oakfarm | Gardens, food, and we have the best tar in Europe (Reply)

So what’s wrong with me? Friday afternoon I took a long bike ride while I in my head was writing an entry about covid. You might be tired of me doing that. I’m for now, going to dump it on tumblr there no one will read it, and maybe, maybe not post it here later. Ok!? And here's a picture instead.

A photo from about four weeks ago. It’s a strawberry field (wasn’t that a Beatle song) surrounded by coniferous forest. I like the contrast between nature and civilization. Now, of course the forest is planted, not “natural”, it still looks more wild than a farmers field. Weird thing. One book that’s lying around in the coffee room at work is a, let's call it, “foodie book” about local food. The book claims we herein Västerbotten has the best agriculture in Europe. Being far north means lots of sun during a short summer. It also means that the ice sheet disappeared relative recently, leaving young soil with lots of minerals in it. To me it sounds silly, but who knows, maybe they can sell those strawberries as “better” than the one growin without light nights and mineral rich soil. With the risk of mansplaining, normally you can’t have agriculture this far north, this should be tundra. Other places in the world with bright summer nights are too cool for farming. But as we learned in school, the Gulf stream transports heat to us. Apparently it’s also why nature had to invent blonds. Pre-historic farmers had a low vitamin-d diet. So since the Gulf stream took agriculture far north, the evolution basically had to bleach people until they were so fair skinned their hair turned blond, and was able to take up enough vitamin d from the sun. Or so they say.

Very related, I have realized that I have started to day dream about a garden the same way I used to daydream about traveling and writing. To own a garden is more achievable than to write a novel and honestly it is more likely than me being able to travel alone. The problems are money and again, how to do it alone. A garden I can do alone, it’s more that one needs a house for a garden, and that you normally don’t get yourself.

I came to this county when I was six. For different reasons I have asked myself if it was an adventure to come here? Answer, sure it was. The sun in the summer, the snow in the winter. Since this was before we had warmed the earth it could be quite crazy in the winter. My second year here it was so much snow that mooses were starving, badly. The snow was too thick for them to find anything to eat. Then to mention a random and silly thing that was new to me up here. My BiL, whose Finnish name is Pekka (we always use his Swedish name), recently mentioned the Finnish liquorice candy that tastes like tar, I can add that I had not tasted the Finnish liquorice candy that tastes like tar before I came here. Finnish liquorice candy that tastes like tar, you must agree that that sounds adventurous (assuming they are not selling all over the world now). The same company apperently makes booze. That made me think. Maybe one should go to the Absolut vodka factory and ask if they are intrested in making Absolut tar?