The Enrichment of Adversity

Adversity, difficulty, failure, stress are typically viewed by our culture as negative. If  I take a tomato plant when it has just its first set of true leaves and put it outside in the Minnesota spring weather where it is exposed to the sun, wind and rain. We end up with this wonderful stocky plant that is almost bullet proof to the weather and wind.

In the same way, if our education system, creates a challenging environment for our students where they are caused to overcome failure, grow, and handle an appropriate amount of stress. Then we end of with a resilient, sturdy and nearly bullet proof citizen, who is ready to be a productive member of society.

Hunting for Truth, Beauty and Goodness

The elusive Morel mushroom is the gem of the spring forest floor. There is nothing better than Morels sauted in butter. You can't cultivate them. they just show up. But there is a time and place where they can be found. The experience forager knows where to look to increase the odds of finding these delectable treasures.

Elusive Morel Mushroom. Reed Petersen.

In the same way the High School graduate from Schaffer Academy has been trained to know where to look for...;

The Card

Jenna and I were at Think Bank, Friday, after she helped me shovel a load of compost. She was depositing her graduation money and the teller was just making small talk. She asked Jenna where she was going to school and if she was excited about it.

Then the conversation turned to "the card" and it is interesting what Jenna's reaction was...

A Look in the Mirror - Graduation

GET BACK, BEHAVE, LAY DOWN, STOP IT, said a "stage whispered" little girl voice, which greeted Lisa and I one June morning at 5:00 am.

Upon investigation I found a three year old Jenna standing on the counter in the bathroom in front of the mirror working on her hair which had suffered some set-backs during the night in bed.

15 years later...

Ten Reasons Why Day Length Is Important

Right now sunrise is at 5:28 am and sunset is at 8:51 pm here is Rochester, Minnesota. I am writing this at 4:30 am on Friday so it is still pretty dark outside. I like to rise early and Friday's are my day for a men's small group at our church. So the coffee is on and I am listening to some Hillsong tunes on YouTube.

Day Length Illustrated in this Picture, Taken at About 8:00PM in April. Photo Credit: Reed Petersen

Right now the day length is approximately 15 hours and 21 minutes. In about three weeks we will top out at nearly 16 hours during the spring/summer solstice. Other than if you are a morning person "like me" or like to work in the garden until bed time "like me" (feels like double dipping this time of year) why should you care...

Market Menu for June 7, 2014

Welcome to June of the 2014 out door market season. We are well beyond the last frost date and it is time to get those last tomato and pepper plants in the ground. Basil & Okra love this weather. Worm farms are back this week.  We will have the following items at the Farmers Market for Saturday, June 7, 2014 (New items are in Bold Print)

What is a Worm Farm

Have you heard of an ant farm. A worm farm is similar. It consists of...

Worm Farms Are Back

We had a very severe winter and many of the adult Red Wigglers didn't make it. So we have been waiting for the new hatchlings to grow bigger before offering Worm Farms at the farmers market.

Well good news...

What Do We Do With All That Compost (With Time Lapse Video)

We are very creative about the use of one of the most amazing resources in Rochester.

So just what do we do with all that compost...

Ideas for Marketing More Compost

One of the folks that worked at the waste-to-energy facility asked me for some ideas on how they could better serve their customers and how they could sell more compost. They were getting quite a pile of inventory.

I'm one of the biggest advocates for compost from the waste-to-energy facility. I'm sure we send several hundred folks to get compost each year in the course of our work at the farmers market and talking to fellow growers.

Here are 26 ideas for an even bigger success...