Time for an update from the right side of the country, no not the correct side, the...nevermind...

How are y'all doing today? I'm doing pretty well, thanks for asking. Just finished visiting with Papa Miguel, briefly, and walked back across the city to J's apartment, that I might write this blog post, and inform you all of the fun and exciting things I've been doing.

Spent the day and an evening in Seattle prior to flying across the nation, and had a good time behaving like I was younger than I actually am. What did I do in whilst in the city? Well, I drank some really fine coffee, and I checked out the Seattle Public Library, which is an interesting building, which seems massively non-functional.

While I was there it rained more vigorously than I've ever seen in that part of the world; maybe it wasn't actually as heavy as it seemed, but it was fairly horizontal at any rate.

That evening I went out to a went to a show with a couple of guys I met at the hostel. It was a fun time. There was a German college student, and a Canadian vacationer, and several bands one of which at least, was awesome. There was poor-quality domestic beer, and of course there were uncountable hipsters. The hipsters seemed less antagonistic than usual, though, and seemed to actually be enjoying themselves rather than the irony of the situation, which was odd, but refreshing.

I've been in DC for a week now, and have gotten to do many of the things I love to do, in this city. I've been to my favorite museums, some more than once. It really is fantastic to be able to pop into the Smithsonian American Art museum, or the protrait gallery, and check out an exhibition in the ten or twenty minutes you have to spare while downtown. None of the possibility of art fatigue you can sometimes get when you're trying to fit too many museum visits into one day.

Some scenes from around the city, including my some shots from the mall:

The Natural History Museum:
Carousel:

These guys, outside the Hirshorn, are favorites of mine. They make me think of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader:

This piece of Korean pottery is in the Freer, my favorite museum, and is an image of turtle a representative of the dragon king of the sea, who Maggie and I are all too familiar with:

What else have I been up to? I know this will come as a shock to many of you, but I've been pickling things, and sprouting things, and baking bread, although I couldn't bring my starters with me from Washington, so have been restricted to baking with commercial yeast. Curtido and flax seed bread, anyone?:

Produce from the farmer's market:
Spent a lovely evening with Sarah, eating dinner and having several of J's cocktails at Rasika. My favorite was the nutty rickey, but the gingersnap was pretty delicious as well. He really knows what he's doing, as I'm sure many of you know. If you haven't had a chance to check it out, make the time if you're ever in town. Have eaten some other pretty fantastic meals while here, including going out for Ethiopian food for lunch one day, which apparently means that It has become the ethnic food I eat most often...seriously; once a month for the past three months.

The walls and statuary in DC often have words of wisdom to share with us:

I get into Atlanta on the eleventh, and have a show to go to that evening, cause that's just how these things work, but other than that I'm really excited to see you all, and get to spend some quality time with you(without the stress of an impending wedding).

Well, family and friends, I leave you with this image, which sums up how I'm feeling pretty well at this time:

A New Year, a New Plan, a New Journey...of sorts...

A new propensity for using too many ellipses...well I suppose that's not something new, actually. I know it's been too long in between updates, but I've been waiting until I had some news about my plans, and I've gotten the response I've been waiting for, and know what I'll be doing this coming season. You want to know what that will be? We'll get to that, in good time. First, however, an update on what I've been doing, the holidays, and general goings on.

As most of you know I spent Christmas in California, seeing the whole family, and enjoying the bright sunshine, and blue skies, and...wait, it wasn't like that at all. In fact, it was like David and I brought the PacNorWe with us; so that we could share with our families what we've been experiencing. Despite the rain and the gray skies, La Jolla was as wonderful as it always is, and I got the chance to do many of the things I had hoped to do, and some others that I hadn't anticipated being able to.

California in the rain...:




and the sunshine:

Spent several days checking out the museums, as I always love to do when visiting Saba and Grandma Pooh. There were countless wonderful meals. Both at our grandparent's home, and out at restaurants. There wasn't nearly enough time for walking on the beach, but I did have the chance to do a little knitting while sitting atop the bluffs in downtown La Jolla.

Mostly the time I spent in California was nice for the simple reason of being able to see and spend time with so many of my loved ones who I don't get to see nearly enough of. If you were there, rest assured that we did not get to spend as much time together as I'd have liked. Even something as simple as an afternoon walk, whether full of conversation or mostly silent can be an outing to remember if you're with someone special, and all of my time during this too short vacation was spent with people who are special to me. My favorite place in La Jolla(maybe on the planet)?:

The journey back from California was an interesting one. I rode the smallest plane I've ever been on to Los Angeles, where I had a substantial layover, and where I met a pair of farm folk who were also on their way back from San Diego to the peninsula where they live and work at Nash's. I spent another night at the Green Tortoise in Seattle, and began an epic public transportation journey early the next morning. A view from the ferry:

Four buses and a ferry ride later and I made it back to Port Angeles in more or less one piece. It took a while, but cost almost nothing, and it gave me the chance to do some knitting. Being away from internet left me to my own devices as far as knitting projects went, so I devised a pattern, which actually resulted in a hat(which while too small for most heads) I think is really cool.

The Walzes returned safely from their trip to Minnesota, and I've been staying with Maggie and the Athairs since. I'm finding it challenging to find a place to live, since I'm only going to be here for a month or so before I take a trip eastward to do some visiting and learning before I start in on my new experience.

I spent New Year's Eve in Port Townsend, contra dancing. It was a relaxing low-key way to spend the holiday, and got to spend some time with some other really special people, who have become an important part of my life.

I have spent most of my time in the last weeks researching opportunities for the coming season, and found a few that suited my needs and desires for a position. It wasn't until the new year, however, that I found the perfect posting. It fit every one of the points for a place to spend the coming season living and learning. To ignore my impulse to make it seem like a mystery, I've been accepted by Jim Rueff and Linda Davis, who run Solstice Farm and Bed and Breakfast. You might have heard me mention them in connection with the FIELD internship program. This is an innovative learning program for aspiring young farm folk, and is an especially perfect opportunity for me given my desire to learn about agri-tourism. I went on a visit to the farm last week, and spent an afternoon with Linda and their interns flipping sheep, trimming hooves, and assisting in any way I could. It was great to spend an afternoon with them, and I'll freely admit that I spent the rest of the week, grinning like an idiot with excitement at the prospect of being able to learn from them, and the other farmers and teachers involved with the FIELD program.

I've been waiting to write a blog all this time, but find it hard to convey how excited I was when I opened my e-mail this morning from Jim informing me that he and Linda were willing to take me on for the season. This internship program is very different from how I spent the last season, it's more formal, and although much of the learning is experiential, it is doubtlessly going to be incredibly educational for me. I'll have the opportunity to learn from a number of different farmers, and I'll have the chance to learn about many of the business aspects of the small scale agriculture industry that I didn't have the opportunity to learn last year. Not to mention the fact that in addition to being a master gardener Linda is a passionate teacher of building, and will give me the chance to do some of the sorts of construction that I'm very interested in learning.

At Solstice they have sheep and chickens. They raised pigs for the first time last year, and will be doing so again this year. They have a beehive, but are planning on installing another(I'm excited at the prospect of this, and not just for honey related reasons; bees are incredible and fascinating creatures, and I'm looking forward to learning more about them). The farm is thirty three acres, and they grow as much of the feed for their flock as is possible to do. This focus on the stewardship of their land, and the care and thought they put into their operation are apparent even from the short time I was able to spend with them. As far as the bed and breakfast, located in the home they built for themselves after years on planning, the only thing I can really say about it, is that it's stunning. It's simply a beautiful home, and I feel truly lucky to be a part of their lives for the coming season.

What else has been going on in my life? Cooking Ethiopian food, for feasting purposes.:

Making summer and nori rolls:



So. After a long time contemplating, living my life here on the west coast for the better part of year, and spending all of my time, working on the farm, with farm folk, and parkies, and fantastic former hippies, artists, makers of all stripes, and other left coast types, can I say I've changed much? That's a hard question to answer. I don't think that I have, not really. What has happened is that this place has focused many of the aspects of my personality that were already present, and revealed some that were concealed from view, but had been there all along. We all know I'm a food person, I think it's a massively important part of life. It connects us all as human beings, we cannot do without it. It bridges cultures and unites us, it nourishes us body and soul, and it as important a thing to dedicate one's self to as exists. not to mention it simply being a way to appreciate and enjoy being alive.

I'm fully well aware of the fact that some of you don't understand my passion for this, and that's ok. I'll not try and convince you otherwise, but I will say this much: I'm excited about my life, and my prospects for the future, and while I have no doubt that to be a success will involve a lifetime of hard work...in what field would it not? I don't know exactly where this is leading. Someplace like Rockhouse? Where we spent so many enjoyable hours as children, where some of my happiest memories can be found. I'm not sure. I do know that I have no desire to be a market farmer, to grow vegetables and fruits solely for the purpose of selling them is not enough for me, but perhaps to be able to share my passion for food, and for the way that it unites us and sustains us will play a part of whatever I choose to do after I've learned what I came all this way for. To teach others, especially young people, the next generation, the importance of supporting those who support us on such a basic level is of utmost importance.

Is Aaron a farmer?

Not yet.

Ajourney again...

I'm a travelin'. You? If you are, I hope you're safe, and enjoying yourself half as much as I am. I am posting this from the infamous Green Tortoise Hostel, a block away from pike's Place market. I caught a ride to Seattle with the Athairs, who Maggie lives with, and who I've been spending lots of time with. They're pretty fantastic people, and I've no doubt you'd get along with them just fine(Mindy, this means YOU). We rode the ferry into the city, which was a fun new experience for me, and a great view, but one I didn't bother to take any pictures of, since I was busy crying from the cold breeze, and just enjoying the sight for myself.

I spent the ride from the peninsula sewing a carrying case for my knitting needles, because I'm apparently a big old nerd...who would have guessed? As you might have figured from my last post things are slow these days, and until I have more definite plans for my future, they'll continue to be that way, and frankly, I'm OK with that.

What sort of things have I been up to since last we spoke? I finished that hat I was working on, only it was so large I turned it into a bag to hold my knitting projects.

I went out to Lake Crescent this week, the first time I've had a chance to get out there in a while, and boy am I glad I took the opportunity. Storm King was covered in snow, as all the peaks were, and it made for some fantastic viewing. Take a look; these shots are all from around the OPI campus:

A couple of shots from the trails around the campus, proving once again my theory that all you have to do to take a beautiful picture in the PacNorWe, is to point your camera in any direction, and hit the button:


What's that? Have I been fermenting things no normal person would even consider? Come on now. This is me we're talking about. Of course I have. I give you parsnip wine:

In the further adventures of Aaron and the Olympic peninsula, Maggie and I went out onto forest service land, and got technically lost, although we were in no danger of not finding our way back to civilization there was a period of time(an hour, maybe two) when where we thought we were, and where we actually were, didn't exactly coincide. What were doing out in the hinterlands? We were finding, and killing, a Christmas tree. My first non-plastic tree in as many years. We call her Lucille(Maggie is the one wearing boots. Lucille is wearing branches):

I'll see what I can do to get a picture of her all gussied up for the holiday for your edification.

What have I done since I arrived in Seattle...Not a whole lot. Hung out at a coffee shop(this being Seattle, after all) that I like, earlier. Did some research, and failed to find a show to check out this evening. Failing that I got all gussied up, went to a fine dining establishment, and ate expensive and refined food, and drank cocktails and had a wonderful relaxing evening. We will not discuss how much I spent, or whether I could afford such luxury. Spur Gastropub, check it out. When my meal was done I emerged from the restaurant to find the city streets awash with rain, which as you all must know, brought me great satisfaction. I walked back to the hostel, grinning like an idiot, wrote this blog, and once it's done, I'm going to do some knitting, and then hit the hay.

Going to see if I can do a little more adventuring in the morning before I head to the airport, but even if I have no time for it, I'll call this leg of my trip a success. I can't wait to arrive in San Diego, and I can't wait to see you all...in the meantime hope all of your journeys are safe, and as satisfying as mine has been so far.

Where have you been young man?

Why right here, thanks for asking. I finally got some questions out of you guys, and am going to my best to answer them over the course of the next few blog posts. So, what did I do in Seattle, you ask. I'll tell you. I went to Pike place market, of course, and was thoroughly unimpressed. The seafood looked good, but given the fact that I was only there for the day, and didn't exactly have a kitchen at my disposal it didn't really matter, and the produce was teh same California vegetables you get in Georgia year round. Oh well. The building was cool, and there was a lot of cool food stands, and the crowds were crazy.

I went to the Seattle Art Museum, which was phenomenal, and to the SAM sculpture garden where they had a very cool piece of modern art/architecture, a vivarium where they transplanted a dead tree, and perfectly duplicated the conditions under which it would have remained in the wild, so as to allow it to rot as it was meant to, but in a controlled and observable fashion. If you're interested you can read more here. Then I walked over to the space needle, and checked out the Folklife festival which was going on. Humongous crowds of freaks, and punks, families and hippies, buskers, emo kids, and even a few normal people. It was pretty cool, and after some grade A people watching I moved on. Hit up an awesome punk rock record shop, a couple of cool coffee houses, and then headed back to the peninsula. It was a fun time, but I definitely think I would have enjoyed myself more if I had someone familiar with the city to guide me.

As promised in my last blog post here are a few pictures of my living quarters, starting with a view from the front door:



My dining room:


The kitchen:


The bathroom:

A few shots of my bedroom:


A challah I baked the other day, because what would you do without at least one or two pictures of food. You might worry I wasn't getting enough to eat. Don't, there's more than enough to go around:

Now for the questions, Mindy writes "Seen the finale of Lost yet?" I have. I actually ripped apart half of the interior of my van to improve the reception, and watched it broadcast live on Canadian television, which apparently hasn't made the switch to digital broadcasting yet. It was very nerdy. As far as the show is concerned, I'm not really sure how I feel about it yet. On the one hand it was all touchy-feely satisfying, but on the other, it did sort of seem like they wrote off the whole reason the show was interesting to watch. Right now I'm conflicted on this one. I think after some time my opinion will solidify.

Another question from Mindy, "Worked at a farmer's Market yet?" I have not. There is still much to much to do on the farm, but there is hope that I may accompany Christie this weekend, and the Wednesday market starts this coming week, and that may present a better opportunity for me to go.

One final question from Mindy(don't worry, I'll tackle the others in a later post), "Found any to die for foods in Port Angeles?" Well, yes and no. There are coffee shops everywhere, but I've found one I particularly like, that pulls a perfect espresso every time, and makes a mean coffeecake to boot. There is a place where you can get raw local milk, un-pasteurized, un-homogenized, cream separating out, the whole deal. I would not have believed how much better it is, but it really is something else.

Papa Miguel wants to know, "What is it really like being in a small town?" This is a very good question. You have to understand that the farm is located smack dab in the middle of Sequim and Port Angeles, about ten or fifteen minutes away from either one, and so we're not really a part of either community, per se, but as farmers we are sort of de facto members of the community even though we're outsiders. It's fascinating really. Now as far as the farm community goes, we really are a part of something unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Everyone knows each other, and even though we're all competitors, everyone is always willing to lend a hand, or host a barbecue or a potluck, to trade eggs, locally raised grass-fed beef, or a bag of arugula for a loaf of bread or the promise of some produce not yet harvested. It's pretty awesome.

As for the townies, and I'm sure that no one but me calls them that, because really, come on, it's hilarious, they all know each other, but are really quite welcoming, and it may be more of matter of changing my behavior, but I'm getting with everyone, and meeting new people left and right. I'm sure that some of that has to do with my new attitude. I have not once turned down an invitation to a show or a party, or even just to drop by and say hello, and so I meet new people, and am making new friends, and I'm really enjoying being so far outside my comfort zone that I wouldn't even have time for anxiety in those situations that I would have been miserable in, even a year or two ago.

And that ladies and gentlemen, is all for today. The wind is picking up,a dn my fingers are going numb. I'll post again soon, and in the meantime remember, as always, I love you all, and miss you, and can't wait to see you again.