TIGHTWAD TUESDAY - - NO, Jack Frost! You CAN'T Have My Hot Peppers!!!

Big Jim Hot Peppers

 Yes, I am getting this up pretty late, today, but that is because we had been out today living our Tightwad lifestyle. We started out the day taking care of a few things at Anna's Farm, ate a great lunch I had tossed in the crock pot before I went to bed super late last night (which consisted of venison, mushrooms purchased on closeout, and onions from a super markdown sale, so lunch for both of us barely cost a dollar total!), went in to town to run a few errands and stopped at our favorite close-out grocery store to see what new bargains they had in. I think the best one this time was the McIntosh apples for 49¢ a pound! Course, the 12-oz box of Russel Stovers Chocolates for $1.99 was an amazing bargain, too!

Then it was back to Anna's Farm to finish up a few more things, after which Dave had to go back to Dave's Farm to tend to a few last minute things before the freeze, which is also how I finished up the day here at Anna's Farm.

We have been so very blessed with such gorgeous, warm Fall weather, along with the perfect mix of occasional showers and light storms. It has been one of the best Fall growing seasons in a long time and as many of you already know, I grew the BEST hot peppers I have ever grown! Some, such as my Tabascos, had not yet finished ripening. Then others, such as the Jalapenos, Big Jims, and Habaneros, I had already picked once, and they had set another crop that wasn't yet ripe. Tonight; however, promised to take all of that away!

An unseasonably drastic drop in the mercury was forecast for tonight, and so far, it is looking like they were right. It is already well below freezing with no signs of its downfall stopping before it reaches 20 F. or lower. Although hard frosts have already killed off most of the vegetation at Dave's farm, here at Anna's Farm, Jack Frost has been staying hidden. And again after tonight, the weather is supposed to once again, be reasonably nice during the days, just above freezing at night, with a little rain mixed in now and then to keep things watered. So, this one night drastic dip in temps really stinks!!!

I had run out of time to get all of my peppers picked. This week has just been too hectic to get every needed thing done! So I finally decided, as the mercury began to drop below freezing, that I WAS NOT going to let ole Jack Frost have my beloved and delicious hot peppers!  So tonight, I went outside, flashlight in hand, and freezing hands because my coat with my gloves in the pocket has disappeared, I started pulling up my hot pepper plants and bringing them into my back room. There were just far too many luscious peppers on those plants to let olw Jack steal them.

Oh, my! There were far more plants than I remembered planting! And the work tonight was definitely not as enjoyable as it was planting them earlier this spring. But I was not going to let my peppers go, so with a couple of short hot coffee breaks to warm my hands, I diligently got ALL of my hot peppers pulled up and into the back of the house! That trail of little peppers and leaves leading from my front door to my back room will just have to wait until morning to be cleaned up. I'm tired! Now, over the next few days, those peppers can ripen a little more right on the plants, in the warmth of the house,  and I can have time to get them made up into Pepper Vinegar, roast a few, and dry some for use in our chili and stews this winter. Such a comfort to know that Mr. Jack Frost did not win at his attempts to take our beautiful hot peppers!