We’ve been busy moving furniture (again) down south for a daughter’s attic room.  This room comes with fresh air conditioning and stylishly low ceilings here and there.  Very rustic.   At the same time, (yes-it was one of those fun moves) we’ve had record breaking rainfalls that have kept corn and soybeans in the fields and finishing up this year’s harvest.  Farmers have lots to talk about at the restaurant’s liars table in town, but they’d rather be looking down at grain rolling into their combines.  Today is the first day for some time with pervasive sunshine, even while there was a thick frost on the grass and fallen leaves as I squished out to the chicken house this morning. 

Speaking of chickens, it’s time to take several cockerels down to Amishland to prepare for our freezer. Our freezer will be full soon as we stock up for winter with the chickens and an Antiquity Oaks pig.  We like chicken, and pigs like chicken.  I’m re-reading the Grapes of Wrath, and darn if Tom Joad wasn’t recounting how his mother always shut the gate door to keep the pigs away from the babies.  There had been a tragic incident at Joads’ neighbors.  

We might not have a Dust Bowl now, as those times have changed somewhat.  But small family farms are going by the wayside in the dust of Monsanto and ADM, and the Department of Agriculture, as I reflect on the change in our little farm town since I grew up. 

Early summer, we hatched our chicks out with interesting results, and the kids are trying to determine the best genetic matches for 4-H fair next year.  They’ll pick out and determine ways to breed with fairly sure results. (Contained hens and chosen roosters, in other words, as opposed to free range breeding. Should be interesting.) I did mention the AP Biology MIT OpenCourseWare? There’s some decent genetics information in the recommended biology book, videolectures, et al.They have AP Physics and Calculus resources available too.

If you haven’t already, please go check out 200th Carnival of Homeschooling hosted at Consent of the Governed.  It’s a party! 

Judy also had a post earlier about a 3 year old CT boy.  Appropriately named: Yet Another Reason To Homeschool, I have to wonder what one would think to use a weighted vest to keep 3 year old boys from being wiggly.  This is one more reason that Universal Preschool should be defeated.  Little ones need freedom; not immobilization. 

I’ll leave you with a central Illinois rainy day fall sunset.  Geese were passing by, and I barely caught them before they went behind the tree.  These birds were heading northwest.