A thought about Sustainability and modern life...

Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, was quoted in the film 180 Degrees South as saying, "The hardest thing in the world is to simplify your life; it's so easy to make it complex. The solution that may be for a lot of the world's problems is to turn around and take a forward step." 

He also said in an interview with Blue Ridge Outdoors that "nothing humans do is sustainable".

Wow - how often do you hear a fantastically successful businessman speak the hard truth? Thank you, Yvon! And thank you to Beezer Molten, owner of Half Moon Outfitters, whose business model emulates the Patagonia/Chouinard model. You've got my respect and my business.  Thanks!

The Fiorella's Farm

I've been searching for a source of organic chicken feed in SC, and so far have turned up ZILCH. NATTA. NOTHING. But I have found sources outside of SC, and one of them was near where I would be spending a few days vacationing. So I called up Pat and John Fiorella of Fiorella's Organics, and arranged to stop by their little farm and pick up a sack of organic chicken feed.  A long way to go for a sack of feed, but I really wanted to see what they were up to...  We drove out to meet Pat and John this morning, and what was supposed to be a short visit turned into a three hour tour extraordinaire! 

Pat and John live inside the city, and have a small farm - less than 4 acres. They went in with several other folks to communally purchase 22 acres total, which they subdivided between the owners and then placed the land under conservation easement to limit subdivision and development.  

Thirteen or so years ago they purchased the house and barn that were on the property. The barn dates to the mid 1800s. It came with an inventory that included an old fashioned wagon, a horse drawn sleigh, a mechanical corn shucker, and other antique farm implements.

They are incredibly down to earth folks, involved in their community in various ways. John works with a nearby environmental education center. Pat spends some of her time catering, and putting on a summer camp for kids on the farm. In addition to John, she cares for the kids, a couple of cats, Ruby (their dog, fearless to the end), and a few dozen chickens.

Is she, or isn't she - a "she" ?

I have some neighbors with chickens (actually several neighbors have chickens). David and Beth live down on Yates, and they have 5 - four hens and a very large, very beautiful Buff Orpington rooster named Vespa (?). I was visiting with them recently, talking about the dilemma of having a rooster in the Terrace, when David mentioned that one of my Buff Orpingtons looked like it might be a rooster! Dixie or Percella ?  Sure enough, Dixie seems to be maturing "differently" than the others. A little bigger, with more pronounced wattles. So is Dixie a Dickie?  I hope not, because Dixie is probably the most people friendly of all the chicks... I'd hate to have to find a new home for her (him, it)....