The circle of life.

I'm so excited. Tomorrow we start the Flor del Campo fish farm project. Our consuting director s down from Virginia to oversee everything and I got to spend the day picking his brain about all sorts of things. This is how the fish farm is going to work.

A 20ft cement tank, 4 ft deep. Water piped in directly from the local river, with total changeoever every four days. Build over the top of the tank, is a large chicken house, with a slant wire floor. We will feed the chickens, the chickens will spill feed and defecate, all into the water. This will in turn feed the fish and the algea and phyto plankton/zooplankton that the fisth will eat. The fish will also eliminate in the water, and the water as it is cycled out of the tank will go to irrigate local farmland. To produce the feed, to feed the chickens. Its the circle of life, isn't it glorious!



The best part is, the fish farm is projected to bring in $500-$1000 (U.S. Dollars) a month initially in profit to the community. That is a small fortune in this area. And it will only grow from their.

We are going to start with Tilapia, then add Trout. Once we have the tilapia going, we can use the refuse from the fileting process to dry and mix with soy and alfalfa to make our own trout food (much cheaper than buying it pre-made). Finally, we want to use solar heaters and build a tank to raise large shrimp! The fish will be sold market fresh, or smoked. This little project ensures everyone in the community a job and an income. This is just the beginning. Several other communities across the state in and in other states are watching Flor, success means an end to poverty for more than just this one community.

When I get bogged down in the inane details and drudgery of this everyday life in Mexico, I sometimes lose sight of the big picture. I am a part of something so much bigger. This project is just what I needed to recharge my enthusiasm for this work.

So, we went to price chickens today, and they were just so cute!
The brown one is Thunder, and the White one is Lightning. Tom thinks they are both Roosters, so we may have a problem. But I'm hoping one is a hen. Come on Lightning, make with the eggs!



Finally, today is Thurstons third birthday. I'm sure he is celebrating by wreaking havoc or destroying something. The big galoot! He's ornery and he breaks things and he picks fights with the other cats but you just have to love him! As Mom always says, even baby Monsters need love.