Farm Life

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Spiritwind
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

I haven't been able to corral myself into much writing as of late, but wanted to at least post pictures of Coco's kids which she finally had late Wednesday afternoon. I will try to muster up the self discipline to actually sit down and write out a post here soon. I seem to be fluctuating between too much energy and a need to be outside, or being too sleepy, tired, and such loud ear ringing I have to fight the urge to just curl up in a ball and sleep for ten years. I'm sure I'll eventually find that middle ground again (at least I hope so).

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First one looking for the nipple.

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Cutie Patooty!

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Coco had a curious audience!

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The colorful one standing up is the buckling she had, and the other two are girls.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Spiritwind
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

It’s funny that extreme frustration is the actual motivation behind me writing an update for my Farm Life thread. Part of me wants to write, and the other part of me doesn’t. Part of me wants to just go to sleep, and forget about this world completely. I think I’ve already done that, plenty. I see so much going on “out there” that I don’t want to see, that sometimes even my little haven away from it all doesn’t cancel out my angst. “Resistance is futile”is the saying that keeps coming to mind. “Surrender” also comes to mind. Maybe others can move through it all so much easier than I can. I wish it was easier for me, I really do.

The mandatory vaccine with no exemptions law in California weighs heavily on my mind. All the censorship on social media I see being rolled out weighs heavily on me too. All the logging trucks and the neighbors down the road thinking that somehow cutting down all their trees for some quick cash is a good idea brings me pain too. We could cut down all our trees for some quick cash too, if I could live with myself afterwards (which I couldn’t). I try to numb it all out, push it away, out of my thoughts. Maybe I’m just going through withdrawals from running out of my hempworx CBD oil for several weeks. At almost $80 a pop (which gets used up in a month) it’s kind of steep when we have so many other things we want to do. And I’m just not much of a sales person. Almost everyone I know either does not want to spend the money, or simply doesn’t have it. I’ve noticed my hands are swelling up all the time again too : (

And yes, I am painfully honest here. There are not many places I can be, and if not here, then where? It’s not all bad, but might as well get what all is bothering me off my chest first. My current frustration has to do with trying to fix the milk stanchion so I can get the smaller, younger ones up there and trim their hooves without help. They can pull their head through, and I never finished fixing it properly. I did attach a piece of wood to the side, but need to take one side off to do it right. Of course, I didn’t (do that), and so I broke the drill bit. And the 2x2 split when I tried taking the screws out.

My husband is going to bring home a replacement 2x2, and some 3 inch bolts to attach the piece I need to fix it right. I hate asking him for help as I know he already works all day and is very tired by the time he comes home. It’s my own fault I let the frustration build to where I had to go spastic. In case you don’t know, I am now laughing at myself.

I know even our few posters here on the forum have probably grown bored with so little new content being posted, and I do wonder sometimes why I continue myself. I mean, I don’t get into politics, and those that do have such widely opposing views that probably can’t be reconciled even if they were willing to hash it out. That doesn’t mean they aren’t thinking about them though. There is much going on in the world to be concerned about, it’s true. And my forte is in things not easily seen, so don’t bother going there much. Very few probably “get” me. I want the character who wears the brown robe with the hood pulled over so you can’t see the face (there isn’t one, as far as I can tell) that pulls the strings from the unseen realms to basically just quit the bull shit, even though I know that’s not likely to happen. I can pull back from my complicity in the whole affair though, and not co-operate anymore. And don’t bother trying to guilt trip me, it isn’t going to work. I love myself too much now for that tactic to work.

Anyway, I write to preserve my sanity, to bring an element of normality into everyday life. When I get up, my animals needs are always first on my list of important things to pay attention to, and it does help ground me, even though I regularly receive unexpected curve balls.

I posted some pictures of Coco’s kids, which are all doing very well. They were born last Wednesday, on June 26th, exactly 146 days after her encounter with Raven. As you know, I thought she would kid probably at least a month before she did. And I have mentioned that little Karuna got knocked up too, but wasn’t sure when. I figured she wouldn’t kid for at least another month. Once again, I was about as wrong as wrong could be. My husband brought home my two grandsons, which are quite a handful all by themselves (especially when you aren’t used to it) on Saturday, 3 days after Coco kidded. We hung out inside for a short bit, and then we went out to see the goats. I noticed as I got down to the big pen where Karuna and the other Nigerians were, that she was laying down in an odd place and something didn’t seem right. I went in and realized that she was in LABOR!!!

My husband just about killed himself picking her up and carrying her to a pen for birthing. Even though she is small, she is very stout and compact. She didn’t seem to be dilating, although she was definitely having contractions. She seemed to calm down some after we moved her and gave her a lot of attention. My grandsons are like, wow, what’s happening?! And I am trying to figure out what our best course of action should be. It’s a late Saturday afternoon, and we definitely did not have the money for an emergency vet visit. After some time of realizing she probably was going to need help, and not knowing what to do, I contacted a goat friend who lived nearby. I figured the odds weren’t in our favor that she would even return my text. I did call on one of my favorite people (you know who you are) to energetically hold space and be there and was saying some prayers myself. And my goat friend surprisingly did get right back to me. We didn’t have anything appropriate for a lubricant, and so made the decision to load her up and drive her over to my goat friend’s home.

From here on out I will always keep a hefty supply of mineral oil on hand. Before we took Karuna over there all we could think of was to use some olive oil to stick a finger or two in her vagina to see what was happening. When I got to my friends she had her daughter bring out a gallon jug of mineral oil and put some in a small bowl, and then used a syringe to draw up about 4 ML at a time and insert it into her vagina, and using her other hand (with a surgical glove on) inserted two fingers to basically lubricate and help stretch out her cervix. She did this over and over for quite some time, while Karuna kept pushing and slowly moving her baby down the birth canal. She then let her rest for close to a half hour, having contractions on her own, then resumed the procedure. By then she could feel the baby’s head and one foot, although the sack had not broke yet. All this is going on with her still in the crate in the back of our car. And as far as I know, you won’t find this procedure in any book (it’s not in any of mine anyway).

We kept talking to Karuna, encouraging and cheering her on. Finally, she was able to feel the other foot, although still couldn’t quite grasp it. After several more contractions she managed to grasp the two hooves just after the sack broke, and while Karuna was pushing helped pulled the kid out. It was intense. Fortunately we have a rubber backing on the rug we have in the back of our SUV and she had her daughter bring out some towels, so not too big of a mess. And both mom and baby (and me) survived the ordeal. He’s a healthy little guy, and was surprisingly quite boisterous after such a traumatic arrival. This means that little Karuna got pregnant the same night Coco did, at just five months old. I never want to have this happen again. Bad Raven!

My grandsons got to see grandma in a panic. Needless to say, it was quite the weekend. And, as if that wasn’t enough, the ton of hay I got last week that was supposed to be dairy quality had so many weeds in it that the goats hate it. It’s full of cheap grass, and I woke up the next day after the birthing ordeal to find Firefly’s eye all infected. So we’ve been putting ointment in her eye, and gave her a series of three (every 48 hours) shots of antibiotics that just completed last night. It seems to be getting better.

And that pretty much catches me up on goat news. Other than that, the corn is growing good (and so are the weeds), the raspberries are almost ripe, and I have my first zucchini ready to pick in the garden. We actually had a few thunder storms roll through with some torrential rains accompanying them, which was wonderfully unexpected for this time of year. Usually they say it might happen and it doesn’t, or we hear the thunder but don’t get any substantial rain. And I actually managed to finally write a real post here. Will wonders never cease. Now I think I’ll go hang out with some baby goats.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Re: Farm Life

Post by maggie »

Spiritwind wrote:
The mandatory vaccine with no exemptions law in California weighs heavily on my mind. All the censorship on social media I see being rolled out weighs heavily on me too. All the logging trucks and the neighbors down the road thinking that somehow cutting down all their trees for some quick cash is a good idea brings me pain too. We could cut down all our trees for some quick cash too, if I could live with myself afterwards (which I couldn’t). I try to numb it all out, push it away, out of my thoughts. Maybe I’m just going through withdrawals from running out of my hempworx CBD oil for several weeks. At almost $80 a pop (which gets used up in a month) it’s kind of steep when we have so many other things we want to do. And I’m just not much of a sales person. Almost everyone I know either does not want to spend the money, or simply doesn’t have it. I’ve noticed my hands are swelling up all the time again too : (
I check in from time to time and love your thread. beautiful goats. I love goats. I am so happy to be near animals and insects and am really lucky in my life. I just get hung up by being furious that others are being persuaded to hurt themselves. That is what I really believe and cannot stop being outraged that this is not seen as the horror that I see. But I have to stop because it is not healthy being so upset.

I have "almost farm" stories that make me happy. my dog Megan was in terrible pain from an old injury. I made an appointment that would take 10 days and I gave her DMG, CBD oil, PEMF (actipatch) therapy and she was just a little better. BUT the chiropractic adjustment really was amazing and she is all better. Now I know I just need to keep getting her adjustments.

This week I saw two tortoises and moved them to safer places. I have baby chickens. I had 9 hens and my rooster died and the hens were broody so i bought some outrageously expensive eggs (because they are lavender Americaunas (lay blue green eggs) and blue Cochins). Then only two of the former and three of the latter hatched. BUT I also bought some ordinary Americaunas eggs and 8 hatched. the Mama hens are sooo great. the biddies are getting bigger and are so much enjoying life. I think there are 5 roosters in the mix and I will be needing later to send some rooster to new homes as they fight if they don't have enough ladies to squire. I think they need about 5 each to be happy.

One night last week I found a gigantic beetle (2 i/2 inches) on my bed like these but a little bigger

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and then a rhinocerous beetle was upside down on the floor...

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and there are hundreds of lightning bugs this year. So I am thinking about what beetle energies I am needing. One thing is that i feel nothing but pleasure in all the creatures. there were rats at the old barn and I knew there were too many. It was awful because I did not wnat to poisone them. Right when I bought a trap that will electrocute them but had not used it yet, suddenly the huge numbers was now just a few. maybe they knew they had to leave? That was a relief as I don't want to kill anyone but cannot have that issue.

I did not plant a garden this year. I am buying local home grown but now I am aware of glyphosate, I know I need to garden here as this earth has NEVER had any poisons. The wild blackberries are just amazing this year. Where I live has had very moderate weather and just enough of everything sun and water.

I just wanted to respond as I love your posts. I wish I could live in community with people like you... that is my intention. So far I am still living like a sort of a hermit (and sort of a hedge witch but not groupified). I'd like to be with others who feel it is really important to be practically helpful but not cultish. Actually even a family of people can act to squelch people's freedom so I am a bit lonely for intimacy but solitary is OK too. It would drive me crazy to be living with people who would want to impose their agendas.

On the other hand,the way things seem to be going, I know we need community more than ever. Conundrums of togetherness. Love, Maggie
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

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The Corn Patch on the 4th of July

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Karuna and her little buckling, Miko - 2 days old


Wow, Maggie, a chiropractic adjustment made that much difference!? Thank you for posting. I guess I’ve been feeling quite isolated on the home front. Last year I was able to get out more, but this year transportation has been somewhat of an issue. So when I come here (the forum in general) and there is no one posting it only adds to my sense of isolation. I long for community, and yet like a carrot, it just never seems to get any closer. And I know I am not alone in this. It’s the nature of our world for many, surrounded by people, yet no sense of connection.

And, yes, it seems I am having to work harder these days to just be grateful that I get to live in an environment with so much to appreciate. That whole “I can’t stop being outraged” thing does not exactly serve me, but yet the struggle is real at times.

I love your sharing, even just the little things, as it is a potent reminder for me about what is really important. We haven’t got chickens yet, but it’s on the list. And bugs! Oh man, we are in bug paradise (or bug hell depending on how you look at it). I actually appreciate the bugs for the most part, except the biting ones. I know they are a good sign, really. In fact, my observation after having been here for a few years is that each year a different insect will be in the forefront in numbers. Last year it was the yellow jackets. They seemed out of control. Year before that it was the pine smelling beetles that were very numerous. This year we seem to have an extraordinary issue with mosquitos, with more getting inside and wanting to suck our blood than previous years. Not so many ticks, though.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a rhinoceros beetle. I am continuously fascinated by the forms nature takes. It blows my mind. And we have three cats, so it is interesting to observe all the evidence they leave behind about their killing sprees. I won’t do poison for anything, and we would be overrun by mice, rats, chipmunks, and ground squirrels, not to mention birds who love to eat my strawberries and raspberries, if it weren’t for these cats. But just the other day I went out and saw feathers from a small bird, a rats head, and a dead shrew (they don’t like to eat them) just walking down to the barn. It’s not like they are wiping any of these populations out, just keeping them in check. As the summer wears on, our gardens are the most living greenest, juiciest looking areas out here. In fact, the goats are even eating my valerian through the fence, and they didn’t touch it last year. I’ve got to maybe even put a second fence up so their long necks can’t reach everything.

I, too, long for a greater sense of community, and I’ve definitely noticed since I’m now into my 60’s how many of us are living very solitary lives. I do have friends, but they are still totally enmeshed in the system and have no time it seems. Always busy, and yet I often wonder why, for they are generally not happy. I should be ecstatically happy, living where I do, yet I do miss the joy that comes from working together with others, to accomplish goals, complete beneficial projects. It turns out I really don’t like to be alone all the time. So, I’m actually not sure what to do about it. I guess maybe I do need to spend some real time making a plan to get involved in something outside my tiny little life here that helps me alleviate my sense of loneliness that has set in so deeply as of late.

On the other hand, being around people who I have absolutely nothing in common with can be an equally unpleasant experience. Usually I can find something to talk about, but most of the folks that live on our little access road out here are not people I would enjoy hanging out with. My friend who I’ve known for over 40 years that lives up the road is an exception. But the other three near neighbors would be painful to spend time with. We are kind of the odd ones out, living in our 5th wheel with composting toilet, and using generators and solar for power, and our stinky goats and all. I’m not sure who the snob is, LOL. They have nice big homes, no interest in even adorable baby goats, gardening, and definitely unable to contemplate the spiritual side of life.

They drive by us and won’t even make eye contact. They are into weed free big green lawns, and the one neighbor who was spraying a weed killer on the side of the road even blithely told us when we questioned him that what he was using was completely safe, because, you know, the experts say it is. The young neighbors right next to us are an odd mixture of gotta have it all now (even if the bank owns everything they have and they are just a paycheck away from not having what they have) and in a hurry all the time (they’ve almost run my husband off the road several times). And the third set of neighbors down the road came from California and bought their home for way more than it was worth and found they could not sell it when they wanted to. They quit trying to sell it, and now, with all the people moving into the area (many also from California) probably are glad they didn’t sell it now. And the big home a mile or so down the road that set empty for quite a few years because they were selling it for way too much finally just sold. Quite a few older folks who have been waiting for the opportunity to sell their homes quickly for a profit out here are finally moving on. It’s a strange mix of new people coming in that have a different value system, and other folks ready to downsize and move to the city leaving. And we’re the hillbilly’s in the middle of it all, LOL.

It’s a good thing I don’t care too much what anyone thinks of me anymore. But it would be nice to have more in common with those who live around us. Funny thing is, if there was some kind of natural or unnatural situation that came our way out here, we would probably be the only ones who could respond without going into a complete panic mode. I do wonder sometimes if there isn’t a deeper reason why spirit has worked things out this way, with so many who actually are of like mind in our perceptual category spread out all over the planet, with many of us feeling quite isolated. For now, my best friends are in different countries and we would be lost without things like Skype and Zoom. Even though I have issues with technology, I do fully recognize the benefits of some of it, for sure! I do like the weather app and ability to get mileage and directions for destinations so easily on my phone.

I wasn’t even planning to write this much. My plan was to respond to your post, Maggie, and post a couple pictures. But I guess I’ve finally run out of words for now. One of the reasons I keep posting here is because I know there are a few out there who also want to be more connected, but maybe just don’t know what to do either. Some of them actually read here from time to time. It kind of holds a place on the internet, the only one where I can be truly myself without having anyone try to shut me down, or shut me up. Maybe I’ll get lucky and strike up a conversation with someone delightful next time I’m in the grocery store. Maybe I need to get a job (besides the one I already have) just so I can get out of my little rut, LOL. People really do need people.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

The continuing saga of farm life...

So, I feel a writing coming on but maybe just need to start typing the words out since I’m not quite sure what wants to emerge. In three more months it will be three years since I started this thread and sometimes wonder if I should keep going with it. Especially lately, since I’m going through a strange period of inner change it would seem that leaves me short on words. I’ve been very reclusive since last fall, and now am even having anxiety when I leave home.

I did go to a family reunion this last weekend, which at least got me out of my funk for a few days. It was a smaller gathering than last year, but filled my heart with joy to spend time with my sister that I had been separated from for so many years. I truly thought the time would not arrive in this lifetime, for us to actually have the closeness that I used to have with her. It’s like 20 years did not go by, yet we had so incredibly much to talk about. I really truly missed her, and have deep gratitude for the forces behind the scenes, and the very physical intentions of my niece, who gave us the opportunity to make this happen. My sister’s three sons did not make it this year, nor did my other sister and her daughter. They were missed. And it never did get warm enough for me to take the plunge and go swimming. Strange summer it’s been.

My two nieces and sister spent a good deal of time with my two grandsons, though, as they were keen on spending as much time in the water as they could. Out of the nine kids between the three of us siblings, I am the only one with grandchildren so far, and it’s quite amazing how much they bring by way of joy, pure fun, and innocent trust. Innocent trust is usually the first thing to go as we grow older. I got to watch the youngest, almost 5, learn how to fly a kite. What a natural, and so ridiculously much energy! Like, where do they get it!?

I realized as all us girls, women, spent time together just being, with no set agenda other than to enjoy each other’s company, that there is a thread that binds us all together in ways that I find hard to put in words. We actually came from a family of quite wealthy people, and yet due to probably the fact that we are all heart centered, and our family of origin is not, we kind of got cut out of the loop and have all had to make our own way. Each of us are fiercely independent, yet together the spiritual energy behind who each of us are was palpable. We collectively realized that in some very vital ways we were better off having been cut out of the family loop.

It was also important to me for my daughter to get to know them, as for 20 years she did not really get the chance to know who they are. Without spending time together, they would always be strangers. And we marveled at how, even though very very different from each other in so many ways, there was an ease in being together I think that surprised us all. It was kind of like finding a pot of gold, that had been there all along but we didn’t see was there. The kind of gold money can’t buy. Once again, words cannot express how I really feel. It reminds me of a favorite quote from the Zoo Story, “sometimes you have to go a long ways, to come back a short distance”. Time can be like that, as it loops around and around...

Back at the farm though I am having some issues about leaving home I don’t recall ever having before, at least not to this extent. I had all kinds of plans for this year that don’t look like they are going to happen for a variety of reasons. I might be getting a car back from my daughter that we gave her, since she never drives it. That would actually help, as I don’t like to drive our pickup. It needs some work, even though it drives okay, and it’s absolutely essential for getting hay, so I don’t want anything to happen to it. Our economy car still has the tire off (and kind of blocks the path to the hay barn) and I know my husband is not very motivated to fix it (with the long list of things we still want to accomplish this summer). And I can feel the future bearing down on us even before it gets here. I have never been wrong when I feel this. Next year, between January and March, we need to make sure we have completed certain projects, and be ready for whatever is in store for us, both individually, and on a much larger scale for every one. I don’t know for sure what is coming, but something definitely is. I know better than to ignore these intuitive feelings. And sensing it coming makes me feel more like withdrawing rather than reaching out.

As I write this I realize maybe I need to quite fighting it, and just move into whatever is trying to emerge from deep within that has not found words or understanding yet. I would like to get better at handling some of the more traumatic things that can happen here on the farm. The doe with the eye infection is all healed up now, and then we had to give a series of antibiotic injections to the little buckling, Ronin, that we got this spring. He had a cough, and seriously bad gas, ever since we brought him home. Not exactly sure what is going on with him, but after putting colloidal silver in his water for several days, and giving him herbal wormer too, he still seemed off and his poop wasn’t the usual little pebbles. We had our family gathering to go to, so weren’t going to be home and decided to treat him with antibiotics to see if he got better. Yes, sometimes it is trial and error. He did get better! But then, I had all the goats out a couple days ago and watched him racing after the others through the barbed wire fence. He misjudged and hit it so that it caught him right where his left front leg attaches to his body on the barbed wire and literally flipped him completely over the fence backwards. I thought he was okay at first, then saw that he was gushing blood pretty good. I do panic in these situations. I manage to calm down fairly quick, but my first response is admittedly, pure panic. I did manage to wash the blood off and take a good look at it. It stopped bleeding pretty quick and even though it looked bad I knew trying to put any kind of wrap on it wouldn’t work very well, so just applied a bunch of triple antibiotic ointment to it. Geez Louise!

It seems to be healing up well, but I need to keep a close eye on him. I know I have to sell a few of these new kids to get my numbers down, but it’s always hard for me, deciding who to let go, and who to keep. Big sigh.

Oh yeah, and I wanted to add that leaving the two does that I milk with their one daughter I kept from each when we went on our trip worked! They were not engorged when we came back, and it only took a couple days to get their milk production back up. I figured it would work, as those two girls are gluttons. In fact, Firefly’s daughter will probably not be able to squeeze through the fence anymore after this week. It’s a struggle for her now, but she hasn’t quite given up yet. She has been enjoying her freedom. Can’t say that I blame her.

So, bottom line for me is that I really need to find ways to get out more. For so long I wanted to do many things that involved reaching out to others, and now I can’t seem to muster up enough to even leave home. The phone reception out here seems to have gotten worse, so phone calls are no fun. And I have been slowly over time processing a great deal of what seem to be ancestral memories as of late. It kind of takes me out of this reality almost entirely, and so much of it is just so out there I know few people I can even share these with. Probably part of the reason I haven’t been doing “people” much lately. I’m guessing, as I write this, that maybe I need to get out of my expectations and just let this process work itself out instead of resisting and judging. Sometimes easier said than done. After all, my own inner knowing/gnosis is probably the biggest and most important work I do here anyway, even if it isn’t mainstream or something most can relate to. It IS okay.


Well, another week has flown by and I still haven’t finished and posted this yet. Might as well add a bit more to catch up first. The garden areas are doing well, and I’m already looking for new zucchini recipes, since we will be eating quite a lot of it. Been eating tons of raspberries too. The corn is tasseling and starting to form ears, so that’s exciting. We did some expansion last weekend and made the fence around our RV bigger to incorporate the garden areas, and now it goes all the way around. It gives the dogs more room, too, when they are kept in during the day. Since I got my little kiddie pool set up and put up a hummingbird feeder, I’ve been enjoying just sitting outside more, which also gives me more opportunities to interact with our dogs. They are way too big to come inside our tiny RV. And they do enjoy the extra attention.

It seems I’m finally coming out of the slight funk I’ve been in. I had a good friend come visit the farm last week, and that helped perk me up. She is someone of like mind and is always inspiring to be around. We have a few plans for future activities, with a view to getting me out more. My husband went to work late on Saturday so he could go with me to get a few bales of grass hay from a small town feed store up north of us, and happened to catch the little farmers market they have there every week. They were a nice group of people, and even though it’s early for me (9am to 1pm) I may try to have a booth there later this summer. I like supporting local farmers and crafters, so of course bought a few things. We also went to the farmers market in another small town to the west of us, and, while the location and time was good, and the people were nice, it felt much more, how do I say it? It felt like going to church, which I don’t do anymore. The one up north from us had a very diverse bunch of people that I would feel much more comfortable spending a morning around, I guess you could say.

And we are buying the pipe this week to run the water underground down to the big barn. Yippie! That is a big project, and it’s looking like it might actually happen this year. It will make winter chores so much easier, so I am very happy about that. Of course, there is always something to put a kink in things. I asked my daughter about the car she was going to give back to me and found out it needs four new tires. It has studded snow tires still on it from the winter before. Oh well, it’s only money, right? And, we are getting two more batteries for the solar system. It seems we get about an hour a battery most of the time, so with eight batteries we should get about eight hours of solar. That’s not bad. We leave a small refrigerator on the solar all the time, and it seems to be handling that well, without drawing too much power. You know, my husband has to have room to keep beer cold in the summer. And it’s not fun opening the main refrigerator and having stuff fall out because it’s too full.

I could probably keep going now that I got started, but think I will stop for now. Hope anyone reading this is enjoying their summer. Usually by mid August we start feeling the evenings cool down more, even though the days are hot. This summer has been anything but normal, though. Heat wise it’s been far more tolerable than previous years, and less smoke in the air than the last 5 years straight. It’s nice to be able to breath! Until next time...
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

A lot to write about today, if I can muster up the energy to stay with it. I admit, I am a tired girl. It’s been a flurry of activity for awhile now, something I’m not as used to as I probably should be. Living life kind of in the slow lane can do that to a person. It makes me think about how our would be controllers like to structure our lives for us. I know so many people who don’t know how not to be busy. In fact, I’ve known too many who worked hard all their life waiting for that magic retirement age, only to die soon after. Probably because they just didn’t know what to do with themselves, once their time was really their own.

Anyway, I am very grateful for the opportunity country living has given me, to structure my own time around nature, gardening, and goats. I love waking up everyday to gaze out at the breeze moving through the magnificent trees I am surrounded by. And I have finally moved out of the strange funk I was in for awhile. It was all quite revealing once I allowed myself to follow the threads presenting themselves, to see where it would take me. Strange stuff, so strange that I dare not even write about it here. But very happy I can now move on a little lighter, and perhaps wiser.

It is kind of hard to be living in more than one reality at a time, and having to constantly adjust myself when around others. That is also why I am so grateful to at least have a handful of people who I can speak openly with, and not have to censor every word that comes out of my mouth. And I am grateful that I can express myself here as well. There are many places in the world where personal freedom is very limited, and there are those who have this in mind for all of us. I’m reading several books, some for the second time, that talk about this phenomena. There are those who firmly believe that humanity is just an extension of the rest of the resources on this planet, to own and control. They believe that we exist solely to serve “the State”, and I love how they use language that sounds good, but when you look deeper, isn’t at all. At least, not for us, those who still believe in personal freedom. But I digress, I guess.

If ever there was a clamp down, such as what is going on in Hong Kong right now, I will be in serious trouble. Just my library of books alone is enough to make me a target, not to mention the many videos I have on flash drives. When did questioning the narrative become a crime? I can certainly feel the slow creep of imperialism. No wonder people are getting nervous. They should be! The threat is real. But still, life goes on.

So my goal every day is to use the time I do have here, while maintaining a awareness of what is approaching (encroaching), to still do what I can to enjoy this life, be happy, live with faith in a higher order that operates in the frequency of love, compassion, and beauty. In this reality, living in this way is truly an act of defiance, and non compliance. No matter what they do to us, we can still think what we want inside our own little minds. And nothing can maintain total control over everything for any extended time. There will always be light and love leaking through the inevitable cracks. The pendulum will always eventually swing the other way.

Now that I’m done waxing philosophical, I can move on to what is happening on the farm these days. We just brought home our second ton of alfalfa hay yesterday, with a third ton to be picked up early Saturday morning. Then I just have to get one more ton, of grass hay, for the horse to make it all the way through until next June when at least first cutting hay becomes available from the next season. Knowing that astrologically things are going to be dicey in some yet unanticipated manner from at least January through March, at least we won’t be driving in snow storms to get crappy hay that costs twice as much through the winter. We spent the weekend extending the hay barn out, pulling up the pallets and cleaning all the accumulated hay out from under them to keep a serious mold problem from developing. That’s the other half of it. Making sure that the hay is appropriately covered to protect if from inclement weather. We picked up some metal frame work for another smaller shelter to cover hay over by where the bucks pen is located. We are well on our way.

We also have the pipe and most of the fittings, as well as three frost free hydrants for running the water down to the big barn, another over by the horse, and one up here by the well house. It will probably be the end of September before we can rent the ditch digger. We are definitely not going to try and dig a three foot deep trench that far by ourselves. Not hauling water buckets around, and having the kitchen floor covered in 5 gallon buckets for the animals this winter will be a definite plus. And we just have one more wall to insulate and sheetrock in the well house too. Progress!
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Spiritwind
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Re: Farm Life

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I guess I’m making this into two posts. I had planned to come back and finish but after getting in three tons of hay in a week I was kind of beat up and wore out. The bales weighed about 120 lbs. and even though my neighbor did most of the work, I helped as best I could. I only weigh about 105 myself, so even though I didn’t think I was doing so bad, I would find out the next day when I didn’t want to move or get out of bed.

It’s hard to type with a cat on your lap (as I mentioned many times before). But I won’t move the Zoey. We have one more ton to get in, of grass hay for the horse this time. We’ll wait a couple weeks to use up some of what we have to make a little more room. We still have a half ton left from the beginning of July, so all together we should have enough hay to last until next June. We extended the hay barn, screwed OSB on top to be covered by tarps so the cats can’t tear it all up and the weight of the snow won’t make the tarps sag. Plus we got some metal framework for free from someone who sold their home, enough to make another cover over the other hay stack. We put that over by the bucks area. That’s the other part of this. If we don’t cover it well, then we’ll be right back where we started. And this is all premium high quality hay. Yippie! (Sorry, a little repetitive there.)

I do have some very sad news to report, though. I don’t have time to read back through to see if I mentioned Ronin’s flip over the fence. He was doing so well after the antibiotics we gave him. He was running to catch up with the rest of the herd and misjudged his jump over the hill. Even though I thought he was okay, he passed away in the night this last Monday. He had what looked like a bubble sticking out of his anus, and after reading up it appears that he probably died from a hernia. When I saw him fly over the fence he literally flipped over backwards and even twisted in mid air. Definitely enough to have caused it. My husband is going to help me put some additional fencing up there this weekend to make sure this doesn’t happen again. So very very sad. He was a sweet boy too, and would have made some nice kids. I won’t be getting another buck this year though. It looks like Mr. Raven is it. We definitely know he can get the job done.

I already have a buyer lined up for the two little boys of Coco’s and Karuna’s. Just got them banded a couple days ago, and a really nice couple came out and put money down on them. They will go in about three weeks, at two and a half months old, which is perfect. I got a lot of response on my ad, which surprised me for this late in the summer. They are cute as heck though. This puts me at 13 goats to go through the winter with. I just know it’s going to be a strange one, I can feel it in my bones.

My grandson was out last weekend and we had a really fun time. He got to try his hand at milking Ballerina, since she is the easier of the two. He found out it isn’t as easy as I make it look! He is also getting old enough to actually help me with things. I told him if he keeps learning how to help with farm chores it could work into a summer job that could later lead into getting his first real job when he gets older. It never hurts to gain work experience, and is actually how I got started at thirteen. He also went to a drumming circle with me. It was his first time and at first he was a little shy. Once he got up his nerve, though, he really got into it. They have a mother drum, which is a big drum that about ten people can use at one time. And, of course, I am delighted to give him the opportunity to widen his life experience.

The corn grew fantastic and was tasseling and forming ears of corn. Then we had some incredible storms move through with an unusual amount of rain for this time of year. Good to help put out some of the fires that have been causing such horrible air quality (amongst other terrible things), but as it was much cooler than normal for this time of year it had a detrimental affect on the corn. It doesn’t seem to have gotten very well pollinated so the ears are rather puny looking so far. Makes me kind of sad, as they were outstanding last year. We will get about a dozen or so acorn squash that I planted with the corn, though. I decided to plant a squash that keeps pretty good, isn’t so huge, and is probably my favorite.

They have been very busy spraying our skies. I truly can’t believe people don’t seem to notice the skies being covered with big X’s that spread out and actually form artificial clouds. I’ve been noticing this since the 90’s, and have definitely made the correlation with all of us suddenly having runny noses and sinus problems. Not to mention the fire retardant that we get to breath, now, every summer. Many swear words come to mind. I won’t get off on a tangent here, but my reading has brought just where we collectively are sharply into focus these days. So glad to be where I am, and just watching to see how things shape up. No matter what you say to people, many just won’t prepare until it’s too late. I will take no pleasure in this, and will not be saying “I told you so”. I say many many prayers, every day, for us all. I hope Great Spirit hears them.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Spiritwind
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

Image

I very very rarely take a decent picture, but a friend came over on a hot day and took this of me in my little kiddie pool. I’m still a kid at heart, and was quite tickled when I picked this up at a yard sale for $5. Works great for a quick cool down. Simple minds simple pleasures I guess, but it really does t take that much sometimes to create a little joy and happiness.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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Re: Farm Life

Post by LostNFound »

Nice Pic Laurie. You and my sweety think the same. She loves the kiddie pools in the summer. This one has been the strangest. We have not received any monsoons this year or as Babe says, we did get a lot of rain in the Spring. August usually is the monsoons but this year it is just dad blame hot and muggy but no rain. Yesterday we got bug sprayed by the Jerkazoids but today it is clear blue and we are getting more and more of those. Just wish we would get the rains myself.

sorry to here about Ronin.

4 and a half ton of good hay sounds good and hear you about the work it takes to store that. Lifting a 120 bail is not real fun or easy for sure and to do a bunch of them is crazy for sure. Now as for the FFHBs down at the barns sound great. Keep at it lady you doing good. My good buddy over in Machias, close to Lake Stevens is getting ready to build his daughter and Son in law a new house on their new 2 and half acre place. Going to build a pole barn first so he can put in an apartment to live in. Gawd he is almost as old as me give or take 3 years but does well in his retirement as I and Babe do.

You look real good for a retired member of the Farmers guild. So keep on, keeping on.
Steven and Babe :D 8-)
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

Steven, your Sweety sounds like someone I would really enjoy knowing! Thank you for your presence here on the forum. It would be incredibly lonely here without you! Even though I have trouble reading books (and, yes, your fiction and fantasy thread qualifies as a book!) online, I am happy that you chose our little forum to post it on. If you ever have it made into a pdf I would love a copy of it. I hadn’t planned on writing so soon here, but have a situation to write about that I just can’t wrap my mind around. I looked back through my postings here, and discovered that Raven had indeed gotten out a couple times in May.

The reason this was important is, first, I had forgotten that he had gotten out not really all that long ago, and have been scratching my head, and praying, that the udder I thought I saw starting to develop on Cry Baby was not really happening. I cut back on their hay, thinking that’s why her and Danae were looking so plump. Anyway, long story short, I’m almost positive that both Cry Baby and Danae are pregnant. At first I thought it had to be Ronin, which would be shocking enough since he may not have been even three months old when this would have happened. I’ve left a couple different bucks, Raven and Crispy, with girls I didn’t mind getting pregnant when they were that young, and even though it’s possible, nothing happened, even after a couple months. I even had Cry Baby in there with Raven last fall, hoping to breed her, and she didn’t get pregnant.

So, this is the year my assumptions made a ...... out of me!

I am quite relieved, strangely, that it may have been Raven that did get them pregnant, for if it isn’t we may have a problem when it comes birthing time, as he, when grown, would have been bigger than the girls by enough to be worrisome. Still don’t know for sure, and, frankly, I am appalled. This has certainly been the year of the goat for me, goats, goats, and MORE goats! Geez Louise! What is it they say about the best laid plans...?

Note to self: If they birth before September 29th it HAS to be Raven, as I didn’t bring Ronin home until May 7th, and 145 days from May 7 is September 29.
I see your love shining out from my furry friends faces, when I look into their eyes. I see you in the flower’s smile, the rainbow, and the wind in the trees....
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