Tree damage August 23

A number of storm systems moved through Manitoba yesterday, neither of us were home but we arrived home to a farm with far less trees standing!  Janelle's parents' south of Oak Lake got an hour of crop-destroying hail, which is devastating.  Both of our gardens were ok, no hail and some much-needed rain.  It could always be worse!  The power was out and it appears Hydro was here, they are pretty used to shovelling trees off our power lines every storm!

The house yard was hit the hardest:

This poplar knocked down a spruce tree on the way down

Panorama of the yard-- trees down at the corner of the driveway, two in front yard, a big one in back, and two beside the tractor.  The house is fine (bathroom window blew in), Mountain Ash and all the other new trees we planted are fine, and the tractor survived!

These trees were courteous and avoided the newly planted Mountain Ash!

A limb on top of tree #3 along the driveway

South of the house

Our firepit is under there somewhere.  Haven't used it this year anyway!

Two big limbs on the fence

View down the driveway

Oh, good-- Judith's windchime survived!!

The IH and tunnel are ok!  A big tree south of them came down.  The tunnel said, "F this!" and closed itself.  Good work, tunnel, good work!

JonandTeri.com Origins

I have always kept a blog.  It began as a completely private diary-type, and evolved to follow me through my various jobs.  I find it a good way to keep a record of what I am doing and an excellent way to store photos, which never get printed off anymore and usually end up lost on some long-forgotten USB key or external hard drive.  A trend I have noticed is that lots of people start blogs and then never write on them, and then spend their whole time writing apologizing for not writing more often.  So, I'm not going to do that!

I write less in the summer not because things aren't moving forward on our property, but just due to lack of time.  I LOVE to write and so anything I do write is to practice the art of writing, and to share with friends, family, and followers of our farming journey what we are up to. I get to do all the writing I can fit in for summer every week on the Brown Sugar Produce blog when I post the weekly Veggie Lovers' Club bag contents- read the week 6 post, hot off the press Here!  I started jonandteri.com when Jon and I started growing and selling Salad Mix in Nova Scotia.  The original site was hosted through Harvest Hand, a really excellent Nova Scotia CSA software that I was using at work, and is still available here: http://grownbyjonandteri.harvesthand.com/
The site evolved to a personal blog when we decided to move to Manitoba.  I wanted a space where we could keep our friends in NS updated with what we were doing following the big move.  A facebook page naturally evolved from this also: facebook.com/jonandteri
We call it "Jon and Teri's Farming Journey" because it follows our path to and through farming, and all the things in between.  It is certainly a winding road: things happen like all your buildings burning down and then your plans have to change.  Everything happens for a reason and the best lesson I have learned in 2016 is that you can't get too attached to anything on this earth, for it is all changing and shifting all the time.  A farm is an evolution, and being a farmer means being adaptable and constantly growing and considering and critiquing oneself.  It's the best fitting definition of a journey that I can think of!

Things are good at our place.  The hens are laying tons of eggs and enjoying daily veggie scraps from the field.  Our field is gorgeous with some recently tilled in cover crops, but it is very dry.  The crops look fine and the corn is coming along great but someone has found it and is helping themselves (raccoon or deer).  The sunflowers just started blooming, Jon's idea was to grow sunflowers for the markets this year and they are BEAUTIFUL.  Dad is combining now, so the cleanup is on pause.  Jon has asked to go down to 4 days a week to facilitate taking down the greenhouse we bought from Patmore's on top of his already full of fieldwork schedule.  We will likely not get a building up this year, but maybe.  We will definitely not get the greenhouse up this year as there is a building in it's destined place that needs to come down first.  It's a bit of a mess, but we hope to at least get the power upgraded so we can ditch the stupid oil furnace and re-power the one building we have left and modify it for winter tractor storage.  Dad picked up a tiller so we now have one at each farm which is great.  We moved the International 1952 farm truck to a different spot out of the way of cleanup and will cover the back and turn it into a storage area for supplies for the tunnel, as it is now parked just outside of it.  Lots to do, lots changing, lots of progress!

So, follow us on Facebook for infrequent summer updates & photos of what we are doing, and I will post here when I find some spare moments and the urge to do more writing than the bare minimum!

Cleanup has begun!

Cleanup of the fire has begun!  We had to wait until all the insurance was wrapped up before anything could happen.  It's been a long 9 weeks living with a pile of burned rubble in the farmyard.  For the first week we couldn't even look at it.  By week two we felt numb, and by now we've gotten used to it!

We are immensely fortunate to have my Dad Paul to help with cleaning up all the burned metal, concrete that needs to be removed, pieces of buildings and incinerated vehicles and equipment.  I don't know what we'd do otherwise, as we don't have the equipment or time to deal with this.  My Dad used to do this for hire after he retired, it is ridiculously hard work and he stopped doing it after the price of steel tanked. 

The second photo is a visitor we just had this morning.  We often see deer tracks in the yard but rarely see them.

Ownership

"Ownership. Property. This is mine. This is yours. Do you think you own anything? You don’t. Ownership is an illusion. So is property. Why? Because all the things you use are only used by you temporarily before they are passed on or thrown away. Be it food, clothing, cars, property, furniture, cell phones, air, water. You never say to anyone ‘Don’t breathe here! This air is mine!’. Of course not. Air is still free, and no one claims to own it. Water is also in a large degree free, but is becoming more and more privatized. Food, clothing, cars and land has become utterly privatized. Still. You don’t, and never will own anything of it.

You use it.

You don’t own it.

At best, all you can say about ownership is that ‘this is in my possession now and as long as I am using it’. That is the most ‘ownership’ there is. Everything that you ‘own’ is only ‘yours’ temporarily. It is only borrowed or rented. Your food goes into you and comes out again. So does the water. Even your body is on loan. When you die it goes back into the circulation. Ownership is an illusion. Still, it’s an illusion bought by humanity. But it is no more than an agreement that say’s that ‘ok, we will have a system here that gives some the right to claim vast resources of the planet for themselves, while others get nothing’."  http://www.theresourcebasedeconomy.com/2010/12/you-never-really-own-anything/

 In an hour, when the time changes from 8:59 to 9:00, the "ownership" of Myrah Farm officially transfers from Sherman Myrah to Jon and Teri Jenkins on paper.  Nothing else changes.  We continue to steward the property that we have come to love over the past 14 months, and become a piece of the history of this place, which will be carried into the future and stewarded by someone else when we are gone.

I've been thinking a lot about ownership and possession a lot this week.  It's a human social construct that really means nothing.  I believe that we can't really ever own anything, that we just use it for a time and it's our duty to take the best care of it that we can.  It's why I believe in certified organic production, it's why we plant trees and tend our property, it's what drives us to do the best that we can and make decisions in the best interest of the long-term for this little piece of prairie paradise. 

The better half of Myrah Farm went back into the earth two months ago on April 30th, which was a hard lesson in ownership.  There was nothing we could do about it but figure out a way to move forward.  Someone owning the buildings didn't stop fire from taking them.  We do our best, but can't argue with the natural order and mother nature's prerogative. 

So, when the time changes to 9:00 this morning, we officially take this farm under our wing and take responsibility for doing the best we can to steward the land into the future.  We are endlessly proud to be able to be here, to have this beautiful piece of property and most of all, the relationships that have come from it.  Sherman and Sheri are like family and we are grateful for every moment that we have them, and this farm, in our lives.  We look forward to a long future together, and I thank you, reader, for being interested in following our farming journey into it's next chapter!

Dawn 'til Dusk

One can't complain about working from dawn 'til dusk when you get to see this!

One of the things I love and missed most about Manitoba is the big sky.  It's something that you can't properly describe or explain until someone sees it.  The flat prairie acts as a foil and makes it seem like the sky just goes on and on and on.  You can watch a storm coming for miles and miles -- Or, as Paul says, "You can watch your dog run away for days!"

Give me the prairies over the seaside or the mountains any day.  I'm a prairie girl!

Jon just headed out the door to start his first day at his new job.  He's never aspired to be a feed mill warehouse supervisor, but we are hoping he enjoys it and it works for him.  He's disappointed that he won't be growing anything or working with plants, but I am jealous because he'll get to meet all the farmers in the area! 
It's a little piece of continuity-- my Mom, Aunty Jayne and Uncle Calvin all worked at Feed-Rite when they were younger than I am now, Calvin moved up in the company and had a long career there, which ironically led to him hiring Dale, who hired Jon.  It's all a big circle!

The farm looks great right now.  As of Friday at 9 am, I believe it is officially ours.  The lawyers still have to do some stuff - complicated, expensive lawyer stuff - so I'm not sure about all that, but I have gotten insurance.  Can't be without insurance, that much is clear to me!

Auntie Joan had a good note on ownership.  We don't feel any different now that the farm is "ours" versus when it was Sherman's.  Joan says: "I think the natives are right on this issue.   We don’t really own anything here.   I feel like that with my Italian violin.  We are only stewards for awhile and one tries to look after it as well as possible."  That's definitely exactly how I feel.  We will look after this piece of land for a while the best we can so it can continue into the future.  We're just one piece of it's long history, and grateful that we had some overlap and could get to know the family who looked after it before us.

We bought a ride on lawnmower from Patmore's, which is more powerful than the one we were borrowing.  It feels good to have our own things again.  We also bought a greenhouse that we will put up... sometime.  It needs to be taken down and so I'm not sure when Jon will fit that in.  He's done it before, thank goodness, so knows the process.  LABEL EVERYTHING! 

So, we keep rollin' along.  Mom and Dad are attending a wedding this weekend in Banff and so I'm on my own and looking forward to it!  I wish we could do something fun for Canada Day, but I need to tend the greenhouse and weed the onions.  Been working dawn until dusk and thriving on it.  It feels like we're finally kicking the weeds' butts, but give it 2 days and they'll be ahead again. 


Bye for now!

Teri :)

So punny shower card

The barracudas commissioned me to make this card for my cousin's fiancee's shower that we are attending today.  They told me a month ago, but it's been a busy month and especially the past 2 weeks, so of course I left it until the absolute last second.  Got up early this morning and started in the dark because our power is out-- just came on a couple hours ago.  Somehow pulled this gem outta my butt -- I even amaze myself sometimes!

Last night we attending a staff wake for Patmore's, which was fun!  So many great people are/were a part of that business.  We bought one of the greenhouses, a ride on mower, and a few other items from Marci, which will be a great addition to our farm, and we are honored to continue growing in one of the greenhouses that were on the property-- you know me and continuity and history!

Yesterday at the market I finally met Darby, Sherman's grand daughter who lived in the house prior to us.  We've connected through facebook, but it was awesome to meet her in person! 

Pails and crates everywhere at Mom's... Sigh...!

We had a big wind storm Friday night (100 km/hr + gusts) and so there are trees down all over the farm.  Jon is going to start cutting them up today.  There was one across the driveway, but luckily there was an alternate route out yesterday as I had to leave extra early for market so I could shower and coffee at Mom's.  Our power was out for a little over 24 hours.  Dad and I came over yesterday afternoon to check the tunnel (totally fine), cut some trees off the lines, and feed the cat and collect eggs.  I worry so much about the place when I'm not here, especially in big winds or other weather events.  5 miles away, a neighbour's barn burned down on Thursday night.  The smell of it brings all the memories of our fire flooding back.  However, we are so over it.  It feels like life just had to clear out some shit to make room for a bunch of good stuff.  Everything has been just ticking along spectacularly since June hit, and I couldn't be happier!

On that note, I had a moment the other day when I thought: "savour these moments, this is a time you're going to look back on and think 'Man, like was sweet then!'"  All too often it's only something we realize in hindsight.  I think back to when my Auntie Joan stayed with us this spring, when we had all our buildings and Jon and I were working together at Patmore's most days, and we had a 9 - 5 schedule.  Man, life was sweet then!  It was only a couple months ago, but now Joan is back in the NL, the buildings are gone, Patmore's is closing, and the days of 9 - 5 are only a vague memory in our hectic schedules where we barely see each other.  But despite lots of changes, life is pretty darn sweet right now!

Over the hill

Yesterday was the longest day of the year, so that means the days now start getting shorter and more reasonable.  The work and the day length don't match in our business.  Now, we have light until 11 but we can usually wrap up all the tasks by 9 pm.  In August, we work from the moment the sun cracks over the horizon until I consider getting my headlamp because it's too dark to see.  I would give anything to have light until 11 in August!

I've been wanting to write for a while but haven't gotten to it.  Since I was driving home last Thursday night, floating on a high of having a really organized and awesome day getting ready for the market with the farm team.  And then, all of a sudden, a huge owl crossed my path just before I turned into the driveway.  He looked back at me with his creepy owl face as I slammed on the brakes to look at him.

We hear owls all the time, but I've only seen them about 6 times in my life, always at moments of transition or big changes.  When I see them, I feel that I am on the right path.  I'm SO not superstitious, and I pride myself, Richard Dawkins' style, on being a proud athiest.  So, I joke that owls are my spirit animal and don't really believe it, but take sightings as a reminder to reflect on where I'm at and where I'm going.  Earlier that same week, Sherman visited and brought me a beautiful vase in the shape of an owl.  He doesn't know that I love owls.  Synchronicity!

So, where I'm at: Things are rolling along so smoothly right now!  I am LOVING leading a farm team and didn't realize how much I missed managing people until I had some employees/volunteers on the farm.  It's so inspiring to me to get to know people, discover their strengths and figure out how to make the best of their talents.  I am also really looking forward to mentoring our younger staff who are new to the working world.  I credit so much of my success to my parent's work ethic and my first working experience at McDonald's, where I learned how to meet expectations and stay busy all the time.

Monday's egg harvest.  Nest boxes are working!

We had an excellent Thursday harvest day and I was home before dark.  BEFORE DARK!!  Liz and Janelle and I attacked the weeds yesterday and Andrea and I will do the same today.  Dad and I got all the cultivating and discing done, and I even changed the implement all by myself.  Sherman and Sheri visited to see the wreckage last Sunday and we had such a nice visit.  The peas are going to be ready in a few days, a few weeks ahead of schedule due to early planting and a new variety we tried this year.  The eggs are coming out SO CLEAN!!  Look!! >>
(this means no washing eggs, which is a horrible task that I am so glad to not have to do!)
Jon and I are moving forward on making a new deal for the property, so headed to the lawyers' today.

I met some of the members of the extended Frank family last week at the market, and that evening they all got together and tasted my mead, made with Geoff's recipe. Connection and history are so important to me.  It is SO COOL that Sam and I have connected and she is coming to work on the farm this year.  She is the great-niece of our neighbour Jim, whom the mead making was started for.  Dad and I intended to share it with him when the batch was finished, and reminisce about times with his uncle Geoff.  Jim was tragically killed in a car accident just before Christmas, he was our favourite neighbour, and so we are thrilled to have connected with more of the family.  Sam is the sweetest and sent me this photo, along with an email that I couldn't get through reading aloud to Jon without tearing up!  Her Mom Pam also sent a nice note, and so we have some new wonderful people in our lives!

We had a banner day at the Lady of the Lake market on Friday, the first of the season.  We had more product than ever before at the start of the season, and so many customers!  However, we were mega early so as to be prepared, there was never a lineup more than 2 deep, debit went over very well and we sold 7x more than our first market last year!  We were blown away, ran out of a lot of things, and had to go home and harvest more, which is not something we can complain about.  We are so thrilled that Brandon is so supportive of us.  Then yesterday, a customer called just to tell Mom how good the salad mix is!

On a less happy note, last week we also found out that Patmore's is closing and so Jon's job ends very soon.  After 4 years of struggling to get the business back to it's glory and much financial burden and stress, Marci and Dale sold the property which was bought by a car dealership.  So, Patmore's as a business will not even continue after 133 years.  After hearing all season about people coming in, asking their questions, and then proceeding to the Walmart garden centre, it doesn't come as a huge surprise.
The level of disrespect culminated in shoppers being lined up for 2 hours when the sale started on Saturday.  Lots of people "have lived in Brandon 18 years and never shopped here" and decided to come pick at the corpse.  It's human nature, but it makes my blood boil and I don't want any part of it.  Jon and I decided not to partake, though he did bring home a dogwood that he's been admiring all season that he was feeling sorry for after nobody bought it all weekend.  I love my husband so much!!  That he feels sorry for a bush and brings it home, he does the same with fish and stray cats.  We are fortunate to have a few trees and shrubs now on our property from this historic business, and will remember the nice time Jon had working there.  We are buying one of their greenhouses also.

Jon has been offered a new job which pays the same and also has benefits, so we will pull through this ok.

If there's one thing I've learned in the bumpy past 2 months, it's not to get too attached to anything because things are changing all the time and that's the only thing you can really count on.  Sometimes all your shit has to burn down and your husband lose his job for things to get better.

A very wise woman with lots of integrity and strength shared this quotation with me yesterday:
"We must let go of the life we have planned so as to accept the life that is waiting for us"

- Joseph Campbell

So, yeah,  Life is good and we are rollin' along pretty smoothly.  Not sleeping or eating enough but getting lots done and lots of fresh air!  We are in a pretty sweet place right now and looking forward to where things are going!