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Wendell Berry on miracles….
“I don’t think it is enough appreciated how much an outdoor book the Bible is. It is a ‘hypaethral book,’ such as Thoreau talked about – a book open to the sky. It is best read and understood outdoors, and the farther outdoors the better. Or that has been my experience of it. Passages that within walls seem improbable or incredible, outdoors seem merely natural. This is because outdoors we are confronted everywhere with wonders; we see that the miraculous is not extraordinary but the common mode of existence. It is our daily bread. “Whoever really has considered the lilies of the field or the birds of the air and…
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Antibiotics in the food chain….
….actually, animals consume more antibiotics than humans. The drugs are given as preventatives for chickens, pigs and cattle in the industrial food industry. Conditions the animals are raised in are so unhealthy that, without big doses of antibiotics every day, they would quickly die. (A side effect Big Ag loves is antibiotics increase weight gain.) Of course, all drugs fed an animal stay in the meat and for that reason there are specified withdrawal periods on the bottles. (You wanna believe they’re followed?) What happens to us, those of us who buy our meat at the supermarket, is that our system gradually builds up a set of bugs that are resistant to…
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A few of my favorite things….
….one of the satisfactions of living this long is to bury those who warned me that if I kept up my evils ways I was doomed to an early demise. The list is long but red wine is at the top. Beef, of course. And bacon; definitely bacon! But worst of all, we were told again and again, is coffee. Nevertheless, here I sit, cup between my two hands as I write this. Fourth cup of the day and probably one more to go. (I find it aids sleep. When we first married, Wooz couldn’t believe I would sometimes carry a cup up to bed at night.) Wooz also now drinks…
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The menace that is Monsanto….
….I know it’s the proverbial broken record, but if there’s one thing I’m “called” to do, other than eat grass fed beef, it’s keeping Monsanto front in center. There probably is no greater menace to the well-being of the world (and, yes, I include Islamic terrorism, Iran, Vladimir Putin and the Dallas Cowboys in the list) than Monsanto. If there ever was a company that should be broken up and scattered to the four winds it is this evil bunch. For those of you new to this blog, here’s a primer: http://www.cornucopia.org/2013/07/the-monsanto-menace/
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If you care about your food….
….this is another “must read”. It’s written by a butcher in a small abattoir, a man who clearly cares about his work, and it’s worth taking some time with. We’re very fortunate here to have the services of an outstanding small processor and they, and we, work very hard to provide the highest quality product. These are the questions you should consider when you buy meat from the store or any farm. We’ll be glad to answer yours’! http://www.westonaprice.org/farm-a-ranch/cutting-the-cold-hard-fat
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Bee apocalypse now….
….we’ve only been vaguely aware of the apparently devastating destruction of America’s bee population. But reading about it this morning I was reminded again of how little we know….of how little the so-called “experts” know….about the physical world around us. All I know, is we’re a part of something huge and grand and beautiful and we should be very careful tinkering with “parts”. That seems to be the problem with the slaughter of the bees. The government certifies some poison as safe without considering the dynamics of combining that product with seven other things that are also sprayed in the same area. The result seems to be that we’re flirting…
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The great Thistle Hill cattle drive….
….well, maybe not quite. But at this time every year we do bring the main herd in to work the calves. Nothing dramatic like roping and branding. We do carry some in a trailer to the vet…a more efficient use of time…for de-horning or castrating. But it’s all done without horses and any fuss. You can see Wooz standing by the gate of the pen….she simply calls “whoo whoo” or something like that…and they eventually wander in. I’m standing inside the pen so they understand where they’re going. They need to turn in to me and not go straight toward the camera and another pasture. Of course, not everyone gets the…
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Add to bragging….
….(see below for Take One). And a grandson who just graduated from the Marine Corps Officer Candidate School at Quantico!
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We’re from the government….
….and we’re here to help you. Not. For the small farmer, government is the gift that keeps on taking. Now the bureaucrats have come up with a whole bunch of new regulations which, boiled down, threaten “to destroy” some operations. Not my words. A former USDA exec. What the government wants is more reports…just what it needs…more paperwork. Of course that means more bureaucrats and more ways we can make a mistake on a form and get a fine. Just doing it right—which they will intentionally make difficult—will cost Thistle Hill almost $5000! Here’s the story: http://www.iowafarmertoday.com/news/opinion/proposed-regs-threaten-local-food/article_d7dba40c-eefa-11e2-8dc5-0019bb2963f4.html Meanwhile, the torment continues for that Wisconsin farmer who dared to sell raw…
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Red wine shortage strikes eastern US….
….which can only mean that Jim Gerrish and I have been at the Thistle Hill cellars again. We call it a consultancy and from time to time I think we saw one of our cows, but mostly we ponder big strategic questions over Google Earth with a glass of red to clear our thinking. Actually, it is Jim who got us into Devon, rescued our pastures, and about once a year puts us back on track. This year we re-arranged some pasture layouts, plotted a few water lines, adjusted the grazing schedule and debated the future (ours’ not his). He did particularly like our young two year old bulls. Always…