So, I viscerated 10 chickens....

Thursday June 4
Got up at 6 to help milk the goats this morning. So many steps to make sure everything is sanitary! I was so slow at milking; I milked one goat by the time Jess finished 6. Embaressing. But she said everyone is slow on their first try. As the milk flow started lessening, the goat began to kick. Tricky part: if the goat kicks the bucket, it's game over. If the goat touches the bucket, it's game over (unsanitary!). To prevent this, you have to lean your body into the goat. At one point I was bracing myself against the wall to prevent the goat from kicking. My back was aching aching aching at the end of it. Couldn't believe how taxing that was! It was a good experience. We then had to herd the goats into the pasture, which was pretty close to the dairy house. While it seems easy enough for two people to shepherd a herd of goats down the road, it's really not! Not at all. The goats broke free, started running into a gallop, and then proceeded to attack the corn and potato crops. I started running with them, which I was told later to not do. Some kids that were there (why? don't know) helped us herd the goats up. Very frustrating that animals are sometimes smarter than humans.
Since today was the day of harvesting chickens, I did not work in the garden. I was glad for this break and I was kind of excited to see how this chicken slaughtering business was done. Normally they don't kill a bunch of chickens at once, but since these egg layers were 2 years old, they weren't really producing many eggs any more and were really just taking up space and feed. And that's why we killed them.
Here's how it went: we put the chickens in a metal cone with the smaller end of the cone facing the ground. There was a little chute for the blood to run into which led to a bucket to collect the blood. Once they bleed out and stop moving, the head is cut off. If the head is cut off before they die, then the heart keeps pumping and too much blood comes out. Next they were placed in a scalding bath at 145-165 degrees for 50 seconds, which helps to get the feathers out. Then was the de-plumer, which is a machine with a big wheel with spikes on it. The wheel turns constant and the little spikes pull out the feathers. It looks kind of violent, but does really well to get the feathers out.
Last we viscerate the chickens guts, which is what I did. I estimate that I did about 8-10 chickens. I had no idea what I was doing at first, but I got used to it. It was more of an anatomy lesson for me than an emotional conflict. I kind of enjoyed it, and that may seem weird, but I felt zero guilt about it. First the "knee" is broken, cut off, and discarded. Then the oil gland (near the tail) is cut off because it interferes with flavors. Then the underbelly is cut and you yank all the guts out. It was kind of like pulling the guts out of a pumpkin because it just all comes out with a little tug. I had to be careful of the anus, the gizzard, the gall bladder and the intestines. If I punctured any of those, it could lead to a horrible smell. Cutting the anus while it's still intact to the carcass spoils the entire chicken (we discarded one of the 33 chickens for this reason). Everything else just sort of came out easiliy. I was amazed at how small the lungs, heart, and kidneys were. Then I cut out the "crop," which is a small membranous like organ near the neck. It's like a pre-digestive organ. The crops were empty because we didn't feed the chickens yesterday (for this purpose!). Cleaning up the prep house was kind of gross, lots of organs and blood everywhere. Let it be known that I did wear latex gloves during the visceration. I have so many cuts on my hands and I know too much about microbiology. Nuff said!
Funny story: Chris was carrying the heavy bag of guts to the landfill. When he was outside, it split open due to the weight. Yummerz.
Best part of cleaning out the chickens: sometimes whole eggs were in their bodies, ready to be laid. They were covered with a thin membrane and just came out when you pulled the body parts out. We kept those eggs and they are now in the fridge. I am definitely seeing the value of eggs for most of my meals. What a great source of non-meat protein.
The interesting part about all of this was that everyone didn't feel comfortable at the beginning of the operation. We said a prayer before we began because we wanted to honor the process of slaughter. The Lord gave us animals for a reason, but we needed to honor the chickens, to hope that we cared well for them during their two year reign in the fields, and thank God for the opportunity.
Tomorrow Mom is coming to town to help me move into my apartment. I swear, moving back and forth between "The real world" and "farm life" is completely strange. It's like I literally lead a dual life. Here everything is chill, sustainable, and looks really aren't a concern. Beyond the farm, it's the complete complete complete opposite. Needless to say, this comparion has let me see that I am starting to see the my real life for what it is and what it needs to become. What this means in terms of how my real life will change when I leave, I do not know.

Wednesday June 3
More weeding this morning of the collards and swiss chard. Weeding in general was much faster this time and much less taxing mentally as I had a friend there to help me. We had some really great conversations about life, boyfriends, the future. We each had hand hoes and had to break up the soil around the plant, then put fertilizer in the broken ground. The fertilizer consisted of two parts fish remnants and three parts rabbit poo. Needless to say, by lunch time my hands smelled sufficiently like my former fish, Speedy (may he rest in peace!).
This afternoon I attempted to make fresh carrot juice. I salvaged the juicer that hadn't been used in years (as evidenced by the massive amounts of dust). All went well until it decided to poop out on me. But it sure tasted good! I am starting to enjoy the "process" of things: peeling carrots, soaking dried beans, etc.
This afternoon Brandon and I went to HEB to get band aids, ear plugs, and motor oil. Bandaids for the ant bite situation! I also bought a Coke Zero. I know! Totally cheating on the whole "green living" deal. But it was a treat. Or a necessity. I might possibly be addicted. But I went two days without it, so that's progress (?). We also went to Michael's to get Amber a crochet comb for her dread locks. Couldn't find one, but got these awesome bandanas instead. They are nice feminine colors, which is always good! I don't feel too feminine here, so I gotta take what I can get. I have been showering everyday though, so don't fret. I wear so much sunscreen that I would feel so gross if I didn't shower. But being at those stores, dressed ready to work at the farm, being dirty and smelly, I felt different, and true, I looked different. But I was definitely treated differently by workers at both stores. I wish that this hadn't happened, but it did. I now know how homeless people feel when they walk into a store. Kind of like when Tyra Banks dressed in the fat suit. Yes, I just went there. I thought that I might run into someone at one of these stores and I totally did. I wasn't embaressed, but I wonder if she knew that I looked different..she probably smelled me and immediately knew. I am not going to put too much thought into it, I got better things to do with my mental free time.
That evening we sat on the porch swing and talked and joked about life. Ryan got out his guitar and just strummed some chords while the weather cooperated with a nice breeze. The stars weren't quite as kind and I am always still looking for Orien's belt...he just won't show it to me lately. Ha!