editor's note

due to limited bandwidth, i will most likely not be able to post photos until i return to philadelphia...but just know that the photos and views are fantastic here. loving life. until next time...

paz

one of my favorite places at the farm. there are four hammocks on the second level porch- one on each corner- on the weekends i can spend all day on a hammock reading a book- today- i took a quick breather in between work and dinner to listen to nature and clear my mind while watching the prayer flags sway in a mountaintop breeze.

2nd baptist church

working with andi the girl at second baptist church in hinton this week- doing a whole bunch of stuff- including some dry walling, ceiling tile installation, a whole lot of painting and some odds & ends here and there. we are working with two great guys- ralph & wayne who make the day go by so fast with jokes & lots of laughs and an amazing ability to paint effortlessly on 30 ft extension ladders while i quiver on 12 footers.... by the time we leave, i am ready to get out of my boots and put on some flip flops.

lumbaaa

getting ready for the sites this week- a lot of building to be done means a lot of lumber to load & unload

beautiful dawn

early morning on the farm- gearing up for 2 group weeks in a row.

olympics

we hosted the first (hopefully annual) bethlehem farm olympics. we combined all of the fun games we play on the farm into one great day of competition- and we made medals for each event from juice caps & tomato twine. it was a great day of relaxing fun before we start two group weeks

a place to lay your head

those familiar with the catholic worker movement are aware that most of the original catholic workers were homeless men from the city. one thing that i never considered about being homeless, is that you don't have a place to be buried. one of the caveats of this particular catholic worker farm- was that there was space given to maintain a cemetery for any of the men that wanted to be buried there. it is technically owned by the diocese- so someone from the bishop's office will occasionally come by to check it out- and we maintain it the best that we can. i was moved by the thought of giving those a final resting place who struggled to find a place to rest for almost their entire lives.

rudy

groups can do murals to leave behind after they leave the farm. this is one of my favorites from notre dame.

old school hay rake

doing some work on one of the porches today- had a unique view of our old hay rake & one of my favorite gardens- the round herb garden full of good stuff for cooking as well as herbal remedies for headaches, cramps, etc. if it's green and comes out of the ground, i like it.

haying

today, we helped our neighbor, bill mann, put up his hay- and in return- he gives us hay for our donkeys & horse. today i learned that i really cannot hay. you have to wear long pants, long sleeves, hat, gloves & walk around a field hauling up bales of hay into a truck. today i learned that my natural disposition for cold weather is directly in competition for having to be bundled in 100 degree weather. i overheated and had to take a time out. i'm not used to not being able to do things. not a good feeling, definitely felt humbled today.

volunteers

this little pumpkin volunteer sprouted up near the compost behind the flowering asparagus. a surprise & reminder of halloween in june.

greens

sometimes you will go and pick greens for a salad and then eat it immediately. sometimes there are still bugs on the leaves...sometimes people get freaked out. i am not one of those people.

maters

soon there are going to be a great number of tomatoes ripe for the picking. until that time, we periodically pick off the suckers & tie them up so they can grow nice & strong.

hyper color

louisiana purple pole beans. my new favorite type of bean- they grow dark purple and turn green when you cook them- earning themselves the nickname of hypercolor beans. not to mention, they are delicious.

creeptown, population: 1

catholic workers loved gluing puzzle together. there are 10s of them all over the house- some hung on the walls. this one gives me nightmares.

roxy ridgeback

being on "home crew" this week- meaning helping prepare meals & help the groups plan evening prayers, means i've been getting to know all of the characters on the farm- including one of my new favorite dogs, roxy ridgeback. she's a rescue stray and she does a good job of keeping deer, voles, mice, etc away from our gardens- she would also prefer to snack on cats & chickens if we let her...

catholic worker movement

the farm was one of the original catholic worker farms- like way back in the day of dorothy & peter. 18 men once lived in this house that we now use at a tool shed/storage facility. definition of living simply.

let's do this.

working in the garden every morning with the group from walsh jesuit from ohio. on mondays, we spend all day on the farm- getting an idea of what it's like to work/live on the farm and give everyone a chance to get down and dirty. we have been tending to the weeds, planting some and tending some other plants. it's a great feeling to pick something that you grew and eat it for dinner.

sunsets

really am spoiled with these gorgeous sunsets & sunrises. a girl could get used to this...

welcome home

starting 7 weeks of farm life at bethlehem farm today. 7 weeks of organic food, immersion trips with high school students and mountain top living. life is good.

flying buttresses

visiting bridget in dc en route to wv- we checked out the national cathedral at sunset- it was closed by the grounds were beautiful.

recession sales

20% off all beer pong equipment at the harford mall.

summer cave

cash sunning himself in the summer cave, lunch with greg & relaxing on the deck. good work for 2 day sojourn in bel air.

crunchified

bobby's burger palace for last lunch in philly. delicious. i still don't know what crunchified means, but good work, bobby flay.

kong

last day of mah jong for the summer season. two wins caps the season nicely, see you in august sticks, balls & cars.

calendar of holy men

amazing calendar from amy's visit to rome. there is a disclaimer that these may or may not be priests. at any rate, it is the only thing still hanging on the walls in my apartment.

loyally

1st alpha gamma delta-zeta pi reunion- check. next one? already in the works. how i love those alpha gams, so deep deep, so down down.

the new paper street

goodbye cover band, hello rocking original music @ the north star via meg, daves, c-h-e-t, etc. check out crooks!

iron chef

morimoto's for courtney's final farewell dinner...what a great way to cap off 3 years- truly one of the most delicious meals i have ever had the pleasure of enjoying- complete with morimoto's beer flight.

in the system

fingerprinted for bethlehem farm's fbi background check...and i've seen the booking room of the lower merion police dept.

taste the rainbow

breaking in new rainbows is one of life's great challenges...i live such a charmed life.