We saw the movie The Real Dirt on Farmer John tonight. Hibi now wants to be a struggling family farmer when she grows up. :-P She's reading this over my shoulder and saying, no I don't. I think it's the struggling part that she doesn't want!
What a cool movie. It showed the evolution of how family farms were back in the day, when most people had connections to a farm, to the 80s when most farmers lost their farms, and then to the present, where family farms are having a (small) resurgence. Organic farms are coming into vogue, and more than that, people are craving the real experience of knowing where their food is coming from.
Farmer John, after many starts and stops, tries and mishaps, and the rumor mill going on and on because he did things "differently", a couple from Chicago called him up and asked him if he'd start a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture--I blogged about it on July 24). At first, he was not interested at all. But eventually he came around and came to see that CSA is farming as it should be--people having a connection with their food, the land, and their farmer. The people of his CSA actually bought the land that was for sale next door to him that was slated to be developed, and leased it to him as farmland.
One very interesting thing about farm land turning into housing developments: in this movie, they interviewed folks from the area, other real farmers who weren't "wacky" like Farmer John. And they got teary when they talked about the houses going in, and taking away all that good farm land, that black soil that those houses are sitting on. They wondered where people thought they were going to get their food.
So, I enjoyed the movie a lot, and I want to go live there. :-) There was a bit of nudity....not what you'd expect in a movie about farming, I know. :-) Farmer John is not exactly your typical farmer. I think this movie could be very educational for folks who don't have a connection to their food sources.
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That does sound like a cool movie. I can see Hibi enjoying the farm life (not the struggling part, though).
Good to hear about the movie! I noticed it was playing at Hollywood Theater today when I walked by.
As for Bay Leaf - we were planning on going, but ended up going to breakfast out at Laurelthirst on Glisan and then spending a lot more than our normal grocery bill at Trader Joe's picking up extra items that we'd run out of - like coffee and maple syrup and dried fruit - much more than our normal weekend trips entails, so we didn't make it for dinner. Possibly going for lunch tommorow - hopefully there is a special : ) I might take pictures and post a review if we do!
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