Goats...

It never ceases to amaze me at how clever goats are... You think you've got them figured out, and then they prove you wrong just for fun. I smile just thinking about them...

Heidi was rough housing with Pepper a few days ago and somehow managed to break one of the vertical slats on the hay manger. No serious damage was done to either party, but the board was now swinging freely, and allowing the goats access into the fluffy pile of hay within. They thought they had died and gone to heaven... Two bales of wasted hay later, I was fed up with the goats clambering into the manger and ruining their expensive hay!! I can still see them... Smugly looking at me, as they lolled in the orchard grass hay, and chortling behind their floppy ears for discombobulating me so. 

 It was time to turn the tables and get the last laugh. Armed with a ridiculously heavy drill, some mismatching screws, and a hammer, I shimmied into my huge hay manger that my grandpa and older brother built for me.

Please just know that I'm not very talented when it comes to tools. I can identify a few of them. I can even use a couple of them all by myself, but for the majority of things, I'm just a bumbling oaf. I can help a goat give birth, shear a sheep, use a scythe, train a horse, and even make my own yarn. But please don't ask me to use a hammer.... ;)

I found out pretty quickly why the goats enjoyed being in the manger so much. It was like being on a big squishy bed. And to make things even better, Heidi couldn't squeeze her heft through the gap. So Capri, Ivy, Pepper, Poppet, and Shilling would all lie in there and smirk at Heidi who would be glaring at them from the outside. Pride goeth before a fall, Heidi dear... 

 It took me almost five days to get around to fixing that manger, and then it only took me five minutes to fix it. Why is it that the things we usually put off, are things that can usually be done fairly quickly? Putting a card in the mail. Making a phone call to someone. Finding a recipe for a friend... These all take just a few minutes of our time, yet we groan and push them to the bottom of out to-do list. I have to admit that phone calls are what I'm worst at.... Second to that is fixing things. Especially fencing. ;) 

 Getting out of the manger was interesting. What with my entry way now screwed firmly into place, the only other option was to scramble out the top. And for the record, I can stand up in that manger, and it still reaches to my chest. I ain't short, either. So scramble I did. Well, it was more of a jump, scramble, huff-and-puff, half falling out, sort of move. Poppet laughed at me. I emerged feeling like a veritable hay monster who just left his vegetative dwelling. I had hay in my hair, stuck to my shirt, all over my skirt, and inside my boots. Maybe I should have walked down the road apiece to see what reaction I could have garnered from driver's.... Hmmm.... Shucks, I'll have to do that next time!  

And yes, I feel just a little, teensy-weensy bit proud of myself. I actually used a drill all by myself, and no one got killed. [wink] Where's my medal of honor? I do believe I deserve one for my heroic act of service towards society. Okay, if I can't have a medal, can I at least have a snazzy car? No? How about just a cuppa' tea then? Good, I'll go put the kettle on. :)

 Now, what will those ornery goats think of next....?