When I first started working at Red Dog, one thing I did not expect was all of the names I would have to learn. Now, I’m not just talking about the names of my coworkers (though there were about 15 folks working on my first day, and learning their names was definitely a challenge), I’m talking about their radio handles, the names of different crop varieties, field names, greenhouse names and truck names.

To say I was overwhelmed on day one would be an understatement. How on earth was I supposed to learn all these different names?! I started with the crew. For obvious reasons, it seemed important that I learned my coworkers’ names first. That turned out to be fairly easy! But then came the radio handles. Names like Red Hot, Chimichurri, Big Mac, Phoenix, Fluffer Nutter and Hacksaw. It helped that some radio handles were similar to their owners’ names. For example, Frank choose Frank’s Red Hot Sauce, and Cormac was Big Mac. Other folks choose items that meant something to them. Máti was Fluffer Nutter (a sandwich made of melted marshmallow and peanut butter) because her grandma used to make them for her when she was a kid. 

The trucks were easy to learn. Romeo is red, Buster is brown, Ranger is a Ford Ranger, and Denise is dainty. Last came the field names, all named after country singers: Townes, Roscoe, Loretta, Joni, Nancy, and Patsy. I’m a little embarrassed to say that when I started at the farm I didn’t know a single one of these artist. However, I have since been cultured by some of my coworkers (thanks, Cormac). So with all of that being said, there’s a lot of names to memorize on the farm. 

So the next time you buy a bunch of kale from the market or our Farmstand, you can ask yourself this: Was this harvested by Zinc, Algae Bloom or Grilled Cheese? 

~Alex