Pursuing The Noble Vocation

Look at that Seedy go. Look at her run in the snow.

2010-11-06T14:32:00.010-04:00

On this cold, blustery day with the clouds spitting snow, it seemed like time to add a new post about Ceili.

Ceili loved the cold. It seemed her favorite time to lay out on the porch was when it was 15 degrees and blustery. Of course with a coat enough for five dogs, I guess it was perfect weather.
Ceili loved the snow. As a younger dog, Ceili and I did most of out hiking when there was snow on the ground. I liked to track animals and Ceili was a quiet dog...we made a good team. When she was older and couldnt hike so much Jeff and I would still take her out in the snow and let her play and remember her young days. Snow made her young again. She loved to run in it, roll in it, and eat it.
I miss her this cold day.

Ceili and the Cats

2010-10-17T05:38:00.010-04:00

Ceili was always a cat-lovin' dog. Sure she did occassionally "maul" a cat. But she was good to them, never actually hurt them, just snuffled around in their coats and looked like she was going to tear 'em. Hence the name Tearumseed.

The Dog and Her Girl

2010-10-14T21:10:00.007-04:00

Ceili hiked this mountain-top Tuesday, the day before she died. She loved the cool breezes up there and would lay there for hours if we let her. But she didnt ever let me out of sight. If I wandered to far off she would be right behind me. She was more loyal than words can describe.

Half a Life Without a Dog

2010-10-14T07:16:00.004-04:00

Yesterday I was cut in half. Ceili at 13 years old and still going strong was struck and killed by a truck. She was doing her normal that morning. Following me and keeping an eye on everyone else.
Ceili had been with me since I was 18. She never let me down through these early years of my adult life. She was happy when I was happy. Sad when I was sad. But ALWAYS knew when was the right time to make me laugh. And she could make me laugh. She may not have been able to talk but she had enough tricks in that thick coat to find just the right one to use.

Ceili was home to me. Werever she was, that was home. We made it through very hard difficult times, fun and exciting times and dull, monotonous times . Together.

Its only half a life without this dog.

2010-08-11T21:37:00.003-04:00

If facing the facts is to be called a pessimist, I am willing to be called a pessimist. If in order to be an optimist one must shut his eyes and call black white, and error truth, and sin righteousness, and death life, I don't want to be called an optimist. But I am an optimist all the same. Pointing out the real condition will lead to a better condition. R.A. Torrey

Old Office

2010-08-04T16:02:00.005-04:00

New Office

2010-08-04T15:48:00.003-04:00

Hannah

2010-07-22T22:00:00.001-04:00

My good friend Hannah is conning me into starting up my blog again. Here is how she does it:

"example post:
"just another day in awesome town, being awesome. growing my own awesome food and flowers. so awesome to have everything fresh. hannah is my awesome friend-bossy, but awesome. tune in next time for another awesome post on my awesome blog."

Spring is here.....

2009-04-25T18:28:00.006-04:00

More Winter Pictures

2009-02-08T16:41:00.014-05:00

The greenhouse is up!

2009-02-04T22:48:00.004-05:00

Last weekend we finally finished getting the greenhouse up. This week I finally took pictures. As you can see I have yet to build and set up tables inside although I have already worked inside of it. Just mixing up my seeding mix and sowing a few flats of this and that.

2009-01-23T19:13:00.002-05:00

2009-01-23T18:24:00.003-05:00

2009-01-23T09:27:00.001-05:00

2009-01-22T22:17:00.000-05:00

2009-01-17T22:33:00.000-05:00

We have hot water!!! Ok well we have always had hot water...but now our washing machine has hot water. Jeff ran a hot water line to the washing machine yesterday and installed the "new" dishwasher!!! Now we will have clean clothes and less time washing dishes. Possibly even saving a little money by using less water. Hurrah!! Both of these appliances drain out from a separate graywater line to the swamp where they have time to filter out before reaching the stream. Eventually I would like to plant some shrubs and stuff in the swamp that would further help the filtering process.

Cooking Traditional Foods

2009-01-11T12:51:00.004-05:00

Jeff and I have been using this menu-mailer for the last few months and are loving it. This way planning the menus for the week takes less time and we have found that even with eating more nutritious grains, more meat, and more fat (the un-politically correct, traditional foods way) our grocery expense has not gone up, possibly even gone down a bit. The only things we do different is we skip the meals that require a more expensive cut of meat...such as beef roasts....and add a fish meal once a week. This probably balances out in cost but we feel that the fish is better for us compared to beef. Just wanted to share. :)

Our Life

2009-01-10T20:04:00.003-05:00

I finally was inspired enough to have a blog post.
Jeff and I really only have one New Year's resolution...and it wasn't really a New Year resolution as we started trying it out before the new year. This idea is to put ourselves on a more strict daily schedule..or should I say a semi-strict daily schedule as schedules normally go...it never works out exactly. So here is how it kinda pans out :

I am up at 6:30 at which time I float about quietly making my lemon water, and then doing my devotional time while drinking my lemon water. Afterwards, I start breakfast if I plan to make anything at all..most of the time it is just toast or something leftover. Then I check things like email, weather, and news. At 8:00, the day really begins. Jeff is up by that time and doing dishes. I begin my two hours of house duties. I really dislike the idea that it takes 2 hours a day to clean up yesterday's messes, sweep, start stuff for dinner, make shopping lists, make bread or other make-ahead food, etc., etc., etc. but this seems to be the case. I really hate it! There is too much else to do!
Jeff starts work at 8:30 and kinda works his own schedule until 12:30. I stop all things house related at 10:00 whether it is all done or not. I then finally have my morning cup of coffee and and sit down to read for a few minutes before getting started with the real work. Now this work could include anything from studying up on a particular flower, detailing the planting schedule, working in the field, or many, many other things. The important thing is this is farm-related and maybe more importantly income-related.
So at 12:30, Jeff and I have lunch(usually leftovers) and sit back for near an hour talking about, well, you name it. That is one of the greatest parts of the life we have chosen....the time we can have as best friends talking about all the important and not so important. And boy do we ever....Jeff and I have had lengthy discussions on everything imaginable from the time we met. I think these times just strengthen our camaraderie.
At 1:30 it is back to work until 3:30 and then we either go for a walk or just take another quick break. Here again is a time for talking about what we have going on. After that it is back to work until 6:00. I plan in the summer to swap this time with the morning housework time so as not to have to work in the field in the heat of the day. Somewhere in this time I feed the cows and will eventually include feeding chickens as well as an assortment of other evening chores.
Finally, at 6:00, we are done. But dinner must still be made and showers taken. We tag team on this and then enjoy making dinner together. Food is one of our few luxuries and we greatly enjoy the preparation(including talking) and eating of a nourishing meal....well at least most of the time. After dinner we either watch something on Netflix or read a book..preferably reading but we are usually so exhausted that watching something that someone else thought about is so much easier.
So this is the basic idea. Of course, it never goes as planned. As my work greatly relies on the weather, I often have to change gears. For instance, if it going to rain in the afternoon, I may go get the work done in the field in the morning rather than work in the house. If it is dang cold out, I may do some extra baking in the afternoon to help keep the house warm. In the stress of the summer, housework will often gets left out completely. But even if we can follow the schedule for the most part, I feel we will be doing well. I love the flexibility of our life.

Update

2008-12-23T14:59:00.003-05:00

What a very strange winter. I can't believe it is already Christmas. For all the looking forward to sitting by by the fire this winter and spending some time reading and planning all my ventures for next year, next to none of this has happened yet. Most of this has been because the weather has been so warm, I have had too much opportunity to work outside. So while the outside work is getting done, the inside work is so very far behind.
Yes, I know it is still not even half way through winter but next month I start plant trays at a slow pace to go on to a faster pace planting in February to an all out mad dash in March. February is also tree and berry planting time. One hundred locusts are going in the ground this year as living fence posts. And hopefully I will get some various market berries planted in February as well. February is also when I will be raising 50 chicks.
For those that don't know. I am expanding Blaithin Blair to include specialty produce. (Specialty producing meaning early and late vegetables and unique ethnic vegetables.) While cut flowers will still be the focus, I needed a complementary venture to slide in on the sides that didn't require the same intense labor as flowers. Enters early and late season produce. Unfortuntely, the planning for this is proving to be almost as intense as planning for flowers....most likely because of my lack of experience with vegetable farming.
Ah, well even if I have been so very busy this fall and winter it is still a slower pace then the spring and summer sprint. For that I am grateful. And hopefully soon winter will set in more fully so my tulips bulbs will have a good chilling season for a good bloom show in May(and so I will have a planning season).

What? More Snow! We have a Winner....uh, I mean a Winter...Finally.

2008-11-23T17:09:00.002-05:00

http://www.accuweather.com/news-story.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&article=2

2008-11-22T12:22:00.007-05:00

We had another light-duty snow this week..about 4 inches or so. Unfortunately, I was fighting a cold so I wasn't able to enjoy it as much as I would have liked. But I did haul some mulch on the tractor...I'm sure that didn't help my cold any.
It was a whopping nine degrees out this morning. And because of this cold (actually, both "colds", temperature cold and sickly cold), I missed going to the market today. (Even now at 1PM it is only 29 degrees...would've been a cold day to stand out on concrete). I am glad to see the cold though....maybe it is a good sign for the rest of the winter. It has been so long since we have had a nice southwest Virginia winter....been way to warm and muddy. Thinking about having a icy cold winter brings back memories of heavy but too short coveralls, frosted horse whiskers, dog paw ice wads, and cow snow coats. Not too mention water trough ice chipping, doing 360's in the car, warming up kittens in your coat, and pulling groceries on a wagon because the truck can't get up the hill.
Anyways, I had made some Christmas wreaths to take to the market, so now here they hang. The pictures do not do them justice.

2008-11-01T19:39:00.006-04:00

I took these pictures last spring of
my favorite guitarist. I am finally getting around to posting them now.

2008-10-29T18:11:00.002-04:00

We had our first dusting of snow yesterday....right about on time too ....in normal years SW Virginia gets it's first flurries around Halloween. We also had our first frost about dead on average ...a few weeks ago. So far so good for a "normal" winter. (This follows a more "normal" summer with the temperature only getting to the 90 degree mark one time.) Jeff and I are digging up some cross country skiis in preparation. I love (real) southwest Virginia weather. If you don't like it, wait 'til tomorrow..it'll be different. ;)
This was a good day for making use of all the apples and pears Nik and I have been picking off the neighbor's trees. I made apple bread, apple butter, pear butter, and started drying some apples by the wood stove. I also gathered rose hips and helped Jeff move the wood pile closer to the house. Good blustery day work.

Fall Market

2008-10-26T16:56:00.002-04:00

Mt. Rogers thistle

2008-10-11T19:18:00.005-04:00

I had to get one picture in. :)

Poultry and Dead grass

2008-10-11T18:39:00.004-04:00

For once I am going to write what I am in to these days instead of pictures. But I'll keep it short...so.....I am thinking of raising broilers, egg layers, meat ducks, egg ducks, pheasants, and turkeys. They all somewhat go together although most of these I won't be able to start until next March. Meanwhile I have pens to build...which means :) , I have lumber all over my yard. OK, OK I won't try all these at once...but I think they are all good ideas. Come to find out....nearby restaurants want to buy locally grown and raised food but can't find it in enough quantity. Here I come to fill the gap....OK dreaming on my four acres. I also I am considering buying a second milk cow....but I do need to start building the barn to milk them in. Which reminds me of all the projects in our old house here....floors to sand, walls to paint, furniture to build, doors to make, insulation to put in....oh, goodness, we need to start cutting firewood! And......I have started to cover the only flat section of our yard in newspaper, compost, and mulch to try to kill grass by springtime...so, I can grow greens galore for our greens lacking farmers market (plus I know a restaurant that wants spinach). I plant to build a 14' X 20' high tunnel that I can move to two or three different places..this will probably be a 3 year project to get established. Plus I have been planting greens in mom's garden (little does she know when she is on vacation) because I want winter greens for myself. And I don't have anywhere else to plant them. Plus she just plain ol' has a nice garden. So while I have been scheming how to get 50 dozen eggs a week, I thought...boy oh boy mom and dad have a nice place. They need chicken pens too!!! And, (ha, once again, little do they know) a couple of high tunnels where they are putting in new gardens for the GREAT great Depression. So I have been scheming about this and that and really not accomplishing it. Except for a yard full of lumber and a pile of newspaper. I did try to keep it short. Whew, I am glad we are headed to the beach for a week.

P.S. I almost forgot the blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and other assorted sun loving fruit and berries that I want to plant on our south facing slope. And the hundred of black locusts to plant as living fence posts. And the more scientific compost pile in the making. And the Mount Rogers nature guidebook to write. Ok I'm done...for now.

2008-10-10T17:14:00.000-04:00

First Frost

2008-10-03T16:06:00.000-04:00

We had our first frost of the year this morning. If you don't care that is fine. I couldn't think of a better place to record it than my blog. This way I can keep track and always know where I wrote it down. Or maybe I'll still forget, but when I do remember at least I can find it.

2008-10-02T20:10:00.004-04:00

Picks from A Nature Hike

2008-10-02T18:35:00.006-04:00

The Three of Mine

2008-10-01T18:51:00.002-04:00

News,news, depressing news

2008-09-30T17:27:00.004-04:00

You would think that the economy failing would not bother me. I hate money and have always hated money. I love bartering at the market or anywhere else. I love eating what we grow and raise. I love making do. But hearing about economies failing in countries all over the world has me upset. I suppose it is partly because this is the first year Jeff and I have felt productive members of the community and I worry ...will we have clients and customers next year? But more than that I fear God has had enough...enough of the foolishness of this country and those all over the world. How far will this go? Will famine come? Will my friends lose their houses? But while I wait for the rainbow in the sky, I remind myself that He is in control and the majority of my friends are of His people as well as I.

2008-09-22T14:55:00.003-04:00

A Day Off

2008-09-21T18:45:00.004-04:00

Jeff and I took the dogs to Grayson Highlands today for an old dog hike. It was a wonderfully cool day with clear blue skies and fluffy white clouds. So nice for a Sunday change instead of being at home surrounding by work. The leaf colors were just on the verge of changing...red maples with a hint of red and a little scatterings of yellow. We rode by Whitetop which reminded me of the Maple Syrup Festival there...maybe we will get a chance to go next March. We really need to head over that way more...it is like a vacation one hour away.

Need to do......

2008-09-20T16:53:00.004-04:00

http://www.wikihow.com/Do-Nothing

2008-09-16T07:15:00.002-04:00

Fall is here! The long sleeves are staying on past the early morning hours, the walnut leaves are falling, and I'm thinking of warm things to eat. Ok so maybe it is still getting in the 70's but that is close enough to get me excited.

2008-08-21T15:12:00.002-04:00

Green grass and brown dirt

2008-08-19T21:30:00.004-04:00

Meadow is home and is happy to have grass. The drought was so bad in TN there was next to no grass. It looked like a desert....and we thought we had it bad. Guess we just got the heat! But anyways, I am now the owner of a Jersey cow. She is a sweet cow (like any good Jersey should be) and hungry for good grass. I have been leaving her in the yard while I am out there doing things.

The weather has been more agreeable this year than last. We have had more normal daytime temps and cool nights with off and on rain. I am still trying to decide if the flowers like our more normal weather patterns or not. Some things seem to have done better last year which I guess is why so many commercial flowers are grown in South America. Hopefully this pattern keeps up into the winter though.....the soil could use a good snow cover with slow melt-offs.

2008-08-08T17:37:00.003-04:00

These are nine of the eleven dried flower wreaths I have made in the last week. Two of them sold last Saturday. I may squeeze one more in tonight. But doubtful.

Since I Do Have German Blood....

2008-08-08T17:30:00.003-04:00

I started a crock of sauerkraut on Wenesday......first tasting will be tomorrow evening. (The water jug is just a weight on the cabbage) This week I also made some kefir and buttermilk...just getting into practice for 6 gallons of milk a day :) And yes, I still have weeds 4 feet tall and flowers coming out of my ears...but I can't work all the time....I must play too. Which reminds me of some work....another picture I will go take and post.

Harvest Time

2008-08-08T17:13:00.004-04:00

A week's load of tomatoes(and squash). To be made into sauce tomorrow (hopefully) after market.

Homemade Sourcream

2008-08-08T17:01:00.003-04:00

Salt

2008-08-03T19:02:00.002-04:00

"Most discussions of salt ignore the issue of salt processing. Few people realize that our salt - like our sugar, flour, and vegetable oils - is highly refined; it is the product of a chemical and high-temperature process that removes all the valuable magnesium salts as well as trace minerals occurring in the sea. To keep salt dry, salt refiners adulterate this "pure" product with several harmful additives, including aluminum compounds. To replace the natural iodine salts that are removed during a processing, potassium iodide is added in amounts that can be toxic. To stabilize the volatile iodide compund,processors add dextrose which turns the iodized salt a purplish color. A bleaching agent is then necessary to restore whiteness to the salt." - taken from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

2008-07-30T15:32:00.001-04:00

Does anyone ever feel like they have way too much they need to do AND way too much they want to do so that they don't feel like doing anything at all? Thats how I feel today.

Meadow the Jersey

2008-07-26T19:54:00.002-04:00

I bought a Jersey cow yesterday!! A heifer to be precise, but she is just about old enough to breed. Next step is trying to find a way to breed her to a Dexter bull. Dexters are a small dual purpose breed that I have had an interest in for years. (Dad is considering buying a few Dexters also. So we may be in the business yet.) I am going to breed my Jersey heifer to one so her first calf will be a small one.... to make it easy on her. Can't take any chances! It will likely be a few weeks before we go to Knoxville to pick her up so I'll post a picture when that time comes. I know Rachel will be looking forward to it :)

2008-07-23T19:46:00.005-04:00

I finally got some computer time while Jeff is fixing dinner. Between his working alot and my two farmers markets a week (which means 3 entire days completely spent on markets) plus 3 foot high weeds, I havent seen much of the computer. And since I am actively seeking a dairy cow most any time I do get on the computer is spent on this search. (I have found one in Knoxville that I am looking into....http://knoxville.craigslist.org/grd/757775769.html) But anyways, here I am! And here is a recent photo of the field.

The guineas have ventured to the pasture.

2008-07-19T13:15:00.003-04:00

The market sales are picking up now but we sure are having to get creative. The town has decided not to let us drive up to our spot now so we are having to haul everything in. This also means things are crowded since we have to have everything in our 10' X 10' area(including what would normally be IN the truck). I don't know what we are going to do in another month when we are loaded down with flowers. We are talking about setting up a tent behind our spot where our truck would normally be parked but we know this is going to cause "issues" with the town. Ah, the farmers market drama.

2008-07-02T17:28:00.004-04:00

I was going to do another comparison of the field now and a year ago but I keep forgetting to get last years picture off of Mom and Dad's computer. So here is a picture of the field as of right now. If I ever get around to it, I'll post a picture of the field last year at this time so you can see how I have improved. But the learning never ends......

2008-07-02T17:23:00.001-04:00

I sit with a swollen finger. Hammers hurt!

2008-07-01T22:24:00.001-04:00

The people in charge of the town of Abingdon are a bunch of morons. 'nough said.

2008-06-30T20:05:00.004-04:00

I finished building my screen door!! I also pressured washed the porch and front of the house last week so now the porch is a pleasant spot to eat lunch.

2008-06-26T20:35:00.004-04:00

Just a quick entry to let everyone know I am still alive. I have been busy busy trying to keep the weeds at less then 2 feet high in the field. Thankfully Jeff has had some time lately to help me out a few times a week. Speaking of Jeff.....you gotta see him go with his new "weedeater" (i.e. a scythe). Not to mention he put most of my drip irrigation system in (while I was running back and forth trying to figure out which weeds to pull). I do believe I will make a farmer out of him yet. This is all while he keeps us afloat with his editing until the flowers start to bring in some cash.

Some of the things I am working on: Just about got my screen door finished (made from scratch, thank you). Half the front porch is pressured washed (I ran out of steam this evening). The bedroom will be half painted next week (and I say again...it WILL). Looking for a milk cow. Studying up on my pasture management(it has been a few years since I knew anything about this). Thinking about making a house for my guineas. Soon to come....cheese making ( I loooove cheese!) and roof painting(OK probably not till fall).

Jeff's projects: Practicing up with his scythe to get ready to harvest his wheat. Studying up on switching our water supply from county water to spring water so we don't have to drink the yucky water anymore. Soon to come...roof repairs and ditch digging.

Guineas

2008-06-22T18:36:00.003-04:00

OK so this was 2 weeks ago when this picture was taken....but here they are....the guinea keets. Now they are four times this size.

Farmer Boy

2008-06-22T18:23:00.003-04:00

Rome Wasn't Built In A Day

2008-06-21T18:07:00.002-04:00

This was a tough week for me. The stress and overwork of farming weighed me down. It wasn't until this morning as I worked in the field that this came to me, "Rome wasn't built in a day". It is funny because I wasn't really even thinking about all the work I yet had to do. But I had been...all week. This little saying just came to me and made me just kinda laugh at how ridicilous it is to think I can get as much done as I plan for myself. Much against what seems to make sense, as long as I remind myself every morning that this is a fleeting moment and soon I will not be on this earth, work is not such a chore. It is actually enjoyable to work because I am commmanded to by God and not because I have to make money and support us. Provisions come from God....not from my or Jeff's work. We really just do this as an occupation for God's glory. But if I could only remember this day to day......

Meditation in a Toolshed

2008-06-05T17:23:00.003-04:00

I was standing today in a dark toolshed. The sun was shining outside and through the crack at the top of the door there came a sunbeam. From where I stood that beam of light, with the specks of dust floating in it, was the most striking thing in the place. Everything else was almost pitch-black. I was seeing the beam, not seeing things by it.
Then I moved, so that the beam fell on my eyes. Instantly the whole previous picture vanished. I saw no tool shed, and (above all) no beam. Instead I saw, framed in the irregular cranny in the top of the door, green leaves moving on the branches of a tree outside and beyond that, ninety-odd million miles away, the sun. Looking along the beam, and looking at the beam are very different experiences. - C.S.Lewis

2008-06-03T22:36:00.002-04:00

The top picture is of the field now. And below is a picture of the field at this time last year. Although you may not be able to tell a lot of difference from the picture, we have twice as much in beds and planted as we did last year at this time. The entire other side of the field (which you cannot see in last year's picture) wasn't even made into beds yet, which it is this year. And that is even with Jeff only helping me 1 or 2 times a week in the morning. We found a more efficient way to make beds which has helped a bunch. And I am a lot less precise about my planting as seeds are relatively cheap as compared to time. For the most part, planting is done...just a few plantings here and throughout the summer to keep a steady supply. Now weeding begins!!

Save the farm from developers

2008-06-02T06:35:00.003-04:00

Looking at this article, makes you wonder if rising gas prices may be the beginning of saving farmscapes from development into suburbia. Rural Living in a World with Expensive Fuel

2008-05-31T20:23:00.009-04:00

Here you go mom. I did a day in the life of...just for you.

6:00 Make coffee, check email and weather
6:30 Devotions
7:00 Get dressed and eat breakfast
7:15 Gather up tools
7:30 Leave for field
7:45 Take care of Flint and Bandit
8:00 Use tractor to move mulch to field until
10:15 Coffee break, blog entry
11:00 Load truck with mulch to take home, weed larkspur, take a walk-through of field
1:00 Drop tools off at Mom and Dads, head home
1:15 Lunch break with Jeff
2:15 Unload mulch, straighten house
3:30 Read
4:00 Talk with Jeff
4:30 Head to field
4:45 Take bush-hog off of tractor, load truck with mulch, plant zinnias, bachelor buttons, and dill in field, overwhelm myself with how much I still need to do
6:00 Take care of Flint and Bandit, move cows
6:15 Head home
6:30 Unload mulch, talk with Jeff
7:00 Shower
7:15 Check email
7:30 Clean up kitchen, start pervil for later day
8:15 Help Jeff with dinner
8:45 Dinner and Netflix
10:30 Bed...ahhhhhh

6:00-

Just kidding :) I won't put you through it again.

Now it's your turn ;)

Southwest Virginia is saddened

2008-05-29T05:45:00.000-04:00

Southwest Virginia has changed so much. What used to be a rural area is, it seems, moving to some sort of suburbia. I am saddened and frustrated by this change. An area that used to be full of beautiful farmland is now full of houses, stores, and partially filled developments. (What is called "Exit 7" was once a beautiful farm and is now Lowes, WalMart, and Sam's Club and doesn't even resemble what it once was.) Developers and out-of-towners are the only ones able to afford the land and now we have house farms and bloated property values. Out-of-towners want the conviences of city life but the "idea" of living in the country so now we are ending up with some kind of sprawling suburbia....minus the city.
But why has this area become this way? I can't blame people for wanting to move here...it is one of the most beautiful areas in the country(IMO). I cannot tell you where people are finding the work and especially how they are finding the work to support the standard of living they are living.
The only reason for this sad change is people are moving here from areas in which they were able to make their fortune, buying or building houses, and raising the price of living for the everyone. The last 5 years or so the price of real estate has become, well, unreal. (Jeff and I hard a terrible time finding something we could afford but were lucky enough to find a fairly priced home from church members.)
Now , I dare say, locals cannot even afford housing here. The most one can do is buy a half acre and put a trailer on it. (The fall in housing prices has not seemed to reach this area yet.) This reminds me of Isaiah 5:8 which says,

"Woe to those who join house to house;
They add field to field,
Till there is no place
Where they may dwell alone in the midst of the land!.

Commentators tell us this stems from the greed of the wealthy buying up the land so that the poor no longer had a place to live. This was a warning of the judgement on such excesses. How many homes here can you go and see no other homes or "dwell alone"?
But to make matters worse, zoning is pretty non-existent here. One can build a half million dollar home next to a trailer and bring the property tax up so that the trailer owner can no longer afford to live there.
I am so saddened by what this area has become...even to the point of shedding some tears over it. Land prices are so inflated it can only be sold to outsiders. Outsiders build 100,000 to 800,000 houses that look like they belong in northern Virginia. The locals could never afford to buy such a house if it was to come up for sale so then more outsiders move in looking for that city in the country.
What saddens me the most is the intrinsic value of land seems to be no longer. Land is most always seen as potential money. Farms are not kept in agriculture because farmers see how much they can make selling it to a developer. A developer sees farmland as dollar signs in his eyes. Outsiders see "cheap" homes and flock here. I know change is inevitable...but it doesnt make it any easier for me that I the place I call home is becoming a place I would have never chosen to live. Southwest Virginia land is no longer a true agriculture area. Farmland is lost. I am sad.

2008-05-28T10:58:00.000-04:00

Just felt like there was too much seriousness on my blog....so here is a picture of my nephew, Taylor.

Why I Cannot Afford to Shop at Wal Mart

2008-05-27T17:03:00.007-04:00

Sometimes people will ask me why I do not shop at Wal-mart. While I tend not to even think about it anymore as I hardly even consider the store as an option, here is what started it all.

First, there is the practical reason that Wal-Mart is 30 minutes away!! Why would I drive 30 minutes to get groceries or anything for that matter that I can just as easily get 15 minutes away?

Then, here is the common reason that people avoid the place. Wal Mart tends to cause disorder and confusion of a town as well as wipe out most small business'. I can think of a few local shops that have at least had to stop selling items because there is no way they can compete. I have seen many towns in which the main street is abandoned as other shops try to move closer to the Wal-Mart.

But even though these are perfectly logical reasons for avoiding Wal-Mart my main objection is more idealistic. Wal-Mart encourages the collection of worthless items....in other words, consumerism. The store is seen as a money saver for the poor. But really! All it does is encourage those with little money to spend more. In reality it robs from the poor and gives to the rich. (By the way, I have nothing against the rich getting richer when it is just). There was a time when I would buy clothes from Wal-Mart. What I soon found out was I was paying multiple times over for clothes what I would have been had I bought them from a quality store. Take for instant a shirt. A shirt may cost me $10 from Wal-mart while I could buy a better made shirt from a real store for $30. At a glance you would think this a great deal until you find out that the $10 shirt would last one season while the $30 shirt would last indefinitely, likely 5-10 years. (An argument could be made that children don't need these clothes as they grow out out them so quick. This I would readily agree although I would argue that clothing makes for great charity.) Often times my Wal-Mart clothes wouldn't even last through one season. This can be applied to most anything from Wal-Mart that isn't to be consumed immediately. I have even found that when you think that you are getting a good deal on something from Wal-Mart because it is name brand something, when you get it home you find out it has somehow a cheaper model specifically for Wal-Mart to sell (kinda like what you would find at a dollar store).

What it all comes down to is..I CANNOT AFFORD TO SHOP AT WAL-MART. Let's face it...most things we need can wait to be purchased. We do not need them now..we can wait to save and buy them later. I would much rather save my $10 now and save another $20 over time to buy a shirt that will last me 5 to 10 times as long.

Of course, if you are in the city, their are endless opportunities to save(and spend too, which is why I am glad I do not live in a city). Cities have Trader Joes (rated the same food prices as Wal-Mart) according to Consumer Reports. Cities have Goodwill stores where you can buy well made clothing for a fraction of the price. Housing is another story altogether which Wal-Mart, as far as I know, isn't in the market of anyways. Housing is ridiculously expensive for anyone but this will be addressed later. I have my opinion on why this is...at least for Southwest Virginia.

One other quick consideration is the cost in time. Wal-MArt takes much of a persons time. Swimming through that mess of stuff is hard and tiring. The store purposely draws your attention to other items which meana your are side tracked from your original purpose. There is lost time. I just don't have this in my back pocket. Time means alot more to me than money ever will. Even for someone that had more time than money wouldnt time be better spent working productively than spending greedily.

Farmers markets are a hopeful sign. People tend to shop at the market because they know they can get better quality produce than at a supermarket...often times even willing to pay a higher price for this quality. I just hope this is a sign of people moving toward an interest in quality rather than quantity.

So while I would never consider Jeff and I poor....often wondering how we do as well as we do, we are below median income for this area and still do not shop at Wal-Mart. It is possible! In fact, it is the only way....I can't afford to shop at Wal-Mart.

(by the way, I have linked the title to an interesting article to read more about how Wal-MArt destroys).

2008-05-26T17:55:00.000-04:00

Springtime is definitely NOT the time for cleaning.

One of my recent arrangements

2008-05-25T16:59:00.005-04:00

2008-05-24T20:21:00.000-04:00

EEEEEEK I'M 29!!!!! Thats almost 30!

Ceili and Rico Playing...who says dogs and cats are enemies?

2008-05-23T21:50:00.002-04:00

2008-05-22T22:10:00.003-04:00

I estimate that I have planted 1 mile in linear feet of flowers so far this spring. And planting season officially only started less than a week ago (May 15). But I did cheat, risk a late frost, and started planting a bit early. And I wonder why I am so exhausted.

Why I Farm

2008-05-22T21:54:00.004-04:00

"A farmer who was interviewing a candidate for a field job asked her why she wanted to work with flowers. She responded that she found working with flowers so peaceful and therapeutic. 'This isn't therapy,' the farmer told her. 'This is commercial floriculture.'
To an outsider, growing flowers for a living may seem idyllic. To the experienced grower, though, flower farming is like any other kind of farming - it entails hard work, long hours, physical discomfort, a frequently a high level of stress. Of course like any farming, it also offers personal freedom, the opportunity to work outdoors, a direct relationship between hard work and income, and the feeling of fulfillment that comes from producing something tangible. "
From The Flower Farmer by Lynn Byczynski

I wanted to share this excerpt because it explains quite perfectly what I go through daily, especially lately.

Peaceful, farming is not. Therapeutic, farming is not.

Hard, farming is. Physically tiring, farming is. Stressful, farming is.

So why do I farm? Because I love being free to pursue what I like, I love being outdoors, I love knowing at the end of the week that I worked hard to pay for what I have, and I love producing something. Producing something that is aesthetically pleasing is just an added benefit (that I often do not get to enjoy).

One of my many friends

2008-05-22T19:45:00.000-04:00

Bo, the red breasted grosbeak.

Ah, Red Wine

2008-05-21T20:39:00.002-04:00

Good grief, it's been two weeks since I wrote anything. I'm so tired though I don't know what else to do but sit here on my bum and pretend to write something while waiting on a delivery from Jeff's diner.

Mid-Appalachia's Climate Change Saga Continues

2008-05-08T19:06:00.002-04:00

Now we may be getting tornado sirens because of one tornado ....... http://www.tricities.com/tristate/tri/news.apx.-content-articles-TRI-2008-05-08-0045.html

Early Meadow Rue

2008-04-29T12:07:00.004-04:00

The unidentified plant that I dug up along the trail is an Early Meadow Rue. Since I found that these have separate male and female plants I will have to make sure I have both. You can see a picture of them at this site , http://www.ct-botanical-society.org/galleries/thalictrumdioi.html

Spring Larkspur

2008-04-29T11:45:00.003-04:00

Jeff and I went out along the trail and dug up some of these along with white sweet violets and another plant that I haven't identified yet. I planted them in the yard in hopes I can get them to spread.

Our house

2008-04-28T19:32:00.005-04:00

Elevation- 2400'
I'm having fun studying maps of our little neck o' the woods.

Asparagus is up!

2008-04-28T19:21:00.001-04:00

Spring is here!

2008-04-27T21:01:00.006-04:00

2008-04-27T16:45:00.003-04:00

Jeff and I went on about an hour long walk today on the trail running by our house. The first time we have been out there since spring really started coming on. It was a misty mountain day and it made us remember what a cool place we live. We made it just over the other side of Walker Mountain from our house and turned around before the trail started going downhill. Since most of this part of the trail lies in a gap it is a very fertile and lush area with Keywood Creek lying way down in the bottom of the gap. I could see a bunch of rhododendron on the other side of the gap(the east side). But just along the trail I found many spring wildflowers including wild columbine, wild geranium, sweet white violet, and spring larkspur. Since this is such a rich area I am hoping to see trillium in this gap later in the year. I used to come across huge patches of it in West Virginia and I believe it is my favorite flower.

Please comment

2008-04-24T20:00:00.002-04:00

What would you pay for a wreath like this(if you had the money of course). I know it is simple so I won't be offended.

2008-04-24T18:11:00.000-04:00

Hot and tired!

Update

2008-04-18T07:13:00.000-04:00

It is 3:30 PM the day before the first farmers market of the season. It is hot out(about 78 degrees) but my tulips are sitting in the cool barn until we load them this evening. I'm beat from a long week of working outside. My arms and neck are sunburned. And I am about a week behind already according to my planting calendar. I haven't done any dishes all week (Jeff has done enough to get us by) and I have given up keeping the house clean until winter. It is gonna be a long season. But I am looking forward to it!

Bushels of asparagus

2008-04-14T20:29:00.003-04:00

I toughed rain and snow today to plant 50 feet of asparagus. The only reason I did it today was because I read somewhere that a cool rainy day was a good day to plant asparagus. So I risked getting the plague and spent the afternoon in 35 degrees and rain mixed with snow sitting in the mud carefully spreading out asparagus roots. I'll Ive gotta say is, "they better produce a heck of a lot of food." Then after all that I got worried because we are supposed to have a freeze tonight and went out this evening and covered all the beds with blankets. Hey! I didn't want to risk losing the profit from this effort. Oh, and the only reason I do not have a picture was because Jeff was too wimpy to come out of the warm house and take a picture of me. :)

2008-04-12T19:59:00.002-04:00

Jeff and I bought a reel mower and Jeff tried it out for the official first lawn cutting of the year. I am a big fan of a small yard...in fact I think anything over a 1/4 acre of grass to mow is just downright ridiculous. Since we are letting most of our front yard "go wild" we decided this mower would work for us for the area left in grass. So far it does a great job....and it is easy to use(which was a surprise to me). And of course the best part....it doesn't use any $3.25/gallon gasoline and doesn't require the maintenance like a gas mower. As far as the rest of the front yard....I can't wait to see what kind of meadow plants come up in it. I already transplanted one weed into it just cause I liked it. :)

The tulips are blooming!

2008-04-12T18:53:00.003-04:00

They came a little early probably due to the warm winter we had and the extremely warm spring we are having. So I will leave them alone this year and hope for a colder winter this year. Maybe next year they will make it to the market. They do look good though!

Sunday Afternoon Hike

2008-04-06T19:29:00.007-04:00

Jeff and I went on a short hike this afternoon on the Iron Mountain Trail. With Jeff's leg still giving him fits we didn't go very far. Gonna try to take day hikes more often until Jeff is better. Maybe we'll be backpacking again by fall.
Not many signs of spring on Iron Mountain like down here in the valley. I did see some huckleberries getting some buds though. May be a place to remember come July to pick berries.
Here is one of Jeff's every "artistic" photos. Don't ask me. Ands that me, down on the ground, digging up "specimen plants" to take home and cultivate in my yard that we are not going to mow. :) Yes, so we are strange, but at least we admit it.

A frequent visitor

2008-04-06T18:56:00.001-04:00

Project # 2,063

2008-04-06T15:42:00.006-04:00

This is my first attempt at building a low tunnel. I used row cover over plastic pipe. The plastic pipe is anchored in using pieces of bamboo that I cut from the edge of the road. I put this over my 90 feet of larkspur.
The trellis I pulled up from our back yard and reused out here in the field to grow sweet peas.

Hardening off area

2008-04-05T22:55:00.006-04:00

I finally it a picture of my hardening off area. Obviously this is of a few days ago because it has been cool and rainy for days now...Jeff and I both agreed that today was a very southwest Virginia mountain-ish day..the fog was really low, it was misty most of the day, and about 50 degrees. Looked like a picture of Scotland. No wonder the Scottish immigrants settled here.

2008-04-03T19:08:00.000-04:00

My long time friend, Taylor, came this past weekend and helped me with some drywall work. Here he is on his perch. (He should be used to that being a tree climber for a tree care company...not one that hacks the top off trees of course....a GOOD tree care company that tries to keep trees healthy not kill them like others) I sure hope he comes back again soon...he was a good motivator for getting some work done on the bedroom.

Is that a bird....no it's RICO!

2008-03-29T18:25:00.003-04:00

2008-03-28T21:27:00.001-04:00

This is also in bloom...spicebush.

Spring is here

2008-03-28T20:07:00.002-04:00

I found this blooming in the yard today. It is called Whitlow grass and is in the mustard family.

Yes, I know it is only the end of March.

2008-03-28T06:51:00.003-04:00

But this unseasonably warm weather and clear days are throwing me off.
I've been futzing around the field here and there but today I actually planted 90 feet of larkspur and 80 feet of baby's breath. I don't know how this will turn out being it is so early in the year...but technically one should be able to plant this early. If I can get moving I will try to cover these beds with row cover on hoops. That should keep the little guys safe from any more heavy frosts.
I left my flats of sweet peas out in the freezes we had a couple of nights ago and the soil and seedlings froze solid. But you know most of those little buggers are still alive! Plants amaze me. These sweet peas and more will be going out in the field next week.
Next week Jeff will disc part of the field (I "allow" Jeff to do the tractor work since he likes it so much) so I can follow with a few other early plantings.... that is, if there is no rain, which we really need (Doesn't that sound familiar.)
I have officially run out of window space but I keep planting seeds for some reason. It's like an addiction. I constantly shuffle plants around trying to get places to allow more to germinate. My hardening off area is going to grow because I HAVE to get some of these trays outside. Most of them will be ok with light frosts but if we go back to normal temperatures with heavy frosts, Ill be doing alot of bringing plants inside at night. So needless to say I'm not complaining about the weather...just worrying about what it means we have in store for us this summer. 65 degrees in March..what does that mean in August?
But I carry on...I'm so glad I'm not in charge of the weather. It would be very schizophrenic.

2008-03-24T16:46:00.002-04:00

We made it to Lynchburg and back in one day. I had a two hour introduction to the theory of relativity on the way home. Just don't ask me to explain it.

2008-03-22T19:38:00.012-04:00

What have I been doing lately?

Here is the sowing room(i.e. the mud room). About 500 seedlings.

Here is the germination room...i.e(the living room). About 1000 seeds and seedlings.

Here is the seedling room(i.e.the cellar). About 1000 seedlings.

And the hardening off area(i.e the front porch). About 500 seedling(to become thousands soon....any volunteers to help transplant the end of may?). It is dark out so I can't get this picture right now. Check back.

What are these seedlings you ask. Gomphrena, veronica, celosia, verbena, rudbeckia, bellflower, dianthus, snapdragons, foxgloves, delphiniums, cilantro, parsley, sage, fennel, achillea, sweet peas, feverfew, and much much more.

2008-03-21T08:24:00.000-04:00

Suburbia: Where they tear out trees and name the streets after them.

Ceili and her cows

2008-03-17T19:24:00.004-04:00

2008-03-15T14:51:00.003-04:00

I know this is kinda old news but I wanted to show a picture of some of my 100 white pines that I planted as a wind break. These follow the north and west property line to help tame some of the winds that come over the pasture field so that eventually Jeff and I (with a little help from friends) can terrace some of the hill for crops. They are hard to see in the picture since they are less than a foot tall but they follow the fence line. (The fence is also a recent project. I started getting this up so we can raise a couple of dad's heifers in here. Hopefully I'll have it done by the end of March.)

2008-03-14T20:26:00.002-04:00

Hey we did it!! We ate by 8:30 this evening. This would have been 7:30 in "pre-government altered" time. And we would've eaten earlier if I hadn't accidentally turned the oven off.

Insiduous attempts to subvert freedom by the US government....oops I mean the United Kingdom

2008-03-14T20:15:00.005-04:00

This is a quote from Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania by John Dickenson written in 1787.

"What have these colonies to ask, while they continue free? Or what have they to dread, but insidious attempts to subvert their freedom?
Let these truths be indelibly impressed on our minds-that we cannot be HAPPY without being FREE-that we cannot be free, without being secure in our property, if, without our consent, others may, as by right, take it away- that taxes imposed on us by parliament, do thus take it away-that duties laid for the sole purpose of raising money are taxes-that attempts to lay such duties should be instantly and firmly opposed-that this opposition can never be effectual, unless it is the united effort of these provinces...."

Bad on New Years Resolution

2008-03-11T22:10:00.002-04:00

Jeff and I were going to b eating by 7 every evening for our New Years Resolution. With our brilliant politicians changing the time early. We haven't even made it to eating before 8:30 yet. 8:45 it was this evening. I hate this time change. I'm way to exhausted by 7:00 for it to still be light out.