This past Saturday, my son figured it was time to do a science experiment with his friend from school. I’ve experienced River’s display of genius more than a few times and – I now know – when he says “science”, he really means “pantry-potion”…
But before he had a chance to start pulling out the molasses, vinegar, food colouring and corn syrup, I intervened. “Hold up! … How about I help you guys?” Part of me was trying to be thoughtful of my son’s interests. The other part was being thoughtful of the mess Michelle or I would soon be cleaning up…
What happens next is a lesson in situational irony.
The idea of making a playdough volcano came to mind and I instructed the boys to stay busy colouring while I got things ready. This should be a good use of resources I thought. They can play with the dough, then after, we can turn it into a volcano, and destroy it with baking soda, vinegar and science. Two activities for the price of one!
A tip to fathers trying to make playdough…
The ingredients and the portion of each ingredient matter! As I mixed my creation in a plastic bowl, the wannabe dough soon took on a non-binary expression of itself, unsure whether it was becoming dough or bubble gum. And no matter what I added to it, I could not change it’s mind…
Every mom and baker reading this right now is saying, “Well, it must have been too wet. You got to keep adding flour.” … Sure, that makes perfect sense in theory… But I kid you not! I was already up to twenty or more cups of flour by this point of the playdough process!!
Discouraged, and abandoned by River and his friend, I put the bowl in our naturally refrigerated garage and let it harden for a couple hours. But when I came back to it that evening, it was still as sticky as tar on a hot summer’s day.
“I’m not giving up,” I told Michelle, who gave me a half smile, which I knew meant, “I sure wish you would.”
Then River and his sisters, Victory and Gemma, joined me in the kitchen. Since the bowl’s contents were intended to be a volcano experiment, I had already added browning sauce to the mix. The colour of the dough blended in with my skin. “Dad, it looks like you’re massaging a dead fat guy,” Gemma said.
Seeing how much fun I was having, they asked if they could lend their helping hands. The thought of the four of us massaging the sticky dough disaster was even messier than my original fear of River conducting his own experiment. “How about you guys keep sprinkling flour for me until I have things under control,” I said. “And then, if – and when – we get this sticky beast to bow down and surrender, everyone will get their fair share to play with… Does that sound fair?” Though they too doubted our eventual success, they agreed to sprinkle flour while I earnestly massaged the growing bubblegum dough monster.
When my phone rang, Victory answered it, “Oh, hi Papa. Daddy couldn’t answer the phone because he’s making playdough… Not very successfully though…”
I love situational irony. Not in the moment, but I love where it brings us. What it teaches us. In my effort to prevent wasting resources and making a mess, I accomplished something far messier and wastier than my son ever dreamed possible.
As the flour fell like dry snow upon the gummy dough, the giant ball slowly turned into something a kid (and adult) could play with. I portioned each allotment of dough according to our size, taking the biggest one for myself. It was oddly therapeutic kneading that dough… When it came time to put it away, we filled a freezer-sized Ziploc bag of it. It looked disgusting and moist, and I quickly labeled the bag, “Plastic Surgery Play Dough”.
“Thank you for making this,” River said proudly.
***
This story brings me joy. The part I wish I could take back, however, was the part where I was also stressing Michelle out… In hindsight, I can see her point that starting this project half an hour before guests were scheduled to arrive, despite good intentions, was probably a bad Dad-move… Nevertheless, though it was stressful and annoying, through this scientific journey I had to repeatedly decide between victory and defeat.
The same decision was made by many farmers across the prairies this year… Not to make playdough, but to persevere!
This harvest, you were faced with the choice to quit and the choice to push forward. And though the results may not have been what you contended for, you can take pride in knowing you at least finished the race. After all, good things come to those who finish what they start!
“I don’t know if I’m living the dream,” a farmer near Legal said to me a few weeks ago, “but I am living in the grain dryer shack…”
You may not experience the pride and joy today, or even this Christmas, but you have certainly earned your stripes! You have earned your keep. And though it would be nicer to not have to pay them, many of you have even earned yourselves a beastly propane bill… Continue to press on. It too will bow down and surrender in time.
Thanks for reading! We wish you much success and joy as we enter the final weeks of 2018!
Gemma agreed to take a picture of me sporting a playdough belly. … Too gross to not share!
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Peppa Pig Playdough
Market Report – by Nelson Neumann
Barley: Over the past two weeks, we saw a price increase as there was a flurry of buying in the Lethbridge market. The price is on the downtrend as buyers have secured coverage for December and into January. Corn is trading into Lethbridge at $248-$252, effectively putting a price ceiling on barley around this level. We are expecting to see domestic barley pricing continue to trend down without an export opportunity. Viterra recently sold 1 million MT of Australian barley into Saudi Arabia. Perhaps China will have opportunities in late winter 2019.
Wheat: Many feeders are switching to feed wheat which should eat up some of the excess supply. Similar to barley we saw a flurry of buying, and now with buyers covered, prices are on the downtrend. In southern Alberta, many farmers are selling #1/2 Durum into the feed market due to stronger short term pricing and cash flow needs. In the world export market, a few weeks ago we were talking about the Black Sea region potentially reaching a self-imposed export limit. Ukraine is having an excellent crop year and this is not looking to have materialized depressing milling wheat prices.
Oats: Mills are in need of good #2CW Oats. They are proving tough to find as most are either higher moisture or low in weight. We have seen the price increase to reflect this already. Outlook on milling oats for spring summer 2019 is considered bullish. If oats are not making #2 pricing, there is still reasonable prices as feed. Trading $2.50-$2.85 for feed, depending on quality picked up on farm depending on quality in Central Alberta.
Canola:Canola continues to ride the coattails of soybean pricing and the trends of geopolitical trade wars. The US and China recently held a meeting that gave hope to the canola market; however, the result was a $0.20/bu drop in soybean pricing, dragging canola prices down with it. Many farmers have green sample canola this year, and though there are markets for it, with a mountain of off spec canola available, prices are reflecting this increase in lower-grading supply.
Peas: The pea market has been holding steady with continued upside in the market. Seeing delivered green pea bids around $9-$9.50 in Alberta and Yellows at $7.00-$7.30 depending on location. In India, the amount of peas seeded for the Winter crop has decreased since last year. Feed pea bids, while connected to the gradable pea market, also hold hands with the feed market and we have seen feed demand hold steady.
The offer and the bid seem to be close right now. Many trades are close, but some deals don’t come together over $2-3/MT spread. Buyers are doing what they can to buy as cheaply as possible, but still buy as much as possible. Demand is getting tight for 2018, with buyers asking for a January – March spread on most offers. Corn is still in high demand into Lethbridge between $246-252/MT delivered. Barley is trading at similar levels into southern Alberta. There is still demand for barley, but buyers are having a difficult time sourcing it and are struggling to find larger lots to purchase all at once. Wheat is trading into Lethbridge around the $240/MT level, into Calgary around $235/MT, and $230/MT into the Edmonton area, but these levels are decreasing as bigger quantity offers come to market.
Sellers Note: Now that grain is in the bin and graded, lots of offers are coming to market. For now, buyer demand is still strong, but when a buyer hits a few big tonnage offers, the next time they see an offer, they drop their bid a few cents a bushel. That doesn’t necessarily mean the market is coming off, but the more grain shown and purchased, the more bearish buyers become.
– FEED BARLEY @ the bin: Nov: $4.70/ bushel Dec: $4.75/ bushel Jan-Mar: $4.80-4.85/ bushel April-June: $4.90-4.95/ bushel. (*Targets at $5/bu picked-up may be considered for this time.)– FEED WHEAT @ the bin: Nov-Dec: $5.75-5.90/ bushel Jan-March: $5.90-6.05/ bushel April-June: $6.10-6.20/ bushel *$0.25-0.50/bu premium available for wheat with high protein (13%+) / good falling numbers (300+).
– #1/2 CPSR WHEAT: Nov-June: $6.00-6.25/ bushel #1/#2 HRS Wheat: Nov-June: $6.75-7.10/ bu picked-up based 13-13.5% protein.
– 2CW OATS @ the bin (Subject to sample): Nov-Dec: $3.15-3.20/ bushel Jan-March: $3.20-3.25/ bushel April-June: $3.25-3.30/ bushel July-August: $3.30/ bushel – 3CW OATS @ the bin: $0.10-0.25/bushel discount to 2cw bids. – FEED OATS: Nov-March: $2.50-3.00/ bushel, depending on quality
– 2CW GREEN PEAS @ the bin: Max 3% bleach: Nov-Dec $8.70/ bushel
– 2CW YELLOW PEAS @ the bin Nov-Jan: $6.65-6.75/ bu Feb-April: $6.90-7.00/ bu
– FEED PEAS @ the bin Nov-Dec: $6.10-6.20/ bushel
– 2CW FABAS @ the bin Nov-Dec: $8.60-8.70/ bushel
– FEED FABAS @ the bin: Nov-Dec: $6.45-6.55/ bushel, based dry / 0 tannin
– CANOLA @ the bin (As of November 20th) Nov-Dec: $10.40-10.50/ bushel Jan-July: $10.60-11.15/ bushel
“No matter who I talk to at Agfinity, you always take care of things. You guys are so great to work with!”
– James Taylor, Leslieville, AB
“Other buyers call me, and I always tell them that the best service I get is from Agfinity, and that you guys are who I market my grain through.”
– James Thompson, Millet, AB
“Most of our marketing decisions are based off of your newsletter! We really appreciate you sending it out!”
– Phillip & Glenda Collinge, Lloydminster, SK
“I really like the personal touch in the newsletter! Thanks for sending that out!” – Jim Majeski, Camrose, AB
“I really enjoy working with you guys and the transparent service you provide!”
– Kurt Boese, Neilburg, SK
“For the past seven years I’ve been dealing with the Agfinity group and what a fantastic group of people they are. From number 1 to feed grain and canola. All the buyers at Agfinity can Make it happen. Fast turn around times on every thing. Movement, payment, and the inbetween that all of us farmers don’t see or care about. Good job to the Agfinity crew and keep on buying our grain.” – Drann Hogg, Huxley, AB
“Thanks for continuing to send out a newsletter. I read right through it every time, and look forward to crop price updates.”
– Orest Hulowski, Perryvale, AB
“Enjoy reading your newsletter and price updates keep them coming, good job.”
– Peter L .Gross, Standard, AB
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