English Cafè Goals

Here are my goals for my coffee company.

Goals For English Cafè
In 1 month establish a good customer base at church
In 3 months establish a good customer base for shipping and outside church
In 10 months buy new $2500 roaster
In 11 months sell at Farmers Markets and other events
In 12 months more than paid back everything that was put into it
In 18 months handed the job of roasting and orders partially over to someone else
In 24 months be making over $6000 a year annually

English Vintner

Coffee

Well, work at the Stone Table has gone well. It is some what annoying having a deadline of when you have to be somewhere 5 days a week, but I guess that is how it would be unless you have your own business...

Coffee, I talked to the Stone Table about coffee, and I am giving them drastically lower prices than to other customers. The main difference will be that they will be on a regular basis, several pounds a week, increasing more in the colder months. I am selling it to them I think at around $8.00 a pound. That means that I am making $1.40 right now on each pound, a little less. However, I am making as much as I spent and a little more, which means I will be bringing in as much and a little more than what I spent on the beans. Which means I will be buying beans more often, or in larger quantities, lowering the price. Once I can buy coffee in 50lb bags I will be earning about a dollar more because of the lower buying price. And I won't have to add in the cost of bags because I can get them to save me the resealable bags I use and use them again and again. I have one regular customer at church, and sent a pound to my cousin. I have not yet started selling to any more customers, partly I've been busy, and well, I guess that is it, I'm busy. After vacation next week I can start getting a few more customers who have said they are interested. I want to figure out a way I can be putting the money I generate from this into one account or something, so that once I have brought in $2500 I can upgrade to a bigger roaster and I can roast at Farmers Markets (a big selling place I've heard) because it is totable. So, that is the plan for coffee. Put all the money I get into one 'fund' and use out of that to buy more beans and bags, but be saving until I can buy a larger roaster, than sell my roaster I bought, hopefully make a couple hundred off it. I've never seen any used of the roaster I bought, so it my sell well, without much competition.

My garden, alas has seen little of me, and I've seen little of it. What with the heat and starting the part time job, and a million other things. Once cool weather sets in I'll get to it again though, especially if I read about farming or something. : ) Reading about gardeners always inspires me to do better with my garden. My sweet potatoes are doing well, the bed with black plastic is going wonkers. My green beans, I found out too late that I let them get too big, so that at the point I realized I couldn't pick them without them being a waste. In other words, they got to big and then started producing less because I wasn't picking them. So, at this point I'm leaving them on to dry and I'll plant them all next year. Hey, at least I learned something! I picked some tomatoes and tromboncino squash and a bunch of grapes yesterday. The grapes were good, I took some and started a sourdough starter with them.

All in all life is busy but I'm trying to make the best of it. We are going camping next week and I'm seeing my cousins this week end (were going camping with them), so I'm pretty excited!

Until next time when life parts it's waters for a little while to let me pass through, until then.

English Vintner

The Path

This poem came to me while driving to work. Not the most convenient time to have a poem come to my head, but I'm still here, so I guess I survived.

The Path
Many will stumble from the path,
And few will make it to the end,

But lost in thought I’ll wonder on,
I’ll travel ‘round the bend,

Where this road takes I’ll never guess,
I’ll journey on this lifelong quest,

Now Summer turns to Autumn,
and Autumn into cold,

Then Springtime comes with life,
And that life is mine I’m told.


English Vintner

Job

Well, I now have a part time job, 5-6 hours a day, 5 days a week. It is at the Stone Table where I have been interning for the last 4 months. The pay is reasonable, $8 an hour plus tips. The tips pay for the 62mile round trip it takes to get there and back.

I am now looking for a vehicle, I've found one that looks reasonable, 11 years old, everything is good on it, but the price is $4400, a little more than I was looking at...but...it is a good truck, that price is reasonable for what he is asking, according to KBB (Kelley's Blue Book).


Coffee. I have everything ready but the beans and the bags. I hope to order them this Friday when I get in my pay check from Matthew. It has been hard finding bags that are resealable and have a valve and are not too expensive. I am planning on buying beans from where I have been buying them, but would like to upgrade to cheaper beans by buying them in 66lb bags.

Bees. I don't know if I have said on here but, we finally got bees. My older brother has been sharing the load 50-50 to 60-40% for feeding the bees everyday. We have four hives, feeding them a gallon of syrup a day just about. They have filled up the first super with honey, brood, and pollen, we added another super. I downloaded a moon and planet calendar that tells what different days are. I know that told you nothing, so if you want to learn more, go to lunarorganics.com .

Well, life is more than it was expected. I didn't think I would be getting a part time job like this before now, I didn't think I would be looking for a vehicle this soon either. So, life is good, God is good. I've been having fun hanging out with my brothers playing games at night which has been nice. And I'm looking forward to our vacation the second week of August, when we'll be going to GA to see our cousins and go camping!


English Vintner

This poem sort of came to me spontaneously. Half of it I don't know what it means. About halfway through I felt like I was writing this for my sister, so I'm dedicating it to her.

I can’t tell you what it means to me,
I can’t tell you why you’re me for me,
I can’t tell you what you are for me,
I can’t tell you why I am.

Like a friend you’re there for me,
Like a brother you’ve given me,
Like a slave you’ve done for me,
But I can’t tell you why I am.

Something more than what it seems,
Something more than love for me,
Something more than friends we’ll be,
But I can’t tell you why I am.

I’m always glad to see you’re face,
Something like amazing grace,
Why, I’ll never know the reason,
But I can’t tell you why I am.

Dedicated to my sister Londa.

English Vintner

Peru Mission Trip

The mission trip I was on last week was to Peru. It was an amazing week, spending time with people from church, spending time with the missionaries, with the peruvians, and getting to know the Maddux's better (I met Shelby at BWSC 2 years ago). I believe God used us to plant a seed where we were working, showing the neighborhood what a christian is like. Our main purpose as we worked in construction and the medical team was to bring the peruvians to the churches, that when we left they would attend the church, growing the church stronger in Peru. Below and following posts are from my journal that I kept during my time there.


Friday June 24 We drove (Londa, Papa and I) with mama to the DeBoers arriving at 3:30pm. We drove down to the church with Mr and Mrs DeBoer. We arrived at 4:15pm loaded our baggage into two vehicles and went into the fellowship hall to have a devotional, prayer, sing, and discuss the plans of the trip.
We left the church around 5:00pm in two vehicles and headed to the airport. We arrived, checked in our carry on, went through security and waited at our gate. We played Up and Down the River with Londa, Papa, Kevin and I. After we finished that game Mr DeBoer started teaching us a Dutch card game. It was at that point we heard that our flight was delayed several hours. About 30 minutes later we were told the flight was canceled due to thunderstorms in Miami. So, after realizing that we couldn’t get a later flight that night we headed back to the church and for most of us, back to our own beds.
I went home and Isaiah and Josiah were watching Clash of the Titans. So, I stayed up until 11:50pm watching that, eating homemade pizza and doughnuts, and opening my new coffee roaster and trying to read the instructions manual. I roasted my first batch of coffee after the movie and set up my Mill and Brew coffee maker I had just bought for the morning.
Saturday June 25 3.5 hours later I woke up at 4:07am, got dressed, got some coffee and we were on our way to the DeBoers. We arrived all of us at 5:15am at the church, left again to the airport with the same vehicle arrangements.
We arrived and soon found out the flight to Miami was full. So, we found out that the flight to Ft. Lauderdale was open and checked into that flight. We got to Ft. Lauderdale and got in three rented cars and drove 20 minutes to Miami airport. We got in and checked in for a 7:15pm flight to Lima Peru. We got to Peru around 12:00am, got picked up by Alleen who took us through to where we would depart at 6:15am to Trujillo Sunday morning.

I have edited it once when I was typing it from my hand written journal, excuse any other errors found in it.

muchas gracias,
English Vintner

Thoughts and Ramblings

I sit here in the woods, waiting to see the sunrise, 6:28am Tuesday the 21st of June. I am doubtful though, because the sun seems shrouded by a thin layer of clouds. It is good to be back in the woods. I often find some relief from business in the garden, but there is something about being in the woods, in the wild, back with nature. Something draws me to it, like it is God’s sanctuary, a safe but wild place to be. Like Aslan, he’s not a tame lion, the woods are not tame, but I find comfort in them, peace and quiet. While I was on my way into the woods I saw a deer, it quickly ran from me, making a barking noise as it ran from me. I presume that it had another friend/s with it and thus the noise, to warn them of me. Aha, I can see the sun peaking through the clouds. It is not as red as I like my sunrise, but all the same it is there. A bright orange gold, brilliantly piercing through the clouds. I can’t look at the sun any more as the clouds can no longer hold back the light.

I have my coffee, brewed strong as usual. I drink it for the taste more than anything else I have realized. I guess that is a good reason for starting a coffee roasting business. Speaking of which, I spent without the cost of beans $655. That includes a digital 11lb scale, burr coffee grinder, roaster, and 10 bags. The scale was around $42, the grinder, $78, roaster $495, and the bags came out to $.70 a piece. On all these I have spent hours to days researching them, reading what other customer had to say. At the last minute I picked this roaster. The main thing keeping me from buying it was the fact it as $200 more than the other one. The other roaster could roast more, but could not roast them as dark. However, I have talked with several people who say they like a dark roast and, I am very glad I made the switch. I should get most of the items this week or next, and within 3 weeks should be roasting and selling. I am looking into roasting at a Farmers Market. When I upgrade to a better roaster I will be able to bring it to the Farmers Market’s and roast on site using propane.

I have been thinking lately, especially since BWSC; Am I ready to got out and be a man? Sure, I can work hard enough, that is not what I am talking about. More, am I ready to lead a family? Answer the question of my child? It got me thinking about it and I have since started reading some books that seem helpful. I want to be ready to answer the questions of a wife and children and so I have started educating myself in the way of somewhat ‘theological’ books among others. To me the question that the world would put to me: "are you ready?" I could answer yes. Yes I can find a job, or have a job, and if that be the case they would say I am a success. But I am not ready in the other ways, at least not yet. I will be trying to do a bit more reading on these subjects in the years following, preparing myself. I found it quite awakening at this last conference, and I am glad that I could go. And so I go humbly and prayerfully to my God and ask wisdom in these spiritual matters, that I might be ready and equipped for what He has for me.

English Vintner

Composting

Here is an essay I wrote recently.

Putting the Compost back into Gardening
Traditionally fertilizer was known as manure, compost, and kitchen food scraps. These were taken to a designated place and allowed to decompose into compost. The result is the best thing you can add to any soil anywhere. It is the foundation of organic gardening.

It was not until the 1800s that a German scientist found out that Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium were the ‘foundation blocks’ of plant growth. Since then with the industrial revolution we have turned to making ‘fake’ Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium and using only those three elements to grow our plants on.

We have depleted our soils of all nutrients and seek to make up for it by adding merely these three elements, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The result is a soil deficient of all but these three elements.

The problem with plants grown solely in soil with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium is that plants do not get the micro nutrients and elements that they need. Thus the plant becomes sick and nature does its best to eliminate it. Ever wonder why now we need to use all these pesticides to farm, but for generations before us they didn’t have to? Think back to the big change in agriculture, when farmers went from using manure and sustainable sources of fertilizer to using commercially made synthetic fertilizers. We soon had to come up with pesticides to fight back the numerous pests that inflicted damage to our crops. The more we used the pesticides the more the bugs fought back. The fight continues today.

What can we do about it? Go back a few generations and look at the way your Grandfather farmed. The waste of the animals was collected and composted along with kitchen waste and other sources of compost material. The following year it was spread on the farmland and produced abundant crops.

We have to restore to our soil what has been taken out of it for the past 100 years as we have taken everything out of it and have only added a few elements back to it. It will take years in some cases to restore to the soil what has been taken out, but it can be done.


The solution? Compost. Start a compost pile. Collect the bags of leaves put out by the side of the road. Portion off a part of the farm or garden and grow a green manure crop on it every year. As individuals we can make a difference in the agricultural community.

English Vintner

Deep Bed

Monday afternoon I went above the fence, marked out where I needed the sweet potato bed and I started digging while my brother Jedidiah hacked with a scythe. I got it started, but it was hard to make good head way with so many roots. Tuesday morning I got up at 6am and worked for 2 hours digging a bed. I started in the middle, dug down 18-24 inches and got about 12ft long by 4ft wide. (Today my right shoulder is quite sore!) This evening I dug another 3ft wider and leveled off some ground and added it to the bed.

I picked my first cucumber Tuesday, and picked 2 more today. I picked 2 more zucchinis today.

My sweet potatoes I planted, most are doing pretty well.

With the help of my cousin (who is incredibly strong!) and brothers we got the fridge down into the greenhouse. Now I just have to dig the hole and put it in.

I picked my first garlic today. The stem was about 5/8". The bulb was close to 3 inches diameter, maybe 2.5". I think I will wait before picking any more though. I want to make sure they are done growing. I am surprised at how fast they grow. I wonder why you plant in the fall, is it for a sooner crop? Do they not grow as well in the heat? I'll do some more research and figure out all of the questions. : )


English Vintner

Sweet Potatoes

At the end of April I ordered 100 sweet potato slips and a packet of basil seeds from Gurney's Seeds. Two days later they said the shipped the basil seeds. To this day I have not received them, either they got lost in the mail, or some miscommunication is going on, which wouldn't surprise me. Around May 12 I emailed them about the basil, they said they had shipped it. A couple days later I asked them to refund the sweet potatoes, as I had found a better place that seemed better and would ship them sooner. They refunded me on the sweet potatoes, and I ordered from Tatormans.

Yesterday I received a box of sweet potato slips from Gurneys. So, apparently they refunded me and then shipped them, they are not the best with communication. Anyway, last night I cut down vetch and weeds I had growing in a bed, spaded it over, ran it over with a hoe, watered it with 40 gallons of water, sprayed Sea-Crop on it, and set black plastic over it. I cut holes in the plastic and proceeded with frustration to insert the slips. It was harder than I thought it would be, but I planted 63 plants, roughly a foot a part.

This morning I planted the rest of them in a bed I had soybeans growing.

I am getting 125 plants from Tatormans, so I will have to find more room to put them in. My sweet potato harvest should be quite large this year if they do well!


English Vintner