Dirty Work

Menomonie's Mabel Tainter Theater was packed last Thursday night as community members gathered together for the locally produced film, Dirty Work.

The film chronicles the story of Elsie's farm, a heartfelt and inspiring tale emphasising the importance of Community Supported Agriculture in a world full of factory farms and grocery super centers. The film encompasses a year in the life of Don and Joni on their local CSA, where Interns, WOOFers, and aspiring growers came together to create and nurture some of Mother Nature's most delicious treats. The film bewitchingly preserves the memories and experiences of the people involved with Elsie's Farm. Unfortunately, the story isn't all sunshine and rainbows. In the end, Elsie's Farm was laid to rest. Agricultural run off from a near-by dairy farm polluted the water table and the crops could no longer be considered certified organic. Forced to relocate yet unable to shake a lifelong relationship with plants, Don and Joni continue to grow on their 1 acre lot of land.

Dirty Work captured the beauty and essence of farm life and illuminated the playfulness of human nature. In the film, youth and age work together hand-in-hand growing and producing food for the surrounding community. The people in this film seem to possess an intrinsic ability to create something out of nothing, a talent that should never be swept aside or forgotten. Dirty Work is an ispiration, a truly admirable story about the struggles and spontaneity of life on Elsie's farm.