Wednesday, February 16, 2011

wide & open

A down and dirty dead of winter trip through the American north from Bainbridge Island to Cleveland took us 3.5 days. 10 tanks of gas and a sturdy corolla did the trick. We rode a break in the weather the whole way with clear skies and bone chilling temps reaching the lowest in Butte, MT at -27 below. Relying on mexican food for lunch and gas station coffee (blech) we finished in good spirits if not a little car sore. I could have stayed in Wyoming with my animal spirits, I was enchanted.










piedmont values

Here are some more pics from italy. I look forward to telling you about it in person sometime soon.







italian dreams

By now this is old news but thought i may as well post this draft:

Our trip to Italy was simply wonderful. The Italians know how to source great food, cure the most amazing meats, crush grapes into the world's best wine, relax while eating, and take life a slower more suitable pace.

Our first leg was spent in Turin at Terra Madre where we discovered the depth of Italy's food system at the Solone del Gusto and made connections with amazing young farmers from all over the country. I had the pleasure of meeting Alice Waters who unfortunately was terribly uninterested in meeting me despite the huge friendly smile and brief life summary I gave her. We fed off the energy of the Youth Food Movement which seems to be sweeping the world at such an exciting rate and brainstormed about how to better unite. The most valuable session I attended was a mentor farmer workshop where Slow Food grouped young farmers with older/more experienced farmers and facilitated conversation about growing practices and life down the road as farmers.  Albert, a farmer from eastern Washington laid out the most valuable lessons one can learn from farming which are actually wise life lessons: patience, adaptability, seeking and pursuing opportunities, honing the ability to mechanically fix anything, seeing the BIG picture and telling your story.