VOA标准英语2011--Texas Couple Become Goat-Farming Entrepreneurs

Texas Couple Become Goat-Farming Entrepreneurs

Most people hold on to their jobs for security and whatever benefits they might provide. But some adventurous¹ souls follow a more challenging path, becoming entrepreneurs, working for themselves with no safety net to catch them if they fail. One urban couple chose to move to the country in Waller County, Texas, northwest of Houston, to begin a new life and business, with goats.

Part of the daily routine for Christian² Seger at the Blue Heron Farm is milking the goats at feeding time.

His wife, Lisa, maintains the kitchen they built to meet state specifications³.

And they had to buy these expensive machines to pasteurize the milk. “It is not something you can do as a hobby. When we decided⁴ to do this, we had to make the investment and treat it like a business," said Lisa.

Both of the Segers were city dwellers⁵ five years ago. She worked in advertising⁶. He handled sound systems for entertainers.

But Christian says he wanted to go into business for himself. “Working for other people my whole life, I felt I had given them more than I had gotten from them. No one is ever going to take a loss to pay you more," he said.

The Segers bought this four-hectare property in 2006 and the equipment they needed for their enterprise.

Working as a team, they process the milk, make the cheese and sell some of it to restaurants and special clients.

And they sell cheese at weekly farmers markets, like this one in a parking lot at Rice University in Houston that attracts urban residents who want locally produced, healthy food. “With Houston, we have a big city full of a lot of adventurous foodies and so there really is quite a market for it," she said.

Neither of the Segers had any experience in agriculture or food production before they began this enterprise. But Lisa says that didn't stop them. “We have learned in this amazing age we live in that you can learn anything from the Internet, anything! So we Googled everything," she said.

One thing Christian says they have learned through their rural experience is to live by nature's cycles.

"When it is wintertime, the goats eat at 5:00 p.m, we milk them at 5:00, they are done and go to bed by 6:00. In the summertime, it gets dark so late that we are out until 9:00 or 9:30. You just kind of get on their cycle," said Lisa.

Lisa says they care for their goats almost as if they were family. “Stewardship⁷ of the animals is a huge thing, stewardship of the animals and the earth, and if we cannot take care of them in a way that we think is appropriate, then we cannot do this," she said.

Christian and Lisa Seger are now fully⁸ immersed in their business and their life in the country, and they're not looking back.

1 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。

2 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 specifications   

n.规格；载明；详述；（产品等的）说明书；说明书( specification的名词复数 )；详细的计划书；载明；详述

参考例句：

• Our work must answer the specifications laid down. 我们的工作应符合所定的规范。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This sketch does not conform with the specifications. 图文不符。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 dwellers   

n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes. 城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They have transformed themselves into permanent city dwellers. 他们已成为永久的城市居民。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

7 stewardship   

n. n. 管理工作；管事人的职位及职责

参考例句：

• The organization certainly prospered under his stewardship. 不可否认，这个组织在他的管理下兴旺了起来。
• Last, but certainly not least, are the issues of stewardship and ethics. 最后，但当然不是微不足道的，是工作和道德规范的问题。

8 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。