Do we share the same planet

The conservative and Republican reactions are at the same time predictable and maddening.  The same folks who published the tea party playbook which called for disruption of town hall meetings a harassment of public officials now tell us that peaceful demonstrations with snarky slogans and thoughtful criticism of our galtian overlords are the end of civilization as we know it.  The media mouthpieces of the 1% are in majority agreement to either ignore the protests or denigrate the protestors.   As someone who lived through the 60s and early 70s I find it amazing that my generation is ready to repeat the crap we went through at the hands of the "greatest generation"  aka Archie Bunker and friends.   At least most of us could get jobs when we  got out of school.  The kids now coming of age can look forward to a lower standard of living than us, unless something is done fairly quickly.  But, many of those with the money and power are living down to the worst  epithets aimed at the "Me" generation.  They simply don't care about anyone but them and their immediate families.  I find it amazing the people occupying  Wall St. have the faith in the system to participate in this protest.  I hope more continue to join.

Work and worth

The NYT had one of their Opinionator series focused on the case of a Colorado farmer complaining he couldn't find American workers willing to harvest his onions and corn for slightly more than minimum wage.  Of course most of the people offering the opinions don't take on the underlying assumption that farm labor must be cheap.  If farm workers worked a 40 hour week and made enough to be above the poverty line, they would have to be paid about $12.00 per hour on a year round basis.  Meanwhile, due to the constraints forced on the grower by the former abundance of cheap immigrant labor and the seasonal nature of his business, he can only offer $10.00/hr. for a few weeks.  So a 40 year old who has worked behind a desk for the last 20 years and was laid off is going to jump on a short term back breaking job with no benefits that precludes him from collecting unemployment.  Right.  I can tell you that after putting in a full day outside working a 5,000 calorie/day job, the last thing on my mind is trying to polish my resume so I can get back behind a desk and make enough money to feed my family.  I just want to get some sleep so I can get through another day.  Some days, the cluelessness of our supposed leaders makes me want to scream.

Another just like the other

For those with a day off today, you might think someone was offering a preview of the outdoor enthusiast's idea of the afterlife.  Mid 70's with a light breeze and sunshine.  Even I think a hike might be a good idea, and my usual opinion of that particular excercise is  to paraphrase Mark Twain, a good 18 holes spoiled.  Meanwhile, those of us condemned to work on what is a federal holiday in both Canada and the US, are finding willing customers to be in short supply.  Markets for most items remain sluggish nonwithstanding the fine fall weather and the fact it is still early in the month.  That removes two of the most common excuses for poor results in the produce business.  Unfortunately, there is a superabundance of manufactured reasons to explain why sales are down.  Of course the report that average household income in the US is down compared with 2 years ago may have something to do with slow sales of produce.

Glorious weekend

Having lived on the North Country riviera for the last ten years, I can't remember a nicer weekend.  Sat and Sun were to die for with temps in the upper 70s and lows in the 50s.  The farmer's market final weekend was a resounding success with almost everything sold by closing time.  As I said before, it's a bittersweet day.   But there is still plenty to do in the garden.  There are still a couple of hundred pounds of potatoes to harvest,  the garlic bed needs to be prepared and I want to clean up the tomato bed before the snow flies.  I hope this weather hangs around for a couple of weeks.  Oh, and there is still golf to play...

Another repreive

A slight white frost and temp around 38 this morning.  The long range forecast is looking good through next Friday.  We should dry out and warm up.  I need to be able to work up a bed for garlic planting.  Conditions in the north country can go from late summer to mid winter virtually overnight, so you have to take advantage of any good weather to do fall planting and soil prep.  I hope this Indian summer weather extends for a couple of weeks, but I certainly won't count on it.  Likewise, the larger growers across the region need time for the land to dry out so late season harvest of corn, soybeans, carrots, potatoes, etc can proceed and finish before a hard freeze or early snow renders the fields unworkable.  It is scary to think that a whole season of hard work can be held hostage because of wet fields.

Prolonging the agony

We missed the frost last night.  There was a film of ice coming down on my car at 6:30 this morning, but the temp was 38, so all the cover up I did last night was probably unnecessary.  The weather forecast is already saying we will avoid frost on the Riviera tonight, but that only makes me more nervous.  We'll keep the  covers on and hope the forecast is right for a change.  The weekend weather should make us forget about fall, at least for a little while.

Passings

The news that Steve Jobs died yesterday has sucked all of the air out of the political room at this point, even overshadowing the announcement that (surprise) Sarah Palin will not run for President.  What a contrast.  The greatest technoligical innovator of the 21st century leaves us and we are stuck with someone who is stealing from our future with every breath she takes.  I am ambivalent sometimes about Jobs and Apple.  The company has gotten rich by amping up America's consumerist culture in which your status is measured by the number of techno toys you own.  The idea of thousands waiting for hours for the newest i-phone to go on sale is itself a commentary on where we are in 2011.  Sarah Palin is the extension of this frenzy.  To paraphrase Seinfeld, she is a candidate about nothing.  A pretty face and a vacuous vision of the future.  The ultimate consumer.  The difference between Steve Jobs vision and Sarah Palin's is Jobs wanted to make Americans a smarter, more savvy people.  Palin wants them to remain the rubes her carny act has been living on for the past 3 years.