i think we can actually do better

left home about two weeks ago and knew it was going to be hot.

the air conditioning in the car doesn’t work, and with mid-summer stops in eastern colorado, western utah and southern texas on the agenda, i was partially dreading leaving the cool confines of our family’s homestead in southeastern vermont.

but “the show must go on” as they say, and so packed up the tesla with two cameras, a few mics, a tripod, a tent, sleeping bag, pillows, books, cooking supplies, clothes and headed west. on the second day, the heat overwhelmed me and i ended up getting a motel hours before i normally would have, just to get into air conditioning.

feeling like a whimp, on the third day pulled up to gunthorp farms in northeastern indiana. it was almost dusk and my longtime friend greg was wrapping up a full day of working outside in the blistering heat. when i sheepishly shared the news about the air conditioner he immediately started brainstorming how we could fix it. before long, we’d watched a few yout tube videos, removed the front storage part called the “frunk” (front + trunk) and pulled apart the radiator. we sprayed it down with cool water and pulled out a bunch of dirt and rocks. then we put it back together as the fireflies started to speckle the early evening grass. miraculously, it started working way better, although within a couple days it would crap out again.

but that’s not that point. the point is that the way greg faced the problem was inspiring. up to that point, i’d just taken it to mechanics, or groaned about the wait time for a tesla dealer shop to look at it. it had never crossed my mind to fix it myself. but that’s what farmers do. instead of whining, they take action. instead of being dependent they are proactive.

spent the next day shadowing greg as he made deliveries, fixed a refrigerated truck, and fed the hogs. in between we visited a cool farm/market called seven sons and shared an incredible pizza from 800 degrees~ a place that uses gunthorp farms pork. it’s some of the best stuff out there.

anyhoos, at one point during the day, when the temperature was probably about 95 degrees, i was only setting up shots on the tripod in the shade. greg, on the other hand, was sitting on top of a metal truck in direct sunlight working on an engine that was running. the temperature on top of that truck must have been close to 120 or 130 degrees. when i offered greg water, he refused.

some people are just built different as they say.

farmers.

over the weeks since leaving greg’s farm, this image of him on top of the truck in the heat has inspired me greatly. whenever i am thinking about how hot it is, i think of greg on top of this truck, refusing water, and eventually getting the freezer fixed. it’s inspired me to soldier on. of course, i’ve also continued to whimp out and go to many a swimming pool, and frequent many an air-conditioned library or motel room too.

ha!

to be continued…