Cabela's Expedition - Lacey, Wa

We undertook the ultimate Sunday expedition yesterday, a pilgrimage to the monumental Cabela's store in Lacey, Washinton. It's at the opposite end of the Salish sea from us about a 2.5 - 3 hour drive one way. We were undaunted, especially with the addition of a friend to accompany us who prefers to be known only as "Ka-Jo Nes".

From the history of Cabelas: "Cabela's, the World's Foremost Outfitter of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, was born somewhat inadvertently in 1961 when Dick Cabela came up with a plan to sell fishing flies he purchased while at a furniture show in Chicago. Upon returning home to Chappell, Nebraska, Dick ran a classified ad in the Casper, Wyoming, newspaper reading: "12 hand-tied flies for $1." It generated one response.
Undaunted, Dick formulated a new plan, rewriting the ad to read "FREE Introductory offer! 5 hand tied Flies....25c Postage....Handling" and placing it in national outdoor magazines. It didn't take long for the orders to begin arriving from sportsmen and women around the country."

Back to our story... a nice aside is, it wasn't too far from where J's brother lives, so he and his two kids popped over to meet us for lunch. Here they are checking out our new family member "Big Blue". [J's brother also drives a gorgeous Dodge Ram.]

Upon entering the store we were awe-struck, so much so all we could do was immediately find something to fortify us. Here K and J enjoy a 1/2# Buffalo Burger, and a Venison Kielbasa. I opted for the deli sandwich on wheat with thin sliced Wild Boar, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion and jalapenos. Mmm-mm, fabulous. Really great fries as well. They had a selection of exotic game meats on the menu, which made it especially interesting to eat here.

To shake off the lunch slump, K and I had a friendly competition on the Big Buck Hunter Pro game. Here we are deciding where and what to hunt.

And here we are shooting up the Montana wilderness trying to bag some elk... "shoot the Bucks, not the Does!" K seemed always ahead of me until he removed his sunglasses, and there went his mojo.

K decided this was, "Man, returning the favor," to the rodent population, in this case a Prairie Dog. Did we ever really shop?

Apparently not. Escalators and levitation.

Here I am checking out a New Holland Tractor out front before heading out and enjoying a frosty treat.

What frosty treat you might ask? Snow Ka-Jo Nes!!

Stay tuned... for more riotous shopping adventures!

Fall has fallen

The image above is is of Persephone, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, a Pre-Raphaelite painter.

In Greek mythology, the start of autumn coincides with the time the goddess Persephone returns to the underworld to live with her husband Hades. Persephone was abducted by Hades who fell in love with her and took her to the underworld. Persephone's mother, Demeter, goddess of grain and the harvest was so distressed by the loss of her daughter that in her grief, she withdrew her nurturing presence from the earth. Flowers wilted, and crops on earth died and became dormant. The earth became cold and barren.

It was eventually agreed that Persephone could return to her mother for two thirds of the year but would spend the remaining months with Hades. While Persephone is with her husband in the underworld, seeds lie hidden in the barren ground and when she returns to her mother, Demeter celebrates by resuming her divine duties and restoring fertility to the earth. Seeds burst forth in crops and fruits and life reborn.

We're still madly harvesting and putting up food for winter here at Seven Trees, but things are starting to wind down. Check out Newt, taking a break in a wheelbarrow of hay.

What are these two looking at? They were watching the mini-rodeo as we wrestled with Buddy.Buddy in the stanchion, getting his halter adjusted. Not long before Buddy & Doug will do their part in the cycle of farm life and feed us for a good long time. For now, we're giving them lots of treats and all the hay they can eat.