In case it hasn't been on your radar, we publish this fabulous staff-favorite-centric post every first Friday of the month! We thought it deserved a highlight since it's one of our long-time favorites and definitely a skim-worthy feature if you're in the market for new ideas and inspiration. Ever wonder what your local farmers do off the fields? Cue: FIRST FRIDAY STAFF PICKS!

We think that our staff is the best in the business (okay, okay, we are a little biased), but the JBG family hails from all over the place and covers the gamut in talents and interests. We love sharing events, adventures, and side projects that inspire and excite our JBG-ers (food-related or not) with the community. Check out the staff-curated list of favorites below!

Office staff hangin'. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

The Farm (in general)

Steel City Pops kindly sent us some popsicles this week. These aren't just any popsicles.. these are FANCY PANCY popsicles and they were amazing. They had both creamy and fruity flavors, including cookies and cream, dairy free peanut butter, coffee, as well as watermelon, strawberry, and passion fruit. Brisa, who works on CSA line, opened the passion fruit popsicle, stuck her nose in the cellophane wrapper, and declared that it smelled like the pops of her childhood. What more could you want on a 100+ degree day?



Believe it or not, we're busy planting fall vegetables right now! If you're interested in learning more about our production, we're currently hiring for our planting crew. Know someone who has always wanted to learn more about farming? Send them the job link!

Mark your calendar! The Farmers' Artist Art show is coming up on September 8 at Prizer Gallery. A couple of the JBG farmers have submitted.

Casey (Customer Service Extraordinaire)

I've just been hanging with my pup, Odie, trying to stay cool during this sizzling hot summer. Odie is 10 years old, but acts like a freakin' teenager-he's so healthy thanks to our awesome vet, Dr. Kautz! If you are looking for a new vet, Dr. Kautz is amazing! He just opened his own practice, Crestview Veterinary Clinic, and I highly recommend him if you like a vet that is super smart, kind, and patient. He will let me ask all my "worried mama questions" without feeling rushed, and he truly cares about the well-being of all his furry patients.

Odie by Casey.

Fawn (Farmers Market Manager)

It's that time of year when my Northie-self loves to travel away from the heat. This year I am bringing the family to Minnesota, the land of my youth, and South Dakota, my roots. Next weekend I'll be enjoying some Minneapolis farmers markets, where August is a month of plenty, as opposed to Texas where our peak summer season has come and gone. I am looking forward to a wider selection of locally grown leafy greens, as well as berries, beans, maybe some exciting corn varieties, and more! I'm going to be about a month too early for wild rice. Next Staff Pick, I can share some Midwestern produce pics!

Tracy (Barn Manager)

Saw Golden Dawn Arkestra this past Friday at Stubb's as a part of Austin's Hot Summer Nights. It was an amazing psych band, complete with elaborate costumes, all enjoyed under a full moon. It was such a vibrant evening, and very inspiring. I even pushed my way to the front of the crowd, which is pretty uncharacteristic for me.

Ada (CSA + Marketing Manager)

I went to Marfa this past weekend with my old friend Heydon to hang with my new friend Darby, who has lived in the area for a few years. I felt like we got the insider's tour to the region, and it made me fall in love with Marfa, a town that I kinda thought was too hip for my taste. But alas, it's beautiful out there! We explored the intersection of architecture, landscape, and light at The Chinati Foundation. Donald Judd is the founder and dreamer behind Chinati - if you're unfamiliar with his work, it's minimal in nature. Though apparently, he detested the descriptor, he is often considered him a pioneer of minimalism, and thus all the works at Chinati fall under that umbrella. In a world where we're so easily over-saturated, being surrounded by these works, in the middle of the desert, has some serious head-clearing effects. So much room to breathe at Chinati.

One exhibit I really loved was a collection of John Wesley paintings, which feature bold and simple graphics, all with amazing colors. These truly made me want to break out my paints. Another favorite from Chinati was some of the structural components of the buildings, including the "Judd Doors" (shown below) and "Judd Tables". These were so beautiful and simple, and both are going to serve as some inspiration for future construction projects. I strongly recommend visiting Chinati if you've never been! And try to go on a tour with Darby. If you want bonus points, bring her some JBG veggies. The produce situation out there is pretty dismal. And all the Marfa-hipness has it's pros, too... the frozen margaritas at the St. George were the perfect poolside bevy, and I came back feeling like a West Texas rockstar.

Judd doors.

Wesley paintings.

Heydon (Farm Blogger)

I bopped out to Marfa for a little reset over the weekend with two very good friends. One of which is ADA, who also works at the farm. See her take of the trip above. This is her bird-watching in the Pinto Canyon.



It was the perfect combination of mind-blowing and very, very chill. We had one day of super concentrated art exploration on Saturday. My friend, Darby, is one of the Chinati docents and took us through a very well curated tour of all the work. Robert Irwin's wild scrim light play, John Wesley's paintings, Flavin's light installations, and Don Judd's aluminum installations were my favorites. We then ate at the nonpareil Stellina for dinner. YUM.

Robert Irwin.

Then we had a very chill pool day at the Hotel Saint George on Sunday after Ada made some killer breakfast tacos. This pool is the perfect place to hide-away on a scorching-hot day. Awesome landscape design. We splashed around, claimed a cabana (highly recommended), and read about wildflowers. Side note: if you like wildflowers, get this book. Then we schlepped down to Pinto Canyon for a sunset hike to end the day. WATCH OUT FOR THE BUNNIES. This canyon, though! Talk about an incredible sight. I love Ocotillo plants very much, so I got to relish their densely-populated, spiny ubiquitousness on the South Texas hillsides. Ada found the husk of one and gifted me a limb. It's one of my new favorite things.

We also listened to Stuff You Should Know: The Disappearance of the Yuba County Five on the way out on Friday night. LISTEN TO IT. It's crazy and scary and mind-boggling. I'm still trying to figure out what happened.

Andrew (CSA Manager)

Going to see "They Live", John Carpenters 1980s film. Some people like The Godfather, but I like Halloween and They Live. My niece is also in town from Indianapolis for 2 weeks before starting her senior year. Needless to say, we are cramming as much awesome into our time together as possible.

Megan (Recipe Blogger)

My dreams are coming true and I'm going to Fiesta Texas as an adult!!! I haven't been since high school, having gone every single summer growing up. I am more excited than words could ever justify!!!!! I'm talkin' Poltergeist, Superman, Wonder Woman, Iron Rattler, Texas wave pool, Rockville High (which now takes place in the '80s, and I'm sort of OK with that), water slides, Dippin' Dots, turkey legs, BEER! 'cause I'm a grown up!, souvenir photos, and all the other thrills this magical park has to offer.

Six Flags Fiesta Texas! Image courtesy of the internet.

Lucas (Delivery Driver)

My staff pick is the new Sacha Baron Cohen show, This Is America. I haven't seen an episode yet, just YouTube clips and news coverage. So crazy.

Nadia (Recipe Blogger)

Completely unrelated to the farm, or food, or cooking...but something I've been really into lately... the Ken Burns documentary "The Vietnam War." I'm not much of a TV show person but this is incredible. The story is told from many different perspectives. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in history or politics or just humanity in general! My boyfriend is watching it for the second time while I catch up to him - it's that interesting. I went to a friend's wedding in Saigon a couple years ago and totally wish I would have seen this before I went - it explains so many things I didn't know about the Vietnam War (and war in general).

Missoula (Farm Dog)

Mostly, I love routine. But, sometimes weekday routines can feel like weekday ruts. Short, 20 minute walks after work, simple home-cooked meals, rinse, repeat. Mama shook it up this week and we went kayaking after work, on a week night! She even let me go without my life jacket. She was slammin' cans of rose, and I was howling at the moon. Dinner was a 10pm trip to P-Terry's on Barton Springs. Wild, classically Austin Wednesday if you ask me!

Muah.

Chucha and Roxy (Farm Dogs)

Lena got us a pool. What a good aunt.

Poolside hangs.

Kenny (an old JBG employee who we love and miss)

The Beach – I grew up in a beach town on the east coast and now that I’m back it’s just good medicine to be back near the Atlantic. Before living in Texas I’d never lived more than 20 minutes from an ocean. However, during my time in Austin I supplemented with heavy doses of Lake Travis, the San Marcos, and Guadalupe Rivers, but there is nothing like salt water and waves to humble you right down to the soul. Toss in wildcards like rip currents and sharks and you develop a healthy respect for it, too!



Neil Pigrasse Tyson – That wasn’t a typo! My good friend Mike recently moved to a sleepy little town on the Pagan River called Smithfield, VA. If you’ve ever bought a ham from the grocery store, particularly the salty ones, then you’ve heard of Smithfield. Sleepy and small but not devoid of culture, I think Mike and his family got a little lonesome out there so they got a pet pig, and named him Neil PIGrasse Tyson. Let me repeat that – my friend who moved to the Ham Capital of the World, decided to get a pet pig, and name it after one of the world’s leading astrophysicists. And let me tell you he is an intelligent little ray of light. I’d really love to get him and Chucha in the same vicinity. She’d probably terrorize him for a bit but then they’d end up snuggling. I just know it. I MISS YOU, CHUCHA!

Chucha.

New Earth Farm – When I first moved back to Virginia I put my feelers out to find other organic or CSA farms to volunteer or work for and to my surprise, quite a few had popped up in my absence. One, in particular, is New Earth Farm in Virginia Beach, VA. It’s a small operation with big yields, and a spirit not too dissimilar to the JBG fam. New Earth also owns a local restaurant called Commune in Norfolk, VA, where much of their produce ends up on your plate.

Farm Pedals - there’s a family CSA farm in Maine who hand builds boutique guitar effects pedals in the off-season, they’re called Farm Pedals. I have yet to own one but I’ve been drooling over the YouTube demos. AND they have one called the Subsoiler Fuzz, just like the “Ripper” that Brenton bought back in 2016!