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Some things need no comment….
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As we’ve been saying….
….the two worst foods a kid can eat are hamburgers and chicken. And what are the two mainstay meals at McDonalds? Wonder what’s in a Chicken McNugget? http://www.naturalnews.com/041646_Chicken_McNuggets_forensic_food_analysis_strange_fibers.html And now about hamburgers: http://www.naturalnews.com/027414_chicken_disease_cows.html The answer, as always, is to know your farmer…and your restaurant.
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Speaking of summer camp….
….as I was earlier (scroll down)….our grandson Luis won the fishing championship at camp this summer with this 5-pound large mouth bass. His buddies nicknamed it “The Monster”. Luis has been fishing since he was a toddler. In fact, during the annual family football game he prefers to fish in the pond near the field. Too bad, I think he’s built like a future line backer. Do they give college scholarships for fishing?
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A feel-good moment….
….from our good friend, Dr. Sue Beal. She sends along a video produced at a girls’ summer camp—Hameau—in Pennsylvania. It’s at an Ayrshire dairy farm and the camp is run by Gayle Rodgers. Sue tells us the girls are “shining examples of leadership, talent and sensibility”. It’s always reassuring that there are still those kinds of girls around. Turn up your sound. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzpVkbwbpXM
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The Thistle Hill girls are all happy….
….starting with Wooz. Grandson Church is back from his “gig” in Idaho working for “pasture wizard” Jim Gerrish. Wooz was worried about her little grandbaby with a thousand Angus after dealing with no more than a handful of our docile Devon. Not to worry, of course. Church was even the lone hand on the ranch for stretches while Jim was away speech-a-fying. The cows were happy Church was back, too. He seems to have the same “touch” his uncle has. We seldom pet our cows, but they immediately come close to win his scratches.
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They tried to tell us….
….we’re too young. Clearly time to split these two up! That’s Thistle Hill Babette snuggling up to our TDA bull Churchill. Actually, Churchill will be going off this week….to North American Breeders where we’ll be collecting him….not for sale but for protection. Traditional Devon America (TDA)….a partnership of three breeders…wants to be sure to preserve the Devon genetics we’ve gathering on our trips to southwest England.
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You’re so vain….
….oh, alright, but hear me out. Several years ago, I was so crippled up I walked bent over like an old man and I hurt all the time. Thanks to a physical therapist and her staff in nearby Warrenton—plus an improved diet and plenty of red wine—I snapped out of it. The therapist’s name is Kendal Blaser and she is not only an exceptionally talented professional, she is one of the most delightful women I’ve ever met. So Kendal was working on her website with a professional photographer and wanted me to pose as one of her success stories. The deal was, I got some of the pictures and this is…
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And the winners are….
….whoops, only one! The North Devon show in England was swept by Eastyard farm, both the champion and reserve champions were their heifers. Part of the reason for the picture though was the judge, our English partner Gavin Hunter of Tilbrook Grange. The Brits still do their shows the proper way. Note the white coats (after you note Gavin’s bowler)! Adding further cache’ to the show: Prime Minister David Cameron was in attendance. Actually, many British politicians regularly “do” the cattle show circuit and, of course, Prince Charles is a well-known Devon breeder.
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The looming government crackdown….
….is picking up a little news interest. We’ve mentioned this before. The Feds are planning to use new, so-called “food safety” regulations to penalize small farmers. We say “penalize” because the problems in the food industry…safety and other things…are not because of small farms and farmers’ markets. Just last week, lettuce grown by giant farms in Mexico and sold in giant restaurant chains like Red Lobster and Olive Garden were found to be contaminated. But it’s a lot easier for the feds to go after the farmers market over at Massie’s Corner. The result of the new regulations, according to one study, will be a 50% reduction in the profits of…
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My how she’s grown….
….one of our English Devon….a Tilbrook Cashtiller heifer….in residence at Walker Century Farms in South Carolina. TDA 03 is approaching two and we’ll soon be breeding her to a Tilbrook bull, Sunset. Three of 03’s flush sisters are here at Thistle Hill, and we’ll be AI-ing them to Sunset as well. Traditional Devon is a partnership of three farms, all working together to find pure English Devon genetics for import into the United States.