Writing this out now makes is sound kind of silly or weird–but it really was one of the more illuminating moments in my life. I think my culinary possibilities have multiplied many fold, and I was already pretty satisfied with how I handled myself in the kitchen.
Is it torturous to roast pork belly in the presence of my canine friends?
So, I have this new knife…and other life changers.
I used a pressure canner for the first time last week–major life changer! I love having home made broth, and I usually just freeze it. I also keep all of my vegetable trimmings in freezer bags. By the end of the farming season, my freezer is usually overflowing with onion tops, beet peels, carrot tips and all sorts of various veggie parts. We don’t have a large chest freezer or anything, so it was taking up precious freezer space. So, I borrowed a friends pressure canner and now I have many pints of vegetable, chicken, duck and beef stock. YUM. I plan on expanding my pressure canning repertoire in the future but thought I’d start this year with broths and stocks.
Hi Ava! Sing it!
Another life changer: Ava’s mobility! She is now able to get to where she wants to be in a relatively fast manner. She didn’t crawl for a very long time–instead she scooted backwards or did this silly sit, lean forward, move one leg forward, sit, lean forward, move one leg forward kind of thing that took forever to get anywhere. Now she’s a crawling and cruising machine! She’s even standing unassisted for about twenty seconds at a time. Her new favorite activity is splashing all of the dog water everywhere and getting soaking wet. She is no longer a little baby (sigh…) and is well on her way to being a toddler. Time goes so quickly.
Not dog water…but other spilled water. So fun.
Before I know it, she will be using a truly sharp knife for the first time…and other life changers.
Have any relatively “normal” things happened to you lately that have changed your life for the better? I think every Farmgirl has or should have a truly sharp, responsive chef’s knife and access to a pressure canner (as for a newly toddling toddler…probably not a necessity!). What tools of the trade do you think belong in every Farmgirl’s repertoire?
I hope Halloween next week is fun for all and that you have a sharp knife to expertly carve those Jack and Jill-o-lanterns!
Until next time,
Sending Peace and Love from Alaska,
Alex, the Rural Farmgirl
bonnie b 
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I love your post. I am still working on the splitting wood thing. I always shut my eyes.. You give me hope.
You can do it Karin! I like to think about it like swinging a bat–there are many similarities. Keep your eye on the log!
The area around the Great Lakes has been troubled by the Emerald Ash Borer for many years, resulting in the destruction of many trees. Last year an Ash only a block away had to be cut down and burned. There is an Ash in my yard which I have been checking anxiously every few days all summer. I love that tree and pray for it. I feel sort of like a Lorax at that. The trouble is that the infected trees cannot be used as firewood and some municipalities require that the tree be ground into sawdust. What a waste.
That Emerald Ash Borer has been wreaking havoc forever! I remember the dreaded days when city workers would come and mark ash trees with the dreaded orange tape–Cut this tree down, it’s infected. I hope your tree has enough love and defenses to fend off any trouble.
Good morning Alex,
What a beautiful post. There are so many things I would like to comment on that you wrote, that I don’t know where to begin. First about the daily routines that you are going through raising a family and the daily chores that come with it. I have two boys and I had them while I was working at a very stressful job with one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the country. I do CSI in a forensic laboratory and have done so for over 26 years now. (Hopefully retiring to Montana very soon) And I remember going out to numerous crimes scenes in the worst neighborhoods and processing them. After I was done and had packaged up all the evidence, coming back to the laboratory, going over all the photographs, making sure I had gotten everything I needed, writing up the field notes, etc.. I could not wait to get back home and do all the “daily” chores that keeping a home requires. I could have had the most worst day with my two boys at home that I would never trade for the best day at work. Being at home grounded me against all the craziness I saw in the world. And nothing at home would ever be as stressful as one day at work. I loved doing all those chores at home. And yes I would love to chop wood any day. It is a stress relief. It is good work, healthy and rewarding in the simplest and deepest of terms. I guess I saw both worlds, those of the work force and the life of a parent at home. I have to say, I would chose the life of a parent at home. This is the most rewarding. Your analogy of the life of a tree is so much like the life of us… (Note: I have also felt the same way when reading, “The Giving Tree” to my boys to).
There are no words that I can say here regarding your article that come close to how your article made me feel this morning. Just amazing!!!
Deborah
Thank you, Deborah! Your words are encouraging–you are right, most days I am SO VERY thankful that I am able to be home with my cute little baby. It is grounding and rewarding, as you mention. Your job sounds very intense! As a high school student I had a few lingering thoughts of becoming a forensic dentist (who knows, maybe that will still happen some day!)…So your career intrigues me. I hope you get to retire to Montana, soon!
I love seeing Alex-in-trees over the years! How lucky for little Ava that she has a mama who will teach her all these things that aren’t “girly.” What a great post!
Thanks, Emma!
One of my favorite photos which was on a postcard, is an old-time lady in a long, dark dress, out in front of an old farmhouse. She has an axe held high, which is taller than she is, and is splitting wood! The caption is, “Frailty, thy name is woman” supposedly by William Shakespeare. I,too, love trees, and when the forest behind my house was being clear-cut for pasture, I rode my horse there for the last time on the needle-covered roadbed under the tall, beautiful pines, and apologized… After it was over, I felt as if I were on the moon, and seldom went back there. Not much later, I moved away. But that is an experience I will never forget. “Progress” is often painful. I loved your “tree” pictures and enjoy your stories of your life in Alaska. Thank you.
I love splitting wood…it is such a satisfying skill. My favorite tool is and 8 lb maul, as a lot of the wood we get is gnarled. I give thanks to trees as I do to all the natural things that sustain us…that I won’t take their use for granted, that I will work hard for beyond-sustainable, that their life has value beyond what they can do for us. Every life is precious even though we use some of them to survive.