Breakfast at Home
December 22, 2012 § Leave a comment
The cow is milked. The chickens and ducks and sheep and steers are fed. So is the dog, after she and I romped around in the snow for a bit. She feels better, now that we went to the vet and got the tick diseases diagnosed (sigh) and got her on some antibiotics. There is a time and a place for them, and this is one of them. It’s good to see her old spirit back. And so – happy Saturday!
There is something about a late(ish) breakfast after morning chores. It makes me want to eat healthier, to crave things like, today, kale and eggs and fresh milk (in my coffee). Back in Colorado, when I worked at the horse barn, I would grab a granola bar for my pseudo breakfast at 6:45 a.m. – which didn’t really count, in my mind, as anything more than enough fuel to get me moving for a few hours. I’d go out to the stables to feed and move and turn out horses, and muck stalls, and then around 11:30 or so I’d head back home to my real meal, a substantial and fantastic brunch complete with meat and/or eggs and almost always greens (especially when I was also working at the organic farm several days a week). Yum.
There is surely a mind-body connection here. The physical effort plus the great outdoors seem to send little signals to the brain that we need nourishment! and nourishment that is natural, real, from the earth and its animals as directly as possible! So as much as I love a little pastry or tart as much as the next girl, this isn’t the time for it.
And I think that is part of why I crave this farm-life so much. It builds health up from, out from itself, in so many ways. Done well, it perpetuates health – health for humans, animals, land. And, in my opinion, communities.
I’ve been reading the book Radical Homemakers by Shannon Hayes – and, lest you be misled, this is not simply about lucky suburban stay-at-home-moms who are financially comfortable enough to be doing what they do, possibly with a nanny in tow, and possibly eco-friendly in the I-can-afford-it kind of way. (There is nothing quite wrong with that, but it isn’t a reality for most of us, right?) So, if you aren’t in this position, and it seems that you have to go to work, whether you like it or not, this book is probably equally if not more so for you. Hayes explores how the home has functioned past to present, how the choices we make are driven by and/or affect our communities and society as a whole, and how many families are assessing the current trends in career and home life and making deliberate deviations in the pursuit of health and happiness. The book is full of examples, quotes, and real people that make you think, “Huh. I could do this if they could.”
So much of what Hayes says here makes sense to me. It explains why, for so long, I wrinkled my nose at nearly every reasonable career option out there. As I read through the book, so many times I thought (in my melodramatic way) Oh my heart! Yes. This is the life I have wanted. Thank goodness the sustainable/environmental movement came along, where I could find a few more folks with my kinds of ideals, and find jobs therein. That said, as a (still) single girl, it’s challenging to think about how I can focus on home and how I can create homegrown community without a partner in this divine crime, this subversion of commercial, corporate society. But I mean to try.
Here’s an excerpt:
When women and men choose to center their lives on their homes, creating strong family units and living in a way that honors our natural resources and local communities, they are doing more than dismantling the extractive economy and taking power away from the corporate plutocrats. They are laying the foundation to re-democratize our society and heal our planet. They are rebuilding the life-serving economy. (57-58)
Read the book! And eat kale for breakfast, at a table, leisurely, like you deserve it. Your body will thank you.
Beatrix
June 29, 2012 § 2 Comments
It occurs to me that Beatrix Potter is a hero of mine.
We were watching the film Ms. Potter with my grandparents a few months ago, which surely embellishes as movies are apt to do. Still, in my (many years of) college studies I learned that in addition to creating her lovely children’s stories, Ms. Potter took on the cause of the small farmer. This determined, independent woman fought for the British countryside and published the most remarkable, beloved tales. Nature and community mattered to her. I can’t help but love her for it. And aim to do as much.
Two organizations and one good day
June 20, 2012 § Leave a comment
At the beginning of May, I got to visit a couple of great nonprofit organizations in Minnesota.
My sister works for a nonprofit called Community Thread, which is a volunteer center based in Stillwater, MN. Each spring they put on a big Spring into Service event, which pairs volunteers with local nonprofits to participate in work projects, followed by an after-party at the Community Thread office. Since Elena knows I’m all about agriculture issues – and how these overlap with social issues – she sent me up to Marine on St. Croix to work with the Minnesota Food Association.
There, I got to jump in with the staff, participating farmers, and a group of volunteers to weed, plant, transplant, and learn. The MFA provides farmers “with the skills and knowledge to operate their own viable organic and sustainable vegetable farms, while providing fresh, organic produce to local consumers by the farmers-in-training and promoting a more sustainable food system.” They work specifically with immigrant and minority populations, offering plots of land for rent, training programs, benefits, and a CSA that farmers can participate in as they grow their businesses.
I feel like I could go on a gigantic rant about how great this all is, but really, the best way for you to learn is to go to their website, go to the events and work days they put on, and maybe even become a member of their CSA, which operates as Big River Farms. I’ll just add this: that providing people with support and a strong start in a growing field, within the context of community, producing something that is not only more and more in demand but is also essential to our well-being, is a cleverly mult-faceted approach to dealing with many of our nation’s challenges that I can’t help but find inspiring.
We worked on a cloudy, slightly chilly day, but most everyone was cheerful and hard at work. How can you not to want to jump in when you’re surrounded by the health and life of young, strong, promising little plants?
Thanks to Community Thread for connecting me with this opportunity. And thanks to the farmers and staff at Minnesota Food Association for the work that you do. It was a privilege to meet all of you, and I look forward to participating more in the future!
Good old-fashioned marketing
April 4, 2012 § 2 Comments
This sign is from Sol y Sombra Farm, where I worked from June to November last year. Isn’t there something perfectly nice about a wooden hand-painted sign propped out along a fence in front of the farm? There’s a touch of humanity in it; someone here made this and wants you to know what they have here for you. And on a farm, those can be very good things. To see some of last year’s harvest, have a look here.
Sol y Sombra is a CSA in Boulder County, with a lot happening on a few acres. I’m thinking about Allison and her new crew at Sol y Sombra, as flowers, veggies, and herbs just start to become available. Wishing you all well!
Permaculture is . . .
January 27, 2012 § Leave a comment
Because yesterday’s film made me curious, I snooped around. Here’s what I found:
Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive systems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of the landscape with people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way. -Graham Bell, The Permaculture Way
A few resources:
Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
Permaculture & Ecological Design Program (video below)
If you do a quick google search you’ll find many permaculture design courses and certificate programs out there. Ooh, I’m having that hungry-for-knowledge feeling, aren’t you?
Have any of you had experience with permaculture? Has anyone taken a course, gotten a certificate, or researched this approach to agriculture and living? I’d be eager to hear from you!
BBC’s A Farm for the Future
January 26, 2012 § 3 Comments
I’ve found something just right to watch while knitting! This documentary follows a woman’s return to her family farm, and her assessment of how the farm might belong, change, and contribute to the modern world and its complicated food system. It might be a bit dated, as it was produced in 2009, but I’m interested to see where it goes, nevertheless.
And I just want to stare at all the scenes of the British countryside.
I confess that I often wax pastoral. I can’t help it, even though I’m familiar with the sore muscles and sunburns and sweat that come with farming. But pastoralism can be dangerous if too rose-tinged. Rebecca Hosking, narrator/filmmaker/farmer prepares viewers early on for the reality that this farm business involves hard work, even “drudgery” – without a very big paycheck.
She says, “Dad often describes farmers as glorified lavatory attendents.” Smile. Sigh. This seems extreme. But I suppose I did muck a wheelbarrow’s worth of manure today.
Still. Something made her come back.
Here is Segment 1, thanks to YouTube:
You can watch the full documentary for free, here.
The Greenhorns and the irresistible
January 21, 2012 § 1 Comment
Do you know about the Greenhorns, and their blog, The Irresistible Fleet of Bicycles? I have heard of them, on and off, over the past few years. And in my recent farm-dreaming and job-pursuing I came across them again and have subsequently been completely, delightfully drawn in.
In 2011, the Greenhorns released their documentary about the rise of, and challenges facing, young farmers. Here’s the trailer:
Has anyone seen the full film? What did you think? Does anyone else own it – or know where we can get a copy? Once I figure out where I’m living in the next few weeks, I’d very much like to host a film night/potluck. (Or persuade someone else to, and have them invite me.)
Oh, how I love this stuff! It always makes me feel that the world is good, and full of good people.
Kinds of Honey 