PEACHY

It’s 0430 in the morning. I know it is an ungodly hour but I just can’t sleep. I spent 6 hours yesterday canning peaches and another 4 hours dreaming about canning peaches I had to wake myself up from my nightmarish dream before I ruined the whole batch of peaches. Bacteria everywhere!

It was quite the feat, I was so excited about trying something new. BB loves peaches he can eat a whole quart in one sitting. Peaches are expensive to buy at a store. A quart jar cost about $2.00. I decided it would be cheaper to can rather than buy them. I bought 2 boxes of Lucky Lady Peaches at an Ellensburg fruit stand. I read on the internet that Freestone peaches are the best for canning but I couldn’t find them.

I did my canning research asking people at work if they knew how to can. I even asked Chirstine, one of my Alzheimers’ patients, about the particulars of canning. She went forth giving me her rather mixed up directions. I could tell that she really was an excellent canist in her day. (I think canist is a new word) I felt it would be safer to ask my health services director. Shes told me about the “bath water method.” she said put your peaches in a bath tub in scolding hot water. After chatting with her, I was under the impression that I would be placing my jars in the bath tub in the bathroom and then pouring boiling water on them. Get it got it good!!

I was talking to BB’s mother about canning I causally mentioned about pouring scolding water on top of the canning jars in the bath tub. His mom laughed at me and said lets go down stairs to get the “bath tub”. I’m wondering how on earth we were going to bring a bath tub upstairs. I stepped down the stairs hesitantly, wondering what on earth was going through her mind. She pointed up on the top shelf of her laundry room, “there it is, the bath tub.” A very large, dusty, and old peppered tin pot with a lid.

NOT A BATH TUB!!! I take things way too literally.

Afraid to ask his mom any more question’ I took the bath tub from her and said a kind thank you. To embarressed, I decided to get my directions on the internet. I found this website with a picture of a very charming elderly lady. “12 steps to canning” She was so sweet to help me with my task at hand. 6 hours later I canned 22 quart jars of peaches. I should have had 24 but mysteriously I was missing 2 sealers–the rubberized tin things. I had all sealers to begin with, I don’t think my rotties ate them, maybe two were stuck together?? I have no idea if I completely did everything correctly. keep jars clean, time everything, don’t let the jars hit each other, watch for air bubbles, fill them just so, so many things could go wrong. It was very stressful task. I felt like a pioneer homemaker–God knows I have read enough pioneer “Janet Oke books”. It felt good like I actually accomplished something. I just hope I don’t kill BB or his kids with some kind of bacteria.