We are not yet done with PTP, but lets have a quick summary recapitulation of our 9 or 10 weeks here.
People
We have met an incredible variety of people in pantrepant. People like we have never met or known of in our lives and different lifestyles. These are a couple of important and or outstanding people we have met.
Mrs. Mary Mcfarlane
She is the hardworking farm manager who has led us in our internship at PTP and has made sure we have been alright over the past weeks. She is known as Mrs. Mac by most workers and sometimes, indirrectly, reffered to as Macco. She is constantly battling with all the workers in order to keep things running on the farm and making sure everything gets done the right way. Mrs. Mac has a lot of experience in agriculture, having started several projects herself with vegetables and diary and meat cattle. She is very knowledgable in the cattle sector and has imparted. shared. a lot of that knowledge. Thank you Mrs. Mac for the time here so far.
Gareth White
Known as Garret is a very good worker in charge of the horses and the stables. He takes good care of all the horses as his first priority, then also works with the sheep and a couple of times a week as a "cowboy", assisting the herd maintenance. He is very welcoming and has treated us like close friends these past weeks, making sure we have everything we need and looking out for us. More people like Garret in PTP would make this place run like it deserves, with good vibes and peace.
Tanisha
Tanisha.. Tanisha... MAKE YOUR BEDS! WASH YOUR DISHES! Make sure Mr. B doesnt see this room like this! These are some of the most common lines when Tanisha is reprimanding us. Tanisha has taken very good care of us, working in the house and looking out for all its inhabitants. Tanisha is the local farms "shoppe" selling fresh drinks and phone credit and some snacks to its workers and mainly us. Tanisha has shared several adventures with us two and has been a great person to have arround. Thank you Tanisha for all your love and not letting us forget how to make our beds.
Lion
El Leon has been on recent mood swings. These rarely affect us dirrectly, but are pretty fun yet scary to watch. Some outbursts can be heard farm wide with many different variations of the word "bombo" and "clat" being expelled at full force. Lion is Pantrepants Lion. End of Story.
Ira Nelson
Tony
Tony is the leader of the vegetable farm gang. He has been nice to us and has shown us how to cook a couple of times, teaching us Jamaican Chicken skills and shrimp cooking. Tony is organizing the garden and trying to produce for the hotels, mainly Golden Eye once it opens. I personaly have had a hard time working with Tony, but oh well. Maybe im doing somethign right, just dont really see or notice it.
Joseph
Madman Joseph. Joseph has been a true companion in PTP. He switches off between day work and night work every week. When he takes night shifts we are usualy the only inhabitants of PTP after 4 p.m. so his company is well apreaciated. Joseph is one of the hardest working Pantrepantiants we have encountered. Working more hours and putting more effort into those hours than anyone else. He is a nice person. helping out. looking out. good vibes.
Joseph is a good cook and has helped us a couple of times getting some nice meals. Latest one was amazing crayfish or crawfish. big. big. lobster like. tasty. happy. Joseph is one of the people up here who we most definetly consider a friend. a good friend.Thank you Sr. Joseph. His kids also help us out at school sometimes. Brian and Kevin.
Animals
Cattle
The farm has a very interesting herd. Prize winning Red Poll with valuable genes and a well adapted to the local climate F1 between Jamaican Red Poll and Brahman. This F1 is much more agressive and harder to manage. The cattle section here is run efficiently with Mrs. Mac supervision by Tony, Mr. Burk, Gareth, and Ira. Luis has been very important help here, sometimes causing fights-arguments between Tony and Gareth about who can use his help for the given day.
Sheep
Chickens
Donkeys
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Horses
Nature
Time
Rivers
Pantrepant is blessed to have the Martha Brae running through its lands. Sharing with us its pristine cold waters for drink, shower, cleaning and swimming. Thank you Martha.Thank you Brae. Recently it has been terribly flooded, so we havnt been able to go swimming. We want you back Martha.
Eat
Food in PTP has been great. I havent been able to have my own garden since I was about 10 when my grandmother had a house garden. It changes the way one eats. It changes the way one wants to eat. Having a large ammount of greens and tomatoes and eggplants right next to the house makes eating much more enjoyable. This experience here with food will make me want to have a garden for the rest of my life, being even in a small scale, self sustainable. I dont want to depend on supermarkets and on New Zealand Kiwis or North African tomatoes flown across the world to eat well. to eat healthy.
Looks like we are going to Golden Eye. A truck just pulled in and I think I should go help load.
Plants, Answers New and Thought might have to wait a while.
Plants
Answers
New
Thought
Enjoy
People
We have met an incredible variety of people in pantrepant. People like we have never met or known of in our lives and different lifestyles. These are a couple of important and or outstanding people we have met.
Mrs. Mary Mcfarlane
Mrs. Mac and Fabio |
Mr. Gareth |
Known as Garret is a very good worker in charge of the horses and the stables. He takes good care of all the horses as his first priority, then also works with the sheep and a couple of times a week as a "cowboy", assisting the herd maintenance. He is very welcoming and has treated us like close friends these past weeks, making sure we have everything we need and looking out for us. More people like Garret in PTP would make this place run like it deserves, with good vibes and peace.
Tanisha
Tanisha (left) and Mamma J (right) making butter with Luis |
Lion
Yes.. this picture has already been used... but. Good picture. Mr. Lion |
Ira Nelson
Mr. Nelson. |
Respect #1. This man is increidble. amazing. 88 years old. Biking every day uphill to work about half an hour. Getting here before any other worker 1/4 his age. Riding with the cowboys every day. Controlling angry cattle. Carrying supplies. Working all day. 88. We hope this information isnt confidential. FOUR girlfriends. 88 years old. FOUR girlfriends. Mars Ira Nelson is the man. He also knows more about cellphones than we do. He has the ability to get his phone to say the time of day outloud. I am jealous.
Louie
Louie´s name we dont really know yet. It sounds like Kwami, or Kuami. Anyway. This is one of the youngest farm workers and works with Garret in the horse stables. He has shown interest in working with us a couple of times in composting and helps us out. He keeps the stables clean and makes sure all the horses are healthy. Kwami Louie used to be a tailor, so he knows how to make clothes, bags, backpacks etc. and will shortly create a rasta bag for Luis. Louie is a hard worker, working from Sunday to Sunday, even when sick. Him and Garret are good working together and keep everything in order. No picture? Lost.
Tony
Tony and Luis |
Joseph
Madman Joseph. Joseph has been a true companion in PTP. He switches off between day work and night work every week. When he takes night shifts we are usualy the only inhabitants of PTP after 4 p.m. so his company is well apreaciated. Joseph is one of the hardest working Pantrepantiants we have encountered. Working more hours and putting more effort into those hours than anyone else. He is a nice person. helping out. looking out. good vibes.
Joseph |
Animals
Cattle
Driving cattle through Jah's Jungle. |
F1 Production in process. Red Poll Bull vs Brahman. |
Sheep
Mmmm.. Sheep. |
The sheep of PTP are doing pretty well. Many during these rainy times have gotten infections but this past dry week these have already visibly improved. With good constant care the sheep will be well managed on the farm, allowing ocassional (2-3 a month?) to get used for canteen (on farm) and restaurant meat? Would be a nice use for them. Also the project of organizing them and registering them is still on going, with ear tatoos and an organized-written reproduction.
Chickens
This picture was taken day #1 at PTP. Those ducklings are delicious looking teenagers now. |
The chickens of PTP are free. I dont think they realize they belong to HUMANS. Evil egg stealing humans. Im sure they know of our prescence, but they just run the other way upon our aproach. Chickens are all over the farm living freely, sometimes laying eggs in trees, sometimes in Mrs. Mac car and sometimes.. somewhere else. No one knows for sure. These must be very happy chickens. The ducks have also recently been given a gift of happiness, getting many more lakes to chose from due to the flooding. We have seen ducks all over the farm, living the good life. I want to eat a duck.
Donkeys
There is a donkey conservation going on in PTP, with some Donkey Conservation Association for the West Indies. Many of these donkeys are here to live a happy and good life and to keep their species well spread and fed. Right now they are all in the stables being Paired. Taken care of. Im sure they are happy. They live a stress free life, feeding in the beautiful pastures surrounded by the cockpit mountains. Im jealous. once again.
Horses
Horse gets head stuck in tree. |
The horses of PTP are cared for perfectly. Living a good life into very old age. Many are over 20, with one I rode last week being 27. I am sorry to say, he is limping now. Im not a good rider, I must have done something wrong. Poor Chippy.
The horses are used for all the cattle managing and taking care of the pastures and moving arround, they are also used for the house guests who want an in depth exploration of the perfect surroundings, Nature.
Nature
Pantrepant and Nature are one. Im sure more than half of the farm is forested, with the pastures being tucked in between the magical cockpits, horse paths flowing through the valleys in between.
Nature here is truly diverse, Jamaica being the only place in the Caribbean and I think America which wasnt part of PANGEA. It is a completely unique piece of land, coming out of the ocean itself, meaning it has a very different diversity than other wanna-be Jamaica islands.
Much of this diversity is seen in medicinal plants, having one of the largest collections of plants here in the Cockpits, a large percentage (about 30%) which are endemic to this Island and mostly these mountains.
Bamboo could be used efficiently for construction for several farm structures, a chicken coop? New windtunnels, some covered structures for the tractors and other machinery which should be protected from NATURE. Lets protect her too though.
Our time in PTP has been a time of nature. Living with the animals, with the sun and the rain and the wind. and the mosquitoes. infinite.
There is a wealth of knowledge hidden up there, being lost to ignorance and modern medicine, logging and overharvesting.
Time
Pantime pant tree time pant tree pant time. Anyway. Time here is still magical. Sometimes being eternal and sometimes dissapearing. Sometimes a week dissapears but a day is a month. Our time here has been arround 9 weeks, being about two thirds of our internship. So far what we want to focus on more for the next weeks is the school and the medicinal plants, neither of which we have had much access the past weeks due to flooding and weather conditions. Hopefuly the coming TOMAS Hurracane comes and goes quickly, letting us explore the town and their knowledge for medicinal treasures and working some afternoons at the school.
When Time meets the Divine Proportion or Golden Number |
Pantrepant is blessed to have the Martha Brae running through its lands. Sharing with us its pristine cold waters for drink, shower, cleaning and swimming. Thank you Martha.Thank you Brae. Recently it has been terribly flooded, so we havnt been able to go swimming. We want you back Martha.
Eat
Food in PTP has been great. I havent been able to have my own garden since I was about 10 when my grandmother had a house garden. It changes the way one eats. It changes the way one wants to eat. Having a large ammount of greens and tomatoes and eggplants right next to the house makes eating much more enjoyable. This experience here with food will make me want to have a garden for the rest of my life, being even in a small scale, self sustainable. I dont want to depend on supermarkets and on New Zealand Kiwis or North African tomatoes flown across the world to eat well. to eat healthy.
Looks like we are going to Golden Eye. A truck just pulled in and I think I should go help load.
Plants, Answers New and Thought might have to wait a while.
Plants
Answers
New
Thought
Enjoy