Hidden Treasures: Meri Acres Farm

Underneath the verdancy of the fields, the near perpetual spring, the everlasting fresh scents of morning dew lies the toil and hard work farming potatoes, herding Babaa, and clearing the Slorgs off your crop. All of this hard work, which supplies most of the potatoes used in making the various Jacket Potatoes sold at Hubert’s Hot Dogs goes unnoticed by the world. The rural life is not incredibly harsh, but it is comparable to that of the Neopian businessperson. The farmers may work hard from before the sun’s rays touch the sky above and until the sun’s rays can no longer be seen, but these farmers know how to have fun.

Pick Your Own

Amongst fields of green

Lies hidden, small treasure

Ambitious pickers forage

At whatever the measure

From Mortogs to Chias

And Rotten to Juicy

Ever searching for

The Burritoberry

On the west side of Meri Acres, just over the bridge, is a large farm with berries of all shapes and colors. Many hope to find a rare mutation of normal berries, an aberration, perhaps from a transplanted seed, that would make them rich from hundreds of thousands to Neopoints galore, but such a berry grows only so often. Feeding new exciting berries to your pets will open them up to new experiences that may help him or her grow to more appreciate the diversity of Neopia. For only 400 NP, you can gain access to the berry bushes and pick up to six berries. Sadly, the Gelert farmer doesn’t take to kindly to strangers and tourists who go traipsing around, thinking their money can buy the fruits of labor. Aside from that fact, who doesn’t like a good treasure hunt?

Guess the Weight of the Marrow

A marrow’s weight you shall never guess

In a game in memory of old Bess

A giant marrow of one hundred tons

Which could have fed millions

Yet marrow foods and marrow items

From rock hard rinds and bony stems

Taste horribly disgusting, beyond belief

But at least it’s a good for a motif

Upon entry to Meri Acres, you might set your eyes upon strange melons that resemble elongated watermelons. Fear not, they are not trying to replace the nice round watermelons. In fact, these aren’t watermelons, but marrow! Okay, all you smart science people, stop reading this if you’re going to accuse me of heresy. Marrow, not the stuff within your bones, is one of the many trademark export of Meri Acres Farm, dwarfed only by the tons of potatoes exported each year. Although by weight, the exports are equal. Marrows can grow to the size of the great Turmaculus himself. Luckily for the farmers, the Turmaculus is not a big fan of big food…if you know what I mean. It’s free to guess the marrow weight each day, so why not go down and give it a try? You could win some nice marrow items.

Potato Counter

To Alton’s delight

A potato count

To traveler’s fright

Infinite amount

The sack maybe small

Yet full of trouble

You watch as they fall

In number, double

This is the epitome of the games there are in Meri Acres. If potato counting is a game, then you know that there aren’t many creative games. However, it’s not as simple as it seems. Sometimes, just for his own delight, Alton pours a bag with thousands of potato. Poor Brucey B who was off by one potato. You may think it is mean, but it’s just a little fun to lighten the load of work each farmer gets.

Attack of the Slorgs

An invasion, a plague

Its origins vague

Eating green gold

Watch and behold

The awesome might

Of one into many

You’ll be by night

Without one penny

The Slorgs multiplied one day and no one knows where they all came from. Many suspect it is a plot from Darigan to ruin all their food…again! However, rumors are just rumors and may have little or know truth behind them. Now, equipped with a Slorgeriser 5000, you can blast the Slorgs away, although the Yurble’s Slorg Pellet supplier doesn’t have a good track record. I don’t understand why would you need a gun when you can kill them off the more effective way? I mean, come on, the Slorgs are doing the Conga! Just get a whole bunch of Pteri from Tyrannia and the Slorgs will be gone in no time. It seems logic has one with the Invasion of Technology! New Game! Fight off the technology with your potato catapults an marrow bombs!

Extreme Potato Counter

A potato, a carrot, eggplant I see

Flying through the air before me

How am I to complete this task

Count flying potatoes, how, I ask

I see one, two, three, and four

Five, six, seven or more

But, alas, that last was not one

And now I’ll start over again

To spice things up, a Wocky with attitude decided that it would be more interesting to count flying vegetables instead of ones laying on the ground. You can probably tell he isn’t the small town type of guy, with the dyed and spiked hair and skateboard. The potatoes get faster and faster each level and eventually get mixed in with fruits and vegetables. Perhaps these “old school” Meridellians can find the answer to travel faster than the speed of light?

Rubbish Dump

One man’s trash is another’s treasure

A boot, some gravy, a packet of gravel

One picks up at one’s leisure

What you find, time will unravel

An acrid smell, upon sweet land

Picked clean by those in search of gold

The clink of metal in one’s hand

What they find, watch time unfold

When people look upon Meri Acres, they see not much of a rubbish dump as newbies like to take what they can get . That is about anything and everything before it even touches the grass. The trash used to pile thousands of feet high and was larger than Turmaculus and Old Bessie combined! It marred the beauty of the quaint countryside and it’s beautiful sunsets. By midday, the heat from the sun’s rays would cook this trash and the smell was often carried far by a zephyr. King Skarl, of course, put an ordinance in place, but no one would enforce it. Then one day, a great Neopian thinker, who’s balance was the only thing greater than his ego, decided that it’d be a great idea to set n00bs on the trash. Unluckily, n00bs was misunderstood, so newbies were given the option of taking up trash and selling it in their shops. Nowadays, you’d be lucky to even get a glimpse of what was to be thrown out.

That is all there is in such a quaint place, but you may see nothing if you do not look closer. Stand on the bridge and stare into the gurgling brook below you. Lay in the grass and watch the insects march by, and don’t even think about using them as petpetpets. Lay back, with a stalk of wild grass in your mouth, upon a hill and watch as the clouds are shepherded by the wind. Close your eyes, knowing you have no worries in this world, and sleep the day away.