Hello Beloved.
Please take the next 5 minutes to unplug your mind from the matrix of thoughts that you have to think about throughout your day. This is not time to solve the world's problems, this is time to laugh at fart jokes and cat videos.
At the bottom I am going to tell you about Yellowbird Foodshed. If you do not already know, we are a FOOD COMPANY that is DELIVERING FOOD...at this point do the details matter?
Let’s all take a collective breath together...in…out…
There are many things that I could talk about but let me just say this...this group of people has been preparing for this moment long before the crisis arrived.
We’ve known a long time that the food system as it existed was not sustainable. All this has done is affirm what we already saw...that our growers right here need to know that we will buy their food 365 days a year, with or without a crisis.
For now we will continue to do what we have always done and build a system that can endure for the “long haul”.
Zach Myers sat down with me to talk denim and ended up waxing about society, family, work ethic, food, and his new book “Kids First”.
“The only outcome I will accept is success”, is a mantra that he has held since he started working as a young kid trying to find his way in the world.
We also talk about how he has grown his selvage denim company “ZACE” to encompass all the things he holds to be true in his life. So sit back, relax, and enjoy...Here’s One For Ya!
What a week it's been huh?
I've heard so many facts and opinions this week that I don't even really have anything to say on any of it.
I'm going to throw the "best of the week" at you in case you need a giggle, a little info, a little musical escape, or a little bite to eat.
As promised it’s pi day box, and the ingredients necessary to make a “pizza pie”
Pizza was first called pie when Italian immigrants arrived in the United States in the late 1800s. Pizza had similarities to a pie – with a crust, sliced triangle portions and its circular shape. Italian-Americans sold and popularized the pizzas, and the exotic dish picked up the English name “tomato pie”. Sometime thereafter the languages met in the middle to give us the term “pizza pie”.
https://www.crustkingdom.com/why-is-pizza-called-pie/
In 2013 Jacob and Elizabeth Coleman moved from Pennsylvania to a 140-acre dairy farm in Fredericktown, OH to cut their teeth at building their own grass-based dairy farm.
Jacob sat down with me to talk about…
● “Carbon Cycles” as it relates to the food choices we are making
● How in our conventional dairy system the retired cow gets turned into McDonald’s hamburger
● Herd Share’s
● “Organic” vs. Pasture-Raised
● Real-life stories of customers health improvement
A random story:
When I was in my early 20's, I was visiting a friend in Indianapolis and we were driving past what was then referred to as the "Hoosier Dome". (Many of you probably remember this)
There was a music festival going on that day/night and I wanted to check it out so we parked and walked up to the door to try and purchase a bracelet that would gain us entry to the festival. They told us they were sold out and that we should have reserved our tickets long beforehand.
Welcome to your St. Patty’s Day box! Plenty of cabbage and potatoes to add to anything you might be making. The kraut from last week might be something you can use as well.
Something new. Galangal Root: Similar to ginger except it can't be grated and must be sliced. The flavor is strong - earthy, sharp, and extra citrusy.
Go to Europe on a vacation OR spend your hard earned savings on a herd of 14 bison?
At age 34 Carrie Starr decided to forgo the trip to Europe and invest her life savings into a herd of bison that are now her livelihood.
14 years later, Carrie has still never been to Europe, but her and her husband continue to thrive on 25 acres of her family's land, as they have grown their herd to 29 head!
Come with us for a conversation about how one meal at Ted’s Montana Grille changed the trajectory of this couple's life.
Cherokee Valley Bison Ranch is situated just south of Buckeye Lake in Thornville, OH in Perry county.
I just got back from taking my 3 boys (ages 12, 8, and 4) to an Ash Wednesday service at the Episcopal church on Kenyon's campus.
We don't usually attend a weekly "service" so it's always fun to watch my children's behaviors in settings like this.
It's a very cool building that feels as if it came right out of a Harry Potter movie and Dumbledore should be the one serving the wafer and wine.
Well friends, things are starting to pick up as we near the spring months.
We have had the most successful winter to date in terms of how many boxes per week we have done, and it’s the first winter we have been able to deliver EVERY SINGLE WEEK!
THAT’s Y’ALL...plain and simple. You have turned the Yellowbird Foodshed into a 12 month a year LOCAL FOOD COMPANY. It means so much to the growers to be able to sell food 12 MONTHS a year and not just in “peak” seasons.
Seeking The Story: The Pilot
A short intro from my heart.
This has been a ton of fun getting these stories recorded and edited.
When I was 21 I had a best friend that taught me about 300 MAJOR life lessons that I still reflect on to this day.
Here is one.
We lived together in a tent out in the middle of the mountains in Montana and shared a car and worked at the same place...which is to say, we were together ALL THE TIME. ..
Another themed box this week as you are getting everything you need (apples, oats, butter) to make something super yummy in the apple crisp/crumble family. Please post your pics to A Seat At The Table on Facebook so that we can all be jealous.
Since I was a kid, Friday's have always been my favorite day of the week.
They are pregnant with the excitement of the weekend...and since weekends rarely live up to the hype, I think that I have found more joy in the expectation of the weekend.
I notice as I get older that this holds true for most things.
-The Christmas season is actually the thing we love, not Christmas day which comes and goes so quickly that it's hard not to feel a little anti-climactic.
-The cup of coffee that I have been looking forward to since I went to sleep the night before gets downed, and I really don't remember drinking it.
Hellow Yellow Friends,
Your feedback of the Thorpes products from Florida was awesome and could best described by Sara J… ”Omg the fruit was awesome. Thank you so much for finding a great partner to bring some sunshine to our Ohio winter fare! I mean, these greens are nurturing my soul, don't get me wrong. But I can't tell you how awesome it was to bite into some fresh, honest strawberries this week. Don't second-guess this decision for a minute.”
** "They call it a Royale with cheese."
** Pulp Fiction, 1994
Friday February 7th, 2020 It's that time again!!! Friday Five Time!! I've got a few things up the sleeve this week that I think you will enjoy.
** We're BERRY excited to bring you the following! ------------------------------------------------------------ This is a very exciting week for us. We have had a lot of firsts this year and you all have been with us through them all….NOW, WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF SUSTAINABLE CITRUS! Thorpes Organic Family Farm (http://www.thorpesorganicfamilyfarm.com/) has partnered with us to bring some sunshine and much-needed winter vitamins to our Yellowbird Family. Over the next couple of weeks you will be seeing oranges, OJ, strawberries, grapefruit, and yucca.
On why I don't "hide" or "unfriend" people that are in my social media feeds that post annoying things that I absolutely disagree with:
Because if I do that, am I not becoming the thing I hate? If I can't sit and listen to what the "other" person is saying, am I not succumbing to exactly the thing that we are all accusing one another of doing?
We have a very rare opportunity that I want to tell you about…
Our team is always researching around the country for what other farmers are doing and how they are bringing their products to market.
In doing this last month, we connected with a small family farm in Florida that is growing organic citrus, strawberries, and yucca. They also have a small organic farm in NY and asked if we wanted to meet them on their way up there and buy some of their stuff from Florida for our Yellowbird members.
