Jody Noble Choder, Urban Chicken Farmer

Season 4, Episode 25 Content warning: This episode includes honest talk about the realities of chicken ownership, including loss, illness, and death. I met Attorney Jody Noble Choder back in 2008 when she asked me about keeping chickens. And the rest is history. A devoted Martha Stewart fan, Jody was drawn to the idea of having her own chickens because it fit perfectly with her love of home, garden, and good living. In this episode, we talk about where that love comes from—her childhood in the new suburb in the country surrounded by cornfields and cows, her Russian relatives, and the gardening legacy that runs through her family. We trace our shared history, through all the chicken projects and adventures we’ve taken on together: Chicks in the Hood urban coop tours, chickens on leashes, countless efforts to teach people what it really means to keep chickens, and eventually, the big urban agriculture zoning code rewrite. Jody and I have known each other a long time and done all the chicken things. This past winter, Jody lost her mom, and that loss has her thinking a lot about time—how much we have left, how many “next years” there really are and what kind of legacy we leave behind. I say that Jody will always be “the chicken lady,” but what I really meant was “the crazy chicken lady”—and I say that with total love. You’ll also hear my cohost Brett and Jody’s husband Steve in the background, adding their commentary as only they can. It’s a fun conversation between old friends who’ve shared a lot of years, a lot of laughs, and a lot of feathers. - - - #withbowlandspoon #withbowlandspoonpodcast #localfoodsystem #foodsystem #foodsystems #pittsburghlocalfood #foodevolution #foodventures #happyeating #localfood #eatlocal #chicksinthehood #chickenkeeping