It’s been a few weeks now since arriving in Michigan. Spring is just beginning to kick here which has helped make this place feel welcoming and homey. We have kept busy riding our bikes, cooking, working a bit at cappella farm, getting things ready for our departure up north and figuring out our lives little by little and day by day. Matthew bought a truck which makes us feel slightly weighted down with yet another thing to take care of and pour money into…But it has cruise control and an extended cab which is really quite nice, we’re happy about it in the end. Matthew was accepted into graduate school at Michigan State in East Lansing in the Community Agriculture Resources and Recreation Studies department. We just got back from a day trip to East Lansing and I will say that the place isn’t all bad. It’s also not the most ideal community that I could imagine, but there were some neat aspects to the place that we were excited and surprised about. The people, for one seem very real and down to earth. and Real Estate prices are ridiculously low…though neither of us have a job right now, we might look into the possibility of buying while the buying’s good. and the main excitement for us about this place is the possibility for Matthew to work with a really great group of folks on a Master’s project that he is really stoked on, learn more about sustainable agriculture and work with the student organic farm that now has a 48 week CSA in middle Michigan! Pretty impressive. So we’re seriously considering the possibility of spending the next couple years in Lansing starting in the fall after our last harvest up in Northport. Lots of changes and new ideas every day. stay tuned. xo.
Matthew and I spent the night in Des moines Iowa yesterday. We stayed with Mark, an ex-emergency room physician who aspires to live on the fringe and have more fun. He took this shot of Matthew and I in the garage of his lofted apartment building which was once the offices of Look Magazine in downtown Des Moines.
We may have found our spot.
Living in our own little cabin on a little farm in Leelanau, MI with a couple in their 80’s who have been living in a sustainable way for 50 years. In exchange for a few chores such as gardening and chopping wood we will have our own little house and 1/2 acre to farm. Access to a small tractor and all the tools we’ll need to start growing this year.
Here’s a quote from John who we’ll be living with:
“We want to live simply, to have low impact on the environment to leave it the way we found it. I guess I always think of the upland plover in the mists of our fields. They come in the spring and they build their nests. They have a real pretty song and they fly above the fields. They lay their eggs. They feed their young. And in the fall they leave, you wouldn’t know, from looking where they’d been that they were here. I guess I’d like to be like that.”
Almost brings a tear to my eye. What a beautiful image to carry with you throughout your day. Excited to discover more about this place and it’s people.
I think I will call her Dusty.
She and I went for a ride through the almond orchards and open fields north of town yesterday.
Storm clouds were approaching from the west. We could see that they were already raining down on the coastal range. To the east the Sierras were nestled among gorgeous white puffy clouds. The temperature was perfect. Mid 60’s I’d say. A light wind gave us a push on the way home and the flats of Chico gave no resistance. Felt like flying.
I love my bike. Lots.
Today I awoke to perfectly clear skies. A jog through the neighborhoods and farm lands felt amazing. Clean cool air on my skin. Bright blue sky above my head.
Now it’s time to get a few things done. Purge. Organize. Clean.
I miss this. A space to call my own. To make as beautiful or simple as I choose. A place to set a bouquet of flowers. Is that so much to ask for?…maybe for the immediate future. But soon enough this scene will be real.
New photos on flikr from today. It was beautiful in the fields. Perfectly blue sky, fluffy white clouds dancing about. awesomely green fields all around. Hawks soaring overhead. I think the sand hill cranes are passing through town now. They make an amazing noise. More awaits tomorrow. Now sleep.
