Shucking Walnuts

Bad weather. Heavy rains last night lead to steady rains this morning. By the early afternoon the clouds slacked back to a light drizzle/mist/fog. Temperature never broke above 58F.

The day started as usual-- getting the store filled up and ready. Newport and the foreman pitched a market tent over the sinks and we scrubbed up 10 buckets of potatoes from yesterday afternoon. Gizzie and I piled up the potatoes/winter squash for the CSA, then we got around to boxing up food for market. We peeled and chopped up a bunch of butternut before heading down to the barn. Old Rudolpho stayed home on account of the rain, so we picked up where he left-- shining and sorting the last tomato buckets. By lunch time there were only a handful left.


Gizzie and I sped off for pizza today.


It was a slow day around the store. Not a single customer until CSA started, and even then it was a slow trickle. We packed the wagons full: butternut, buttercup, acorn squash, green peppers, spinach, lettuce, mint, 3 types of potato (Red Norlands, Keuka Golds, Kennebunk), cabbage, tomatoes and swiss chard. It's getting a little lean-- next week might be the last CSA pick up days. Newport and I swept/power-washed off the hardtop, then we headed back to finish up the tomatoes. Gizzie took off for market.

Old Rudolpho left something behind-- It was the most intimidating slingshot I'd ever seen. He'd carved the handle into an owl and strung it with big loops of industrial rubber bands. The foreman and Newport took turns shooting each other in the back with tomatoes. Before long the wholesaler came by and we loaded up thirty 10lb. boxes. Slim pickings.

The 'harlot's fruit tree' or dark walnut has started to drop its nuts-- the boss wants to try drying out/selling some this year. So the three of us got a bushel basket and started to stomp off the protective meat-- shucking the green, keeping the tan nuts. You have to be pretty critical when eying over the nut-- black patches due to rot/over maturity makes the taste turn inediblely bitter. The protective meat is filled with some strong chemical-- all our hands are dyed a deep yellow/black-- it wont wash or scrub off. Oh well.

We filled the basket and the boss sent us off to pick as many string beans as we could manage before closing. 4 buckets later I was in my car warming up. Day was done.


I'm city bound tomorrow after work. Darlin wants to take me to a march and I'm going-- I like to see things, so let's go see things that are happening (I say to myself).
Drinks with Gizzie tonight, I reckon.

On with it and onward. Take it easy.