Updates and Ranchfest Info

3/2/2012 - 6th Day - Morning.  Preparation of the Sabbath – Greetings friends.  This might turn out to be one of those really long Herrick Kimball posts because I have quite a few things to cover - including the details on Spring Ranchfest 2012 - so you will want to read through the whole thing.

The Book Launch for The Last Pilgrims is now behind us, and I look forward to moving forward on a few other writing projects.  Here at the ranch, we're in full "get the gardens ready" mode.  We're building more raised beds, and preparing and planting the beds that we have.  This week we planted carrots, more lettuce, and spinach; I started more hot peppers from seed; I potted a lot of my tomato seedlings as well.  So far we have our two winter garden beds which are doing great.  I pulled the leeks and the kohlrabi and we had those for supper this week.  In place of those plants I planted Cilantro.  The onions we planted in both of those beds this winter are doing great.  We also have a new bed planted in carrots, spinach, and lettuce (as I mentioned before).  Another bed is planted all in assorted varieties of lettuce and greens, and is sprouting pretty well.  The next bed is planted with sweet peas, which are doing great.

seedlings started in greenhouse

Winter Gardens

Sometime next week, Lord willing, we will be planting between 50-60 tomato plants I started from seed.  These will be covered if a frost threatens.  Our intention is to have 5 more raised beds installed and planted in the next 10-12 days.


We also have been working on our first, large Hugelkulture Bed.  We have a smaller hugelkulture bed as part of our raised beds, but this is our first full-on hugelkulture bed.  We're still working on it, but I'll send you pictures (DV) when we get it finished and planted.  This is the first of two large hugelkulture beds we hope to have built this spring.

Large "Hugelkulture"Bed

Large Hugelkulture Bed

This week Ernie from Possum Creek Knifeworks came by with the Ghost Militia Knife he designed and made for the launch of The Last Pilgrims.  This one goes to a friend as a reward for a very ample donation towards the Book Launch.

Ghost Militia Knife with Mesquite handle
harvested from This Land

Spring Ranchfest 2012 will be held here at my ranch from April 6 through April 13.  "Ranchfest" is a free opportunity for you to come visit us in our Christian Community here in Central Texas and participate in some projects here on the land.  Here is a link telling you new folks about Ranchfest and its history: Click Here. Here is some more ranchfest info:

You may camp or tent here at the ranch for free. We have a tent area, and there are a lot of areas to pull a camper if you want to do that. If you tent or camp here, you will NOT have any amenities (water, septic, etc.) and you will be expected to bring your own water. If you plan on staying or camping here at the ranch, please contact me immediately to make arrangements, there is plenty of room, and like I said, it is free.
You may stay in a nearby motel.

Motels: The closest is the Texas Ranger Motel in Santa Anna Reply to: texasrangermotel@yahoo.com Texas OWNED and OPERATED For Reservations call 325-348-3150, or email texasrangermotel@yahoo.com

The Budget Inn in nearby Coleman is also a good value. As of last year, the rooms have been recently renovated. Contact info. is (325) 625-4194.

 There are other motels in Coleman, and Brownwood.  We definitely suggest Santa Anna or Coleman because it is quite a hassle to have to drive 25 miles each direction several times a day.  In the past, people have had to miss some fellowships because they have had to leave early or show up late due to travel time to and from Brownwood.  Stay in Coleman or Santa Anna if you are going to stay in a motel.

We should have good weather, but you never know. We often have what is called the "Easter Freeze" around here.  So it could be 60's and 70's at night, and it could be 30's and 40's.  When you check weather, use 76878 as the area code. The problem with the weather prognostications here is this... most of the weather guesses are based on Brownwood, and we are about 500-800 feet higher than Brownwood. So sometimes they miss it by 8-10 degrees in any direction. And.... this is Texas, so when it comes to weather, all bets are off. We easily see extreme changes of 40-50 degrees in a single day. So expect some heat and some cold. Ok, dress code... We believe in modest apparel. We do not wear shorts. You will not want to wear open toed shoes or sandals for a lot of reasons. In our community, the men wear pants and long sleeved shirts and the women wear long skirts or dresses. The women in our community wear headcoverings, and if you come to Ranchfest, and you are a woman (or a girl), you must also wear one. You may contact Danielle (mdbunk at yahoo.com) if you have questions about this. Women must wear a headcovering whenever they are on the property, or in any corporate or group prayer and during any time of teaching, Bible study, or corporate worship.

If you haven't been to Texas before, you should know that virtually everything here can scratch, poke, bite or sting. Some good walking shoes or boots would be a definite plus. We have first aid stuff, but you should bring whatever you use for bug repellent, etc. Camping here is awesome and you should enjoy it, but you must also be aware and look at where you are and where you are going. Not to scare anyone, but we have fire ants, scorpions, spiders, skunks, rattlesnakes, coyotes, bobcats, raccoons, etc. We will brief you all when you get here. Bring any weapons you might need. Those coming from Canada or any US socialist state will not be able to do this, so we will provide you with a weapon if you feel comfortable with one and know how to use it. If you play an instrument you might want to bring it. YOU MUST BRING CHAIRS IF YOU CAN. You will absolutely need it. You will also want to bring study materials, pen, paper, etc. to take notes during lessons. If you are staying here at the land, then you will not have access to running water. We have an outhouse. If you can bring some water containers we can let you know how/where to fill them, or people staying in hotels can fill them up for you. This will be your week "off grid" if you are staying on the land, so you will have no electricity. Flashlights, lanterns, etc. are really nice to have. There is plenty of wood, deadfall, etc. for firewood so don't be concerned with bringing your own. We plan on providing lunch on most days, and we hope to plan for at least one and possibly more group meals - but all other meals will be on your own. We usually eat breakfast on the first Sunday in Santa Anna, but we will discuss if we will be doing that this year. Just so you know, there will be alcoholic beverages available and consumed in moderation and many of the men do smoke cigars and pipes on occasion. Please contact me with questions, or post them on the BA.com forum thread for Fall uper Ranchfest 2008.

Remember that there is no charge at all (from us) for Ranchfest.  It is free to you.  You will have to pay to get here, and all of your expenses while you are here.  Like I said before, lunches are taken care of here on the property, but most of the other meals you will be on your own.

We do need to know if you are coming, because we spend a lot of money on food and supplies and it is not really good to show up without letting us know you are coming.  Please email me: editor (at) lazarusunbound (dot) com to let me know if you plan on attending.



We will have several Ranchfest projects going (DV) and you can learn a lot in just one week.  We hope to be building a cabin for my daughter Tracy and her fiance Mark.  We will also be continuing work on the new cottage, as well as a few other projects.  Depending on the weather, there may be butchering or other agrarian skills and practices going on.


EXTRA SPECIAL INFO YOU SHOULD KNOW


A supporter of the ministry has committed to MATCH every dollar in donations up to a total of $5000.  That means that you can donate TWICE as much this Ranchfest!  This is going to be a great opportunity for us to build a finished cabin for a young Agrarian couple so that they can start their married life on the right foot and without any debt.  We have tried to teach our children that there are great blessings annexed to doing things right.  So please do consider giving an ample donation this month, and it will be doubled up to that total of $5,000.  Please send donations to:


M. Bunker
1251 CR 132
Santa Anna, Texas 76878


Don't forget to let me know if you plan on coming, along with your itinerary and where you plan on staying.  Make sure to ask me if you have any questions along the way.


Alright y'all, I have to get to work.  May God Bless you all and keep you, and I pray you all have a blessed day and blessed Sabbath tomorrow.


Your servant in Christ Jesus,


Michael Bunker