Farm Life

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Spiritwind
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

A gloomy looking day outside so maybe a good time to write. I know I share some fairly personal stuff here and sometimes wonder why I do that. Probably the biggest reason is that the problems I face are not unique really, and the human condition is where we are all at, in one way or another. I remember reading years ago a chapter in one of Alan Watts many books (I think it was The Book On The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are) about how to be a genuine fake. The confusion about this seems to be growing rather than the opposite, for many.

So I try to be real, as best I can. Which means everything isn't always peaches and cream. Nor is it really that way for anyone who is real, because all life on earth is now experiencing a struggle for survival in one way or another, and more so for some than others. Those of us here in America tend to live life in a bubble and not realize we are part of something much bigger, and somewhat insidious, if I may say. And, I do say that because of some of what I have come to see about the bigger picture and those who deem themselves in a position to steer the rest of us.

As I have recently shared I have been experiencing some health issues, and made some changes in my diet, which should have set things to right. Alas, it wasn't so. There has been an epidemic of people with diarrhea lately that just doesn't want to go away, and, since I have had several bouts of this in the last three years I didn't wast time when I woke up a few days ago with myself having this experience. I have my suspicions and intuitive hunches and decided to go with the lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne in water diet rather than run to my local physician (which I don't really have, LOL - they would think I was nuts anyway and try to prescribe some kind of medication for being whacked). I am on my third day and it has been interesting.

One thing I noticed is the constant nasal congestion seems to be abating, and yesterday woke up and had more energy than I have had in some time. I have also experienced some rather intense headaches, but rather than take anything for them, as that would be counterproductive, I have just waited it out and they pass. It's a common experience when cleansing as toxins are being released. I've also noticed some of my brain fog has been lifting as well. Even though I eat better than most I discovered that this problem (can you say Monsanto?) of glysophate on so much of our food puts us all at risk. After having done a bit more research on what is known through actual studies that have been done, I admit I was a bit shocked at just how pervasive and severe it is as a contributor to chronic illness that doctors will almost never even consider. No, they'd rather give you medication to cover up symptoms and do expensive and sometimes harmful tests only to give you a label that for some reason makes people feel better, in their mind anyway. Because I rarely see anyone actually get better once they start on that bandwagon.

And this all concerns me because I have also been looking into farming practices and how that impacts my animals health as well. We don't immunize our animals either, and so was also shocked when I looked at our last veterinary receipt and see that there are now 6 different immunizations for dogs! I only remember rabies and parvo, so what happened? It's become big business, is what has happened. And the glysophate issue affects the dry dog food, commercial goat feed, and, I found out, even oats are sprayed.

To change gears again, as the brain fog is beginning to clear and I can actually put more than a few thoughts together, I want to mention that I asked spirit about what I should do a few days ago when I wasn't seeing an improvement in my overall health and then did a reading. The first card I drew was water spirit. This was maybe a day or two before the other problem set in. Then I, you know, being kind of stubborn and dense (my first thought was to do this fast that I'm doing), I had the most wonderful homemade burritos ever, made by me of course : ) I know I sound like I'm bragging, but seriously, they were that good, and I was looking forward to leftovers the next couple of days. Instead, I've watched my husband eat them. It's all right though, because it's worth it to feel better. Anyway, two days ago when I started the fast I did another reading and I thought, wouldn't it be funny if I got the water card first again. You guessed it! I was like, thump on the forehead, I just don't listen sometimes.

I've had pretty severe fatigue for some time now and you'd think I'd be bed ridden not eating for three days but I feel like something vital is coming back to me. I'm not telling anyone not to seek medical advice, I'm just saying don't discount your intuition either. And for me, well, I figure our so called modern medicine has been experimenting on the population for some long time now, and I reserve the right to do so as well. Personally I think I'd be dead if I had followed everything I'd been told by the so called experts. Do I sound a little pissed? Actually, I am. I know people that are dying and people who have died who didn't even realize they had any other choices available to them.

That gets back to the glysophate issue. I'll put some links at the end that I thought were helpful, and admit, I was shocked to learn there is even a connection with Lou Gehrig's disease (which my mother and several other cousins of hers died from, and all were born/raised in the same general area in California), and Multiple Sclerosis (the rate for Spokane, WA area is one of the highest there is). I do realize some people have made choices to go a certain way even before they incarnated, so I have no problem that there will always people be leaving this plane for a variety of reasons. But I also know some who really didn't have to check out, and didn't know there was any other choice.

And I was told way back thirty years ago that because of the heart issue I had I could apply for vocational rehabilitation (which had an incredibly long waiting list) and that I shouldn't really carry in more than a ten pound bag of groceries. My husband had his neck broken (was shot through both the knees and crawled around through agent orange - there's that Monsanto again) and was told he could never jump out of an airplane again. Anybody reading this thread knows it didn't slow him down at all. We do bump up against limitations, and sometimes they are things that challenge us, but it never hurts to question and explore. Thankfully!

It does seem as though they are making a rather concerted effort to take away the people's ability to think for themselves, and so far have actually been quite successful. They can never be fully successful though, because they really aren't the top dog, they just appear so. Truly, all we have to do is wake up.

Anyway, back to the farm. I made an appointment to take Arrow to the vet because I was so worried about her not kidding yet. Her udder isn't full, and she actually doesn't seem to be in discomfort but I think I'm a bit paranoid from my experiences last year. Since I don't know when she is due that makes it hard. Then I talked to a goat lady who doesn't live far from me, who has been in it for 12 years. I feel better and cancelled the appointment after talking to her.

The handful of women I have met that keep and raise goats are some of the most interesting and informational people I've ever met! And they don't hold back, they are happy to share what they know due to their love of goats. And they have all become their own vet, living out in rural areas like they do. I guess we have to. I got some more good leads on better grain too. I used to get a dairy goat grain from a local feed store that was ok at least until I can get a line on something better. The other commercial place I tried in years past sold me three bags in a row that were moldy. Now this company did a switcheroo and got supposedly the same stuff they had before in their own brand name with a new look and cheaper price. Sounds good, doesn't it? Not! It had so much molasses in it that the smell almost knocked us out when we opened the bag and stuck together like glue. And the next day after I gave some to Arrow her poop wasn't as solid as it should be. That's not a good sign and one of the reasons I became paranoid. Even though she's friendlied up a lot she still wouldn't take the worm medicine balls I give to the rest, so I shoved it down her throat. Got myself bit good in the process. The next day I broke it up with a small amount of grain and she ate it right up. Live and learn. For now I'm just going to keep a good eye on her and got some more pointers on what to look for.

And one last thing of interest. I have mentioned in another private thread a couple or so years ago about Bigfoot sightings in this area and my personal experiences. I haven't really had anymore other than an occasional knowing about their presence. But, just recently I had the sense of one again that was pretty strong. It was a male and he seemed to be really angry about something. I wasn't sure what, but I do have a sense about it. I just send pictures in my mind as that is how they communicate from what I have experienced. But anyway, I found out the next day that he actually might have been angry about something else. My neighbor still can't get rid of his...I'm not sure what to call him. The guy is still there and just pretty adeptly avoids any contact with him. My neighbor won't confront him directly and so has chosen a different route. Not sure this would be my choice, but besides walking around with a machete strapped to his belt he moved his big speakers to the old cabin we lived in and borrowed a rap CD that skips from the guys thirds cousin (who without permission gave the guy the gate key in the first place). He knows he hates rap music and so has been playing the same CD over and over at different times hoping to drive him nuts. Yes, I'm doing a face palm.

So I let the fire go out. I feel strangely well, for not eating. Only problem I really have with fasting after the third day is food starts to smell better than it ever has. At least the lemon, maple syrup and cayenne actually don't taste that bad. We'll see how it goes...

https://biofoundations.org/how-to-detox ... -exposure/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://janeshealthykitchen.com/avoid-th ... lyphosate/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.ecowatch.com/15-health-prob ... 02128.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And here's one more good easy to read article on the subject:
http://realfarmacy.com/reason-toxic-wheat/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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 »

One week we think spring is on the way, and the next it's full on winter again. Oh yeah, life goes on...(think, John Cougar Mellencamp)

Anyway, we're back from a road trip for a small town wedding of my husband's niece. She wanted snow and she definitely got it. And it was outdoors with hay bales for seating. Quite original I must say, and fairly entertaining watching people in their fancy shoes and attire trying to walk all dignified in about 5-6 inches of fresh snow on top of old crunchy snow. It was at the K Diamond K guest ranch, and yes, all the guys wore big belt buckles, cowboy boots and hats. One of the funniest things though was the pet deer and male Nigerian dwarf goat pair. They were both very friendly and personable and the deer zeroed in on this young female and her friend walking to her car. Got a great couple of pictures of it jumping up on her, to her dismay.

I managed to go a full five days on the fast and felt fantastic and broke the fast with very light meals for the first few days. I must shamefully admit I totally blew it at the wedding and will have to make amends. Ah well, such is life. It's all good training, though, since I've noticed it's easier to muster up needed will power if you practice once in a while.

Then the trip home was going well, having taken a different route that avoided the passes and took us over the Keller Ferry. That's when things got a bit dicey. As we were waiting, not knowing for sure if it was even going to show up my husband decided to tune to the radio station that might give us a little more information. The radio wouldn't come on and he asked me to help. We pushed a few other buttons to see what the problem might be and all of a sudden the whole cars electrical system went wonky. You could feel the energy rising as we struggled to figure it out. We even looked up to see if there weren't some bright lights overhead, LOL. After just a few minutes more we saw the lights of the ferry approaching the loading dock and nervously drove onto the ferry. None of the gauges worked, strange messages on the dash board, no blinkers. At least the headlights kept working. So we dropped my daughter and her husband off in the city and headed home. We even left it running when we put gas in and it turns out that was a very good move. The car hasn't started since. So I'm home for awhile and all plans of travel for the following week have went out the window.

Still no babies from Arrow. I still can't believe I got it so wrong. I figured she must have gotten pregnant within one or two cycles after her mom did, but it's looking like it might have been three. I am really happy, though, that she didn't pop while we were gone. I jokingly showed my neighbor the rubber gloves and bag balm for while we were gone, in case he should need it. The look on his face clearly indicated he wasn't embracing that possibility, and frankly neither was I.

We took the old framework from the aquaponics set up we had about four years ago and used it to make me a mini greenhouse. My 4' light fixture with 5 T5 fluorescent grow bulbs fits perfectly in it and next year we want to make another one just like it and put the two together with a walkway in between. For now the only problem I see is that it does the usual for this area and starts to warm up only to go back to a deep freeze cycle and it usually does that several times before spring is here to stay. Since we are on batteries and solar I'm thinking maybe just a light bulb on the bottom with a light shield for at night might do the trick. Plus we realized that we need to make doors for either end, which is our project for today. I noticed they are already selling plants at a few stores in the city, which surprises me. A few things are starting to pop up and return from their winter slumber though, despite the cold temperatures. And the ground has warmed up considerably. I've even seen mosquitos flying around, which I didn't miss at all. And tics. A big yuck on that one.

I did finally make it to the Talking Circle meeting this month, having missed the last three due to weather and road conditions. Roger Vielle, Blackfeet, Veteran, and speaker did a talk on ceremony, community, as well as the difference between spirituality and religion, along with a comparison of the meaning of these words between indigenous peoples and non-indigenous peoples. He also shared a story about his own people and how they had a paper from the U.S. government saying they were a peaceful tribe, and yet how most of his band got wiped out with few survivors for no reason at all. His direct ancestor was one of those survivors, and he talked about how the trauma gets handed down through the generations until it finally and truly gets healed. He talked about ways to do that as well. It was a very moving and genuine presentation and I felt many kindred spirits in the room. I will definitely go back.

At the end of his talk he explained how they have retained a good sense of humor through out it all and how that has been their saving grace. He also listed what he thought were the five most important things.

Remove hatred in the heart
Get rid of doubt in the mind
Live more simply
Give more
Expecting less

I totally agreed that it was a good list, and one I have already been going by for some time. Not that it's always easy, but it's nice to see that I do not travel alone on this path, even though it is an individual journey each of us must consciously choose and make pretty much on our own. And not every one is of like mind. That is okay too. I just know who I want to spend my time hanging out and making community with. I have always been kind of tribal in nature, it's just taken me a long time to find my family. Spirit family can be just as important, if not more so at times, than our physical families, because they tend to be uplifting in nature. Most of us have family members that aren't on any spiritual path at all, some are severely traumatized and many have been completely hypnotized by the prevailing overlay of group think. So it's been very helpful to have found others of like mind who seem to be traveling in the same direction, with the same understanding of the sacredness of all life. I find solace in the communion.
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 »

Thanks for your shares again.

Beautiful to contemplate:
"Remove hatred in the heart
Get rid of doubt in the mind
Live more simply
Give more
Expecting less"
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Re: Farm Life

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Already anxious to get outside this morning. We're getting the day they promised yesterday. Today was supposed to be cloudy, with possible rain, which is what we got yesterday. Instead the sun is shining bright, which is always energizing to me. As I've said before, I am a fair weather girl!

I am more than ecstatic about our progress on the front part of my garden area. We have a more shady spot behind us, and a stepped landscaped area that's long and skinny in the front. We had put up a shorter fence with flimsy short metal fence posts. I figured since its on a hill that would be enough to keep the goats out last year. Did I get that one wrong! Anyway, we put up a taller fence with sturdier fence posts yesterday along most of the hillside, and may decide to do the steeper area as well. I actually like eating fresh picked raspberries and truly, I'm not just growing them for the goats to eat. We will see. And, after dragging the comfrey around in three large pots from place to place for the last almost four years, I'm finally putting them in the ground. One down, two to go. Yippie!

We will have to put up some kind of goat and dog barrier in the back area as well, but we are so much farther ahead this year. I didn't even have a place ready to plant anything this time last year. Since I am on a mission to grow more food and medicinal herbs I'm feeling fairly motivated. It also helps to not be too sick to get out of bed. Funny, as I had a conversation with my daughter and son in law yesterday about choices. Sometimes we just don't know what we just don't know, and I know so many people who have allocated their health and well being to someone, something, else, that supposedly can make those choices for them due to their expertise. Alas, I have found the opposite to be true. And, since I do seem to be living in a different reality than most of my fellow man, I choose to retain my right to listen to myself first and foremost.

Even our dog Misha had her bladder/urinary infection try to return. Had I chosen the standard response I would have taken her back to the vet and had more expensive tests done, and most likely another round of antibiotics. I did a bunch of research and decided that if it was going to be a recurring thing, which it looked like it was, then I was going to go a different route. I have been putting D-Mannose, probiotics and an immune boosting complex with echinacea, elderberry, and goldenseal on her food once a day, and it has been gone again now for quite some time. Another yippie! I do know that I have to give a break from the goldenseal now and then due to the compound that can build up in their system. The thing is, I trust myself on using nature to heal. I remember a past life or two where I was very knowledgable in this area and it just seems to come natural to me. Nature, nurture, natural. All I know is it has worked very well for me. Our neighbors down the road are still sick and spending most of their time on the toilet or in bed.

They don't make it easy on you, especially if you really do have a condition that perhaps requires something modern medicine has to offer, and chronic conditions can be very stubborn. Especially once you get on the pharmaceutical bandwagon. My neighbors take a variety of prescribed medications, so fasting would be difficult. One suffers from IBS, and a variety of other maladies, the other one is borderline diabetic, has gout, and takes high blood pressure medication. And I do admit that were it not for the twice daily insulin shot for our cat, Nicky, she would probably be dead. But even then, she didn't just get diabetes for no reason. I'm sure genetic predisposition (even when young she had a thing for sweets), in addition to the fact that commercial pet food is a far cry from a natural diet and has loads of crap and sugar to make them eat more (you know, it's ALWAYS about increasing profit for their shareholders) played a large part. But at 12 years old I don't think I want to mess around with trying anything else. Had I known then what I know now I might have done things different though.

It's interesting to me that I can look out the door and see a medicine cabinet, and others see a bunch of weeds. Plants and nature offers everything we need, if you just know how to really see. It's more than just a left brained thing. It's also intuitive. Plants are living beings, and they are even happy to give of themselves for our benefit, as long as acknowledged for their gifts. I've told this story before, but many years ago a friend and I went out into the forest with a book of medicinal plants in hand. We each said a little prayer and went out and just came back with what drew our attention. Every single plant was in the book and had medicinal qualities.

All of the above was written yesterday. And today I'm having a harder time getting going. I finished planting the comfrey and a large lavender plant that was also in a large container having been moved around from place to place. It must have weighed 50 pounds and was a bit of a challenge to put in the hole I dug that was a little snug, but I did it. I also finished putting the fence around it all, which is a good thing because as soon as I let the goats out for a bit Danae came right over to scope out the situation. She would have been in it wreaking havoc had I not done so. We also went and dug out a bunch of poop/hay from one of the pens to get ready for Crispy to put in with the two girls we're breeding him to. I think it has all finally caught up to me physically (I'm sore all over!) We are supposed to get a bunch of rain, that is if they ever get the weather prediction right, so I figured I was in a time crunch to get it done (while I'm looking out at the sunshine on what was supposed to be a cloudy day).

We did go and get Crispy yesterday. Our friends who bought goats from us last year brought over their contraption that can test to see what is wrong with our vehicle and found out that water got in the fuse box and burnt some of them out. So now we know what is wrong with our car and can work on getting it fixed. We actually had purchased the extended warranty on the vehicle that should have been good through April only to find out that they had left vital information out when they sold it to us. It turns out it was either two years or so many thousand miles. Even though we don't even drive it that much we were two thousand miles over the limit. They did not tell us that! What a racket. Anyway, as we were making the drive over to pick up the buck I told her I didn't want to look at any new kids because I always want them all. We arrived to find about 20 or so kids in cut off plastic barrels in her kitchen that she bottle feeds. Oh my! We both contemplated sticking a couple inside our coats but figured we wouldn't get away with it : )

Our above mentioned friends also have an incubator and have lots of baby chicks of different sizes and age. I had planned on waiting until next year but I'm trying to figure out how to make a quickie chicken coup so I can get them, well, like now. We do eat eggs and it would be nice to have them be farm fresh from chickens that aren't stuck in a tiny cubicle with too many other chickens and fed God knows what. And I'm itching to get around to the other side and finish landscaping it too. As long as the suns out I want to be outside. And, strangely, even though I kind of hurt all over I have found that getting out there and doing something I enjoy tends to make it all go away, or at least be easier to forget about. At least then when it does start raining I can just sit inside and watch it all grow. I do find it immensely gratifying to go out and see new growth on last years perennials. We still didn't get the side doors up on the mini greenhouse yet either. I wouldn't know what to do if my to do list actually got smaller anyway. Although I think my husband probably dreams of the day. Maybe we'll actually find the time and energy to take the sailboat out this year. He wants to make a mast raising system like he has in the past (in all his non existent spare time, LOL), other wise we spend a good deal of time just getting ready to get ready to have fun. I understand that. All in good time. Personally I want to learn how to warp time at will. We've all experienced what feels like a time warp but I want to shorten or extend it according to my own whims. I don't want much, do I?
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 had Arrow out with her mother and other two kids, along with Ballerina today, and noticed that her udder looked quite firm. I then saw her two younger brothers chasing her around trying to nurse off her, so I moved her back into her own little stall thinking it was finally happening soon. I went out a few hours later to check on her and here is what I found. Two girls on the left and the little one on the right laying flat out to nurse is a little boy (I didn't need to abduct baby goats after all!). Mom has a weird double teat on the left side and didn't know how that was going to work out, but they both seem to work. And she sucked down the warm water with molasses like there was no tomorrow. Time to pass out the cigars : )
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 »

Life just keeps on chugging along. It's a sunny day at the moment and I've got to get out there early whether I feel like it or not and clean up the pens in the barn. I can't clean up the outdoor pens yet due to all the rain. It made each pitchfork full weigh about a ton, and believe me, there is a serious accumulation from the winter out there. I've noticed that everyone I know who is big into goats has these big piles, and most can't even give it away as compost. If I was Hercules I would just have massive garden beds all over, but alas, it's only going to happen in my dreams. For now anyway.

The other morning I came out and went to put on my big rubber boots and felt something inside of one of them. I took it off and turned it over with my other hand out and got a real surprise. My husband also got to hear an involuntary scream come out of me. Zoey, our cat, caught a mouse and evidently made a basket as she was flinging it around. Ewwwww....!!! And this morning she caught another one. Don't know how they are coming in, but there was a recent population explosion. At least I know she's got the killer instinct, although I still can't help feeling kind of bad for them. I'm not fond of having them poop and pee everywhere they go though.

I'm making progress with planting seeds and find it very gratifying to see the almost overnight growth from all the rain. I've got a bunch of echinacea seedlings to plant today and think I'll start all the squash seeds today too. The broccoli, cauliflower, and sage seedlings are doing well. We did finally make the doors for my tiny greenhouse and it seems to be working out wonderfully. And so far the goats have not been able to get into the area I fenced off, so we'll see how it goes. I was quite delighted to see that the apple tree we dug up from up the road has decided to live after all. We kind of had a hard time getting it out of the container it was in to transplant it so I wasn't sure if it would survive. And my walnut tree is coming back too. Yay!

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I don't know what I would do if I didn't live out here and have the opportunity to at least live the life I enjoy most, while such high strangeness is going on in so many parts of the world. It seems they are sure trying to amp up the fear and keep pounding the war drums. I'm going to do a booth with my friend at the Earth Day events taking place weekend after next again this year. I'm wondering if I should take my can of pepper spray in case anyone gets too whacked out over our handing out controversial information on chemtrails, Monsanto, GMO's, glysophate poisoning, and some well researched information on vaccines. I know last year we had one guy who was positively enraged that we would be so bold as to hand out alternative information on such woo woo subjects, as if we were committing a crime. Thankfully free speech isn't a crime yet, at least not completely, so we'll keep speaking out as long as we can. I have business cards this year for my goats too, which I wished I'd had last year, so all in all I'll be much more prepared. I might even throw in some info on the 5G roll out for good measure. Not that I harbor any hope that what we are doing will really change anything. It's just my attempt to do something as opposed to nothing.

It's been kind of exciting on several other fronts, and not in a good way. Well, one good thing I guess. My neighbor finally went over and told the guy who had decided to just move in on his property that he had ten days to move, while patting his machete hanging from his belt. And low and behold on the night of the tenth the guy did pull his bus out and left. In the end my neighbor did it all by himself, which hopefully boosted his confidence that he doesn't need someone else to do it for him. Now I can walk up the road without worrying about the guy trying to talk to me for any reason. My biggest fear wasn't what he might do to me, but what my husband would do to him if he even crossed his eyes the wrong way at me. He had just went down to our other neighbors a few nights before and went on a drunken rampage making an ass out of himself until they called the sheriff on him and he left. It must be that time of year.

For another seriously unbalanced person is demonstrating rather predictably unbalanced behavior. Our friend who has the property up north that we accompanied her to last October is still having trouble making the guy move. He has been charged with assault and something else rather minor and has been dragging it out through the courts ever since. She did hire an attorney to get him off the property but he has been fighting that tooth and nail as well. He fluctuates between trying to make them feel sorry for him, and totally delusional accusations. He fancies himself an amateur attorney and comes up with all kinds of motions to stall and delay, which he has actually done quite successfully so far. He's called her attorney and completely went off on the poor secretary who answered. Now he is claiming that we assaulted him!!! And somehow claims he has put a lien on her property. There is no written contract of any kind, she holds the deed, and they have never paid her a dime. She is rather mortified that this turned into what it has. I'm actually not surprised at all.

And then just yesterday my husband took our generator in to have it replaced. It made a loud bang when he tried to start it. We had an extended warranty so just needed to take it in to get another one, and then just pay for another warranty. We are still working on trying to get our car fixed so he had to take it in our pickup. While he was in the store for maybe three minutes as they were bringing up the replacement some guy actually stole it out of the back of our truck. It weighs about 125lbs! At least three witnesses saw it happen, and one even took pictures, followed the truck, and got the license plate number and a good description of the passenger who loaded it up. They called crime check as they were giving chase but were instructed to stop. What a bummer! Kind of makes me want to sing the blues, but better to just pull ourselves up by the bootstraps and move on. It was pleasantly surprising that so many people noticed what was happening and willingly got involved though. I shared it on FB and was surprised when my ex-daughter in law shared it on her page and had like 40 some shares within just a couple hours. It's terrible on the other hand that law enforcement seems distinctly unwilling to treat theft as anything important at all. Like, they just don't seem to care anymore. Yet, they want us all to just roll over and let them do their jobs, which they then just don't do. Don't get me wrong. I know for a fact that they are not all the same, and a lot of it has to do with how the rules have changed. They receive different training than they used to. On the other hand I'm a little leery of being in the fray where any law enforcement is involved. You just never know what they are going to do anymore, and it hasn't always been that way : (

I always try to end on a positive note but having a little trouble this morning. Fortunately baby goats usually do the trick, and just thinking of them makes me smile. Yup, a good day for a walk with the herd.
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

Oh lord, it's hard to write when you're grumpy. At least I can laugh at myself. Not exactly sure why I'm grumpy, and I know I will move through it as the day wears on. I think I have some left over blues from the Earth Day booth that sort of wasn't. The severe humming in my head doesn't help. And maybe the fact that I have to scramble today to find some hay, as most of the farmers are sold out. Evidently big semi loads went out to other parts of the country more than usual this winter, so it's getting hard to find. And I don't think I'm going to be as generous with giving out my sources for good hay anymore. I kind of shot myself in the foot.

So we went downtown to have our information booth on Saturday morning for Earth Day weekend and got an unpleasant surprise. It was about 10 blocks and several streets up from all the main goings on at Riverfront Park, supposedly to give us a space out of the unpredictable weather, which was kind of knarly. I think I would rather have been outside, in any event. For one thing it was in an very old building that had strange energy. The basement was a huge legal marijuana growing operation, and the second floor was blocked off for the caretaker of the building. The third floor, where we were supposed to set up, was sort of an art gallery spread throughout the many rooms. We had to take the elevator to make sure we didn't wander off into other parts of the building. It was also in an area where there were some fairly rough looking people coming out of buildings and homeless people who, due to the city's wonderful idea of a fixit job, could no longer camp out under the bridges near the freeway. They had piled big sharp rocks down there to keep people out. I'm not judging, but if I was organizing an event I would factor in that many of the middle class people who come to these events would be a little hesitant to even check us out due to the location.

It all might have worked out ok anyway, except for two things. One, they never even advertised this event, as they did in past years, so no one seemed to know we were there anyway. Last year there were probably around 30 booths, and I think we maybe (and I could be stretching it a bit) had 4-5. The other thing was that no one told us that they were setting up the band in the room directly across from us. I'm personally not real fond of heavy metal/grunge in the first place, and it was so loud I couldn't even hear myself think. The organizer seemed rather oblivious to, well, everything that might have been important to make this event actually work. Other than two women with their children in tow (one said she lost 2 children due to vaccine injury), I think the only people we talked to were the three other participating vendors that had rooms right next to ours. And we all left by early afternoon. A lot of work for a non happening, and I missed out on a couple of other things I could have went to that would have been a lot more productive and enjoyable.

So we have a whopping 19 goats here at present, which feels a little burgeoning. We divided the bucks area into two pens and made a duplex out of their shelter. I fixed it so we can open it up on both sides when we want to, but now we can also close it off for breeding purposes. And right now we have Gladys, a friend of ours doe, in with Mr. Blue eyes, other wise known as Bob Dean. I wonder what Bob Dean would think if he knew he had a goat named after him, LOL. Crispy, the other buck we have here temporarily is in with Danae and Lily, who are best buds, for hopefully a fall kidding. And if all goes well I should finally be able to separate the two little boys from their mom, Coco, so I can get them up for sale and see if she will let me milk her. I'm hoping she does all right, but I might have to use the hobbles on her since she was never really trained up for the milk stand. She will get on there and let me trim her hooves though, so she might not do too bad. I do miss the milk.

Arrow's little ones are doing great, but she has had some trouble with diarrhea. I've managed to keep it from getting out of control, but we're hoping to make the long drive to Bonners Ferry to get some non GMO grain. All the long time goat keepers I've met do not buy commercial grain, and I can totally see why now. I never had any troubles like this until the one place I was getting grain from here locally went out of business. The other farmers in the area who sell grain all only have it seasonally, so if you can't stock up during that short window of time you miss out. I've got to make this happen, no matter how inconvenient. I'm also going to start asking more questions when buying hay, too, since even spraying their fields for weeds, especially if they do so more than just early spring, could be a factor (I know, I've said all this before, but for those who haven't been reading here's benefit).

It does kind of blow my mind that we even have to worry about such things, but that is the world we live in now. I may have to sell a few more goats than I want to just to make sure I have the money to stock up this year, so I can at least take better care of the ones I do have. Hard choices sometimes. I want to keep them all. Just the thought of selling any of the main herd gives me anxiety. At least when I sell the two little boys and the other two go home I'll be down to 15, which isn't too bad. But still, a few more than I want to go into the next winter with. We have lots of small improvements to make this summer which will hopefully at least make some aspects of their care a little easier. I have to constantly remind myself there is no emergency for I am one of those people who wants to get it all done now.

The woman who came and dehorned the three little ones a few days ago is in a very similar situation having recently bought raw land and uses a generator for power. Funny, she was actually happy to see the big piles that had accumulated around the feeders. It means I'm actually feeling them enough! I guess there are some goat keepers who make their goats eat it all before feeding more, even the sticks and stems, and I've seen some of them. Their goats are considerably smaller and skinnier than mine. Goats are actually kind of picky eaters, and in the wild have a much greater variety of foods to choose from. I can finally take them out to forage now and there is something to actually forage for. Eventually hope to have a movable pen I can just put them in and move around to different areas. If I leave them out now they inevitably try to find a way to get into the garden, or start trying to eat all the bark off the trees nearby because they don't like to get too far away from me. People ask me all the time if they wander off, which surprisingly they don't do. They are very much creatures of habit.

Getting a water line down to the barn is a big goal this year. Also we must find a way to get at least a couple more batteries for the solar system so I can have a light going at night in the mini greenhouse. Right now I'm bringing in 6-7 flats of seedlings every night and then taking them back out I the morning since it's still getting too cold, and it's getting very old, not to mention we live in a very small space. Unfortunately, since I haven't really done the starting from seed thing in a number of years and did so in a warmer climate before, I managed to kill off a good number of the tomato plants I started. But everything else is doing great! I am very excited about being able to grow more of our food this year. And there is something quite wonderful about growing from seed and seeing the miracle of life. I think about how strong they are, to break out of the seed shell and push through the dirt, despite all odds. It's an amazing process. And so far almost all the perennials I planted last year have made their reappearance. I do so love gardening and working with dirt.

We found some hay and have to get jumping to go get it, so I'm off and running. It's supposed to get possibly up to 80 degrees by this Friday. Typical for this area. It likes to throw a few spring like days in there while mostly vacillating between winter and summer. That's where layers come in handy. Speaking of layers we still haven't had time to get a chicken coup together. It might have to wait a bit. Another (groan) opportunity to learn more patience, hahaha! Have a great day all, wherever you may find yourself in this strange place we call earth. Somehow just getting up and deciding to be present is a worthwhile endeavor, even if we sometimes question the why of it all. I know I do (question it all the time).

PS: Well, wish me luck folks. I went out this morning to feed before going to get hay and discovered that Arrow has a full blown case of very runny diarrhea so we're on our way to the vet this afternoon. Sometimes you just got to have help and this is one of those times. Yes, worried I am : (

We're at the vet now and will have to wait until we get home to post the pictures from the non event on Saturday. Watching a guy walk a presumably older horse who is having a hard time just walking at all. Sometimes, in times like these, I wonder again if I should get out of raising farm animals entirely. It's hard enough to make sure my husband and I are able to stay healthy with the right foods and supplements, with all that's arrayed against us now, let alone doing it for so many animals. Sometimes the responsibility seems rather enormous, and the weight of it does get to me.

On the spot reporting here. Whew. We did everything right according to the vet and she recommended continuing another round of antibiotics, a shot of B-complex which I had been wanting to do anyway, and the corrid in her water. Temperature was slightly elevated, no sign of mastitis, and otherwise they said she looked great. Definitely an infection most likely in her intestines or rumen since she responded well and started to get better after the first round we had already given her last week. Can't help but still wonder about the grain being a big part of why this is happening. Hope I can get up to that feed store to get something different, ASAP!
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Spiritwind »

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This was the first thing you see coming off the elevator on the third floor.

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The band right across the hall from us.

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They even had a selfie station!

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Some of the lovely art work being displayed.

And this last one is to interject a little humor into all this. Saw this on our way home from the vet.
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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 »

My main goals for this year are really quite simple. One of the primary ones is simply to grow more food. We are very fortunate, for although we are part of that statistic of aging farmers, we do have the land. My dream, if I could make it happen, is to have a little cabin or even RV on the land for a younger couple who want to experience farm life to be able to come and stay here to help work the land. They would have to be adventurer types, who don't mind roughing it a bit for at least the first few years to get up to speed. But if we can do it then it's doable. That doesn't mean it's common, though.

There is so much potential out here, and that is even without a working budget. I definitely have the compost, LOL, and we do have plenty of water. I also want to grow enough herbs to make tinctures, oils, salves and more. I've had numerous people express interest in the milk and cheese the goats produce. I've bred up and my herd right now has outstanding potential, but there just isn't enough of me to go around. I might actually have to downsize, and I really don't want to.

Bee keeping is another thing I want to do, as well as a small orchard. All doable, over time. People used to do exactly what we, and many many others, are moving towards, and that is building community. I have had a young couple come out and help now and then, and we have traded with others for things we mutually need. I've traded goats for the use of a tractor, and my husband did some plumbing work in exchange for a day's work on the farm. As we are getting to know people I am discovering something here that I thought was a dying way of life. It's exciting to see that it's actually growing a new group of young and old who are committed to a different life than what the system has tried to program us into.

Personally I don't even have a hard fast workable plan for how to get wherever it is we are going. It has a lot to do with trust. Trust in myself, trust in others of like mind, and trust in nature and the wonderful gift of life the land can bestow on those who are willing to take the risks and give up the illusion of a "safe, predictable, mainstream life". I can't tell you how many people I talk to, especially young people, who are terrified of just the thought of doing what we do. I won't go into all the details of how risky our life really is, in so many ways. At least it seems that way.

But see, really, trying to live the more mainstream type of life, where you actually have a house, two incomes, insurance for everything, and your whole life revolves around working and planning for your retirement where you can actually enjoy the fruits of your labor, does not even appeal to us. Most of the young couples I know either are fortunate and are getting help from relatives to move into a different way of living that offers far more opportunity to discover who you really are, and actually enjoy what you are doing day to day, or they are locked into minimum wage jobs that barely pay the rent and leaves minimum opportunities to move out of where they are. Not everyone can do this and keep their mental health intact. They live in fear of one of them loosing their jobs, their car breaking down, or any of a number of things that can make their life go from okay to not okay in a hurry.

I personally don't know how people can live in the city. Last time I did that I was shocked actually, at the cost of everyday life for things that bring no real joy whatsoever, or guarantees. We paid for water, garbage, sewer, phone, electricity. Then add in rent or mortgage, food, and for many a car payment. And that doesn't include car and health insurance. Most also pay a ridiculous amount for cable or satellite TV, and then there is internet which has become part of everyday life for most.

We made the choice to live out here the way we do so we could at least enjoy somewhat the fruits of our labor. The land is paid for, and we have a well with plenty of water. There are a lot of risks to the way we live, as when our generator got stolen recently, and our car broke down. We do pay for car insurance, but take full responsibility for our own health. We would like to get our internet bill down, but don't really watch tv so won't ever be having cable or satellite tv installed. And everyday I work on expanding, improving, and building on our garden areas and goat accommodations I feel great satisfaction, for some reason. A satisfaction I would not have if I were to be working at any job I can think of for someone else. I did, at one time, try to move into what I thought would be more rewarding work either working with troubled youth, or working with the elderly. But those jobs entail working with the system as it is, and I found I just can't work for the system at all anymore. Power to those that can, as I know the change must come from the inside with real people who have the drive and vision to make those changes happen. But I also saw how totally reliant these many programs are on the whims of politicians who get to decide where the money goes. And I saw how corrupt it has all become. Someday we are going to have to full on face the sickness of greed. And it is indeed a sickness.

It's strange, but these last few years I've learned, for the first time really, to be more comfortable just doing my own thing, and being alone. I've learned to be infinitely more patient, and to delay gratification in the moment for the reward waiting and persevering can bring. I've learned to be comfortable with so much less. I remember when I worked as a mobile home park manager with my husband all those years. I couldn't imagine a life where I couldn't take a shower everyday, change my clothes every day, flush the toilet without a thought, or so many other things. We humans are so adaptable, but much like my silly goats we are prone to become routine oriented, creatures of habit, who get stuck in a rut and resist change. We also tend to resist what we fear. That's one of the primary ways we've been herded into a life where so many don't have a clue what it means to live without anxiety, depression, and fear. But they have a drug for everything, don't ya know!?

Not that I don't ever have anxiety, depression, or fear. But it isn't any longer part of the underlying landscape that has become chronic and ever present. When I do feel those things I move into a different response that allows me to restore my trust, and faith, in something that isn't clearly visible ever, but definitely can be felt. I have been able to perceive a weaving of sorts, of something that cannot ever be proven even exists. I feel it everyday when I walk outside in the morning and see the sun rising over the nearby mountains. It's the aliveness of nature, as best I can describe it. It's ever present, even though my awareness tends to be distracted and I have to continuously bring myself back to center. It is only in this space that I can keep a good attitude, despite so much of what I see going on in the world that is truly heart rending and intrinsically wrong on so many levels. We all wake up everyday to wade our way through the heaviness of the field created by all the lies we tell ourselves and have been told since day one here. Except for those who cannot feel, on some level it affects us all. Some seem to cope better than others, but just looking at rising suicide rates, especially in some groups of people, we know that no amount of new age optimism without regard for the reality of things is going to change the way things are.

That's probably why I continue to write here. After all my research into topics not considered mainstream over the years, I have found that my everyday actions are what matters most. I think even the bible says "Faith without works is dead". And it doesn't mean everyone needs to move to the country and do what we are doing. There are a bunch of things happening in the city that I would be involved in if I did still live there. An underground movement IS taking place, and there are ways to plug into it pretty much everywhere. It's just deciding to change the way we look at things, and what we really hope and want for our future, our children's future, and our grandchildren's future. It does involve risk, turning the tv off, meeting new people, and thinking and using your imagination to visualize and energize what you want to create. I know I used to use my creativity to come up with new and better ways to zone out, to escape feeling the fullness of this reality. I have had to learn to channel that energy in a different way. It can be uncomfortable at first, but the underlying pain that accumulates in going along with a way of life that you deep down know will never bring you joy is worse. At least it is in my mind.

All that I wrote above comes on the heals of a day spent feeling sorry for myself (and kind of angry), wondering why so many challenges keep appearing for us every time we seem to be making headway. My husband wants to do so many things to make our life better and gets held back all the time by not having the cash flow to make it happen sooner. I think maybe I should just go get an outside job at times, sell some goats, whatever. But there are other solutions. I just have to think outside the box. I know how to do this, but even I tend to start sliding back into ruts of thinking that don't work for me, for us. I don't have time to stay in a place that is disempowering. It doesn't matter that I can justify how I feel. I have to make the conscious choice to move out of it. There is help. It always does come. And there are no guarantees, no matter what we choose to do. Just being here comes with great risk, and there is no such thing as guaranteed safety from the challenges life can produce. There is no such thing as always knowing the outcome of our choices before we make them. And there definitely is no safe secure place when it comes to the decisions made at the higher levels of power in ways that can affect us all. I admit, I have zero faith in them.

An epic rant again, and now it's time for me to get busy. Love to all...

By the way, we did make the drive all the way to Bonners Ferry and bought some non GMO grain. The ingredients label was short and sweet, and I can actually pronounce and identify every one of them. Plus we saved money by going directly to the producer. Yippie!
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Re: Farm Life

Post by Fred Steeves »

Spiritwind wrote:And everyday I work on expanding, improving, and building on our garden areas and goat accommodations I feel great satisfaction, for some reason. A satisfaction I would not have if I were to be working at any job I can think of for someone else. I did, at one time, try to move into what I thought would be more rewarding work either working with troubled youth, or working with the elderly. But those jobs entail working with the system as it is, and I found I just can't work for the system at all anymore.
That seems to be a natural progression on this general path less traveled. 5 years ago the wife and I realized the Florida metro area where we had always lived, beautiful as it was with the beaches and all, was starting to suffocate us with the ever expanding urban sprawl. So we wound up out here in the woods of East Tennessee in a small town of 1,800 people, it was like hopping into a time machine and moving back to the 1970's. Only a 30 minute drive into Knoxville, but always a nice ride back out into the country.

She still had her nice paying corporate America job that got transferred up here, so I spent the first 2 years working the land and getting things all shaped up the way we wanted them. Creating a garden area where it used to be woods for instance, but all a labor of love and getting to know nature on a far more intimate level.

Then the plan was to get me back to work as well, but rather than just going into town and joining on with some construction company, we took a chance on buying a run down house built in the 20's and I would see to putting Humpty Dumpty back together again and sell it. Then do it again, that sort of thing. Well that was all safe and fine and dandy, until that corporate America job ended abruptly one day. The workplace had become a soul sucker anyway, and it became very clear to her that she could not re-enter that world again.

Suddenly this project of mine wasn't just something to get me busy working again as well, it was our lifeline, do or die, and the money was very slim on continuing. If just one thing were to go wrong we could very easily have lost everything, and that was hanging over our heads every day, all we could do was keep our noses to the grindstone and trust. It was so sketchy we were even relying on a food bank to eat properly.

Well somehow over the next year we DID finally make it happen by the skin of our teeth, with Mrs.Steeves as my official helper and painter, and got that old house all prettied up once again and sold. What a relief, but also a new confidence in that we learned so much along the way that yes, we do indeed stand a good chance of doing this for a living. Now we have one house in the works to fix up and sell, and another to fix up and rent out. The end goal is to one day collect rent checks for a living in our old age.

It's still a bit of a dangerous way to make a living, but then again how many people live in dread of losing their dead end 9-5 job anyway? And we're doing it our way like you and your husband are, that means something and is why I know exactly what you are describing. It's that satisfaction you speak of. Hats off to y'all, it's not easy is it?

Oh, and I forgot to mention the one house is in a kind of not so good neighborhood, and the other is in an even worse neighborhood. It's not that we're looking to be slum lords though. We don't have enough money to do this in nice neighborhoods, but there are signs that these areas are improving around their perimeters, and hopefully that spreads. That's part of the gamble, trusting your vision that you're investing in an area that's going to improve. At the very least, however things wind up panning out it's always the nice drive back home to the woods, and the 1970's. :)
The unexamined life is not worth living.

Socrates
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