distilled knowledge

thirty years of farming, in several countries, and a couple continents, results in nothing less than premium, distilled knowledge.  factoids and insights have evolved drip by drip over the decades into a mighty river of knowledge.  in this video Ronald Donkervoort, farmer and owner of Windmill Farm, is comically describing the potentially unfunny life of a farmer who doesn’t own, but leases, the land that he farms.

a couple weeks ago I described my conversation with puerto rican cheflebrity wilo benet, whose casual conversation was filled with distilled knowledge and hard-earned lessons as well.  when these proven veterans speak off the cusp their words land on the shores of my ears like mighty bombs of wisdom—resonating through the folds of my brain like a rippling quake.  finding a brain nook, settling into permanent formation, and inspiring the ever flowing, ever cycling, ever changing thought processes of a young farmer clearing his way through the foggy brush. 

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ecofarm, farm tours

it’s almost too much to wrap my head around.  too much intake.  not enough brain space.

three full buses, four incredibly different farms, and about a thousand questions over one nine hour nonstop day.  I have long known that visiting other people’s farming operations is one of the most valuable uses of my time, and today certainly lived up to that belief.  over the next couple days I will share stories, videos, and photos from four very different farms, but for now I’ll just give the overview.

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janfebruary

there's just way too many things happening this week for the internet to know about it.  sometime soon you'll hear tales from the west coast, and details about two life changing opportunities which are on the horizon.  postings will be sporadic while the dust settles.

february is upon us, and farming has begun.  people gotta order seeds and order baby birds.  fix sheds, put up plastic, design crop plans, secure markets, and get each and every duck in a row.  ambitions are strong, and the energy is high.  

moving to portlandia

holy hilarious.  check out the clip from fred armisen's (snl) new show about portland--the city where young people go to retire, and the grunge rock dream of the nineties is still a reality.  i watched the first episode last week on hulu, but it looks like it officially aired this week on ifc.  i can't wait to see episode two. 

wilo benet, her mom, and i (hoc)

some chefs, and some places, are hard to think about seperately.  it’s the puerto rican version of sitting down at a restaurant in napa and having t. keller pull up a chair and spend a half hour shooting the shit.  meet wilo benet.  big chef, little island.  benet’s restaurant pikayo has long been considered one of the best, and his status as chef has overflowed like the many other name brand chefs in the states to cookbooks, kitchenware lines, sister restaurants, and in ‘oh nine, his own brand of wine grown in the delicious and storied rioja d.o.c.

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la chakra eco village, twenty minutes outside san juan, puerto rico

last week on a trip to visit her family in puerto rico, we had the awesome opportunity to visit a farm managed by her cousin alberto.  the farm was developed as an eco village—a small scale, self supported, sustainable living environment for a small group of people.  with the exception of one existing structure, everything on the property--from the conference room where they screen documentaries and held events for the community, to their ovens, and their tools—was handmade using only their natural surroundings (earth, wood, and plants).  after several years of hard labor and the intense emotional strain of developing a cooperative living environment with a diverse group of people, alberto toured us around his farm for what will be the very last time.  after all the hard work, the farm’s landowner is looking to sell the property, and they can no longer afford to lease the land.

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