Enriching food with supplements is not as complete of a solution as enriching soil, then feeding food grown from that soil to ill patients. To paraphrase the Frenchman, taking supplements completely misses the wholeness of eating. Following this logic, every doctor in the world should participate in farming as an extension of their craft.
Read MoreI like to help Dad with the grassfed herd. He covers a LOT of territory in a day, though, and that makes it tough for my short legs to keep up.
Queue my Mom Engine.
Read MoreI got a fort. Aunt Kate and Uncle BJ went on an adventure and retrieved the structure to be assembled in our yard. When it arrived I was pretty confused; Mom got me up from a nap and there were planks and sturdy supports scattered in front of the house.
Read MoreYou can imagine my excitement, then, when Dad surprised me on a warm day last week. He rooted long wooden poles out of the barn and flipped over a metal igloo that’s been sitting near the water’s edge for my entire life. Guess what? IT FLOATS!
Read MoreAnother update (Farm Dog Friday will follow later today, don't worry!):
Our Core Goods beef delivery today has been rescheduled for next Friday, March 27, because we don't have any extra beef to sell. We sent additional cattle to help fill the void, so more beef will be on the shelves next week.
Yes, I'm coming to Pittsburgh tomorrow. There are a significant number of orders headed to the city and I'll have limited cuts available for walk-up traffic.
Yes, we still have a few things left at the Beef Barn. Here are two things to consider:
Read MoreWhat is a farm worth?
For most people, farms aren’t worth anything; at best they’re grounds for petting zoo entertainment, at a glance they’re open tracts of land with tractors, and at worst they’re the useless and annoying stomping grounds of simple minded people who cannot guff it in the modern world.
Read MoreWe all know certain characteristics are inherited from our parents. I got my mom’s good looks and my dad’s butt.
Read MoreAnnie has a lot to learn about life around here. She’s eager to encounter every new opportunity and is ready to go at a moment’s notice.
Read MoreWhen the world seems a little too urgent and way too rigid, our customers find relief in the reality of farm life. We find new world perspectives because of our customers. The relationship is symbiotic.
Read MoreAnnie the Border Collie is in training camp. We’re drilling through the basics: Come, stay, sit, lie down. She’s learning about all the characters around here: grassfed cattle, grainfed herd, barn cats, etc.
Read MoreAt home I put my skills to work as well. Stockpiling beef is an important requirement for successful meal planning. Mom and Dad like to keep steaks in the refrigerator, but I prefer to keep them close where it’s easier to monitor the precious food stock.
Read MoreGrandpa is teaching me how to rope: make the loop, swing, swing, throw! It’s all in the wrist. Mostly I catch my legs.
Read MoreBoy is it BUSY around here! Mom and Dad and Grammy and Grandpa are all spending evenings hashing out our schedule for this summer. Between barn dinners, farm tours, our fledgling wedding venue, and open mic nights, it seems like every day is booked solid during the warm months. Planning is hard on everyone. I prefer to opt out of the discussions.
Read MoreGuess what? WE WENT SLEDDING!! Mom has been telling me about sliding along the snow, and her descriptions made me curious. This week the snow came down and the sleds came out of the shed at Grammy and Grandpa’s house. Of course, when they asked if I wanted to go for a ride, my response was a definite ‘yes’!
Read MoreI submit that the official definition of farmland is misleading. If farmland is accepted as simply ‘land for farming’, non-farmers, naturally, needn’t concern themselves with it. Changing the definition has profound effects on the value of terrain proximate to our homes: Farmland is FOOD.
Read MoreMy dad talks about the future a lot. Just like his dad, everything he does today is laser-focused on laying down groundwork for me to carry on tomorrow. It’s interesting listening to my parents speculate while we eat dinner; I gather that there is a large body of people who think everything we do is destroying the climate, and they’re bent on eliminating our way of life in hopes of replacing it with…carrots? I’m not sure. Probably carrots.
Read MorePeople my age find it nearly impossible to get on in the field of agriculture without encountering the subject of money. Our elders tell us we need a lot to get started, we’ll never make any while we’re working, and we better get out while we still have some.
Read MorePerfect for the food lover in your life, Clarion Farms hats and shirts are stocking stuffers that create a local style. Represent real beef and promote our wondrous region at the same time!
Read MoreI’m contentedly stuffed. We ate well today; all the family favorites were represented in abundant quantities and seconds were verbally refused but physically loaded on to waiting plates.
Read MoreIf you pull in the driveway today and notice a migration of cattle walking through the yard, fear not: the grassfed herd will be moving directly past the Beef Barn and across the road to new pasture today. Maybe you'll get to watch the action!
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