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Mary

@arie.mary

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Plants. Crafty bitch. Nature nerd.

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Hello y'all! I've been waiting to post a life update until I had something "grand" and/or "exciting" to share which in my brain meant a career update. What I've been told success is. And yet I sit here writing this the week I was laid off from my landscaping job. Again, life deals me yet another wild card. These past several years have been stressful and overwhelming and full of wild cards. What I have learned though is that I got me.

Closing the farm was HARD. The 4+ month cleanup of the farm where some of the hardest months of my life; deep grief almost swallowed me. The farm was such a part of my identity and the process of untangling myself from what had been my identity was heartbreaking. Pema Chodron says, "Only to the extent that we expose ourselves to annihilation can that which is indestructible be found in us". I have annihilated an identity and realize that I'm very resilient. I'm tired and not every day is easy. AND - I'm on the other side, feeling less stressed than I ever have in my entire life. I have learned SO much about myself in the past 3 years and all of this learning hurt like hell.

My success is this year is that I have achieved my goals of travel and connection!

I visited Alaska where I saw the Northern lights and flew above Denali. I sang with friends (choir and karaoke). I dated and then met someone. I hiked solo and with friends. I had the loveliest birthday and felt so deeply supported. I saw wildflowers. I lost my cat and then adopted another. I started a job where I wasn't the boss. I completed a 9-month indigenous learning journey class. I spent quality time with my chosen family. I watched a friend start a job as a nurse. I learned that I love to kayak. I felt deep gratitude eating OTHER farmers vegetables. I heard my first ever symphony. I started getting my nails done 💅. I went to Yellowstone with my partner and met his family. I celebrated Bruce Shipman's life with family/friends. I went camping. And last but not least, I went to Sweden and Norway on a solo "heritage" trip!

Most importantly, I'm finding my truth and my voice and how to use both. It's all still hard and I know I'm on the right because I also feel happy. by @arie.mary

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a month ago

I miss my sweet thick boi so much. He sucked at cuddling, for sure did highly inappropriate things on my bed, was the neighborhood asshole (I feel like there way we wanted posters up somewhere), and he was there for me, every day and night, through the three hardest years of my life. XOXO

I hope that are living large and in charge, with your cute little face, mischievous manner, and endless appetite. I miss you flopping down when I get home, waking me up at 2am to go outside, and how mad you'd get when it was raining. I miss snuggling you when I was home and how much closer we grew this Winter, when I was at home more and in my deep depression. We saved each other and I guess I really can't ask for more than that. We showed each other what trust could look like.

Thanks for showing up in my life 3 years ago, scrawny and greasy and scabby and starving. I struck gold with the universal cat distribution system. You'll forever live on in my heart Casper. I love you. RIP. 3/24/26 by @arie.mary

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7 months ago

My first Red Rocks experience was unreal. Love it when a plan comes together. taken in Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre by @arie.mary

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a year ago

CSA week #7

It's a colorful share!
Rainbow chard
Golden beets
Tatsoi and mustard green bunches
Summer squash
Lettuce
Cilantro
Yukon Gold new potatoes!!!

Summer is here and us farmers are all grinding away to bring y'all the most beautiful fruits of our labor - from vegetables to flowers to meat. July through September are intense months on farms where it can be hard to even just cook yourself a good meal or literally sit down and enjoy everything around you. And yet, we choose this wild lifestyle 💚💜❤️. by @arie.mary

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a year ago

I bought myself a nice pair of ear buds this past Winter because I'm mostly farming solo this year and wanted to listen to more podcasts/music. I was a little nervous because I'm very good at misplacing stuff and I decided "I'm worth it even if I lose them". Well, they had been missing for weeks! This morning I found them in my truck toolbox while helping my dearest @nickip13 set up her irrigation. 🫠😂🤦🏼‍♀️ They still work!

I'm really learning this year to just lean into, fully except, love whole heartily the beautiful mess that I am. That I can be both brilliant and chaotic. That I'm smart and silly. That I'm thoughtful and forgetful. That I'm a boss bitch chaos queen (future book title). It's hard when you've been told your whole life that both can't be true. When you have deep trauma around being forgetful.

Well I'm done with all that noise. I'm here as the hot, messy, smart, funny, silly, thoughtful, forgetful, loud, soft, humble, confident, organized, spacey, and all the things strong women. I have now surrounded myself with others who can just laugh and accept the big beautiful mess that they are. To my closest crew, thanks for holding me these past years and helping me to step into the human that I am and showing me that it is ok to be messy 😘 and that doesn't take away from anything else. #growth by @arie.mary

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a year ago

This may not look like much to my non farmer friends but damn, water is everything on a farm. This week, dry weather came and that means it's go time - everything all at once needs to be done. All of us farmers are feeling a bit frantic - working soil, turning on irrigation for the first time this year, transplanting, etc. Turning on the irrigation system for the first time is always stressful!
The joy in seeing this water running for me is so deep because I had to really push myself and move through discomfort to get it running. I learned so much this past week - how a pressure regulator works as in I had to take it apart and put it back together again. How to use 3" slip couplers because you better believe shit broke. How to determine flow rate in a system and how that correlates to pressure. It's always scary to wade into unknown territory, to push yourself. It's's exhausting but damn, does it feel good to prove to yourself that with community, you can figure it out.
Thanks to @moramorafarm @fawnlilyfarm @portzpottery Tom and all the irrigation people we collectively talked to this week and oh of course YouTube (what we would do without you) for making this all possible. We got this.
Water is life 💙 by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

Some days farming looks like this. The day is filled with annoying task after annoying task. You can't find the right tools, you're constantly trouble shooting, and it just kind of breaks your brain. Today was one of those days on the farm. Irrigation irritation in the mud! After making this repair the gator got stuck. It's out now thanks to a gentle shove from the tractor.

And so it just goes some days. I'm much better now at handling frustration and working through it as it comes up and learning to take space for myself. I had a hard time with a task this morning and just walked away from it. When I returned 15 minutes later - boom, I was able to resolve the issue. It was a really good lesson for me.

Days like today make me appreciate when everything does go smoothly. by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

Just what my soul and heart needed. Perfect day. Perfect hike. So many wildflowers and great views.

Friends: please scatter my ashes from a cliff in the gorge when I die. by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

Fun with natural dye!!!!

Way back in 2019, I grew a huge natural dye garden - chamomile, marigolds, cosmos, sunflowers, madder, safflower and more (all seed from @grandprismaticseed company). The madder actually moved farms since it needs about three years to become mature for harvest. ❤️ I did play with some of the flowers at the beginning of COVID, but a lot of it went into storage because I just didn't have the mental space for another project. Or the joy.

Well I'm finally ready to play again and bring joy back into my life!!! My mom recently gifted me lots of old fabric including some raw linen. I made heavily concentrated dye baths from marigolds, chamomile and madder this past week which honestly gave my apartment a really wonderful aroma. I washed then treated the linem with alum sulfate, then scrunched it up with lots of rubber bands. I applied my concentrated flower teas then steamed the fabric for an hour. And wow!!! I just love the results! I have a few more projects in the pipeline (some old tablecloths) and I might not own anything white next week 😂. I'm not sure growing a dye garden is in my future again but playing with color that you grew is very special. Now to decide what I will do with this fabric!

Thanks for the alum @karamariegilbs and all your flower power passion! by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

Early morning dance party while starting seeds! @msjamicakes thinking of you as I seed our cherry tomatoes and wishing you were here dancing with me!

Soooooo excited for this season. Pouring so much love and passion into and resistance into what brings me joy this year.

Also, I'm no longer a secret #swifties (secrets out) by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

Y'all. I know we are all going through it right now and times are feeling hard and dark. I know cause I'm there too and yet, I feel hope. There are so many wonderful things in this world to fight for and you better believe, I'm going to fight. My deep inner fiery rage is burning and I plan to channel that to action. And connection. And love.

Dance and fight and love and grow awesome food. Repeat.

If nothing else, enjoy this video of me, farmer Mary just in my natural state of nerdom, dancing it out as I pick leeks for the @oregoncityfarmersmarket .

You can stand under my umbrella community. by @arie.mary

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2 years ago

February can be dark and hard but I feel the tide turning. by @arie.mary

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2 years ago