Walsh Family Orchards
Once upon a time.... long, long ago, there lived a princess.. oops, wrong story.
My story begins about 15 years ago. My wonderful husband of 30+ years started dreaming about owning a farm. It was a dream of his to live off mother earth and to retire with a small income from the fruits of his labor. And of course being a dutiful wife, I always replied "You've got to be joking!, what about the kids, my Mom, friends yadda, yadda yadda?". Off and on he'd search the newspapers and internet for a farm. For years, I let him have his pipe dream. That far away look in his eyes was so endearing. Secretly, I never thought it would come true. Then it happened, he found a farm! A few months later, I'm living in a farm house surrounded by 34 acres of almond and olive trees in Northern California. The closest town is Orland, and I think the population is less than 5,000 .
Neither my husband or I had any experience in farming. All that I knew from farming came from books or watching TV. I had visions of me languishing on the patio quenching my thirst with mint julips. Rick's brother Mike and his wife Kathy have an almond orchard in Manteca which is a 3 hour drive from us. I recall Mike sharing his farming experiences with Rick during family gatherings.
My story begins about 15 years ago. My wonderful husband of 30+ years started dreaming about owning a farm. It was a dream of his to live off mother earth and to retire with a small income from the fruits of his labor. And of course being a dutiful wife, I always replied "You've got to be joking!, what about the kids, my Mom, friends yadda, yadda yadda?". Off and on he'd search the newspapers and internet for a farm. For years, I let him have his pipe dream. That far away look in his eyes was so endearing. Secretly, I never thought it would come true. Then it happened, he found a farm! A few months later, I'm living in a farm house surrounded by 34 acres of almond and olive trees in Northern California. The closest town is Orland, and I think the population is less than 5,000 .
Neither my husband or I had any experience in farming. All that I knew from farming came from books or watching TV. I had visions of me languishing on the patio quenching my thirst with mint julips. Rick's brother Mike and his wife Kathy have an almond orchard in Manteca which is a 3 hour drive from us. I recall Mike sharing his farming experiences with Rick during family gatherings.
Almost 2 years ago to the date, I left the city life for country living. Many of my city friends have told me that I am living a life they dreamed about. Going back to basics and living a simple life style. Lemme tell you, farming olives and almonds is not a simple lifestyle and my idea of going back to basics has changed since the move. In San Jose, my idea of basics was getting my killer nails polished once a week. Now days, I keep my nails clipped short and my hair is always in a ponytail.
We learned very quickly that the income from the farm was barely sufficient to cover the cost of operating the farm. We didn't have enough to hire someone to help, so, I traded in my high heels for a pair of GoreTex working boots, my INC pantsuits for OshGosh B'Gosh overalls. I gave up the dream of sipping mint julips on the patio and I became a field hand and started learning the business of farming olives and almonds
