Famine

[forestwalker]

Thanks for the book recommendations and links!! I have checked some of his books out from the library, but haven't read one all the way through yet.

You can catch some talks of his on YouTube though. Just do a search for his name. I watched him on a panel taped at Berkley.

I've enjoyed reading Michael Pollan. He's not a Christian, but wow is he a great journalist. He was on the same panel with Berry.

Yeah, I've seen that panel and heard Pollan interviewed and talked about quite a bit. My to-read list is too long as it is but his Omnivore's Dilemma sounds really interesting.

[forestwalker]

We are enjoying what we are learning and doing. And at the same time, there is only so much we can do. My husband works full-time off the farm, so that really limits our time.

Are there any CSA farms in your area?

I really am not sure. Our Farmer's Market doesn't start til May. It is tricky finding local, clean food.

I found mine here.

We are preparing to get a milk cow in May. We went last week, and I milked her and actually got milk to come out!! It was so much fun. We may do cow shares with her milk if we can't handle it all. We raise chickens for meat and eggs, and we have duck eggs. Other than gardening, that is about all we are doing right now. I hope, after we get our cow settled in we can get either a hog or a calf to raise for meat, but we'll have to wait and see. I'll have enough to keep me busy just learning how to care for our milk cow. She is due to calve in September, so that may be our meat calf right there if she has a bull calf.

That's impressive. I'm a single So Cal apartment-dweller so that's not really an option for me. The CSA and just eating less meat is all I've been able to manage.

[dolfan]

Someone mentioned a CSA farm. I had to look it up. BUT, I asked my former church to use some of its idle 10 acres of very good and fertile field, with a creek and everything, to let me head up a project that does exactly what a CSA farm does. I got laughed at almost. That was an early chink in the relationship.

I did my very own first garden (with my brother) 2 years ago, and my dad does one yearly. We still have food frozen from it, good stuff. I'd LOVE to have another one, but we moved to a subdivision and don't have a pasture on the edge of our yard to borrow part of it for a garden. Some of the most fun I ever had was that garden.

[forestwalker]

I've often thought, too, Tim, that every church should have a large garden instead of just the acre of lawn. Good for church community, provides food to give away to needy congregants and neighbors, etc. And there's so much theology to be learned in a garden! It's not always practical as so few of us live in the neighborhood of our churches, but a great idea if feasible. What sparked your idea?

And the CSA...it's so fantastic. The food is great (make that GREAT!), prices are comparable to or better than the market, you're supporting your local community and a small businessman, helping ensure there's a local food supply in case of emergency, getting your food without generating nearly as much pollution, resisting sprawl, and giving your family a much better and safer supply of food. Check the link in my last post above. I'm sure there's some local to you.

[Tracy]

I've seen that panel and heard Pollan interviewed and talked about quite a bit. My to-read list is too long as it is but his Omnivore's Dilemma sounds really interesting.

I have read that book, and it is wonderful. If you can get a copy from the library or get it on audio you won't regret it. It is hard to put down.

Another one that will amaze and delight you is by Nina Planck called Real Food. Her website is http://www.ninaplanck.com.

The King Corn documentary is airing this week on PBS in some places. Check your listings--from what I can tell, it is fantastic.

And finally, if you go to this website: http://www.radiosandysprings.com/Tastebuds/charli.html

you can download a bunch of radio interviews with lots of interesting people like Nina Planck, Joel Salatin, and others.

Enjoy!

Thanks again for the links. I've begun reading them