My Turn!
THE OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:
The Great News is that I have been asked to speak more than a few words at the Press Publish Conference in Portland, Oregon on March 28th – 2015. I know most of you knew that already but I thought I would make it all official and also tell you a little of what I am going to speak about.
When I first saw the email from Andrea Middleton and Jen Mylo asking me to consider talking to them about coming to a conference with Press Publish – I almost deleted it thinking it was junk mail. ( I am so sorry Andrea! You almost ended up on the cutting room floor!) Have you ever had a delay in your head when you read something and it is so NOT what you expected to read – then there is a blank moment, then a few seconds later you cock your head and look back and think about what you just read and have to dive for the rubbish bin to retrieve it and read it properly this time, thank you very much? Or is that just me?
I was visiting Wellington, in New Zealand my home country – cooking homemade tomato sauces for the great lasagna feast. My mind had eased right down into that gentle kitchen cruise. I had just put two baking dishes, loaded with whole well oiled and salted garlic, into the oven to roast, I was heady with the scent of fresh, local garlic and crushed basil. Or was that the wine? Anyway – Random ideas swirling in pictures about my head with words floating behind them like bubbles, my inner score on full glorious sound. I had talked to nobody but tomatoes for hours. Then there was this email asking me to speak Out Loud.
To write is one thing. To Speak is quite another.
Now – I thought. Then I read it again. This. This is one of those offers one must grab with both hands. I thought. But being at a loss for words, I said – Hmm.
(If I have this correct – Andrea and Jen, who are organising and managing these conferences, work for Automattic. Automattic hosts WordPress. Wheels within Wheels.) Brilliant isn’t it!
And what will I be talking about?
Spinning the Yarn: I will be telling you, in person, the journey I took that brought me to blogging about my farm. I will tell a little of my history. Our histories build the path we walk upon. I don’t mean our fathers or grandmother’s history (though that is important too) – I mean us – Our Lives are our strength. We are living in an instant pudding world. We do not have time to be victims of our lives, we need to live in our lives and lean on all the relationships we have built, all the knowledge we have collected, then turn the corner and stride along swinging our arms using that knowledge as fuel. Fuel for the Benevolent Monster. (You have heard me talk of him before – that is for sure). Yes, I will tell a little of that. 
We are never still, life is always in motion. Like our hearts and our imaginations. So I will try to stick to the plan.
The concept I want to explore in Portland is that of Relationships. When I say relationships I mean the relationships with our Histories and with our Bodies and with our Food and with our Cars and with our Health and with our Mothers or our Readers or our Work and with our Keyboard and with our Journals and with our Lovers or our Dogs or some of those or all of the above and much, much more. I think that these relationships and the communication lines we develop BETWEEN these relationships become our vehicle. Our benevolent monster. Then we place our two legged monster, full of relationships chattering away, on a road built with our histories and stories and we gambol along gathering. Relationships are critical to Balance. Balance! Balance in our lives is a Talk in itself.. maybe another day. Imagine being wide awake and seeing these relationships.
So My Talk will begin with those stories, the stories of my youth, where my little self came from. My gamboling. How I grew up surrounded in people and noise. Stories of my growing Up self. How so many of the relationships I developed, or strangled as the case may be, how they all met at a certain crossroads and I turned left and suddenly came to the prairies and its empty fields. And it was all suddenly very quiet. How the farm and my cow and that deep quiet brought me to blogging and to you. And how you brought all your histories and knowledge to my blog, and the relationships we developed taught me and supported me in the farming and keep me honest.
The Fellowship is why I am going to this conference. You build my strength.
Then I will teach those wonderful people at the conference How To Think Like A Cow. Though I will not make them re-chew their food. Or moo. There will be no mooing.
The line up of speakers for the Press Publish conference in Oregon is extraordinary. I have to admit to being a little in awe of my fellow speakers. They know the stuff I don’t even know I don’t know. I am more of a Whisperer than a Speaker. Hopefully they will give me amplification. And for those of you who are closer to Phoenix than Portland, there is another conference there. Not me, but some pretty clever and interesting speakers to further develop the relationships we have within the blogging community.
We love new challenges you and I.
Love your friend – almost back at the farmy
celi
PS Tomorrow we zoom across to the UK for a look at an old farm there. The last farm in this series. We should have called this series Old Farms in a Modern World because I for one, and you too I think, have gained quite an insight from each contributor into how small farms are managing in a big farm climate.
This coming Sunday (the US Sunday) I travel back to the prairies. The tundra. It takes all day so I will leave here at 5.15 am and I should be home back out on the prairies by about 8pm. But I will check all the animals before I go to bed. And check in with you on Monday morning.
Then I am home until the weekend of the 28th of March when you can find me in Portland, Oregon.
c
The Kitchen's Garden 
122 responses to “Press Publish calls Miss C”
Congratulations! I wish I was in the area to hear your talk. I know you will be terrific.
Good morning Debra.. Thank you and I hope you are sitting on my favourite Italian balcony this morning. c
Congratulations, Miss C! What a wonderful honor for you! We all have your back, you know, and we’ll be with you in spirit, at least! You will be amazing, just being yourself and telling your own tale!
Thank you Bev, I had thought to myself that if i felt nervous, i would imagine that the audience was The Fellowship, that made me smile! c
..and I think you have to imagine your audience naked if you’re nervous, but a naked Fellowship?…..maybe not?
Now we know what you are going to say, we can be with you in spirit, even though we can’t cross oceans and continents to be with you in the flesh. I’m sure your audience will lap it all up, specially “How to think like a cow”.
love,
ViV
Afternoon to you Viv. I hope there really are signs of a French spring in your area – your poetry sounds like spring!.. c
I love what you plan to share at the conference. Wish I could be there! Will be with you in spirit for sure!
Thank you Fay, .. did you send me your ‘Letter to my Baby Girl’ to me yet? If so I have missed it and I know it was on the way.. maybe email me ?celima.g.7@gmail.com.. love. c
Just sent it over via email. Was trying to fix it up more but I am now at a loss, so this is what I have so far!
Picasso said that true genius/art/whatever is to know when to stop. Good that you have stopped. I will read it tonight.. thank you darling .. c
It’s about time that you’re recognised for being a very special woman. Well done, c. Well done, indeed.
Darling Misky, Good morning to your English garden.. c
What fantastic news! And so well deserved. We love your daily emails from the farmy and you are the perfect person to talk about it! So happy for you! Jim and Mary. Old World end Garden Farms
Oh Jim and Mary, lovely to hear from you.. I must pop over this week and see what you are building for your gardens.. c
Thanks C – always good to hear from you as well!!!
Warm sand, beautiful little girl. Lovely plan for your upcoming talk, tho I think mooing would be fun. 🙂 Enjoy the rest of your time in Cali. Safe travels.
I remember working at a conference once (I was teaching teachers how to teach drama) and running the improv workshops. “Well”, said one teacher “at least you didn’t make us bark like a dog!” Poor fella must have been terrified!.. c
Will your talk be recorded, like a TED talk? I would love to hear you. Sounds exciting. Joy
Morning Joy, I will ask Andrea. But I am of the impression that at this stage there are no plans to live stream it or anything. I love those TED talks when I can watch them. c
I couldn’t be happier for you! That is amazing. I’m always bragging to people about this great farm blog I read every day (which of course gets some raised eyebrows since I’m not a farm-girl type!). I hope your talk is recorded and there’s somewhere for us to watch it at some point. I know you’ll be fantastic!
Bragging is a great word! If i hear of a recording I will be sure to tell you.. c
like ‘two engaging goldens’ above I would love to hear your talk…but Congratulations…you will do well..it just takes determination and imagination to talk in front of loads of people…find a spot and keep your eye on it , that will help to centre your being….but you can do it…wow,wow,wow
Thank you darling.. How are all those dogs of yours, i must pop over soon and see.. c
Congratulations! That is fantastic!!!!!!
Nancy
http://www.workingmomadventures.com
Thank you Nancy, It is a game changer that is for sure. I am really looking forward to it. c
So excited for you! Just picture your audience as the comments lounge and you will do great. Wish I could be there and thanks for being the voice for all small farms across America.
Brenda
Hi Brenda, Just imagine if we really WERE magic and we could fill the room with The Fellowship .. America is such a big country and we are such an international group. This is why we blog and comment I guess, so we can all be together here in the Lounge of Comments.. Much love.. c
Congrats, we are all so proud of you! Rather you than me … I’m terrified of public speaking. Would it be possible to record a podcast of your talk? I’m sure you could keep Sheila in food for a couple of winters selling it online! Gorgeous little girl, was hoping for a picture of new little one. Enjoy the rest of your stay and travel back safely. Laura
Oh yes i do have a beautiful shot of her, I will go back and ADD THE BABY right now.. thank you Laura.. c
🙂 🙂 What big dark solemn eyes. Laura
And this post is exactly why I love reading your blog—you are a storyteller of great proportions and inspire me. I am positive I am not alone in feeling that way when I read your words and see your pictures. I am so excited for your speaking engagement and I guess he Fellowship will just have to share you with the world now. The more the merrier, right? Congrats. Maybe you can stream this online when it occurs? Or a podcast? Your fans await!
Oh Beth Ann you are such a lovely person – what a kind thing to say. I hope you are having a gorgeous day.. c
Terrific news, you go girl! As has been said before we will all be there in spirit if not in person clapping you on. Safe journey back Sunday. I’m off to Austria tomorrow, so hope I can keep up with the Farm post x
Austria.. how exciting.. i look forward to THOSE pictures! Fly safe.. c