Welcome Home....SHIRLEY!!

This past weekend, the One Acre Farm family grew significantly. No, no, it is not what you are thinking, but Michael and I added a sister to our farming (equipment) family. Last year, my uncle gave Michael a cultivating tractor, who he called Big Red. Big Red is a 1950s-era Farmall tractor, with an offset seat. Apparently, the offset seat allows you to actually see what you are cultivating in front of you. (Footnote for those not hip to the farm lingo…cultivate doesn’t actually mean what you (or was it just I?) think – to harvest. Cultivating is actually the process of disturbing the soil, i.e. weeding). But I digress! Who knew there were special tractors for different aspects of farming? Certainly not me as Michael became increasingly frustrated by my repeated questions of “Can’t Big Red do that?”


Because Big Red can’t do everything, Michael spent hours searching for the perfect tractor. And by searching, I mean searching. He went online; he called his mentors; he drove two hours away to “test-drive;” and yes, he signed up for an online network of farmers called Tractorbynet.com. The man was obsessed! And obsessed he should be when making such a big investment as a tractor!

It turns that out on his test drive two hours away, he fell in love with a big girl named Shirley. Shirley is red (like her future brother, Big Red), has a canopy, a front loader (essential for turning compost) and a relatively short working life dispute being twelve years old.

After waking up in the 6s on Saturday morning, Michael and I were in Ashland, Virginia a short two hours later to bring Shirley home. We needed a BIG trailer to bring our big girl home, and luckily – by chance – I knew someone who had the proper equipment to load her up and make the trip back north.

I do have to admit, when the salesman brought her out of the garage, my heart was swelling with pride. This was a big deal, our very first tractor…to call our own. My eyes tear up a little just thinking about that moment and how I am so very glad that Michael decided to do a weekend pickup so that I could be there.

Here are a few pictures from our exciting Saturday…and welcome to One Acre Farm, Shirley!!

Yes, that is Michael in the center of the picture, supervising the loading of his precious cargo!

Michael and Shirley - December 11, 2010!

Shirley is ready for her close-up!