Getting Past the Brick Wall

Land acquisition, like double digging, is damn hard work.

Many of you have been following our quest to find a piece of land here in Clastop County that we could move our farm to, one that we could own, not rent, and where we could do so many of the things that you have all been asking us for:  Grow organic fruits and vegetables, more cut flowers and lavender, host classes, workshops and school tours, expand our edible plant offerings, offer a Locally Grown CSA and so much more.

Well, we have Good News and Not So Good News.

The Good News is that we are very close to being able to purchase an appropriate piece of land that will allow us to eventually do all of the above, and more.  I won't say any more about that right now so as not to jinx things.  Just keep your fingers crossed.

The Not So Good News is that in order to secure a loan to help purchase the land, we have had to go down the route that involves Taking Real Full Time Jobs in order to make these nervous bankers happy about us.  Given the economic times we are living in, it is understandable that they are nervous, but still, it is a frustration that the only effective way we could find to get around the financial brick wall that stood between us and owning a farm was to take this path. Still, it is just a detour, and our eventual destination remains the same.

I have just accepted a position as Development Director with the wonderful North Coast Land Conservancy.  It's a bit daunting to take on, but I couldn't ask for a better group of people to work with, and the opportunity to help further the cause of land conservation on the North Coast is one that I can gladly devote my time to for the foreseeable future.  In a roundabout way, their hiring me makes it possible for us to buy the land we need, so they are indirectly helping protect one more great piece of land in the county, because you know that we will devote our lives to being the best land stewards ever.   

Working to help protect such things as Old Growth Forest lands

on the North Coast will be a massive hardship, but somehow I will manage.

Packy will be expanding his baking hours at the fabulous Blue Scorcher Bakery & Cafe, even taking on some graveyard shifts so that they can get bread out of the ovens first thing in the morning, so you early bird bread fans won't have to wait until midday for your organic artisan bread fix.  Iris has also talked him into doing some cake decorating as well, and anyone who has received our anatomically correct Coho Salmon Gingerbread cookies at Christmas knows that That Boy wields a mean icing decorating bag.

Now covered in flour instead of compost, Packy's regular access to BSB cardamom rolls

fresh out of the oven will go a long way towards making non-farm time less painful.

All this makes us both happy and sad-  it will give us the opportunity to finally move forwards on our Farm Vision, but it also means that we will not be able to continue with the Farmers Markets for very much longer this season, and it is very likely that we will not be able to do them with any regularity for the next year or two.

Believe me, you cannot be any sadder about this than we are.  We have loved building up our farm business, and getting to know all of you.  It has been a great honor that so many of you have chosen to fill your gardens with our plants, brighten your homes with our flowers and thrill your cats with our catnip.

We will do everything we can to continue to grow and sell things on Some Level during this time of transition.  We will have a lot of work to do re-building our infrastructure on a new piece of land, but we actually know what we are doing now, and we know that we can do it even better this time around.  

 I know that I will not be able to stop myself from starting seeds and growing plants and flowers.  Farming feeds my soul in a way that nothing else ever has, and I will find a way to keep doing it on some level, and somehow get what we grow to you all, maybe by doing occasional farmers market drop in days, or by special order and delivery, or...?  I promise, we won't just cut you all off cold turkey.  I will grow our cool heirloom tomato plants for you all next year as well, and the great lettuce plants you love, and find a way to work some flowers into the mix somehow.

In the meantime, please keep in touch with us!  I will keep updating this blog to let you all know the latest news, and at some point we will shift to a New Blog for our New Farm, and we will link to that as well.  It is going to be a great adventure story, so stay tuned.

Thank you all for being so supportive of us over the years!  In our opinion, Oregon's North Coast is really the Best Community in the World, and we are so lucky to live here.  We are looking forward to bringing you great locally grown organic vegetables, fruit, flowers, plant starts and more in the (hopefully) not too distant future.

In her favourite spot among the work boots, Squeaky dreams of 

all the mice and voles she will be able to hunt on the New Farm.

  

Productive Distractions

Like many other human beings, when faced with some sort of Major Life Issue needing to be Dealt With,  we are prone to being distracted.  Thus, our house is never so clean as when our taxes are due.  

Now that we are deep in the throes of 'Plan B' (and Plans C-G just to be safe) on the 'Looking for a New Farm' project, we find ourselves irresistibly drawn to all the things that need to be done around the farm that are NOT filling in loan paperwork.  Naturally, the paperwork from the Farm Service is the longest and most complicated, Thank You, Uncle Sam. Then there is also the 'Looking at Other Farm Properties', in case the loans for the one we want don't work out, lots of time consuming soul-searching about what to do if our Big Dream just doesn't work out, and what are the things we are willing (and not willing) to compromise on.  You know, fun stuff like that.

Fortunately,  the Gods of Distractions are bountiful in their generosity to us.  

Not only do we have a nail-biter election going on in our country, one that really does feel like the most important one we will vote in thus far in our lifetimes (this is the one area in my life where I actually want complete change), we also have the wonderful Internets full of interesting, semi-useful and utterly irrelevant yet somehow compelling information to spend lots of time digesting.  

The on-line time does somewhat negate the mental benefit of not having television service, but I know that once this election is over the internets will all seem much less interesting to me. But for now, it is hard not to get caught up in it all, sometimes wallowing in massive indignation, such as Packy's recent observation that if the RNC had chosen to donate their funds to the purchase of our new farm instead of a new wardrobe for Sarah Palin, we would be moving right now.   The land that we had hoped (are still hoping, mostly) to buy has the potential to feed many people, educate many more in how to feed themselves, and contribute to our local economy.  It would put a beautiful piece of land, in a county with very, very few sources of locally grown food, back into agricultural production, and provide large areas for wildlife habitat as well.  Hell, even the money they paid Mrs. Palin's makeup artist would make a difference in our ability to accomplish this.  It is so painful to see an amount of money that could make the critical difference in our ability to achieve our dream casually tossed around on some snappy black boots and some cute jackets. 

As you can tell, fuming about this is a really good distraction from paperwork.

Then there is this:

For now, we are just calling her "The Kitten" or "Squeaky Cat" as she (we are pretty sure about that detail) talks a lot.  In a high little kitten voice.  It's a bit weird, because for months now, Packy and I have been saying to each other, "I wish we had a kitten!"  As the saying goes, be careful what you wish for. Packy found her down by the barn two nights ago, skinny and thirsty, and covered in tree sap, and very eager for affection.  She is familiar with houses, litter boxes (thank you, Cat Gods) and cat food.  She has obviously lived in a house, and we are going to spend some time in the next few days trying to figure out if someone around here is missing her- I would, if she were mine. She is pretty damn cute.  But, people do dump cats around here, so the farm crew may be gaining another teammate.

Eddie the Cat is not very pleased about this, but he has mostly stopped hissing at her.  We've tried to remind him that this was how he gained entry to the household too- he moved in on our cat at the time, the Late and Still Missed Elsie.  I think if the Little Kitten (that we are not claiming yet, nor getting emotionally attached to, really) calms down and stops hopping on everything and everyone and trying to eat everything and just...shuts up with the constant squawking, eventually we will all calm down and be OK with the situation, even Eddie.  Fingers Crossed.

Then there are all the fun outside distractions, many of which actually do double duty as Chores Which Really Need to Get Done Before Winter, thus making spending time on them entirely justifiable.  It has become clear to us that whatever happens next in our lives, it is probably not going to happen in time for us to start over this fall on a new piece of land.  Thus, we will need to keep renting this place next year, and as we have all these established beds, and perennial plants, and infrastructure already in place, we may as just get it all ready for another growing season.

"I'm sorry, I can't work on that paperwork right now, I must get the lavender cut back and limed!" 

 "No time for Future Income Projection Charts, I must clean out the greenhouse so that we can move in all the plants that need to go inside for the winter!"  

"I would love to be calculating our Net Worth, but I really must get all the things cut back that need to be cut back, and mulch what needs mulching, and get cover crop sown!"

We are late with everything this year, but fortunately we are having the most amazing fall- sunny, and warm even.  This is definitely helping to make up for the sheer wretchedness of this past summer.  And spring. And winter.  Although if it were possible to schedule this kind of weather next spring and summer, I would do so and gladly take the rain now.  

So, if you will excuse me now, I have Things to Get Done!  Although, given that we have an appointment with our Farm Service Representative tomorrow, there really is no way to completely avoid the paperwork today.

One day until the Farm Service Meeting.  Seven days until the Election.  New Farm Acquisition- no estimated date yet.  But we are quietly  hopeful.