First, for my American friends, Happy Thanksgiving. Whether we have met, or not, I want you to know how grateful I am to have you in my life. There are no hard and fast rules about friendship. It is not necessary to meet the other person, it is not necessary to speak face to face; at least that has been my experience. I have online friends who I consider to be true friends and yes, that is remarkable and yes, I am thankful for you all.
And now, without further delay, an update on my life.
I have been parked at this farm school for over a year now, still in my 21’ trailer, still acting as caretaker evenings and weekends, still feeding animals. Bev is still on her son’s farm, two miles away, still in her bus “Freedom,” and we see each other practically every single day. In fact, we have some pretty cool projects happening now, and more coolness will be happening in 2025.
Within the next two months we will have completed a rather large project, the building of the hügelkultur and the digging of a pond. Those two sections will border the butterfly garden, which we also created this past summer. Eventually, the hügelkultur will be four feet tall, allowing us to plant while standing up, and the pond, at its deepest point, will be about six feet deep.
As spring approaches, we will dig out a new vegetable garden. We also have plans to plant tree seedlings and sell them this summer. We are going to incubate about sixty chicken eggs from January through March, adding to the flock. And we have plans to open a farm stand at the top of the driveway and sell fresh cut flowers, fresh eggs, baby chicks, and a variety of other things we produce.
This winter we will have two workshops/camps. One will be mainly Bev teaching about the Pacific Crest Trail for people who are thinking of taking on that thru hike; the other workshop will be a day-long lesson on permaculture and sustainable living in today’s modern society.
This summer things will really kick into gear. We will have three week-long summer camps for kids, teaching them all manner of natural things, survival in nature, finding food, shelter, etc. We also have five other workshops (one day each) planned on things like raising chickens in the city, starting your own orchard, what is a modern goat farm like, and other classes along those lines.
And somehow, I am determined to take a few road trips once winter fades and spring shows promise.
Did I forget anything? Probably, but that will give you a feel for what the next nine months hold in store for me and Bev.
Questions?
Again, Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
Bill
