Blackberry's horrible headache

Sunday was a very productive day, but it started out with some unexpected drama. Rick and Brian came down to help me do morning chores (it's usually a solo event), so I asked Rick to look at Blackberry's loose scur. To keep Blackberry's head steady, Rick held on to the other scur. Blackberry struggled - and off it snapped! There was blood, which alarmed Brian. At that point Rick figured he might as well yank off the damaged scur - and it bled even more. Blood streaming (well, dripping fast), Brian squawking, me fighting a little panic; what a way to start the day! Rick got some blood-stop powder and screw-worm spray from his truck and calmly applied them, then we turned Blackberry into his lot for the day.

Waiting for Rick and meds; I picked a photo that downplayed the gore.

When I checked on him after finishing chores, Blackberry was looking pretty tough, hunched up and miserable. But by the end of the day he was grazing and acting okay, so I guess Rick was correct when he said he'd be fine.

After breakfast I set up my "skirting table" (a piece of horse panel on our trash and recycling bins; no bending over and nice shade for Jackson) and went to work. Another sunny day, another pleasant period of playing with the products of my flock. First up was beautiful Bronwen:Wow; what a stunning fleece! It would be an excellent entry in the wool show at Black Sheep Gathering, but to me the entry fee and commission aren't worth bragging rights.

Next, I skirted Bramble's pretty fleece.Even though she's softer than Bronwen, she was in the rise so she didn't shear as nicely as her half-sister. I may process and spin this fleece myself in case I didn't get all the second cuts pulled out.

Braveheart was also in the rise at shearing, so I'm in the same boat with him. His fleece is much bigger, though, so I think I will go ahead and have it commercially processed.

I skirted Katie's fleece last. Yeah, I was putting off my only uncoated fleece (Katie came to Boulderneigh in January), and it really was a LOT more work (and still wasn't as debris-free when I was finished) than the others. If her roving comes back with too much VM in it, I will spin it myself instead of offering it for sale. Getting better acquainted with her fleece would be a good thing, regardless!

If you are interested in purchasing any of my fleeces, please let me know soon. I plan to pack them up and send them off to Aunt Janet's Fiber Mill this week. She did a great job with my fleeces last year (hand-picking, not mechanical picking), and was highly complimentary of them.

After I finished skirting, I joined Rick in the garden. Earlier in the day he had to respond to an emergency, and came home with all this:He proceeded to work up the ground with our old rototiller, then switched to our even older tractor when the rototiller died. By the end of the day we had planted salad greens, potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage, radishes, bell peppers, eggplant, onions, crookneck and pattypan squash, cucumbers, and three tomato plants. We still have melons, green beans, zucchini, winter squash, peas and more tomatoes to put in, but I was pleased with our day's work.
That's it for now from . . .