The urge to grow

[puppet]

I once met an 80 year old person who was still playing 3 grounds of golf a week and I keep meeting 80+ year olds who are still living full and active lives. Your age is merely how many times you have been around the Sun.

Our local club relies on over 80s for income.

 

[Whitewalker]

Like the old saying" I have something you'll never have ......... enough"

 

[Henarar]

I once met an 80 year old person who was still playing 3 grounds of golf a week and I keep meeting 80+ year olds who are still living full and active lives. Your age is merely how many times you have been around the Sun.

If someone went to mars for a year they will be nearly a year younger than they would have been

 

[Derrick Hughes]

I think if i stopped it would be the end of me

 

[farmerm]

View attachment 1139597

A medieval peasant would work a 16 hour day and probably be working on their own home, collecting firewood, growing, storing and preparing their own food, foraging, doing laundry, mending clothes and sitting in Church during much of the "mandatory" holiday.. not skipping off for a jolly on a Ryanair flight to Benadorm, on and have a life expectancy of only 40.... I hope things with Russia do not go nuclear or your wish to return to medieval living might soon be an unpleasant reality!

 

[steveR]

70 is not old and 60 certainly is not, either.

Even in old age you need a schedule and a reason to get out of bed.

If you don't use your brain and skeleton daily- it'll decline a lot faster.

Follow the Rupert Murdoch, Jeff Bezos technique of "staying young" then?

Trophy wife, 30 years younger....

 

[steveR]

Follow the Rupert Murdoch, Jeff Bezos technique of "staying young" then?

Trophy wife, 30 years younger....

Mind you, this does pre-suppose enough wealth to pay off ex wives in divorces every few years....

 

[Cowcorn]

Last night i watched a video on you tube .
Farming diary with Oliver Walston visiting Germany in 1983 after the introduction of milk qoutas .
The first farmer Oliver interviewed was considered a big farmer milking 80 cows the average was 15 in the area .
Farmers were largely part time and all the politicans were singing from the same hymn sheet on the importance ot maintaining the rural economy and supporting small and medium sized farms .
The social element was very much considered a public good and politicans were adamant that maintaining farm numbers was a priority with qoutas now limiting production .
Oliver of course mentioned the British farmer with much larger herds but when he was talking to the manager of the local milk plant it was revealed that the small German farmers were been paid about 18p a litre while the efficent British farmer was on 11p
Now can anyone see the connection .....
Love you still Oliver and many thanks to David for putting so many of your past glories up on you tube its good to look back and realise nothing really changes just reappears wearing new clothes .

 

[som farmer]

A medieval peasant would work a 16 hour day and probably be working on their own home, collecting firewood, growing, storing and preparing their own food, foraging, doing laundry, mending clothes and sitting in Church during much of the "mandatory" holiday.. not skipping off for a jolly on a Ryanair flight to Benadorm, on and have a life expectancy of only 40.... I hope things with Russia do not go nuclear or your wish to return to medieval living might soon be an unpleasant reality!

l hope you are wrong about nuclear, but l fear things could escalate extremely fast over there. Putrids been backed into a corner, and there's no knowing what mad dogs will do.

 

[Huno]

A medieval peasant would work a 16 hour day and probably be working on their own home, collecting firewood, growing, storing and preparing their own food, foraging, doing laundry, mending clothes and sitting in Church during much of the "mandatory" holiday.. not skipping off for a jolly on a Ryanair flight to Benadorm, on and have a life expectancy of only 40.... I hope things with Russia do not go nuclear or your wish to return to medieval living might soon be an unpleasant reality!

At least you are a realist! respect

 

[Huno]

l hope you are wrong about nuclear, but l fear things could escalate extremely fast over there. Putrids been backed into a corner, and there's no knowing what mad dogs will do.
At least the commodity price would rise fpr root crops in the ground is someone went "cosmic" i.e. nuclear

 

[ollie989898]

Follow the Rupert Murdoch, Jeff Bezos technique of "staying young" then?

Trophy wife, 30 years younger....

Give it a go will you and report back?

 

[steveR]

Give it a go will you and report back?

Mind you, this does pre-suppose enough wealth to pay off ex wives in divorces every few years....

Regrettably, I lack the financial wherewithal to even consider this "opportunity" that you have kindly suggested to me, even if I had the staying power or inclination* to take off with a 30yo Russian model....







* the "get out" comment in case Herself sees this post, or has it reported to her!

 

[Matt]

Warning: some elements of this post are a bit of a rant.

I think many if not all farmers assume that they need to grow their business. The mentality is that if you are not expanding, then you are standing still or even going backwards.

Where does this notion come from?

Take it to the logical extreme and you would end up with one bloody great business farming the whole country.

It's actually mania.... a kind of madness and an example of where the human race has gone completely doolally over the past two centuries. This is not the natural state of humanity. Yes there has always been competition between neighbours, but that has usually been for a resource that was needed by both parties. Now it just seems to be a dogmatic belief in "growth."

There's only one thing that grows continuously in nature. It's called a cancer and it eventually kills the host.

The endless competition with neighbours for an extra 200 acres, so we can drive down our marginal cost of production. All it does is slowly corrode our selling price and create one dimensional farm jobs lugging slurry all day or driving a cultivator all day instead of the quite enjoyable and varied life on a small farm doing all sorts of different things.

I know, I know, it's "progress." "You've got to get on."

Just remember people, you can't take it with you, and 100 years after you're dead no one will be able remember your achievements.

Enjoy your weekend people, you might drop dead tomorrow.

Its commonly talked about in dairy, a leading consultancy company say if you not expanding by something like 5% a year you are standing still.

Luckily we are not dairy.

 

[farmerm]

l hope you are wrong about nuclear, but l fear things could escalate extremely fast over there. Putrids been backed into a corner, and there's no knowing what mad dogs will do.

I hope so too.

 

[farmerm]

Regrettably, I lack the financial wherewithal to even consider this "opportunity" that you have kindly suggested to me, even if I had the staying power or inclination* to take off with a 30yo Russian model....







* the "get out" comment in case Herself sees this post, or has it reported to her!

Yes. Stay clear of the Russians, have a nice Ukrainian instead. Beer, Ukrainian beer*



*get out comment should it be required

 

[som farmer]

Its commonly talked about in dairy, a leading consultancy company say if you not expanding by something like 5% a year you are standing still.

Luckily we are not dairy.

but the leading consultancy company, only exists by telling farmers to do 'something', whether that's expansion, efficiency, nutrition, or whatever.

to stay in business, they have to advise change, if you stayed the same every year, you wouldn't need them, their business would shrink away.

is there anything wrong with a profitable business, that doesn't expand every year ? It costs money to expand, so your expansion means extra expense, so you have to make more money.


as l see it, if you are profitable, and stay in the 'same' place, without acquiring more debt, debt just fades away, its not replaced, eventually debt could be cleared, then you don't need to make more money, its your choice what you do with that money.

you could buy some bits of kit, that makes your life easier, or expand, its your choice, whatever floats your boat.

or, you could listen to those consultants, that actually need you to expand/alter/change, every year, to safe guard their income stream. Now some consultants are very good, and a great help, no denying that, but their living is made from keeping advising you. And if/once they get you functioning profitably, there is no reason for change, unless you want to.

l expect we all know farmers that just carry on, the same, year in, year out, and have plenty of money reserves. Its often better, to pay some tax, than lease/buy a bit of kit, to avoid paying it.

 

[Devil's advocate]

Go Latino if you are swiming in money

Yes. Stay clear of the Russians, have a nice Ukrainian instead. Beer, Ukrainian beer*



*get out comment should it be required

 

[som farmer]

I hope so too.

what really concerns me, is the fact that european/world wars, have always begun by events in the balkans, for the last 100+ years, and its really volatile again now.

 

[steveR]

Yes. Stay clear of the Russians, have a nice Ukrainian instead. Beer, Ukrainian beer*



*get out comment should it be required

Understood......