Well, unfortunately i havent been able to really update very much. no internet... except for about an hour a week when we go to chico to do the farmers market and i get to take a break and go to a little coffee shop. today im in quincy- frank is doing a talk at the sustainability conference and im at this coffee place called pangaeas. uploaded some pics on facebook, and a video, and crept, so now i dont have much time to post before frank and sally come to get me. i want to walk down to the food co-op too. so this will be a really short post, though i may do another longer one tomorrow in chico.
things you should know: been wearing LOTS of layers recently, because the temp. dropped about 35 degrees in two days. and rain on top of that. COLD! had a fire in a wood-burning stove in my room, that made it cozy/unbelievably hot. i like that stove though... kinda want one.
been drying lots of fruit lately... too much. warning: if you eat too much dried fruit you will get sick. 5 little dried peaches is the equiv. of about 2.5 peaches. concentrated. gas....
also if you leave things too long in a dehydrator, they will get cripsy. and gross. BUT! you can rehydrate them by sprinkling water in the bag, sealing it, and setting it near a warmish spot (like the dehydrator!)
also- fresh fruits from the yard make AMAZING desserts! like apple crisp, and plum jam with walnuts. in addition to this, i need to learn baking skills, how to make pastry shells, how to make bread, maybe even how to grow and grind grain. good real bread is amazing, everyone. REAL BREAD! i cant eat bleached and processed bread anymore... call me a snob, but i wont do it!
another thing- i love tree frogs, and counted 23 one morning while watering the little greenhouse and the garden. they like to hide in the stalks of corn, and turn awesome colors, like neon green and copper. they are SO CUTE!
i miss social life. i miss friends and doing things with people- im kinda sick of being on the farm with JUST FRANK mon-thur when sally is at work. otherwise.. just frank and sally. and me. and sarah the dog. in the middle of nowhere. no car or computer... no friends.... yikes!! its been good, but i am ready to be a young socialite again. ( was i ever a socialite?) though ive learned some coooool stuff while at this farm. namely, i want to grow fruit and make bread... and get in to fermenting and preserving foods. and eating whole foods... i.e. raw milk and butter. make my own cheese? maybe. have a dog like sarah that doesnt come inside and hasnt had a bath in 6 years? again, maybe.
i LOVE pears. namely seckel pears. people who dont eat pears are missing out.
ok, more tomorrow from chico. chico is cool by the way, lots of interest in local foods and holistic farming/etc. interesting people. like beekeepers and breadmakers and whatnot. hippy artists and old women with longgg hair and girls who dont shave their legs. some people think thats cool. others dont.
ok, farewell until tomorrow!! i do love california. i want to go backpacking on the pacific crest trail next summer. hopefully i will have a boyfriend (attractive) by then to go with me. if not, maybe just a friend (boring) or family member (even more boring).
just kidding! bye!
Friday, October 7, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Blueberries and Lavender and More Blueberries
Hello! I am almost two weeks in at my little farm internship here in California. Berry Creek, California at Green Cedar Farm. What's that you say? I should have written before? Well, yes, I would have been updating the past couple weeks, but as it turns out there is no internet at Green Cedar Farm. Nor do I really have much phone reception. Nor a car. And- it worked out so that I am the only intern. So I basically live in the middle of nowhere with the couple that owns the farm (age 60-65). QUITE a different lifestyle than I'm used to. Not gonna lie, it's been a little bit difficult. I miss young people... and even though I like the couple (Frank and Sally) it's weird that they're my only company. and i can't leave the property unless I go somewhere with them. It's a bit confining. I will probably only stay until early october. I doubt I could handle 3 full months here. It feels like I've been here a month already, and it's been less than 2 weeks...
But! There are some cool things. The farm is really neat. They have a large garden for their own use, and then orchards that they sell produce from at the Quincy and Chico farmers markets. I've been to the Quincy one only so far. It's a cute little town, and the markets pretty small and theres kids running around and stuff, and a band that plays. i like it actually. people loveee the blueberries from green cedar. thats for sure... thats what ive spent a lot of time doing- picking blueberries. its kinda fun, but youre under the blueberry nets and kinda hunched, or sitting. and in the really crowded blueberry bunches, little earwig bugs are hiding. they... are disgusting. really shiny, prehistoric looking, with pincers. i hate them. i saved a praying mantis that was stuck in the blueberry nets (though i think he perished later...), and a lizard, and helped to get 2 finches who were inside the nets get out. the nets kinda cause a problem for the wildlife.. but i guess otherwise the birds would get all the bluebs. ive also started some seeds for the winter veggies, picked some apples, thinned the apple trees (which is literally taking off apples and throwing them on the ground... apparently this is a common and healthy practice! still seems wasteful...), water the garden and the little greenhouse (really just a shelf of young plants with a screen over it), packed blueberries, picked lavender, gone to farmers markets, cooked a little. farm work. theres a lot left to learn... we hiked up the ridge behind the farm the other evening, it was realllllly pretty. and yesterday hiked the middle fork, down to this really pretty river with huge white rocks you could lay on and cliffs. it was a really cool place. its been fun, but i just think it would be a little MORE fun if one or two other young interns were on the farm as well... someone else to talk to besides ol f & s (frank & sally). they are cool people though, for sure. frank read the one straw revolution (which i strangely also read a year or so ago, and it definitely changed my view of things) and was inspired by it to have a very natural farm. their products are organic, but he also tries to work with the land, keep native vegetation around to inspire native insects and decomposers and birds and stuff, and kind of count on them to keep the ecosystem intact (rather than devastating it and wiping out the biodiversity, as most farms do). he pays close attention to this soil and makes sure its healthy and wont erode away and leach to useless dust, which i like alot. and we eat every night with fruits from the orchard and veggies from the garden! i like that alot. a love watching the stuff i've planted getting bigger, and making crisps from blueberries that i picked, and all that. its really cool, but i see that running a farm is a LOT of work. youve got to keep up with it and constantly be doing chores, checking on your plants, etc. and its been weird being so out of touch with people, not having a computer and not having great phone service, and being busy most of the day. im sure its a good thing overall, but its a little depressing sometimes being so distant from everyone. i definitely miss my family and friends and homeeee and athens. and being a college kid. and of course im worried what im going to do after this. if i go home in 6 weeks--- then i have an infinite amount of time in alpharetta at my parents house in from of me. ummm no.. i am thinking about grad schools, but that wont be until a year from now, at the earliest. so what to do between now and then? i realllllly want to try something abroad, but this internship has showed me that i need to be around people, and not too isolated. so yea, i need to figure that out, but i guess for now i should just focus on being here and getting the most out of it that i can. and a lot of it i really enjoy. ive got my own little guest house. we eat dinners together every night. they have a screened in room just for meals. i like their dog sarah, i love the garden, the hikes have been pretty, and the market is fun. i hopefully will be going to chico relatively soon. i also think im going to bucks lake tomorrow with frank on the way to quincy. so ya, im doing stuff. its just a big transition, which i am bad at. i was so attached to the life i had, the people in it and the place and the guy i was with- and pretty much all of that has changed. not easy, for sure. i bet a lot of my friends are having similar difficulties, though some people seem to take it better and move smoothly into their new lives. i guess i could technically go back to athens or atlanta and try to find a job. i just want to do what i really LOVE doing. which im not sure what that is yet, but im not sure i could find it in athens or atlanta. i maybe could. i realllllly want to be somewhere where i can go out and hiking, camping, swimming, kayaking on a regular basis. georgia isnt the best for that. im not sure where is. guess i will figure it out as i go along. life is definitely full of suprises. i just wonder if im too sentimental for my own good. i look back on my experiences and miss them incredibly. i remember the feeling of doing certain things and being certain places and im just like wow... i miss that. the whole situation. the surroundings, the people, the smells and all that kind of stuff. and the older i get the worse it gets, because there is more to miss. living in the now is probably the best thing i could learn at this point. and enjoying what im doing, because when i look back at stuff, i think how awesome my life is, how much fun ive had, all the cool stuff ive done. and a lot of it- i was stressed while i was doing it. not that i didnt enjoy it, but i know that i was worried or upset about something at the time, most likely. and then afterwards when im done worrying im like ooooh wow that was so fun! ok well i think i need to go, frank just walked in to the coffee shop (he was doing errands in oroville, where i am) so i think we are going back to the farm now (about 45 min drive into the hills). i need to get back to the blueberries, they miss me. they're getting in fights. ok enough of that. i will update again as soon as i have internet again. maybe ill have some more insights and thoughts. blueberry stories. a husband. who knows!
But! There are some cool things. The farm is really neat. They have a large garden for their own use, and then orchards that they sell produce from at the Quincy and Chico farmers markets. I've been to the Quincy one only so far. It's a cute little town, and the markets pretty small and theres kids running around and stuff, and a band that plays. i like it actually. people loveee the blueberries from green cedar. thats for sure... thats what ive spent a lot of time doing- picking blueberries. its kinda fun, but youre under the blueberry nets and kinda hunched, or sitting. and in the really crowded blueberry bunches, little earwig bugs are hiding. they... are disgusting. really shiny, prehistoric looking, with pincers. i hate them. i saved a praying mantis that was stuck in the blueberry nets (though i think he perished later...), and a lizard, and helped to get 2 finches who were inside the nets get out. the nets kinda cause a problem for the wildlife.. but i guess otherwise the birds would get all the bluebs. ive also started some seeds for the winter veggies, picked some apples, thinned the apple trees (which is literally taking off apples and throwing them on the ground... apparently this is a common and healthy practice! still seems wasteful...), water the garden and the little greenhouse (really just a shelf of young plants with a screen over it), packed blueberries, picked lavender, gone to farmers markets, cooked a little. farm work. theres a lot left to learn... we hiked up the ridge behind the farm the other evening, it was realllllly pretty. and yesterday hiked the middle fork, down to this really pretty river with huge white rocks you could lay on and cliffs. it was a really cool place. its been fun, but i just think it would be a little MORE fun if one or two other young interns were on the farm as well... someone else to talk to besides ol f & s (frank & sally). they are cool people though, for sure. frank read the one straw revolution (which i strangely also read a year or so ago, and it definitely changed my view of things) and was inspired by it to have a very natural farm. their products are organic, but he also tries to work with the land, keep native vegetation around to inspire native insects and decomposers and birds and stuff, and kind of count on them to keep the ecosystem intact (rather than devastating it and wiping out the biodiversity, as most farms do). he pays close attention to this soil and makes sure its healthy and wont erode away and leach to useless dust, which i like alot. and we eat every night with fruits from the orchard and veggies from the garden! i like that alot. a love watching the stuff i've planted getting bigger, and making crisps from blueberries that i picked, and all that. its really cool, but i see that running a farm is a LOT of work. youve got to keep up with it and constantly be doing chores, checking on your plants, etc. and its been weird being so out of touch with people, not having a computer and not having great phone service, and being busy most of the day. im sure its a good thing overall, but its a little depressing sometimes being so distant from everyone. i definitely miss my family and friends and homeeee and athens. and being a college kid. and of course im worried what im going to do after this. if i go home in 6 weeks--- then i have an infinite amount of time in alpharetta at my parents house in from of me. ummm no.. i am thinking about grad schools, but that wont be until a year from now, at the earliest. so what to do between now and then? i realllllly want to try something abroad, but this internship has showed me that i need to be around people, and not too isolated. so yea, i need to figure that out, but i guess for now i should just focus on being here and getting the most out of it that i can. and a lot of it i really enjoy. ive got my own little guest house. we eat dinners together every night. they have a screened in room just for meals. i like their dog sarah, i love the garden, the hikes have been pretty, and the market is fun. i hopefully will be going to chico relatively soon. i also think im going to bucks lake tomorrow with frank on the way to quincy. so ya, im doing stuff. its just a big transition, which i am bad at. i was so attached to the life i had, the people in it and the place and the guy i was with- and pretty much all of that has changed. not easy, for sure. i bet a lot of my friends are having similar difficulties, though some people seem to take it better and move smoothly into their new lives. i guess i could technically go back to athens or atlanta and try to find a job. i just want to do what i really LOVE doing. which im not sure what that is yet, but im not sure i could find it in athens or atlanta. i maybe could. i realllllly want to be somewhere where i can go out and hiking, camping, swimming, kayaking on a regular basis. georgia isnt the best for that. im not sure where is. guess i will figure it out as i go along. life is definitely full of suprises. i just wonder if im too sentimental for my own good. i look back on my experiences and miss them incredibly. i remember the feeling of doing certain things and being certain places and im just like wow... i miss that. the whole situation. the surroundings, the people, the smells and all that kind of stuff. and the older i get the worse it gets, because there is more to miss. living in the now is probably the best thing i could learn at this point. and enjoying what im doing, because when i look back at stuff, i think how awesome my life is, how much fun ive had, all the cool stuff ive done. and a lot of it- i was stressed while i was doing it. not that i didnt enjoy it, but i know that i was worried or upset about something at the time, most likely. and then afterwards when im done worrying im like ooooh wow that was so fun! ok well i think i need to go, frank just walked in to the coffee shop (he was doing errands in oroville, where i am) so i think we are going back to the farm now (about 45 min drive into the hills). i need to get back to the blueberries, they miss me. they're getting in fights. ok enough of that. i will update again as soon as i have internet again. maybe ill have some more insights and thoughts. blueberry stories. a husband. who knows!
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Jumping off bridges
I haven't jumped off a bridge in a long time. (ever?) so the title is a little irrelevant, maybe kinda metaphorical but not really, its more of a mental connection i have with the idea of jumping off bridges to how i am feeling at this particular "stage in my life" if you will.
oh, in case you were wondering (btw no one reads this, i am addressing myself), the other blog didn't really pan out. i like this one better anyway. i think people just start new things out of boredom, and then get bored with the new thing and go back to the old thing out of sentimentality.
anyways- here i sit, at the end of my college days and the beginning of everything else (though I have a real and unsettling suspicion that the world is teetering dangerously and humans with it... im not sure how much longer were all gonna make it.) but anyways--the end of an era has arrived. sadly, but in due course. i think its time. things have run their course here. but i could literally not be more satisfied with my college years. athens was.. (is)... perfect! i know it so well, love it so much, have the best memories and most intimate connections and have experienced so much growth and joy and peace (among other more negative but equally beneficial emotions) right here in the wonderful amazing town of athens. so lucky to have gotten to be a college kid here. and-though im uncertain about my career path-am THOROUGHLY convinced that warnell and the natural resource major is the absolute best decision for a degree. you get so close to other students as well as teachers (really you do), spend so much time outdoors in awesome settings, hours studying and doing labs together, learning a huuuuge variety of stuff. taking awesome field trips to coastal islands and beaches and mountains, having wildlife suppers and tws meetings with live animals, lots of pizza, lots of time together, and the most important knowledge anyone can have in opinion--how to understand and care for the natural environment and its creatures. i love animals and nature more than ever, more than anything really. warnell has been the best experience ever. senior exit dinner the other night, all the seniors discussed the pros and cons of their experiences. and everyone really is like family. and we are all passionate about nature, and nerdy wildlife techniques and id'ing scat and bird calls and scientific names of trees. its very unifying.
anyways. enough of that. whats next you ask? i wish i could tell you. i...do NOT know! i suppose i will mention (for my own future benefit i guess, because as i said no one reads this) that "teeny tiny daniel" and myself are no longer a couple. as of about two weeks ago. it is very strange. sad, probably a good thing, hard to get used to, disappointing, unfinished, a part of life, anything you can think of really. it is hard to look back at my old entries and remember the blossoming of our relationship that summer in the grand canyon. and think of all weve been through since then, how close we became, all the memories and happiness (hurt, too, naturally) and be sitting here typing this now and it be over. and all the plans and ideas i had for our future be impossible now. and it also leaves me with no plans for the fall (i was planning on going to flagstaff).
Ahem--anyways, the main reason I am writing this post is because i find myself on the cusp of an adventure, a reallll adventure that i am not sure where or when or how or what will become of it. i have this weird feeling that i will never reach it, that somehow everything is ending now and that i will not actually ever be in a new place with a new life and new ideas. maybe its because school is ending, people are leaving, my relationship ended, and i dont know whats coming. i HOPE at least, and not that i have end-of-world foresight. this summer i will be in athens, working with a grad student on fresh-water mussell research (at least i think thats still on...), and then.... UNKNOWN! alone. was hoping id venture to a new land and have a little you know who by my side... but i guess the essence of life is that it is a mystery.
alas, to bed. gotta do a take-home final tomorrow (really? still...??) and work on my thesis (..... guujhhhhh). these are the days!!!!
"Love will not betray you, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free."
(song of the day- Sigh No More, Mumford & Sons)
oh, in case you were wondering (btw no one reads this, i am addressing myself), the other blog didn't really pan out. i like this one better anyway. i think people just start new things out of boredom, and then get bored with the new thing and go back to the old thing out of sentimentality.
anyways- here i sit, at the end of my college days and the beginning of everything else (though I have a real and unsettling suspicion that the world is teetering dangerously and humans with it... im not sure how much longer were all gonna make it.) but anyways--the end of an era has arrived. sadly, but in due course. i think its time. things have run their course here. but i could literally not be more satisfied with my college years. athens was.. (is)... perfect! i know it so well, love it so much, have the best memories and most intimate connections and have experienced so much growth and joy and peace (among other more negative but equally beneficial emotions) right here in the wonderful amazing town of athens. so lucky to have gotten to be a college kid here. and-though im uncertain about my career path-am THOROUGHLY convinced that warnell and the natural resource major is the absolute best decision for a degree. you get so close to other students as well as teachers (really you do), spend so much time outdoors in awesome settings, hours studying and doing labs together, learning a huuuuge variety of stuff. taking awesome field trips to coastal islands and beaches and mountains, having wildlife suppers and tws meetings with live animals, lots of pizza, lots of time together, and the most important knowledge anyone can have in opinion--how to understand and care for the natural environment and its creatures. i love animals and nature more than ever, more than anything really. warnell has been the best experience ever. senior exit dinner the other night, all the seniors discussed the pros and cons of their experiences. and everyone really is like family. and we are all passionate about nature, and nerdy wildlife techniques and id'ing scat and bird calls and scientific names of trees. its very unifying.
anyways. enough of that. whats next you ask? i wish i could tell you. i...do NOT know! i suppose i will mention (for my own future benefit i guess, because as i said no one reads this) that "teeny tiny daniel" and myself are no longer a couple. as of about two weeks ago. it is very strange. sad, probably a good thing, hard to get used to, disappointing, unfinished, a part of life, anything you can think of really. it is hard to look back at my old entries and remember the blossoming of our relationship that summer in the grand canyon. and think of all weve been through since then, how close we became, all the memories and happiness (hurt, too, naturally) and be sitting here typing this now and it be over. and all the plans and ideas i had for our future be impossible now. and it also leaves me with no plans for the fall (i was planning on going to flagstaff).
Ahem--anyways, the main reason I am writing this post is because i find myself on the cusp of an adventure, a reallll adventure that i am not sure where or when or how or what will become of it. i have this weird feeling that i will never reach it, that somehow everything is ending now and that i will not actually ever be in a new place with a new life and new ideas. maybe its because school is ending, people are leaving, my relationship ended, and i dont know whats coming. i HOPE at least, and not that i have end-of-world foresight. this summer i will be in athens, working with a grad student on fresh-water mussell research (at least i think thats still on...), and then.... UNKNOWN! alone. was hoping id venture to a new land and have a little you know who by my side... but i guess the essence of life is that it is a mystery.
alas, to bed. gotta do a take-home final tomorrow (really? still...??) and work on my thesis (..... guujhhhhh). these are the days!!!!
"Love will not betray you, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free."
(song of the day- Sigh No More, Mumford & Sons)
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