We bought a pig last week. Our basement freezer had issues before we left for Florida, and when we went downstairs a few days after the issues developed, we discovered the switch had tripped on the electrical box (the freezer and dehumidifier were on the same line – bad move), the alarm on the freezer didn’t sound (because the battery needed changing), so we lost the venison and pork in that freezer.
{sob}
Since we knew we were going away, we decided to wait until spring to order meat again. We were completely out of pork, so we ordered an entire pig,and will distribute it (hubby’s smoked the bacon and hams himself, look for upcoming posts) to my brother, mother and niece. We also have half a cow coming. We were down to just “funky stuff” – what I call the ribs, heart, liver, etc., and two beef roasts, but that was all. Hubby also found a bit of venison in the garage freezer, which made him very happy! He gave away two Bambis last year, and then he (thought) lost the one in the basement freezer (yeah, three deer in one year – talk about using up your tags), so he was bummed. He was thrilled to have found some of it in the garage freezer-chest.
Taking up a lot of room in the garage chest-freezer are two turkeys we bought prior to Thanksgiving. I foresee deep fried turkey in our immediate future. You see, Hubby pulls things from the freezer not by a menu plan (which I have been bugging him to sit down and do with me for eons – I need his cooperation since he does most of the cooking), but by how much freezer space the item takes up.
When we left town in January, we emptied out the garage refrigerator fridge and the freezer on top of it (and unplugged it), and the basement freezer was also kaput (since we lost all that meat, we didn’t refill it), and we took some of the beef from our last cow down south so we wouldn’t have to pay exorbitant Florida beef prices. That meant we had room in the garage freezer, as well as the kitchen freezer.
Well, we’ve been home and entire month now, and somehow we’ve filled up the freezers a bit. I have no idea how – except for the pig and ice cream for Hubby, we really haven’t bought anything frozen. Nevertheless, we had started to do the old shove-it-in-where-ever-you-see-space, and the freezers quickly became unmanageable.
So, this past Sunday morning – while I slept in – Hubby took the initiative and cleaned out (including dumping old lard (he’s making fresh, and he said it shouldn’t be kept over 6 months) and anything freezer burned), and more importantly, arranged the freezers!! Happy days! We have that cow coming in a few weeks, and I think that motivated him. Then too, stuff was falling out of the kitchen freezer, and it really wasn’t anything “good” (like chocolate or cakes). Whatever the reason – necessity, disgust or even turning over a new leaf (nawwwww), I’m just happy he did it!!
When was the last time you cleaned out your freezer? Is it overdue for a cleaning/defrosting/rearranging?
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Shell says
I just recently got a freezer because we got a half a cow. I keep it and the one in my fridge, all neatly arranged by shelf and what the item is. I don’t keep the fridge that neat but I seem to be kind of ocd with the freezer. I guess I think it needs to be organized so I don’t have to keep the door open long when I get things out.
Ann says
I wish we kept it really need, Shell. The uprights don’t matter as much – rummaging is fast and easy, but that chest freezer.
I hope you enjoy your cow! With the price of meat right now in the grocery store, the half cow we bought wasn’t much more by comparison.
Ann
KimH says
I cleaned out my side by side freezer a couple months ago… and I’ve been using up stuff in my basement upright freezer since January… its got more space in it than its had in years I think… It still has quite a bit in it.. dont let me fool ya.. I had that puppy stuffed to the gills. 😉
That really stinks that you guys lost your freezer goods… 🙁 Thats like seriously catastrophic!!
Ann says
Yeah, it didn’t make us happy at all, Kim. I am glad you are working your way through your stockpile. We’ve been doing that for the past year, and I think we have another year to go. I should be back to shopping in 2015. 😛
Ann
Barb says
Are we supposed to clean the freezer?? HAHA
Ann says
LOL Barb!
Ann
Marie says
December (around Christmas) when the defrost timer when out on the fridge. (That meant the fridge got cleaned out too.) The chest freezer got cleaned out also to make room for gallon jugs of water to freeze so that they could be put into the fridge to keep things cold till it got repaired.
Ann says
I wanted Hubby to defrost our chest freezer last fall. he never got to it. *sigh*
Ann
Skirnir Hamilton says
You have quite a few freezers. Got a tad confused on just how many you have. We have a chest freezer in the basement and then the freezer that is part of the refrigerator. At least I am not the only who keeps multiple containers of ice cream around. In the upstairs freezer right now, there is three containers of ice cream. Basement has a bit more. Basement freezer freezes things colder, to where you can’t scoop the ice cream, of course.
Ann says
We have a chest freezer in the garage, as well as refrigerator/freezer combo.
In the kitchen we have a stand alone upright freezer (and a stand alone upright refrigerator next to that).
And in the basement we have a smaller, stand alone upright freezer.
I swear if it were up to Hubby, Skirnir, one whole freezer would be full of ice cream!
Ann