*Ahem*, One more video...

 I promise I'll get back into my writing kick soon but this sneak peak video caught my attention and I wanted to share it. Very few people understand why on earth I would choose farming as my occupation, and I think this video explains some of the reasons. I want to provide food for people. I want a honest job in which I know that I am not harming anyone in any way through my actions. I want to know that I am being a steward to the land that the good Lord put here for us, and that my actions are not destroying what He created. My hands were born with an instinct to wield things like a hoe, or leather trace lines, or a milk pail. Farming is what I'm good at, and it's my desire and dream to pursue this passion and someday achieve the above mentioned goals. I am a farmer.

GH_Peek in Progress from The Greenhorns on Vimeo.

You can find out more about the Greenhorns movement HERE.

Sooooo... Who's Joel Salatin??

Yeah, I hear ya'. ;) I'll come out of my agrarian bubble now and do some explainin'... Actually, on second thought, I won't. Because I'm terrible at explaining things and could never do Joel justice. So here's what Polyface Farms is all about...

Now, go read some of his books!

The Unveiling...

The day was August 12th, 2011 when I made that impulsive move...

 While perusing the Polyface website, I noticed that they were taking applications for their 2012 summer internship. The deadline to enter was in three days, and on an impulse, I sent in my own application.

I have to hand it to Joel... He is quite creative when thinking up applications! I was expecting the usual, "What do you hope to learn here, how long have you been farming, what experience do you have, etc." sort of questions. Instead, it was questions like, "How do you feel about conservative, right wing Christian creationists? How do you feel about Liberal, left wing, tree-hugging, humanist evolutionists? What is the hardest job you've ever done, and why? How do you feel about killing animals?" I had to laugh as I answered them all. :)

I was told that they would go through all the applications and choose their picks by August 22nd. So I waited... August 22nd came, but no word from the Salatins. September came, and still no word.

Finally, when we were two weeks into Sept. I sheepishly e-mailed and asked if they had decided anything. Sheri (Joel's daughter-in-law) replied saying that they hadn't yet, since Joel had been out of town. But hopefully by the end of September.

So I waited some more! September came and went... No word.

October came... Still no word.

I gave up. I obviously hadn't been picked, seeing as I hadn't heard from them, so I put the whole idea at the back of my mind and tried to forget it.

Then, yesterday morning, I received an e-mail from Polyface, with the subject line merely saying, "Polyface Response". I felt all the blood drain from my face (that's a really weird feeling, by the way), as I clicked to open it...

The room started spinning as I read an e-mail that began, "Congratulations!  You've passed the first big hurdle in your quest to becoming a 2012 Polyface intern.  More to go, but please take the time to smile and enjoy being one of the 33 percent who received an invitation to our two-day on-farm checkout."

The e-mail went on to explain that 93 other people sent in applications, and they had managed to whittle the list down to 30. I was one of the thirty. 

Now, they wanted their thirty picks to come out to the farm in January so they could personally meet each one, and see if we were cut out for the job. Joel's exact words were, " We will surely have some gut-wrenching tough work to do to see what you're made of, as we assemble our team for 2012." They had to eventually whittle their list of thirty prospects down to eight. And only two of those eight would be girls. The stakes are high...

But then it sunk in. I MADE IT THIS FAR!!! Out of 93 other people, I was one of the chosen people to continue the quest!! I might be going to Polyface farms!!! 

That's when I thought I was going to be sick. The adrenaline rush was huge. So I sat down and tried to collect myself, but it took awhile. 

I was beaming from ear to ear for the rest of the day, after that. I danced throughout the house, and sang at the top of my lungs outside. This was really happening!! I wasn't dreaming!!

The family has commenced to prayer about the matter now. Virginia is a long way away, and I would be gone for 3 months. While I certainly hope that I will get to follow this dream, and opportunity of a life time, we'll see what the future holds... 

Another "Coming Soon"

I am just about bursting to tell y'all about a huge piece of news!

When I first heard it, I almost fainted (really.), then I almost threw up. And then I sat in a chair, shaking, for about 30 minutes. 

I've been high on adrenaline all day long due to this piece of news, and when I'm not dancing through the house in excitement, I have a strong desire to go outside and hoot 'n holler. 

It's big. It's happening. I'll tell you soon...

Signing out!

Who Is Pat Parelli?

Good question... I'm afraid I'm pretty bad at explaining things, and especially when it comes to someone like Pat, so I guess you can read this informative link,  and watch the promo YouTube!

Coming In Spring 2012...

Oh corks this has been a staggering day...

I'll share the bigger bit of news later, but right now I would like to introduce Greenfire Farm to y'all... 

If you haven't seen their website yet, you should check it out! Greenfire Farms is a family run operation, focused on raising extremely rare poultry. So rare, in fact, that some were considered extinct before Greenfire found some specimens.  

And what does Greenfire have to do with me?

We are doing a barter! I will be advertising their farm here on the blog sidebar, as well as on my website (www.goatsong.weebly.com). In return, Greenfire Farms will be sending me some of their fantastic chicks in the spring!! Whoohoo!! :)

Who Are Your Heroes?

It's only been in the last year or two that I've come to realize that I have a lot of heroes. People who I look up to in life, admire for one reason or another, or have learned a lot from.

So, question for the day: Who are your heroes in life, and why?

I'll share if you share! ;)

Looking back in life, I'd say the first person who I ever stood in awe of was Pat Parelli...

I must have been 10 when I first heard about him, and I don't even remember who told me about him! I just remember thinking, "Wow, I want to do that someday", as I learned more about his training techniques. I admire his calm, confident attitude that he always seems to have, especially when he's working with difficult horses. If I can someday achieve a fraction of his patience, I will be a happy person. 

Next up is Joel Salatin, of course!

I was 14 when I picked up a rickety, shabby copy of his book titled, "Pastured Poultry Profits" at my local library. It all went downhill from there. I really admire Joel's tenacity, creativity, courage to go against modern day farming techniques that are harmful,  his sense of humor, and his common sense. 

What a guy. ;)

Had it not been for Joel's books, I would probably still be raising Holland Lop rabbits to sell as pets, and that would be all. Joel taught me a lot about farming. Even more important though, he taught me that anyone can farm. No matter what race or gender, no matter where you live, or what your income is. Anyone can farm. That was a revelation to a conservatively brought up girl like me who always thought she had to have 100 acres, and a herd of cows before she could be called a farmer! 

Tasha Tudor is a more recent hero of mine...

If it wasn't for the fact that Tasha was still alive when I first read one of her books (Tasha Tudor's Garden), I might have thought there was something to the reincarnation theory after all. ;) Tasha lived an off-grid lifestyle, on 240 acres in Vermont, living with her herd of Nubian goats, corgi dogs, numerous birds, and her art that she drew. What I admire most about Tasha, is her grit. She didn't care that she was different from almost everyone else in society. She had a dream, and she followed it. I'm always finding myself saying, "If Tasha could do it, you can do it too!", when I've hit a bump in the road of life. 

Next hero on the list may surprise a few...

It's Beatrix Potter, the famous author and illustrator.

Oh dearie me... How I look up to Beatrix... :) I'm almost finished with reading a biography about her, and I have LOVED it! More than just an author of classic books (and we won't mention the fact that I have every single one of them!), Beatrix was a naturalist, farmer, shepherd to the endangered Herdwick sheep, and donated thousands of acres to the National Land Trust of England. She wasn't afraid to go against what was considered "proper" in her era, and follow her dream. Like Tasha Tudor, I admire Beatrix's determination to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks. 

And then there's Jenna Woginrich... Wow do I admire Jenna.

Just the fact that she's written books, given talks at the Mother Earth News Festival, is learning to herd sheep with her Border Collie, Gibson, is working towards being as self-sufficient as possible, is training her pony to do draft work, and is single, is enough to command my respect. She's living the life that I want to live someday... I can't wait until that day comes...

I certainly have other heroes, but methinks this list is starting to get rather lengthy, so I'll leave off here...

It's your turn now: Who are your heroes, and why?