Boom Sticks

At four-ish or so in the morning the Super Moon lights up the ice fog like a magic wand. Everything is still dripping from the rain over the past few days and the lone spruce seems a whole dark forest in the not quite light. The yard between the house and heifer barn seems as if you might need to access them through a wardrobe, if you know what I mean. I have to just stand and look for a while, so eerie and alien the morning seems.

Then, come six or seven, the boom sticks start. To the southeast a throaty shotgun roars. One shot. Probably either a deer harvested or a clean and admitted miss.

To the southwest the sharp crack of a medium-sized rifle. Another single shot, another case of the same probable outcome. All around us, north of the river, south, east, and west of our farm, shots ring out everywhere. We have been hearing people sighting in, but this is different. Purposeful. Deadly.

Then to the east, boom, boom, boom, boom....and one more lone, trailing, echoing boom of disappointment. Nope, you didn't get anything but the flashing view of a bobbing white tail, leaving the area on the run.And maybe an adrenaline rush that messed with your aim. Them projectiles is expensive these days....calm down and take your time.

Yeah, it's opening day of the south deer season here in NY. There will be no more wearing drab clothing to go out counting birds....in fact I won't be going counting at all for a while....

However there will be something other than beef on the menu....just sayin'. After the hard years around the 2009 dairy crash I got very good at cooking alternate meats. And we will have some to cook.