First Snow

Yesterday we got a foot of snow at The Homestead. Now, I'm not one for hot weather and I don't necessarily like the summer, but I prefer to have snow AFTER Halloween, not before. We've still got leaves to pick up and mulch; we've got a little more garden clean-up to finish; we need more wood split and stacked; we've still got one leak in our roof that I've not been able to seal; there are three unfinished storm windows to install. In short, as beautiful as the first snow of the season can be, we're not ready for it at Rural Ways.

Transportation Dilemma

We own a 1995 Mercury Sable. It has about 180,000 miles on it and it ain't much to look at, but we've relied on it for more than six years. It is good in the snow; it is roomy and comfortable; it is relatively efficient (around 30 on the highway); and it was paid for long ago. Recently, though, the transmission has started slipping. It hesitates and then clunks into gear. We called the guys down the street at Reese Automotive, but they don't even want to work on it. They said it isn't worth it. They may be right. Generally, at Rural Ways we fix things rather than replace them, but this may be a case where we don't bother. The car, according to Kelly Blue Book, is worth between $250 and $750. I looked for a rebuilt transmission on line. There was one available for $1400. Is it wise to buy a $1400 part for a $700 car? We may try nursing it for a few months, but this may be the end of the trail for our Sable.

Hard Truth About Expenses

At Rural Ways we are always looking for ways to reduce our expenses. The lower our monthly outflow, the less we need to earn and/or save to maintain our household. I had an unspoken goal of $1500 for our monthly expenses. (And by monthly expenses, I mean everything. Every penny that it takes for Rural Ways to exist each month.) And, I had an untested assumption that we were close to that. Unfortunately, assumptions often don't stand a closer look. Today, I took a hard look at the numbers and came up with something more like $2000. I would think that with a couple of spending tweaks and some better accounting, we could be at or below $2000 per month consistently. As for $1500 per month, that is a pipe dream right now. A 25% reduction won't come easily even for Rural Ways' somewhat frugal lifestyle. Anyway, it is not a bad goal and there are a couple of things to look at. First, the electric bill continues to be higher than it could be. Second, we need to rethink our insurance position in a couple of areas. (More on that later.)

Home Grown Herbs

Rural Ways is now the proud owner of a hand-cranked herb mill. It cost about five dollars, was made in China, and was available for shipping to southern Utah for about another five dollars. On the day of its arrival it successfully demonstrated its ability to turn dried cayenne peppers into "ground" red peppers in just moments. Of course, given that one can buy 16 ounces of ground cayenne pepper for about six dollars, it may be a couple years before the herb mill pays for itself. But, hey, what do we care about the cost? According to "Shirley's Wellness Cafe," cayenne pepper is a "miracle" herb. Dr. Christopher has posted a recommendation to Shirley's web page claiming (roughly) that a cup of cayenne tea will cure a heart attack. I'm not sure about that, but I'm looking forward to sprinkling it on a big plate of huevos rancheros this weekend. Check out Shirley's here:

http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/cayenne.htm#

First Frost

On Tuesday, the temperature was in the eighties; by last night it was in the twenties. That kind of sixty degree swing can have a dramatic effect on one's garden. So, we had a final harvest and piled everything in the pantry. There are apples, pears, pumpkins, squash, cukes, zukes, and tomatos. The squash are already being seeded, baked, skinned, and frozen. This winter we'll pull them out for Butternut Bisque. Rural Ways does not know what "bisque" means, but the following ingredients make a soup-like food that keeps one warm and strong all winter:

2 lbs butternut squash
2 tbsp butter

2 carrots, sliced

1 onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and cubed

5 cups chicken stock

1 1/2 tsp curry powder

pinch each of nutmeg and ginger

sour cream for garnish