tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66348083053863031022012-01-30T08:02:21.223-08:00Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.comBlogger1041100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-61969556071278681662011-12-31T13:11:00.000-08:002012-01-30T08:02:21.233-08:00

Written to R.E.M. Live by R.E.M. New Year's Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. - Mark Twain Based on the gap between my last blog post, it may seem like the level of activity has slowed considerably at Fazenda Alfheim, or that we skip aimlessly from one holiday to another, but nothing could be

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-77607901923347878022011-11-27T06:19:00.001-08:002011-12-31T14:07:33.826-08:00

Written to Philosopher's Stone by Van Morrison Gratitude is a quality similar to electricity: it must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all. - William Faulkner We celebrated Thanksgiving, São Paulo style, together with Jeff and Suzanna, the driving organizational force behind the event, and 6 of their friends, and Urd, a Danish family friend who has been staying at

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-81079980958441058192011-11-02T04:00:00.000-07:002011-11-05T07:19:32.965-07:00

Written to Castaways and Cutouts by The Decemberists But O, how bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man's eyes. - William Shakespeare Lone arrived from Denmark on Friday, October 28, after 18 days of relaxing with her family…and most of ours. An altogether positive experience. Adding to the positiveness of Lone's arrival, we had scheduled a visit from Jeff and

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-22740641587785559852011-10-12T17:56:00.000-07:002011-11-02T02:56:43.328-07:00

Written to This Desert Life by Counting Crows There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we know. The keeping of bees, for instance.  - Henry David Thoreau Seven months to the day of publishing Bees in my Bonnet, my ode to suffering 100+ bee stings back in March, I made my inaugural debut as Fazenda

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-60817194367136389142011-09-04T20:04:00.000-07:002011-09-06T08:26:43.916-07:00

Written to Mumford & Sons - iTunes Festival: London 2009 An ounce of blood is worth more than a pound of friendship. - Spanish Proverb Well, since I last posted, I have attended/hosted two reunions, the first my 30th San Marcos High School Reunion in Santa Barbara, California, on July 30th, the second the much-written-about Hesketh family reunion, at which three generations and 14 members

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-6236389413277959602011-07-15T14:35:00.000-07:002011-09-04T20:17:00.686-07:00

Written to Live Forever: The Stanley Theatre, Pittsburgh PA September 23, 1980 by Bob Marley Be careful to leave your sons well instructed rather than rich, for the hopes of the instructed are better than the wealth of the ignorant. - Epictetus Before diving into the latest goings on at Fazenda Alfheim, I wanted to take a minute to congratulate our youngest son, Pelle Martin Hesketh, for

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-11720287020597460782011-06-24T10:39:00.000-07:002011-06-26T17:38:03.235-07:00

Written to Across A Wire: Live In New York City by Counting CrowsIt isn't like the rest of the country - it is like a nation itself - more tolerant than the rest in a curious way. Littleness gets swallowed up here. All the viciousness that makes other cities vicious is sucked up and absorbed in New York.- John SteinbeckLone and I just returned from a whirlwind, 4-day trip to New York, NY to

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-49568377379417854002011-05-08T16:23:00.000-07:002011-05-08T18:16:31.453-07:00

Written to Led Zeppelin II by Led Zeppelin (Original recording remastered)At home I serve the kind of food I know the story behind.- Michael PollanIt has been almost two months since my last blog post…the longest break since I published my first blog post back on September 8th, 2008. There has not been any one particular reason for my caesura...maybe I just needed a thinking pause after 102 blog

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-2631538231417100062011-03-10T16:18:00.000-08:002011-03-13T07:56:54.734-07:00

Written to Catch a Fire by Bob Marley & Wailers There is no fire like passionNo crime like hatred,No sorrow like separation,No sickness like hunger,And no joy like the joy of freedom.- Buddha Where to begin…a lot has transpired in the past couple of weeks. We have had a myriad of visits, by Jeff and Suzanna on a couple of occasions, once with their friends, Patty and her younger brother Jonathan,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-73338128800806312722011-02-23T08:28:00.000-08:002011-02-24T01:12:17.632-08:00

Written to Mozart: Ave Verum Corpus - Exsultate Jubilate - Coronation Mass by Camerata Academica SalzburgBill O'Reilly: Let me be very bold and fresh again, do you believe that you are smart enough, incisive enough, intellectual enough to handle the most powerful job in the world?Sarah Palin: I believe that I am because I have common sense and I have I believe the values that I think are

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-35117119392696182862011-02-12T14:07:00.000-08:002011-02-14T04:48:18.874-08:00

Written to Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The Second Performance by The Doors "Pol Pot - he rounded up anybody he thought was intellectual and had them executed. And how he told someone was intellectual or not was whether they wore glasses. If they're that clever, take them off when they see him coming!"- Ricky Gervais The first of our 2011 volunteers, Amanda Moropoulos, departed recently after

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-47774343621664712022011-01-23T06:24:00.000-08:002011-01-24T04:34:52.311-08:00

Written to Joshua Tree (Remastered / Expanded) (Deluxe Edition) by U2 “You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.” - Buddha Because I had a business meeting on Saturday, January 15th, Lone and I took advantage of the opportunity and spent Friday night in São Paulo -after delivering Fazenda Alfheim's beyond organic piglets to our restaurant customers. We dined at

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-67296098687720148302011-01-14T08:30:00.000-08:002011-01-14T17:28:26.627-08:00

Written to Keb' Mo' by Keb' Mo'"In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true."- BuddhaIn addition to a collapsing bridge, 2011 started with a prison break of sorts. The 35 pigs we recently purchased from Mato Grosso do Sul disappeared…actually disappeared, vanished, absconded …for four days! Up until that

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-91040308313294903232011-01-06T20:49:00.000-08:002011-01-07T07:07:57.072-08:00

Written to iTunes Live from SoHo by Counting Crows "Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship." - Buddha As with every year-end, the unfolding of 2011 was memorable for many reasons, but among all of the highlights, our New Year's Eve visit to Picinguaba and Lone's first full-scale honey harvest stood out, infectious in their effervescence.

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-73977981250089513492010-12-20T12:30:00.000-08:002010-12-20T12:59:01.259-08:00

Written to Smokes Like Lightning by Lightnin Hopkins "Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length." - Robert Frost This will be one of my shortest-ever blog posts, a brief text wishing all of our family and friends um maravilhoso Natal e um próspero Ano Novo! As regards our own family, Pelle and his girlfriend, Jemma, arrived yesterday at Ninho da Arara, the pousada of a good

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-71289007414387324252010-12-03T08:05:00.000-08:002010-12-03T09:33:02.504-08:00

Written to Lifeline by Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals "As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where– where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border."-Sarah Palin, explaining why Alaska's proximity to Russia gives her foreign policy experience, interview with CBS's Katie Couric, Sept. 24, 2008 (You can read 9 more gems of equal

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-74161725796804283772010-11-16T12:12:00.000-08:002010-11-16T17:02:41.892-08:00

Written to Abbey Road by The Beatles“When old people speak it is not because of the sweetness of words in our mouths; it is because we see something which you do not see.”- Chinua AchebeIf you ever lay awake at night wondering what 500 day-old chicks look like, you can hereafter sleep easy.After spending the better part of Sunday in Parque da Independência in São Paulo listening to a free Norah

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-79556596435297581302010-11-11T23:18:00.000-08:002010-11-12T01:17:59.678-08:00

Written to Live my Life, Nu Mixx Klazzics and Greatest Hits by 2PacAround 800 AD during Tang dynasty, the Chinese were undoubtedly the most productive in the world with the national GDP accounting for half of the world. Would it be more reasonable to assume China reaches its peak when its GDP per capita is at least about the average of the developed world?- China: Has the Last Opportunity Passed

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-72723653189097967392010-10-14T13:59:00.000-07:002010-10-14T15:52:00.702-07:00

Written to Come Away With Me by Norah Jones "Two of the greatest gifts we can give our children are roots and wings."- Hodding Carter I just received word that Lone arrived safely in Denmark, with my Amazon Kindle in tow, after more than 24 hours of travel. She will be visiting her faderland until October 28, when she returns to São Paulo, just in time for cowboy Magano's birthday celebration at

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-67945940855653846782010-10-05T09:09:00.000-07:002010-10-06T08:29:29.505-07:00

Written to R.E.M. Live by R.E.M.“No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.”- Lin YutangNo quote could better sum up the past weekend, which began on Friday, when Lone and Esben picked me up in São Paulo and we headed out of town toward Porto Feliz (Happy Haven in English) to visit Carson and Ellen Geld. We arrived at Fazenda

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-60642922067561279172010-09-20T15:26:00.000-07:002010-09-22T14:46:39.081-07:00

Written to FELA In Concert Starring Fela Anikulapo Kuti“Like life, basketball is messy and unpredictable. It has its way with you, no matter how hard you try to control it. The trick is to experience each moment with a clear mind and open heart. When you do that, the game -- and life -- will take care of itself.”- Phil JacksonA week after breaking my collar bone and a rib, my abuser, aka Esben,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-4022471195845817902010-09-11T14:57:00.000-07:002010-09-12T15:58:06.916-07:00

Written to Macire by Boubacar Traore“There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something. You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after.”- J.R.R. TolkienIt is not a stretch to say that it has been tough being a dog at Fazenda Alfheim of late: first there was Negão's eye piercing at the hands of a wayward twig, and shortly

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-77113487742523893692010-08-25T10:44:00.000-07:002010-09-12T15:58:52.909-07:00

Written to Sigh No More by Mumford & Sons"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!"-- Dr. SeussAs mentioned in last week's blog post, we have been waiting for:our heirloom seeds to arrive (√)for the cold to lift (√)for us to complete

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-90481692435281686832010-08-13T06:51:00.000-07:002010-08-16T07:04:45.565-07:00

Written to Live in Darwin, Australia by by Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu "If you never did, you should. These things are fun, and fun is good."- Dr. Seuss We have been in a bit of a holding pattern recently, waiting for our heirloom milho (200 kg) and feijão (50 kg) to arrive. Frustratingly, our criolo seeds seem to have entered transport limbo; they left the União das Associações Comunitárias do

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-12872152877000869062010-07-29T09:17:00.000-07:002010-07-31T17:18:56.572-07:00

Written to Philosopher's Stone by Van Morrison"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself, any direction you choose."- Dr. SeussEsben recently completed directing his second, much improved, video of life at Fazenda Alfheim, with me playing the role of Executive Producer, editing the video on my MacBook using iMovies, very intuitive and powerful software. The

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-58508510246836655312010-07-24T09:28:00.001-07:002010-08-25T07:23:42.788-07:00

Written to Dusk by The The “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”- Dr. Seuss Esben has gripped his new role of Farm Manager with both hands...already managing day-to-day operations with only minor input from me. In less than three weeks he has become the fazenda's best, non-Brazilian milker (though he has yet to prove himself

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-65062549252504204482010-07-06T11:54:00.000-07:002010-07-17T11:04:02.204-07:00

Written to Live at the Fillmore by Derek & DominosA dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.- Oscar Wilde Anella and Sandra departed Alfheim, and Brazil, on Monday, June 28th. Lone dropped them off in São Paulo, where she spent the week visiting with friends in anticipation of Esben's arrival on Friday, July

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-66879066164861752312010-06-22T13:45:00.000-07:002010-06-23T06:18:03.588-07:00

Written to At Last! by Etta JamesWhen you're finished changing, you're finished.- Benjamin FranklinAfter posting my previous blog entry, the yin and yang of life and death at Fazenda Alfheim once again swung forcefully against us, tautening us to what felt like our limit while bluntly reminding us of our own fragility, before mercifully undertaking a volte-face, washing over us with a cleansing,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-63294175031035665402010-06-05T18:10:00.000-07:002010-06-08T06:26:07.059-07:00

Written to August & Everything After - Deluxe Edition by Counting Crows Take care of your Thoughts because they become Words.Take care of your Words because they become Actions.Take care of your Actions because they become your Habits.Take care of your Habits because they become your Character.Take care of your Character because it will form your Destiny, and your Destiny will be your Life ...

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-87316082166354867622010-05-20T07:25:00.000-07:002010-05-20T09:30:58.977-07:00

Written to Look to the Rainbow by Al JarreauBelieve nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense. - BuddhaAs a result of a long-ago-agreed-to social commitment, Lone and I left the young people in charge of the farm for three days last week. We delivered piglets on Thursday, took care of sundry

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-20415820777227620912010-05-07T09:28:00.000-07:002010-05-13T09:50:20.023-07:00

Written to Fabulous Flamenco/La Gitarra Flamenca by Paco PeñaThe stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget.- Thomas SzaszLast week’s blog post was read by 126 people, the third highest weekly total ever. On the one hand I am delighted by the high level of interest, but on the other I cannot help but wonder if there isn’t a correlation

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-21354242641429451952010-04-28T12:45:00.000-07:002010-04-29T07:10:35.768-07:00

Written to Sounds of Silence by Simon & Garfunkel The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr.- Abu al-Qasim Muhammad Ibn Abd Allah Ibn Abd al-Muttalib Ibn Hashim We have recently experienced a patch of nearly 14 days of piercing sunshine and crystalline air, many of these days bookended by spectacular sunrises and sunsets. Experiencing such beauty on a daily basis is

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-87097240435353149322010-04-20T08:05:00.000-07:002010-04-28T16:08:58.088-07:00

Written to Soundtrack - The Boat That Rocked by Various ArtistsThe sun, with all those plants revolving around it and dependent upon it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do.- Galileo GalileiMark (yes, he is wearing a cricket hat), our new trainee, is settling in well -despite suffering a mild heat stroke the other day after hoeing with the workers for

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-88053774957477660822010-04-07T09:51:00.000-07:002010-04-11T15:03:28.959-07:00

Written to Sonny Side Up by Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Stitt, and Sonny RollinsJazz is the big brother of the blues. If a guy's playing blues like we play, he's in high school. When he starts playing jazz it's like going on to college, to a school of higher learning.- B. B. KingMy mother departed on March 30th after a very enjoyable two-week visit. Hopefully she will visit us again soon, and perhaps

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-39292321059006407952010-03-26T06:32:00.000-07:002010-03-26T10:10:25.787-07:00

Written to Greatest Hits by Tom PettyI can walk into a bookstore and hand over my credit card and they don't know who the hell I am. Maybe that says something about bookstore clerks. - E. L. DoctorowTwo days after publishing my previous blog post, Lone and I were visited by our dear friends Luciano Bonachelo and Vivian Tornero, and their young son, Gabriel. A delightful visit, which we hope will

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-1222831045537704512010-03-10T15:03:00.000-08:002010-03-10T19:32:21.724-08:00

Written to Her Majesty by The DecemberistsLife is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.- Tennessee WilliamsIt has been quite a while since I last entered the blogosphere…three weeks to be exact. While it might be tempting to conclude that my absence has its roots in a dearth of activity at Fazenda Alfheim, quite the opposite is the case; these past three

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-79075660336258380492010-02-18T10:50:00.000-08:002010-02-19T01:01:17.704-08:00

Written to Braveheart: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by James Horner Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.- Albert Einstein This week was marked by the arrival of our second purchase of gilts, 15 from TOPIGS do Brasil, one of the three largest companies in the world specializing in swine genetics. The gilts were scheduled to arrive on Shrove Tuesday, aka

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-4145469129099160422010-02-12T12:28:00.000-08:002010-02-12T14:14:47.993-08:00

Written to Hello Love by Be Good TanyasEven if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.- Will RogersSlowly but surely we are coming to grips with the additional labor resources we have had at our disposal since October (Dirlei) and January (João), respectively. Since January, we have had four full-time employees. As I noted in a recent blog post, this has ratcheted up

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-47104186571874648432010-02-03T11:31:00.001-08:002010-02-03T14:55:53.170-08:00

Written to Noventa Anos Do Samba by JamelãoThou shall not kill. Thou shall not commit adultery. Don't eat pork.I'm sorry, what was that last one? Don't eat pork. God has spoken.Is that the word of God or is that pigs trying to outsmart everybody?- Jon Stewart quotes (American Comedian and Actor, b.1962)Since November we have been dabbling in the sale of organic piglets to a handful of upscale

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-65072648655008271482010-01-29T05:12:00.000-08:002010-03-10T17:20:03.802-08:00

Written by Anne E. Holm aka the Lazy TouristBeing a lazy tourist is tough:One has to concentrate on doing absolutely nothing for several days in a row – which can be quite exhausting if one is taking a break from a life where one is used to doing something all the time.It takes a lot of effort to constantly ignore the fact that there are people, non-tourists, around you who are actually trying to

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-74022341647109919952010-01-21T09:31:00.000-08:002010-01-21T11:39:51.688-08:00

Written to For Everyman by Jackson BrowneInto each life some rain must fall.- Henry Wadsworth LongfellowLast Friday Dennis and Anne arrived from Denmark via Zurich, none the worse for wear, that is until we subjected them to a four-five hour car ride in a very, very cramped Ford Ecosport 4WD 2.0 16v, stopping along the way from São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport to Fazenda Alfheim to

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-45353345386555185552010-01-14T06:27:00.000-08:002010-01-14T08:50:55.432-08:00

Written to Kind of Blue by Miles DavisNew Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time.- James Agate quotesFollowing the deluge at the turn of the year, the weather has taken a turn for the better, albeit we did suffer another 36 hours without power this week following a brief but ferocious storm featuring some of the most

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-23803865466324810862010-01-06T08:02:00.000-08:002010-01-06T17:57:29.006-08:00

Written to Rocket Man: Number Ones by Elton JohnNothing in the world is more flexible and yielding than water. Yet when it attacks the firm and the strong, none can withstand it, because they have no way to change it. So the flexible overcome the adamant, the yielding overcome the forceful. Everyone knows this, but no one can do it.- Lao Tzu quotesThis holiday season was dominated by water…a

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-85855897321424093652009-12-22T13:48:00.000-08:002009-12-22T14:45:22.353-08:00

Written to Chinatown by The Be Good TanyasWorth reading: Climate Change Deniers Without BordersIt has been a while since I last appeared in the blogosphere. Unfortunately my absence has had less to due with holiday downtime than the mother of all stomach bugs, one that has incapacitated Lone and me for the past week. Fortunately, we are on the mend, but according to Rosana, who was hit by the

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-66163623322549710852009-12-10T08:44:00.000-08:002009-12-10T09:01:02.433-08:00

Written to Graceland by Paul SimonA father carries pictures where his money used to be.- Author UnknownEsben Hesketh agrees to join Fazenda Alfheim as Farm ManagerVargem Grande, Brazil—December 10, 2009 —Fazenda Alfheim® today announced that Esben Hesketh, 21-year-old middle son of Rance Hesketh and Lone Blichert-Hansen, has agreed to join Fazenda Afheim as Farm Manager upon completion of his BSc

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-69641402315036640232009-12-04T03:06:00.000-08:002009-12-04T07:44:50.272-08:00

Written to Bing Crosby Christmas Album by Bing CrosbyGravitation cannot be held responsible for people falling in love. How on earth can you explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love? Put your hand on a stove for a minute and it seems like an hour. Sit with that special girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That's relativity.- Albert

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-88107044933840594542009-11-23T06:25:00.000-08:002009-11-27T05:19:31.249-08:00

Written to Dookie by Green DayI asked Joel how he answers the charge that because food like his is more expensive, it is inherently elitist. “I don’t accept the premise,” he replied. “First off, those weren’t any ‘elitists’ you met on the farm this morning. We sell to all kinds of people. Second, whenever I hear people say clean food is expensive, I tell them it’s actually the cheapest food you

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-3493701682214283592009-11-17T06:32:00.000-08:002009-11-27T04:08:27.015-08:00

Written to Bridge School Concerts, Vol. 1 by Various ArtistsMakenna Goodman: In your opinion, what's the biggest problem with the food industry in the U.S.?Joel Salatin: Wow, where do I start? Number one is that it destroys soil. Absolutely and completely. The soil is the only thread upon which civilization can exist, and it's such a narrow strip around the globe if a person could ever realize

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-29946225177676224032009-11-08T11:50:00.000-08:002009-11-09T19:10:06.614-08:00

Written to En Concert by Jack JohnsonA man only learns in two ways, one by reading, and the other by association with smarter people.- Will RogersWith the successful handover on October 26th of Santelisa Vale to its new majority shareholder, Louis Dreyfuss Commodites, I wrapped up what turned into a nine-month interim management engagement. While an extraordinarily satisfying experience, it is

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-32948573362440494812009-10-28T05:55:00.000-07:002009-11-15T18:02:58.216-08:00

Written to Open Road by Oli BrownMy record royalties right now are four times stronger than when I was the Madonna of my day, ... Now it's over the top. I mean the records, they all hold up through the years.- Tony BennettWanting to avoid both the specter and the reality of rising at 01:30 and hitting the dirt road by 02:00 in order to arrive at São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport in time

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-1492405144735307432009-10-19T07:15:00.000-07:002009-10-19T18:04:46.486-07:00

Written to Rattle and Hum by U2Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.- Will RogersOn Saturday I visited Fazenda Santana da Serra, also referred to as Gir Leiteiro FB, a beautiful dairy and coffee farm located in Mococa à Cajuru, approx. 70 km from Ribeirão Preto. Upon arrival, I was met by the owner, José de Castro Rodrigues Netto, and his foreman, José Carlos,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-62620808667725867572009-10-13T05:13:00.000-07:002009-10-14T01:52:59.887-07:00

Written to A Donny Hathaway Collection by Donny HathawayA man who views the world the same at fifty as he did at twenty has wasted thirty years of his life.- Muhammad AliThis past weekend got off to an inauspicious start when the pickup truck I borrowed to transport napier seedlings got stuck in the mud at 22:30 on Friday…approx. 4-7 km from Fazenda Alfheim. Undiscouraged by my plight, I grabbed

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-9615991748086577902009-10-05T05:41:00.000-07:002009-10-06T09:45:15.398-07:00

Written to Duets: An American Classic by Tony BennettWe're competing against other great cities: Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo. That's why it's important that we all join together on the final path to Copenhagen. Having the support of President Obama is key.- Richard M. DaleyWhat Richard M. Daley could not have foreseen at the time of his citation was that he was up against forces far more

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-66536892600178192022009-09-28T07:28:00.000-07:002009-09-28T14:26:52.012-07:00

Written to Stop the Clocks by OasisThe only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once.- Albert EinsteinThis week's blog post will be my 51st, taking me into my second year of blogging. In the previous year, 1,908 people visited the Fazenda Alfheim blogspot. These 1,908 absolute unique visitors generated 4,883 visits (Benchmark: 203 (+2,305.42%)) from 61 countries/territories,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-43691275267621622012009-09-21T06:38:00.000-07:002009-09-21T14:50:52.208-07:00

Written to Life Ain't Worth Livin' by J.W. WarrenIt is not legal (in Nebraska) for a tavern owner to serve beer unless a nice kettle of soup is also brewing.- Real Funny Dumb Laws in the United StatesLone boarded a non-stop TAM flight to UK last night, and I just confirmed that she landed safely in London, was picked up by Esben and the two have already returned to Cirencester, where Esben

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-17374845675276754122009-09-14T14:15:00.000-07:002009-09-14T16:05:42.681-07:00

Written to I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got by Sinead O'ConnorThe better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs.- Charles de GaulleIt has been 14 days since I last published a blog post. Between then and now, Lone and I enjoyed a much-needed three-day weekend at Fazenda Alfheim, which included a morning of piglet castration (more on that later), and last weekend at Pousada

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-91151161978628906132009-08-31T07:28:00.000-07:002009-09-01T07:39:10.106-07:00

Written to Led Zeppelin IV by Led ZeppelinYou've got a lot of choices. If getting out of bed in the morning is a chore and you're not smiling on a regular basis, try another choice.- Steven D. WoodhullIn last week's blog post, Holy holon, Batman!, I wrote that Lone and I had settled on our initial business plan. We have also recently established a schedule of chores, and subsequently fallen into

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-87529730579220941992009-08-26T09:00:00.001-07:002009-08-26T09:00:36.228-07:00

Written to Genius of Modern Music, Vol. 1 by T.s.monk and Thelonious MonkThank God, I have my work, but instead of earning money by it, I need money to be able to work; that is the difficulty. I think there are no signs in my work that indicate that I shall fail. And I am not a person who works slowly or tamely. Drawing becomes a passion with me, and I throw myself into it more and more. I do not

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-9704900530425373132009-08-18T07:41:00.000-07:002009-08-19T12:02:24.987-07:00

Written to Electric Ladyland by Jimi HendrixIn the mountains, the shortest way is from peak to peak: but for that you must have long legs.- Friedrich NietzscheThis week at Fazenda Alfheim was characterized by more of the same: more fence posts dug down, more construction on the new house, more clearing of the lake etc. As regards the latter, Clair and Pelle braved nature's wrath -or at the very

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-82777550816591504452009-08-10T07:50:00.000-07:002009-08-10T15:42:27.407-07:00

Written to Recapturing the Banjo by Otis TaylorI hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore. . . .I hear it in the deep heart's core.”- William Butler YeatsIn last week's blog post, I neglected to mention that Gtec Topografia e Geoprocessamento completed the first draft of the topographical survey of Fazenda Alfheim that we commissioned back in June. The survey, a requirement of the

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-58948949540744753172009-08-03T06:47:00.000-07:002010-06-09T18:39:06.426-07:00

Written to Led Zeppelin 1 by Led ZeppelinDo, or do not. There is no 'try'.- Yoda (from The Empire Strikes Back)It's official: Fazenda Alfheim has been certified IBD/IFOAM Accredited.Almost a year to the date of the first visit (July 25th, 2008) by Rui Manuel Marques Martins Martins, a consultant from Associação Brasileira de Agricultura Biodinâmica, we received word of our organic

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-77110209353910123982009-07-29T05:15:00.000-07:002009-07-29T11:15:53.846-07:00

Written to Innervisions by Stevie WonderNever mind about 1066 William the Conqueror, 1087 William the Second. Such things are not going to affect one's life ... but 1932 the Mars Bar and 1936 Maltesers and 1937 the Kit Kat - these dates are milestones in history and should be seared into the memory of every child in the country.- Roald DahlLone and the boys left Alfheim for São Paulo on Thursday

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-17173042200810429472009-07-20T08:10:00.000-07:002009-07-20T11:14:11.528-07:00

Written to You Were Here by Sarah HarmerEveryone has a photographic memory… some just don’t have film.- Steven WrightA number of readers wrote last week and inquired about the end use for the new house at Fazenda Alfheim. The short answer is that it is being built to house a new family of workers who we hope to hire in the next several weeks. In brief, we need more help; there is so much work

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-10431079118735341382009-07-14T04:57:00.000-07:002009-07-15T16:19:45.797-07:00

Written to The Best of by RadioheadHis house was perfect whether you liked food, or sleep, or work, or story-telling, or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all. Evil things did not come into that valley.- J.R.R. TolkienConstruction of the new house picked up steam this week. Marcos placed the initial order for building materials and 48 hours later the

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-28491558060062776782009-07-06T06:53:00.000-07:002009-07-07T03:10:53.170-07:00

Written to Let's Stay Together by Al GreenThe best way out is always through.- Robert Frost7-9-13 it seems as though our new birthing strategy is working. Since we began releasing the expectant gilts into the wild, so to speak, we have experienced a 100% success rate. As noted in last week's blog post, The sons of his seed and his blood, gilt 8 gave birth to seven piglets, and now gilt 9 has

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-67973325771473514762009-06-29T09:13:00.000-07:002009-07-02T05:03:16.879-07:00

Written to Guitararama by Stephen Dale PetitAnd now we come to the Grail, the Quest. I think it is true that any man...when he comes to maturity has a very deep sense that he will not win the Quest. He knows his failings, his shortcoming and particularly his memories of sins of cruelty, of thoughtlessness, of disloyalty, of adultery, and these will not permit him to win the Grail...Lancelot could

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-78452944903598876442009-06-23T04:49:00.000-07:002009-06-29T10:54:33.991-07:00

Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act i. Sc. 1.Written to Live from Madison Square Garden by Eric Clapton and Steve WinwoodLone and I celebrated our 23rd wedding anniversary on Sunday! I am not sure if the phrase "Me love you long time" was originally concocted to cover such reverable

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-25081894660615230642009-06-17T12:57:00.000-07:002009-06-19T07:38:59.497-07:00

Written to The Best of Santana by SantanaIf you don't make mistakes, you're not working on hard enough problems. And that's a big mistake.- F. WikzekIt was when I found out I could make mistakes that I knew I was on to something.- Ornette ColemanWhile I am mostly convinced that we have avoided making major mistakes with respect to the rearing of our hogs, the events of the past couple of weeks,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-16605918790333352152009-06-09T06:27:00.000-07:002009-06-15T08:48:34.336-07:00

Written to Coba Coba by NovalimaOur greatest challenge today...is to couple conviction with doubt. By conviction, I mean some pragmatically developed faith, trust, or centeredness; and by doubt I mean openness to the ongoing changeability, mystery, and fallibility of the conviction.- Kirk Schneider, 1999, The Paradoxical Self, p. 7This week was more about fallibility than conviction. We continue

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-45666010309934373882009-06-01T08:01:00.000-07:002009-06-03T08:07:10.811-07:00

Written to Afro by NovalimaThe young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions.- Oliver Wendell HolmesOur first litter of eight (organic) piglets was born on May 27th. A day later, another litter of two piglets was born. Unfortunately, the third birthing went haywire, and the gilt savaged and cannibalized her piglets. Apparently, this is not an entirely uncommon phenomenon:

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-80847540538081890712009-05-19T23:29:00.000-07:002009-05-21T08:37:04.582-07:00

Written to Sweet Baby James by James TaylorMathematics are well and good but nature keeps dragging us around by the nose.- Albert EinsteinThis week we harvested our first home-grown hog feed...girasol or sunflowers. This is a huge accomplishment, one that was more than a little in doubt for quite some time. Our first foray into feed, soja perene, was anything but successful, and our second,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-56342936169680696642009-05-11T23:40:00.000-07:002009-05-12T17:37:50.281-07:00

Written to Californication by Red Hot Chili PeppersIf I were invited to a dinner party with my characters, I wouldn't show up.- Dr SeussAdmittedly, it could well appear as though Lone and I are doing less farm work these days, and I had to laugh when our oldest son, Johannes, recently commented -in fairness while studying for his final, pre-graduation exams at Imperial College London (BSc in

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-10089797872651001622009-05-05T02:39:00.000-07:002009-05-06T05:03:39.891-07:00

Written to Tchamantché by Rokia TraoréOur lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss.- Benjamin ButtonHappy birthday to meHappy birthday to LoneHappy birthday dear Rance and LoneHappy birthday to us!Whichever week ends up comprising April 30th (my birthday) and May 3rd (Lone's birthday) inevitably and invariably goes down in my myopian world as the best week of the year! When the

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-75238066325135307722009-04-27T17:00:00.000-07:002009-04-28T08:06:08.171-07:00

Written to Move by Yourself by Donavon Frankenreiter*Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.- Muhammad AliFarmer Frankie was at it again this week, enhancing her portfolio of farm skills to include cheese making, and not a moment to soon as Bolina is scheduled to calve sometime in May, with Alfheim's dairy production to commence shortly thereafter. On Wednesday, Lone

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-44841833730707862852009-04-21T18:45:00.000-07:002009-04-26T20:09:32.666-07:00

Written to The College Dropout by Kanye WestEverything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.- Albert EinsteinWhile the title's postal code might not carry as much panache as that of Beverly Hills 90210, for a hog there is no better place on earth: ridiculous room to roam and root...and new feeding troughs to boot. In a word, Hog Haven is dope!

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-87976215631885567622009-04-13T16:36:00.000-07:002009-04-14T06:38:19.977-07:00

Written to Out to Lunch by Eric DolphyA great empire, like a great cake, is most easily diminished at the edges.- Benjamin FranklinApologies for skipping out on last week's blog post. I have been doing a bit of consulting/interim management over the past several weeks, and last week was a watershed of sorts for the business in question. Against this background, Easter's arrival was a godsend. As

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-40354828105670889392009-03-29T17:26:00.000-07:002009-03-30T20:00:48.728-07:00

Written to Moondance by Van MorrisonOn Saturday, Lone and I attended a Santa Gertrudis cattle auction in Tietê. Through Márcio, who also attended the event with his wife, Heather, we met the judge for the day, Burnett Joyce, an Australian, who owns and operates Gyranda Pastoral Company, currently extending to the fifth generation, together with his wife, Louise, and their family. To say that

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-79777454579706893682009-03-22T16:03:00.000-07:002009-05-05T19:52:26.085-07:00

Written to This Guy's in Love by Steve TyrellIf you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.- AMAZING HUMAN FACTSBeginning at approx. 14:00 on Wednesday, March 18th, it rained 124 mm in less than 24 hours! It rained so much that Lone was forced to empty her precision, German Regenmesser rainwater measuring apparatus in order to

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-81956212211851498122009-03-16T13:28:00.000-07:002009-04-26T15:38:38.313-07:00

Written to Nevermind by NirvanaIf you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.- Abraham MaslowOver the past couple of months, the Polícia Florestal have been visiting regularly, looking for poachers. The police use our fazenda as their entry/exit point to inspect/protect the State park, Núcleo Santa Virginia. On one of their recent visits, they mentioned that they had stumbled

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-26235660784816436462009-03-09T09:12:00.000-07:002009-04-26T15:40:03.200-07:00

Written to The Ultimate Collection by B.B. KingSuburbia is where the developer bulldozes out the trees, then names the streets after them.- Bill VaughanClair spent most of the week constructing a brooding house for the egg-laying hens. The result is completely consistent with our previous hen house standards -simple and robust. As Borat would say, "Very Nice. Great Success." Rosana, who we have

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-21988711655649571132009-03-01T13:26:00.000-08:002009-03-03T08:48:45.775-08:00

Written to Bowie at Beeb: Best of BBC Radio 68-72 [BOX SET] [LIVE]The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.- Robert BlochCarnaval was R * E * L * A * X * I * N * G, a well-deserved break from the day-to-day of farming. As mentioned in the previous blog post, we visited our new friends, Emannuel and Filipa, at their magnificent fazenda near Catuçaba on Saturday

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-30846889525583612602009-02-15T09:49:00.000-08:002009-02-15T14:10:27.865-08:00

Written to Led Zeppelin RemastersAt the worst, a house unkept cannot be so distressing as a life unlived.-Dame Rose Macaulay (1881 - 1958)It began raining on Wednesday...and it basically has not stopped since. Rainfall levels for the week:Sunday - 8 mmMonday - 4 mmTuesday - 28 mmWednesday - 4 mmThursday - 27 mmFriday - 4 mmSaturday - 57 mmTotal - 132 mmIn parallel, the temperature held steady at

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-14787529736257801802009-02-08T13:46:00.001-08:002009-02-08T20:22:37.935-08:00

Written to Be Good Tanyas: Hello LoveYou’ll never plow a field by turning it over in your mind.- AnonymousLone and I spent three, as opposed to the usual two, days away from Alfheim last week, which resulted in, among other things, our returning to our fazenda on Friday morning at 02:00. Unfortunately, there was no time for laying about or catching up on missed rapid eye movement (REM) sleep on

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-5705990723667540042009-02-01T14:33:00.000-08:002009-02-08T19:59:23.109-08:00

Written to Sheryl Crow: C'mon, C'monEarly in the twentieth century American corn breeders figured out how to bring corn reproduction under firm control, and to protect the seed from copiers. The breeders discovered that when they crossed two corn plants that had come from inbred lines—from ancestors that had themselves been exclusively self-pollinated for several generations—the hybrid offspring

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-35809171260108965462009-01-26T08:56:00.000-08:002009-02-08T19:59:41.798-08:00

Written to Kanye West: Late RegistrationA girl phoned me the other day and said... Come on over, there's nobody home. I went over. Nobody was home.Rodney DangerfieldBefore leaving São Paulo, we added two new members to Alfheim's ever-growing menagerie, Huginn and Muninn. Huginn (~2 months old), is a bit high-strung, still very much a puppy, but quite sweet. Muninn (~3 months old) is fearless,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-26069074856901658572009-01-19T10:11:00.000-08:002009-02-08T19:59:59.723-08:00

Written to Duane Allman: An Anthology“To travel is to live” (At rejse er at leve)Hans Christian Andersen (1805 - 1875)Using Hans Christian Andersen's philosophy and favorite phrase as a yardstick, we lived a lot last week: 1,568 km in five days! Fortunately, we had some well-timed and thoroughly enjoyable downtime in between each of our three destinations.Our road trip began in earnest on

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-14014582667707452252009-01-12T10:28:00.000-08:002009-02-08T20:00:29.068-08:00

Written to The Doors: Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The First Performance [LIVE]Great people talk about ideas, average people talk about things, and small people talk about wine.- Fran Lebowitz (1950 - )This week began with us receiving ten, fertilized Galinha-d'angola or Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) eggs from Paula Zandomeni's mother, Fatima. In need of immediate incubation, we quickly

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-87848787791250312432009-01-05T10:58:00.000-08:002009-03-29T17:30:22.899-07:00

Written to Public Enemy: Universal Masters Collection [IMPORT]New Year's Day--Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. Yesterday, everybody smoked his last cigar, took his last drink, and swore his last oath. Today, we are a pious and exemplary community. Thirty days from now, we shall have cast our reformation

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-71091028256685363762008-12-22T10:44:00.000-08:002009-01-05T13:56:36.751-08:00

Written to Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith, Jimmy & Wes: The Dynamic DuoThe great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving.- Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809 - 1894)Our furniture finally arrived from the Port of Santos on Friday, so we are temporarily in the midst of boxes, but the Organizator will soon put an end to the clutter. As a result of the move,

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-6607327091062338732008-12-15T15:06:00.000-08:002009-01-05T09:50:18.701-08:00

Written to Counting Crows, New Amsterdam Live at Heineken Music Hall February 6, 2003"It is hard to have patience with people who say 'There is no death' or 'Death doesn't matter.'' There is death. And whatever is matters. And whatever happens has consequences, and it and they are irrevocable and irreversible. You might as well say that birth doesn't matter."- C.S. LewisThe life-death balance on

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-62143993186232896842008-12-08T08:59:00.000-08:002008-12-09T22:52:56.316-08:00

Written to Ali Farka Toure, The SourceQuote of the Day - Marie Curie - "Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood."The King is dead...long live the King! On Thursday morning we discovered that Kong had become late sometime on Wednesday night. Clair initially proposed various theories, all of which revolved around Kong not liking his feed etc. After a bit of back and forth, and

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-47023446909403526032008-12-01T09:53:00.001-08:002008-12-01T15:02:41.690-08:00

Written to Derek and the Dominos, Live at the Fillmore [Disk 2]Funny Quote of the Day - Lily Tomlin - "The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat."Apologies for the delay in publishing this week's blog entry. I had to pick up Chico and his crew of one this morning and deliver them to Alfheim to begin fencing. As a result, Lone and I had to delay our weekly trip to

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-63247647203063411462008-11-23T16:47:00.002-08:002008-11-24T00:56:03.203-08:00

We returned to Alfheim late Tuesday evening, around 23:00. For no apparent reason, though fortuitously as it turned out, we decided to take the Paraibuna route home, via Posso Alto and Bairo Alto. It had rained almost non-stop while we were away, and about halfway home the car's ABS braking system gave out...nothing like a little extra excitement on a very muddy road home. As it turned out, this

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-15573412201878888022008-11-16T12:45:00.000-08:002008-11-17T17:28:42.968-08:00

Lone spent Wednesday and Thursday planting various members of the genus Cucurbita, aka squashes, in the field nearest our house, where we had earlier planted soja perene, and seeding her vegetable garden. She decided to plant squashes in the part of the field where the soja perene has not yet sprouted. Clair planted this area on his own, while Lone and I were in São Paulo, and he either planted

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-33275637869853787442008-11-09T04:09:00.000-08:002008-11-10T16:01:53.312-08:00

Saturday arrived and our sense of accomplishment was noticeably diminished. To be sure we were again busy all week, but mainly with facilitating tasks or mid- to long-term projects. For example, I spent all day Thursday chasing up and locking down, figuratively not literally, Chico the fencer. I picked up Chico at the BR Petrobras gas station in São Luiz do Paraitinga at 08:00 (his suggestion),

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-18340443219381177582008-11-02T17:30:00.000-08:002009-04-26T16:01:36.197-07:00

One dog, six ducklings and a pig. In brief, this week was defined by the three aforementioned additions to our growing menagerie. On Tuesday, before picking me up in Chácara Santo Antônio, Lone stopped and picked up Layla, a black Labrador, from our good friend Melissa. We then drove back to Alfheim, stopping twice, once for gas and once to change another flat tire, this time on rodovia Ayrton

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-6115924386010183642008-10-26T17:46:00.000-07:002009-07-02T18:57:42.282-07:00

We spent six days in São Paulo this week, from Saturday to Thursday. In two words: too many. By Tuesday, Lone was beginning to exhibit all of the classic, early indicators of megalopolis-itis, aka urban-itis. By Thursday her symptoms were undeniable, and we decided to return home after BioFach and dinner at our good friend Leonardo's house in Jundiaí.That we traveled to São Paulo on Saturday in

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-13409650182002427622008-10-19T12:03:00.000-07:002009-04-26T16:00:00.917-07:00

As per routine, we returned to Alfheim from São Paulo on Tuesday evening, in good time, or so we thought, for an early dinner. Unfortunately, somewhere just before or after Fazenda Hotel Santa Rita our rear left tire punctured (hint: never leave home without one of these). After driving slowly to flatter terrain, I changed the tire, much to the surprise of my loving wife of 22 years, who I

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-83434388779864379842008-10-12T21:18:00.000-07:002008-11-02T16:15:44.704-08:00

We spent Monday and Tuesday in São Paulo, where the weather was rainy and, by Brazilian standards, genuinely cold. The rain followed us back to Alfheim late Tuesday night...and it continued to rain/drizzle almost non-stop through Friday, when at last the sun broke free from behind the thick blanket of dark-gray clouds and heavy mist to provide us with a respite and allow us to work outdoors.

Rance Heskethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10227794101574431376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6634808305386303102.post-5229888285734745632008-10-07T06:16:00.000-07:002008-10-26T21:08:26.521-07:00

Three significant events occurred this past week (listed chronologically):First, on Wednesday, I bid farewell to the final two members of the construction crew, Marcos and Orlando, who spent an extra day making sure we were able to tick off all but the least significant of the then-still-pending phase I construction tasks. Marcos (think Andy Capp for the cigarette but autodidactic and industrious

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