Appalachian Mountain Dreams

As strange as it may sound, our land line phones cannot get a dial tone but dsl is working intermittently. The problem has been reported to AT&T and they are guaranteeing resolution by 7pm tomorrow. But the last time we had a problem it took 3 tries to get it fixed so there is a good chance that I will

 This morning’s email brought the latest issue of Ladybug Letter from Mariquita Farm. A little exploring on their site led me to this article. I was going to extract the list headlines but it made more sense to just publish the list entirely… Locally grown food tastes better. Food grown in your own community was probably picked within the past

I find myself sitting here with my coffee, already through the mornings emails and nothing caught my interest enough to comment on. I’ve already visited my morning blogroll in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I followed Marie and Harley on their Christmas excursion to the wild Christmas Tree Farm. Checked in with Fred to see if he had recovered and was

If you’ve never tried the site, check out Kitchen Gardens International…  Wendell Berry on the “industrial eater” “The industrial eater is, in fact, one who does not know that eating is an agricultural act, who no longer knows or imagines the connections between eating and the land, and who is therefore necessarily passive and uncritical… We still (sometimes) remember that

 I have just one word to say — YES! Democratic leaders declared a temporary moratorium on special-interest provisions known as earmarks as they attempt to cope with a budget crisis left by the outgoing Republican-led 109th Congress. Congress adjourned early Saturday, having completed work on two of the 11 spending bills for the 2007 fiscal year that began Oct. 1.

Fred’s getting some good press these days. They are even offering the book through their on-line store.  (Floyd, Virginia) Some of us long for belonging to the land, for roots in particular and special places where, for reasons usually beyond our knowing, we resonate with the landscape. For those like Fred First who have lived other places and then been

For Pablo who I know is out of the country. I thought this would help ease the pain of no real rain…  A dream of rain We’re in the old country house at Winedale for a few days, and last night we had rain. Every time I woke up during the night rain was making music on this tin roof.

This house intrigues me. I pass it on my way to and from work regularly. It is on a road that once upon a time brought children from the countryside to the local public school. As a matter of fact it that is it’s name. In this part of the country you will come across a lot of small two

 If it teaches  us nothing else, the problems with illness from fresh produce, will teach us the truth to the old saw about “putting all of your eggs in one basket”. First it was spinach. Then tomatoes. Now possibly green onions. Over the past three months, fresh produce has been the culprit in one episode of food-borne illness after another,

It was good to see that Marie’ family managed to make it home through the ice and snow of yesterday’s weather in Boone. I hope her fears of frozen water didn’t pan out… The take away quote from E.J. Dionne’s column today says a lot with a few words An administration that fought a misguided, poorly planned and ill-considered war