Author Archives: Virtual Farmgirl

Future Farmboy woke up this morning reminding us that this weekend has been set aside by our brothers south of the border as a time to remember loved ones and as a time to face our own mortality. [The powers that be aligned the holiday on Nov. 1 & 2 with All Saints Day andContinue reading “On Dias De Los Muertos: Oyster Stew for Omi”

I pulled together a happy hour this evening for new and old friends and whipped up some appetizers with a so-so Michigan cherry wine from Chateau de Leelanau. As part of the offerings, I served up my ham rolls, one of my favorites. But I didn’t realize until tonight that the iFarmer has long hadContinue reading “Good Friends, Not So Good Wine”

When was the last time you went to a funeral that ended with wild applause? I don’t think the honoree, Rev. Dana Ferguson, would have had it any other way. Just a few moments before the standing-room-only crowd (about 1,200 or 1,500) began clapping, there probably wasn’t a dry eye in the house. It’s justContinue reading “Saying Goodbye to Dana”

Good news 4-H Champ and anyone who was surprised by the FFAers who told my future farming kin in Indy last week that the FFA wasn’t about farming anymore and instead was about business (not even agri-business). Why would an FFA member deny farming and not even talk about agriculture to a group of would-beContinue reading “Whew. Turns Out the FFA is Still Very Much Into Farming”

Our prayers go out tonight for the family, friends, 4th Pres co-workers and the people touched by the faith, love and devotion radiated by Rev. Dana Ferguson. We were sad to learn today that Dana died Monday of heart failure brought on by complications from cancer treatments. She was only 42. Our hearts ache forContinue reading “Remembering a Light in the City”

I couldn’t resist. We call this one “Screech,” for obvious reasons.

Just found this buried in an old file. So cute:

I’m getting excited about movie night this week because by Friday I should have my advance copy of Food Fight, a documentary about agricultural policy and food culture in the 20th Century. I expect we’ll see Michael Pollan and Alice Waters front and center in the film, but I won’t know until I watch it.Continue reading “Ready for a Food Fight?”

Still no word from the FFA. I sent the national organization an e-mail noting the exchange that 4-H Champ and family had with FFA conventioners this past weekend. I had hoped for at least a form message telling me that FFA still accomplishes its goals with an underlying agriculture teachings. No such luck. Meanwhile, I’veContinue reading “Farming Future Secure With These Young Innovators”

I received this curious dispatch today from 4-H Champ, who’s been enjoying a fall trip with family through the Hoosier state. While touring, they witnessed a blue-jacket invasion, some 53,000 Future Farmers of America in Indy for their national convention. But is the FFA even about farming these days? Or are members shunning their agContinue reading “FFA Not Into Farming Anymore? What's Up With That?”