So why am I doing this?

Still haven't left yet, but for those who wanted to know why or how I came to do this...well....

When I failed to get any full-time summer job I knew I wanted to travel and somehow found out about WWOOF. The process is just about as informal as they come, so really anyone can do it. Pay a small fee 10-20$ maybe for the list of farms, contact the farms you want to work at, and if they want you, show up. Some farms ask that you stay 2 weeks, some 1 month, some say come by to help out for whatever amount of time you want..even a few days is fine.

Some hosts are huge farms, some are small farming projects, some just a family's large garden, some are agricultural communities. There are hosts in cities, mountains, and coastal areas. I could have picked hosts with no electricity, some that were totally vegetarian, or ones that only raised cattle, but I'm glad I started off with something less remote with a wide array of opportunities.

WWOOFing a seriously cheap way to travel. Pay for a plane ticket and you get free shelter/food in exchange for some work (many ask that you help out for 5 hours a day with weekends/nights free).

So am I trying to save the world with WWOOFing? Of course not. That's for Capt Planet. But there's something about eating food you helped grow and eating food you KNOW. Besides the fact that it tastes better, there's more satisfaction in knowing where your food came from and knowing you helped it grow from seed to food.

Maybe I'm a food elitist, but canned food usually sucks. Fresh food doesn't. And when you get something local, you're supporting the local economy. Sure you're cutting back on CO2 emissions too, but honestly, when a busted oil rig is spewing out about 40,000 gallons of oil into the ocean per day (yes I looked that up), I'm not sure eating local really halts CO2 emissions by decreasing shipping of foods across the country.

I enjoy eating local, organic food for the main reason that it supports people financially and it tastes better (and it helps the environment a little). Watch the documentary Food Inc. and you'll realize why you want to buy food you know. The film only brushes the surface, but let me tell you it's a lot tastier and more comforting to buy food from smaller, local practices.

Anyways, still haven't left for Ireland. Leaving tonight.