Three Ducks a-Quacking
Okay, so it seems kind of silly that my next journal entry would once again be about ducks, but I get so excited when I learn something new. Rick Magee came by with three more ducks that he shot this morning sort of as a Christmas present. His nine-year-old daughter, Sheyanne, was his runner. She enjoys hunting with her dad (she's an only child, and adopted) and I think that's cool. Rick taught me a much easier way to prepare a duck, which I am thankful for because it was a bitch to pull out all those pin-feathers. So here's what you do the next time a dead duck shows up on your front porch boys and girls:
1. Pull off some of the breast feathers, exposing the skin.
2. Pinch a piece of loose skin between your fingers, and cut a slit down the breast lengthwise on both sides of the breastbone.
3. Pull the skin back as if the duck was wearing a coat that you are taking off.
4. Cut the breasts out of the chest cavity.
Voila! There is not much to a duck besides the breasts, so there's no good reason to try to get anything more out of it. The rest is discarded so other animals get their share, birds and mice using the feathers for their nests, and foxes, dogs, and maggots making use of the carcass. Rick promised me the next time he shoots a deer that he will teach me how to skin and prepare it.
It's funny how men like Rick and Dwayne enjoy hunting game, but don't enjoy eating it. I'm not sure how much I would enjoy killing animals, though. The ducks came to me already dead, so it's better to eat them then let them go to waste. I think it would be cool to only eat the meat that I hunt, and not give Tyson or the Beef People any more of my money for cruelly raising poultry and cattle the way that they do. At least game animals had a life. I'm not all for people shooting young game, but the older ones have been able to live in their natural habitat. I don't know, it's a difficult moral/ethical issue. But hey, I know how to skin a duck now.
Well it's Christmas Eve, and I've made deviled eggs and sausage balls, and we're going to my aunt's house on my mom's side to celebrate the holidays and exchange presents. I love my mom's side of the family, they're all pretty crazy but in a nice way. My grandfather is in his third marriage to a nice lady named a lady who is actually OLDER than him, but she looks great for her age and takes great care of herself. He's been a widower since '96 when my grandmother passed away, and has had some girlfriends since then, but none of them were really his type. He's a teenager at heart and is always telling jokes and acting silly.
I really miss Joe, but I will see him this coming Monday at his brother's house in Wake Forest. He said he sent me a "special project" in the mail, and I wonder what it could be? He's always doing creative things like that for me. For Christmas he gave me the Smashing Pumpkin's "The Aeroplane Flies High" boxed set - it's the first time I've ever cried with joy over a present. I've always wanted that boxed set ever since it came out, but I would never buy myself something so extravagant. No telling how much he paid for it. He bought it even before we were dating just to show how much he valued me as a friend. Joe, you are so romantic, and you know me so well! I am so lucky. He's visiting his parents in Gettysburg, PA, but I wish he could celebrate the holidays with me because his folks aren't exactly the most joyful people in the world. His poor mom's in a wheelchair though, so he should really go cheer her up. They're going to go take her out to see the Christmas lights in the neighborhood.
Speaking of lights, I went caroling with a group from church last night and we saw lots of lights. I love the colorful tackiness of Southern Christmas lights, along with the light-up nativity scenes and the Santas and the blow-up snowmen and Grinches...it's really quite overwhelming. Well, as Joe says, I'm gonna do more LIVING than JOURNALING, so Merry Christmakawanzakuh to everyone!
1. Pull off some of the breast feathers, exposing the skin.
2. Pinch a piece of loose skin between your fingers, and cut a slit down the breast lengthwise on both sides of the breastbone.
3. Pull the skin back as if the duck was wearing a coat that you are taking off.
4. Cut the breasts out of the chest cavity.
Voila! There is not much to a duck besides the breasts, so there's no good reason to try to get anything more out of it. The rest is discarded so other animals get their share, birds and mice using the feathers for their nests, and foxes, dogs, and maggots making use of the carcass. Rick promised me the next time he shoots a deer that he will teach me how to skin and prepare it.
It's funny how men like Rick and Dwayne enjoy hunting game, but don't enjoy eating it. I'm not sure how much I would enjoy killing animals, though. The ducks came to me already dead, so it's better to eat them then let them go to waste. I think it would be cool to only eat the meat that I hunt, and not give Tyson or the Beef People any more of my money for cruelly raising poultry and cattle the way that they do. At least game animals had a life. I'm not all for people shooting young game, but the older ones have been able to live in their natural habitat. I don't know, it's a difficult moral/ethical issue. But hey, I know how to skin a duck now.
Well it's Christmas Eve, and I've made deviled eggs and sausage balls, and we're going to my aunt's house on my mom's side to celebrate the holidays and exchange presents. I love my mom's side of the family, they're all pretty crazy but in a nice way. My grandfather is in his third marriage to a nice lady named a lady who is actually OLDER than him, but she looks great for her age and takes great care of herself. He's been a widower since '96 when my grandmother passed away, and has had some girlfriends since then, but none of them were really his type. He's a teenager at heart and is always telling jokes and acting silly.
I really miss Joe, but I will see him this coming Monday at his brother's house in Wake Forest. He said he sent me a "special project" in the mail, and I wonder what it could be? He's always doing creative things like that for me. For Christmas he gave me the Smashing Pumpkin's "The Aeroplane Flies High" boxed set - it's the first time I've ever cried with joy over a present. I've always wanted that boxed set ever since it came out, but I would never buy myself something so extravagant. No telling how much he paid for it. He bought it even before we were dating just to show how much he valued me as a friend. Joe, you are so romantic, and you know me so well! I am so lucky. He's visiting his parents in Gettysburg, PA, but I wish he could celebrate the holidays with me because his folks aren't exactly the most joyful people in the world. His poor mom's in a wheelchair though, so he should really go cheer her up. They're going to go take her out to see the Christmas lights in the neighborhood.
Speaking of lights, I went caroling with a group from church last night and we saw lots of lights. I love the colorful tackiness of Southern Christmas lights, along with the light-up nativity scenes and the Santas and the blow-up snowmen and Grinches...it's really quite overwhelming. Well, as Joe says, I'm gonna do more LIVING than JOURNALING, so Merry Christmakawanzakuh to everyone!