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October 14th, 2018

10/14/2018

Hard day at the office

Hello there
Looks like my husband has been angling for a holiday again. Though he did not quite manage to injure himself enough this time to get a hospital stay. Next time he will have to prime the pig first so it swings its head much harder towards his foot then maybe he can get a few broken bones thrown in for good measure and do a proper job rather than just a bit of blood a swollen foot and some antibiotics. The doctor, who is getting accustomed to Gavins 10 yearly attempt at removing limbs, said "well seeing as it is you we will give you a tetanus jab early just incase". 10 years early no less! Gavin really knows how to celebrate his up and coming zero birthdays, having attacked his own foot with a chainsaw 10 years ago. Piercing by pig tusk is a very creative change from chainsaw massacre, which is soooo very 70's.
I hasten to add that pig was playing and not at fault.

Today it rained which is great news for us and the animals. Not sure how much yet and I think the rain gauge is cracked as we always seem to have 9mm in the meauring cylinder. I think the grass has already started to green up a little so this storm should really hurry it along if the temperatures don't drop too much.

The market is an interesting place to meet people from all walks of life and countries, sadly I don't always have time to complete a fully rewarding conversation as I am working but I always hope that everyone leaves the stand a little happier and a little more positive about life. My fellow standholders are truly wonderful people always ready to chat and give you some moral support when you're feeling a little down with administration and the weather and a multitude of other things. They are such a happy uplifting crowd. On the other side of this very small world the other day my nephew bought some sausages from a fellow market trader/farmer who spent 3 weeks with us about 2 years ago and is now in Chicago with his young business, growing and selling his own products. Go Hayden!

Gavin has just come in and told us about his encounter with about 25 sanglier in a field by our old house may be he was trying for a real hospital stay. He said he heard them grunting in the dark and as the clouds moved away from the moon he saw them all standing around him. Quite Conan-Doyle I thought. So being the savvy dood that he is, he kept on walking and they all minded their own business. Man at one with nature ;)
See you all soon
Helenx

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Autumns here!

9/24/2018

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Curried Beans

Cucmber and Ginger Jam

Is there a slight dip in the temperature and has the sun moved a little in the sky so that vaguely autumnal feeling is descending upon us? So I will do a bit of preserving whilst I have a small amount of time.

A little rain to encourage the grass to grow would be a really good thing right now as by golly it is very brown outside in the fields still, and we have winter to get through with all the animals yet.
I suspect it will be a tight winter as far as outdoor grazing is concerned. Funny isn't it how the year can begin soooo wet, that you have to feed hay longer because the animals are not able to go on all the parts of the farm, as some fields are unable to sustain livestock when it is too wet and boggy and because the ground stays colder, the grass takes longer to come through. Once everything warms up and dries out a bit then grass production is just mad. Then at the other end of the year you have to start thinking about feeding hay earlier because the ground is so hard and dry that the grass is not growng at all. When Gavin went out to move fences the other day he had to take his drill with him to make little holes for the metal posts to go into.

I know I should not complain and to be honest I am not really complaining about the weather just stating the facts. It has made our entertaining-full summer easier having a long hot dry summer and it has been delightful to properly bake in the sun and not worry about where to dry 4 loads of washing every day . And to be honest there is not a lot anyone can do about what the weather does anyway, so there is no point in compaining about it in the first place.

Guess who?

I can feel the year changing as we get back into the rhythm of real life rather than holiday life. Nougat the donkeys winter hair is starting to grow and the cats are suddenly inside the house more curled up on the sofa looking to snuggle up and be warm making more vacuuming work as they leave their hair everywhere. The birds this year are likely to be short of food, in fact they are already really as the brambles and other wild berries did not produce significantly this year. So if are a feed the birds person..."tuppence a bag".... hang some food out early, and if you are not then maybe this is a good year to start.

Cremation

modification

Chocolate Mont Blanc

We had a birthday this past week, the big step into teenager-hood again for Gavin and me. I made a cake and was reminded that our cooker needs its thermostat testing....And then I had to be creative.Tasted good though. Other creations were the slow-cooked pork hock dish I made. Very yummy. Very easy. Very filling.
Happy cooking, see you all soon,
Helen

Apologies for picture quality

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The start of a New Year? Kind of.

9/4/2018

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Day one. Always ttravel with a map. Google often gets lost.

So September comes and with it the dispersal of children to their various educational destinations, the change in the feel of the sunshine on your back and the different colours start to appear in the landscape. The rhythmn of farm lfe changes slightly from the manic checking to see if lambs and Mummys are well and together, to the slow ruminating of ewes that no longer have anything to worry about but eating and lazing in the sun. The lambs are now big and off being teenagers.....need I say more ;)

As some of you may have noticed I have been away and yes I do mean properly away just not for very long. Gavin's mum and sister, number 3 and I swanned our way over and wined and dined ourselves around the capital of Austria. No we didn't, don't be daft. We took ye olde Easyjet, cheapest flight available for the amount of changes and hours we were willing to spend in the air. Found a jolly cheap but amazing arbnb flat not far from the centre and then proceeded to pound the pavement and escalators and try out all the local forms of transport. The biggest spot of luck is that if you travel during school holiday time with a school aged child they are free anywhere within the Vienna city boundary!!!!! I know incredible. And then to buy a ticket for all 4 of us back to the airport which is half an hour, cost......7.70euros. I know if you live in for example Tallinin, Estonia, this is not news and is still too much. But for us it was amazing! So come on Bordeaux if you want to close all the bridges which I know is what you really want to do, how about some free if not super cheap public transport.
In a few brief words Vienna was amazing. Brimming full with years and years and years and years of money, history, art, music and culture, and the buildings were quite frankly superb. The Hapsbergs certainly knew how to embellish. The food, well to be honest eating out was quite pricey for us but we did have cake in a coffee house a couple of times. Yum yum yum. I will bore you with some holiday pics now.

Schonborn-Batthyany

St.Stephens Cathedral

Typical Viennese house

Schoenbrunn Palais

Cake

Belvedere Palace

It is true that in a capital city with so many tourists it is not possible for it all to be moonlight and roses. So if they would like some advice from a visitor ( which I am sure they would love) they need to brush up on their cleanliness around Schonbrunn Palace. And it would be really cool if smoking in some of their bars was a little more delineated or even forbidden as I read that by law it is banned but the law is not strictly adhered to. However maybe I am just spoiled in my smoke free environment surrounded by the fresh country smell of.......... manure ;)

Oops, yuck

Cigarette butts

We started the summer with 11 people oscilated through the months with 7,8 or 9 people, with one day of 50 something. Today we are 5. Tomorrow we will be 3 again. It has been a happy time for all of us and a little bit sad so see everyone leaving. So all I can say is thank goodness for Strictly Come Dancing then at least Saturday night will be raucous again.:) :)
See you all soon
Helen

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August 21st, 2018

8/21/2018

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Returning after 3 weeks away.

Hello Everyone
The entertaining continues down on the farm, both for our two legged visitors and for our new 4 legged arrivals from The Maine Meunier. The cat freaked out and left home for 3 weeks but we fetched her home from our old house and spoiled her a bit with some homemade paté.
Below Paddy and Patricia are just leaving the trailer to accustomise themselves to the new accommodation.....a little larger than their previous residence but a little more noisy. Gavin keeps reminding me that the pigs were in fact my idea, and for once I don't think I can contradict him (don't tell him that though). However we seem to be having a population explosion. Having had about 20 something a few weeks ago we now have 40 something as a couple of our sows have decided to pop at the same time as our new lodgers arrived. I have a feeling this year is going to get extremely busy and I am brushing up on my charcuterie skills. I hope everyone needs a ham for C.......s, or in fact Thanksgiving! ;)

Paddy/Mini bus and Patricia

Emily's BF has flown the yard, quite literally, with KLM. I don't think we scared him off.... but he had to do some serious eating and socialising with us, and our friends and family whilst he was here. A whole pile of new experiences as well with all the animals. Sadly though when we visited our local night market at Le Pizou there was no electric accordion man, so we have saved that for next time.

Now that we have finally got ourselves ready for the eartag police, the boys are plodding their way through the shearing with many helpers on hand to pick up wool and load trailers. Hot, hard work but quite satisfying when you look at the end result. All the lambs have been weaned now and we have just got in some lambs to bottle feed from an organic sheep milk producer. Because as we all know Gavin does get bored during the autumn months, and likes to have a few babies around to keep him up till all hours. ;)
Now as you all know I like to sit around and drink a lot of tea whilst Gavin is running around labouring. So to stop myself becoming fatigued with life, I will be cooking at a night market in Saint Michel Leparon et L'Ecluse this Saturday 25th August. If anyone fancies a bit of light entertainment and somewhere to take guests for a typical Dordognian evening out in the summer, then it is usually good fun and very children friendly.

Babies in the house

Babies on the way

Occassionally we have an opportunity to sit down with the family and relax for a few hours and here we are below doing exactly that. More family arriving in a few days along with some Scicilians from Holland (!?) don't you just love living in Europe.
See you all soon.
Helenx

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Sun, food and friendship

8/2/2018

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The only rainbow in the district

It has been a busy old time down on the farm for the last few weeks. But enjoyably so. We have reconnected with some very dear friends from Zimbabwe, whom we had not seen or spoken to for 20 years. Other than the fact that their children have grown (!), it was as if we had seen each other yesterday. We ate a lot of food, talked a lot of talk and went for a canoe down the river. A marvellous visit.
All the children are home now, with attachments, and mother-in-law has also arrived. The house is full, lively and hungry. Number 3 child keeps running off to other peoples houses I am beginning to wonder if she has become unacustomed to living with the general banter of family life as she is so often an only child these days. Well it is either that, or the fact that I keep insisting that she read a book every now and then which can be quite a challenge.

Gavin has been trying to keep up with some repairs and maintainance now that he has some assistance on the farm. And that was all going smoothly until the tyres we had ordered for the trailer 10 days ago did not turn up which meant a trip to Perigueux to visit the warehouse of said deliverers. Shall they remain nameless.....no not today I don't think....GLS. They gave us the round the houses treatment with the telephone numbers and then stopped picking up altogether in Perigueux. On arrival in Perigueux Gavin was confronted with a very full warehouse, with rows and rows of parcels neatly grouped into post code areas for the Dordogne, and an articulated trailers worth of parcels to unload standing outside with another expected that evening.
After some rather irritating moments he discovered that the probelm is lack of drivers to deliver all the parcels once they have arrived at the central warehouse for the Dordogne. So if anyone has a parcel coming, check who your delivery service is, and if necessary make alternative arrangements.
It does make me wonder why people so often say there is no work in Dordogne. Do people not like driving? After all I would not have called our department a particularly taxing environment for driving....Or are conditions for delivery drivers so appalling that no one wants to do it?.... Or is the "we want it now" generation of purchasers that we have become, begining to finally take its toll on logistics, with its inability to provide the complete service through over demand creating no supply? Who knows.

Recovering after a hard mornings work

The animals are hot and the piggies have found the first green acorns so are very excitedly ploughing up their field in an effort to see if in fact acorns actually grow underground. I think they are going to be disappointed. When Gavin or Patrick go to put the pigs away at night time there is one pig that lies down and pretends to be a tree root. As they do so much wallowing at the moment occassionally it manages it and gets left behind.

It is a busy month in the butchery as well, with everone else enjoying visits with the family or friends or both. And the markets have hotted up, literally ;) It is looking like it will be a scorcher this coming weekend. Never thought I would be wondering what to wear to a market....What is cool, protective, smart yet casual and resistant to be ripped through carrying heavy items with sharp corners? Answers on a postcard please. See you all soon;
Helenx

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July 08th, 2018

7/8/2018

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Hello Everyone
Well we finally made it.... to our yearly day trip to the beach. Which btw was awesome. We were lucky enough to have chosen the 3rd July the day before the big storm and we went over-seas, well..... over-estuary as we took the ferry from Blaye to Lamarque then drove to Hourtin Plage. Actually we didn't even drive as our friend shouldered that burden. Many thanks to her. It was a significant day as it was also our 25th wedding anniversary, something we are famous for forgetting amongst our family. Many thanks to Gavins brother who has spent 25 years reminding us. My lovely sister sent us flowers that were a nod to our bouquet all those years ago when we were young and could to go to pilates out of choice rather than as a body repairs and maintenance session.

Another eventful moment this week was having a bath installed in the house. "To compliment your already installed shower" I hear you ask. Not exactly, more a medical requirement for Gavin as we approach shearing time so that his muscles will work once again after a hard day shearing. Ah yes the joys of farming wear and tear. I must say though that the bath is amazing one forgets how easy it is to do things like care for your feet when you have a bath. I am very much enjoying it. Luxury, at its simplest. As I am sharing a photo of our bathroom I would like you to appreciate the quality of our décor. I have decided I don't care about matching, anything goes chez nous. I would add that the tiling in the bathroom of the house we bought is top notch, not to mention the superior plumbing work to improve the facility. And would you kindly appreciate the health and safety feature above the bath that our plumbing friend told us to remove or else.

Down the road, very noisy irrigation in the peaceful countryside ;)

I am currently enjoying a cold glass of rosé and some salted almonds whilst I write, listening to the sound of the evening. Which in theory should be the gentle sound of birdsong. But no, not at Franklin Farm. The lambs are shouting for supplies for their tummies and Nougat the donkey is announcing the arrival of anything that is passing by. The flies are incessantly buzzing around my ankles and the chickens are clucking about the fact that it is time to potter off to bed. There is some birdsong but it is more like magpies in attack formation than "a nightingale sang in Berkeley Square". Whoever said the countryside is peaceful has evidently never lived in the country.

Planted this lavendar last year. It is fabulous. As is our photogenic feline.

Gavin has been out and about delivering this week as well as me. He went to Villeréal to see some Zimbo clients of ours who funnily enough ordered rather a large quantity of Boerewors. Interestingly there seems to be a French contigent who are rather keen on the Boerewors so I must be doing something right.
I am looking forward to an equally busy week next week. With not only a pile of orders coming in but also the arrival of our big children who on pain of bacon withholding, had better not forget the stroopwaffles. It is an easy task to keep Mum happy. :)
See you all very soon, I will leave you with some pictures of piggies doing what piggies do best in the heat when your husband forgot to turn the tap off but swears it was the goats. I think I should let him out more.
Helen xx

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Something for you L.C. ;)

6/9/2018

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Having a bit of liquid refreshment

Well here we are again. It is a Saturday afternoon and the completion of another week down on the farm. Another 500ish sausages made and sold and a considerable amount of bacon of all types. Feedback on the new recipe bacon and sausages is good, so more rosemary and ginger or marjoram and black pepper sausages on the way.
The dogs are getting into the swing of the warmer weather we are having, and are sleeping a lot during the afternoon. I think they heard rumours that the workload was decreasing with the beginning of spring. How ill-informed they were as we had a surprise control from the vet department the other day to inform us that our eartags are not up to scratch.
Now as anyone who has a flock of sheep knows eartags for sheep are a disposable item. Let the farmer put them in, then go and find the nearest fence, bramble bush, pole, hay bale or blade of grass to get rid of the thing as fast as possible. Anyhow rules are rules and we must endeavour to keep one or two tags depending on the destination of said sheep in their ears at all times. Of course ours are outside most of the time so any sheep handling is a family event requiring muscle, patience and a deaf ear when Gavin is working the dogs. In my humble opinion whistling for sheepgdogs was invented by people who did not wish to have the childrens ears permanently damaged by profanity. Fortunately our delightful dogs don't hear the words just the intonation and thus can deduce that "no the sheep were not meant to be going to eat the neighbours prize roses"

This is Biggy, Alices favourite ram

So the other Sunday was spent rounding up, bringing in and writing a list of some 550 sheep so that the missing tags could be ordered and also whether they were microchip tags or ordinary. Gavins system was highly developed and on arrival he said "you write, we will catch and mark and I will shout E for microchip and P for ordinary". After a little confusion, as P and E sound much the same when shouted across a handling pen with sheep baaing and heads buried in sheep wool we developed the system to "electric" and "plain". Oh the glamorous life we lead.

Sheep sorting Franklin Farm style. After this we bought a sorting gate at 230 euros and asked a plumber to put a bath in the house for us!

We have a group of 3 kittens that have just been born in our barn, so once again we will have another massive vet bill to sterilise the little fluff balls so they do not become a nuisance. I do believe this is the only drawback to moving house in the countryside in France, having to be a cat controller at every new destination.

It's Sunday and have just finished a spot of painting in our new to be kitchen/dining room. It is remarkably satisfying work to knock down walls and discover wonderful, more usable areas in your home. With the amount of people visiting us during the summer months I will be very happy to have a room where I can finally house my Grandmothers 8 seater table. And finish putting up a kitchen we bought some years ago. I am afraid my husbands desire to buy and store stuff is finally paying off with the only expenditure at the moment being our own time and effort to get everything done... Believe me I never thought I would ever say that! And it was probably a mistake putting the fact in print, I will never hear the end of it now.

So a few days have passed since I started this blog, 10 to be precise and the table is finally in the room we have been organising. Sadly though the dog who could best translate Gavin's profanity is no longer with us. He disappeared to doggie pastures in the sky yesterday and as usual left a huge whole. Ben and I did a lot of sheep work together in the early days some 12 or 13 years ago when Gavin used to go backwards and forwards to Zimbabwe and I stayed in France to be a sheep farmer and look after the kids.
He was a bit of a loon as a youngster too eager to help, which didn't always end well. Usually half the flock were at your feet and the rest were high tailing it for the horizon. Later on he turned into a very steady worker. On one of Gavins away days James, our neighbour was lending a hand to put some sheep away which meant he had to stay with the dog and the sheep, whilst I drove to the other side of the property to turn off the electric fence. On my return James said, "Thank goodness for Ben! The sheep started moving around so I looked at him and said, quick do something! And he just did."
Happy times. Ben missed by all the family and the other dogs, though probably not by the sheep.
Helen

Ben, Skanky and Alice. 2005...ish.

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bacon

5/26/2018

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Slightly sick sense of humour providing the title picture for this blog

Hello Everyone
Let's talk about food, specifically bacon.
Having been dragged over the coals a number of weeks ago about nitrate and nitrite usage in bacon and processed meat production, I have done an enormous amount of reading, and I am sure that there is still more to do.
To get one problem out of the way first saltpeter is, as I already knew, potassium nitrate. However other nitrogen based compounds including sodium nitrate are also called saltpeter which I did not know. The latter is sometimes referred to as Chilean saltpeter and you will never guess.....was discovered in bat caves in Chile.
Did you know... that potassium nitrate is formed by bacterial action in the decomposition of waste product notably from bat poop, but any demposing organic waste will do it. These decomposed materials were then rained on and the substances produced in that reaction that were now in liquid format. This was then evaporated by the sun forming a powder on the ground which could then be collected, cleaned and dried for further use. Most of the production happened in more arid climates and this powder, saltpeter, became a very tradeable commodity. It started to be produced on an industrial scale in the 1600's. Prior to this it had been used by the Eygyptians and Romans and probably many others as a kind of soap.
So how did they discover that it could be used to preserve meat? Well, decomposing waste happens everywhere in the world, and all sorts of things get thrown into compost heaps, I like to think that one day someone threw a piece of meat onto a compost heap, way back when in history, and it landed in the white powder. And then a few days later someone wandered outside and realised that this piece of meat that had been thrown away had not gone off, so ate it and didn't die and hence they realised that they could use this white powder to keep meat for longer. How did they know that the meat was not off I hear you ask? Well one of the properties of potassium nitrate is that it keeps meat looking pink so that combined with the fact that it did not smell bad, probably tempted them to eat it. After all supermarkets and wealth for many was not "au norme" for the standard of living in medieval times.
More interestingly, and probably the reason why you can no longer buy saltpeter in a shop but can only buy it as a pre prepared curing salt mix, is that it can be used as a gunpowder. Which was discovered by accident by the Chinese apparently during the 9th century.

Happy Families

Anyhow moving swiftly along or we may be here all night.....

As with most magical things that seem to perform a fantastic function for humankind, demand for the saltpeters of the world increased dramatically until some clever old sausage, Joseph Leconte (living in the states but with a name like that historically French) wrote a paper in 1862 on how to manufacture saltpeter. And then a German called Dr Polenske wrote in 1891 about the uses and functions of food preservation and the properties of all these different salts. I cannot guarantee these are the most important people in the development of the product as many Syrians, Egyptians, Chileans, Chinese and Romans came before them but as far as modern development is concerned they are the main men.

Nature turning natural nitrates into beautiful roses

Now nitrate salts convert to nitrite salts when they lose one atom of oxygen this happens in the gut by bacteria like e.coli which are present naturally and healthily in your saliva. You cannot stop this process in your body it is normal. So sometimes on labels you will see sodium nitrite rather than sodium nitrate because it makes no difference which one you use, as soon as it enters your mouth it will become a nitrite and that is the same whether it is originally a nitrate in a piece of spinach or a piece of bacon. Both substances nitrates and nitrites exist in nature. All foods that gow in the soil or animals that eat food that is grown in the soil contain nitrate. It is part of the soil and the planets ecosystem.

Lazy womans slow cooking. Forget all the browning and just chuck it in.

Ok so that is the easy bit. When nitrites and amines (found in the body as well) combine they create nitrosamines. So if you eat things that have a lot of nitrate/nitrite then your body is likely to make more nitrosamines. Vegetables containing high nitrates also make nitrosamines but they also contain antioxidants and vitamin c to prevent the absorption of nitrosamine by the body which will mostly leave your body in your wee.
Nitrosamines can also be formed during cooking. Cooking at lower temperatures reduces the production of nitrosamines in food. In fact one study I read suggested microwaving as being the best option for reducing nitrosamine production in bacon.
So maybe there is a reason to eat salad with your burgers. Potentially if you have a healthy balanced diet anyway eating your five a day or more of fruit and veg, and do not fall into a high risk category for cancer related diseases then probably a bit of procesed meat, and interestingly beer and some cheeses and milk powder are not going to affect you to any significant degree. All these other foodstuffs are also high in nitrates.

Farmers have Land Rovers to provide shade for their dogs!

The choice is yours people I have tried to extreme nutshell what I have read to prevent you all falling aleep with the tedium of ploughing through chemical proceses and bodily functions. I hope that I have provided some of the salient points to enable you to make a better informed decision. I am not a Doctor or a trained scientist or a dietary specialist. I am an advocat of being active, eating the best that you can eat, having a well balancd diet and consuming everything in moderation.......well.....accept maybe chocolate and stroop waffles and champagne and....... ;)
I have started to make a vastly reduced nitrite bacon it works out at less than a quarter of the nitrite of the original cure. Initial feedback is variable. I am going to try to design one with only salt but that will take some time and will bring me into contact with botulism prevention which is a whole other blog I think.
My apologies to any chemists, historians and biologists reading this who see massive glaring errors in my incredibly abbreviated topic but in my defence it took me 3 tries to get my 'o' level chemistry and I am only a farmers wife who chops up meat ;)
Happy informed eating everyone
Helenxx

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A little positivity

5/1/2018

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I love photographing this cat

In another part of my life I go to a book club and the other week we were lucky enough to meet the author of the book we had read, "12 Random Words" by Fabiana Elisa Martinez, and she was asked by another bookclub member whether she ever had writers block. Her answer was that the act of writing involved putting your bottom on a chair and putting something on paper or on a screen. I think we can deduce that she is not a great believer in writers block. So after a month of procrastination I decided it was time to take Fabiana's advice.....
Much has happened since my last rant as we have had family over from Zimbabwe which was refreshing, as despite all they put up with politically and economically, they don't moan and complain. They just get on with what they are presented with and take each day for what it is...another day. They whisked Number 3 off to Paris for a week on her return from Rome (!) and had an interesting time learning how to navigate the public transport systems in the capital. As well as zooming up to the top of the Eiffel Tower, floating down The Seine, careering around Disneyland, taking the tourist bus trip through the streets and pottering around the aquarium, amongst other things I am sure. Number 3 certainly had a holiday to remember.

Patrick arrived home a week ago and Emily appears at the end of the week. When I looked out of the window a month ago it was probably raining and there were no leaves on the trees. Now the leaves are out on all the trees and the sun is shining, though today the wind is a little cool. We have just spent a very pleasant lunch with my belle-mére catching up on what she is doing with her exhibitions and book illustrating and shaking our heads at the state of worldwide politics. But no I will not bore you all with that nonsense in this blog....

We are nearing the end of our last lambing of the year. Thank goodness. And are enjoying the rhythm of fresh grass and animals outside eating it. The sheep are to be found sunbathing during the day with the same relief that we are all feeling at having warmer weather in our clutches. The pigs have decided to have some babies so we have 12 little ones oinking and snuffling around the place. Interestingly the mummy pigs like to live in a big group with a big group of babies. They call the little ones to feed and we now have no idea whether each mama pig is feeding their own babies or anybodies babies, but they are all growing, everyone is happy, so who cares.

Entering into the month of May, I find myself already planning the entire spring and summer in front of me. Filled with markets and family visits, birthdays and anniversaries. Somewhere in between everything we must do a few house modifications this year. Knock down some walls and have a bigger dinning room. I feel several trips to the decheterie (tip) coming up. It is time to cleanse my cupboards of objects that cramp my life and breathe some space and freshness into my spirit. Installing windows in the Tobacco barn will be close to the top of the list to make enough space for extra bodies due to visit this year and maybe an extension to the butchery to create a better working environment for me and maybe diversify a little....We have our thinking caps on at Chez Franklin.
It is time for a few changes. Change prevents stagnation and is good for the soul. After 7 years of just farming and scraping by and 7 years of farming, butchery and markets, I am thinking that the "seven year itch" thing might be applicable to business structure and planning.
See you all soon
Helen :)

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Everyone loves a scapegoat

3/28/2018

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Hello, long time, no see

I had hoped that this week I might be able to mention the beautiful spring, but alas, it is still raining and I feel like we are living in South Wales. So sadly you may be due for a bit of a moan.
It is true I have been neglecting this site for many reasons. One of which is a collision with copyright law, which is an ongoing issue about which I probably should not say too much until it is resolved. But be aware it can happen to anyone when you least expect it, as it is far easier to make money out of the little people who cannot afford the lawyers than it is to go up against the big guys who can afford to go into battle. More on that subject another time.
Another reason was seriously falling out with the internet and the media in what appears to be its attempts to divide and conquer, rather than unite and lift-up. I am thoroughly irritated with the negative vibes in the media towards farming which seems to be based on information derived from sources who are probably as far removed from farming and nature as chalk and cheese. But even that is not a good example as both chalk and cheese are derived from nature. Anyhow suffice it to say that the "shiny bums" who go on and on about what you should eat or not eat, wear or not wear, start using or stop using. How many hours you should sleep or not sleep, what kind of house you should live in or not live in, how much time you should spend on social media or not spend......are really appealing to the angry side of my nature. Not a place where I like to spend too much time, especially when the weather is rubbish.

Large powerful lobby groups and international forums have a lot of sway with the media. The media like to sell headlines and social networking likes to get hits and advertising contracts. They also like to spend a lot of time globetrotting and conferencing and contributing themselves in a large way to things that they tell everyone else they shouldn't be doing, like pollution. The person whom they affect with their big media stories goes completely by the wayside, unnoticed, insignificant like a blot on the landscape.
What do we get from the media and these large organisations? Truth? Dishonesty?, Reality? Fiction? Look at the world you are living in and decide. What do we get from the blot on the landscape? Sustenance on a nutritional, environmental and emotional level. Or not?

I can only speak from my own experience in the field I am familiar with and have studied in and worked in for the last 30 years. To the best of my knowledge I have never met real farmers who want to damage the land that provides their income, or harm their livestock that provide their income. I have never met a farmer who wants to injure or impose ill health on the people who buy their products who provide their income. I have however, met farmers who are financially struggling and find it difficult to change their systems to a improve their environment. Many of these farmers have problems with prices from the buyers not covering the costs of production.
So who controls the prices? My own view on this is that it is the general public, myself include with this incessant search for cheap everything. Until we re-evaluate what is important in our lives and start to pay out the amount of money that something is actually worth, I don't believe the pricing problem for the producer is ever going to change, and power will continue to remain in the hands of the few already wealthy suppliers. Do we want that? Are we now incapable of free thought?

The revolution on plastic waste was an excellent example of how consumer pressure can force an issue. Pricing needs to be looked at with another part of your psyche requiring a willingness to accept that you need to pay more money for food to allow systems to change, but also ensuring that more of the money that you pay out actually lands in the hands of the producer who is in a position to change the system, not the global middmeman.
So, when you return from your holidays and sit down on your brand new sofa in front of your big screen telly, with your premium brand cellphone in your hand, sipping your café latte with extra cinnamon that you made with that posh new coffee machine you bought, whilst you rub your hands together over that pound you saved from going to the convenience store to buy your groceries. Spare a thought for that bloke or chick up the road who trudges through the mud EVERY day to feed the sheep/goats/pigs/cows or to till the soil for those sustainably grown vegetables and remember what it is that they provide for your convenience, and ask yourself why it is that farmers worldwide have some of the highest rates of suicide every year.

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