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Monthly Archives: July 2012
Dog Days, Missed Friend, & Seed Starting
“Dog Days” (Latin: diēs caniculārēs) are the hottest, most sultry days of summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, the dog days of summer are most commonly experienced in the months of July and August, which typically observe the warmest summer temperatures….The name comes from the ancient belief that Sirius, also called the Dog Star, in close proximity to the sun was responsible for the hot weather.
This Year the Dog Days run between July 3rd and August 11th…….to quote any 1 of my 5 kids…”Are We There YET!?“…… Thank the Lord we’re getting close!….whew, it’s smoking hot down here!
M7M7M7M7M7
Yesterday, the 23rd of July marked the 9th anniversary of the passing of Capt. Josh Byers, a dear childhood friend who was lost in Iraq. I’ve written about Josh in the past, you can find that here. July 23rd is also Mary Byers birthday…Josh’s mom.
M7M7M7M7M7
above is a shot of one of our seed starting efforts for a fall garden. That is about 75-100 Broccoli plants. We’ve also started Cauliflower, Rutabaga, Lettuce, Radish, and Brussel Sprouts. We’ll see how this goes 
Till Then…………
cale
New Additions…
Guinea Fowl
Numida meleagris
above are our 6 new Guinea “Keets”. I’m not really sure why it’s “Keets” but Keets it is? I’ve heard great things about the Guineas ability to help de-bug an area, including Fire Ants, so I thought I’d give them a go.
Not much smaller than a mans hand right now, they’ll soon grow to the size of a small turkey. Some have even mistaken the adult birds for a turkey. The keets will stay inside the enclosure for a few weeks more, then we’ll allow access to the outside chicken run and coop area.
As soon as I can offer further on the Ant Control, I’ll post it here!
We purchased our Keets from Joy at Joyful Sounds Aviary and Farm in Reidville SC. If you have any bird needs, Joy is your local connection!
NEWS FLASH!
I’m always behind! and that is OK with me. So I thought I’d share some old news for those who may also be a little slow to the table…
Lyman SC has a weekly Farmers Market! 3 times a week!
(May-November)
Wednesday and Thursday 3:00pm -7:00pm
Saturday 8:00am-12:00pm
Located in the Old Guard Building at 59 Groce Road, across from the Lyman First Baptist Church. I plan to attend this week to take it all in and snag some local veggies/meats (Yes Native Meats are avail there too!)
Magnificent Fifty 7……?
57 quarts.....yummmmm!
Magnificent 57? well, kinda…Yesterday I picked up a few dozen ears of Super Sweet-Sweet Corn from Williams Feed in Campobello…40 dozen to be exact, but after a few stops to share, I wound up with 27 dozen left over for the farm.
I have fond childhood memories of spending time shucking corn with my folks…so I thought I’d share the experience with my family….below is the refuse from our 27 dozen ears.
We filled this cooler about 3 or 4 times!
I spent a few hours cutting off the cob with an antique ‘corn cutter offer’ and the final results are the top posted photo. 57 quart bags now in the freezer and about 2 dozen ears in the fridge ready to eat!
….just like eating sunshine….
Some Interesting Numbers…
I found the following here:
http://economyincrisis.org/content/walmarts-impact-on-america
#1 The average U.S. family now spends more than $4000 a year at Walmart.
#2 In 2010, Walmart had revenues of 421 billion dollars. That amount was greater than the GDP of 170 different countries including Norway, Venezuela and the United Arab Emirates.
#3 If Wal-Mart was a nation, it would have the 23rd largest GDP in the world.
#4 Walmart now sells more groceries than anyone else in America does. In the United States today,one out of every four grocery dollars is spent at Walmart.
#5 Amazingly, 100 million customers shop at Walmart every single week.
#6 Walmart has opened more than 1,100 “supercenters” since 2005 alone.
#7 Today, Walmart has more than 2 million employees.
#8 If Walmart was an army, it would be the second largest military on the planet behind China.
#9 Walmart is the largest employer in 25 different U.S. states.
#10 According to the Economic Policy Institute, trade between Walmart and China resulted in the loss of 133,000 manufacturing jobs in the United States between 2001 and 2006.
#11 The CEO of Walmart makes more in a single hour than a full-time Walmart associate makes in an entire year.
#12 Tens of thousands of Walmart employees and their children are enrolled in Medicaid and are dependent on the government for healthcare.
#13 Between 2001 and 2007, the value of products that Walmart imported from China grew from $9 billion to $27 billion.
#14 Sadly, about 85 percent of all the products sold at Walmart are made outside of the United States.
#15 It is being reported that about 80 percent of all Walmart suppliers are in China at this point.
#16 Amazingly, 96 percent of all Americans now live within 20 miles of a Walmart.
#17 The number of “independent retailers” in the United States declined by 60,000 between 1992 and 2007.
#18 According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Walmart spent 7.8 million dollars on political lobbying during 2011. That number does not even include campaign contributions.
#19 Today, Walmart has five times the sales of the second largest U.S. retailer (Costco).
#20 The combined net worth of six members of the Walton family is roughly equal to the combined net worth of the poorest 30 percent of all Americans.
I could probably count on my hands the visits we’ve made to WM over the last 5 years; and We’re still breathing…think about it…
I Dare You….
To listen to this Podcast featuring Joel Salatin
Happy Independence Day!
It’s about the economy stupid Liberty!
Liberty is the ability of individuals to have agency (control over their own actions). from Wikipedia
Below is one of my favorite quotes from Mr. Adams….take from it what you will.
“If you love wealth more than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, depart from us in peace. We ask not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.”
- Samuel Adams
Happy Birthday America….