Bedlam Farm Blog Journal by Jon Katz

Flower Art
29 April

Flower Art, Signing Off On A Beautiful Day. (My Computer Needs A New Hard Drive.)

by Jon Katz

It was a gorgeous afternoon. I did a lot of writing and took some pictures I liked. I’m going to the pantry in the morning to take some photos there. I just learned that my computer, the centerpiece of my work life and my blog, needs a new hard drive.

I have six memorable flower photos here today. My experimentation is paying off. So is Spring.

I learned today that my iMac—the core of my work and storage for my blog and photos—needs a new hard drive. It certainly deserves one.

Maria and I will take a few days off in June to drive up to Mac Nurse in Stowe, Vermont, to have a new hard drive installed. I’m told the new hard drive will last longer than I will. Good, I thought Maria would use it one day. She insists I’ll still be around.

We’ll be away for two or three days early in June.  We see it as a mini-vacation; we both want and need a breather. The animals here are pleased to be out on the grass again, the first since last October.

There will be no blog then. It will be a great relief to get the new hard drive.  I can’t say I’m surprised. This IMac is a true workhorse. Today was my first day on my new diabetes medication, Ozempic. So far, so good. There have been no side effects.

I still need to find out the name of this one, but it wants to be in my pictures.

Anemone, I think.

 

A beautiful mix in the sun

The White Rose, thanks again, Sue Lamberti, for awakening me to them.

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Maria
29 April

Saving The Cactus

by Jon Katz

For Maria, who loves many plants, herbs, and flowers, this was a labor of love – her ailing cactuses. The round one on the left has particular meaning to both of us. I was in my Hebron farmhouse when she and I first met; she has been caring for it ever since.

This year, the cacti were sick, there was a fungus attack, and they were also growing wildly into each other; she did some homework and spent a few hours breaking off the errant limps and nursing them, cleaning the fungus off, nurturing them back to health inside the farmhouse this winter.

Saturday, she brought them outside and did some more work on them. They look great. Besides mine, the big one has been with her for 20 years. She was happy and proud.  I couldn’t believe my little cactus, a couple of inches high, had grown into a round and healthy thing.

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Zip
29 April

Chronicles Of Zip: Photos Of The Day. Zip Is Always There…

by Jon Katz

Zip, the master of timing, always finds a way to steal the spotlight. Whether stocking firewood or a simple photo shoot, he’s always the center of attention, the camera’s friend.

I’ve been taking pictures for a long time; I’ve never had an animal as photogenic as Zip.

This morning, we celebrated letting the animals out to graze for the first time since last October. Suddenly, Zip showed up, walking on the pasture fence and getting into my face while I pointed the camera at something else.

He is a ham, a movie cat.

I see Zip is sensitive to heat; he loves to doze in the shade.

Zip knows how to get attention. While the other animals were out grazing, he was dancing on top of the fence posts, showing off and finding a way to get into the picture. He has a promising future ahead of him as a movie cat.

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Bedlam Farm
29 April

Video: Grass Day! Our Happy Animals Can Graze Again! Big Day At Bedlam Farm

by Jon Katz

This is one of the biggest days at Bedlam Farm, when the donkeys and sheep can go out into our pastures and have some fresh green grass. Due to the warm weather and earlier rains, our grass is sweet and green.

We limit the time they go out and eat; they can get sick from overeating all at once after six or seven months of eating hay.

We brought them in after they fanned out and grazed for several hours. We’ll make the switch slowly and gradually. Then, we won’t have to get up so early in the summer.

It’s an important day for us; it reminds us of why we are here and love to be here. It brings us great joy to see them rush out onto the green grass, which is their nature and destiny.

We both love seeing the animals out grazing contentedly; it demonstrates why we love the farm and care for our animals.

Maria did her Monday morning video walking out to the grass with them. I was out, too, in my bathrobe and made a cameo appearance to take my photos.

The shots of me singing to Zip were embarrassing enough that I asked her not to take a video of me half-dressed as well. As I often say, I was raised in New England…we didn’t walk around half-dressed there. The prude still lives in me, fortunately, not in my wife.

I understand why so many people move South for the warmth; winters can wear you out here. And I don’t tell others what to do, a social media disease.

But the seasons give flavor and depth to life, as a day like today shows. I would dry up like a prune in Florida for the summer, but the farm engages and lifts me.

I started on my new medicine,  Ozempic, today. I need to drink a lot of water and ensure my food portions are small.

I’m starting with a very low dose for a month to see what kinds of side effects there are, but I’ve been on similar medicine for nearly a year – Mounjaro, and I doubt there will be much of a difference.

 

 

 

 

 

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The Cambridge Food Pantry
29 April

Pantry Support: For $5.69, We Can Bring Precious Cranberry Juice To Three Large Families

by Jon Katz

For $5.69, we can send two large bottles of the precious and hard-to-get Happy Belly Juice Cocktail, 64. fl. ounces pack of 2. This is Sarah’s pick of the day for the children and families of the Cambridge Food Pantry.

Cranberry Juice is one of the healthiest breakfast juices for children (and adults). However, all kinds of juices are getting too expensive for the Cambridge Pantry to buy or obtain, so they only have a little sometimes and none now. This is one of the things that the children and families who come to the pantry for help love.

$5.59 goes a long way regarding Cranberry Juice, and since this is an Amazon brand, the price is low— it’s an excellent time to take advantage of that. It feels like every nonprofit in America is seeking funds that are needed; this help goes directly to children.

This is where the Army of Good comes into play. We specialize in getting the food pantry items they rarely get or consistently need more. We can’t meet all of their needs, but we can pick our targets and make a real difference to these food-deprived parents and their children.

 

$5.69 is a small price for getting a very healthy juice into the hands and homes of the people who are food deprived, sadly, a growing number.

I asked Sarah if there was a second choice today (there is so much need), and they said yes, they have also run out of salad dressing; the pantry is seeking Kraft Thousand Island Salad Dress, 16 0z. Bottles, Pack of 6.

Salad dressing is critical for getting children to eat their salads, which is, in turn, essential for their health. However, the pantry is also out of stock now.

I took the weekend off of Pantry food support; we all needed to breathe. But I’m back into it today with a whole heart. Your help has changed the dynamic of the pantry and enriched the diets and love people who could use a hand.

If you’ve been to the supermarket lately, you know why the pantry is so important, even in the most prosperous country in the world.

It’s important to point out how hard the community’s people are working to keep the Pantry stocked, functioning, and able to meet the growing demand for food help. I love this photo of 4th and 5th graders working hard to ensure food reaches their needy classmates.

These children inspire me. Hungry children are an issue that can still draw our divided country together.

 

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