Feature: From software to sucklers, former tech executive embraces farm life

Nine years ago, Gretta English lived the fast-paced life of a tech professional in Dublin. She drove a Lexus hardtop convertible, had a closet full of three-inch heels, designer handbags and Armani suits.

If there was ever a city slicker, she was it.

For most of her 15-year career in the technology sector, Gretta was a frequent flier. As a channel analyst and program manager for Microsoft, she covered Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Like many city dwellers with high-paced lives, she imagined spending idyllic weekends in the countryside with clean air and open spaces.

Then she met Liam, her husband-to-be, who ran a data and web analysis firm, based on his 90-acre home and farm in County Tipperary where the River Barrow, River Nore and River Suir come together.

"Liam refused to come to Dublin because he had his house and farm there," she said. "So I decided to compromise, and make the transition to move to the country."

Since the two were hoping to start a family, Gretta felt the time was right to take a break from her workaholic lifestyle and career. But farming was not something that she was initially drawn to. "The farm was being leased out," she said. "And I had never even owned a pet."

It was on one of her long drives back to her new home on the farm after a visit to Dublin, that she heard the call. On the radio: "There was an ad for a farming college," she said. "Two years later, I was servicing lawnmowers and driving tractors."

Armed with her degree in horticulture from Ireland's Waterford Institute of Technology, Gretta found herself in a community of farmers who had inherited family farms and traditions.

The transition to farm life was not an easy one. "I found the first two years difficult," she said. "The pace of life was hard to adjust to. People spoke so slowly. Even the lectures seemed like they should have been condensed down to an hour."

"The isolation at the beginning was hard to adjust to. I was at a job with 750 people working in the same building, with constant contact and meetings. Here, the nearest neighbor is two kilometers away. There's no passing traffic, and no one walking past."

With all of the time by herself, Gretta said she had ample time for self-reflection. "The biggest surprise was realizing how much I missed being in charge. I had never thought of myself that way," she said. "And you can't rush around animals or they will run the other way. Animals can sense if you are unafraid and treat them with respect."

Unlike the competitive dog-eat-dog corporate world, the farming community is a supportive and helpful one. "Farmers rarely socialize with the long days, busy farming schedules, and the drinking and driving laws," she said. "But if anyone has a problem, everyone is very eager to help out."

Being one of few women in the industry is something Gretta was used to in the tech sector. In her new role, she is also a standout because of her approach to farming. "Most of my farming knowledge is book-learned. They can walk onto a field and 'see' when something is not right, I haven't learned that yet," she said.

"But I know, for instance, that suckler cows are only harder to handle than dairy cows because they have less human contact. I sing to mine, I walk with them and talk to them. The other farmers, inspectors and even veterinarians always comment on how calm my cows are around humans."

Today, Gretta has 40 cows of mixed breeds and several other animals. The Englishes never intended for the farm to be a profit making enterprise, but Gretta said in the summer, they produce almost 70 percent of the food they eat, buying items like rice, pasta and other fruits to supplement.

These days, the jet-setting lifestyle of a tech-executive is unimaginable for Gretta. Though Liam still travels for work about one week out of each month, the demands of the farm means they rarely have time to go away on vacation. "The last time I went abroad was on my honeymoon," Gretta said.

But is technology still a big part of her life? "Farming can be very technical. For instance, the Department of Agriculture and Bord Bia (Irish Food Board) have their forms online. I also do the accounts for Liam's company," she said. "And I have an iPhone 5."

"The big joke at Microsoft when I left was that I wouldn't last six months on the farm," she said.

Do her former colleagues envy her new country lifestyle? "No. They think I'm crazy," she laughed. Endit