Jared, Daphne and I all headed to the Yamhill County Fair this evening.  I wanted to show Daphne all the different animals, we wanted to go to the rodeo and I wanted to see what was going on at the auction.

We had a ton of fun looking at all the animals, and we even had some exhibitors show their lambs to Daphne, much to her delight.

The rodeo was even a blast, and Daphne managed to sit through about 4 events.  I even got to see 5 bull rides before she decided it was time to leave.

As we were walking out, we went by the livestock auction again to check on the steers.  Some friends of my grandma have steers in Yamhill County that they sell every year at market, and I wanted to see how they did.

The Reserve Champion steer went for $7.25 per pound.  That is quite an investment considering that the steer weighed around 1300 pounds.  Usually, when the steer goes for that big of a ticket, it is used as a tax write off, and the meat is donated to a local charity that can use it to feed hungry families.  The nice thing is that the exhibitor gets to keep the money for all that hard work taking the steer.

Sadly, the entire auction did not go that well.  Things went downhill quickly, and the other steers around were going for $1.50 per pound having a hard time creeping up to $2.00 per pound (the low extimate for steers at this particular fair).  Jared and I were looking at eachother wishing that we had the funds to spend some money on some meat for a local kid.  I’ve been in the situation where you see your hard work slowly looking like it was for naught as the price hangs around $1.80 per pound.

The moral of the story is that you should call your extension agent, get in contact with some local 4-H kids and consider buying a market animal at the fair.  Either the meat will be good eating and a local student will have a chance to go to college (which is what the money is usually used for) or you will be supporting a cause where kids get off their lazy butts and get something done while providing a food source for a hungry family while you get a nice tax write-off.

You can get together with friends to buy an animal as well, and you can split up the cost that way.

Enjoy some good eating and support your local future food producers in the meanwhile.

It is becoming abundantly clear in our lives that one freezer is not enough. When I haul meat over here from Eastern Oregon, I never have enough space, and it is always a big headache to try to attempt to fit it in my freezer. I also just slaughtered two goats, which means that my freezer is packed to the gills. Jared and I talked about buying a new one, but it is not in the cards right now considering they cost a few hundred dollars new.

Out of chance, I posted an ad on the Mcminnville Freecycle saying that I wanted a freezer in working order. I got a response from someone in Carlton. I have to be honest, when we went to look at the freezer, I almost did not want to get it. It was rusted on the outside, and I would have turned my back on it then and there had it not been for the fact that it was pristine inside.

We moved it in to the garage. I spent part of the morning cleaning it out really good and scrubbing the outside. Tonight, Jared and I went to Walmart, and we ended up getting some appliance paint. The paint is made to refinish appliances, specifically in this kind of a situation. After 2 coats, I must admit that the freezer looks brand new. The finish on it is perfect. Despite the fact that I am not the best painter in the world (there are some drip marks), the freezer could sell in almost new condition very easily. And so, for an investment of $25 I have the freezer for extra meat and maybe even some blueberries later in the season.

The moral of the story, don’t give up on a gimpy looking freezer, restore it–oh… and Freecycle while you are at it.