the tomatoes are making themselves at home.

life is starting to feel a bit surreal as of late. maybe its how i am writing this, while eating a quick breakfast, and looking out onto our backyard where my one eared pig, vangogh, is sharing a morning meal with my little rose, with pascal the duck nibbling in between their faces and their 4th, and best friend, bella, the grass fed calf is looking on in envy.

or maybe it is because we stayed up late skyping with best friends in san francisco while drinking modelos and it almost felt like they were just dropping by to say hello.

or that i that i spent 5 hours with nick and the dogs yesterday combing through the farm. checking all barbed wire fences. checking any wells that may have been left uncovered. looking in every corner of this 500 acre property for the beloved farm dog, zeus. who had been missing since monday night when neighbors set off fireworks. and who, was just driven down the driveway last night by a woman, whose father had found the dog when his well went dry. worry and panic will get me nowhere.

or it could be that we are on the eve, nick and i, of another transition. another move. it will be the fourth such move in two years. our family is getting larger and more bizarre and more complicated. we cannot just pack up in the subaru and head north. we had to get a truck. and then a trailer. we have to have the state come to the farm and take blood from every chicken we are taking north. rose has to get an ear tag. all the animals need health certificates. its hard to imagine any of them passing, they are such a scruffy bunch. but, despite outward appearances, i believe them to all be healthy.

its the chaos in the details of the move. of where and how everyone will fit in on the farms up north where we will live and work.  but its complimented by a painful nostalgia for this farm that is already overwhelming me. we have never felt that north carolina could be our forever home. but i have also never felt so at home in my adult life. we have poured ourselves into this farm and into this house and into these animals. and i cannot grasp how i can create closure for such a year of our lives in just 21 days.


fortunately, the tomatoes are coming in. and this has created a good deal of distraction for us all. with harvesting. and ripening. and eating them with sea salt and cheeses.

photos
1. i hadn't planted a single flower this summer, but the wilds are doing a stand up job at keeping the honeybees happy.
2. my aunt molly is visiting and she brought with her loaves upon loaves of baked bread. i love when people travel with such things. she wraps all of her bread in this bright white cloth to keep them fresh. it works perfectly.
3. sungolds. not as many coming in yet as last season. but i have to suspect that everyone who works in the garden is taking as many mouthfuls of these as i when harvesting.
4. a cerveza and some bread & butter to take in the afternoon storm and catch up on games of thrones with nicky.
5. the farm front porch essentials. water for the pups. and a broom to sweep off chicken droppings. add screened in porch to my wishlist for our own farm.
6. tomatoes to market.
7. our summer nighttime staples. me, a sundress from marie (thank you!!) and nick his bright orange shorts.
8. i don't imagine these tomatoes will last the day. i've seen all five of us eying and fondling them.