Tuesday, October 04, 2022

Oh, October; you witch, you

So far October resembles the Wicked Witch of the West. But we're only days into it; maybe Glinda will show up yet. Better yet, bring on the Good Witch of the North, with her 'extremely kind and gentle' nature and colder weather. Because, folks, this is not what October should look like!
It is, however, very good weather in which to haul hay, which is what Rick and I spent Sunday doing. ALL DAY. The client with whom he is trading out hay for vet work lives two hours away; we had to hand-load the truck and trailer; we had to RE-load a third of the trailer on a narrow downhill two-lane road between two blind corners (some Good Samaritans helped) after a strap failed; we stopped to buy more straps to tie down the load like it was a rabid King Kong so we could make it the rest of the way home; then, after a bite of supper, we unloaded and stacked the 144 bales into the barn.
After the trailer load in the previous post was stacked

The pickup load was added later, post-'catscan'
After Sunday's labor was finished.

Rick and I survived Sunday (no thanks to the able-bodied 20-year-old; multiple challenges on that front), but Bing did not survive Saturday. He hadn't been able to stand for a week, but was bright and alert, eating and drinking, until that day. He went quietly, as he lived. Bing's fleece is the only one of this year's clip I haven't sold; I think I'll have it processed into roving to spin myself.

I intended to put together the first stage of my breeding group on Sunday, but the hay marathon prevented that. Yesterday I worked and last night Rick finally got Bing buried, so it wasn't until this morning that I finally got to play my version  of "52-card pickup." But I'll save that for the next post.

In the meantime, here are a couple reminders that fall is here, typical or not:
Wet oak leaves at home, last week

Pretty colors after agility class last Thursday
Stay tuned for "12-sheep shuffle" next at . . .

8 comments:

Mama Pea said...

Isn't it remarkable the physical labor we can do when it's a necessity? Well, because of the adventures with the hay, you don't have to go to the gym to workout. Have you considered not feeding the able-bodied 20 year old if he refuses to contribute to the smooth running of the family? [Could be there might be another better way to go though. :o(] It sounds as though it was Bing's time to go and I'm glad he could do it as well as he did. Good idea to save his fleece for yourself.

Michelle said...

I think staying active (putting up wood, hay, gardening, doing barn chores) is a key component of longevity, Mama Pea, so I really don't mind . . . but my back does! Brian doesn't eat much here anymore, so that wouldn't work. Let me know if you have any other ideas, because I'm plum out of 'em.

Tim B. Inman said...

I've missed you! I think instead of relying upon the computer, I may just have to hit the 'Favorites' button manually so I don't skip a link.

Hay: I've always been a big guy, from school on until now. Then, of course, I was more muscle! Putting up hay was always assigned to me somehow. Have I ever mentioned I don't like heat? Well, hay and heat seem to be twins here in Iowa and I never enjoyed putting up hay. Now that I'm more pudge than muscle, I do enjoy having hay to use on my garden. Full circle?

Cheers!

Florida Farm Girl said...

I'm glad you're getting the hay you need in during good weather. No suggestions as to motivation of the youngster. Hugs to you and Rick.

Michelle said...

I wish I knew what is up with Blogger, Tim; thanks for wanting to keep up with stuff here! Unfortunately, it was quite hot on Sunday when we got the hay, and we were loading and stacking in direct sun. 😓

Thanks for the hugs, Sue.

A :-) said...

You certainly got your exercise in with that hay. I'm strong, but I don't know that I could be flinging bale after bale of hay . . .

I'm so sorry about Bing :-(

Jeanne said...

I'm so sorry about the loss of Bing. How old was he? I like your idea of having his last fleece done commercially, so you can have it for yourself!

I can't imagine hefting 100 lb bales! I wouldn't be able to do it.

The picture of your oak leaves is lovely. Our decorative maple tree in the back yard is all red-orange. Not as beautiful as your oak leaves.

I might try Tim's idea of using the favorites to find your blog...

thecrazysheeplady said...

Wow, I seem to have missed several posts. So sorry about Bing. Glad you were able to get all the hay in. Looks great and I didn't realized your barn was so big. Nice view in one of the other posts. Shew!