I have a favorite pair of shoes. They’re cold-weather hikers, originally waterproof but after a few years of use, not so much anymore. That’s not the problem, though, as apparently a tiny hole has appeared, somewhere, in the sole (where exactly, I haven’t been able to determine). However it lets enough water in that walking around on a rainy day or on wettish pavement soon…
“We could probably build a better car than Detroit can. I will go out on a wing and say that. I honestly believe we could do that.” It’s not often you hear an Amishman make such a claim. But it almost makes sense–when you learn that the fellow who said this is from northern Indiana. Northern Indiana Amish are different than most Amish. At least…
Say the words “Pennsylvania Amish”, and Lancaster County inevitably comes to mind. But Pennsylvania is a state covered with Amish settlements, with over 50 as of 2010 (see Young Center 2010). The Amish community in Juniata County is one of the Keystone State’s many lesser-known settlements. I had a chance to visit Juniata County last week while returning to Lancaster County from Big Valley. Juniata…
I don’t know if the video I just watched-entitled “Amish Smugglers’ Shady Milk Run”–was intended to be funny, but I couldn’t help but chuckle. Technically, I guess you do call someone who brings in product to sell in an area where it is illegal a “smuggler”. But the term is such a loaded one. The quote in the video from the FDA (“Raw milk is…
Happy Groundhog Day! (UPDATED BELOW) Something tells me that with the weather lately, old Punxsutawney Phil might just see his shadow, dooming us to 6 weeks more winter. Punxsutawney, of course, is the central Pennsylvania town known for holding the most prominent Groundhog Day celebration, complete with a tuxedoed band of residents known as the “Inner Circle” who care for Phil and interpret his prognostications….
“I see this in the food industry. There’s quite a few organizations here locally that will sell using “Amish”. And what they’re trying to do is create the perception that it does come from Amish producers. When it doesn’t. They don’t explicitly say so, they just say “Amish Country this”, “Amish Country that,”…”Amish” is big, “Country” is small. So, the customer that buys this, his…
It’s become something of a habit to share a few thoughts, comments, and links every couple weeks in what I call a “brain dump”. It’s not as scary as it sounds: Reader Steve recently asked “Where are the Texas Amish?” We don’t have a Texas Amish State Guide entry yet, but I can point you to this blog post entitled Southern Amish, which has a…
It’s Friday, and a good day to clear the deck. Here are some news bits, updates, and mental flotsam from Amish America-land: Comments are now enabled on all Amish Online Encyclopedia entries. I held off on this earlier as I was figuring out the format. But no longer. Looking forward to hearing from you on AOE. We’ve got at least 4 more book giveaways…
Last week, an excerpt from The Amish Way mentioned a gentleman named Abner, a deceased Amish historian whose trade was bookbinding. Abner was apparently quite a remarkable person who touched a lot of people in his community. Brad Igou (The Amish in Their Own Words) knew Abner well and has shared some remembrances which he recorded after Abner’s death in 2002: A good friend has…
Well, it’s Thursday morning, and chances are you may already be thinking about the weekend. There was a time, when most Amish were on the farm, when what you did on Saturday didn’t differ in a terribly meaningful way than what you did on Monday. Cows still needed to be milked, fences could still use mending, and manure could be spread just as well (though…