Another Goal

As many of you know, I donate beef every year to shelters and food banks. Part of my original (and ongoing) mission statement for Star Brand Beef is that quality, healthy food should be accessible, not a luxury item. This is why I strive to keep my prices low (up to 50% less than the big organic grocery stores), and why I donate beef to those who need some extra help. These annual donations are a mere drop in the ocean of need, but even small acts have a big effect on those they touch, and I believe the energy of sharing has a ripple effect. In fact, I know this is true. I know it because I was on the receiving end of no-strings-attached assistance last year, in the midst of my health baloney, and it was an incredibly profound experience.

You donated to me when I was dealing with surgery and a terribly drawn-out recuperation and all the bills that went with it. I haven’t written much about this, but the truth is: I cannot remember a time when I felt as victimized as I did by those medical bills. It took nearly a full year and a lot of self-psychoanalysis to let go of that feeling of victimization. And the generosity of the donations I received here, as hard as that was for me to allow, helped enormously in my healing – both psychologically and financially. At the time, I wrote of the circle of sharing. And, at the time, I felt incredibly uncomfortable in the position of receiving. I am so glad I opened myself up to it, though, because receiving that help – that care – made an impact that went far beyond the acute issue. That impact didn’t fade when the bills began to go away. It’s similar to how I felt on my Vespa trip, when people opened their homes to me – a stranger in leather – over and over again, all the way across the country. On both occasions, these acts of generosity and kindness changed my worldview, and have affected the core of who I am and who I want to be in this world.

A lot of you mentioned “sharing” in the comments of my Caveman Motivations post. Which is exactly what I meant by kindness – whether it’s sharing a smile or sharing a meal or sharing a percentage of one’s income. I look at the state of the U.S. and the world and one thing is clear to me: kindness is a political act. Generosity is a political act. Sharing is a revolutionary act. The circle is real, and we are ALL part of it. It feels so good to receive, when you need assistance. And it feels so good to give! So this year, I am launching a fundraiser to benefit the people served by The Food Bank of the Rockies, and am inviting you to join me in donating quality, healthy beef to those who need a little extra help right now.

You can check out the fundraiser and donate HERE. I’m dreaming big with another $10,000 goal! All donations will be pooled and 100% of the money raised will go towards pastured, grass-finished beef which shall be donated to The Food Bank of the Rockies to help fight hunger.

I am matching donations to $10,000.

A $10,000 goal: that’s a $10 donation from a thousand people – and more than a thousand people visit this site daily. WE CAN DO THIS. Together! The more donations we gather, the more beef we can donate to people and families who need help with meals. Donations may be made and tracked HERE. No donation is too small – they all work together and have a BIG impact.

{{I’m not using Kickstarter this time; Crowdrise is just as legit, geared towards charitable fundraising, and they only take 3% commission/fees vs the 8%-10% of Kickstarter & Indigogo, which means much more goes straight to the goal.}}

Thank you, always and forever.
Click HERE to donate.

Caveman Motivations

The other day, my mind wandered into wondering about the motivations of early humans. Here’s the list I came up with, in order of priority:

To make their lives
• safer
• easier
• more secure
• more convenient
• more beautiful
• more meaningful (to find/define the meaning)

And then I wondered what has changed. And then I realized NOTHING HAS CHANGED. Nothing has changed, in regards to general human motivations, in 50,000+ years. The technology with which we attempt to achieve them has changed (vastly and drastically), but our incentives? Still the same as cavemen.

And then I decided to assume, for the sake of a mind game, that these motivations are no longer sound. Let’s say we’ve solved them, wholly and completely and permanently. I decided to try to see if I could:

TO MAKE OUR LIVES SAFER: Einstein said, “The most important decision we make is whether we believe we live in a friendly or hostile universe.” Platitudes can be found in many religions, spiritualities, and philosophies which all boil down to “you are always safe (if you believe).” I say “platitudes” because it is hard for me to reconcile the words “you are always safe” when juxtaposed against the facts of this speech and this book and this story and the truth that I could continue this list of examples for pages. So let’s circle back to this one.

TO MAKE OUR LIVES EASIER: “Easier” isn’t a sustainable thing. What if we collectively let go of wanting things to be easy all the time. I’m taking this back to the premise of my commencement address: you can’t avoid pain. It does not matter how much money one has or how much power one has or how much love or how much sex or how many awards – these things do not magically make people exempt from pain and difficulty. To attempt a life of permanent easiness that is free from pain is futile, and therefore a waste of time, energy, and opportunity. So let’s take EASIER off the list.

TO MAKE OUR LIVES MORE SECURE: “The illusion of safety” is a concept my aunt and I came up with right before my cross-country Vespa ride. I did not have room to bring a tent. And I didn’t want to bring mace because I didn’t know how the pressurized canister would handle the extreme heat and elevation changes of my ride (I didn’t want it to explode on me). And my aunt and I came to realize that “tent” and “mace” do not guarantee safety, or even do much to mitigate potential harm the way my helmet and leathers did. And even my helmet and leathers didn’t guarantee my safety. We want guarantees so badly and we just don’t get them. Perhaps a better term is “the illusion of control.” The ancient Greeks called it the “caprice of the Gods,” and built their entire mythology around it. I have an IRA and I wear my seat belt and I recommend both, but they don’t guarantee anything. So let’s take SECURITY off the list.

TO MAKE OUR LIVES MORE CONVENIENT: Convenience is killing us. I decided this when I was living in the cabin, which was glorified camping, especially through six Wyoming winters. I didn’t have a furnace and I had to chop wood for the woodstove and haul water from the horse trough but I was in excellent shape, just from living – I got strong because I didn’t have a button on the wall to make my hovel warm. And while I wouldn’t really wish that kind of lifestyle on anyone, nor on myself at age 50-plus, going from furnace-heated-house to car to elevator to office to sofa to bed with some take out meals in the middle is not great for our health. So let’s take CONVENIENT off the list.

TO MAKE OUR LIVES MORE BEAUTIFUL: I love art, I make art, and, in my opinion, music is utter magic. But we’ve got nuthin’ on Mother Nature – her work is the best. I don’t NEED jewelry when I have a sunrise. So let’s accept that there is BEAUTY all around us all the time and take that off the list, too.

TO ASSIGN MEANING TO OUR LIVES: I may have become a bit cynical after so much loss and death in the past few years, or maybe I’ve become more realistic, but I’ve come to think that so much of the meaning we try to assign to our lives (and to death) are bedtime stories for grownups. Stories we tell ourselves to feel better, to feel less out of control, perhaps to guide but mostly to comfort. Here’s the meaning I’ve assigned everything at this point: all we have is right now, and we really don’t know f*ck-all about any of it. So that takes MEANING off the list.

And then I wondered what’s left. If we can go back to the first point of safety and determine that we are not in imminent danger, and everything else on the list of caveman motivations has been refuted, what could motivate us? What WOULD motivate us?

And I decided the answer is KINDNESS. Kindness to others.

Vonnegut was right: “There’s only one rule that I know of, babies – God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.”

And if we were able to do this, REALLY were able to, collectively… the first point of safety would be granted to so many who don’t have it now.

It’s been interesting, fun, and disturbing to analyze myself since going on this mind trip – my thoughts, my choices, my actions – am I leading with a caveman motivation or am I leading with kindness? It is a work in progress.

Lilacs & Evening Light

My Kickstarter ended Friday and was funded at over 200%! HUGE love and thanks for sharing and supporting my Kickstarter, Star Brand Beef, and the revolution against feedlots and factory farms. The Kickstarter has been a catalyst for a lot of discussion and thought, which is powerful – sometimes uncomfortable, always good. There is much more to share, but right now I’m off to Thermopolis (quite possibly the best town name ever, after Shreve, Ohio) for speech therapy (this voice is still a work in progress) and a soak in the hot springs….

Sid. And So Much More.

I’m sitting on the kitchen floor, writing this on the blank back page of the phone book. I have a calf in my kitchen, and I’ve spent the majority of the weekend on the kitchen floor, myself. I’ve lost count of how many calves I’ve rescued or bottle fed or warmed back to life with towels and a warm fire, but each time, it feels like the most special responsibility.

This calf was born Saturday morning, a twin, and his mother only accepted one calf (which is normal). Mike delivered the calf to me, saying “I know you’re so busy but can you take care of this?” And I was like, “Forget work! Forget email! Forget my Kickstarter! Give me that baby!” And I spent the weekend on the kitchen floor, first drying off the baby with towels, then warming some of my frozen stash of Daisy’s colostrum to bottle-feed him every few hours, then brushing him with a horse brush, then…. I don’t even know. It’s easy to just be with a baby.

I put Chloe on babysitting duty when I managed to tear myself away and retreat to my office. Chloe is slightly smaller than the calf and absolutely in love with him. She licks his face when he is awake and sleeps beside him when he sleeps. I feel it’s important he’s not left completely alone the first few days. This week, he’ll move into the front yard, and later he’ll join the rest of the cows – but I will keep bottle-feeding him.

Yesterday, Mike and were talking about how we wish he could be a kitchen calf forever, and possible names, and he mentioned Sid. Which I loooove. This is Sid. His eyes are iridescent gray.

Totally and completely related: Animal Cruelty Is The Price We Pay For Cheap Meat. If you eat meat, please read this. If you’re vegan and don’t understand why I started Star Brand Beef, please read this. My animals are deeply loved and I care for them with devotion. My mission in life is to give them a stress-free life. To make sure they are able to roam free on pasture and stay healthy on their natural diet of grass and hay. Star Brand Beef is the antithesis of factory-farmed meat. Pay a little bit more, eat a little bit less, and make a HUGE difference in the lives of the animals and the industry at large. Customers create change.

Mike was at the brewery and ran into a man who runs a feedlot in a neighboring town. This man was furious about the “all natural grass fat” trend. He said it was affecting his business. When Mike told me this I jumped for joy. Because I am no longer the only one around here doing what I’m doing. There are now a number of other local ranchers building their own niche businesses and keeping their cattle from going to feedlots. The fact that this kind of change is happening in my rural Wyoming county, to the extent that the local (albeit small) feedlot is feeling the effect? This is THRILLING.

HERE is my Star Brand Beef delivery route. Get yourself a chest freezer. Order the best, in bulk. Trust me, you’ll never go back to grocery store meat.

My Kickstarter ends Friday! If you would like any of the rewards – the postcard pack, the silk cowboy scarf, the Wyoming care package, a hand-painted skull – BACK THE KICKSTARTER! I will not, repeat, will not have these items in my Shop after the Kickstarter! Or, if you’d like to adopt a cow, you can do that through my Kickstarter, too. Sid is a perfect example. He will never be Star Brand Beef because milk replacer (baby formula for calves) is not organic. He will never be sold into The System because I just can’t do that. He will be among our Special Project cattle. As I state in my Kickstarter: They each take on valuable roles within the herd. This isn’t a “cost efficient” way to run a ranch (because it’s part animal sanctuary), but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

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1) I was out saying hello to the horses and by the time I got to Kota, he was lying down. So I tentatively lowered myself onto his back, not knowing if he’d let me sit on him like the cows do, and he was happy to have me there. I braided his mane and rubbed his neck, and then – then! – he lay all the way down – head flung back with his cheek in the dirt – and fell asleep. With me sitting on top of him for the first time. Why are animals able to trust us so much more completely than we trust eachother?

2) Latest obsession: peppermint honey. This does not taste like peppermint candy – it’s almost savory. It is rich and deep and very hard to describe, but the difference between this honey and wildflower honey is like the difference between caramel and granulated sugar. It is divine.

3) Latest reefer fantasy: a VW bus-truck with a reefer box in the back. There are many reasons why this can never happen, primarily a) not enough room, b) even if there were enough room, the rear axle couldn’t handle the weight, c) even if the rear axle could handle the weight, vintage VW buses are way outside my budget. But wouldn’t it be the cutest?

4) Without fail, every time I garden, I draw blood. I do not understand this. Vespa-ing cross country? Cuddling a coyote? Riding a bull? Chopping wood drunk? Nary a scratch. But gardening leaves me bleeding on a daily basis.

5) Hibiscus sun tea: one scant handful of dried hibiscus flowers + one gallon jar of H2O + one sunny day. Store this hot pink elixir in the fridge and guzzle after sweaty, bloody gardening sessions. Sweeten with simple syrup if the tea is too tart for your taste. So much better than Monsanto juice (aka pop, aka soda).