CoastalDefender
Explorer
I grew up on the coast the son of two white-collar workers. Having nearly everything handed to me and not made aware of it's origins, I assumed like most GenXers that the world is antiseptic and things aren't "real" unless they have a "Made In" sticker on it somewhere.
Somewhere along the line it occurred to me that this was all a facade. There's something else going on I'm not exposed to, and I want to understand "how it works". The end-user result is fine for daily living, but I want to understand where things come from, how they work, and how to do it myself.
At every turn, I attempt to learn more and more about what it means to "live" in this world, and do it relying on myself rather than others. Growing in ways that make me and my family more self-sufficient and self-reliant. It's been an adventure and a learning experience.
Which brings me to the background of this thread-
Knowing nothing about livestock, I got chickens last year. Eggs are just starting, and that's their purpose. Built a respectable chicken run, small coop, and soon a larger coop, they're well fed and act appropriate for their age.
Well, I hate getting into something wtihout getting all the way into it. If I'm not "oh-****" deep, I'm disappointed I missed out on something. This mentality of measured excess in my life is the basis of my alcoholism and work-addiction.
So, the next step is to understand how to slaughter and prepare the chickens for consumption. The thought of it does not delight. Having seen life taken in front of me and having been the dealer at times, Death is not something I love, but loathe. However, I understand each and every time I consume the flesh of another being, it was destroyed by someone for my nourishment. Essentially I was the one for whom it was killed. The thought of destroying something I raised does not lead me to despair, I don't fear it, but I do respect it. I respect the animal, and I respect the fact that it's death will assist my life. So I will respect it's slaughter, and will do it as quickly and humanely as possible.
With that said, I have a pretty good idea on how to do it in a practical way. What I do from that point... Well frankly I'm stumped.
So I do as any other GenXer would do in a real-life situation that perplexes me, I go to YouTube.
After search for what seemed like forever (10min?) I came across this video. The cartoonish scenes are a little OTT, but it's an excellent explanation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7SU0gn8BhM
Another version of how to butcher a whole chicken-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SNjIzsKXfo
Maybe if the weather is appropriate here in the next few weekends, I'll take my shot at doing the same. However, I may wait a bit, as the eggs that are coming are excellent on the plate. They may be worth more in eggs right now.
Somewhere along the line it occurred to me that this was all a facade. There's something else going on I'm not exposed to, and I want to understand "how it works". The end-user result is fine for daily living, but I want to understand where things come from, how they work, and how to do it myself.
At every turn, I attempt to learn more and more about what it means to "live" in this world, and do it relying on myself rather than others. Growing in ways that make me and my family more self-sufficient and self-reliant. It's been an adventure and a learning experience.
Which brings me to the background of this thread-
Knowing nothing about livestock, I got chickens last year. Eggs are just starting, and that's their purpose. Built a respectable chicken run, small coop, and soon a larger coop, they're well fed and act appropriate for their age.
Well, I hate getting into something wtihout getting all the way into it. If I'm not "oh-****" deep, I'm disappointed I missed out on something. This mentality of measured excess in my life is the basis of my alcoholism and work-addiction.
So, the next step is to understand how to slaughter and prepare the chickens for consumption. The thought of it does not delight. Having seen life taken in front of me and having been the dealer at times, Death is not something I love, but loathe. However, I understand each and every time I consume the flesh of another being, it was destroyed by someone for my nourishment. Essentially I was the one for whom it was killed. The thought of destroying something I raised does not lead me to despair, I don't fear it, but I do respect it. I respect the animal, and I respect the fact that it's death will assist my life. So I will respect it's slaughter, and will do it as quickly and humanely as possible.
With that said, I have a pretty good idea on how to do it in a practical way. What I do from that point... Well frankly I'm stumped.
So I do as any other GenXer would do in a real-life situation that perplexes me, I go to YouTube.
After search for what seemed like forever (10min?) I came across this video. The cartoonish scenes are a little OTT, but it's an excellent explanation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7SU0gn8BhM
Another version of how to butcher a whole chicken-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SNjIzsKXfo
Maybe if the weather is appropriate here in the next few weekends, I'll take my shot at doing the same. However, I may wait a bit, as the eggs that are coming are excellent on the plate. They may be worth more in eggs right now.