The Start and Getting Into It

I plan on returning to standard day form, but first-- there's still more wrapping-in to do.

Newport stuck around town this winter. He pulled a few odd-jobs for the boss and started delivering flowers to (barely) pay the bills. It was early/mid March when he came back full time. Together, he and the boss, they seeded the tomatoes back in late February and cleared most of the brush around the field edges. I was disappointed to hear they'd taken care nearly all the Spring burning-- only one big pile remains.

Things are very different now. Well-- as background: the car I used last season was bequeathed unto my little brother and it was made explicitly clear that my days of carpooling were limited. So I'm hunting after a car-- just had my loan pre-approved (?) this past Monday, now I gotta settle on the automobile. There's a slew of used-dealerships nearby with pick-up trucks going for nickles and dimes. Nobody wants 'em and they're more negative space than car anyway. I figure with my short drive to the farm/the ability to load junk/crops/crew maybe the pick up is the right choice. But anyway things are very different with Newport.

The days last week were bitter cold with high winds, several times coupled onto miserable rain showers. Rather than leave me huddled in the greenhouse munching stale peanut-butter sandwiches, Newport took me in. Everyday he drove me to his house, fed me left overs, swapped cigarettes in comfort, tussled with his two Corgis and argued over episodes of family feud. He did me a real streak of kindnesses. As Kev in the kitchen used to say-- Newport, I don't care what they say about you, friend you're alright by me.

Without the foreman, both of us received a big wage jump-- although, I keep one little bit secret: I inherited the foreman's rights: double overtime and seasonal bonuses. A monster I am, but so it goes. Foremanship weighs pretty heavily on me-- I'm fighting hard to live up to the title, but I went soft over winter. It'll be a few weeks until I claw my way back into farm muscles/endurance. I've been coming in early every morning and leaving late, giving me ample time to chat up the boss. For whatever reason, he's decided that this year is the big one. Even short one experienced hand, he's pushing us into a big year-- bigger plantings, faster/tighter crop rotations, plowing new fields, new field tech (electric fencing/new organic sprays) and we're trying new crops (carrots/agricultural beans/many new string bean varieties/many greens/new herbs/others that I now forget). The first plantings in the peach orchard (done 7 years ago) are finally mature and this year is set to be the first real harvest-- they've been sprayed, pruned and are being monitored for production.

Besides the new greenhouse construction (which we finally cleared way for today), the boss has big plans to expand the ice-cream business. He's shopping around contractors and intends to have a full (real, none gravel) patio installed with benches, tables, garden and the works. Maybe it's time chasing after him (now turned 65) or the double knee replacement surgery he has planned this next winter-- but he's attacking on all fronts. Exciting days ahead-- and profitable ones.


When I came back from New York I got to spend a day with my old friend Jizzy. He was shipping out the next day to act for a theater company in Lancaster, Pennsylvania-- performing from April through the first week in July (then he returns to the farm for a spell). But anyway, the money was great-- more than he's ever received before as an actor (+ free food/rooming). The Amish are apparently very generous to their arts people (it is an Amish themed play, tailor made for the community/benefactors). It was one day with Jizzy, and we spent it well. In the morning we set out with rods, chairs and beers for some fishing at a tiny pond through the woods. It was 40F, the wind was constant and stiff, but the alcohol kept us rosy. Jizzy's dad strolled over and joined us in a cove at the pond's far side, nestled out of the wind-- he brought a tackle box full of more fishing beers. The father and son had been out everyday for the past month, starting the day after the pond was stocked-- bringing home dozens of sizable rainbow trout. We fished through the day, but the wind and cold made the task near impossible, so we joked around. After dinner I took Jizzy out into the little city for a night of drinking, on me. He'll be missed.


Onto today, the right way.

High of 59F, Low around 33F. Mostly sunny and calm, but the wind kicked up in the afternoon.

I hopped in early and started seeding another 1000 kale down in the greenhouse. The boss had a rough nights sleep so he came in just after me-- figured he may as well be working. We polished off the kale and seeded another 1000 broccoli (75 day variety).

Newport pulled in a little later and we chugged out another big round of seeding. We completely rearranged the greenhouse to squeeze another 2 rows of palates and trays-- the boss intends to get the peppers transplanted into larger trays in the next week or so. The big topic of the day was the trans-gender Ms Canada contestant-- Newport showed me pictures of her on his phone, and he couldn't reconcile his attraction with the fact she used to be a man. The boss thought it was fantastic and launched into a big sermon on the subject. We headed up to the smaller greenhouse by the boss's house-- finished transplanting the last cherry tomatoes (sun golds/choco cherries/black cherries) and filled out the remaining space with yellow Valencias and Purple Prudence. Finished just in time for lunch.

I had lunch alone in the store today. With my mother laid out on heavy pain medications, relatives and church members have been delivering bulk meals every night-- so I had a mean plate full of chicken, rice, peas and onions. I've felt restless ever since leaving the city, the farm seems real alien. I took some time to lay in the sun and felt an inch better.

After lunch I took the tractor up to the junkyard to get more palates and cinder blocks for the big greenhouse. Newport met me and we got everything situated-- even setting the trays, filling 'em with soil and soaking them. All set for more seeding. We loaded up 3 final buckets worth of split wood onto the tractor-- hauling it up to the boss's wood shed (now he's ready for next winter). A few big logs remained and some lesser trees, so we buzzed them into bit size pieces with the chainsaw-- besides a few scrap metal heaps and a mound of pipe attachments, the space was finally cleared for the new semi-greenhouse.

The boss called me up and I took the van over to the junkyard. The buyers were coming tomorrow for the old truck bed, so I helped the boss and his brother wrestle the iron monstrosity onto a ramp of cinder blocks. We then headed back to the boss's house to clear away some odd logs and sticks from around the yard, then cleared the hay off the boss's wife's garden.

We ended the day back at the big greenhouse seeding another round of broccoli (a 76 day variety). We have another set of 88 day and 96 day broccoli to be planted-- different varieties take different amounts of time to mature, the day number marks how long from germination to first harvest.

Newport and the boss left early for home, so I did a few more broccoli trays-- pulled the frost guard over the seedling trays and closed up the greenhouse.

Home and diner.

Feels good writing again, we'll see ya tomorrow.

Take it easy.