[pf] Happy Holidays

by Jill Taylor Bussiere

25 December 2000 16:11 UTC

This morning it is crisply and coldly beautiful.  It has warmed up to 10
below so far, snow is everywhere, the sun is warming, and we are blessed
with only a small wind.

I am eating green tomato mince meat pie from Christmas eve, and drinking
coffee.  The Philadelphia sticky buns that we often have on Christmas
morning are rising in the kitchen.

We have a little buck that was doing poorly yesterday.  Abram noticed that
he could only get up with help.  So he has been moved into the double walled
little hut - made out of snowmobile crates and lumber, a window from the
landfill, and an old roof from our a shelter that our friends had had for
years.  He has a heat lamp, and doesn't have to fight with the other bucks
for his food, and he got a wormer shot just in case.  This morning he seems
be be doing much better - he was pushing me _hard_ to get at his food.

We haven't opened the stockings nor the presents yet - Merritt and Elena are
finishing up filling the stockings.  This is the first year we went to bed
last night instead of doing the stockings and wrapping presents first.  It
was very cold, and it felt like the right thing to do.

Later we will be cooking a Christmas dinner, to which our friend Joan, a
fellow Pennsylvanian (from Oil City) will be coming.  I will need to drop
off some cookies and goodies to our farming mentor/neighbor friends as well.
And later today, all the animals that are carnivores will be getting some
organic turkey (no, not ours - our three turkeys are safe from the cold
inside the big barn - we paid a pretty price for the turkey at Copp's, a big
grocery store in Green Bay that carries a bit of organic stuff in addition
to its regular food) and the non-carnivores will be getting apples.  The
chickens will be getting pumpkin seeds and pulp, though they would eat
turkey if we gave it to them.

I wish you all a wonderful Christmas, and a Happy New Year, and rejoice with
you in the lengthening of the days!

                Love to all,
                    Jill