7/15
Prolog
- working planted radishes
- farm is large/cows/pigs/snow melting
- use no tractors
- no herbicides
- provides food for the year (pay 2-3 thousand per year)
- farming transforms you
- deprived from the pleasure of denial
Part one
- people like organic food
- slaughter a pig…had never done that before
- saw it shot
- worked on carcus
- slaughter a pig…had never done that before
- Author lost life as a vegetarian
- food was like one night stand (author)
- dirt +water +plant=food
- farmers eat like princess
- farmers are salt of the earth
- farmers don’t have a TV
- you need to get away from the market
- give things away back and forth/ everything is good with that/
- Mark wanted to build a new house
- filled backseat with butter and veggies
- unpacking food from Mark and interacting with another dog owner.
- wants sheets on a stringer
- Marks farm made her feel very calm
- lifestyle choices…healthiest person….honest work
- She worked on the farm, and the food that was from Marks farm
- She was holding a gun, Mark took it from her and killed a deer.
- Healthy food tells you to eat and desire to eat
- Mark did not fit in New York
- talk of culture differences (11%) page 31 7/16
- Mark asked the author to give up what she had developed
- He sort of proposed to her, pin ball machine game
- Looked with a farm with Mark
- Her Mom liked food well packaged (not the chicken in a bag)
- Mark made a magical thanksgiving dinner for the authors family
- Does she need a long engagement?
- Mark did not want to use electrics (used candles)
- even plumbing
- create a chicken coop and a bee hive
- even had a chicken slaughter
- “The magic circle” good things are to come!
- Mark was offered land (from his magic circle) to lease.
- From Essex she learned about neighbors helping out neighbors
- these two inspected the farm
- they were both sort of sad
- then, he found good soil
Part 2
- The farm got better in their imagination
- building a farm from scratch
- free everything for a year
- Had $18,000 dollars between the two
- CSA-community supported agriculture developed in the 1980s
- by shares in the farm
- cuts out middleman
- he liked grains and flowers
- it was a logistic nightmare
- choose hand milking over a machine milking
- needed to clean up, check out cash flow, pastures, and gardening
- Mark did not like tractors…(thus draft horses)
- They started shopping for a cow (different types) (22% page 62)
- interested in milk rich in fat and solids
- This cow produced about 5 gallons per day
- used a milking stool
- took about a month to break into the process
- Did not have filter or other necessary equipment needed
- supersizing stuff for farming
- farming might be losing proposition
- A dog (3) attacks a cow, even cut off their ears. They ended up shooting the dogs.
- Everyone know them and their farm, the towns.
- Put in a wood stall in an office building
- A carpenter (Thomas) had gout and was no supposed to be drinking
- It’s OK to not talk at all
- No one was interested in organic food
- Talk about being needy…it’s all about satisfaction
- Mark traveled from NJ to Seattle, and stayed with many farmers on the way, he also did work for them too.
- Keep this simple and small, feed yourself and your neighbors (29% 7/18)
- There was much work to do inside…it was also very cold inside
- They were working for work horses for farming
- breeders produce horses that will sell
- marketing for mares to buy
- even shot a calf behind the barn took place
- Bought Belgium geldings who are built to work
- they were 18 hands tall!
- Mark brought home ice fish (ice fishing) who created a nice fish dinner
- The author became nervous about getting married 😦
- The cow is the great converter. Farmers need cows to survive!
- Raw milk from a Jersey cow…it’s a great drink. Now chemicals and pasteurization. It’s warm and sweet. It kills all bacteria
- Milk from a cow is probably from a Holstein.
- taste of milk is directly related to what the cow eat
- TMR: Total Mix Ration
- Got wrapped up in marriage plans and farming chores
- talked about walking back from the farm in a blizzard
- The two developed tools they need for the horses to pull
- They scouted old tools from neighbors who used their old tools as decoration
- They found an Amish sell-out of a farm. There was no rally good deals! (36% 7/20)
- 7/21
- Delia was recovering from the dog fight.
- They bought 5 piglets
- They scrambled over the Honda they used for transportation
- Pigs are great eaters
- “I don’t want to tell you what to do” BUT……
- The author lost control of the 5 pigs
- the devil has the same cloving feet as a pig
- what is brilliant? hardware, or even a good ass-kicking!
- Nima was a friend of the Author who came out to see her and Mark.
- Talk about wedding plans?
- chairs
- bartender
- caterer
- wedding size
- and Mark hated waste
- They discussed having the wedding clean
- Mark did not leave a note on a departure to a high school play
- had to much milk and they were getting more cows
- added another stall
- Delia’s ear was starting to stink
- bought some beef cattle, at a good price
- The seeds for the farm came in a lightweight box (42%) p.119
- was planning on building a green house
- Long work with all the animals on the farm
- cash flow was a one way stream
- it doesn’t have to be beautiful it needs to be functional
- Their whole farm was full of rats. Rats even chewed through the phone line
- they even got cats to stop the rates. (45%) p. 124 Part 3
- 7/22
- Romance was put together with the other person, common goal of the two put gem
- Thought of bathing was lost
- Her new life was very personally dating.
- Ended up butchering a cow that got gored
- They needed a sled or a “jumper” (50%) p. 142
- 7/23
- making a sugar maple…the history…the creation
- creation of maple sap
- evaporator needed to make syrup p. 144
- The author became a morning person.
- making a sweetness from a native source
- Kristian ended up eating a pigeon p.148
- a cow was in heat p. 151
- moving herds is pastures p.153
- Show no doubt or fear when moving cattle p. 153
- turkey babies p. 153
- can live with dirt
- not eating their own food
- wanted some social life (seeing movies) entertainment
- the farm can get to you p.155
- rule: cook 1 meal from the farm
- Last thrill to leave her was shopping!
- Had nothing to fall back on
- Kristian was in love with the work p. 157
- Then farming is a form of expression p.159
- Mark did not want to get overworked. p. 159
- shifting to marketing
- could they offer consistency?
- drug dealing marketing p. 162 (58%)
- 7/24
- recruiting people to work the farm
- had direction with people who were members
- members were happy even though the process wasn’t legal
- local news of farming p. 166
- the veggies started to come (in spring)
- first year of farming, there was much generosity p. 169
- you need to plow before you plant seed p. 169
- discussion about right/left direction while plowing
- focus was on the land, not returning phone calls p. 175
- grew no nonsense crops p. 176
- Delia was going to give a calf P. 177
- extra testosterones is rough on a farm p. 179
- the afterbirth or cleaning came out after birth (about 15lbs) 65% p. 181
- 7/26
- Admiring clean “new” calf
- June was the month when the most work on the farm
- dairy cows can get milk fever P. 183
- Being a farmer, you are actually married to the farm p.186
- mark was still courting Kristina
- Eating nettles and lab quarters p. 188
- gave recipe for Scrapple p. 188
- Cut potatoes 10 inches apart p. 190
- planting potatoes in the dark
Part 4 Summer
- The hot day and flies came
- chicken fap their way to death
- thickness of skin or density of skull represents how they fall in slaughter
- Kristina wanted to be composted when she dies
- At first they would eat ANYTHING, like liver, hearts, brains, or testicles. p. 197
- Even writes about the color p. 198
- Talk about every piece of pig p. 199 (71% p. 200)
- pickup from the farm was on Friday p.200
- She wanted to assassinate weeds P. 200
- organic cost more because of weeds p. 200
- best was a two horse cultivator for weed removal p.202
- she got to know her weed enemies.
- vine weed is super evil. needed to be cleared by hand.
- needed 5,000 bails of hay for a year P. 204
- made lists while inspecting germination p. 207
- healing a horse’s huff
- “you could hear the plants grow” p. 208
- do you reap what you sow?? p. 211
- frost would kill the weeds in August
- Mark did not like the flow of food from the dirt to the table
- What is your ethic?? p. 215
- world responds to generosity
- talk about castration of a young bull
- people might be expecting glory at the wedding for the bride having an ivy league education
- p. 220 (78%)
- house problems in prep of wedding
- did not keep house in shape during the first year p. 221
- they did not mow their own yard. The only on is Essex.
- This was a black mark towards the neighbors
- grass is for grazing…the beef herd mowed the yard. p. 223
- neighbors nodded in approval of the yard.
- demo derby at the county fair p. 229
Part 5
- Picking time was in September (pulling carrots and beets)
- compost spreader. P. 234
- fear of a horse, running away from fear. p. 236 (83%)
- 7/29 horse was running to the road, pulling the spreader, then parallel to the road
- mark using bike to chase horses
- worried about the horses, but then they were caught by Mark, and slowed down, and Mark stayed ahead of horses. They were save for the terrain of going into town.
- Freezing tomatoes, canning, fermenting vegetables in crocks
- harvest day came and was hoping people would come to the sale p. 240
- after pulling out potatoes, about 30 people had come to harvest
- Worried about squash before freezing
- Talk of changing their names after marriage
- No advanced planning for the wedding. 244
- Then all guest came p. 245
- Made rehearsal p. 247
- dinner with their own food p. 247
- the event show THE ACT OF LOVING KINDNESS
- MARRIED IN THE BARN
- Mark showed the farms to the guests p. 250
- Then Kristina was going to Hawaii for a gig p.252
- She missed the dirt and the work. p. 254
- ilogueShe then helped another CSA farmer in Hawaii p. 255
- This Hawaiian garden was weeded by hand. p. 255
- Rules of harvesting learned from Mark….it was Faasst!!!
- She was running from her own imperfect self.
Epilouge
- [91%] P.260
- looking for harmony not conflict p. 260
- Every year the membership increases along with worker
- Customers were about 100
- gave birth in own barn
- Death of the horse (silver)
- 1st Christmas Kristin got a puppy
- not as perfect as you want
- Kristin loved the farm.
- worked on a new bull that was born next to an electric fence
- Kristin has rest for tired bones, cook things and eat with other people..
- Kristin stared look at birds p. 270
- farming is like the other side of life p. 272
- potatoes leek soup recipe p. 276
Overall Review:
Two Smiley Faces out or five
It was a good read, though it didn’t make me really happy (as of our clubs mission). Reason, it was a good story of a Harvard Educated person, where love and adventure led her to pursue a farming career. That was enjoyable reading, I’m sure others in the club took a likening to the text, but I was hoping to read some “facts” or processes that I could use that would help me and others in gardening. I know the club has read books that appealed to me/but not to others. So yes, it was a good read (notice notes above), but maybe a little lacking on process. Though the book was concluded with some vegetable recipes..
Other buds;
#1. This months memoir was interesting and well-written, but it really had nothing to do with gardening, plants, or nature. When I read an M-Buds book, I prefer to learn something about one of these topics either from the book itself or the discussion it sparks. This one falls short.
#3. First met and he ordered broccoli, and she still like hum
- slaughtered a pig
- she’s a vegetarian
- took a couple of day for her to interview him
- he is quite bossy
- willing to gamble on what he believes in
- using horses for plows and weeding by hand
- they both worked toward the same goal of a organic diet so complete they would not have to go to a grocery store
I give it 5 smiley faces….truly enjoyable!