It feels like some sort of social commentary that all the tobacco farms in NC (that aren't being turned into business "parks" or housing developments) are converting to wineries, and all the dairy farms in PNW seem to be converting to berry farms.

Just one more day of Passover.

Trying to teach through a Sudafed haze is not fun.

It feels like some sort of social commentary that all the tobacco farms in NC (that aren't being turned into business "parks" or housing developments) are converting to wineries, and all the dairy farms in PNW seem to be converting to berry farms.

Mmmmm, berries. Although it's odd that that seems more lucrative than dairy.

I just want this coughing to stop. It's been two months since I've been able to breathe normally, and nothing is working to make it stop, and I'm sick of it.

I think I'm going to ask my doctor about getting a nebulizer to use at home. It seems to help at least a little bit when I use it at her office, and I've got pretty good insurance until the end of the school year, so it's probably better to get one now than later.

Just looked up nebulizer prices, and they're actually not that expensive. I figured they'd be one of those things that cost a fortune because insurance companies usually pay for them.

at two months I think you need one at home

I hope it helps, Hil.

it's odd that that seems more lucrative than dairy.

It is, though. No vet care, for one thing. Fewer losses due to health or injury, almost no chance of losing a crop to infection or contagious illness. Berry farming provides job opportunities, too. The vines are grown in giant hoops, wound and tied onto themselves. Crews go from field to field winding and tying new growth. There's a lot of hand labor--pretty similar to vineyards, I'd think. The itinerant beekeepers travel from field to field, too, stacking hive boxes (yes, that's an electric bear fence) beside a field for the requisite week before moving them to another. Berries for juice and jelly are gathered by giant machines that creep straddled over the rows and use whirling tines, sort of like car wash brushes, to knock berries off the vines and into huge hoppers. The berries to be sold for eating out of hand are raised like pampered children, with canopies to keep the birds away, and the ripe berries gathered by human hands. There's always a market for berries. This county actually provides 75% of the raspberries (juice, jams, jellies) for the entire US. It's much more lucrative than dairy farming.

That said, there are still plenty of dairy farms locally. Herds and herds of holsteins making milk for three or four local dairies.

Brought to you by the local travel authority, and more than you wanted to know.

Dairy farms are also dependent on how well the weather has been for corn and hay crops to feed the cows. Around here most people grow their own (including raising the cows) or they buy from local source rather than purchasing feed. But if the weather is bad and the crops are put in late or there's flooding and they don't produce correctly then farmers have to buy feed which increases the overhead and cuts into their income.

Oh, neat, Beverly--thanks! I had no idea raspberries were cultivated like that. And I hadn't really considered all the expenses in raising cows.

I just got back from a couple of hours at the botanical gardens with my favorite toddler and her mom, followed by a cookout at a friend's. Both were vey enjoyable, but it was more socializing than I've done since last October. Now I kinda want to lie flat for the rest of the evening. The coleslaw that I took to the cookout sure disappeared, though. I used this recipe for the dressing, with an extra splash of vinegar. [link] And I put the shredded cabbage, onion, and carrot in a colander overnight to lose some moisture, so it wouldn't be soggy. Definitely a keeper.