Showing posts with label Farming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Farming. Show all posts

February 7, 2022

Farmer Folk

Imagine running into these farmers. 

They are a perfect couple. 

Look like brother and sister.

In the dark, with a flashlight on their faces, I think I'd take some fright. 

And the pitchfork would give me a sharp little pause as well.  ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)


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October 31, 2019

Square Watermelons

I thought this was pretty novel. 

A square watermelon. 

Why do you need a square watermelon?

It was created to make transportation easier and to fit on the tight shelves of small stores in Japan. 

How do you make a round/oval watermelon square?

Why of course, you put a box around it while it's still small and on the vine. 

Ah, I think they broke the mold on this innovative idea.  LOL

The problem is that that because they are harvested before they are ripe, they are inedible. 

So the Japanese use them for decorations, and they can last about a year. 

They are so unique, they cost roughly $100 for one. 

Why be square, when you can be round? ;-)

(Credit Photo: Defense Acquisition University)
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September 27, 2018

Reaping What You Sow: Adam and Adamah

Please see my new article in The Times of Israel, Sukkot: A Time of Man and Earth
"In celebrating Sukkot, we compare Adam and Adamah. Just like a man is dependent on seeding his teachings and good deeds which then leads to reaping his personal life harvest, so too the earth is dependent on seeding and watering which leads to harvesting its produce."
Hope you enjoy and Chag Sameach.  ;-)

(Inspired by a movie of a farmer in Bishvil-Haivrit)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal) 
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March 10, 2015

Teats or Not

So I heard a new phrase from one of my colleagues recently...

He goes on about somebody (or something) being like "2 teats on a bull!"

I've always wanted to spend some serious time on a farm...but never really have had the opportunity to learn about that whole rural world, and I'm like what????

But I got it, and didn't really like it. 

Sort of a harsh way to call someone out as a useless piece of [you know what]!

I've heard kids joke about "man boobs" and I sure you can guess what those unflattering things are on a male.

Too often, we write people off without giving them a real chance!

While perhaps, there can be useless appendages through genetics or illness, there are no fundamentally useless people (although maybe some can be troubled, dejected, in a bad fit, etc.).

More often, there are unflattering comments from others who don't appreciate differences or see clearly what each person can "bring to the table."

Let's just say, if G-d created someone, there is reason and purpose to their lives, and we need to understand and appreciate them for their value. 

It may take (some) exploration, but everyone has strengths (as well as weaknesses--we're all human) and we can find what each person is good at, cultivate it, and leverage it for the good. ;-)

(Source Photo: here with attribution to Carol Von Canon)
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August 24, 2012

Military-Style ATV For Pleasure Or Kicking Butt


This is a very cool all-terrain vehicle (ATV) modeled after the Segway, that is built with military or extreme sports in mind.

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, the DTV Shredder runs on tank treads, has a motocycle throttle, and the mobility of a skateboard.

The Shredder is made by BPG Werks and can go up to 30 miles per hour, has a three-foot turning radius, can haul up to 800 pounds over rocky terrain, and costs only $4,000.

This is a cost-effective, energy-efficient, rugged transportation mule can carry people, equipment, or supplies through friendly or hostile terrain, and it can even be used through a remote controller. 

A precursor transit device from this company was the Uno--a very cool looking, self-balancing, all-electric unicycle--that won Intel's International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in 2007, was on the cover of Popular Science Magazine (2008), and secured $1.25 million from angel investors. 

When we talk about mobile technology, everyone first thinks of smartphones and tablet computers, but new and improved modes of personal transportation can also be innovative and high-tech with applications for everything from snowmobiling to beach patrol and hunting to overseas deployments. 

End of the world scenarios come to mind too--with a mobile device like this...outmaneuver, outwit, outlast.  

Of course, having to stand for the whole ride can be a bummer, and an open ATV certainly does not imply all-weather, so practicality limits its usefulness, but this is still my cool gadget of the week for fighting or for fun. ;-)

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