
This picture was photographed from the Theresa Marsh in southeastern Wisconsin. The farm on the hill is where I grew up, in the family homestead since 1858.
Melissa Enderle's travelblog on her travels to Mali, Tunisia, Serbia, Eastern Europe and India.

If politicians have their way, soon farmers will be charged for the flatulence emitted from their livestock. Otherwise known as the "cow fart tax," this proposed law would require farmers to pay as much as $180 per livestock head, varying on the amount of methane flatulence the type of animal produces - more in the case of dairy cows. My brother who owns these elk in the above photo, could get charged over $100 per head. Both large farmers and the nearly extinct small farmer will be severely punished, to the point of financial ruin. This is on top of decreased milk prices and rising costs of production. Who will benefit from this law? Definitely not the farmer nor those businesses related to agriculture. Certainly not the public, who will see a rise in costs of dairy products.
I snapped this picture on top of one of the hills I traverse on my daily walks near my parents' home in Wisconsin. From here, one can see other rolling hills planted with various crops, small farms, marshland, and Highway 41. Increasingly, one can also see large windmills in the horizon - one of Wisconsin's few reliable alternate energy sources.
Over the past few days we've had some warm and humid weather here in Wisconsin. Going past the corn fields on my daily morning walks, I can see a marked height change in the corn. What looked like puny corn last week is now over knee-high in some spots! It is said that in ideal conditions (such as the hot, humid weather we had), one can actually hear corn grow. I've never taken the time to actually test this, but I can definitely verify it amazing growth spurt.
