The Farm

Halloha!

Its been over a month since I've last written. Many interesting stories have since passed - finals, move-out day, my first days at work, Yale during the summer, but unfortunately, I have the attention span of a retarded chimpanzee so some of these stories may be buried forever. But rest assured, travelers, the key events will come to light.

The farm is nestled in an urban/residential area. Its wonderful. Going up Science Hill, you see rows and rows of houses and all of a sudden, there are rows of crops instead. Stalks of corn rise up from the ground, salad greens form a collage of colors, and flowers bloom on the street besides the street. Its small - less than an acre (for those of you city slickers who don't think in terms of acres and mule-power, its about 40 meters by 40 meters). Its an intensive farm, which means that there it requires a relatively large amount of labor and specializes in high-volume, high-quality products. This is in contrast to extensive farming, which requires little labor but a huge amount of land. Wheat fields one might find in the American midwest are a good example of extensive farming.

I personally had no knowledge of organic farming before I got here and did not really understand the hullabaloo about "organics" and "sustainable farming." For one thing, I can't tell the difference between good food and bad food. I inhale my food. I will eat a Quarter Pound w/ Ch that has been dropped in a pile of mud as (perhaps even more) fervently as the finest organic salad or Turkish caviar. I bathe in high fructose corn syrup. Moreover, I am extremely thrifty. I don't understand why there's a need to sell rare Ming dynasty vases to buy organic milk when I can get the chemically injected, testosterone fortified powder milk at the supermarket for three good ol' Washingtons instead. But I do care about the environment and food and farming is a crucial component of the sustainability ethos. So the farm internship still strongly appealed to me.

A couple things I've learned that have given me a newfound appreciation of organic farming:

- Instead of using artificial pesticides and fertilizer, taking good care of soil and plants will yield equivalent volumes and higher quality. If a plant gets the necessary attention, it will have a naturally strong "immune system." When somebody sleeps for eight hours every night, exercises, and eats well, it is unlikely that he will get sick. On the other hand, using pesticides is analogous to pumping your body full of antibiotics...and then ultimately being invaded by stronger, hardened, and immune bacteria later on.

- Organic farming, contrary to popular belief, can produce enough food to feed the entire world.

- In third world countries, a large source of unemployment is the fact that there is little land available but a large amount of people. Intensive, organic farming is ideal for these situations but extensive farming is employed in these areas instead.

- Organic goat cheese is a vehicle in which one may perceive the Ultimate Reality. It is REALLY good.