In between Time

I am sitting in my hotel room in Los Angeles, California. I have a long list of paper work that is not really paper work  it is all done on the computer but you know what I mean.

First order of the day for us is to write the questionnaire for potential woofers. Young women and men are already starting to get in touch to organise the farms that they want to work on this summer. This year i thought I would send them a list of questions so I can get a better handle on what they want AND they will get a better idea of what I want.

I thought you might like to have a read and let me know your thoughts. As a member of the Fellowship you will be watching these young people arrive and following them as they discover Our Farm.

The first draft is below.

Here is the view from my hotel window.. and the window is open and the air is not frozen!

Keep in mind that I am taking bookings right now for this coming summer for The Coop. If you want to come out for a week or even a few days as a guest in The Coop do book ahead. I would love to have you. Pop into the Opportunities page for an update.

I hope you have a lovely day. I fly out at 9pm tonight for Auckland, New Zealand, then catch another plane to Wellington,  there I will be picked up by the bride and after a shower and a change we will be catching the ferry out to Somes Island for a picnic with a few of her other girlfriends. Then a dinner in town. So Camera house and I will hit the ground running!  I have been water loading for three days now, getting my body absolutely hydrated for the long journey. I really, really do not have time to be jet lagged this time.

The wedding is just over a week away! Lots to do! Lots to eat. Lots of champagne!

I hope you all have a lovely day.

Your friend in transit

celi

OK here is the questionnaire.

Wwoofers Questionnaire

Welcome potential toilers on The Farmy. Our place is small, divided between two barns that are 10 minutes walk apart and very busy in the summer with cows, calves, (milk cows and beef cows)  pigs and piglets, (Kunekune and Hereford) chickens both broilers and layers, (everything on pasture) big gardens for both vegetables and flowers. My routine is diverse and fast moving, so I like to get a jump start on  getting to know you so that we can both get the best from this experience.

Many jobs on the farm are deeply satisfying, like cleaning the winter out of the barn, washing out and refilling all the water troughs on a hot day, planting and weeding and watering the gardens. Cleaning out the milking shed, making cheese and butter, then baking bread and eating it ALL! Watching calves being born and little piglets grow.  Making soap or picking for herbal oils. Just to mention a few. But often this work is hard physically. Hard in short bursts. Many young people cannot keep up with me.  I want to know if you can.

First I expect you to work three hours every morning, with a break for breakfast. The list of work for the day will be on the board in the Cloak Room. Then in the afternoons after your siesta – a couple of hours on the jobs you choose from the list (which may be housework or cooking, or brushing dogs, or weeding, or carpentry, prepping dinner, organizing the barn, maintenance on the barns, shifting electric fences), then later another hour or so on evening chores or dinner prep. So you will have two good long breaks every day to do your own reading or sleeping under a tree.  You only need to work five days, leaving any two days,  to explore the area.  Chicago is just over an hours drive away or you can join Route 66 in 30 minutes.

You will need to supply me with a copy of some form of official ID before you arrive.

Read through the questions, answer the pertinent points, in another colour, and let me know if you think we are a match.

1. Do you like the early mornings? When we work in the summer I find it better to get the hardest chores done in the early morning before it gets too hot. Can you have yourself up and in the barn ready to work by 7.30 am. Or earlier? I start around 6am.  Are you an early bird?
2. All our milk, yoghurt, butter, cheese and ice-cream is made from fresh raw milk. Are you OK with that? Do you want to learn how to make fresh cheeses and ice cream?
3. Have you any experience in carpentry? Can you help repairing buildings and fences.
4. I will be supplying your food. You will be helping to grow it. Which means that you get to eat like I do. I do not eat processed foods at all. I do not eat food I cannot recognize. I do not eat foods with a genetically modified component. In the morning we have  my home made granola and fresh milk, fresh home-made yoghurt and fruit and coffee or tea. Lunches are usually smoothies. Dinners are all home made from food from the farm – then we eat together and discuss our day and our tomorrow at the big table. Can you live on a diet of fresh food? Food you grow yourself? Are you happy to help with the preparation and cleaning up at meal times?  Can you cook? Bake? Would you like to learn or just assist?
5. Does shoveling manure bother you? Are you afraid of germs? Do you like to keep your clothes clean? Do you mind getting sweaty and hot as long as you can jump in the pool afterwards?
6. Are you OK with no television, no air conditioning, no loud sound systems, (though we do have internet.) Do you read books? Paint? Write?
7. Do you have enough money to last your stay? I will supply food. If you like a beer, juices, junk food, snacks you will need to supply those yourself. Is that Ok? Do you smoke?
8. Do you have a car? Will you need me to collect you from the railway station?
9. Can you work unsupervised? Can you ask questions? It is very important to be able to ask questions. I expect hundreds of questions in the first week.
10. If you find you like it on the farm, and we work well together, how long do you expect to stay? If you are bringing camping equipment you can stay for longer periods. There is also an upstairs garret bedroom and adjoining loft sitting area with a day bed, in the house, available for workers. And lovely areas to camp in.  How does that sound to you?
11. If you have a problem, how are you going to handle it? If you feel you are doing too much work or not enough, or you need more clarity about a task what are you going to do? If you find the area on the farm that you love the most and want to focus on developing your knowledge, are you able to come and tell me so that we can redraw your list so you can start to specialise.
12. Other than the obvious, why do you want to come and live and work on my farm?