Throwback Quarter One

 

I realize that yesterday's blog post seemed to indicate that I would no longer be posting daily.  It IS true.  I'm going to "pull back" to four blog posts per week unless the spirit moves me now and again to do more.  However, just like so many people in this world, I could not quite get myself to fail to complete the month of March with a perfect record.  So, here it is - the 31st blog post in March of 2022!

The other reason for this post was to do what I periodically do.  I'm going to look back at the posts I've offered during the first few months of the year and I will select a few that I will recommend to you.  I have heard from some people in the past that they fall behind in reading and they actually like it when I point them to some of the posts I felt were "better reads" - or whatever criteria we decide to use.

So, here they are - my recommended reads for January - March of 2022 for any of you who want to "catch up" or for those of you who are curious what I think about some of the writing that shows up here.

Looking for lighter side?

I've got you covered in that area!  

My favorite one to write was the Daylight Savings Solutions post from mid-March.  I am curious - can you all tell when I am really enjoying my writing and when I am... not enjoying it as much?  

Another that actually made me chuckle as I wrote is the blog about socks and marriage called Unmatched.  I think I may like this one so much because it shows us that Tammy and I still find ways to enjoy each other's company and have some fun once in a while.

Then, there are the Keys to Motivation.  If you are wondering how you can possibly "get it all done," this is the blog post you absolutely MUST read!   

And, finally, a story that still is worth retelling - Stuck On You - a GFF Faux Real Story.  I actually have several more GFF Faux Real Stories I'd like to write, but they take a little energy to put them together.  Here's hoping backing off on the daily posting gives me that space!

Prefer a farmer perspective?

I recognize that this blog can cover a fairly broad spectrum of material.  So, if you like something in particular, you may get annoyed when you find something else.  Well, here are some of the better farm-oriented posts from the last three months, in my opinion.

A couple of posts were actually good enough that I turned them into PAN blog posts as well!  What that tells you is that you are getting a good look at some of my core values when it comes to how I think farming needs to be.  It also tells you that I think I've got some decent writing going on.  My favorite is still Farms Need Wild Spaces.  

If you prefer more specifics to what life is like on our own farm, but still with a bent towards talking about how people farm in general, Every Morning is the Dawn of a New Error will fit the bill. 

Apparently habitat on farms has been on my mind since another good post is titled Critter Criterion.

The crazy, wannabe philosopher stuff

Yeah.  That kind of stuff happens here too.  Sometimes much to the chagrin of the readers.  But, if that kind of thing is your cup of tea, here are the times I felt I did a reasonable job on this front.

Kind? Nice? Kinda Nice?

Entitled to What?

Ignorance is Not Bliss

Too Much Bread

Things about local foods more interesting to you?

Wow, we can find some of that here too!

My favorite is a combination of a GFF Faux Real Story, a local foods thing and a bit of a philosophy thing.  It is titled Almost Without Exception and takes GFF back to our farmers' market days.

Another is a bit more specific to the topic - Why Do Local Foods Seem Invisible?   I've written around this theme before, which either means I don't think things have changed enough OR I'm a broken record.  You get to choose.

Current events with a farmer twist

Every once in a while the world intrudes into the Genuine Faux Farm blog.  And that's not necessarily a bad thing, because we all live in this world and have our roles to play in ways both big and small.

Wake Up Call got lots of feedback, mostly positive.  Which tells me it was a worthwhile exploration. And, similarly, Sunflowers for Ukraine received some feedback as well.   

As always, when I write things like this, I try to make it clear that I am NOT the expert.  But, it doesn't hurt to explore how I feel and discover what I appear to know.  Maybe in the process we can all do a bit better?

Because Tammy's My Best Friend

Walk Another Year Together needs to be featured.

Postal History Sunday favorites

Because every seventh day is a Postal History Sunday blog, I figure it would not do if I completely ignored them.  

My favorite just might be Led Astray, because it represents one of those topics that was not planned ahead.  Instead, it evolved as I was writing a different Postal History Sunday.  Hopefully, my enjoyment as I discovered new things in the process is apparent in the blog post itself.

On the other end of the spectrum, I like how With This Ring turned out.  This is a "final product" after a couple of other drafts on the topic that go back several years.  

And there you are.  Eighteen blog posts out of ninety published so far in 2022.  I think I should be applauded for actually figuring out how to limit my choices to this subset!  Ok - instead of applause, we should just acknowledge that this could have been worse, I could have simply told you to read all ninety.  But, that wouldn't be helpful now, would it?

Have a great day!

I wonder what next month will bring?

Two Year Blitz

On March 31, 2020, I challenged myself to do something I had actually done once before - only moreso.  I challenged myself to publish a blog a day for three months.  I had accomplished the "blog a day" once before in January of 2019 (one month).  But, the blogging that followed for the rest of that year may have been some of my least productive for quite some time.

I actually met the goal I set for myself in 2020, publishing something every single day from March 31, 2020 to June 30 of that same year.  I then promptly took a day off on July 1st, but came back with something on the 2nd and promptly ran off another eight in a row.  

Now, here we are.  Two years after I set the initial goal.  

I took the screenshot you see at the top of this post on March 3.  For 2022, I had yet to miss a day of publishing a blog.  Much to my surprise, I looked and found that I had not missed a day in November or December of 2021 either.  A new run of consecutive posts that exceeds my prior streak.  As a matter of fact, I have not missed a single day this year up to this point. That surprises even me.

Since the first string of posts in the Spring of 2020, during the beginnings of the pandemic, there have been well over 600 blog posts shared here with those who care to read them.  One entry will typically have from five hundred to fifteen hundred words.  If I might be so bold as to suggest a reasonable average of 800 words per entry, we have 480,000 - and probably closer to a half million - words available for us to read, ponder, or even.... ignore.  All as we see fit.  

I will give you a few hints as to how this has been possible.  First, I have my mother to thank for her willingness to teach her children how to be touch typists.  I am afraid I would have very little inclination to write as much as I do if I had to search for each letter of every one of those 480,000 words.  

Second, the goal is to PUBLISH one entry a day.  It has not been to WRITE an entry a day.  There are times when I have very little that makes me want to write.  Then, there are moments where I just want to write... and write A LOT.  It might be more accurate that I EDIT something every day.  And, I still find typos and errors when I go back and read something - much to my horror and irritation.

Third, I reminded myself that I already had a great deal of decent material written.  Some of it was for the newsletters we emailed to our customers in the early years of our CSA.  We even printed a few out!  You may have noticed that material that has been sitting on our old farm website is steadily becoming blog posts too.  There is no need to completely re-invent the wheel for each entry.  Besides - I bet you most of the redone material is completely new to most people who see it the second time around.  And, there is no such thing as good writing - just good re-writing.  Some of the best entries are things that have had other iterations.

And, some of those iterations.... I'm not sure I want you to see them anymore!

Finally, there is this.  I read an entry by John Pavlovitz that confirmed for me part of the reason for my blog blitz.  The title of his blog was "The World Needs Good News This Year - Give it Some."

Well folks.  Those who read the Genuine Faux Farm blog are a small group - but a group I care about.  If I can fill a small corner of your worlds with something thoughtful, something interesting, something new, something beautiful, something that encourages us to exercise gratitude, awe and wonder.  If I can do that on a regular basis.

Then I am content.

But, I am also looking at stepping back from the daily posts now in hopes that I can create some "better" posts.  Still on a regular basis - just not likely on a daily basis.  There are still a series of posts sharing recipes that are all lined up for Tuesdays - all the way to mid-May.  There will be Postal History Sunday entries every week as well.  And then I will likely average two other posts per week.  I think four posts a week ought to be just fine, don't you?

Have a good day and great remainder of your week!

Garlic Recipes

 

White Bean and Garlic Scape Dip

Makes 2 servings

1/2 cup sliced garlic scapes (3 or 4)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, more to taste
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, more to taste
Ground black pepper to taste
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans rinsed and drained
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
Water

In a food processor, process garlic scapes with lemon juice, slat, pepper, until finely chopped. Add cannellini beans and process to rough puree. With motor running (the processor, not yours) slowly drizzle olive oil through the feed tube (again, the processor, not yours); process until fairly smooth. Pulse in 2 or 3 tbs. water, or more, until mixture is constency of the dip. Add more salt, pepper, and/or lemon juice, if desired. Spread out dip on plate, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with more salt. Yield 1 1/2 cups.

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Chai-Spiced Chicken Wings with Green Garlic Aioli

Makes 2 to 4 servings

FOR THE CHICKEN
1/2 fat bulb of green garlic, root and green parts trimmed, outer layer removed, OR
Four regular garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cardamon pods (about 16)
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1 star anise
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch ground cloves
2 1/2 pounds chicken wings

FOR THE AIOLI
1/2 fat bulb green garlic, green parts trimmed, outer layer removed
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 egg yolk
Freshly squeezed lemon juice, to taste

Coarsely chop 1/2 bulb green garlic; place in blender with olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, ginger, cardamom, orange zest, star anise, cinnamon, pepper, cloves. Blend mixture to rough puree. In bowl, toss marinade with chicken wings; cover. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or, preferably, overnight. Preheat broiler to high. Use paper towel to brush off most solids from marinade clinging to chicken. Arrange wings on baking sheet. Broil until wings are golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.

To prepare aioli, finely chop remaining garlic. Using mortar and pestle, pound with salt until paste forms. Add egg yolk, continue to pound paste until incorporated, then add oil drop by drop until thick, shiny aioli is achieved. Stir in a few drops of lemon juice. Serve wings with aioli for dipping.

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Garlic Croutons

The great thing about making your own croutons is that you can make them at your leisure, when the inevitable stale half-loaf of bread appears in your kitchen. While store-bought croutons are adequate in a pinch, you’ll find that the little extra time and effort it takes to make your own make this delicious homemade version an attractive option.

stale bread, any amount, sliced (white bread is best, but any kind works)
olive oil
salt
garlic cloves, peeled, top quarter sliced off
1. Preheat the oven to 450° F.
2. Brush both sides of the bread with a thin layer of olive oil. Place the bread on a baking sheet and sprinkle tops lightly with salt. Bake until lightly golden, 5 to 7 minutes, checking frequently to make sure bread doesn’t burn.
3. Remove the bread from the oven and rub all over with the cut side of the garlic cloves.
4. Cut the bread into smaller pieces if desired. The bread is ready to be used or stored. 

Too Much Bread

 

"Why, I feel all thin, sort of stretched, if you know what I mean: like butter that has been scraped over too much bread.  That can't be right.  I need a change, or something." Bilbo to Gandalf in Fellowship of the Ring

Have you been feeling like butter scraped over too much bread lately?  If you have, it has been my observation that you are not alone in this feeling.  And, I think it is safe to say that most everyone has had, and will have, moments like this throughout their lives.  It's natural.  It's normal.  It's difficult.  And it is hard to get out of.

I have had the privilege to wear many kinds of shoes (I usually wear the same kind of hat) in my lifetime.  I've been a teacher.  I've been a farmer.  I've been a software engineer and I've been a writer.  I have also been given the gift of glimpses into other lives.  I've seen the trials of members of various health professions and the heavy burden carried by those in Social Work.  I've seen how quickly activists and organizers can burn out under the weight of the world.  I've witnessed the unhealthy doses of abuse people in the service industry get on a regular basis at the hands of those who feel the small fee they have paid gives them the right to abuse.  I cringe when I hear people who know nothing about a particular job declare anyone who does that thing to be evil, incompetent, or...

Well, you get the idea.

If you have never taught - and it does not matter what age the students are - you may not fully recognize exactly how much teachers care about the well-being of students and their success in learning.  To teach is to spend from your own essence - in hopes that it will lead to growth for those who are in your classes.  A teacher is often balancing the concern for one student who is in an abusive relationship with the difficulty of trying to find a way to help another learn a concept that is apparently very difficult for them.  Meanwhile, they must continue to forge ahead so that the class, as a whole, is given every opportunity to learn.  Oh, and while you are at, there are meetings, and paperwork, and grading, and lesson planning.  And... well you get the idea.

I have lived some of those moments as a teacher where there is almost no butter to scrape over the bread.  And I know there are cycles in every school term where that happens.  Eventually, it gets harder to refill that tub of butter, and it can feel like the only solution is to get out.

As a farmer, there are times when it feels like the entire world is set against everything that you hope to do.  It never fails.  In the same week, the tractor will break down, raccoons will get into the chickens, a windstorm will tear the plastic off of a high tunnel, and you'll still have to act like everything is going to be fine when you make deliveries to your customers.  Then, you drop a single tray of seedlings so that most of the plants are broken and useless - and someone else sprays a nearby field with an herbicide on a windy day.  The last straw - this event that just caps off a series of difficulties.  And, you feel like your toast must be awfully dry, for there is no butter for you either.

It feels like many people are eating dry bread without butter lately.  Many folks are struggling - and for many different reasons.

It's time to start sharing the butter if you've got extra.  People need it.

Hey!  All of you teachers that are in some of the difficult mid-stages of the current school term - I can't tell you how proud I am of your dedication and your efforts.  There are people in this world who DO appreciate you for what you do.  In fact, there are far more of us, I believe, than there are people who don't.  It's just that the majority who appreciate you aren't being LOUD ENOUGH!  We're not being persistent in our support.  Well, there's more butter for you.  Keep at it - as a person who has taught, I am aware of the rewards - they often come when you least expect it.  They are worth it.  And so are you.

Hey - you people who work in health professions!  All of you people who are in social work professions!  Anyone in a helping profession of any kind!  I know it's hard work that you do, caring for others.  It's so difficult to come home after seeing so many troubling things during your working hours.  How hard must it be for Emergency Medical Service personnel to deal with witnessing severe injuries and deaths?  How many times can one person hear about children who don't get enough to eat from day to day?  I cannot take the burden away, none of us can.  But, we can help the people in these professions to bear it.  And, we can do things to take other cares away from their burdens when we can.  How about we make sure they get paid enough so they aren't also worried about paying their bills?  It's just one way we can add butter to their bread.

I suppose I could keep on with specifics, but then I'll just miss someone or something - and that's not the whole point of this post.

The point is this - if you've got extra, and you see that your neighbor's toast is dry - SHARE YOUR BUTTER.

Thank you for your work, whatever you do.  I respect what you do and I appreciate that there are difficulties in your profession that I probably do not see or recognize.  I understand that life is not always easy for any of us and that there will be times when you are not your best.  I also appreciate that there will be those moments when you have too little butter and you will feel stretched thin and ready to break.  

When that happens, feel free to ask.  I may have extra butter for you.

And, I hope that if I feel dry and ready to break that you will share that extra butter with me.

Fair Exchange - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to this week's edition of Postal History Sunday, hosted on the Genuine Faux Farm blog and the GFF Postal History blog.  Everyone is welcome at this place, where the farmer shares a hobby he enjoys.  Questions are always welcomed - and it doesn't matter whether yours is from the perspective of someone who knows very little about postal history or someone who is an expert in the field.

For the time being, let me encourage you to put on your fluffy slippers and grab that favored beverage.  Take your troubles and smear some bacon grease on them, then let the neighborhood dogs at them while you read Postal History Sunday  By the time you are done and the dogs are done with your troubles, there might not be much left to concern you!

How did this mail get from here to there?  That's one of the key questions a postal historian asks each time they encounter an old letter or other piece of mail.  Sometimes the answer comes from documents that outline the regulations and procedures of the time.  And, if we are looking at mail from the 1850s and 1860s, we can look at the envelopes and covers themselves for evidence of the travels required to get from point A to point B. 

You don't have to be a super sleuth to look at the envelope shown above to figure out that this letter probably originated in Boston, Massachusetts and reached its destination in London, England.  The clues are everywhere.  The envelope is personalized, showing "C. Burrage & Co Boston" (see bonus material at end of this blog) in the preprinted design, so we can assume this is who the letter came from.  There is a red Boston postmark dated June 12 and there is a London postmark dated June 23.  The letter is addressed to B.J. Lang in London.  

Yes.  I think that much is pretty simple.

There is actually another clue at the top left.  The docket reads "Str Persia N.Y. June 13th." 

If you are a person who knows a bit about world geography, but nothing about postal history of the time, you might be a bit confused by the docket.  There IS a town named Persia in New York state, so that might distract us.  And, no, I don't think this letter would go from Boston to Persia (Iran) and then to London - so that's not on the table. 

What the docket is referring to, however, is a sailing of a ship called the Persia from the New York harbor on June 13.  So, this letter started in Boston, went to New York, boarded the ship Persia and went across the Atlantic.  We just happen to know, based on historical references, that the Persia dropped off the mail at Queenstown (Cobh, Ireland).  The mail then went by train to Kingston (by Dublin), crossed to Holyhead and then went by train to London.

The question then is why there are no markings on this envelope for New York, Queenstown, Kingston, Holyhead or maybe even the ship called the Persia?

That's a good question - thanks for asking!

When nations exchange mail

In the mid-1800s countries who wished to exchange mail would either establish postal treaties with each other OR they would rely on finding an intermediary to get the mail from here to there.  The piece of letter mail shown above was sent under a postal agreement that was established in 1848 between the United States and the United Kingdom.

One of the details often determined by these treaties was the identification of the post office locations in each country that would serve as exchange offices.  With the initial treaty in 1848, there were only two exchange offices identified in the United States that were allowed to exchange mail with the United Kingdom.  These post offices were in New York City and Boston.  In the United Kingdom, we see mentions of Liverpool, Southampton, and London.

The exchange offices in each country were charged with processing the mail that was outgoing to and incoming from the exchange offices of the other country.  They would check that postage was properly paid, determine the best route to send the letter, put a marking on the envelope, and then place the envelope into a mailbag that was traveling to the destination exchange office.  They were also tasked with filling out proper documents that would include the accounting of the contents in the mailbag.

Once that mailbag was sealed, it was not opened until it reached the destination exchange office.

And that's the simple answer as to why we don't see any postal markings between Boston and New York.  This letter stayed locked up in a mailbag between the two exchange offices.

More Mail Volume = More Exchange Offices

By the time we get to the 1860s, the volume of mail between the United States and the United Kingdom had grown.  As a result, additional exchange offices were established that could handle mail between the two postal services.  

Additional articles were added to the postal convention in 1853 that added Philadelphia to the list of U.S. exchange offices.  By 1859, Chicago, Portland and Detroit were authorized to be exchange offices in the US while Cork (Cobh), Dublin and Galway in Ireland were added for the U.K.

The biggest motivator for adding new exchange offices between the US and the UK was simple.  New steamship companies with contracts to carry the mail traveled between established ports that did not work well with the existing exchange offices.  Once the Canadian Allan Line started service from Quebec/Portland to Liverpool, it made sense to establish exchange offices in the midwest (Chicago and Detroit) so mail would not have to go via New York or Boston to travel on those ships.

The letter above originated in Davenport, Iowa and went through the Chicago exchange office.  I know this because the "3 cents" marking at lower left is known to be a Chicago marking (and because mail from Iowa typically went through the Chicago or New York offices).  This letter was not taken out of the mailbag once it was placed there in Chicago until it got to the London exchange office.

Not Just the US & UK

Shown above is a nice folded letter sent from Zurich, Switzerland to Mulhouse, France in 1868.  The postmark for Zurich is dated May 7 and there is a Basel, Switzerland postmark on the back dated May 8.

In this case, the exchange offices were Basel and Mulhouse.

Unlike the case for mail between the US and the UK, the distances between the exchange offices were not necessarily all that great.  After all, France and Switzerland share a border.  In fact, Basel, is a border community with France and it was not at all uncommon for border community post offices to also serve as exchange offices.  If you think about it, this makes perfect sense.  With a little imagination, you could see how a postal worker could cross the border and deliver a bag of mail to France to the clerks there and then return with a mailbag full of items from France to Switzerland!

And, here is just such a letter.  St Louis is the community just to the northwest of Basel in France and this exchange office would handle a significant amount of mail that was leaving Switzerland in the 1850s and 1860s.  This letter would eventually travel on to Paris for its ultimate destination.

By the time the 1865 convention between France and Switzerland came into effect, rail transportation had proliferated to the point that there were many options for the speedy transit of mail.  As a result, the list of exchange offices gets pretty long!  The list above are the exchange offices on the French side of the border at that point.

This actually gives a person an opportunity to hunt for some different things.  Remember, in addition to mail that was traveling between the big cities like Zurich and Paris, there would be mail between small towns by the border.  

The letter above was received by the French exchange office of Bonneville in the Duchy of Savoy (southeastern France).  This exchange office is not frequently found, so it can be a bit of a game to try and find items that clearly went to some of the smaller offices between these two countries.  It is made easier by the fact that France was particularly interested in their exchange offices placing easy to find red markings on the letters taken out of mailbags at their exchange offices.  Switzerland, on the other hand did not necessarily provide markedly different handstamps to indicate that the marking was applied by an exchange office.

If you have interest, feel free to click on the map above to see some of the points of interest near the borders of France and Switzerland.  The Duchy of Savoy is outlined separately because it was actually a part of Sardinia until 1860, but became a part of France thereafter.  You can find Bonneville to the southeast of Geneva, Switzerland.

Knowing What You're Looking For

Just because the US and the UK did things one way, that did not necessarily mean things would look exactly the same between the US and other postal services.  The Prussian Mails favored a square marking that was typically in blue ink during the latter half of the 1860s.  Aachen was the site of the exchange office, residing on the border with Belgium.  The Boston marking, on the other hand, seems to be pretty similar to what we're used to seeing with the US/UK mail.

Once again, Boston and Aachen were the exchange offices and this letter stayed in a mailbag for its entire trip between the two.  This item would have traveled through the United Kingdom and Belgium to get to Aachen, but no markings will be found to give us this evidence.  Instead, we have to use knowledge of how mail was carried between these exchange offices to fill in the blanks.

For those who are curious, the letter above also went to New York' harbour where it boarded the HAPAG Line's Germania.  The mailbag was offloaded at Southampton, England and taken across the channel to Ostend, Belgium.  From there, it crossed Belgium by rail to Aachen, in Prussia.

Before you get too comfortable, consider this letter from the same time period from the UK to Austria (via the Prussian Mails).  The round PD (London) marking served as the exchange marking for the UK, while the big, blue round marking was applied in Aachen for the Prussians.  

Markings could differ between pairs of nations - and sometimes no marking was applied at all by the receiving country.  Though, usually, the sending country would be required to put some sort of marking on the item to indicate whether postage was paid in full or if postage was due.  It was all a matter of two postal services coming to some sort of agreement that made sense to each of them how they would communicate with each other.  And that, as much as anything, should explain to you and me why agreements would limit the exchange of mail to a subset of all of the post offices in each country.  The special processes required for foreign mail exchange required additional training - training that was not going to be possible to give to every clerk in every post office.

Bonus Material

The envelope above is likely from the company J.C. Burrage in Boston.  This resource places the business at No 3 Winthrop Square in Boston.  The company itself is referenced multiple times in the Burrage Memorial and the company served as merchants for woolens (see pages 127, 132 and 152).

The recipient, B.J. Lang, was a musician, conductor, pianist, teacher, and composer.   We'll probably go deeper into this person's biography in a different Postal History Sunday.

There is something else about this piece of postal history that is interesting and I think we'll also cover that in a future Postal History Sunday.  Can you figure it out?  Here is an earlier post that talks about the mail between the US and the UK - it might help.

I hope you enjoyed today's entry.  Have a great day and a wonderful week to come.

Eighties

 

It's cool to be ten years old (I should know, I've been ten for some time now).  And, when you're ten, you can explore all kinds of music.  Ok.  You can explore all kinds of music too.  And, so can you.  And you.  Yes, calm down.  Anyone who WANTS can explore any kind of music they want.  

Geez.  I was just trying to write a nice introduction.  No reason for you all to get so upset about it.

A good friend of mine has been introducing his kids to 80s music, and for some reason asked me for ideas on what to share with them.  Hey!  I'm only ten, so what would I know about 80s music?  But, it just so happens that I do like a wide range of music from many eras - so I did have suggestions.  Of course, that got me to thinking about other 80s music that I haven't listened to for a while or have kind of ignored, even though I knew about it.  After all, there is so much music out there, it's easy to miss things or opt not to pay attention to certain groups or tunes.

In my case, I often ignored the most popular groups and songs - coming back to them later when the uproar over them was over.   This was not and is not always true, but it has been my pattern more often than not.

So, my music playlist for Saturday, we will focus on songs released in the 80s!

Boston is actually one of those groups that I enjoyed when I heard them, but I didn't really follow them.  So, it was actually kind of nice to have the motivation to hunt down a couple of tunes I appreciated.  Of course, radio play was heavy for "Amanda," which is why I didn't pick it.  Instead, I picked a tune I liked better - both then and now.

Cool the Engines - Boston

Then, there is the "baby in the bag" album by the Call (if you take the link, you'll understand - this was the album cover).  It was a popular album on college campuses and deserved to be popular everywhere, but didn't seem to quite get enough push in the mainstream.  This one is not my favorite tune on the album, but I've shared that before, so we'll go with this one.

Oklahoma - the Call

I had a very good friend who had an affinity for a few groups in particular.  But, his favorite had to be Queen.  The great thing about being good friends is the fact that each of us would listen to each other's favorite music.  And, for that, I will be forever grateful, because I had more opportunities to listen to the skillful musicianship of this band.

Somebody to Love - Queen

And here's one I bet most people have not heard of - unless you have read some of what I've written or know me well.  This band probably should have gotten more attention than it did, though it did have some radio play with "Waiting for the Worm to Turn."

Pencil and Paper - Bourgeois Tagg

Growing up, I read all of the books in the Elric Saga by Michael Moorcock, so why wouldn't I pick a tune that featured Elric?  

Black Blade - Blue Oyster Cult

And, of course, it would make no sense - at least to me - if I ignored a band that has become an all-time favorite over the years.  Even after playing the tar out of most of their tunes from the albums Chase the Kangaroo, Wide Eyed Wonder and Circle Slide, I still listen to them frequently and still delight in hearing new things buried in the mix.

Consider - the Choir

I always liked Annie Lennox's voice, but I have to admit that this was another group that I might listen to only when it popped up.  But, a vocalist with this skill tends to pop up all over the place over time, including for the Lord of the Rings films.   Ah, sneaky me, I actually get two songs in my list this way.

Thorn in My Side - Eurythmics

Here's another group that I have followed throughout their long careers.  I was introduced to them by a radio DJ in my home town.  He had an extra vinyl record and thought I might enjoy them - passing it on to me when I came in to help host a show one day.  A gift that keeps on giving.

This is the Way Love Is - 77s

How about a vocalist that had a huge range and amazing command of her voice?  Yeah, I can do that. The interesting thing about Benatar was that she brought incredible vocal skills to rock music that was, of course, dominated by male voices - some of whom were mediocre with their skill sets.

All Fired Up - Pat Benatar

The 80s had MTV and every band that wanted to "make it" had to produce a video.  Let's just say that there were some that were amusing - and most just featured the band playing and lip synching to the tune (sometimes badly).  In any event, for something a bit different from the rest, let's do this one - clearly, I never did learn how to "dress sharp" and I'm not sure I was missing anything if this video is any indicator.  

Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top

And, on the other side of the ball, there were groups that were their music to point out problems in this world and (hopefully) encourage solutions.  The western desert lives and breathes at 45 degrees.

Beds Are Burning - Midnight Oil

This list went to eleven.  I hope you enjoyed it.

Have a great weekend!

Not to Bee

A few weeks ago...

Ok, I think it was a few weeks ago.  Let's be honest here, sometimes I have trouble figuring out exactly how long it has been since we have done certain things on the farm.  I am sure other "busy" people have this happen to them too.  

But, as I was saying...

What seems like a few weeks ago, we finally decided it was time to check on the status of our bee hives.  We entered the cold months feeling pretty good about all three of our hives and thought we had a pretty good shot of having at least two out of three survive to see another season.  It was the first fairly warm (and calm day) of the year and it would have been a perfect time for the surviving bees to take what is known as a "cleansing flight."  So, I went out expecting to see a few of our friends leaving the hive to do their thing.  What I found instead was...

Nothing.

No apparent activity.  So, I got brave and knocked on one of the hives.  That's usually enough to get a bit of a buzz out of them.  And, I got no response.  After a bit more inspection, we found that we had lost all three hives again this winter.  Now we go about the process of cleaning out the hives and collecting evidence to try and figure out what happened so we can try to prevent it the next time around.  I suppose the good thing is that there is honey to be collected - and we do like honey.  But, this is not how we wanted to go about getting it.

We will certainly get them going again in 2022.  We like having them around too much and we appreciate the pollination services they provide!  But, knowing we can get new bees this year doesn't do much to take the sting (sorry) out of this past year's losses. 

Hopefully, our native pollinator populations had a decent time of it these past few months.  We have done what we can on our small farm to provide appropriate habitat and locations where they should be able to successfully over-winter.  But, nature is like this - sometimes a population gets everything it needs and has no problems with disease - and sometimes there is a challenge that makes it less easy to survive.  The difference is that humans often do things to tip things too far to the "challenge side" of the scale.  Our meager efforts at the Genuine Faux Farm aren't likely enough to counter the weight of that challenge.  So, how can we be surprised if natural pollinator populations don't just bounce back because we want them to?

Can you find the bumble bee?

And, I guess we haven't been surprised that our bumblebee populations (for example) have become less robust since we first started the farm.  And, I guess meaning well isn't always enough - but I sure wish it carried a little more weight than it seems to.  It's enough to make me wonder why we care so much and why we try so hard.  It's a normal reaction.  If you feel like you'll probably lose, no matter what you do, you have to wonder if you should even put in the work.

Still, we will approach 2022 on our farm with the eternal optimism that is necessary for people like us who still think they might be able to make a difference.  We'll plant borage.  We'll leave areas undisturbed for habitat.  We'll let the dandelions bloom.  There will be sunflowers, and zinnias, and marigolds and basil.  We'll plant more clover and we'll do the things that seem to help our pollinators.  We will do it because we HAVE seen some successes over the years.  We will do it in hopes that more people will join us in trying to make a difference too.

Our farm will have wild spaces.  We will do what we can to make it an oasis.  A pollinator paradise.

And we may still lose each battle.  But that doesn't mean we'll stop fighting the war.  Because hope is a powerful motive.

Flashback to Vol 4 Issue 3 - March 2008

Well, here's a post that might be nostalgic and a bit interesting to many folks.  As I was working on cleaning up the old website, I came across some of the old newsletters we used to publish each month for our CSA (and other) customers.  I thought some of you might enjoy seeing what the content looked like from a few years ago (2008).  Each newsletter had a fair amount of length.  I have edited out some links and a few odds and ends, but I thought I'd leave most of it so you could get an idea as to what we were doing at that time.

Brassica and Allia field in 2008

When Did Working Hard Become Something to Avoid?

The first thing that comes to mind for many people if you tell them that you work on a small, organic vegetable farm is – “that’s a lot of work” – followed by – “I sure am glad I don’t do that.” Tammy and I won’t try to paint that picture any differently than it is. There is a great deal of physical, mental and spiritual labor that goes into making this farm be what it is. We often get tired and sometimes wish it would all go away. In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever been challenged more by my occupation – and this includes the completion of a doctoral dissertation in Computer Science Education.

What confuses us is the perception that physical labor is so undesirable that we, as human beings, work so darned HARD to avoid it. A recent commercial for one tractor manufacturer emphasized how work would be done ‘effortlessly’ with their new tools. Some conventional farmers have told us that they are happy they have chemical herbicides to do the ‘weeding’ work for them. Farms have grown larger and become monocultures (one crop) to facilitate labor saving devices. People seem to be positively allergic to the physicality of raising food.

We even go so far as to reward the physical laborer the least of those who are a part of our workforces. Those who are willing to take on these tasks are often denigrated and we equate this sort of work with brainless tasks and an absence of ownership that causes me to cringe.

But, our experience tells us that growing produce can be a rewarding process. It has its redundancies as well as its unpredictability. Serenity can be found in purposeful repetition when one knows the good that comes from the work. Challenge can be found in seeking a balance between production desires and the current realities presented by nature. Satisfaction is found in work that requires the whole person to participate in order to succeed.

It would be incorrect to conclude that we advocate for inefficient processes just so we achieve some requisite level of 'hard labor.' It is more accurate to state that many of the most efficient processes require honest work. A sustainable operation is one that will not need exorbitant inputs to continue to exist and succeed in its goals. It would not be a sustainable farm if we did not intelligently choose tools, techniques, varieties and distribution methods that fit our resources.

So, we plan to work hard again this season. We will reap produce and we will gather satisfaction that we are both working intelligently and well. We will take pleasure in seeing the crops come in and be distributed. And, yes, we may even admit to some amount of pride in the hard work we have done. 

Veg Variety Pages

Our pages on vegetable varieties are always on our 'to do' list. However, they have undergone some transformation in the last month. We do not expect to have the time to do much more with them until next winter. Please take a moment and visit them if you have interest. If you have specific suggestions, questions or comments, feel free to contact us.

Our varieties for a subset of vegetables have been updated for the 2008 season. We have included a variety list page for those who are interested in what we are currently growing. We are also considering development of a quick reference page that indicates why certain varieties are on our grow lists and why other varieties have been removed. We see these pages as having a dual purpose - to educate our customers and to provide information to other growers in the area.

Important Dates (from 2008)

• Mar 5-10 R&T at BPD conference
• Mar 11 - Peace-UCC Organic Gardening (7pm - Tammy)
• Mar 12 - Class presentation on Food Production (1:15 - Rob)
• Mar 19 - Class presentation on Food Production (1:15 - Rob)
• Mar 19 - Wartburg Chapel Commons - Food Related Issues (7:00-Tammy)
• Mar 22 - Farm Bureau Breakfast - 4H Bldg - 9:00 to noon
• Mar 24 - GFF at UNI (Maucker Union) - 10:30 to 2:00
• Mar 28 - NIFFP Marketing & Education subgroup
• April 1 - Last day to hold CSA spot with Deposit
• Apr 2 - NIFFP meeting in Cedar Falls
• Apr 3 - WIC/FMNP training
• Apr 18&19 - Sustainability Conference in Decorah
• April 25&26 - Food & Wellness at the W

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J.D. Gussow - "...if we lose all of our local farmers, we'll have to depend completely on ...foods shipped from far away. To date, rich folks like us have been able to do this because transportation - gasoline - is so cheap. All of the forecasts about future petroleum availability assure us that this will not continue. So we need to keep local farmers in business." (p. 117 in This Organic Life)

2007 Farm Report

We know the health of the farm is important to you, so we have put together a brief summary for the newsletter.

In our third year of running the CSA/farm business we can report that we did realize a profit against direct expenses. Overhead expenses, such as electricity must yet be calculated for tax purposes. But, we expect a small profit even with overhead figured in.

Income categories	2007	2006
CSA	43%	46%
Farmers' Market	32%	36%
Direct Sales	12%	7%
Poultry	12%	11%

The income split shows that we improved on our diversity of sales in 2007 by establishing some direct sales links (Roots, UNI, Somewhere Else) for bumper crops. We anticipate that the CSA portion will stay steady, the farmers' market sales may decrease and direct sales will increase in future years.

Top Expenses	Approx Expense	Percent
Equipment	$2900	21%
Poultry	$1900	14%
Seed	$1700	12.5%
Building	$1600	12%
Gasoline	$1200	9%

Our equipment expense is likely to stay steady in 2008. The poultry expense will likely increase with higher feed prices. The seed expense will fluctuate every other year as we often take advantage of lower bulk prices and purchase seed for two years. We have significant building projects this year and next that will increase this expense. Gasoline prices are going to increase further - we are taking steps to reduce our reliance on this commodity.

Crop	2007 Harvest	Percent of Potential
Potato	36 lbs	<2%
Tomato	2900 lbs	45%
Summer Squash	2800 fruit	60%
Cucumber	3600 fruit	90%
Sweet Pepper	4000 fruit	95%
Winter Squash	1500 fruit	100%

Now that we have established what we feel will be our long-term field sizes for the farm, we are able to begin assessment of potential production. Some crops (e.g. tomatoes) fell far short of their potential in 2008. We feel we could produce approximately 6 tons of tomato in a year that potential is reached. On the other hand, we are not at all certain we can improve on our production for winter squash.

Successes in 2007

• Farm adaptation to difficult weather situations
• CSA subscription goal level met
• Establishment of direct sale customer base
• Improved weed control
• Increased involvement in the local foods movement
• Organic certification

Changes/Adjustments for 2008

• Increased use of cover crops
• Involvement in research partnerships
• Integration of new, non-fuel propelled tools
• Addition of perennial crops
• Advanced planning of event dates
• Changes to "day of market" activity list
• Repairs to tool storage building
• Creation of new cleaning/packing area
• Fencing improvements

Don't Be Fuelish

You may have noticed, but there are multiple references to fossil fuels in the March newsletter. There are many reasons for this, but the foremost is the fact that we work to be responsible with our resources on the farm. We can either take the altruistic approach that we want to reduce our carbon footprint or we can look at the bottom line. Gasoline represented nearly 10% of our expenses in 2007 and higher prices are coming.

Some of our current five-year plan includes application for an energy grant that will help us build renewable energy collectors on the farm. Thus, some of our tool purchases will lean towards electric, rather than gas, engines.

For example, we are looking for a power washer. A power washer should reduce cleaning time and reduce water use, making it a wise tool choice for our operation. However, most of the better power washers are gas-powered, but our research shows good electric powered washers exist.

Second, we believe it is important to purchase well-made tools. We need reliable equipment that can handle consistent use. We also don't believe in buying tools that are intended to be 'tossed' after their expected life span is reached.

Watch these pages for more on this front in future months.

GFF in the News

• GFF Cover Story in Wartburg Magazine (now online)
• PFI article in most recent PFI newsletter
• GFF part of two Cooperator projects sponsored by PFI
• Real Faux's presenting at the WAVA conference in Decorah

FMNP/WIC Training

Once again, the Genuine Faux Farm will go through training that will allow us to accept the WIC/FMNP coupons at farmers' markets this season. This program benefits society in two ways. First, it provides low income parents and the elderly with support and encouragement to purchase fresh and healthy foods. One of the biggest arguments against fresh, local food systems is that it often excludes lower income families. Second, it supports the local food system by encouraging a broader base of customers.

PFI Field Day

We have been selected to hold a Practical Farmer's of Iowa field day in late summer/early fall of 2008. Our participation in the tomato 'staking' research trials made us a candidate for a field day to present/exhibit the trial and its results up to that point.

The date has not been selected at this point, but it does have an important implication for us at the farm! We want to look good when other growers and interested PFI members come visit us. Be prepared that we will put out a call for help to try and spruce up for this event. Certainly participants will not expect perfection - but we'd like to show that we do care about how we look - even during the busiest time of the season.

GFF Community Involvement

A quick look at our calendar for the next month shows a number of instances where Tammy and/or Rob are taking advantages of opportunities to encourage sustainable practices in our area.

Tammy gets the ball rolling with a presentation on organic flower gardening to a group at the Peace-UCC church on March 11. Rob will take a different approach and present to two different classes at Wartburg on the 12th and the 19th of the month. The first will be Amy Nolan's IS 101 class and the second will be Ed Westen's Biology 440 class.

Tammy will participate in the Wartburg Chapel Commons "Food Fight" on March 19, starting at 7pm. The focus of the event will be on food related issues and hunger/poverty. The following Saturday (March 22), Rob and Tammy will maintain at table at the annual Farm Bureau Pancack Breakfast at the 4-H building from 9:00 to noon. We will represent our farm, the Waverly and Tripoli Farmers' Markets and NIFFP.

On March 24, Rob and Tammy will maintain at table at UNI (Maucker Union) from 10:30-2:00, in an effort to educate students about local and organic food options. There will be more opportunities for us in April, but this represents our last gasp in this area prior to our gardens hitting full stride!

Tom Sawyer Day I

Our first official Tom Sawyer Day is scheduled for April 25, from 2pm to 6pm. An email announcement will be sent out approximately a week and a half prior to the event. Those interested in participating are stongly encouraged to RSVP so we can plan. If you wish to attend for part or all of the event, you are welcome. If you cannot attend during this time period, please contact us and let us know what you might like to do (and when).

There is plenty of work to do on the farm prior to TSD I. If we receive sufficient interest, we could be persuaded to organize a late March/early April 'pre-TSD' event.

New Waverly Farmers' Market Manager

We are pleased to announce that Lara Martinsen-Burrell has agreed to be the Waverly Farmers' Market Manager for the 2008 season. The Waverly market is poised to become a vital part of the community and Lara provides us with the energy, insight and ability to turn this into a reality. We are hopeful that the new season will see the market at its downtown location on both Tuesdays and Saturdays. We also anticipate more purposeful programming and community involvement.

Steve Kazda and Joyce Maxey will continue as Market Masters and Rob and Tammy Faux will be assistants. The addition of Lara to this staff provides us with an individual who can focus on creating successful market-wide events. Come visit our market this year and encourage us to become a stronger part of your community!

Pork & Beef Buys

Both the beef and the pork are at their respective lockers. We plan on picking the pork up during the week of March 10. We suspect the beef will be ready to pick up by the week of March 17. Participants, please be prepared to help us transfer your share to you in a timely fashion.

Wanted

• CSA signups for the 2008 season
• cattle panels
• fencing stakes
• cloth bags for 'borrow a bag' program
• leaves for mulch/composting
• old towels (preferably white)
  

Subscribe Today!

If you look to the right, you can see our CSA Tally Sheet. We still have a ways to go before we reach our goal for the 2008 season.

It is time for us to turn our plans into action, just as it is time for you to insinuate yourselves into our plans! If you were a member in 2007, please let us know your intentions for 2008 by returning the SASE and applications. Remember, you can reserve a spot with $25. If your summer plans do not allow you to be members in 2008, please use the SASE to tell us this as well!

If you want to see what is coming for 2008, please feel free to visit the appropriate CSA web pages. You can also download the appropriate forms and mail in your application, deposit and/or payment for a share.

Reduced Price Share Program

The farm has collected $330 towards our Reduced Price Share Program in 2008. Thank you to everyone who has donated towards this program. We will continue to accept these donations until the subscription period closes. With this level of funding, we are able to offer either three small shares or two large shares at half prices (with a payment plan) to low-income subscribers.

If you, or someone you know, is interested, please go here to learn more. If we have no RPSP subscribers this season, we will contribute equivalent produce to the food shelf in Waterloo in addition to our planned donations.

Email Distribution Lists

CSA List

Members of the CSA are automatically added to our newsletter distribution list. They are also on our distribution list for special announcements. Members will be the first to know about cooperative meat buys, special events and announcements.

Local Friends of the Farm

You may opt in to this list even if you are not a CSA member. You will receive monthly notices when the newsletter is published. Members of this list will also periodically receive announcements about gatherings, cooperative buys, etc, but will often be notified of special buys after CSA members have had the first opportunity.

Friends of the Farm

Our friends and family are spread all over the globe. We will gladly allow any interested party to opt in to this list. Members of this list will receive only our monthly announcements regarding the newsletter.

CSA Tally Sheet

	Goal	Actual
2008 Members	60	20

GFF Stories: The Lawn Movers

It was our first home purchase, therefore it was our first yard. It was not, however, our first garden. In fact, it was our fourth as a married couple. But, for the previous three instances the garden location and size was dictated to us. So, you can guess that we were anxious to do ALL the things we had dreamt of doing with a garden (and then some) with our new home.

As is often the case with newer home owners, the variety of tools we had at our disposal was limited. Our ability to find people in the community that had tools we could use was also limited. Or perhaps, our pride didn't allow us to look. Either way, we had a nice, big yard. And it demanded a nice, big garden. Even if all we had were a couple of shovels, a couple of rakes and a push mower.

The ideal location for the garden received the most sun. And thus, the lawn was lush and full where we wanted it to go. On the other hand, there were other patches of lawn that were bare. The obvious solution was to dig up sections of sod, break the soil off of them, and move them to the bare patches elsewhere in the yard.

Many hours were spent cutting up patches of sod, breaking the rich, blue/black dirt off of each piece by hand and moving it to some new location. Our work started in March and didn't end until the last patch of grass was removed from our 30 by 30 foot garden in June. Of course, we planted our garden in stages as we freed parts of it up.

In essence, we hand prepared, weeded and cultivated 900 square feet. We mulched our garden well with cut grass and had very little trouble with weeds during our time there. There were many good meals from that garden and our neighbors received fresh produce and free entertainment - if watching two people sit on the ground, diligently removing dirt from sod is entertaining.

For pictures of this garden, go here.

Rodale Book of Composting - Recommended Resource

The Rodale Book of Composting: Easy Methods for Every Gardener (Revised Edition) Edited by Martin and Gershuny

We have had the good fortune of locating several excellent references books this off-season. In the case of this book, we were also given the opportunity to hear a presentation from one of the farm managers of the Rodale Institute at the Organic Farming Conference. We can only conclude that these people know what they are talking about.

The details are in this book. The general concepts are in this book. If you want to understand composting and devise your own composting plan, this book can be used to guide you.

Clearly, there is more in this book than most people need in order to begin composting. However, judicial selection of reading material within the book can lead you to the parts that will fit your situation best. We could have used this when our garden was only 900 square feet in size and we will use it now that we work five acres of ground.

Tools to Work Smarter

A sizable portion of our early 2008 share payments have been reinvested into the farm in the form of new tools. We see these tools as ways to more efficiently do the work we already do and/or to make our efforts more sustainable.

One tool added to our arsenal is the broadfork. Actually, we purchased two of the them. The broadfork is used to loosen the soil without completely reorganizing the soil structure as rototilling or digging might. For example, if you dig a hole with a spade, you will displace the soil and mixes up the different layers. This process has the potential of breaking down necessary aggregates if it is persistently used in a farming system. The broadfork avoids this, uses no fossil fuels, and is easier on our backs than a potato fork or shovel.

Planting squash and melon seed was a time consuming and tedious job in prior years. Essentially, Rob or Tammy would fill one hand with seed and either crawl or bend over to push one seed into the row hill every six inches. One row of squash required roughly 120 seeds. Consider the fact that there were approximately 60 such rows of squash and melons and you have a daunting task. Enter the seed stick. A person can place a similar number of seeds into the seed compartment and stand upright while planting the seeds into the row hill. We anticipate this task will take one tenth the time, be much less taxing AND the tool does not use fossil fuels (again!).

The wheel hoe was a wonderful discovery last season, but the large wheel design had its flaws. We have since discovered the "Planet Jr" design for wheel hoes and have purchased a model that replicates this design (which can be found in advertising in the 1880's). With two wheel hoes, there is now an opportunity for two people to cultivate fields at the same time. The wheel hoe provides an excellent cultivation and hilling tool. And, even better, it provides an opportunity for aerobic exercise at the expense of...you guessed it...no fossil fuels.

One of our most expensive investments thus far is a six-row seeder for small seeds (lettuce, spinach, carrots, etc). This seeder is an adaptation of a European design brought to the United States by Eliot Coleman. The tool comes highly recommended by other CSA growers and we anticipate that it will increase our success levels with greens in the coming year.

Pablo's

Our local business of the month is Pablo's, in honor of their commitment to the support and development of a local food system.
Owner Lee Cronkhite is a vital part of the Northern Iowa Farm & Food Partnership (NIFFP) and he believes strongly that local food purchases lead to fresher better tasting products and good business. Lee, and the late Paul Hein, helped to make Pablo's a friendly buyer for local food producers and we are grateful for their efforts.

Pablo's is a Fresh Mexican Grill with locations in Cedar Falls and Waverly. The Cedar Falls location is well established and the Waverly location is now under new management and has recently added delivery service and a fresh fruit margarita bar.

---------------------------

And there you are - a flashback to March of 2008.  It is interesting to see what has remained consistent with us and what has changed over time.

I hope you enjoyed this bit of nostalgia and that you have a great remainder of the day! 

Picture This

It is tempting to look back at the "way things were" and want to go back to a "simpler time."   Now think about that.  How often have you heard others (and maybe yourself) use those phrases.  I am not saying that we should not reflect positively on our past.  I am also NOT saying that we can't learn a lesson or two from looking at the past.

I actually agree that there are many things that we've made far more complicated than it needs to be - all in the interest of "modernization" or "moving society forward" or whatever other generic saying we use as an excuse to change how things are done.  I do tend to think we could benefit from finding a balance with doing some things the "old way" just to slow life down a bit so it isn't such a blur!

That said, let me reflect on something that has become much easier to do in recent years that would not have even been an option even a decade ago.

Tammy and I have enjoyed taking pictures of some of the beautiful places in the world we have been fortunate enough to visit.  THAT is the first thing I wanted to point out.  The event of digital cameras has opened up the door for any number of amateurs to try their hand at capturing the beauty of this world.

As a quick reminder, taking pictures with an iPhone wasn't possible until 2007.  Digital cameras that cost less than $1000 weren't available until somewhere around 2005.  Up until that point, if you wanted to take your own pictures, you would use cameras with film - and film cost money - and it cost money to develop that film.

None of this encouraged people to just take pictures because they felt creative or just wanted to.

And then, let's say you really liked one of your photos and had this wild idea that it would look good on a wall of your house or office.  Well, that was a bit of a reach for most people in the world.  Of course it was doable.  But, it was pretty much limited to the subset of people in the world who were professionals, dedicated hobbyists or someone with extra money to burn (and who knew a professional or dedicated hobbyist).

This brings me to the present day.  Not only do most people have a reasonably good camera that is part of their phone, many have digital cameras that can take pictures with very high resolution - good enough to blow that picture up to a 20" x 30" size without the details getting pixelated (blurred).

And, we have services that provide us with the opportunity to make wall art for ourselves with our own pictures without breaking the bank.  In terms of time, this has not been readily available for all that long.  In terms of importance, this is probably not the most important thing in the world either.

Yet, it is a thing that does provide people with a new opportunity to exercise creativity and decorate the spaces we reside in.  There is value in this, and I would miss it if we were to suddenly roll back the clock to the simpler time in history that we sometimes wish we could return to.

Maybe a better solution is to find ways to slow ourselves down now, so this will also be a time we look back on with fondness.  One of our approaches is to select favorite pictures of favorite places and putting them on our walls so we can stare at them for a bit - and enjoy the beauty.