Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Weather Forecast

Hurry!  Buy a snowblower and some heavy duty shovels!  Inspect your gloves and scarves.  Put the liner back in your winter coat.  Shake the stink bugs out of your boots.  What's that?  You're laughing?  Have you heard the weather forecast?  Let me share...

This weekend is going to be in the low 40s and it's still September!  What?  You're still laughing?  Isn't that cold enough for you? 

Well...I have the inside scoop.  I saw a Woolly Bear Caterpillar this week. You know - those fuzzy little bugs with big eyes that cover the roads every fall.  Some people  (like Elmer Fudd) call them Woolly Worms.  And I bet you didn't know that in North Carolina they hold an annual Woolly Worm Woad Wace!  Here's a picture of a cute little guy in case you think I have gone crazy and don't know what I am talking about:



These little fellas are well known for their weather predicting abilities.  The wider the middle brown section, the milder the coming winter will be.  Conversely, a narrow brown band is a predictor of a harsh winter.  Well, what happens when there is NO brown band?


This guy was lurking in my driveway when I got home from school Monday.  He definitely is not as cute as his brown striped brother.  If you ask me...he reminds me of the Snow Miser!

Friday, September 9, 2011

Oh so CORNY!

First of all...Where have you all been???  Oh wait...I am the missing one.  Well let me just say that the last two weeks have been overstuffed.  You know - like an overstuffed burrito, oozing with lots of extras and no room to fit it all in.  But you manage to shove it in and then you can't breathe.  That's my life:  I've been making salsa, freezing corn, camping, going to fall baseball games, soccer practice, Boy Scouts, college classes, family reunions, birthday parties, and oh-did-I-mention that school started?  I am hoping that things will soon slow.down.just.a.little.

Meanwhile, I will share a corny story.  I do not like vegetables.  I do not like them in a box.  I do not like them with a fox.  I do not like them here or there.  I do not like them anywhere. Except for corn, that is.  I love corn, especially fresh corn on the cob.  With gobs of real butter running all the way to my elbows.  Mmmm.  I can taste it now.  But what do you do in the dead of winter when there's absolutely no place to buy fresh corn?  I used to stock up on cans of corn, but there's just no comparison.

So...why not gather the family - the whole family - and freeze 400 ears of corn.

Why am I the only one that looks happy about this? 


Everyone pitched in and shared the work.  There is a special order in getting corn ready to freeze.
First - you send your sister to the farmer to pick up the corn and then send her to another farmer to have it all husked and silked.  It will be a good experience for her, trust me.
Second - you show up at your parents' house with baggies, bowls, knives, pots and corn (of course).
Third -   you tell the young children that their job is to cut the corn...they will be super excited and the other adults in the house will get extremely nervous so they will jump in to help out.
Fourth - You tell your dad that you're waiting for the corn to cool before putting it in the bag.  He will tell you that it's fine, and bag it all for you.

I don't know why more people don't freeze corn every year.  It's very simple - really!

I told you it was a corny story, but you kept reading anyway so don't blame me!