The Potomac held a different attraction when winter weather stretched into extended periods of bitter cold. These harsh conditions, followed by nights of shattering Arctic-like temperatures, prolonged the hours one could revel in the pleasure of ice skating. Meanwhile, there was a slight turbulence taking place beneath the frozen surface. A tiny air space between the ice and the water below gave rise to a muffled roar. Once every seasoned skater clearly heard the sound resonate, they were no longer fearful of ever falling through thin ice.
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

The greening that erupts after a spring rain always caught the farmer's attention. Wild onions known as "ramps" popped up about a month later in nearby grasslands and tainted the breath and milk of cows. We limited grazing for a spell to minimize the nose-piercing pungency. The consumption of wild garlic was of no consequence to them as they gathered huge mouthfuls with their muscled sickle of a tongue. They were eager to forage on any form of green succulence after a long winter of chowing down on dry feed.
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

Honeybees about to take flight during the swarming season lent an air of intrigue to the trees. The queen and her workers leaving from one of a dozen or so hives often found a new nesting place amidst a cluster of trees. The sighting of any such activity led me to make a beeline for the kitchen to grab a cooking pan and a basting spoon. Granddaddy had told me, "Bang away and make as much noise as possible." According to him, "the clamor creates bedlam among the worker bees because they can't hear the distinct sound of the queen's wing beat. The resulting confusion was so disruptive they settled on a tree or shrub close at hand.
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

Mama stored the excess milk in earthenware gallon crocks placed on the basement floor. She was down on her knees every day skimming the cream with a mixing spoon. The skim milk was poured into a bucket and fed to the pigs. Years before, my grandmother let some of her excess milk sour and form clabber. She hung the sacked contents on a clothesline and drained off all of the whey. The final product was akin to cottage cheese but Grandma Ambrose called it "Schmierkase," which surely was a regional designation.
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

The two cows were always grazing nearby. They followed Maude and me to the barn, sensing it was milking time. They'd not had any water since morning and by now were pretty thirsty. Pastures were usually dotted with fresh cow patties and I occasionally stepped into one of them. Taking time to wipe off the mess by scuffing a soiled shoe in the grass usually took care of the untidiness. Every farmer in the neighborhood had imprinted such annoyances, and in polite company they'd describe such incidences by saying, "I cut my foot."
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

I never knew Charles Locke, nicknamed "Booze," to be an immoderate drinker, though he was temperamental with animals. Physically, he was a barrel-shaped man, with the waistline of a food-lover. Curtis, his younger brother and a widower, also worked on the farm. Curt liked his liquor and was known to go to town to "get on a toot."
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

"Should he pick up the guinea eggs every day and bring them to the chicken house?" Mama asked. "Hold your horses, Pauline," Miss Hattie counseled. "First off, never put your hand into the guinea hen's nest. They're not like your chickens. These biddies will catch Kenneth's body scent and find another spot faster than you can say 'jack rabbit.' So whenever you send him out to gather their eggs, be sure to scoop them up with a long-handle basting spoon. Also, remember to leave at least three eggs in the nest. Otherwise she'll bolt and you'll have to track her down again!"
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

Daddy had a notched, homemade gambrel stick in his hand. "Hartzell, when you finish teasing out the hamstrings on that hog's hind legs, I'll help you insert it between the exposed tendons," he said. I watched as they slid this butcher's device into place.
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

The custom of stallion owners canvassing the countryside was commonplace during rutting season. Every farmer up and down the road who owned a supercharged mare took advantage of onsite breeding service. A mare's receptiveness to a high-spirited stud required they be separated by a wooden barrier. The two horses were placed nose to nose, giving rise to the barricade's nickname of a "snorting pole."
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler

Then-governor of Virginia, Alexander Spotswood, organized a party of twenty or thirty horseman in the summer of 1716, who then set out from Williamsburg to ascertain what sort of country lay beyond the great "Blue Mountains." Somewhere on one of the prominent peaks of either the Alleghanies or the Blue Ridge, they had a good dinner and went through a formal ceremony of drinking to King George's health. Upon their return the governor presented each member of his party with a small golden horseshoe to commemorate their bravery. Translated from Latin, the inscription on one side reads: "Thus it was decided to cross the mountains." On the other was written "Order of the Golden Horseshoe." Thereafter the award's recipients became known as "The Knights of the Golden Horseshoe."
--- from 'The Day is Far Spent' by Kenneth A. Tabler