Creature Feature: Golden Eagle
December 1, 2008
Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos
Sagittarius
December 1, 2008
“Take me out to the ballgame. Take me out with the crowd. .. ” The light-hearted fun this old song brings to mind is the buoyancy and joy of Sagittarius, the ninth, the luckiest, and the most fun sign of the zodiac. (November 21 – December 21). Most of the good stuff of life is somehow crowded into this sign of friendliness, tolerance, and optimism. From sports events to foreign travel to finding God, the Sagittarius life moves from surface play to deep discovery.
December 2008
December 1, 2008
Finally a much needed break from the hectic pace of the last several months. To Stewart and me, fall marks the end of the year on the farm and December, the beginning of a new one. The end of the season was clearly defined this year with an early frost, abruptly freezing the summer crops we usually enjoy well into the fall. The we experienced an Indian summer as the temperatures warmed back up to the 80’s and grasshoppers continue to thrive! For the past several weeks we have been so busy with field trips of up to 300 students and their parents Monday through Friday and our Fall Festival which saw 300 cars full of families each weekend and private weddings on the farm, that we have barely had time to share stories of our days. “Did you see that father petting the bull with his toddler? ” I finally asked Stewart. He had. The man was with his little girl balancing precariously on the cattle-guard reaching through a gate to pet the neighbors 1,500 pound bull! Unbelievable! It blows my mind sometimes at how out of touch people are when it comes to safety on farms. Some parents let their kids pet horses and pigs without supervision and are surprised if they get bit. I actually put up signs that say; “Have teeth. May bite. ” (I wanted to add, “duh! ” but resisted.) Some folks are so accustomed to the clean, dust free conveniences of urban life that they are very uncomfortable in the country. One lady this year was mad that she had to carry her pumpkins too far. I told her that we provide free hayrides back from the pumpkin patch. She didn’t want to take a hayride and walked off in a huff that the garden was not close enough to her car! Another man was angry that the parking lot was in a different place than last year. I explained that we are organic and need to rotate our crops every year which means moving the parking lot. That didn’t seem to make him feel better. Another customer asked why the hayride was bumpy and another wanted a guarantee that there were no snakes in the garden. While doing pony rides I overheard a mother explaining to her child that ponies were actually donkeys mixed with regular horses and I saw at least five women here for the day in high heels! I am assuming that most of you are equally appalled at these behaviors, but maybe you’re not. Maybe I am much more of a country bumpkin than I thought. I wonder. I wonder how completely clueless I would be living in a city.
Phil Clarke: Pioneer Rancher
December 1, 2008
In the first half of the 20th century the Clarke Ranch, now known as the Montana Ranch and owned by the USFWS, anchored the headwaters of Arivaca valley. Phil and Gipsy Clarke were true pioneers who left home and family and came to Arivaca at a young age, where they met, married and established themselves with a homestead, ranch and store.
December 2008
December 1, 2008
