Week in Review

Another incredibly busy week at work gone by.  The Wednesday farmer's market this week was mostly crappy weather and not a lot of foot traffic at the old cheese stand.  It was my worst week yet, tear.  With summer just around the corner, I want to get the booth looking in tip-top shape because currently the plastic containers we're keeping the ice and cheese in are less-than-sexy looking.  Going to do some hunting this weekend for pretty baskets to nestle the plastic tubs in.

Yesterday I drove back from Portland and was in the make room at 2pm sharp.  Steve and I worked for 5 hours packing, pressing and pricing cheese.  We also did a lot of mundane stuff that you don't realize artisan cheese-makers have to do, like futzing with the electronic thermometer and fixing the "sell-by" label stamper.  After we got everything ready for both farmers markets, Steve was on his way and I stuck around in the make-room for another hour cleaning up.  6 hours into work, it was time to milk goats!  Were you tired, Lucy?  Yes, I was.  Milked the shit out of those goats though, and cleaned up and drove home and went to SLEEP.

This morning I woke up at 6 and was back in the dairy at 7 to finish the cheese-making process for Goatzarella, Farmhouse and Camembert.  The "Zella" I took out of the buckets it was being pressed it and weighed and put in the fridge.  The Farmhouse was hanging in cheese-cloth bags, so I took it down and divided it up in 6 lb wheels, salted and pressed it.  Then the camembert has its pH tested (which is more fun than it sounds--akin to a science fair project) and then it is salted to keep it from acidifying any further.  All the information (weights and pHs) are written down on a "make sheet" so we can keep track of everything and if we have a particularly good batch, we know why.

After all that was done and cleaned up in the make-room (took about 90 minutes), I milked the goatsters.  It took 3 hours, which is normal and I was all done with work at 11:30.  Watched Roscoe play very nicely with the new puppy and now I am home to do some chores.  So tired!  Going for a hike this afternoon and then I'm going to PTFO (pass the fuck out).

Some cool stuff going on in PDX this weekend.  On Saturday evening is the annual vaudeville show put on by Miss Hazel et al.  And then Sunday my favorite advice columnist whose podcast I listen to religiously, one Dan Savage, will be speaking at Powell's.  Can't.  Friggin'. Wait.  To see him in person.