Friday, September 6, 2013

Farm The World Build The Farm

I wake up to the warmth of the electric heater I have running.The solar panels that were installed work perfectly. It is the beginning of September so it is chilly outside but I have fixed this place up sufficiently enough to contain and keep the heat in. I get out of bed and walk to the window by the front door. Look out, the sun is just starting to peak over the horizon even though the sky still contains the dim gray of the night. There is a lot of work to be done but I see the potential of the place. It has plenty of materials for repair and rebuilding. I walk to the kitchen and put on a pot of water for my morning tea then go and turn on my computer to catch up on the news and the morning chatter. While reading articles, blog posts and social-network posts I am also taking notes on ideas and doing rough draw sketches of the images in my mind. It is easier to have them on paper so I can improve them if necessary and set up projects to be worked on. I do some posting of my own as well to let others know of available space and talents I could make use of.
The water is ready and the tea made I set about cooking breakfast. This morning it is scrambled eggs from the chickens outside and sausage gravy and biscuits. The smell wafting through the house wakes the others who come groggily into the kitchen and sit at the table. Jaime gets up to get the silverware to set the table with then sits back down as he passes out the forks and knives. Lou gets up to get the dishes out and help me dish up breakfast before we sit down to eat. The conversation at the breakfast table is about the green house being built to prepare for the winter growing season. Nothing but natural materials will do. Glass securely placed in wood framing.
Breakfast finished the boys go next-door to cleanup leaving me to wash the breakfast dishes. Afterwards I walk to the next block to meet with Stella who's husband Mark works downtown. She teaches their four children, twins, Edward and Emily and the two older ones Angela and Addison. It is pretty much a ghost town I am looking to rebuild as farm-town and Stella has offered to be a teacher. She has some friends in neighboring towns who are interested in opening an art gallery and a cousin in town who has to commute to the veterinary hospital an hour away. We discuss naturally made paint hues and blacksmithing of scrap metal before It is time for the children to move on to the next subject and so I leave to pay a visit to Ken who was just recently laid off.
Ken loves working with wood and has offered to help Lou, Jaime and I build the greenhouse. His sister Michelle works with clay and has offered to make the plant pots. I have been here a month and have made sure to introduce myself to as many of the neighbors as possible letting them know what I am up to. They are interested and want to help.
After talking with Ken I head back home to work on cleaning the tools we have come across. There are a couple boxes worth so it takes a while. After cleaning and sorting the tools I go next door to help the boys clean and sort the stuff into piles to be used as projects come up. I get a call. It is the delivery driver telling me the goats are arriving tomorrow around noon and want to know where they are to be delivered. I give him the address and thus ends the call. I make a note in the notebook I carry around that we need to start composting so we will have better soil by spring.
Lunch has been missed so I go home to start dinner. Taking chicken out of the freezer I place it in a baking dish with my own seasoning concoction and I boil some pasta. My version of chicken pasta primavera. As it is cooking I jump back on the computer and do my second news, social networking catch up. I have had some responses from interested people and I respond back. I am enjoying getting people into wanting to be self sufficient and when all is said and done this town will be looking better then it ever has.
Dinner is ready and somehow the boys instinctively know and appear. Conversation at dinner is about all the scrap metal that has been found and stored in an abandoned where-house. It is decided we need to start getting more people involved as we have set a deadline to be cleaned up and ready by spring to start planting and having animals brought in. Dinner done, Lou and Jaime head off to clean up for the night once again leaving me to do the dishes. After dinner dishes are done it is my turn to cleanup and then we sit around reading and occasionally talking about the day and other ideas to be worked on. It is now nine o' clock and time for bed. We head off to prepare to do it all again the next day.
 Detroit is the city that has been chosen for Farm The World, Build The Farm. Lets bring this once glorious city back from the brink of death.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

So Many Things So Little Time

I have not just been working on my own gardening and experimenting what to plant with what. I have been reading and learning lots of things. I have decided to take my Day X project further in buying land. I have always wanted a piece of land to call my own as it was also a dream of my mothers so I have set up a fundraiser here http://www.gofundme.com/3tom0c and a google+ page here https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/112537224088745514108/112537224088745514108/posts. I have decided to call this project Farm The World, Build The Farm. I can not go into detail in this post as I am still working on some of the details. None the less I have already designed the floor plan and the area surrounding the house. I will post the image if anyone is interested. I am working on a surprise post and that will be available soon. I know I have been erratic in my postings and I just wanted to take the chance while I had it to let everyone know what is going on. If I do not have something posted here just follow me on g+, Facebook or even twitter. Well that is it for now I have to go work on that surprise post. Ciao and happy reading.

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