photo-of-the-day

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  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I love this cool idea. It is sort of a blend of the Advent wreath and Advent calendar to enjoy the countdown of December days. It looks like they are little spools with a LED candle on top to light each day?

  2. What adorable idea for an Advent calendar ! Wish you had shown this photo earlier so all we Farmgirls could have done just that.

  3. Bonnie ellis says:

    Darling spool idea. They could hang in the window from a drapery rod if you don’t have room on the table.

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photo-of-the-day

farm-romance-4724

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Oh my gosh, that is such a beautiful view!! It just makes me want to sit by a wood stove and keep working on my list of knitting projects due for Christmas!

  2. Deborah McKissic says:

    oh….this is beautiful! No snow here yet in Western Pa., but our frosts have been so heavy our trees resemble the ones above in your photo…so pretty…the cardinals show up nicely on those trees….

  3. Nancy Coughlin says:

    No snow here in Central PA and it ia rainy and dreary. No pretty frosts, either. Guess it will come when it will: a lesson in patience.

  4. wear alone says:

    Can you tell us more about this? I’d care to find out some additional information.

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old-fashioned mad lib

Go ahead, ask my granddaughters …

I am positively mad for the madcap fun of Mad Libs.

(Did you see that I even took a stab at my own version, dubbed the “ag lib”?)

Yup.

So, imagine my delight when I learned that gals like me were goofing around with “libs” long before the template took on a trademark. Leave it to Susan Odom to discover such a treasure.

Who’s Susan, you ask?

She is the brilliant proprietress of Hillside Homestead, a historic Michigan farmstay that you’ll get to visit in the Oct/Nov issue of my magazine, on newsstands now (this is one you won’t want to miss … but aren’t they all?). When Susan isn’t entertaining guests with authentic turn-of-the-twentieth-century meals and activities around her pastoral property, she blogs a bit. And in one of her posts last summer, she wrote, “Well, here we sit on the longest day of the year as we prepare for our big Farmhouse Frolic tomorrow! We are all so excited—we will be waxing eggs; bubble bowling; making rhubarb sauce; playing games; watching pigs, ducks, and chickens; and so much more. One thing we could not quite fit into the schedule was a ‘mad lib’ found in a wonderful book called The American Girls Handy Book, which was published in 1887 (read more about that here). It’s called ‘Biographical Nonsense’ … Who know that there were historic mad libs? Great fun at a party!”

Thanks to Susan, we can all access this humorous helping of history here. Print it out and present it to the attendees of your next farmgirl gathering.

Giggles are guaranteed.

Photo courtesy of SimpleInsomnia via Flickr

 

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    My copy of this book has been shipped and should be there when I get home today from OKlahoma!! Can’t wait to read through it.

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photo-of-the-day

farm-romance_3494

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    What a great moment captured. Beautiful details of the feathers!

  2. Bonnie ellis says:

    Our hummingbirds have come back too. They are so awesome. Great photo Mary Jane.

  3. Nancy Coughlin says:

    Such beautiful detail! Don’t have the skill to capture these types of moments. Thank you for sharing the beauty of your shots with all of us!

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photo-of-the-day

farm-romance_0835

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Gosh, that is breathtaking! Tell Karine she is capturing some beautiful moments on the farm.

    I just sent you an email with my feeble attempt at a Jubilee statement!! LOL!! Maybe a few of the ideas will help you and Carol craft something publishable.

  2. Cindi says:

    Those are beautiful!!!!!! I’m not familiar with them ~ which makes them even more beautiful to me

  3. bonnie ellis says:

    I’ve never seen one of those kind of columbines. We have the red and yellow ones here in Minnesota.

  4. Cindi says:

    Oh my! I’ve never seen those kinds of columbines either! HA! and I just planted a third columbine in my yard on Friday!

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Euphoria

Back in October, I mentioned the Kirkus Prize and its $50,000 award to each writer in a variety of genres. I also vowed to devour the chosen book in their fiction category. And devour it I did.

Photo Apr 21, 8 56 48 AM

Lily King won the prize in the fiction category for a brilliant little novel by the name of Euphoria. It also won fistfuls of other prizes and accolades, and I am happy to report that it certainly lived up to its reputation.

Lily King pays homage to Margaret Mead through a re-imagined tale of a true-to-life meeting of the revolutionary anthropologist and her second and third husbands, Reo Fortune and Gregory Bateson. Using this as a point of departure, the story depicts a tragic love triangle between three rival anthropologists working along the Sepik River in Papau, New Guinea, in the early 1930s. When the novel opens, our protagonist, Nell, has just published a brilliant and controversial book about natives of the Solomon Islands that has made her very famous. She and her jealous and competitive husband, Fen, are about to set sail for Australia after a stint of disappointing field work in New Guinea when they happen upon a colleague and competitor, the desperately lonely Andrew.

King’s descriptions of the three characters’ collaborative yet colliding journeys in the hot and muggy air of the jungle, the stolen glances of hidden love, and the background throbbing of tribal drums was beautifully done. I will most definitely read the Kirkus Prize fiction winner for 2015.

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    The place and the era does sound like an exciting setting to tell a story of adventures and love in far away places. Thanks for the review!

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Monet’s gardens

Talking about Emily Dickinson’s love of flower gardens led me down the garden path to remember another story about a famous artist who’s known for his paintings, but not especially for the passion that drove him: his gardens.

I’m talking about Monet.

Claude Monet (1840-1926) is one of the great French Impressionists. In 1883, he moved to a property along the Seine in the French countryside called Giverny. While he was already an established artist, painting both landscapes and portraits …

Le déjeuner sur l’herbe, (right section), with Gustave Courbet, Frédéric Bazille and Camille Doncieux, first wife of the artist

Woman in a Garden, 1867, Hermitage, St. Petersburg

the property at Giverny inspired him to undertake a huge landscaping project, including lily ponds that would become the subjects of his most famous paintings.

“With the help of his family and six gardeners,” reports NPR, “Monet planted, nurtured and composed his garden—a world of flowers made up of yellow, pink and red roses arrayed on the ground and draping over metal arches; patches of bright red geraniums; pale purple lavender; deep purple pansies; irises; impatiens; peonies and more.” He composed his paintings by first planting exactly what he wanted to capture on canvas.

Claude Monet, Irises In Monet’s Garden, 1900

For the next 20 years, Monet painted his gardens. He focused mainly on the water lilies, painting 250 canvases of them, some of which were multiple panels, each as wide as 14 feet.

Claude Monet, Water Lilies, c. 1915

Claude Monet, The Water Lilies – Setting Sun, 1920–1926

Today, Monet’s property at Giverny operates as a living museum, where you can experience the beauty of both Monet’s passions yearly from the end of March until November 1st. Find out more at Giverny-Impression.com.

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    We visited Monet’s garden during our last trip to France and it is as beautiful as one might imagine. This trip, we saw other parts of the French landscape that inspired Monet and many others. It is thrilling to stand in the same place as the painter did and try and see what he saw. In Paris, the L’Orangerie museum has the huge Monet Lilly pond painting that fills the entire wall space. If you can’t get to Giverny, it is the next best thing!

  2. Dear Winnie ARE YOU STILL IN FRANCE? DID YOU GET TO GIVERNY? If you did get there we farmgirls are awaiting anxiously your photos! Well , all your french photos actually.
    High on my ” bucket list ” is to visit Giverny. I have wanted to go there all my life, ever since my Aunt Mignon ( Mignon ,which was her real name, means darling in French) who lived in France for several years told me about how wonderful it is. She said it was like he just left the house for a stroll. She adored his colors he used in his home and replicated them in her own quite innovative house she designed and built in the 50’s. At the time Monet’s brilliant blue and yellow were unknown as decorating colors here in the USA. I loved how she used all the influences of her life in France in her home.
    Yes , someday I shall go to Giverny.

  3. Cindi says:

    I had no idea these were paintings of his own gardens! Now they have a very different feel and meaning for me. Isn’t that funny ~ how knowing a bit about the background can completely change ones perspective. Now I need to go look at some Monet.

  4. Winnie Nielsen says:

    Yes, we did go to Giverny and it is absolutely beautiful!! If you get to France, you must visit the La Musee d’L’Orangerie where Monet did the huge paintings of his garden that cover the walls. It was his last big project and completed, per his instruction, after his death as a gift to France. He said he did not want to be here I case there was criticism. In the main room, there are seasons of his garden painted as murals going all around the entire room. Today on the flight from Paris, I got to watch this wonderful story of Monet on my TV. He was so important to the movement and a leader for many other painters.

    Lisa, if you will email me with your email,address, I will ask Warren to make a copy of his Monet painting collection on a disc so you can see it. He has many of Monet’s collection from museums all over the US and from Europe.

  5. Debbie says:

    When it comes to flower gardens and art no one inspires more than Monet. Every winter I check out books from the library that have been written about his gardens and art for a grand visual escape. I adore his gardens and his paintings. https://www.google.com/search?q=monetys+garden&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8#tbm=shop&q=monet%27s+garden+books&spell=1
    If any of you ever make it to Boston you can see some of his original art at the Museum of Fine Arts!

  6. jeannine Nye says:

    this is truly a wonderful garden and the colours are quite mind blowing.. however did you know why he decided to concentrate on this garden making it so beautiful and inspiring to paint? When he first moved into the village, the garden was large but not beautiful at all. He wandered around the countryside and at first was painting haystacks. The farmers soon saw that this could be a way to make money and charged him for the views he was painting.. then they shared the haystacks and moved them about the village all of them intent on charging him** After a while, he got to find out, and then dedicated the rest of his days, growing his wonderful garden and decorating his home, and finding inspiration just outside his back door!!! I think that is wonderfully funny, that he didn’t let the old farmers take him for a ride anymore and he still found fame in a big way with his glorious paintings**!!!

  7. Leisa Joan says:

    This struck me as I was in Paris almost 10 years ago, and had to talk my 2 sisters into the train ride to Giverny. It did not disappoint. Then a few weeks ago, at a local auction, i found a book on Monet’s garden in the book lots, and had to have it. I think I just found inspiration for a part of my back yard garden!!

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“Organic: Farmers & Chefs of the Hudson Valley”

In this beautiful new book by photographer Francesco Mastalia, Organic: Farmers & Chefs of the Hudson Valley,

you’ll find over 100 one-of-a-kind ambrotype portraits of the farmers and chefs of the Hudson Valley. Not only are the photos beautiful, but they are of some of the most influential members of the organic movement.

The book includes portraits and interviews with Amy Hepworth, Dan Barber, Zakary Pelaccio, Ken Greene, Steffen Schneider, and many many more. In narrating their own stories, the farmers and chefs share their philosophy about what it means to grow and live organically and sustainably.

Mastalia used the wet-plate collodion process, a technique developed in the 1850s when the art of photography was in its infancy. With the use of a large format wooden camera and brass lens, glass plates are hand coated to produce one-of-a-kind ambrotype images. The amber-toned images remind us of a time when the cultivation of land was a manual process that linked the farmer directly to the soil.

” … for anyone who likes their locally-grown, pesticide-free carrots with a dusting of nostalgia, Organic is tasty indeed.” – TIME.com

  1. Cindi says:

    Fascinating! Your articles always send me on amazing journeys. This one will take me to the bookstore (again) and lead me to an interesting site by a place called the National Media Museum (http://blog.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk/) to see just exactly what an ambrotype was. That blog I will investigate further after work. Funny that organic farmers and chefs was the subject today after I just picked up a cookbook the other day that is all about the farm to table movement. 🙂

  2. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I love these black and white photos of the chefs. Somehow this medium brings across the reality of the hard and often dirty work that goes into true farming. No frills. Just the plain and beautiful truth of what it means to live organically and sustainably. I am intrigued and in awe of their work!

  3. I have 2 different friends who are antique dealers specializing in antique photos. I will be sure to show them this information about how this process is still being used with amazing results. I have seen many antique
    ” ambros” as they are called in the business, and am astonished that this complicated form of photography is still being used and with such exquisite results.
    As an organic seed business owner of Amishland Heirloom Seeds, I sell to many organic farms and quite a few are in upper NY state. I wouldnt be surprised to see some familiar names in this booK

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photo-of-the-day

Inside MaryJane’s Airstream

farm-romance_8974

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    A lovely soaking tub in a Glamper is the height of luxury especially…………if you get to wrap up in my beautiful dishcloth afghan and a good book afterwards!

    MaryJane, Regeena did such a beautiful job piecing together all of my Farmgirl dishcloths into such a warm and pretty afghan. I absolutely LOVE IT!!!!

  2. Karlyne says:

    And with pillows in it afterward, it’d make a great sofa!

  3. Nancy Coughlin says:

    Would love a soaking tub, but have been told the structure of this older home would not support one. Darn it.

  4. Marcia Hicks says:

    Oh my! What a splendid place that would be, after a long day along the river or just out with your glamper- girlfriends antiquing your way through some backwoods town, that you just know no one has been to before!! My trailer (1956 Aljoa) probably wouldn’t have the strength for it, but I have some girlfriends with Airstreams that just might want to do some re-decorating!!

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Why did the chicken cross the …

world?? Yes, you read that right.

Chickens are not only the oldest domesticated animal on Earth, they’re also the animal that has been most crucial to the spread of civilization across the globe, according to science writer Andrew Lawler, author of Why Did the Chicken Cross the World? The Epic Saga of the Bird that Powers Civilization.

chicken-book-with-bird

The humble chicken … “Queen Victoria was obsessed with it. Socrates’ last words were about it. Charles Darwin and Louis Pasteur made their scientific breakthroughs using it. Catholic popes, African shamans, Chinese philosophers, and Muslim mystics praised it. Throughout the history of civilization, humans have embraced it in every form imaginable—as a messenger of the gods, powerful sex symbol, gambling aid, emblem of resurrection, all-purpose medicine, handy research tool, inspiration for bravery, epitome of evil, and, of course, as the star of the world’s most famous joke,” says Lawler.

In Why Did the Chicken Cross the World (Atria Books, December 2014, $20), Lawler takes us on an adventure from prehistory to the modern era with a fascinating account of the partnership between human and chicken (the most successful of all cross-species relationships).

We know that we love our backyard feathered friends (not to mention that they’re now humanity’s single most important source of protein), but did you know about a recent discovery in Montana that links the chicken to an unlikely ancestor … the T. rex? And did you know that there are more chickens alive today than cats, dogs, pigs, cows, and rats—combined? Or that they inhabit every continent on the Earth except for one, where they’re banned? You’ll learn this and much, much more in Lawler’s fascinating book. “The planet’s most populous and edible bird really does open a window on civilization, evolution, capitalism, and ethics. (Reading about it is lots of fun, too.)” says New York Magazine.

 

  1. Winnie Nielsen says:

    I would have never guessed in a million years that the chicken was related to the T. Rex! This sounds like a fun read and perhaps a must read for every Farmgirl. As I wonder through book stores today in the airports, I will see if I can find it. There is nothing like a good book to ease the experience of flying.

  2. Molly Welsh says:

    Well, anyone who has REALLY looked at their hens could tell you that they are related – quite closely if we go by looks – to reptiles. Lucky for us they do not have the habit of developing LARGE teeth and deciding to eat us instead of t’other way round.
    Love my chickles anyway, LOL.

  3. Smithsonian magazine had a whole issue on chickens last year and mentioned this book highly. And they also mentioned the T.Rex relationship.

  4. Deborah McKissic says:

    Hmm…interesting….but, I still believe in creation…so I know where those chickens came from originally….

  5. Chrissy says:

    On what continent are they banned?

    • MaryJane says:

      Antarctica is poultry-free because an international treaty bans live chickens from being shipped to Antarctica in order to protect the local penguins from disease.

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