Hello from an Old Jarhead!

[OlJarhead]

Age is of course something we all undoubtedly think of differently however when in the service anyone over the age of 21-23 is 'old'.  I joined the Marine Corps back in 1986 and was 21 (slightly over the average at the time) and left after Desert Storm in 1991 (my tour was up).  Later, to get a better trade, I joined the army.  When I went into the Army I was 31!  I was an 'old jarhead'. 

Now, at 45 I'm actually starting to feel the 'old' part of that   But I don't mind at all!.

So, here I am making cheese!  I love cheese so that was the easy part I suppose but I'm also a bit of a 'prepper' (if you don't know what that is it's just someone who believes in 'prepare for the worst and hope for the best' in life) and do many things like this (canning, gardening, baking with home milled flour, building a cabin in the woods etc etc).

I'm stoked, totally stoked, that I've found this forum as I want to make GOOD cheese and I think you are the bunch to help me do that.

Thanks!
Erik

[Cheese Head]

Hi Erik, welcome, several members here are similar and make lots of home goods, some for cost, some for better health than manufactured foods, and some like me for the challenge, and when you read this forum you can see that cheese making has lots of challenge!

Old at 45, youngster, I'm 51.

PS: For your or others, just FYI you can change your visible name from your UserID, just in case you wanted to add a "d", otherwise we'll call you OlJarhead .

[zenith1]

Hi Erik and welcome to the forum. I'm sure that you will find lots of ideas to move you along here. And bye the way, thanks for serving!

[KosherBaker]

And bye the way, thanks for serving!

I'll second Keith's Thank You for serving, and while I'm at it I'll go ahead and second his Welcome to the forum.
Can I say you've now joined the ranks of cheese makers? Or would that be too cheesy.

I agree with John. Many of us here share similar interests. I too love to cook, bake, grow whatever I can that is edible and even sharpen my own kitchen knives. There's lots of folks here that also brew beer and make wine, even make soap among many many other things. But the best thing about this forum is that folks here are amazingly kindhearted, helpful and very easy going. This is a great place, a great community.

And once you dive into the archives for this place you'll see the wealth and depth of knowledge too.

[susanky]

Erik,
Welcome to the forum!  And I would also like to thank you for your service to our great country.  Haven't you heard?  50 is the new 30 and 40 is the new 20.. or something like that.  I'm not far behind you.  So I've decided to adopt this philosophy.  You will just love this forum.  Everyone is amazingly helpful, knowledgable and just dowright friendly.  I bet you learn lots.  I sure am! Went to the farm tonight and got milk so planning to make a cheddar tomorrow.  Yippee!
Susan

[OlJarhead]

Thanks both for the welcome and the thanks all.

OlJarhead is a nick I use elsewhere -- it's something that stuck   So I'll leave it there

Old at 45? haha  Sometimes I think so, then others I think I'm still young...depends on the weather I suppose.

Glad I found the forum!  Can't wait to make more cheese!

[MrsKK]

Welcome to the CheeseForum!  As the wife of a JarHead, I know pretty much where you are coming from.  Thank you for your service and I'm glad you found us here to help you along in your next venture.

[FarmerJd]

Welcome to the forum and one more hooray for your service. It is very appreciated. I too am a "prepper". Good luck with your cheese making.

[OlJarhead]

This is one of my other passions   Home made bread made first by milling the wheat into flour -- yes, milling it into flour -- then mixing all the ingredients, kneading (I cheat there) and finally baking...it's the most amazing bread and part of the reason I decided to make my own cheese.  After all, if home made bread (and I do mean HOME MADE in every aspect) is so amazingly good compared to something bought in the store (or something made from store bought flour) that I HAD to try cheese too


And of course this one takes a lot more time and energy but it's also a passion   I'm even milling my own lumber for the interior -- ya I know, I'm a nutjob but I love it

Cheers
Erik