• Tuesday-What'sUP May 11 - 01:40 am

Farmers all over the North Country are getting ready for the busy spring planting of their various crops. Looks like Brita Haapala caught this one planting seagulls! :-> No, not really, he's most likely doing the dusty job of picking rocks, which is one of the many steps Keweenaw farmers have to take to prepare the ground before their crop can go in. Funny thing how those rocks just keep popping up year after year of removing them from the same acre of land. It truly is a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it! Bet the fellow in this shot was wishing he had a few more somebody's to help out.

That definitely isn't a fun job (years ago, my grandfather had a huge garden and we picked rocks every spring, too). The guy in the picture can surely use some help.

Ooooooooooh, looks like a nice crop of gulls again this year! They're tasty when they're young like that! Pick 'em early in the morning!

But I'll bet the ground is fertile.

Was wondering what those white specks were in today's shot. On the Bridge Cam it looks like the Keweenaw has a little something to settle the dust this morning:

Charlie, I too spotted the "Blue Houghton" pic at 6:44 and had set it as my desktop. I think it's a BEAUTIFUL picture!

The farm pic reminds me of me and my wife scrounging potatoes from Ed Kentalas farm on tamerack waterworks road after he got done picking during a Calumet an Hecla strike

Ah, the joy of picking rocks. While in high school, that was how a put a few dollars in my pockets. Had a job working for Kudwa's potatoe farm near Crystal Falls. One of our annual rituals was picking rocks before the planting of the next crop. There were times where it seemed the ground yielded more rocks than potatoes. We had a fine crop to clear every year :->

He is really feeding those gulls. He does need help.

Worked on my Uncle's strawberry farm for 15 summers and never got to pick rocks. He was one of the few farmers in the area with a mechanical rock picker. It was a sifter of sorts that would capture any rocks bigger than a baseball. Gave us more time for hoeing, weeding, blossom snipping, mulching ...

Look at all those "Dumpster Ducks"! When the farmers start working in the fields around here, the sea gulls show up by the hundreds after about 20 minutes. We are 12-15 miles from the nearest lakes, one of which is at Haslett where Charlie and Edie are staying. How do the gulls know whats happening! In my youth and early adulthood we picked rocks and put them on the stone piles around the farm. We had a 517 acre farm. Then we buried the stone piles with a backhoe. Today people pay good money for those stones! Only in America!

Happy Birthday Mary Drew!! We hope your day is going just the way you want it to.

DID ANY OF YOU PICK POTATOS AT HAMMERIES(SP) FARM BY THE CALUMET GOLF COURSE? DRAGGING THE GUNNYSACK THROUGH THE DIRT GETTING MAYBE 10 CENTS A BUSHEL?

Happy Birthday, Mary Drew!

This guy did have a partner giving him a hand. Wow, the hard work! This is the Baccus (sp?) farm in Traprock. Last year at this time, I was driving past the Keranen fields at the bottom of Koskela's Hill, and the seagulls were in one huge flock behind a farmer on his tractor as he drove slowly along, planting seed. It would've been an awesome picture if I had my camera. :)

Just put one rock on each gull. Eventually the rocks will fly away by themselves.

Anyone know where you can buy fresh, raw milk from a farm locally? Either goats or cows milk. Also fresh farm eggs? Mmmm! I love em! I will travel as far as Baraga to get them. I live in Laurium. I like to make Cheese, yogurt, and kefir, and vellia. Anyone know where I can get a vellia starter from? Remember how good that tastes?

Funny you ask for a vellia start, I just got one a couple of weeks ago, and I've been loving it! Do you want one? Email me if you do. Olgrin's on Mayflower Hill have farm fresh eggs. They're good.

Margaret, Amarillo TX said: "But I'll bet the ground is fertile."
Sure must be -- considering the way a fresh crop of rocks comes up each spring! Is that what's called a "rock garden"? Are rocks perennials?

vellia = viili -- (viilia is the partitive case of the noun viili)

Although this site refers to History of Fermented Soymilk and Its Products, it does have some useful historical information about the "true" (original) Finnish piima & viila products:

Click on the link ® Soyfoods Center: History of Fermented Soymilk and Its Products then scroll down to find the boldface heading: HISTORY OF SOYMILK PIIMA AND VIILI

Mary,Mary Did not remember when your birthday was. So Happy Birthday to you from your cousin in Colorado Hope your day was a good one.

Do you think one could make some money selling Cheerios for doughnut seeds up there?

Mary, Happy Birthday!

Very interesting article FRNash. It was called viilia at my home when I was growing up. How awful...'stretchy slime'. I never did acquire a taste for it or buttermilk!

Happy Birthday Mary Drew.

GEM Cultures in Ft. Bragg California (they are on the web) has viili culture as well as others. I bought some recently and have been making viilia and it is easy to do and tastes great.

Oh, my!! I some how stumbled upon this site while I was googling for recipes to make yogurt and when I wasn't getting much info I tried 'viilia' (remembering the bowl on my grandma's counter!) and here I am! I a Finn from Michigan, too:-) Who knew there was a site dedicated to the UP? lol Very cool!! I wasn't really reading the posts, but the pix of the Houghton/Hancock bridge caught my attention first off and now I am off to read what the other posts have to say.

Abby, Marquette:
Welcome to our slice of Heaven and here you already live in it as well !