RE-ENLISTING

I haven’t posted in about 10 days, which wasn’t my intention, but the onset of some excellent summer weather plus a really busy week contributed to the shirking. I’m now back from my vacation. Some updates:

- My big personal news is that I signed on for another 3-month tour of duty at the farm, albeit in a slightly different role. About 60% of my working hours now will be dedicated to blogging, getting the farm’s dormant newsletter -- The Furrow -- going again, and pursuing some other writing projects. The other 40% will be farm work. I like the mix.

- Haying continues. The potatoes are growing. The oats are being challenged by thistle and eaten by bugs. The wheat is past knee high. The lettuce in the kitchen garden has been my dinner a few nights, and the blueberries growing there are almost ready. A patch of strawberries near the old schoolhouse has yielded more strawberries than I care to eat. Walking around the farm fields today I discovered a strip of blackberry bushes I will be watching closely.

- Groups of young campers will be running around the farm the next few weeks as they learn about the animals and play games. The other day they watched as interns Peter, Matt, Ramchandra, and I brought loose hay up into the ox barn using the big claw. I was working the upstairs when a pulley slid out of position on its track. As I conducted several unsuccessful maneuvers to get everything back in order, the kids started heckling me. I like their enthusiasm.