The Moose Hide

Last Fall, I started working a moose and deer hide. Deer hides are quite manageable. They are thin enough to get the de-hairing process going and light enough to move. A moose hide, now that is a different story. The hide is very thick in places which makes it very heavy and causes the de-hairing process to advance in different stages rather than all at the same time. Well, you knew this, so I'll move on.

The weather got cold early and that stopped the de-hairing. So, I put the two hides in a large garbage barrel and added water. They froze up and stayed that way all winter long. But oh joy! They are still there, waiting. I think they have thawed and have been fermenting waiting for me. So, after breakfast, that is what I am going to do.

I have to be careful not to get splashed, but that is hard to do. The moose hide is SOOOOooo heavy that lifting it away from body contact is difficult. I should think about making some lever system for this task. Hhmmm....

I have a meeting with a new prospective supporting church this afternoon. Showing up stinking like a wet hide would not be good.

Later that day...

Well, I got both hides done. Without the hair, the moose skin is half the weight it was before. Now it is just heavy, as opposed to heavy like a wet floor carpet.

I promptly took my work clothes and put them in the laundry and cleaned up. Jannie came in the house a little while later and mentioned that it smelled like a stinky hide in the basement. I realized that the offending smell was coming from the work clothes. So, I did a load of laundry.

The meeting with the missions committee of a local church went well. Their church is growing and they are eager to get in support of missions endeavors, both local and far away. We trust that God will float His own boats.