Ducks Find Pond

The ducks are now 6 wks old and we have started letting them out during the day.  They are very cuatious critters and haven't ventured far. 

Today they found the pond.  It is still in a state of excavation but once they realized there was a body of water for them to swim in they were hooked.  The video link below is after they had been swimming for an hour or so.  As of writing this they still don't want to come inside (although we made the two fawn and white runners because they were getting too cold).

The video can be found: https://youtu.be/glxT2n_VD48

Or try and embed it in the blog again:

On furter news the chickens ship out tomorrow.  They will spend the first few weeks in the stables before being moved to the chicken tractors.  More updates as they arrive.

Ducks First Bath

As part of the ongoing expansion of the farm we are branching into ducks.  This year we started out with a couple Silver Appleyards, Fawn Runners, Blue Runners, and Pekin Grimaud.  The Grimaud are for food while the others are for eggs, garden management, and fun for watching.

Below are some pictures of their first time in a bath.  These ducklings are only 1 week old.  As they grow I will take more video.  Upcoming attractions this year include a new coop for all the fowl, a proper pond, and garden all the animals will enjoy.

The brothers Appleyard already look like trouble. In the picture below are two of the male Silver Appleyards we recieved.

The were already trying to swim under the water and float on top of it.

It is amazing how fun they are to just watch.

Nothing like video of ducks swimming.  There seems to be an issue with the moble app and displaying the video.  Here is a link: https://youtu.be/LGzDqshCaKs

Snow Day

 

A bit of snow on the farm today.  All the animals seemed to handle it differently.

Moya loves the snow and ended up sleeping on the deck when she wasn't out running around.

Just like Moya the horses were not bothered one bit by the snow.  They just stuck their noses through the layer and came up with prime grass.

Moya checking on Beau to make sure he is all good.  Beau tolerates Moya.

Buddy here, is checking out what is going on in his field. 

Buddy and Beau had a small territorial dispute but it was quickly resolved.

Beau is wondering what that odd thing is attached to my arm.

Roo is thinking the same thing but along with wondering if he can eat it.

The alpaca aren't bothered by the cold but they do not like all the clingy ice to their legs.  They mostly stayed in their shelter.

Truck with a View

Should I be concerned if I walk in on the truck deep in thought enjoying the view? 

Nope. 

Quintisential Country

If this doesn't look proper old school, then I don't know the meaning.  Just to make it proper fitting, this is where the truck died and wouldn't start.  After pulling apart the entire fuel system (pump -> carb) I finally found the culprit, a broken wire under the dash.

Iron Chef - Battle Cod - June 14th, 2020

Tiernan challenged me to our first iron chef style battle.

The outcome was as expected.

But starting with the secret ingredient, Cod.





Tiernan had it all under control.



I had to bring out the fire.



For the final meal Tiernan presented:
- fried fish fingers
- devilled eggs with cod filling
- pan fried cod on a bed of mashed potatoes with a soy sauce glaze.

I on the other hand presented:
- jallepeno poppers
- fried black beans
- blackened cod tacos with a corn salsa

And the winner was...  Tiernan !!!

The combination of flavours and texture left nothing to be desired in a meal.

I on the otherhand was outraged.

Baby Chickens - 3wks Old (maybe)

Outside time for the chickens between thunderstorms.

Traversing the World's End

Let the adventure begin.

For a quick weekend outing we visited the World's End conservation area.  This area is a massive park "just" outside Boston which is managed by the Trustee's (http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to-visit/south-shore/worlds-end.html).  After spending nearly an hour traveling the 14 miles from Brookline to Hingham we arrived at the end of a residential street to find a gravel parking lot.

Who would have guessed that there was Fredrick Law Olmstead development-turned-park just a quick jaunt away.  What was even more surprising is that Olmstead opened what is considered the first Landscape Architecture firm less than a mile down the road from my apartment.

Well enough history,  at this park there were rolling fields and sheltered groves of trees.

Following the tree lined field we continued towards the far side of the park.

At the top of the hill we could see Hull and the Cape to the south.

We continued through the park to see shorelines,  

and shelter coves.

A little hard to add words to the dynamic scenes available in such a small area.

Five Habenero Blue Sauce

At the office we have started back up weekly team lunches.  This started last year when we started expanding and brought on to the team two of my friends and colleagues from Seattle.  This expanded our three person group to a full five.  Now a year later, and four products later, the company is continuing to expand and nothing brings a team together like good food.

Lately the food of the week has been pulled pork.  A pork shoulder slow roasted in adobo sauce for 18 hours.  Not quite the classic smoking BBQ I am familiar with, but an acceptable alternative when living in the city.

This post is all about the sauce.  It is a nice alternative to store bought sauce that includes healthier ingredients.  Let's start with the ingredients and move on from there.  I tried to take a picture of all the ingredients but kinda missed a few and added some extras that sounded good.  Honestly, it is worth trying something different in the sauce.  The worst that can happen is it doesn't turn out as expected enjoy and learn from it.

This is the recipe for what I call a Five Habenero Blue Sauce.

Wet Ingredients:
- 3 Tbsp Worchestershire Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Liquid Smoth
- 3 cups Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 cup Molasses
- 1 can Adobo Paste
- 2-4 Canned Tomatoes (I know...)

Dry Ingredients:
- 1 Tbsp Paprika
- 1 tsp Cumin Seed
- 3 Tbsp Mustard Seed
- 2 Tbsp Turmeric
- 1 x Dried Pasilla
- 1 x Cinnamon Stick

Fresh Ingredients:
- 1 x Large Onion (3x small onion)
- 5 x Habanero (with seeds)
- 2 x Pasilla Pepper
- 4 x Garlic Clove
- 2 cups Blueberries

Start by sauteing the Fresh Ingredients in some oil on medium high for about five minutes.

 Next add the Wet Ingredients and bring to a simmer.

Stir in the Dry Ingredients and simmer for at least an hour.  In the last fifteen minutes add the blueberries.  This may seem odd but it adds a unique sweetness without artificial sweeteners.

After simmer for an extended period of time take off the stove and let cool down a bit.  

Pull out the cinnamon stick and dried pepper (sometimes I do leave them in).

Depending on how much is made it will take 2-4 bending batches.  Fill the bender 1/2-3/4 full (warning that blending hot can burn).  Blend for at least one minute.  I find this gives a thick texture without seeming like an artificial corn syrup based BBQ sauce.

Warning, this is a spicy sauce.  Removing the Habeneros will cut the heat, but in my opinion it also flattens the profile.

The end result is a wonderful bottle spicy goodness that will fill any team building luncheon.

Mother's Day was interesting this year.  Kristina, Tiernan, and myself celbrated by going to southwestern Massauchsetts for some river fun. 

We left Boston mid-morning and after an hour and half driving arrived at the Swift River (42°16'42.5"N 72°18'08.5"W) around 0900EDT.  As we scouted the areas the fish we could see trout in the stream below.  This was  good sign by never assume as much since the goal was to teach Tiernan casting.

Tiernan picked up casting quite quickly.  At one point he even got it across the river.  However, bait casting into skitish river Trout doesn't bode well for catching fish. 

The fisrt cast got a nibble, but due to the rapidly chaning weather, and early season conditions there was no fish on line.  This will be the first post for our fishing adventures.  Stay tuned for more.

Christmas in Boston

Sorry, not a lot to say in post.  Will let the pictures speak for themselves.

Faneuil Hall Marketplace in downtown Boston.

And not to forget our Christmas Tree.  It took forever for Tiernan to decorate, including the glow in the dark 3d printed tree star (yes... that is a rebel pilot helmet).

Atlantic or Bust

As I write this from a small pub in Ithaca it seems like ages ago that Tiernan and I took our first excursion into the exotic East. Like most areas on the east coast it was filled with small towns and history. We started by weaving through the honky Bostonians to find our way on the 1 headed North towards a town known for witches. No, not the place of fiction, Salem, MA. Seemed like a nice place, should spend some more time visiting at some point.

From here Tiernan and I headed just a bit north to Beverly. It seems that some public roads are not meant for cars. They just go into the ocean. Good thing I don't follow "Maps" blindly.

Reverse and head more North. We ended up at a beautiful little town of Rockport, MA. From here I could here Tiernan's stomach grumbling but it was still a little bit before lunch, especially since my truck clock was off due to daylight, whoops. Against the warning signs I took my soon to be 6 year old out on the rock jetty.

From here the Rockport town Harbour can be gazed upon. Wish I was fishing too. But the Captain insists I must tend to lunch.  Our first East coast proper lobster roll.

Barking at the Tea

A trip to Boston is not complete without a visit to the Barking Crab.  The open air style seating with a maritime theme creates a pub style ambiance while providing quality food.  

Down a block, floating in the middle of the Charles is the site of the Boston Tea Party.  This floating piece of history has been turned into a museum site, complete with historically accurate schooner recreations.

From the actors portraying citizens of the period to throwing tea into the harbour this was a surprisingly neat museum (although the drink before hand may have helped).  During the tour of the boat Tiernan was chosen to re-enact throwing the East India Tea Company crates off the boat.  

A view of the buildings on the South Boston water front.  The museum can be seen on the left of the image.

When life gives you lemons, move to Boston and drink some lager

As many of you know I am now based out of Boston. This was a rather sudden move so my apologies if not everyone was notified. When an amazing job opportunity with a startup company, Hindsight Imaging, became available I just had to take it.

Hindsight Imaging is a company developing cutting edge spectroscopic technologies using a patented Hight Throughput Virtual Slit Technology (HTVS). This technology allows for more light to be collected in the system and thus decreasing the size of the unit. We are able to make complete system that are approximately 30 times smaller than our competitors while maintaining the same signal to noise. These units are aimed at companies for hyper-spectral imaging (HSI) applications. Wikipedia has a good primer on HSI. When we have new product and application releases I will post them to this site.

Enough about what lured me to Boston, more on why I am continuing this Blog. Although I am decidedly opposed to Blogs in general, it seems like a much more controlled resource than other social media outlets. But I can save that rant for some other post.

What I hope to do is continue what was previously shown on the UW Blog. This will allow you, as my close friends and family, to keep track of what is going on which Kristina, Tiernan, and myself. I will also continue to post pictures of the East Coast scenery.

Until next time.