where´s the beef

I´ve got to make this quick, guys. There´s an asado (barbecue) planned for tonight at the neighbor´s house and when you´re living on a vegetarian and practically vegan farm and are not inclined to neither of the aforementioned lifestyles, meat begins to take a sharp priority over things like family, friends, and visits to the bathroom. I can´t say I´m proud of it, but my last piece of meat was a sad and unsatiating burger from down the street, and the one before that was an overcooked pot-roast thing at the town´s Spanish restaurant (said dry meat was not Spanish at all).

I digress.

Things are happenin out here at the base of the Andes.We finally finished the bulk of necessary planting. It will continue through the next few months, but not as much. This means more construction, which means playing with mud (mixed with horseshit and hay), which means a slight odor but an odor well worth it because of the increasingly uncomfortable heat. It´ll get up to 100 here around New Years. Absolutely no chance for a white Christmas.

Since I´ve been here the longest, they´ve put me in charge of irrigation at the farm, which loosely translates to playing with water and more mud (without the shit!). We use irrigation ditches blocked off with natural chunks of small but tightly bunched roots that soak up and block water. Problem is with rains, the walls I´ve been stacking can break, resulting in a mini flash flood. Forthis reason I´m supposed to be designing and constructing wood doors with cement holdings for the big entrances. Haven´t though yet.

But shortly after being assigned this project I was given two others which can possibly result in more enticing profits. Azucena and Jorge gave me a littleplot of land (three beds 1.5 meters by 3 or 4 meters) to grow produce to sell at the farmer´s market and store they just opened in Mendoza. They said they don´t want a share, that as long as I do the work I can keep everything. So every weeknight at 6 I stop volunteer work and work on my beds til dark. Soil needs mixing, needs manure, needs more manure, walls need constructing and shade structures need designing for spinach. I´ll also be growing carrots and beets, all three are in low supply and high demand at the market. Since I´m starting late, I´ll probably just harvest them when they´re small and sell them all as baby spinach, carrots and beets. The whole baby craze is catching on here. Project number 2 is making and selling vegetarian sushi at the two locations. We´re not sure how much demand there is, but for now I´m working with Azucena to figure out sushi combinations suited for Argentine tastes. They can´t handle spice, love all things fried and have an obsession with sauces and condiments. We´ll see what happens.

On top o all this I now have a pet mouse named Sancho Panza. Those who have read don Quijtoe will recognize the name of the round bellied faithful sidekick. I´m hoping one day Sancho will be comfortable enough to travel with me in my pocket. Right now he´s scared to hell of my hand. Thanksgiving isn´t the same without turkey and football, but I managed a delicious pumpkin and apple soup (never cooked with pumpkin before), roasted fennel and sweet potatoes, and a hearty mulled apple cider. Others made three types of mashed potatoes and there was a vegetarian stuffing as well. The holiday is of course not celebrated here, but with the reasonable amount of Yankees on the farm we decided to make everyone food anyway and to describe how UnitedStateseans like to commemorate our successful survival of the first winter in the New World and the subsequnt slaughter of the natives who taught us how.

Speakingof turkey, I amreminded that said meat awaits. I am in charge of beer, another treat I´ve been missing, so I must visit the store.

I hope you´re all alive and kickin, and kickin good an hard. I miss most of you and hope your holiday was good and that the upcoming holidays continue to treat you gooder.

Until next time,your dauntless bushy bearded hoe-bearing pile of dirt an weeds,
Patch