I was excited to get into my single person tent. I was tired after the journey to the farm and the filling, satisfying meal.
I had to stop and stand outside my tent for several minutes. The sky was so clear and filled with stars. So bright and intense and only seen like this outside of the big city lights. This may sound lame...sorry, but it really was magical! :)
It was fun to get inside my tent and set it up for the night. First, I put an outdoor blanket on the bottom of the tent. Then, I opened up the "Thermarest" mattress I borrowed from my favorite son-in-law. (It doesn't matter that he is my only son-in-law...he would still be my favorite!) I thought I remembered him telling me it was self-inflating but I kind of had to blow it up. Next came my sleeping bag and then I laid out my clothes for the morning, fluffed up my pillow, took off my shoes and stretched out on my camping bed. It wasn't bad! My biggest complaint was I felt like my sleeping bag kept sliding off the air mattress. (Hubs tried to tell me it was because I set the tent up on an incline...whatever...) I was pleasantly tired but filled with anticipation for morning and knowing it was an early wake-up call. I went ahead and set my alarm for 6:30 a.m. and had a hard time falling asleep.
Okay...it was completely unnecessary to set an alarm. The farm has chickens and boy do they have a lot of chickens. Right around 150. I just assumed they were all hens. Like at my house. Nope, seems there are quite a few roosters hanging out with those hens. Maybe those roosters knew there were some city slickers in the 'hood. I can't really say as I'm not well versed in the behavior of roosters. Regardless, they got up very, very early and obviously wanted to make a statement. I didn't look at my clock but I honestly think they started up all the commotion around 3 a.m. If not, that's what it felt like to me! Funny, though, for some reason it made me grin. Most likely giddy from lack of sleep!
I rolled out of my bag at 6:30 a.m. without need for the pre-set alarm. I put on my "farming" get up, unzipped my tent, quickly brushed my teeth and headed for the truck. Hilary and I didn't want to miss breakfast at the restaurant which started at 7:00 a.m.
Of course it goes without saying that breakfast was delish. Some kind of an egg casserole was served with potatoes and really awesome coffee. (I later learned they have a special coffee blend roasted just for the restaurant) I loved that they took the time to embellish the egg dish with edible flower petals. Completely unnecessary for people on the way to mob a farm, but such a special touch.
We headed back to the farm and got started around 8:30 a.m. We had a couple of options. One group was going to weed and hoe around their special variety corn. I believe they have some kind of grant to develop this corn from special heirloom seed and get it as close to possible as it originally was. It seems like a pretty big deal and I didn't want to accidentally knock over some of those special corn stalks! The other group was headed to clean out and completely weed the now defunct pea patch. I thought that sounded right up my alley. It was surprisingly large and in need of extreme weeding! The farm has been a bit short-handed for part of the summer and the mob help was much appreciated. I can't tell you how many times they sincerely thanked us for the help. I won't lie. It was a HUGE job and it was very physical. I'm guessing that about 7 of us worked in there for close to 5 hours! The weeds just went on and on and on! Every so often one of the farm workers or the owner would thank us again and point out how many man hours we were providing them. It was incredibly rewarding and fun. We visited and got to know each other and felt a huge sense of accomplishment when it was done. My only complaint...we didn't get any before and after pictures! You are just going to have to take my word for it!
This was the area we spent the morning in. Yes, we were completely surrounded by these happy, perky sunflowers...oh, and weeds!
Lunch time finally rolled around! Remember that whole work for food thing??? I'm pretty sure everyone was as excited for lunch as I was.
This might not be a big deal to you, but I was so excited to ride to the restaurant in the back of this pick-up truck! I can't remember the last time I did this! Riding in the back of a truck is frowned upon in the big city anymore...(I think it goes without saying...I wasn't the only one excited!)
The food just never stopped being surprising and delightful! Not really surprising I guess...but just loved how they garnished even the simplest things and made them so special. This was a crookneck squash soup. I'm a soup junkie. I could eat soup everyday for every meal. I am craving and dreaming about this soup. Yeah...it was THAT good!
We headed back to the farm after a leisurely lunch. It was hotter in the afternoon and we had lots of options for tasks. I completely enjoyed myself harvesting long beans into a cute little basket. I was joined by 3 other female mobbers. There was something special about moving along the trellis and hunting for hidden beans while chit chatting with these fun women. Surprisingly when we were finished we had a huge bin full of beans! (We were also encouraged to snack along the way if so inclined)
After the bean harvest we moved down to weed the broccoli patch.
One of the locals...This and the next few pictures are compliments of Hilary's amazing photog skills.
One of the chicken neighborhoods. I'm pretty sure this guy is one of the culprits of my early morning wake-up call.
Pretty little rows of growing goodness...
This little guy was a pretty great helper in the weed patch. Okay, so maybe he didn't know the difference between the weeds and the broccoli. No one seemed to care. He was working for food as well!
We finally finished up for the day around 5:00 p.m. I think I can safely say we were all pretty hot, tired and sweaty. I already had huge respect for local farmers but seriously people...it's hard work!
Yep...Bonus! We all got to take a dip in the farm pond when we were all done! Yes, it's true. There are several dogs swimming in the pond as well. ( There are several dogs that live at or visit the farm daily...they are very happy dogs) The pond was especially welcoming as we had no showers at the farm. It was super refreshing and fun to boot!
Okay, it may be a little different to farm all day and then get spiffied up for dinner by swimming in a pond. But...that's how we rolled!
The beginning of the end...an unusual salad of greens, jicama and anise dressing. It was exotic and interesting and very tasty. We knew it would be our last alluring dinner and I was prepared to relish every last morsel.
The finale. A deep, rich, dense chocolate cake and frosting. Hilary and I opted to share a piece and we still couldn't do it justice. I sure wish I had a piece of that right now ;( These are the kind of meals that haunt me and taunt me! That five hour drive isn't the most convenient when I'm having a craving! I'd like to tell you what the little pearly garnishy things are on top. I can't because I couldn't figure it out and I forgot to ask! They tasted good, though...
And so...another unforgettable meal, another night with new friends that now seem like old friends. Another ride back to my "tent sweet tent" and one more night gazing at the vivid and endless star show high above my head.
I won't forget this experience any time soon. I know I will go back. Something about that place calls to me and I'm so grateful that I listened to my inner voice and jumped at the opportunity to go.
p.s. I hope I spelled "jicama" correctly. Once again spellchecker needs to get just a little more hip!
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