Monthly Archives: August 2012

Instead of writing stories and canning pears and prunes in Switzerland, I am chasing my brother across a Canadian pea field. I’m operating the John Deere 9600 combine and Fred is on the swather ahead of me. The first born, … Continue reading →

Over drinks at the Schleitheim swimming pool on Sunday – it was over 30C! – Peter Gasser asked us if we’d heard about the cattle herd that died in northern Germany. “They’re saying it is glyphosate poisoning,” he said. Robert … Continue reading →

Robert’s doing a job for the Vögeli brothers, Hans and Urs, in Gächlingen right now. Hans operates (for Switzerland) a big farm with about 500 head of feeder cattle, and Urs is a busy farm contractor. Last week Robert caught … Continue reading →

“This is the life!” – knees still shaking from the steep hike down from the peak, we relax with a cold apple cider before the alpine hut. Cow bells ring from the meadows. The sun warms our back. Geraniums bloom … Continue reading →

I’m reading in all the bigger newspapers that the World Bank is very concerned about rising grain prices, especially in light of the world’s poor. Since mid June, 2012, wheat prices have risen 50 per cent, corn 45 per cent … Continue reading →