Newsletter - October, November, December 2001

Something New!

Quarterly Newsletter
October, November, December 2001

Recipes, hints, ideas, new books, whatever...

Golden Fruit Cake

1 1/2 cups butter 3 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt
6 eggs, separated 2 cups golden raisins
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 cup chopped, dried apricots
3/4 cup milk 1/2 cup chopped candied 1/4 cup brandy orange peel
1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup candied pineapple
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Beat butter until light and creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until smooth. Beat egg yolks together lightly and add to butter/sugar mixture. Combine milk, brandy and vanilla. Mix flour and salt together. Alternately add milk mix and flour mix to butter mixture. Stir to blend. Fold in fruits and nuts. Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until stiff but not dry. Fold whites into batter gently but thoroughly. Pour mixture into two buttered and floured 6 cup molds. Bake at 275° for 2 1/2 hours or until they test done. Cool. Unmold.

If desired, wrap in triple layer of cheesecloth soaked in brandy. Wrap tightly in foil and store in a cool, dry place. Once a week unwrap cake and brush with more brandy.

— from California Golden Raisin ad 197_

October 2001

Hello!

   Autumn is here, with Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas soon coming.

   Autumn on the farm is harvest time. Crops tended the summer long are now ready for gathering as winter feed for the livestock. We cut, windrow and chop hay along with mature corn to fill the silo. The mixture will ferment in the silo and become a sweet feed for the cattle to live on through the winter. Then, more fields of corn will be harvested with the combine, a machine that cuts off the cornstalk near the soil, pulls it through sieves to remove just the kernels, and leaves the chopped stalks and cobs in neat rows behind as it moves through the field. The corn is then unloaded by augers into a dryer bin where it will be dried for storage until needed for feed during the winter. The chopped stalks are stored in the barn for bedding.

   I have been married to Jim for 28 years now. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, and met my farmer husband on a blind date. Farming was a whole new way of life for me. Each farm is as different as the farmer. I know farming the way Jim and his family do it. Jim's father is 80 years old and has just retired from a lifetime of farming with horses and horse-driven machinery. Jim farms with tractors.

   The farm has been an ideal place and way of life to raise our family. Our three children grew up with responsibilities at home. When we were milking cows, the children helped in the barn. One would wash the cows' utters before Jim attached the milking machines. Another would feed the calves. Still another would bring the cows in, and put them back out after milking. I carried the milk to the bulk tank. We cleaned and bedded the stalls, fed each cow her ration, washed the milkers and cleaned the milk house twice daily. I couldn't have asked for a better life.

   Now there is no longer enough financial reward for the hard work involved in keeping a family farm. Farmers across the country are giving it up in favor of off farm jobs that come with insurance and retirement benefits. Our children are grown and have left the nest. Jim sold the dairy herd two years ago and is now a custodian at our local school. He loves his new job and enjoys the kids. They call him Elvis, because he has black hair and wears it much like the King. We cash crop some of our land, and rent out most of the hay acres to a neighbor who is still dairy farming. We have 40 head of beef cattle to feed, 3 sheep, 2 horses, a donkey, 20 hens and a rooster, 3 dogs, and various barn cats.

   My week begins with reading and answering the mail each Monday. I type in the orders for the week, and set them up to package for mailing on Tuesday, when I run errands. Wednesday I make soap, up to 750 bars in one day. Thursday I cut and trim soap, and set it on racks to cure. I put away soap cut and trimmed the week before. Friday I make bath salts, write newsletters and do my paperwork. Saturday is my cleaning day. Sundays are supposed to be family days, but on a farm that can be an anything that needs to be done day. Make hay while the sun shines is the rule. Each day I feed and water the livestock in the evening for Jim, because he works the second shift at the school and doesn't come home till 8:30 PM. I enjoy the time I spend outdoors with the animals while my dogs go for a run.

   Halloween is my favorite day of the year! I enjoy costume parties and everything that goes with planning them. I have a collection of wigs and costumes that can be mixed and matched to make just about anything with a bit of imagination. When the big day approaches I like to get together with a few friends and plan a party with decorations, refreshments and a costume contest.

   Out in the country we are rarely visited by little trick-or-treaters. When I was growing up in the city, we went out trick-or-treating just after dark on the night of the 31st. My mother took great pleasure in making our costumes out of found things. She would use her lipstick and eyeshadows to make up our faces. We went house to house all up and down the street we lived on and collected a bagful of treats. It was a neighborhood affair and all joined in. We had such fun! My children missed that experience, as it is no longer done in this area. Here, there is a costume party at the elementary school and a costume dance at the middle school. I helped my children to make costumes from found things just as my mother did for me.

   Thanksgiving Day is the first holiday of the season when I can plan on getting most of the family together for the day. Dinner is usually held at our house because we have the most room. If we are fortunate, all of our children will be here for the day. Our son, Jonas, and his wife, Anne, live in Austin, Texas. Our daughter, Sara, lives in nearby Milwaukee, and for the next few months, our son, Rudy is living with us. Jim's parents, who live on a farm across the road, are usually our guests for holiday dinners. My parents join us to make a nice sized crowd around our traditional "threshing" table in the dining room.

   Our holiday dinners are often served at noon, last about two hours, and are followed by an afternoon of board games played by all. Some favorites here are Monopoly, Dominoes, Chess, Rummy Royal and Mancala.

   Christmas is the longest season of the year in our household. It begins the weekend after Thanksgiving when I gather with my sisters for our annual cookie exchange. On Friday we bake 6 dozen each of three different types of fancy cookies and pack them in tins holding 2 dozen each of one type. Then we get together for a luncheon at one of our homes and trade tins, leaving us each with 9 different varieties of fancy cookies to get out for guests throughout the season. It's always a treat to see what the others bake.

   Traditionally I have a little Christmas Party at my house for all my spinning friends. I have been spinning for 17 years and have made many friends in the spinning world during that time. We meet in early December for an evening of treats and coffee, visiting with one another while spinning yarn on our spinning wheels. Those who want to bring a little gift to exchange and we draw names to determine who gets which.

   On a patriotic note, I thought I'd like to tell you about a little project some members of my spinning guild have put together. It's called

SOCKS FOR SOLDIERS

and is set to take place at the

Milwaukee County War Memorial
750 North Lincoln Memorial Drive
Saturday, November 10th from 8 AM til 6 PM.

Their poster reads:

   Come watch as a group of volunteers cranks out socks on their antique circular knitting machines. These socks will be donated to Wisconsin Veterans for Christmas presents. Hear how these machines from late 1800's - early 1900's played a part in the history of WWI and WWII!

Watch us make "Socks for Soldiers" once again.

Warm the hearts and feet of our veterans.

Show them we care!

Donations for yarn gladly accepted and needed.

Cash donations can be made at any Guaranty Bank under the account

"Socks for Soldiers" or send check made out to "Socks for Soldiers" to

Jan Massie

1209 South 103 Street

West Allis, WI 53214

For more information contact;

Jan (414) 476-4726 or Cheryl (414) 546-1912



		Something New! Quarterly Newsletter October, November, December 2001 Recipes, hints, ideas, new books, whatever... Golden Fruit Cake 1 1/2 cups butter 3 1/2 cups flour 2 cups sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 6 eggs, separated 2 cups golden raisins 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 cup chopped, dried apricots 3/4 cup milk 1/2 cup chopped candied 1/4 cup brandy orange peel 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup candied pineapple 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts Beat butter until light and creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until smooth. Beat egg yolks together lightly and add to butter/sugar mixture. Combine milk, brandy and vanilla. Mix flour and salt together. Alternately add milk mix and flour mix to butter mixture. Stir to blend. Fold in fruits and nuts. Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until stiff but not dry. Fold whites into batter gently but thoroughly. Pour mixture into two buttered and floured 6 cup molds. Bake at 275° for 2 1/2 hours or until they test done. Cool. Unmold. If desired, wrap in triple layer of cheesecloth soaked in brandy. Wrap tightly in foil and store in a cool, dry place. Once a week unwrap cake and brush with more brandy. — from California Golden Raisin ad 197_ October 2001 Hello! Autumn is here, with Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas soon coming. Autumn on the farm is harvest time. Crops tended the summer long are now ready for gathering as winter feed for the livestock. We cut, windrow and chop hay along with mature corn to fill the silo. The mixture will ferment in the silo and become a sweet feed for the cattle to live on through the winter. Then, more fields of corn will be harvested with the combine, a machine that cuts off the cornstalk near the soil, pulls it through sieves to remove just the kernels, and leaves the chopped stalks and cobs in neat rows behind as it moves through the field. The corn is then unloaded by augers into a dryer bin where it will be dried for storage until needed for feed during the winter. The chopped stalks are stored in the barn for bedding. I have been married to Jim for 28 years now. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, and met my farmer husband on a blind date. Farming was a whole new way of life for me. Each farm is as different as the farmer. I know farming the way Jim and his family do it. Jim's father is 80 years old and has just retired from a lifetime of farming with horses and horse-driven machinery. Jim farms with tractors. The farm has been an ideal place and way of life to raise our family. Our three children grew up with responsibilities at home. When we were milking cows, the children helped in the barn. One would wash the cows' utters before Jim attached the milking machines. Another would feed the calves. Still another would bring the cows in, and put them back out after milking. I carried the milk to the bulk tank. We cleaned and bedded the stalls, fed each cow her ration, washed the milkers and cleaned the milk house twice daily. I couldn't have asked for a better life. Now there is no longer enough financial reward for the hard work involved in keeping a family farm. Farmers across the country are giving it up in favor of off farm jobs that come with insurance and retirement benefits. Our children are grown and have left the nest. Jim sold the dairy herd two years ago and is now a custodian at our local school. He loves his new job and enjoys the kids. They call him Elvis, because he has black hair and wears it much like the King. We cash crop some of our land, and rent out most of the hay acres to a neighbor who is still dairy farming. We have 40 head of beef cattle to feed, 3 sheep, 2 horses, a donkey, 20 hens and a rooster, 3 dogs, and various barn cats. My week begins with reading and answering the mail each Monday. I type in the orders for the week, and set them up to package for mailing on Tuesday, when I run errands. Wednesday I make soap, up to 750 bars in one day. Thursday I cut and trim soap, and set it on racks to cure. I put away soap cut and trimmed the week before. Friday I make bath salts, write newsletters and do my paperwork. Saturday is my cleaning day. Sundays are supposed to be family days, but on a farm that can be an anything that needs to be done day. Make hay while the sun shines is the rule. Each day I feed and water the livestock in the evening for Jim, because he works the second shift at the school and doesn't come home till 8:30 PM. I enjoy the time I spend outdoors with the animals while my dogs go for a run. Halloween is my favorite day of the year! I enjoy costume parties and everything that goes with planning them. I have a collection of wigs and costumes that can be mixed and matched to make just about anything with a bit of imagination. When the big day approaches I like to get together with a few friends and plan a party with decorations, refreshments and a costume contest. Out in the country we are rarely visited by little trick-or-treaters. When I was growing up in the city, we went out trick-or-treating just after dark on the night of the 31st. My mother took great pleasure in making our costumes out of found things. She would use her lipstick and eyeshadows to make up our faces. We went house to house all up and down the street we lived on and collected a bagful of treats. It was a neighborhood affair and all joined in. We had such fun! My children missed that experience, as it is no longer done in this area. Here, there is a costume party at the elementary school and a costume dance at the middle school. I helped my children to make costumes from found things just as my mother did for me. Thanksgiving Day is the first holiday of the season when I can plan on getting most of the family together for the day. Dinner is usually held at our house because we have the most room. If we are fortunate, all of our children will be here for the day. Our son, Jonas, and his wife, Anne, live in Austin, Texas. Our daughter, Sara, lives in nearby Milwaukee, and for the next few months, our son, Rudy is living with us. Jim's parents, who live on a farm across the road, are usually our guests for holiday dinners. My parents join us to make a nice sized crowd around our traditional "threshing" table in the dining room. Our holiday dinners are often served at noon, last about two hours, and are followed by an afternoon of board games played by all. Some favorites here are Monopoly, Dominoes, Chess, Rummy Royal and Mancala. Christmas is the longest season of the year in our household. It begins the weekend after Thanksgiving when I gather with my sisters for our annual cookie exchange. On Friday we bake 6 dozen each of three different types of fancy cookies and pack them in tins holding 2 dozen each of one type. Then we get together for a luncheon at one of our homes and trade tins, leaving us each with 9 different varieties of fancy cookies to get out for guests throughout the season. It's always a treat to see what the others bake. Traditionally I have a little Christmas Party at my house for all my spinning friends. I have been spinning for 17 years and have made many friends in the spinning world during that time. We meet in early December for an evening of treats and coffee, visiting with one another while spinning yarn on our spinning wheels. Those who want to bring a little gift to exchange and we draw names to determine who gets which. On a patriotic note, I thought I'd like to tell you about a little project some members of my spinning guild have put together. It's called SOCKS FOR SOLDIERS and is set to take place at the Milwaukee County War Memorial 750 North Lincoln Memorial Drive Saturday, November 10th from 8 AM til 6 PM. Their poster reads: Come watch as a group of volunteers cranks out socks on their antique circular knitting machines. These socks will be donated to Wisconsin Veterans for Christmas presents. Hear how these machines from late 1800's - early 1900's played a part in the history of WWI and WWII! Watch us make "Socks for Soldiers" once again. Warm the hearts and feet of our veterans. Show them we care! Donations for yarn gladly accepted and needed. Cash donations can be made at any Guaranty Bank under the account "Socks for Soldiers" or send check made out to "Socks for Soldiers" to Jan Massie 1209 South 103 Street West Allis, WI 53214 For more information contact; Jan (414) 476-4726 or Cheryl (414) 546-1912 Sign up to receive my quarterly Newsletter —