O Frabjous Day!

"O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'

He chortled in his joy."

Yesterday a strange thing happened. A large yellow disc was seen in a cloudless sky, and the temperature reached a level no longer requiring the wearing of 6 layers of clothes! Cleaning the water troughs suddenly became a pleasurable experience, and hoses miraculously became conduits of water again. Was this the end of winter as we know it? Has March remembered the "going out like a lamb" part of the rhyme? It may be too early to tell, but the sun and 60F are fine by me.

Of course with the warmer weather comes the work! Veggie plots to be pooped and turned over; clover to be seeded for the bees (meaning a fence to be erected to keep out the deer (clover AND young apple tree shoots - mmmm!); muzzles to be inspected and mended ready for the spring grass; grassy areas and paddocks to be chain harrowed to get rid of the ruts and hoof marks; and so on and so forth! However, better that than the eternal gloom and cold we have had this winter. My worst since coming to Virginia in 1999. But then Jorg kept telling me I hadn't seen a real VA winter. Well now I have, and survived it, and intend to thoroughly enjoy the sun.

Spring Around the Corner!?

We are waiting with bated breath for what we hope is Winter's last flourish tonight. Although remembering the kick in the butt that March gave us last year, maybe she has one further trick up her sleeve! However, it has been nice to see the sun, and also see the days extend minute by minute daily. The maple buds are visible and we look forward to that wonderful haze that comes over what look like lifeless trees and bushes, indicating that leaves and blossom are on their way. If we could do away with the chilly winds I would be a happy man.

With Spring, of course, comes the hectic cleaning up and planting season, and Jorg has already got her starter plants seeded and sitting in our sun trap guest bedroom. We learn a little more each year on what to plant, what works and what doesn't. Our bee man Ken Woodard has been to the farm to work out the siting for his beehives, and Jorg is geared up for this new venture. We have a mini-orchard with heritage apples, pears, crab apple and peach trees, and with the clover that Ken wants to try out, we should have some happy bees and lovely fruit.

Mona Lisa and Trisket

Some time back, a rather bedraggled black and white cat turned up on our doorstep one wild and rainy night. Sporting half a tail, and a rather "in your face" affection Trisket, as he became named was litter trained and had obviously been a house cat. Once neutered (sorry old boy, it's the rule!) he was relegated to the barn with the other two cats, as our dog population were a little too much for him to handle! We have been trying to rehome him, as he is totally out of his element in the barn area. Utterly fearless, he wanders into horse stalls (when occupied) and hides under the tractor, and was an accident waiting to happen. Unusually, Mona Lisa thought he was cute and he liked her, as the photo shows. Well, Ken the bee man is a cat person with just one cat at home, and Trisket played the "love me" card, with the result he now is back to being a house cat. We wish all three happy times.

Random Jottings

Winter came hard on the heels of a warm wind here. Well I know by US standards freezing is not cold, it's just us wimpy Brits who think more than two days of low temperatures is a new ice age! But still, when a northerly wind cuts like ice and the troughs start freezing over, I am thankful for my all-in-one quilted overall and can (sort of) laugh at the elements. As a Billy Connolly joke goes "........... there's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes"! Our older residents get nice warm blankets as well, and it is time for their "soup" to be served hot. In fact Sunny, Jorg's old riding horse, keeps dipping his nose into his cold mash and raising the horse equivalent of an eyebrow in disgust. Mea culpa, but we still don't have the flash heater I bought a year ago fixed up in the tack room - it is next on the list!

The fall leaves are mostly in the yard now, and it still astonishes me how dead the trees always look in winter over here. Maybe it is because there are so many, or the types of trees, but I never remember my homeland trees looking quite so desolate over the winter. I am always surprised, and very pleased, when they spring back into life again.

Our new puppy, Cassie, is proving to be an absolute gem. Well apart from an ethernet cable, my beard trimmer, the back of my cell phone, and sundry tights and stockings (Jorg's not mine!) that is. I had forgotten what having a small child around the house is like. Move everything four feet above the floor until the difference between chewing toys and personal possessions is learnt! However, this is a bright little dog and anxious to learn. She watches everything that is going on and really only gets into mischief when left to her own devices - silly us! I have always wanted a dog that would be a companion, especially around the farm, and she has every sign of being that dog. Once I can get her to remember that, while the other dogs don't mind her seizing them by the leg, a horse might!

We have been putting up with the "desperate" sounds of mothers and calves separated at night, prior to full weaning. Goodness knows what we will have to put up with when we finally separate them for good. Apart from finding a suitable place on the farm out of sight (although probably not out of sound!) of each other, it will put a strain on our "soft" hearts to hear them missing each other. Talk about the children leaving home, this is way worse! (Sorry kids, only fooling!)