Enjoying The Island
Greetings from the island everyone. I hope that all of you are doing well and had an enjoyable family Thanksgiving, and are getting in the festive Christmas spirit, which is very quickly approaching. Gifts can be air dropped to #1 Matagorda Peninsula, compass bearing 120 degrees from the Little Jetty. Ha Ha!
Barnacle and I stayed on the island for Thanksgiving, feasting on our smoked ham, sweet potatoes and biscuits, and pecan pie for dessert. Then on Saturday we headed to the mainland and I went with the family to the small community of Koerth to celebrate the 80th birthday of my dad, Henry. We prepared a great meal of fried snapper, redfish and drum, along with shrimp puppies (hush puppies with pieces of shrimp inside), and had a shrimp boil. Those Bohemians loved our seafood, and I loved Aunt Ida’s homemade kolaches.
A commercial fisherman, plant worker, master gardener, father of five kids and the best fiddle player ever to play the Orange Blossom Special. . . we all love you Dad.
Well, thus far the island has experienced very mild late Fall weather. Other than a few brisk early mornings, shorts and T-shirt have been mandatory island wear, my normal attire for nine months out of the year out here. But as I put pen to paper this early Sunday morning, the first cold norther of the season is forecast to blow in late tonight or early Monday morning. Might have to even pull out Barnacle’s sweater for this one, calling for low 40’s and very windy. I’m hoping some rain will blow in with the winds, as my water tanks are getting to the concerned stage.
It’s the strong north winds that keep me from usually having a Fall or Winter garden here on the island. They can be so brutal blowing across open Matagorda Bay before slamming into the island. The winds make it very difficult to properly protect the plants, so I forego gardening activities until about mid January when I get my tomato seeds started in the little greenhouse. I’ll also plant a few seed potatoes in early February and begin preparing my raised beds and containers for Spring planting.
The chickens are doing just fine, laying an average of 20-24 eggs a day right now. For chickens to lay at optimal level, they need about sixteen hours of light per day, whether it be natural or artificial. I installed some 12 volt lights on a timer for their coop area, to be activated from 3:00 a.m. till sunrise each day to supplement their lighting. Well, it only took one morning to realize this was a mistake, because when the lights came on at 3:00 a.m., Mr. Rooster began crowing at full volume. That’s right, 3:00 a.m.! I don’t think so. I then reset the timer for the lights to be activated from sunset till 10:00 p.m., providing the needed extra light. Lesson learned.
I’ve also learned that rats love chicken feed that is left scattered on the ground in the chicken pen. So after investing in five rat traps and baiting them with peanut butter, in three nights I snuffed out 12 rats! These things are what I call wharf rats, four to five inches long, not counting the tail. I hate rats!
I want to say thanks to fellow islanders Eddie, Rudy, Harry and Aldon for the two wonderful suppers of fried seafood and beer chicken last week. It’s always nice to sit and visit with these guys when they come out.
Well, that’s it from the island for now, everyone take care and have a great Christmas.
