Hours later (with the help of Dustin, who can build anything out of anything!), they turned into a new coop for my babies.

Presenting: Chateau Bawk Bawk

front view of the new coop

hooks hold the romantic lights, burlap with plastic keep the rain out

a sand-blasted manzanita branch

wood from my fence, a client's fence, and driftwood from a trip to Port Townsend

happy bawk bawks, checking out my stock of plants

Yesterday in the early evening, I drove down to my farm to unload some flats of tomatoes and lavender I bought from the nursery. I normally wouldn’t drive all the way down to the farm to just unload a couple flats, but it was the tail end of a shit-tastic week and driving south tends to help my mood, in the event I’m feeling less than great. I slowed my truck on the driveway, which made that fabulous crunching sound, which for some reason reminds me of Fall no matter what time of year it actually is. I pulled the flat of Lavender out of the back of my truck, and placed it at the end of the newly mowed planting strip. The field had been cover cropped in early Fall, and now was a bona fide meadow, just under knee high with favas, mustard, thistle and little wisps of grass leaves. I walked through the field and surveyed how everything was doing; herbs like lavender, thyme, sage and rosemary were thriving in their little mulched beds. The ground was hissing with a beautiful cacophony of bugs moving from mowed section to meadow, probably somewhat displaced but happy to be soaking in the last bit of sun for the day. I walked back down the driveway, and thought about getting in my truck to drive home. Instead, I thought it best to nap on the driveway, next to the field. The flat of thyme I forgot to plant the day before made a wonderful pillow for the next hour.

I’m guessing from this website he’s a Pacific Ring-necked Snake. Mildly venomous and delightfully colorful, we all instantly stopped what we were doing to poke and coo over our new little mascot. Once we were done scaring each other with him we put him safely in a wood pile where he acted dead, coiled into himself in self defense. Once we went away I’m guessing he slowly eased up and slithered in between the rough branches of the pile, finding himself a cool and protected place to rest from the days events. Hopefully he isn’t scared away for good and will show himself from time to time..

You talkin' about my Mama?!?!

One of my favorite org’s Sustainable Harvest is offering a great Mother’s Day gift… For yo Mama and another person’s Mama!!

“When you give a Gift of Hope, we send your recipient a beautiful, specially-designed notecard, and your support provides farming families in Central America with the tools and training they need to preserve the environment while improving their standard of living. For a limited time, when you order a Gift of Hope valued at $45 or more in honor of Mother’s Day, we will send a free, hand-made Honduran doll. Please order by Sunday, May 2.”

…………… Hey, it’s better than that crappy doily or hand made sea shell picture frame you were going to get her!

Ummmm, LOVES IT!

How fabulous is this!?

The other weekend I was at the Ferry Building in SF, doing my normal troll of all things fabulous. Really, if you haven’t been there – go! It’s pretty much like Mecca for those of us whose God is food. Yes, you will have to go early to avoid the dreaded mom’s with their entourage of strollers – or those coffee lunatics who create a line with as much depth and length comparable to the great wall of China – but beyond that, it’s fabulous.

Once I got my peas from Louie, some flowers from Cypress Farms, and all the cheese I can get my hands on from Cowgirl Creamery, I drifted over to my fav part of the market. You see, vegetables are great and everything but chocolates are better, and they are located inside.  But it was the mushroom stand that had these fiddlehead ferns for sale. They are commonly used for cooking, but I’d love them just to keep in a bowl in my kitchen. Gorgeous.

Those assholes trying to ruin the environment and our health at the same time Monsanto has been trying to pass genetically modified alfalfa to the USDA. This has incredibly horrendous effects on our organic food industry as a whole.

Please take (literally) 10 seconds to sign the petition and help stop this pending approval.

Go to Food Democracy Now to sign. Thanks!

2010 New Year’s Resolution: Boycott Chemical & GMO Foods, Eat Organically

Organic foods, especially raw or non-processed, contain higher levels of beta carotene, vitamins C, D and E, health-promoting polyphenols, cancer-fighting antioxidants, flavonoids that help ward off heart disease, essential fatty acids, and essential minerals.

“On the average, organic food is 25% more nutritious in terms of vitamins and minerals than products derived from industrial agriculture. Since on the average, organic food’s shelf price is only 20% higher than chemical food, this makes it actually cheaper, gram for gram, than chemical food, even ignoring the astronomical hidden costs (damage to health, climate, environment, and government subsidies) of industrial food production. Levels of antioxidants in milk from organic cattle are between 50% and 80% higher than normal milk. Organic wheat, tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, onions and lettuce have between 20% and 40% more nutrients than non-organic foods.”

For more info and to jump start your resolution, check out www.organicconsumers.org

70% of the processed food we eat is genetically modified. The coffee you drink at Starbucks. The meat you eat almost anywhere. And almost 90% of what you buy from Safeway – including gum, toothpaste, and diapers. For more info watch this movie.

Get ready to cry and barf at the same time.

A couple of clicks makes a huge difference. Come on! Dooo it!

Along the same vein as the post below about greenwashing… every one’s trying to get their dirty hands on organic labels. The organic symbol is supposed to show us good from evil – but with ever varying definitions of organic, it’s been convoluted to say the least. Click above to do your part on keeping organic labeling Organic!

The Farm-Vet Coalition information:

The Farmer-Veteran Coalition seeks to help our returning veterans find employment, training, and places to heal on America’s farms. At the same time the Coalition hopes that some of these young men and women may help address our country’s critical need for more good, hard-working people entering the field of agriculture.

The coalition is acutely aware of the high number of soldiers entering the military from our rural communities and the need to improve both job opportunities and veteran services in these areas. We believe that our family farms, the sustainable farming movement and growing support for local and regional agriculture could all be well served by people already accustomed to hard work, discipline and dedication. If given the opportunity, our returning veterans can benefit from and help to stimulate the growing green economy, even in these hard times.

Our goal is to start with an initial program focused in California, and move quickly into a national organization.

The organization will hold strictly to being politically neutral and take no position on the war.