Climate Change Journal entry July 18: “I can’t see the mountains this morning.” Smoke from the wildfires in Canada, a thousand miles from our farm, blocked the view of Crawford Mountain. The foot of that mountain is less than two miles away. The Earth is literally on fire. Even AI...
Note: The text of this post was first published by the Augusta Free Press on May 7, 2026 The Environmental Protection Agency has abdicated its duty to protect Americans and the environment from dirty air. On February 12, 2026, the EPA published its final rule to repeal the Endangerment Finding...
Each year, I like to share a few photos that give me hope or are really good. Resistance seems to be a common thread. It’s been a rollercoaster year. Hold fast and stay strong. A nagging feeling of worry about our country haunts me constantly. Is there no limit to...
“Do solar panels really work?” That’s what the woman asked as I showed some folks our barn with solar panels on the roof. I thought, Wow, how could you be so misled? Then I thought about all the challenges Americans are dealing with now: the misinformation, disinformation, and lies being...
Some people wonder whether the climate crisis is real. Hasn’t Earth’s climate always changed? Yes, it has, and there are valid reasons why our climate has gone through periods of warming and cooling for millennia. We are now in a warming period, and this one is caused by an increase...
I looked up and saw smoke rising from a field far upstream. I stopped in wonder. It can’t be smoke, I thought, because it’s brown. Then I realized it was a giant cloud of windblown soil reaching over a hundred feet into the air. Then I saw the tractor. The...
This Post Is Different It’s not about what we do on the farm, riparian buffers, or our comical journey with the electric car. It’s different because our country is in a whirlpool of negative chaos, and I’m down a couple of notches on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Forget about the...
Trump’s first week in office brought chaos and destruction to the renewable energy transition in the United States (as well as just about everything else). Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, a global movement to stop fossil fuels and build a future powered by renewable energy, summed it up in his...
Note: A real person wrote this: me. There are no paywalls, pop-ups, surveys, ads, or AI. All photos by me unless otherwise noted. We Traded In Our Prius For an All-Electric Vehicle Yeah, I’m one of those. It gives me a good feeling to drive a car that uses no...
Note: A real person wrote this: me. All pictures by me unless otherwise noted. There are no paywalls, ads, AI, popups, or surveys. Each year, I review my photos and select ones that give me hope or are really good. I’ve added some reflections as our country enters a new...
First Place Award for 2020 Outstanding Column & Blog from Virginia Outdoor Writers Association View All Awards
“Bobby is a force of nature! And with this compilation of his blog posts, musings, and articles, we gain insight into farming, family, and the forces that shape the Shenandoah Valley he calls home. I enjoyed his humorous yet direct writing style as he shared personal and professional observations on conserving the natural landscapes that, quite literally, feed and nourish us.”