Farmer John Writes: Come to The World of Tomorrow
Farmer John Invites You to the World of Tomorrow on Saturday, October 6
Harvest Week 16, October 2nd – 6th, 2018
Your Box This Week – Saturday Deliveries:
Please note: this summary is written before we pack your box—be aware that some guesswork is involved. Share contents often vary over the course of the week. And, as always, be sure to thoroughly wash all of your vegetables.
Fruiting Crops — Sweet Peppers, Hot Peppers (in bag)
Brassicas — Broccoli or Cauliflower
Root Crops — Potatoes
Salad Greens — Baby Lettuce Mix
Cooking Greens — Pac Choi
Alliums — Leek
Herbs — Parsley
You Are Invited to the World of Tomorrow Art Symposium
Saturday, October 6
Angelic Organics Farm
1547 Rockton Rd, Caledonia, IL 61011
4 p.m. to 11 p.m.
If you are a shareholder who receives a share this week, we’re providing this Farm News/Invitation well in advance of your share delivery, so that you know about this special event that the farm is hosting in the Near Future about the more Distant Future. It’s pretty much the same newsletter that you will receive with your box in your email notice the day prior to your share delivery.
If you are a shareholder who will not receive a share this week—for instance, a shareholder who only receives a share on odd weeks—then this is a special invitation to our event this Saturday.
If you are a former shareholder, a Friend of Anthroposophy, or another sort of Friend of the Farm, then this is a special invitation to our event and it is also this week’s edition of Farm News.
No RSVP Required
Saturday, October 6
Hosts
Hosted by Farmer John and Haidy Peterson, and Friends of the Farm/Rockford Artists Jeremy Klonicki and Jenny Mathews. Jeremy and Jenny have been seeking an opportunity to showcase Angelic Organics for a suitable event. The opportunity has arrived.
Family Friendly
This is a family friendly event. Kids are welcome. (Of course, it’s an art show, so there is no guarantee that someone’s button might not get pushed. Art can do that.)
Be Here Now?
As a farmer, I reside largely in the future–in plans, projects, projections…in vegetable maturities, equipment depreciation and building decay. I also reside to a large degree in the past—your CSA box was designed in the past for a future that arrives each week. Do I Be Here Now? Does farming let me Be Here Now? Not so much. Be Here When, Then? The way to now is through the past and the future.
A Wider View
I invite you to a wider view of the future this coming Saturday, October 6, a look into the world of tomorrow as dreamed and presented by Rustbelt artists. Paintings, sculptures, prototypes, illustrations, blueprints and fashion by artists Jeremy Klonicki, Jenny Mathews, Carrie Johnson, Betsy Youngquist, Jesus Correa, Breanda Fedie, Amy Dreibelbis, Ben Fairweather, Keelan McMorrow, Steve Nofsinger, Carmen Turner, Jarrod Hennis, Greg Lang, Joe Tallman, Allison Weust, Michelle Koch, Shawn Williams/The Core and Caravan Fabrics.
An Enigma
“The World of Tomorrow Art Symposium is a bit of an enigma, looking both backwards and forwards in time, unfolding magically. It takes inspiration from advertising of the 1950s with its ‘look into the future’ theme, while simultaneously asking artists to reveal their thoughts and hopes for fifty to a hundred years into the distance. Futuristic outfits welcomed. Bonfire at dusk.”
The quote above is from the Facebook page for World of Tomorrow. Check it out often for event updates: www.facebook.com/events/274332656524237/.
All Are Welcome
World of Tomorrow is open to the public. It is part of Rockford Area Arts Council’s annual Fall ArtScene weekend. ArtScene in early October brings out thousands of art-lovers to galleries and studios all over Rockford (and in the case of World of Tomorrow at Angelic Organics Farm, well beyond Rockford.) ArtScene attracts so many fans because it is free, and it’s fun for both the browser and the buyer. There are over 38 destinations for ArtScene this coming weekend. For more information, visit fallartscene.com.
Considering the buzz that The World of Tomorrow is generating, and the number of celebrated Rockford artists who will be presenting their work at Angelic Organics, we think there might be a large turnout at the farm. Our barns can probably host everyone who shows up.
Time Traveling Attire Encouraged!
Wander the Farmstead–Farmer John’s Life’s Work
The Angelic Organics farmstead is the ideal showcase for The World of Tomorrow and your time traveling attire. View Farmer John’s lifetime of work re-envisioning and re-purposing the buildings he grew up with. Just look around. There is no formal presentation, but feel free to ask Farmer John a question about the buildings if you see him standing alone and looking desolate. Farmer John says the buildings talk to him and tell him what to do—they don’t ask; they tell.
To learn more about the history of the farm buildings at Angelic Organics, visit the Metamorphosis of the Peterson Farmstead (Many farm building improvements have been made since this link was last updated.)
The Big Barn
Farmer John saw the future arrive in the 1950’s on a semi trailer in the form of gothic arched rafters for the new dairy barn that the Petersons were about to build. Farmer John milked cows twice a day in this barn from when he was 9 until he was 21. He has since been ushering the barn into the future, adapting it for hogs, then artists and performance events for the Midwest Coast, then a farm office and packing room for the fledgling Angelic Organics Community Supported Agriculture farm, and now vast spaces for showcasing art, spectacle and many of Farmer John’s costumes.
Once the Dairy Barn
Note the Lazure painting method in the Milk House entrance to the barn, painted by shareholders Tom and Nancy Melvin—the ceiling, hallway, and future bedroom off the hallway. Lazure painting was introduced by Rudolf Steiner to bring a living quality to otherwise monochrome surfaces.
Since I probably won’t be giving full-fledged tours of the barn, walk further down the hallway, take a left and behold the Feather Room towards the end of the purple hallway. The walls of the Feather Room are an electric version of Lazure.
Lazured Ceiling of Milk House (photo by Nancy Melvin)
To learn more about the heritage of gothic arches and the design of social space, visit Farmer John’s Keynote The Farm as Social Organism and the Design of Social Space.
Mingle Magically
Visionary designs, boundless thoughts and fantastical ideas have the potential to shape the collective imagination or perhaps plant a seed that reveals itself in the distant future.
Prairie Street Brewing Company
Prairie Street Brewing Company will serve beer and wine at World of Tomorrow. This should help with the mingling.
Acoustic Sets
Acoustic sets will occur in the lounge loft throughout the afternoon and evening. The lounge loft is the loft of the smaller barn near the big barn.
6 P.M. Presentation on Biodynamics by Farmer John in front of the Homage to Biodynamics in the Loft of the Big Barn This presentation will take place in a large loft, so audience size can be large. Anticipated Presentation Time: 10 minutes. If a repeat presentation, 6:20. Two minute synopses of the Homage to Biodynamics may be available from Farmer John upon request throughout the evening.
7 P.M. Fashion Show by Caravan Fabrics. Models will present from the four tall arched windows of the former Peterson Granary/Corn Crib. Observe the show from both outside and inside the Granary.
Granary/Corn Crib
7:30 P.M. Tour of Farmer John’s Inner World in a Cavernous Partition in the Loft of the Big Barn, where you will tour a sideroom of personal archives, archives which were once part of his future, and perhaps still are. Each person on the tour of his inner world can ask Farmer John a question. (Perhaps there will be a second tour, since it’s an extremely tall, extremely long, but rather narrow space, so audience size will be limited to 15.) Anticipated tour time: 13 minutes; If needed, another tour at 7:45. Spontaneous Inner World Tours may be available upon request.
8 P.M. From the Silo to Outer Space
Electronic Ambient Soundscapes by Ben Fairweather aka “ens” in the silo. Preparing to telescope sonic waves into space…
8:30 P.M. Reading/Performance about the Farm Power House in the Farm Power House (Perhaps there will be a repeat performance, since the Power House will only seat about 10 people.) “Since we assign such a high status to electricity today (even those of us who recognize its ahrimanic nature, its true status as fallen light), I made the space ceremonial, reverential. [It also] invokes the sacred ratios of pi and phi with which the pharaohs empowered their Egypt.” Anticipated Performance Time: 10 minutes. A repeat performance may be offered at 8:45.
Farm Power House
Ancient Egyptian Power Houses
To delve further into phi, pi, ancient Egypt and the modern world, visit Farmer John’s Keynote on the Wave Principle.
Electrical Homage to Ancient Egypt
Just in Case
Farmer John just might ignore the above schedules for presentations/performances and provide them spontaneously or not at all. I just wanted to bring some structure and coherence to the evening via a schedule. I’ll probably stick to the schedule, but just in case…
9 P.M. Shawn Williams Live Music in the Loft of the Main Barn
(also rumored to start at 9:30, but hey, it’s an art event)
Rain?
Rain might happen on the special day. Mud might be prevalent. We have grassy fields close to the farmstead for parking. If they are muddy, we have an alternative plan for parking on more re-assuring ground. Check the weather that day. If it really seems rainy, bring rain gear. Our big barn is not nearly the size of the big barn where Haidy and I enjoyed our first date 9 years ago in Järna, Sweden, but our barn is big, nevertheless. And we can press large parts of the big barn into service that we thought we’d keep idle. And besides the big barn, we have sheltered spaces galore—they just might be hard to get to in a downpour.
Sorry, No Overnight Stays at the Farm
All the farm’s bedrooms are booked by artists for the weekend. I’m going to count the bedrooms now—that’s 6 bedrooms.
Remember: Time traveling attire encouraged!
Sunday, October 7
Can’t Get Enough of the Farm on Saturday? Can’t Attend on Saturday? How about
Sunday, October 7?
Noon to 5 P.M.—Boone County Farm Stroll, including a stroll of Angelic Organics Farm and Learning Center: https://web.extension.illinois.edu/bdo/downloads/76919.pdf
2 P.M to 6 P.M. Epilogue viewing of the World of Tomorrow. (Some who come for the Boone County Farm Stroll might be surprised to encounter The World of Tomorrow….just sayin’)
4 P.M. to 9 P.M. Angelic Organics Learning Center’s gourmet, four-course dinner at the nearby Angelic Organics Lodge prepared by Chef Patrick Alberto, Executive Chef of Octane InterLounge. The dinner will feature vegetables from Angelic Organics Farm.
Begin your evening with a one hour tour of Angelic Organics Learning Center’s south campus, and continue on to the Lodge for cocktails and appetizers before your chef introduces the evening meal.
Chef Patrick is a personal friend of Farmer John and Haidy. He is charismatic, lively, and a fabulous chef. The price of the evening is worth it just to be around Chef Patrick. Farmer John and Haidy would not miss this dinner.
Buy Tickets for the Dinner Here: http://estore.learngrowconnect.org/home/lodge-dinner/sd100718.html.
Phew, that was a lot of inviting.
Now, For CSA Shareholders, Back to Your Regularly Scheduled Box
This week, the theme is fall, with potatoes, leeks, parsley, pac choi, and broccoli gracing your box, in addition to baby lettuce and probably head lettuce.
Your Bagged Baby Greens
When we bag your baby greens, we trap air in the bags for protection of the delicate leaves that make the trip to your home. Due to the stems of the leaves, which might puncture the bag, and the texture and weight of neighboring items in your box, the greens might arrive at your home condensed—a bit squished–or might arrive according to our plan for them–floating on a cushion of air.
Winter Squash is Done
Because of the muddy conditions this fall, we felt it best to move the squash as soon as possible after we harvested it. I suggest that you don’t attempt to store your squash for months. I doubt it has the shelf life it normally would have. Haidy and I paused to admire some of our beloved acorn squash this evening, and it had already turned soft and moldy.
Potatoes are in Storage
We harvested all the potatoes last week. They yielded just okay, not great. They love moisture, but I suspect they received too much of it this year. As I have mentioned in earlier newsletters, we got the carrots and celeriac out just in time this fall–before they turned to mush from the rains. Their quality was good, though the yields were poor, again due to the floods. Let’s be grateful for what they did provide us.
Peppers and Eggplant are Done. Compost Application and Fall Cover Crops—Done
Frost was predicted for the end of last week, so we harvested the remaining peppers and eggplant and tore those fields up, so we could apply compost and seed cover crops to those fields in anticipation of next year’s vegetable crops.
The Time to Get Things Done is Now
I guess you know by now that we push hard here to get everything done in a timely way. The farm rumbles and throbs from before sunup to late afternoon—tractors, trucks, wagons, carts, knives, clippers, subsoiler, chisel plow, rotovator, compost spreader, grain drill, conveyors, washers, workers–as we assemble the past and future into boxes for you.
We Hope to See You in the Future on Saturday, which will then be the Present, and then the Past.
Warmly,
Farmer John
