This time it’s not “going to be ready.” It’s actually ready. I’ll be leaving here shortly to drive the two hours to get our beef from the processor and put it safely away in our freezers when I get home. That means all the hard to find cuts will be back in stock for tomorrow’s normal hours of 2-6.
Summer is almost over
It is August. And September is right around the corner. Better make sure you get all your summer fun in before it’s too late.
Of course, we are looking forward to fall. We have some events planned that should be fun. Some for new customers, and some for old customers. We will have more details as we progress. Till then, better squeeze all the days on the lake that you can.
The best laid plans of mice and men… And pork is on sale!
We didn’t get the beef yesterday. I planned my entire day around it. I checked with the processor about 2pm, and rolled out of here about 3pm for the one hour drive to Siler City to pick up all of our beefy goodness. All was good.
I turned the cooler on on the truck so it would be frozen when I arrived, stopped and got some water to drink on the way, and began my normal routine of cursing people WHO CAN’T DRIVE! Argh!
I’d made it about 1/2 of the way there when my phone rang with a number I didn’t recognize.
“Hello?”
“Don’t come! We’ve lost power. You cow is half cut up and not vacuum sealed. We can’t do anything with it till we get power back on!”
Well this was new. At first I said I was coming anyway so I could put the beef in my truck to keep it cold but they assured me they had backup power for the coolers. Just not for the saws or the work rooms. Hmm. Nothing to do but to come home empty-handed. So I turned around and instead cursed the STUPID DRIVERS on the way home.
I only posted two posts this past week. One, where I told everyone we’d have beef on Saturday. In the other one, I told everyone we’d have beef on Saturday. Sigh.
Since we don’t have beef now till Monday afternoon which for you fine folks will mean Wednesday, I’m instead announcing a one day sale on pork because we do have that.
Today only, all pork (except bacon and ribs) are 20% off. I’m doing this because I promised you you’d have beef today and people will not see this and show up all happy expecting steaks. I hate letting people down, even if it’s not my fault. So instead it’s time for pork!
The girls are all working and excited to see you today so stop by and get some pork.
Beef is coming today!
Just a quick update to let you know that I’ll be picking up our latest cow this afternoon from the processor (back here around 5pm). We should be well stocked with everything including all the steaks so plan on popping in tomorrow and getting something for the grill.
Also, I dropped off hogs yesterday at the other processor so we will be restocking on pork products shortly. Although I’m not aware of anything we are out of currently on pork, but we like to keep ahead if we can.
We have beef and pork
And sometimes both at the same time.
This was too funny not to share.
We raise both beef and pork here on our farm. The rest of what we have in our store comes from other farms around the state. We are proud to represent other farmers in our little store. But we are most proud of the quality of our beef and pork, which we think is the finest you will find.
Our beef is grass fed, grass finished. No commercial feed EVER!
Our pork is raised on forage and produce from the farmers market. No commercial feed EVER! Our pork chops are darker and redder than the steaks you buy at the grocery store. They taste better too.
If you haven’t tried one or the other, then you owe it to yourself to give them a try. We are open today from 2-6pm and again on Friday from 2-6pm. Saturday we will be open 8-5 and we’ll be freshly stocked on beef.
Whole Duck Now Available
Lucy here on the actual non- recipe part of the blog. We’re still having some internet issues here on the farm. The store is open tomorrow 2-6 p.m. & Satuday from 8-5. Erin & Crystal will be running the store while Dan gives tours. SWMBO & I will be off picking up our kiddos and hosing them down after a full week of sleep away camp.
Ninja Cow Farm has a wonderful new product in stock. DUCK!!! Seriously, we now have Duck thanks to Blue Whistler Farm over in Bahama, NC. Blue Whistler is a wife and husband owned 5 acre farm. It may not seem like much land, they work it and are producing some great products.
Last year I was introduced to Amy at Blue Whistler Farm. I followed her for a while, light facebook stalking in truth. What drew me to her was the amount she loved and cared for her animals while they were on the farm. How she is able to provide with love and care yet realize this is a business and you must follow the rules of it to be successful.
She has tried several animals on her 5 acre farm. Amy shares her triumphs and successes along the way. Now we can share her ducks with you. Blue Whistler Ducks are pastured raised, while receiving conventional feed rations.
As you can see though they stay in the pasture not in a closed in cage on a factory farm. Amy is hoping this winter to bring us Duck by the cut as well. Blue Whistler ducks are currently sold whole in our store for $8.45lb. Drop by and see us for a new flavor on your table.
We have internet, and ribeyes!
Yesterday I picked up a surprise cow from the processor. No, not a surprise to me. A surprise for you, and Lucy. Lucy was complaining that we were running out of everything. Steaks, hamburger, everything beef related. I called the processor and was able to squeeze in an extra slot for this month. Yesterday afternoon I picked up said load of beefy goodness and everyone on the farm worked to get it put away after 5pm.
The end result of all that is we have a freezer full of everything, including ribeye steaks. Two steaks I’m pulling out for my use, because we NEVER get ribeyes, they area always pre-ordered before the cow gets here. The rest of the steaks are in the freezer and first come first serve.
I’m posting this because our regulars know how hard it is to have ribeyes. If you text or call, we can put your name on them and hold them for you to swing by and pick up. Same goes for any of the other cuts that are hard to get. Skirt steak, filet mignon, NY strip, tongue, heart. If you want one, just let us know. We have a bunch of first time customers coming today and I’m sure they’ll buy all the ribeyes not knowing how big of a deal it is to find them in the freezer. I’m happy for anyone to have them, but we want to take care of our regulars first so let me know. My number for text is 919-810-2530 or shoot me an email and dan@ninjacowfarm.com.
Now, onto the internet. It only took 5 techs, and 8 days, but we have temporary internet hooked up at the farm. In the process we killed two of the three other internet services on the farm for which I felt terrible, but everyone is up and running currently so at least it all worked out. Now that I’m up I can once again get some work done on the computer. Just little stuff like paying my taxes, doing payroll, you know, the optional parts of running a business. My desk looks like a recycling center after a windstorm so I’ll be in the office all day today trying to get a weeks worth of paperwork done in one day. But the good news is I’m right here if you need something.
The girls will be working today, The Princess, Wildflower, and Crystal all in the store. With fresh beef in the freezer it will be a busy day for them which they really enjoy. Slow boring days are the bane of their existence so feel free to pop in and make their day. Especially after lunch till 4pm. That looks like a slower time according to the schedule.
Our internet is dead, but the store is alive and well.
While working in the shop this past Wednesday, we had a small storm work its way overhead. I didn’t think much of it, because it’s summer time and storms are what you get in the afternoon. There was a rumble here, a boom there, and of course some rain, but nothing major. I did check the radar just to get a look at it, and yes, it was a relatively small storm so no big deal.
But as I was working, I heard a sizzle of electricity and then a boom.
“That’s not good.”
Booms are normal. Sizzles, not so much.
I went to check the computers and other electrical devices and sure enough, the internet was down. After checking everything back to the internet router, I called AT&T and was told they’d have a tech out the next day, between 8 and 12:30. Sigh, I hate windows like this, you can’t do anything, you can’t leave, and of course there is no internet so I can’t get any office work done. About 1pm our tech showed up and it was a very nice lady and a gentleman who really worked their butts off. They worked all over the farm, trying everything they could, and they even worked in the rain. But at 4:00 pm they informed me the internet was dead and not coming back. The copper wire itself was a goner and would have to be replaced.
This is not good. We are talking about the 2000 feet of copper wire, buried underground.
Not to fear our tech told us, she’d turn this over to the cable group and they’d be out tonight, or at least tomorrow.
So now it’s Friday noon and I’ve heard nothing. I call back to AT&T and I’m told the tech will be here between 4-8pm. Another window of time. About 6:30 a tech shows up.
“Do you have cable?”
“No.”
“Did you read the ticket entered on Wednesday?”
“No.”
“Do you know this is a cable problem, not a technical problem?”
“No.”
The guy was super nice. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever dealt with a less than excellent AT&T tech. I really enjoy talking to their techs. I used to be in their field and I appreciate the job and the position they are in.
So our new, redundant-to-our-first-tech, tech says he’ll get this routed to the correct group to get the cable installed. He’ll also make sure it goes in as an emergency order since we run not only our house, but our business off of this service. I also wrangled the email address of the manager of this cable department out of him so I could follow up with my own email. All this was done by Friday evening.
Saturday SWMBO and I had to drive to Stanly County to pick up Spork from encampment for the Civil Air Patrol. (Pics in the link for family and friends.) When I returned home, I found that there was no cable being installed and I had a text saying that July 29th would be my install date. What? Half a month to restore service?!! I called AT&T and Muhammad confirmed for me that yes, July 29th was my install date but I was welcome to call again on Monday and talk to someone else.
So… for the next few weeks, or until I can find someone at AT&T who cares, we will be pretty limited on internet posts, responding to emails, etc. I can always visit the neighbors with a laptop but frankly all my paperwork is in my office and moving everything to be able to work is a colossal pain in the posterior. But we’ll do what we have to do, albeit slowly.
If you need me, text me. If you know someone at AT&T who can make things happen, tell me. We WILL be open and have been open in the store. So there are no issues with our retail side. Our iPad has 4G internet service because I’m a belt and suspenders kind of person. It’s just all the boring paperwork and marketing that gets done that will be the issue.
I’m going to go pour myself a drink and get ready for tomorrow. Miguel says it’s going to be crazy on the farm and it’s my day to work. I think I saw a twinkle in his eye when he said it. I’m doomed.
Last day of pork, 20% off
Today is the day that it ends. From now till 5pm, all of our pork (excluding the items below) are on sale for 20% off. After 5pm, it’s over. You need to buy three items for the pork sale to kick in but a Boston butt a pack of breakfast sausage, and a pack of bratwurst for the grill aren’t exactly a stretch for the family.
The girls are working and SWMBO is managing so stop by and see all the ladies and help us clear some room in the freezer.
Hot dogs are here!!
Oh thank God! I can finally eat real food again. This things-the-wife-hasn’t-poisoned diet has been a bear. But my savior has arrived. Sophie with The Weeping Radish has shown up with 75 lbs of hot dogs and all is well in the world again. I’ve already squirreled them away in the back freezer as I know we have lots of pre-orders. Then of course SWMBO will get her share. But there should be plenty of hot dogs for all for today and tomorrow. Sophie thinks we’ll see her again next Friday, with Liverwurst, more root beer, and maybe sauerkraut. In the mean time, I know what I’m having to eat as soon as possible.
Weeping Radish Hotdogs, Weeping Radish sauerkraut, and Lusty Monk mustard. Oh, so good!!
We are open from 2-6 today, and from 8-5 tomorrow. Come get your hot dog fix. Just make sure you leave me some.