We tried...but were eventually overwhelmed. Hundreds of little beets, scores of medium-sized ones, and dozens on the biggish side.

All had to be washed several times and in various ways. Then boiled until soft. Then peeled. Then trimmed and sliced. With this many beets, a process with this many steps takes time. But we plodded along, and all was well...until Slicing Sue dumped two big soup pots-full of boiling beet water down the drain. The first potful took a while to gurgle away, but the second potful drained instantly—and then began running out over her shoes.

This heavy shot of hot water had released the P-trap gasket (and associated piping), and we had a leak—a leak with bloody beet water—swamping the kitchen rug and dripping down to redecorate the laundry room below.

Of course we took everything in stride, but we did experience a temporal setback, and by by four p.m. we came to realize that the entire pickling and canning process might well last into the wee hours of the night.

That's when discretion became the better part of valor, and pickling beets became a two day event.

Tonight, the mini-fridge in the basement is chock full of sliced and boiled beets while the upstairs fridge has zippy-bagged sliced onions sticking out the top of the salad crisper. Gallons of apple cider vinegar line the wall, and the kitchen countertops are covered by Ball jars, lids, and screw-on tops.

Today was also homecoming for UWW, so actually a good day to be inside getting beet up. Unfortunately for the college crowd, the day was dark, drizzly, and dismal. That dampened things a bit, but there was still plenty of noise—lots of shouting (which is what collegians do), and, of course, unlimited sirens.