Strawboss/Steve?

[cowman]

I don't know what happened to Strawboss? He was Steve last year but this year he was Strawboss. Maybe Ivebinconned was too rough on him and ran him off?
Actually if I recall correctly he was a retired businessman(surveying company I believe) who used to have a farm on the side...for tax purpose no doubt. I believe he was fond of spending his winters on the golf courses in Arizona.
Anyway I miss him...he kept things hopping by being a contrary old thing! Oh well hopefully next year...I wonder what new name he will have?

[Smithy]

I was noticing that Flatbroke hasn't said anything for a long time either. I really enjoyed some of his posts.

[gmj]

Cakadu, I think the food we produce at the farm gate (ie raw canola, wheat, barley sunflowers, pork, beef, etc.) is very safe. Yes we do use alot of sprays, but we actually apply them with calibrated machines and not with spray bottles like some home gardeners do when some infestation happens in their garden.

I do however believe a lot of food gets altered for the worse (ie. processed to make life easier for the two income households) and that is where a lot of food gets "poisoned" ( I can't believe I just used that word).

We bake 98% of our bread products ourself (bread in our house goes moldy within 3 days).

I am 38 years old and I have never been subjected to bought jam, only home made.

We grow a lot of the vegetables and we eat our meals together as a family as often as possible.

When we do eat out we hardly ever eat at a fast food burger place like McDonalds or Burger King (less than 3 times/year)or any other chain restaurant like "Red Lobster" or "Pizza Hut". Instead we look for Restaurants that serve meals as close to home made as possible. It is a little more expensive but the food is a lot better and you are supporting an entrepreneur.

Hey there is nothing wrong with having fries and burgers every now and then but don't make them your main stay. A lot of health problems could be averted if we all ate well balanced meals in moderation.

[cowman]

The whole concept of safer food is slowly catching on. The baby boomers are getting old and their health is a major concern to them. And they have the money!
Twenty or thirty years ago if you drove down the back alleys in Red Deer you would see a garden in just about every yard. Now you don't. No time for a garden. Easier to just pick up your food at Safeway or more likely at Subway!
One thing I have noticed is the veggies and fruit you buy at the farmers markets always tastes a lot better than the stuff at Safeways? And at least you know it was grown here and not in Mexico or wherever?
I always plant a garden but then it is a hobby of mine or a "Chicken Soup for the Soul" type of deal! I just get a kick out of growing things! A cheap stress reliever I guess?
I get a little leery of "industrial" agriculture where "production" overules every other decision. Chemicals have their place but should be only used in moderation and as little as possible. We can't keep pouring more and more poisons on our food and expect it to be safe! I especially am leery of the "science" of industrial farming when the scientists who declare the gospel are being paid by the likes of Monsanto, Pfizer etc.! No conflict of interest there, right? What ever happened to our good old independent government scientists? Or did Monsanto buy the government off too?

[pandiana]

Cowman,your point about the garden is right on. But it still is a hard choice. In the time it takes you to weed you farm garden plot, your tractor has cultivated about 40-50 acres. You do this maybe once a week. If you weren't a farmer whose labor had no value, it wouldn't take a mathmetician to determine that that bag of peas at your supermarket made perfect sense economically. You need a strong sense of doing things the hard way. Hard headed, or that's what I keep telling myself out their weeding my garden.

[StrawBoss]

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year--- Cowman!

I do travel, but I am back--- it doesn’t really matter who is behind the mask as long as we can make these threads informative and interesting.
Boy this BSE thing we sure didn’t need again. It is hard to believe but some of them southern folk never heard of BSE or Alberta.

[cowman]

Well good to have you back Strawboss! Why, Ivebinconned has seemed to be not his normal self since you left!
Always good to make people look at all the sides and stir things up! And you do that very well, I will admit!
ps: You came back at the wrong time. It is just way too cold right now.

[cowman]

Oh and Strawboss, you should really checkout the beef forums! Why there is anew guy "Enough" who has got the whole forum in a tizzy! I wonder who he is???