Track 7: Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to your most burning questions...

Q: Wait, what?! California?
A: Yes -- Fiddletown, California, to be exact. It's an hour east of Sacramento, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. I looked for a place that would be sunny and beautiful and warm (compared to Minnesota). The name of the farm is Safan Ranch.

Q: How did you find this place? Do you know anyone there?
A: I joined OrganicVolunteers.org and had access to a list of a lot of places in California that welcome visitors to come and help out on their farms. I contacted Steve and Angela (the owners) directly, we chatted about my skills and talents and life at the ranch, and I contacted a couple of people who had been there this summer to see what their experience was like. Everything sounded peachy, so we agreed I'd head out there in October.

Q: Will you get paid?
A: Nope. I'll have lodging and most food provided, though, and I plan to live very simply, so I will be relying on my savings to cover health insurance, car insurance, cell phone bill, etc. while I'm there.

Q: How long will you be there?
A: They're expecting me to be there until Christmas. But I'm leaving things open-ended so I can go with the flow and be ready for any interesting opportunities that come my way.

Q: So, you want to be a farmer now?
A: Not quite. I do want to learn more about organic practices and sustainability, but I'm looking at this opportunity as a chance to go somewhere I've never been (which always energizes me), work outside after more three years of staring at a computer in an office, feel grounded again, clear my head, practice my photography, and hopefully come up with a plan to find my true calling. If all that fails, it'll be fun to play with the goats.

Feel free to leave a comment with other questions (um, reasonable ones), and I'll do my best to answer them.