I know everybody has had one of those days.  One of those days where everything just seems to click and go right......or one of those days where nothing seems to click.  Last week I had one of those days.  Now lets knock on wood, nothing was major, I all good, my critters are good, my family is good....it was just one of those days.


Sure I'm use to deadlines and being in a crunch, but I'm not a fan of feeling rushed.  Admittedly I am a fan of reality television, especially shows like Amazing Race, Top Chef, Face Off and the likes.  Sitting at home it's easy for me to think, just slow down for a second.  I know it's probably wrong, but I get a chuckle out of a contestant scrambling and fumbling trying to hurry through a task.  I always wonder how the folks on these shows don't get hurt....chasing after a cow to get a cup of milk, frantically trying to lead a horse through an obstacle course.  It's common sense, certain task require a calm, easy going manner.  The television shows crack me up because you now things are not going to go smoothly and there is humor in that. 


Last week I had a day that started like every other day.  I have a casual routine that I adjust as needed.  This allows me to not only operate and run a small farm, but it also gives me the opportunity to work on my art and grow my business as a photographer.  I bounce back and forth between the two all day long.  Both provide me with a full day of activity which I have learned to balance....most days.  There's always a sense of what needs to be done.  Task I have time to complete, what I can put off to another time, and what must get done TODAY.  Although I often work under a sense of urgency, on occasion it becomes more sitcom like than real life. 

When I awoke Wednesday of last week,  I knew things would be a little different.  My little dog, Ms. Robbie hadn't been feeling well for a day or two and I decided in the middle of the night I would make a vet appointment for her when we got up for the day.  I usually try and make my appointments for the afternoon so I have time to get my farm chores done before I do any running or errands for the day.  The start of the domino effect began when I called the vet and they only had one appointment left....it was in one hour!  Here I am still in my pajamas, I haven't eaten yet, I haven't opened chicken houses or watered, the dogs and cats haven't been fed....nothing has been done yet. 

Basically I have three types of outfits....chore clothes, house clothes (pajamas), and off the farm / town clothes.  While doing chores in the winter I dress in bib overalls, a couple hoodies, boots, gloves, ski mask and a hat.  Through constant wear, my bibs are dirty enough to stand on their own...maybe an exaggeration, but they are pretty well worn.  I didn't feel this was a good outfit for taking Ms. Robbie to the vet, and I knew I wouldn't have time to change into town clothes if I ran out to open chicken houses.  So I opted to go ahead and put on my town clothes as I prepared to hurriedly open chicken houses and give them water before I headed to town.  With the bitter cold I try to make sure my outdoor critters get fresh water a couple times a day at least.  Water is a big challenge in the winter.  Keeping fresh water for the assortment of critters that I have, well it is a major chore.  I often find myself breaking ice in water bowls ten or fifteen minutes after I just filled them.  Staying ahead of the freezing water can be a full time job on the bitter cold days.  

In an effort to let my chickens, ducks and guineas out for the day, and to give them fresh water before I headed to town, I went out to do chores in town clothes.  Since I had less than an hour now before my vet appointment and the drive alone being 25 - 30 minutes....I found myself in a RUSH.   Just like a reality television show, let the comedy of errors begin.  Rushing is never a good thing and I know this, but sometimes life requires us to kick it up a couple notches.  

With limited time  before I needed to be at the vets office, I was trying to rush over the ice and snow, hurrying from chicken house to chicken house to get them open so everybody could get out and run around if they chose too.  Being in a hurry I had to struggle with doors froze shut and a frozen water faucet.  As I became increasingly rushed to get houses open and chickens watered, I came around the front of the big house, caught the toe of my boot on a ice chunk and down I went.  It seemed to be in slow motion.  I actually tried to will myself to return to a standing position....but that didn't happen.  Boom, face first into the chicken poo speckled ice and snow.  To top it off, I am in my town clothes.  Not having any time to waller or cry, I jumped right up and hurried on my way.  

Returning home after a back x-ray and some pain pills for Ms. Robbie. I realized I had forty five minutes till my very first webinar. Of course I have been putting off attending a webinar because I really didn't know how they worked. I am old school and often slow.....very slow, to try new things. However I had decided it was time to take advantage of an opportunity to learn what I could about marketing on Etsy. Now I faced the challenge of getting signed in for my first webinar in forty five minutes but I still have not watered cows, pitched hay, re-watered chickens or fixed myself something to eat. Again, I find myself in a rush.

After changes out of my town clothes into chore clothes I head outside to work on chores. The water faucet is still froze so I carry jugs of water for the chickens from the house. I run (fast walk) house to house throwing out feed for the chickens. As I head towards the cows up by the barn, I chuckle, how much farther it seems in the winter. Weighed down with a ton of clothes, looking like the country cousin of the Pillsbury Dough Boy, trying to make it through the snow and ice, it seems to be a workout designed for those who do not have access to a proper gym.

It would of been nice if I had, had a bale of hay that was already started and easy for me to roll out, so I could pitch hay. No....that was not happening. I would need to get a fresh bale started, which is a chore in itself, as the outer layer of hay is always crusted and hard to get through. I look for my pitchfork but cannot find it. Then I realize I had taken it to the big chicken house the night before so it would be out of the weather and stay dry. I know it may seem odd to keep a pitchfork out of the weather so it can stay dry but when the handle is snow covered and it's bitter cold outside, it really does make a difference. I will soak through a pair of gloves and my fingers are froze before you know it. There is no way I can feed the cows without my pitchfork so I head back down to the house, grab the pitchfork and head back to the cows.

With the freshly fallen snow on top of the older trampled snow, I am having trouble getting the large bale to budge. I've worked and worked on the bale trying to get the crusted layer of hay pulled off, but now I need to roll the bale to get the remainder of old hay off and so I can peel off fresh hay. The cows have all gathered and have broken into some sort of war chant......feed us, feed us, feed us. I'm sure their moos can be heard in the next county and add to my urgency as they begin to push against the gates. My biggest fear is that someone gets hurt as they crowd around to be fed. I jab the pitchfork in the hay trying to use it as leverage to get the bale rolling....nothing, it wont budge. I must resort to brute strength. Again, I jab the pitchfork into the bale and I lean into it with my shoulder. I try to push my way up under the bale with my knee as I lean in pushing with my shoulder and with the pitchfork jabbed into the top of the bale. Nothing. I now try to employ a rocking technique.....nothing. This bale doesn't want to budge. I work at trying to peel more hay from the outer shell but it acts like it has been woven together with strands of rebar.

Time is ticking, cows are mooing and I need to get them fed webinar or not. I jab the bale again, lay my shoulder back into it and try again to get it to roll. As it starts to move a little I prop my knee against it and I'm able to push it up a couple inches. I dig in a little deeper, I now have the bale starting to head in a forward position but I have wedged myself under with my knee and shoulder. I am holding the weight of the bale against me trying to keep it from rolling back into it's little cubby hole it had made in the snow. In the process of trying to push the bale forward my right foot had started slipping out of my boot and both my socks had fallen down and somehow made their way into a wad around my toes. My flesh against cold rubber boots in the frigid cold became a distraction as did my frozen fingers as I tried to push on the pitchfork while wedging myself more and more under the bale to get it to tip forward. I was stuck. Afraid if I tried to back out, not only would I loose what ground I had made in getting the bale to move forward, but that most likely I wouldn't be able to move fast enough to get out of the way.....becoming trapped under the hay.

As I tried to regain my breath and my strength, still wedged under the bale of hay with my boot half on, my socks around my toes, fingers freezing....sweat started to roll down my face as my glasses fogged up. What to do, what to do, what to do? Mustering up the last bit of strength I pushed, dug in a little deeper, pushed, dug in more, pushed and I found myself at the teetering point. I was able to hang onto the bale with the pitchfork as I straightened my back and stood up. I pushed my glasses down my nose so I could see over the tops. My breath had not only fogged them up but it had created a layer of frost on the lens. Now I could push the bale forward over the little snow ledge. It was like the heavens had opened and music began to play as the bale rolled gently across the snow.

Farming is filled with challenges, some more frustrating than others but I try to maintain a positive attitude. I find myself amused at many of my own daily adventures. They are not always funny at the time, but I do get a chuckle later, especially when I think how my life seems to play out like a reality sitcom at times. All in all, everything ended well. I made it in the house with six minutes to spare before my webinar was to start. Just enough time to change into my house clothes (PJ's), throw a tv dinner in the microwave and get logged in! Whew.

Join us next week for the continuation of Around The Farm, featuring Kim and her critters. Now for a word from our sponsors....

Yes, winter has arrived.  Guess I can count myself luck, after all, it is January.  It’s not that I don’t like winter or snow, it’s just they do make chores harder and I’m not a fan or being cold.  Undoubtedly though there is little to compare with the beauty of a fresh fallen snow. 
 
Yesterday our first snow of the season started early in the morning and lasted most of the day.  My geese and ducks didn’t seem to mind the ground being blanketed in white and the colder temps.  I shot this photo of them on the pond, acting as if they didn’t have a care while I did my morning chores.  Today they still played in the waters as the edges started to freeze and a misty fog rose off the warm waters.

Years ago, maybe fifteen or twenty years….I had several ducks, mostly Peking’s, Runners, and Swedish.  Sadly, I would lose most of them, if not all, every winter.  The ducks had a tendency to bed down on the icy pond at night, leaving them vulnerable to every coyote, fox and bobcat around.  One morning after a very cold spell I went out to do chores.  Out on the ice was a duck in a pickle.  Apparently with the group of ducks bedded down together on the ice, it had melted some.  You could see the indentations in the ice, however I guess with the chill the ice had refroze, sticking this duck to the ice and unable to get himself free.

Not wanting to see the duck struggle on the ice only to freeze to death or to be caught up by a predator…I decided I should crawl out on the frozen pond and do a duck rescue.  Now this was back before cell phones, before my mom lived out here, and before I had any common sense.  With extreme ninja stealth I lay on my stomach and started my army crawl across the frozen pond.  The stuck duck did not appreciate my approach or my trying to retrieve him.  My efforts to be a still as possible were tossed into the wind as the duck tried to flog me to death with his wings.  In the struggle I became keenly aware of the gurgling ice and water bubbles rushing underneath.  I decided enough was enough, reaching out for the duck as I turned my face away to keep from getting scratched to pieces, I snatched the duck free with a bear hug.  He was minus a few feathers but alive.  I let loose and lickity split he was across the ice and back on shore where he met up with his buddies. 

Still on my belly, staring back at shore, the distance back to safety seemed to double.  It was probably only thirty feet or so but it seemed like a mile.  Adrenalin had gotten me out to the duck, fear would get me back to shore. 

I have since switched to Muscovy ducks for the farm.  They tend to hang close to the house in bad or freezing weather and they will also roost in the trees...keeping them safe from ground dwelling, night predators.  Muscovy’s are also capable of great flight which also gives them an advantage over other ducks typically found on small farms.  To date I have not yet had to save a Muscovy…knock on wood.

Saturday presented us with our first snowfall for the year, and Sunday I saw my first Robin.  I wonder if that means we will have an early spring?  I will keep my fingers crossed, but until then I will enjoy all the beauty that comes with winter, after all it was bound to happen. 

NEW TRADITIONS - A Christmas Recap: This life as an artist takes a little getting use to. I have no complaints as my schedule now offers me flexibility like I have never known.  Up until five years ago I have worked most holidays.  When I was lucky enough that I didn't have to work Christmas, I was at home celebrating with my mom, grandma, brother and two nephews. With my grandma gone and my nephews grown, the holidays are getting a little shook up with new traditions or "fly by the seat of your pants" plans being made. We will now celebrate a little here, and a little there. As long as we get to see everyone and enjoy the spirit of the holidays together at some point in time, it's all good.

Despite the holidays, being a farmer means chores must still be done everyday, critters fed, water bowls and tanks filled, hay pitched. It's just part of life on a farm. With chores done, my mom and I headed out Christmas Eve to celebrate with my brother, oldest nephew and his baby boy....we had packages wrapped, games packed, and even stopped by Bob Evans and picked up a meal that I had pre ordered online. Had never done anything like that before, but wow...I recommend it, easy and delicious.

On the way in to St. Louis we commented how packed Walmart and some of the other stores were. We were glad we were not in that mess, but my mom mentioned we probably did need to pick up dog food. We decided to do it on our way home, hoping they would be less crowded. So we made it to my brothers and had a wonderful time. Amazing how much fun and excitement having a little one around brings to a get together. I am looking forward to lots of fun times ahead with my great nephew. I'm sure there will be lots of dirt, animals, and outdoor adventures in our future.

After a day of fun, my mom and I headed home. Taking our time going through the subdivision to enjoy the lights and decorations. Not even thinking about anything being closed we hopped on the highway and headed home, planning on stopping at the Walmart closes to home for dog food. By then we also decided we had enjoyed the ham so much from Bob Evans, we would also grab a small ham and a couple fixings to go with it so we could have a nice meal at home Christmas Day.

So with tomorrow's meal already on our minds and a need for dog food, imagine our surprise to find Walmart closed at 9:30 pm!  The lights outside were off, but the inside was lit up. It looked like a ghost town with three cars in the whole lot. A guy stood out front on of the doors having a cigarette. We drove up to him, rolled down the window and in amazement said, "Wow, You guys are closed!" and he happily said, "Yes, For Christmas."  We were happy to see that and wished each other a Merry Christmas. So as we drove across the empty parking lot we were trying to decide if we should head back towards St. Louis to see if something in a bigger town would be open, but then we thought what if Walmart had closed all their stores so employees could spend time with their families! Still in shock we pulled to a stop light where we could see the Walgreens sign was a glow.  I don't know that I've ever seen a Walgreens that busy.  Apparently we were not the only ill prepared folks out on Christmas Eve.  A valuable lesson was learned as I paid half the price of a large bag of food on a bag one-fourth the size.  Next year...shop before the holidays!

It appears I have adjusted well to life on the farm.  Once you get away from the hustle and bustle of the city a couple years, you loose track of how fast things really do move.  Since making the career switch of blue collar worker to artists, life has taken on a new pace.  It's just as busy and I work just as hard, but in a different way....and I like it.  I no longer spend time in a mall shopping for Christmas presents, instead I make them or I shop at Art Shows, Galleries, Craft Fairs, and Mom & Pop Shops through out the year....stashing goodies away until needed. 

​I no longer have to battle the day to day traffic or punch a time clock.  I count myself very fortunate to be living a dream.  I look forward to what 2016 has in store.  My hope is that everyone has enjoyed the holidays and are as excited about the new year as I am.  Times change, new traditions are born, we adapt, move forward, make the best of what you have been given or do all that you can to change it.  Here's to a new day.