"For
the love of god, where do I find a ham hock on such short notice?" my
sis-in-law asked me on New Year's Eve. I'm not sure why she called me
because I wasn't the one raised on a hog farm like she was. But she was
in a hurry to score a shank, a last minute request by her elderly
in-laws, and was in no mood to for my outburst of laughter at the
question. I handed the phone to her mother, who has been visiting us
for the New Year holiday and is far more knowledgeable than I on all
things swine related. Many times I've heard my mother-in-law, a
lifelong vegetarian say: "Why in my day we couldn't afford to lose
nothing on the pig except the squeal." This is often followed by her
describing how she and her siblings would blow up and play with a pig's
bladder like a balloon. She was brought up during the Depression then
worked on farm doing hard, nasty work so her children would have food
to eat. She has known hard times and though doesn't relish a return,
sees this particular economic blip in the road as one that younger
generations might learn from.
"Times may be hard, but this ain't nothing like the Depression. Folks just have to learn to get along better with less."
My mother-in-law wastes nothing and neither do my parents. I think I'm going to strive to live more simply this year and waste not, want not.
Happy New Year, y'all
