I am about to start my 12th year of writing about agriculture in Will County. Whenever I want an easy night at the computer penning about 500 words, I revert to a general review of what is important now on Will County farms, or at least what comes to my Read more…
I hesitate to even write about a current theory being bantered among chicken owners. I fear that even putting unsubstantiated statements in print will somehow validate them. I also run the risk of alienating some readers. Well, here goes. A laying hen can lay eggs for several years. The first Read more…
I have been selling hay and straw to hundreds, if not thousands, of customers in the last 40 years. I wish I had written down all the bizarre, crazy, and frustrating situations I have endured. It never ceases to amaze me how many people own livestock and seem to lack Read more…
It is time to write another article about chickens and eggs. Since I knew I had written many times about my backyard hens in the last 11 years, I searched “chickens and eggs” in my word program and came up with 37 matches. I will also add the popular avocado Read more…
Do you like driving at night? How about in drizzle/snow on rural roads with no streetlights? Do you notice many approaching cars with obnoxiously bright lights or extra lights on the front of their vehicles? To find out if it was just me, or my age, I asked my 17-year-old Read more…
In 1906, at the age of 13, my Grandpa Conrad left Germany aboard the SS Kaiser Wilhelm II and emigrated through Ellis Island on September 11th. My recent trip to Hawaii was my first time on a plane or being in an airport since 2015. Do you remember a little Read more…
Did you know it is 4230 miles from Manhattan, Illinois to Honolulu, Hawaii? Did you know that about 2 people die per year from parasailing accidents, and every two years someone dies from a shark attack? That means you are about 4x more likely to die parasailing than from a Read more…
I have heard a phrase that makes me bristle. But I will come back to that later. In 1987, when I was only 24 years old, I bought my first and only farm. At the time it was a very good buy. I have since spent the rest of my Read more…
It is that time of the year. Time to test the fire extinguisher in the house and not out in the field. I still remember an article about fire safety that I read years ago. It stated that the #1 and #2 cause of fires in the home were electrical Read more…
Earlier this year I received a comment from a reader named Jerry. He stated that if my dream of being able to travel more ever happened I should write about it. Well, here goes. After years of hearing how many people love the Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois, my Read more…