Welcome to the blog for Colgate University's interdisciplinary course on food. This is the place to keep up with what students in the course are experiencing in their work at Common Thread Community Farm and through their everyday encounters with food.

Monday, December 16, 2013

A Walk Down Memory Lane...


I originally tried blogging this topic as my first blog, but hadn’t quite figured out how blogspot worked and posted it somewhere to moodle…where it has since disappeared. My post was recorded after our field trip to Bruce’s farm, a trip that I found very eye opening. I also captured cool pictures of Bruce’s herd, and of my first high-tech milking experience. Before my visit to Bruce’s farm, I had only been to one farm, and that was Common Thread. I remember seeing a cow at a petting zoo once, and on my drives to Colgate, but aside from that, I had never had a close encounter with the animal. I was amazed when we arrived at the farm and saw the size of Bruce’s herd. I was even more shocked when I learned that Bruce managed the farm with just his wife and a couple of workers.
            When discussing tasks on the farm, I was most taken aback with the aspect of birthing cows. Bruce explained that every spring, he assists in delivering hundreds of calves. The prospect of this seemed impossible to me. I could not digest the amount of hours that would go into delivering and subsequently handling hundreds of newborn cows. The incredible effort involved in this process became even more apparent when Bruce detailed the amount of free time he normally has left over. I specifically remember Bruce saying that he had not gone to see a movie for seven years- and that he had last gone to the movies for his anniversary. Additionally, Bruce revealed that he rarely travels further than fifty miles from his property. The constant attention demanded by running a cow farm prevents him from being absent for extended periods of time.  It seemed that Bruce’s life revolved around running his farm, a commitment that I found extremely commendable.
Once again, I found myself thinking the same thoughts that I often thought while farming: How do these people do this every single day? In my opinion, farmers have one of the most difficult jobs. Their job makes it almost impossible to go on vacation, and they have to rely on intense, manual labor to make a living. Maybe it’s because I’m a girl and am seriously lacking in the biceps department, but this life seems hard. Bruce has to carry around hundreds of baby cows every year, and has to maintain the dozens of acres that he owns. This job is never-ending, and is always demanding.
Another thought that ran through my mind (trust me, a very unexpected thought) was guilt toward my carnivorous diet. I didn’t exactly feel this guilt when we pulled in and saw the cows; the feeling arose during the milking session. I remember one of Bruce’s workers directing dozens of cows into the milking rows. It was weirdly adorable how compliment each cow was. They all quietly lined up in their designated spot, and peacefully allowed the placement of suction cups on their utters without a flinch. When I personally attached the suction cups, my cow stood there patiently throughout the whole process. I began thinking about cows that were raised only to be slaughtered for our own meals- and it felt horrible. I have always been a meat eater and never really understood the prospect of being a vegetarian until taking this class, and my visit to Bruce’s farm was probably the first moment that I felt an understanding. This experience by no means converted me to vegetarianism, but it certainly instilled an appreciation for the animals we rely on for everyday meals.

Here are my images from the trip:
First time milking!!!!


^The herd. 

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