I must get better at blogging in the present; September’s fence-building trip was ages ago, and I’m still not done writing about it, but there are other things Farm-related that are newsworthy. Which is the whole point of keeping this blog, so we’re moving on.
You’ll hear about the Big Pencil Sharpener another time, then.
We had a six-month extension to file our taxes this year because of my deployment, and so October was all about sorting through receipts and filling out my Form F, accompanied by more research and reading of tax law relating to sole proprietorships and farm businesses. Lots of reading. And finally, the light went on. Like smelling the proverbial cup of coffee, I got a strong whiff of exactly what I need to do in my particular situation, which is to take concrete actions toward making my farm business a reality.
So, I’m wrapping up an eight-week online course on Writing a Successful Business Plan, and although The Plan is a long way from actually being written, I have the tools and skills I need to write it, know what research needs done and what needs to be included in it. It’s a daunting task but, broken down into separate elements, quite doable. And so I’ve begun. I’ll share bits and pieces here, as I draft my mission statement and drill down into the details of setting up a grass-fed livestock enterprise.
I also took a huge leap and booked arrangements to attend the Acres U.S.A. Farm Conference in St. Paul, MN. I fly out on Monday, to attend a two-day intensive pre-conference workshop on livestock systems entitled “Full-Circle Grazing Managment – Cow, Soil, Management, Grass”. Learning from and meeting experts like Jerry Brunetti, Gearld Fry, Greg Judy, Neal Kinsey and all the rest will be a life-changing experience, I’m sure, along with the opportunity to meet like-minded farmers in all stages of production.
Should be an amazing week, and I’ll try to journal it here as it unfolds.
Thistledog's Farm 