Saturday, April 23, 2011

The New Brooder



Tis the season…for chicken preparations.  I’ll let you in on a little secret.  I have a serious problem.  It’s a problem that developed at an early age.  As I grew older, it seemed to take a bigger hold on me.  I tried to fight it, but it almost always wins.  As a grown man, I find that it’s an even bigger problem than before.

The problem?

I’m stubborn.

Two years ago when I first started raising chickens I had an emergency.  You can read about it here.  I found a brooder design online.  It was simple and effective.  So last year I used the same design.   But this time I needed a lid on top.  I built it.  It worked.  But it was ugly.  I don’t just mean that it looked ugly (which it did) but it was a little awkward to use.  I had a good plan, but I lack the technical skills to pull that sort of thing off.  I’m a very big picture, good enough sort of person.  I very much appreciate fine workmanship.  I just do not have the skill or patience to be a master craftsman.  

Now enter the community.  See, in a community, there are people of all sorts.  There are craftsman and non-craftsman alike.  Some like to work with numbers while some like to work with words.  Some like to sing and some like to dance.  In this case, some like to build and some like to raise chickens.

Last year, as I set out to build the brooder, I knew I could do it.  I bought the materials and built it myself.  It took me several hours across several days to make it workable.  And, as I already said, it was ugly.  But this year was different.  I set aside my stubborn pride and shared a desire for a newly designed brooder with some friends.  I would purchase the supplies and even contribute a good amount of sweat.  But I needed help with the design.

A friend told a friend.  That’s the way things work in a community.  I received a call this past week.  Someone had an excess of building supplies that they needed to get rid of.  My friend and I rode over there and we drove back to his house with a truck full of material.  In fact, we had all the material necessary to make a brooder.  It cost me nothing.

The next day, while I was at work, my friend then called up my two oldest sons.  They hopped on their bikes and went down to his house.  An afternoon later the three of them had built the brooder.  I stopped by after work to find a brand new, expertly designed, chicken brooder.  And I didn’t sweat at all.

And it is not ugly.

When the time comes, these friends will get their chickens free of charge.  The skill and material they provided is so much appreciated that I can’t help but reward them with something that I can do with my own hands.

My point is to say that we all don’t have to be good at everything.  My guess is that you are good at something, even if it’s remedial.  So share you gift, and let others share their gifts with you.  This is how community is built.  This is what God has called you to do.  Listen, I’m not a great example of this, but I’m willing to learn.  How about you?

P.S. The friend who built the brooder also built the chicken plucker.  

July Orders are Closed

For those interested in our chickens, the first and second batch orders are closed!!  I'll put in our order on Monday.  We had a great response this year.  We're so thankful for all those who choose to buy from us.  Didn't get to order?  Don't worry, we'll order more sometime in June.  But don't wait, that list is getting full already!  Questions?  Let me know...

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Village People


It was another successful “Opening Day” at Greenfield Village.  For those who don’t live in this area, the Village was started by Henry Ford.  He brought in all sorts of historic buildings and created a living museum.  Click here to see more about it. 

It’s always hard for me when we go to opening day.  I take the day off work and we go, rain or shine.  Today it was wind…lots of it.  My favorite part is the Firestone Farm.  Yup, you recognized the name alright.  It’s the farm that Harvey Firestone, the tire magnet, grew up on.  Men in period dress use horses to plow fields.  They herd sheep, milk cows, feed chickens, and tend fields.  The women, again in period dress, make meals over a wood burning stove, wash clothes in a tub, plant gardens and preserve food of all sorts. 

It’s beautiful.

I walk away every year deep in somber thought.  It’s as though the entire scene is yelling to me that we, as a society, have moved in a direction that is not sustainable.  It’s funny that I would use that word.  Everything we read about today focuses on “sustainability” and yet, in the light of history, it is not actually sustainable.  Case in point:  there is a building near the front of the Village that reflects on the changes in farm equipment starting in the 18th century.  We went from using horses to using horse powered machinery.  Then we moved into steam powered machinery and migrated to gas and electric powered machinery. 

Compare this to watching the gentlemen of the Village working the farm today.  They used draft horses to plow and harrow one of the fields.  The horses, being horses, spread fresh manure on the field.  A man walks behind them getting in his exercise for the day.  The horses do eat a lot of food, but then they also work to grow the food they will eat.  An added benefit is that, if you choose, they can breed their own progeny who will in due time take over the duties of the “older model”.

So where are we today?  Today we use dwindling fossil fuels to spread chemical fertilizers on our fields.  The farmer must then also take out a gym membership because he no longer walks anywhere…he rides.  And he must be sure to separate out a percentage of his income to set aside for the maintenance of the tractors.  I should also mention that he must also take out a percentage of that income to buy a new tractor once he wears out the “older model”.

I submit to you the two models.  Which is actually sustainable?

Friday, April 8, 2011

Rethinking Energy

By now we've all seen the horrifying pictures of Japan.  We've watched as freighters floated down main thoroughfares.  We've witnessed second hand as buildings and people have been swept away by walls built entirely of water.  In what may be the most horrifying scene of all, we've shuddered as healthcare workers, wearing little to no protective gear, take readings on the Japanese population to test their radioactivity.  Each scene looks like some surreal excerpt from a sci-fi or apocalyptic movie.

The disaster in Japan has prompted governments world wide to revisit their safety policies for nuclear energy.  Yet as I sit back in the comfort of my home and watch the drama unfold, I can't help but wonder what we really think we're going to do to prevent a disaster like this again.  No, I don't blame the Japanese at all.  Rather, I wonder at the collective fault of mankind.  Now, I'm no scientist.  If you spend much time with me at all, you'll know that science is not my strength so I don't pretend that I can speak effectively to that angle.  Rather, I'm looking at our great need for "energy".


Without waxing too political, when President Obama took office, his energy platform was off-shore drilling.  Whoops.  After the BP disaster in the gulf, it became clear a new platform was needed.  So, it seemed that the President then began to embrace nuclear energy.  Whoops.  And now the new platform seems to be bio-fuels.  That in itself is fraught with risk, but I'll leave that for a later topic.  I have stated my political observation without animosity to the President.  In his position, I'm not sure there were other choices.  He did not make a radical statement when he took those energy platforms.  He did what most analysts expected.  He took the safe road...which turned out not to be so safe.

Yet in all of that posturing and planning, who was standing up and asking the obvious question?  Where was the free thinker who saw that we have only approached this issue from one angle?  Which person with a voice in government looked at the other angle and said,  "Is there a way we can cut back on energy?"

Silence in the room.

It's not like those thoughts aren't out there.  They certainly are.  But it's not really popular.  Less energy means....drum roll please....less money.  So which politician, which political action committee, which CEO will stand and proclaim that they are for...less income.  It seems that such a statement would tend toward a shorter career.  Yet for all our talk of "green", clean energy, environmental awareness, and global climate change (formerly known as global warming) why do we continue to find fuel sources through avenues that destroy the very environment we supposedly want to help?

The answer, I believe, is simple.  Greed.  And I'm not just talking about the money.

The truth is that energy has brought to us a lifestyle that is, well, easier.  Think of the electric washing machine.  That wasn't invented by a health nut.  It was an invention that made the drudgery of washing a bit easier.  And what about the microwave?  Energy embodied, it cooks food in a fraction of the time required by more conventional methods.  Then there is everybody's favorite..the television.  'Nuff said.  These inventions were revolutionary in their day and they freed up our time and personal energy.  But it wasn't enough.  Our washing machines need to do more things faster.  The microwave just wasn't fast enough.  And the television just wasn't entertaining enough. Now we stream video across a variety of platforms instantaneously.

And it's still not enough.

So we have a government that subsidizes the sale of corn for bio-fuel and we applaud our "greeness" all the while demanding more energy sources.  We recycle our computer components and praise our environmental awareness while some person in China strips out the hazardous materials with their bare hands.  When will it end?

It won't end.  Greed is a worldwide epidemic brought on by the fall of man.  But as I look at our already over-bearing government, I ask why it's so wrong to begin to subsidize things that really are beneficial to the environment.  Why not offer incentives to corporations who allow workers to work from home?  Why not subsidize the income of a family, or groups of people, who live sustainably?  Why not give grants to those who grow their own food sources.  And for heavens sake, why not give a tax break to people who reduce their electricity usage to a bare minimum.

For all out talk about living in the land of plenty, I hope we see that we are bringing needless tragedy upon ourselves.  I encourage you, my friends, to implement these things in your lives, as much as possible.  We cannot expect the government to step in and intervene.  The government wants to stay as is and so it will continue to cater to the energy greed of its constituents.  We, however, have a choice.  I know that there is so much more I could do.  Yet as I reflect on the great tragedy that has occurred, and is occurring, in Japan it spurs me on to think a little differently about how I use energy.  It causes me to think a little more simply.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Spring Newsletter 2011


It's time!!

We are thankful for a new year and looking forward to the challenges and joys God has in store for it.  As spring is slowly making its way, we are getting ready to start taking orders.   God was good and showed us His grace throughout last year.  We processed 213 chickens and 10 turkeys!  It was a year of learning as we continued to understand what it takes to raise clean poultry.  Based on our experience, we will need to make some changes for 2011.  First, there will be a limit on how many chickens we will raise.  So put your order in early to ensure a spot.  Unfortunately, due to rising gas prices and a better understanding of costs, we also realize we will need to charge $14/bird.  This year it will be a flat rate no matter what size bird.

The plans are similar to last year.  Here’s how it works:
  •     If you’re interested, please fill in this sheet and return it to me.  You may email it back to me or you can print it off and put it in the mail or give it to me in person.
  •     We require a $5 non-refundable deposit for each bird.  This will help us know that you are serious about your order and help defray the up-front costs.  
  •     Next, you wait patiently for a hormone-free, chemical-free, antibiotic-free, pastured, locally produced and processed chicken.  Waiting time is approximately 7 weeks. We’ll contact you in advance with an estimated pick up date. 
  •     Early in the morning of the pick-up date we’ll begin processing the birds.  When you arrive in the afternoon, bring your cooler.  You’ll pick up the birds much like you see them in the store: no head or feet, plucked clean, thoroughly gutted, and packaged.  A lot of people ask questions about that.  I’ll email you with a more specific pick-up time as we get closer.
  •     When you come to pick up your birds, we will subtract your deposit fees from the total cost of your birds and the remainder will be due.   If you’re not sure what you ordered, just let us know.  We’ll keep track of it for you!
Also, we realize that most of us don’t have deep freezers anymore.  Perhaps you want several birds but you do not have the freezer space.  Consider staggering your order.  Below you will see the estimated processing dates.  You can choose between two batches and the number of chickens per date (see estimated processing dates below).  We will do our best to accommodate.  Understand that based on a variety of reasons the plans and prices are subject to change.  If it does, we will let you know.  By the way, we love visitors (especially kids) so give us a call!

Chicken Ordering:

Chickens will have an average dress weight of approximately 5lbs.  This is comparable in size to the whole chickens you might get from the local grocery store. Similarly, this is how you will receive your whole, uncooked chicken.  These chickens have a 6-8 week life cycle.  On processing day we will keep them in a cooler until you arrive.  Due to space and regulatory restrictions we will not be able to freeze or deliver the meat.  As this is working on a cooperative model the money you invest cannot be refunded for any reason once the chicks have been ordered.  However, you will receive clean, fresh, locally grown meat for a reasonable price.  We would love to have you join with us in this vision!

Remember, this is estimated and depends on how many orders we receive.  For up to date and accurate information, “like” our Facebook page (Legacy Family Farm) or track our blog at http://simplelife-thelegacy.blogspot.com/.

Estimated processing date:
July 9th
July 16th
August 13th
August 20th
*To ensure your order, down payment for the first (2) batches is due April 18th.  Without a down payment, orders will not be placed.   Note that chickens butchered on July 16th and August 20th will likely be larger than chickens processed on the other dates.