'Just a business decision'

Recently our small-town hardware store stopped carrying the chicken feed produced by Mule City Feeds in nearby Benson, N.C., replacing it with a nationally marketed brand transported halfway across the country from someplace in Missouri. As he loaded the Missouri feed into my truck the other day, the gentleman who works at the hardware store explained that since Mule City didn't deliver, he used to spend half a day each week making the trip to Benson for a pallet of feed. The nationally marketed brand, on the other hand, would be delivered free of charge. "It's just a business decision," he said.

I can't argue with that. Even without seeing the financial breakdown, I am fully aware that established national brands are able to drive down costs through huge volume and intricate, hyper-efficient delivery protocol. Although I haven't run a hardware store, my grandfather owned one in the era that saw mom-and-pop stores like his join the national franchise corporations like Ace, TrueValue and DoItBest. Today my grandfather's Wisconsin hardware store--still in the Klein family--is a franchise of the TrueValue parent corporation, while our local hardware store here in rural North Carolina is a "DoIt Center." Being a franchise means access to deep discounts, as the parent corporation is able to negotiate vastly lower prices for raw materials and large-order products. Which in turn means that customers continue to buy from the local store rather than traveling to the nearest Lowes, Tractor Supply, or Home Depot.

So, it's a sound business decision. But there's something disquieting in witnessing the web of locally connected businesses unravel still further. Despite seeing the "DoIt Center" sign out front, I have the notion that I'm buying local products from local people, helping to put food on the tables of my friends and neighbors. Yes, the switch to feed from Missouri rather than from nearby Benson is a small thing, and our chickens really couldn't care less, but it gives me much to ponder over.

Specifically, how does one live out subsidiarity, that Catholic social principle that militates against profit-driven, dehumanizing centralization? Should we start driving to Benson to purchase feed for ourselves? Then I could look my neighbors in the eye and say, "Yes, my chickens eat grain from your fields." But what would that mean in terms of supporting the local hardware store, which is responsibly doing what it can to stay in business? And what of our own time commitment in figuring all of this out? We already drive all the way to Reedy Fork Farm in rural Elon, N.C., for organic feed for our broiler chickens.

These are not easy questions to answer. And with at least half the products at Kleinshire manufactured in China--everything from the buckets we use to feed the animals to the plates and bowls on which we eat our own food--it might seem trivial even to offer this lament. But a lament it is--over an economic system that brings me excellent chicken feed all the way from Missouri, from people I've never met and never will meet, at the expense of fostering connections and thereby humanizing the very people that I walk by and greet in my own community.

Christ is risen, and spring has sprung: a farm update in pictures

It has been awhile since our last posting, and spring has now sprung here in North Carolina. What is going on here at Kleinshire during Easter week? After a weekend of adventures in Balitmore, we are back at the farm and getting to work. Here’s an update in pictures:

Spring planting is currently underway. There are three rows of peas beginning to appear, and just today we put up some string for the peas to climb.

Three rows of peas

One little pea plant contra mundum.

We also have a nice row or two of lettuce and mustard starting to grow.

A little tang of mustard for the summer salads.

There are several rows of onions establishing themselves toward the middle of the garden.

We are hoping that the mulch helps to keep the weeks from choking out the onions, as happened last year.

There are also some carrot, radish, and cucumber seeds in the ground that have yet to make their appearance. By the end of the week, melons, tomato seedlings, and more cucumbers will be in the ground. We are off to a good start so long as we can stay ahead of the weeds.

On the animal front, we have nearly two dozen broiler chicks who just moved from the garage to their coop. There is one little Speckled Sussex as well, the lone survivor of the heritage breed chicks after this most recent batch of chicks spent an extra day in transit. 

Chickens checking out their new surroundings.

The three-month-old doelings were separated from their mothers today, a traumatic occurrence that also led to some emergency fence repair. Alas, the two escapees practically drained their mothers of milk within minutes. The fence appears secure now, and tomorrow we should have all the milk for ourselves.

Eva and Ruth, the two of Caroline's doelings that we retained.

Neither mothers nor babies are very happy with the separation.

Ouch, that udder doesn't feel so good without a kid on it during the day!

Lucia and her doeling, born a few weeks ago, are doing well. She is a spunky little thing who still needs some taming. Her legs straightened out very nicely, and now we’re trying to decide if she might be one we keep for our own herd.

Lucia and her beautiful doeling. Still no name.

Dreamer and Belle, our two full-sized goats, are both due to kid within the next week or two. Dreamer’s ligaments are nearly gone and her udder is starting to fill, so she might go any day now.

Dreamer and Belle, mothers-to-be

Dreamer's udder is filling out nicely. She alone should be able to produce as much milk as we drink.

Oreo is still for sale. This is probably due to a combination of factors, including his age and the glut of bucks currently on the market. It certainly isn’t a matter of quality, as Oreo has nice genetics and a superior kidding history behind him. In any case, we’re considering whether to lower his price all the way down to $150. He was already a steal at his original price of $250, and currently he’s listed on Craigslist at $200. At $150 he will practically be a gift that we’re begging someone to accept. It’s either that or freezer camp, as he’s done his job for us and is too much of a buck to keep as a pet.

Will anybody save me from feezer camp?

And this guy, one of the straight-run heritage roosters from the last order of chicks, is definitely headed to freezer camp within the week!

 

Tread softly, dear sir. Your days are limited.

Peace on Earth

Peace, oh blessed peace!

 The word peace: Noun 1. Freedom from disturbance; quiet, tranquility. 2. Freedom from or the cessation of war or violence. Exclamation: 1. Used as a greeting. 2. Used as an order to remain silent.

In ORDER to have peace, we must first know how to be free of disturbance. Not just in the physical, but the spiritual and mental. Peace, is physically not acting out in violence. Peace, in spiritual is having a deep tranquility that weathers the storms of life. Peace, is mentally ordering our thoughts to the good.

The eye of the storm, it gives you glimpse of what utter calm is. Then the storm strikes in all its fury violently. If peace is employed the different circumstances call for one or all of the three forms of practice, physical, spiritual, or mental.

Maybe it is because I recently was watching Star Wars, or more importantly noting the people and situations around me. Peace is so needed today. I take to heart that at Mass we have the sign of peace and Father sends us off with a blessing of peace. Meaning to me, I should go out and give peace not destroy the rest.