Monday, December 6, 2010

Venison

It's cold this morning and I'm about to go out in it. I'm meeting with Kathleen at her radiation oncologist for a follow-up appointment. I remember when we started there and that seems so long ago. It's been such a journey, so far, and this doctor, the one we're seeing today, was a person we immediately felt confidence in and beyond that- someone we really liked.

It was some weekend, I tell you. Besides all the things I talked about, there was another huge event. Well, for us.

Jason, my son-in-law, Father of Owen, shot his first buck. And he was all by himself and he shot it clean and it dropped quick and he was so proud he could have busted and we were proud for him. It was a big buck. Like nine points or something. And he shot it on our friend Tom's property and Tom has been pestered by deer for years. They eat his garden faster than he can plant it and he lets Mr. Moon and Jason hunt there because quite frankly, he's got too many deer.

And now Jason, who cuts meat for a living, will have a freezer full of venison for his family. He wants to make his own sausage and that is going to be good.

For those of you who have just met me, it may seem strange that I am writing about hunting and killing but that's part of our life here, right along with my chickens and garden and flowers and giant oak trees. We do eat meat. And because these men hunt it and cut it themselves, we know where it comes from. We are under no delusion that it falls from the sky, wrapped up in a package and ready to cook. And if you had asked me thirty years ago if I would ever be comfortable with such doin's, I would have laughed my ass off.
Hell No! I would have said.

Times change. And now I know how to cook venison and I respect the meat in a way I could never respect what I buy from the store. It is beautiful food, lean and clean and our bodies are made to eat that sort of meat. It wasn't raised on a farm factory, it was raised wild in the woods and I have learned about that.

I have also learned that it is inherent in some men to go out and bring it home. I am married to one. I have not only come to peace with that fact, I am most grateful for it.
And here's Jason, who has learned to hunt from my husband and he is my daughter's husband and he shot his first buck, clean and true, and last night the two men gutted it and did whatever they do to get it ready to age for a week and there will be meat for a year.

Well. That's Lloyd, Florida this morning and last night and I'm off to Tallahassee to walk among the healers and the Mac guys and there will be Christmas Muzak and bright lights and oh boy. Another world.

Here I go.

Happy Monday, y'all.

Love...Ms. Moon

20 comments:

  1. I understand the killing. I simply am not one of those who could do it, unless I were starving and had to. I don't eat meat anymore. I quit once for 8 years and now I have been off it for about eight months. I feel better for not eating it. But I do eat a lot of shellfish. And I feed the deer here, leaving out food at stations on the property. So far, with the garden fence up, they haven't eaten anything. Those raccoons though...another story.
    Anyway, it is a rite of passage for many. Glad that Jason shot clean and true.

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  2. I grew up in a hunting family, and while I don't love everything about it, I sure as hell don't love everything about slaughter houses either, and yet we still eat THAT meat.

    Actually, I have a package of deer steak in my freezer from my parents house, but I've never actually cooked it on my own. My stepmother fried it in some sort of seasoned flour and then made a gravy, but I'm not sure how I should make it that would be a little healthier --can you help me figure out what to do with it?

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  3. Heck, mama, 30 years ago you raised a pig and we ate her.

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  4. haha to DTG!

    this post made me well up with happy tears, and you know me.
    yay for Jason.
    How amazing to be able to hunt for your own food, feed your family in this true way.

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  5. Yay to Jason! This is something very special, because after all these mornings and afternoons in the woods preparing, learning, and helping Papa, he deserves it completely. Awesome.

    So does this mean more venison for me too? ;)

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  6. Who's left to marry in your family? I want to help Mr. Tom with his "problem".

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  7. Congrats to your son-in-law! Bundle up because I think this may have been the warmest morning we are going to have this week. I will be snuggling with both of my grandbabies all week so I'm good!

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  8. DTG, you're such a character ~ guess it runs in the family!

    Ms. Moon, that's a beautiful explanation for those of us who don't eat much meat. I totally agree that this is an honorable way to provide for one's family and I so respect the whole process; it's in tune with nature and the polar opposite of what goes on in slaughterhouses.

    Cheers to Jason, clean and true!

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  9. Congrats to Jason!
    I grew up in a family of hunters and although I've never hunted, I understand the concept and balance of nature.

    All I ask is that hunters act humanely...quick kills, don't wound and leave to suffer, and use the meat.

    Have fun with Kathleen. I know you ladies will find a way to make going to the oncologist a good time.

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  10. I don't know many people who hunt but last month we went up to visit my friend in Virginia and had some venison jerky from a friend of her's who does hunt, and it was super tasty and delicious :)

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  11. "I have also learned that it is inherent in some men to go out and bring it home. I am married to one. I have not only come to peace with that fact, I am most grateful for it."
    And sometimes they help out right at home--I will never forget that meany rooster of yours, talons up, in a bucket.
    So glad that Jason now has a freezer-ful. I'm also glad that I haven't hit a deer with my car--last month in our 'hood there were so many dashing across the street in dusk, etc.
    Enjoy your day with Kathleen.

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  12. 9 points? Holy shit! That's a monster.

    Love you.

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  13. Ooo, I would love me some venison right now. I remember eating venison stew in your kitchen years ago, it tasted so good.

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  14. I'm a meat-eater. The closest I can get to shooting my own buck is my illegal amish meat.

    ah lah

    xoxoxo

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  15. Syd- I know that if I had to kill, I probably would not. BUT- if it was that or starvation, or my children's starvation, I would do it. Weird, huh?

    SJ- Could you thaw it, slice it up and cook it with onions and peppers and garlic and soy sauce and serve it over rice? Maybe?
    Just a thought.

    DTG- Too true. Miss Piggy. Pigasarus. I was not sad to see her come home, cut up and wrapped in white paper.

    Bethany- That's what I love about you. You can always see the other side. Your mind is open, and so is your heart.

    HoneyLuna- Of course! More deer meat for you!

    Magnum- Shut up. YOU ARE ALREADY MARRIED! Love...Ms. Moon (who will never be your mother-in-law).

    Lois- I know. Winter. Dang. Shit. Hell. Stay cozy.

    lulumarie- If you want, when you come visit, I will cook you some venison. Or not. Whichever.
    Love you, dear.

    Mel's Way- It all boils down to respect, doesn't it? I think it does.
    And we had a decent time, Kathleen and me, because we were meeting with an amazing human being- Dr. Newman.

    Ms. Eden- We have made venison jerky. It is really, really good.

    Michele R- Ah. Well, roadkill deer eats as good as shot-dear. Don't even ask me how I know that.

    Ms. Bastard-Beloved- It was!

    Melissa- You will have opportunity to eat more of that. I am looking forward to it.

    Michelle- Yay for illegal Amish meat!

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  16. Yum, that does sound good!

    If I fried it, do I need to stay with seasoned stuff or could I just do regular flour? What do you think?

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  17. SJ- I would slice the meat and marinate it in something like olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and crushed garlic. No flour needed. Just saute it in a pan with a little more oil. When you add the peppers and onions and they are almost translucent, add the marinade and let it cook down until there's just enough sauce left to go over the rice.
    Just one idea.

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  18. I think that sounds excellent. And much better than frying it up. I will email you this weekend when I try it :)

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  19. Hunting and fishing is a way of life on Molokai and very essential. We often refer to the ocean as our 'ice box'.
    A few years back, on one of my trips home, we were hanging out at my Aunt's and my cousin's teenage boys were also hanging out with us. They spotting goats in the foothills right above us. Grabbed their backpacks and took off for them. came back an hour later with the animal gutted and cleaned. Shot them with bow and arrow. I was so proud that they had learned to do that.
    So, no. I don't think it's weird. What is weird is depending on grocery stores for all of our food. Foods which are a far cry from natural states.

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  20. Paula Scott- Sometimes I think we live in Bizarro world these days. You're right- it's weird to get our food from the grocery store.
    Ah well.
    I would be proud of your cousin's sons too.

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