Iroquois Farm Group

Hello, my name is Mary. I work at the Iroquois Farm doing paperwork and I work at the Tilden stage Inn. There has not been a lot of business at the Inn yet, there probably won't be until next year. A lot of work has to be done, but it looks better and better. Working on the gardens, which need a lot of work still. There is one on the side which was not set up really well, but we have to wait till fall to change a lot. Well that's all for now.

Word, it's kyle. open for the breaking of the fast today. we also had free coffee and donuts from 6 to 8 and no one stopped in for free coffee and donuts. i think that people just don't notice the marque. don't get it but whatever. i woke up late today. got up at six ten or so and ran for the restaurant. i learned that you can set up the front in about fifteen minutes. we only had two people this morning. and they got coffee, one got bacon and one got toast. jes just relieved me at like 3:oo. oh and my car broke again. i think i'm gonna kick it's ass. once i figure out how to kick a cars ass. i don't think it's easy. okay well i want to get some outside shizzy dizun today.
Peace Nillas,
Kyle A. Clark

Okay, survived another day. worked in the restaurant again yesterday, working in the restaurant today, most likely working in the restaurant tomorrow. Ummmm........you know what just assume that i live in the restaurant. I don't mind though saw our ad yesterday. awesome. it's small but hey it's not the size that counts. we did a good buisness yesterday which is a little surprizing because we ran out of gas on sunday and had to close for a few days. i'm really hoping things work out for us. we've put a lot of work in here. i'm not saying i feel entitled to good fortune or anything, but man i'm not gonna argue when it comes my way. paul, jes, and terry went down to see paul's grandmother or something not sure. they're supposed to be coming back sometime either today or tomorrow. my guess is tomorrow. well i'm out.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

Word my sniggies. how we doing? lost the g*d damn internet. ever notice how on t.v. they always bleep out god and not damn. don't get it but what ever. yesterday i learned how to make sour kraut. a customer told me. you take a large crok (however you spell that) and it's 1/2 pound of pickling salt to 20 pounds of shredded cabbage. you lay down one layer then another and alternate. it all gets shoved down with a bat or board. then you put something heavy on top like rocks or garbage bags full of water. wait a couple of weeks and bam. thought i'd share that. anyways we now have propane again which is good. our advertising will be out either today or tomorrow. awesome. also we will be open for breakfast starting monday. that's cool but it means long days until we can hire a few employs. i just hope we can find some reasonable people. i'm sure we can. well i believe it's about time to get over to le restaurante. didn't know i could speak french.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

Thank You Lisbon

Events around here go about the same as anywhere, we get going and something comes along to put us back a couple of spaces. That is no never mind though, because I know we are fighting the good fight here, and we will win. A few have expressed their support and as long as it continues, we will know that we are in the right. We begin negotiations next week, and hopefully that will provide some sort of stability to the operations. The gardens this year were not what we would have liked them to be, but we have some stuff in and we are working towards finishing other objectives. With a stable income from the restaurant we will be able to afford the cost, and that will provide the stability we need to continue to fight through the entanglement. We have begun an advertising campaign and we will be getting an article out into the papers soon, so we will get wider exposure. Once we have negotiated a more favorable contract, we will then be able to progress into the development stages.

We appreciate the support everyone has given us, and we hope they will continue to watch what happens here, because this is just the beginning. A location such as this is more than just a farm in the community, but an institution of the community. We realize it belongs just as much to the St. Lawrence community as it does to Mahlon, or eventually us. Because of this we expect to create a community space, a place that not only remembers what it once was, but one that also projects an example of what is possible when the community puts their support into a project. We are planning to build a grist mill here next year, as well as install three or four (depending on the results of our studies) wind generators, all that will help us to make the farm truthfully sustainable (therefore a decrease in resource consumption), and a better neighbor. We are also working on re-building much of what was once part of the original farm, such as the sugar shack, and the Inn. We are seeking to bring in lots of period talent, including entertainment and educational events that will perhaps help others to become more sustainable.

I unfortunately have my own battles to fight about the concept of what Organic and sustainable means, but we use the word sustainable in that it sustains rather than as Mahlon has in the past, as a synonym for Organic. The term Organic is highly debatable, and I have done as much for quite some time, having co-owned a business with my wife that makes natural personal care products. Note that I said natural, not Organic, as members of the Organic Consumers Association and with adherence to their policies of disclosure, we have chosen only to identify those products that are 100% Organic by the IFOAM standards as Organic, and that we will continue to work to keep this standard meaningful. We have made this commitment, however it is easier to accept produce as Organic, as the very nature of it is easier to determine. Soil samples taken at regular intervals, as well as accurate records of amendments and other processes that occur on the farm can provide sufficient data that the produce produced from the farm can be termed Organic with a certainty that is backed by good records. However I know records can be falsified, and test results can be skewed, but we hope that the general consensus will believe that we have the right intentions and would not attempt to mislead. If for some reason our produce does not fulfill the criteria, we would sell it just the same (or use it), but we would not use the Certified Organic label, although I am certain that others might.

This is an awful lot of stuff, so I have to get on with the day, and hopefully achieve some improvement along the way. Stop by and just say hello, or have a cup of coffee with us, we would love to talk about your ideas, and pass a few minutes in remembering the past, so we might get a better picture of what the future could be. If we don't acknowledge the past we are doomed to repeat it, so help us to remember what was once, and we will do our best to honor it as it should be.

Thank you St. Lawrence for giving us this opportunity, and thank you especially to Lisbon, a fair town who has taken us into their numbers, now we will try to win their hearts.

-James-

To the Saint Lawrence Community;

Events have unraveled at the Iroquois Farm. Details are not available, due to our involvement in a law suit; however we will be posting more information after the court date. I am not certain but I do believe it is in a public court room, so those that are interested can attend. It is Tuesday July 25, 2006 at 7:30pm in the Lisbon Town Court. We are taking Mahlon on, and we will be fighting to remain at the Iroquois Farm, we would appreciate any support that we can get. There are additional details about the farm, but for now we are fully immersed in building our case. We will have the restaurant open Wednesday July 26, 2006, for our normal hours. We will also be open seven days a week starting next Monday, August 1st from 6am until 9pm, serving breakfast through dinner. We thank you that have provided us with your support, and hope that you will all continue to allow us to serve you in the future. Maholn Clements has been able to run his operations as he pleased for years and we will not go without a fight, we would appreciate any support from the community that we can obtain, especially financial assistance to help fund our legal defense. More will be coming.

From: James
Of the Iroquois Farm,
Tilden Stage Inn,
And the Country Garden Restaurant

Howdy y'all. so we ran out of propane. awesome. actually no it kinda sucks. i mean i wanted to get out early yesterday but not that way. anyway watering, and more watering. every morning. cleaning today in the restaurant. cause it's monday. yay. we have people in the cabins they apparently come every year. crazy man. mahlon kinda screwed them on the deal. cause they've got like five or six water crafts. jet ski's and stuff. i don't know what kind of a person mahlon is outside of buisness deals it almost seems like he could be a decent guy. but man i don't know. alright that's all.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

It's kyle, what's up? working and stuff. got out of the restaurant yesterday but i ended up in the car for a few hours. didn't get as much done as i would like. today i didn't get much done either i was raking for a good part of the day. allow me to correct i didn't get what i wanted to get done, done. i've got to work in the restaurant in about an hour. well i hope everything is going to work out around here. it's a little freaky worrying about what is going to happen but we'll see. got to go.
Peace,
Kyle

Hey, so I've been in the restaraunt for the last few days. it just gets a little frustrating sometimes no big. my car decided to be a dick yesterday. it's had a problem for a while but yesterday it just decided it had, had enough and stopped working. next time i buy from a dealership. we think it's the fuel pump. i know nothing about cars. i hope buisness picks up. we have our air conditioner working. kind of. we still need to work with it a bit. well other than that nothing new in my life.
Peace,
Kyle

Hey me again. outside yesterday. pretty cool, but i was also pretty lazy yesterday. didn't get much done. it was nice and yet it pisses me off. one of my problems is i'll do something then try to move on to something else i can't always figure out what i need to do or how to do it. i worry to much that i'm going to be wrong and i am really lacking in the self-confidnce department. when you start doing something and assume you're either doing it wrong or doing the wrong thing chances are you're not going to stick with it that long. whatever, wierd mood.
Peace,
Kyle

Kyle again, had a fun day yesterday. we got some buisness which is cool. some repeat buisness as well. even cooler. practicing my juggling i miss it. got out my pins. i am out of practice. brandon and i were trying to get down a cross with two people. we can both do a three ball cascade. he's a little better with mill's mess than i am. i'm gonna start practicing out front. so if you happen to see me stop for a chat or maybe some food? just saying. tomorrow, tomorrow it's monday tomorrow it's only a twelve away. day out of the restuarant. ah-boh-ah-yah. all right well other than that i don't have much to say. i was gonna put a picture up but i am computer retarded so i'll have to have someone else help me out.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

Well the hammer came down, and now we begin mounting a legal defense. Mahlon has decreed that we have defaulted, when in reality we have 30 days to correct breech of material, as does he. Anyway, we are looking to mount a legal defense and hope to at least come out with a new contract, if not a purchase contract. We see the lawyer soon, and we will know then where we stand. There are many who would like us to win this fight, and we will fight because it is worth it. I believe no one has fought Mahlon, therefore he feels that we also will just walk away. We will fight, because we can do good things here, and we will not give up without exercising our right to dispute. Of course we are nearly broke, and business isn't picking up fast enough to make up the difference. We will be trying to raise capital for our legal defense. Some of this will come from a few concerts that we are trying to organize. If anyone out there has any other ideas, or would like to contribute please call the Iroquois Farm or Country Garden Restaurant.

Otherwise, today after being served with the papers from Mahlon, we began speaking about the options. Further, I am concerned about some of our members, they may be getting scared. We are going to be working on the private space by the water this week, because we will need it. The gardens are what they are going to be, and the Organic ones just need to be planted out. We have too much debt to profit ratio, but that will change soon, I hope. I need more time to be able to network, but that may come this week. There have been several people that have expressed interest in helping us, so maybe this is the right thing. My last few post were kind of depressing, but I am not infallible. I get back on the horse, and strive to ride at least a few more miles until the nest time that nothing seems to be working. The plans I have are all scattered, and it may take me at least another week to put it down on paper, but that is the next step.

We hope to get a few grants and loans to really get the ball rolling, and if anyone wants to help us out there, lend a hand with the accounting, or anything else in the financial area, we would be appreciative.

Kyle is working hard, despite his reservations, although he tries to hide it. Mary is afraid but she has learned to trust the truth. Arleta is starting to feel a little better, which is great for business, because we will have deserts again. I give Jess credit, her cake was good, and she was nervous, once she gets a little confidence, she could really start to cook well. She still has while to learn to think on her feet, but it better that she keeps to asking for advice until it comes natural. The key to being good is that you don't think about it, you do it, because you have had too adapt so many other times. Paul, well he is still a bit lame, but his body will heal, if he allows himself to. He is fighting an internal battle, and yet he continues to live in it. He does well with instruction, but is yet to learn the lesson of shift. I feel I need to take more time with him to learn to shift. I myself am just tired, trying to live on a couple of hours a night sleep, and till function. It will be hard to let my guard down now because there is so much I must do, and I am the pivot point here for now. I would like to find a few wealthy partners who could see our vision (my vision) and assist us in realizing it. This might come from doing the business plan, but most likely it will come from some one who happens to take an interest in our story and pitches in to make this happen for their own reasons. We will be going to press after talking to the lawyer, but for now it is safe to say that we will continue to make progress, and work to contribute to the community as we can, as soon as we can.

Thank you everyone...

-James-

Hey me again. didn't post yesterday oh well. nothing new or exciting over here just keeping it real. i try and find things to do while i'm in the restaurant. buisness still isn't the best and i'm designated front end. i don't mind. it would rule if we could get some real traffic going through the place though. i try and find things to do but i don't like being out of the dining area. i was working a bit downstairs testerday but every time i heard a noise upstairs i ran up and just got sick of running the stairs. paul took over the evening watering cause i can't do it being in the restaurant til ten. that's good though i wanted some else to take some of the watering. oh i can't remember if i told you the sprinklers, total bust. they suck, hardcore. so i' laying soak hose once i figure how i should do it. see the side garden is all shaped like a mze and stuff which mkes it hard to lay the hose in it what with corners and all that jazz. well i want to get some weeding in bfore i go into the restaurant.
Peace,
Kyle

Yet another day at the Iroquois Farm, can’t say how many more there will be. We are out of money, and business has slowed to nothing, almost. I would like to take this time to thank all who have come to the restaurant and bed and breakfast in the past three months. I hope you received great service and great food, because that is what we want to provide. We want to turn the place around and continue to provide this community with a service that is above the rest, and we will until we can no longer. Mahlon is probably processing our eviction at this time, but we may obtain some financial assistance at any time, so we don’t worry about that, right now.

We are going to begin to offer lunch delivery to local (Waddington) businesses this coming week. We are also going to be open for breakfast this coming week, provided that Arleta gets to feeling a little better. Not everything has gone according to plan, but then again very little ever goes according to plan, but we have adapted most times. We need to do some good business this weekend to make up the losses we had earlier this week.

Paul hurt himself, and that took him out for a few days. He has had trouble with his knee for quite some time and it gave out when he found some unstable grates in the barn. We have almost gotten the barn cleaned out, it may be a few more weeks before we can get it completed, but we are on the way. We need to complete the fencing work on the north east paddock, to accept the animals, but we are close to that. We may be able to get some sheep and goats before long and if the financial help arrives soon we will be able to purchase more animals, including the Morgan horses.

We hope to form a not for profit (501c3) in the next two weeks, and we will offer shares to the community to purchase interest in the farm. We don’t have the details yet but they will be determined soon. We are hoping to contact a lawyer who will help us to fight the lease, and turn it into a purchase contract, as we would like to change this into a land trust, and continue to build value within the community for years to come. Any interested parties can contact us at 315-393-6252 to discuss the plans for membership, and or to help us with our current situation.

We are still working on the few remaining parts of the outdoor stage, and getting the indoor stage set-up, but we are closer now. We are also still searching for entertainment, but so far no luck from the local scene. We will continue this, but we also are looking to bring in acts from other areas that will be new to the area.

Everyone is working hard to make this work, and we hope to be able to provide them with greater compensation in the future, as we should to anyone who helps us. We are also getting prepared to build the special place, a space designed for meditation and contemplation that will hopefully balance the members. It seems like we can’t get enough done in a day, but maybe that is perception more than anything.

Got to go and start other work, will write more later. I am going to try to get more written throughout the days now, and updates as they come along, or at least that’s the hope.

Still standing…

-James-

Well it’s been something, but I am too exhausted to continue any longer. Right now I just want to walk away, start over somewhere else. The unfortunate fact is I can’t. I have put everything into this project, as has everyone involved. We can not find the finances to make another month, or to continue, so we must consider the consequences. I will be in contact with a lawyer next week in the hopes that we can force some type of action to stall long enough to obtain the financing to purchase either this property or one that is of equivalent value. We have an opportunity here to do some real good work, not just for ourselves, but also for the community, but not under the current conditions. There were so many plans I wanted to make happen. I really wanted to turn it around into the sustainable agribusiness it should be. A part of the community that the community could be proud of, but that seems as though it is not to be. I owe too much to turn back, so what do I do now? If anyone wants to suggest anything, I am open to any assistance.

-James-

whelp finally did it. up at six. it was definitly everything i could have hoped for and more. i got up and did a short pilates set. very short cause i can't remember much about them. pilates is a series of stretches created by joe pilate. i guess the story goes something along the lines of he wasn't supposed to be able to walk and decided to show everyone they were wrong. anyways it is a great stretching exercise if you ever get a chance to go to a seminar or what not i would jump on that shizzy. but basically yesterday was the same old same old got up watered then worked up front all day. i have got to find more to do when we don't have customers. oh james is making breakfast today. same thing i made yesterday except minus the words undercooked, gooey, and probably mickey mouse. he told me that i forgot a leavener or something like that. basically i couldn't find the baking powder. no big, people still ate them. oh paul hurt his knee. i'm not sure what he did but his knee sucks anyway so it's not surprizing. he went to the hospital and stuff, we'll see how long he keeps the stabalizer on. i give him like three days before it starts to tweak him. well i think i'm about spent word wise.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

Hello. been a few days what's going on. not to terribly much here. fought with the sprinklers and lost. so now i get to play sprinkler. i got all the watering done in like an hour today awesome. then i made breakfast. undercooked bacon and slighlty gooey mickey mouse pancakes. there is a reason i'm front end. tried getting up at six again today. i got up wandered around downstairs and then reset my clock and went back to bed. yesterday i ended up making it downstairs but falling asleep on the couch. if i just take it slow i'll make it eventually. four months ago i called anything before ten an ungodly hour in the morning now i want to see the good end of six. What? ridiculous. well anyway, i'm up front today so i better go.
Peace,
Kyle

Morning, well i tried getting up earlier than i usually do. it didn't work out. i use a two alarm system one next to my head to wake me up then one a minute later across the room to get me up. i woke up resest my clocks and went back to bed i guess i'll try for six tomorrow. yestersday was good, for me atleast. not that much buisness in the restaurant but i was outside all day. i cut some wood, put plants in the ground, watered, made firewood bundles, did i do anything else? oh yeah i sharpened up the blades on this tractor mower thing i think the brand is like a bush hog or something. i don't know what equipment is called. but james was using it and asked me to sharpen it. he wasn't so much cutting the grass with it as bludgeoning it. Oi alright time to start doing stuff.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

yizo, it is now saturday morning round abot seven, to recap my day yesterday. I finished relaying the soak hose in the whatever garden, watered the plants and then was in the restuarant all day. God Damnit. but today i hope to lay more in the our kitchen garden and then i'm not sure what i'm doing. man i just hope everything works out for. people aren't relly getting along that well and that worries me. everyone needs to just set aside what is bugging them, that or get over it. i don't know. i wish i could solve the problem but i have no idea how. it's funny, it's only when everyone is disgruntled that i get worried about this place. i mean we got plenty to worry about but i just try and be positive and not stress over what i can't change. oh yah cutting wood that was the other thing i was going to do. well if jay's not over at the restaurant i'm gonna go cook breakfast.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

So i think i'm going to start posting the morning after. that way my brain is firing up instead of winding down. i got some soak hose in yesterday. i'm going to try and finish it before i have to go into the restaurant. i had a split day yesterday. the first part was spent ibn the fields, then i played driver so arleta could get justin some clothes. i didn't find any shorts....damn. my mother showed up and had to have me wait on her so that at up like an hour. she's stopping by again today. then i got back out to try and finish the hose. then into the restaurant to work til close. we didn't get much buisness which is odd for a thursday dinner but we did all right during the day. and today i don't have to shut down the restaurant. AWESOME. i mean i don't mind shutting down. it's just i've done it for like a week now. one thing that is odd, at one point had two jobs right. this a few years ago. i hated my life, barely got to see my girl, no me time, never a full day off. I could complain about all the same things now but the thing is i'm happy at the moment. i'm working with some of my favorite people there are some that i would add but not that i would subtract. but it doesn't seem like everyone else is happy about our situation. i mean sure it's not ideal but when has it ever been? i just don't understand why everyone seems so miserable. i doesn't really matter i guess not to the point were i'll try and rectify the situation at least. i'm not sure i could anyway. well that's it for me.
Peace Out,
Kyle A. Clark

This morning we got a late start, and I don't know why, I was up early enough. Just seems some days nothing gets going. I was in the restaurant most of the morning. Spent a few moments trimming grass in the B&B garden, but didn't really get much else done outside. Today was not as good as I would have liked it to be, but I think things are starting to get better. We are facing a non payment this month on our rent, because other bills have mounted, and need to be paid, but we will hopefully find someone who will help us out. What we need is a few of entertainers around here to come over and agree to do a show. One problem is the cabins, because if people are staying there they think we have to give them all this space, but we believe it is our space, well anyways it doesn't matter.

Everything is been about the restaurant lately, and we need to focus on so much. Any volunteers or others that would like to contribute in any way, just jump in.

Now to the state of the people here. My wife Arleta is battling a serious infection of the lymph glands, and that devastates myself, and makes life more difficult here. Kyle as always is working along, if he has been rather light lately, maybe he is running down a bit. Mary is starting to pick up a bit, but she still needs encouragement, although giving her more to do, especially in the area of administration seem to help some. Jessica is still fighting her urban desires and misconceptions of modern life, but that will fade as she begins to understand the truth of her being here. Paul, well, that remains to be seen if he will make sacrifices and strides to fit the hand to wheel.

New projects have taken back, there will be no water wheel this year, maybe not even a potters wheel, and kiln, but I at least hope to get the wind plant and the forge in place by fall, there is too much to do to spend much more time on this here, so I will try to keep writing in bits and pieces.

Mahlon seems to have left us now, except he is ever at the door, at least until we can figure a way to arrange the financial backing to purchase the property from him.

Well that's all for now, please post any comments as we can't get out much, but we really appreciate the comments anyhow.

Haven't posted for a few days. sorry. working in the restaurant and for the last few days not doing nearly as much as i should have. you ever just know that you should be working or you need to be doing this or that and for some damn reason you don't? well that's the way it's been, i've been an ass. i mean when working in the restaurant there's not to much you can do but sit and wait for people. there are a few little things but not to much. i usually make hemp bracelets. i just don't know why but i've been a lazy ass for the last two days and it annoys me. i've got to work harder cause really here if we don't do it no one will.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

Well lets see, this morning I made oatmeal for breakfast, and then began building beds in f2. There is a lot of work to do, and I am ultimately running out of people who will do the work. Half the time they are resting, because this is hard work for city folk. We are not taking in enough money to cover the expenses, but we are taking in more money. We will be hosting a few benefits for both the farm and a few well deserving charities. We are also trying to make arrangements for entertainment at the restaurant. Today we saw our first repeat customers, and more local customers. We had a fair Wednesday, one of the best we have had, but not enough to really warrant the cost yet. We are struggling, especially since my wife Arleta is ill with a serrious infection. She is our best cook and baker, and now we are down on our best selling point the cakes and pies. We will pull it out, but I am not sure how. We need about $3400.00 by the 15th to pay our immediate bills and save the farm. I don't know there was more, but for now I will sign off.

Thanks;
-James-

Definitely check this article (http://outside.away.com/outside/features/200605/james-howard-kunstler-oil-1.html) out. It has some very interesting information, if a bit alarmist.
The farm has suffered some very serious set backs lately.

Work proceeds, and we are making progress in the barns, but the restaurant has suffered stale growth. We really need to up the patronage, to make it more profitable. The costs of the farm are more than the farm can support at this time, but the future it will change. This fall we will do better if the crops produce well. We really need to find financial backing for the immediate, to have the cash position to margin the harvest.

There is so much work yet to be done. We have to build energy plants, craft (trade) shops and the rest of the community. In the coming weeks I will attempt to detail with greater clarity not only that which is occurring, but also what is our plans. This hopefully will entertain as well as educate all who find themselves interested.

Thank you, and good evening…
-James-

Ummmm.......so ah it's getting better. Another day in the retaurant. tomorrow is a day out of the rizzy. working on my mullberry catcher tomorrow. i hope it works out. it will one way or another. i just want to be outside for a day. i go in at like nine or ten a.m. and get out around ten or eleven p.m. not everyday but often. fortunatly jes and i will start switching on and off soon. okay, tired, night.
Peace,
Kyle A. Clark

James called me a newbie cause i use italics and sheezy. So this is my answer to that. Melon Farmer.
Peace,
Kyle

Power went out. it's was cool though cause the generator actually worked today so we didn't lose food like last time. ah-boo-ah-yah. i noticed something while sitting and waiting for customers, people don't want to go to lunch on saturday they want to shop. we have antiques but people don't really want antiques as much as they want amish crafts. we don't really have any amish crafts. the way i figure it is, if we can get people to buy something we can get people to buy lunch or at least coffee and dessert. homemade desserts by the way. we should probably do like some pastries or something. i don't know. i'm out homs.
Peace,
Kyle