IT'S COMING!!!!!

  The trailer for the 9th season of Doctor Who is out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If my husband was here, he'd probably have to endure me squealing, bouncing around the house, and shaking his shoulders in agitated excitement. But since he's not here at the moment, I shall instead share my excitement here!

 Just a few more months, and then the season will be out! It seems like a painfully long wait, but it's coming... Oh it's coming.

I Want A Dairy Animal

  I've come full circle. I'm ready to have a dairy animal again. Granted, there are a few obstacles in the way, like the fact that I live in town, no longer have ANY of my equipment, and have very little in the way of livestock-buying funds right now. But those are all minor obstacles that I have answers to, for the most part.

  No, the biggest issue for me is not where to put the critter/s (have two places available) or some such dilemma, but rather what kind of dairy animal to get! Goat or cow?? I really want a cow; financially, she would be the better option since I could easily sell and trade the extra milk. But... Cows are expensive, and I would need something like a Holstein/Jersey cross, or a Brown Swiss, since those are the two breeds I can generally tolerate milk from (for those into milk and all that, I have to have a cow that's specifically A1/A2. Any other kind is not nice to my stomach.). Jersey cows are abounding on Craigslist right now, and fairly priced. But I can't have a Jersey. *scowl* Oh sure there are some "HoJo's" and Brown Swiss for sale, but with the Swiss' averaging $3k, and the HoJo's around $2k, it really is frustrating to not be able to buy a little Jersey. Harrumph. Actually, I could buy a Jersey. But I'd have to pasteurize ALL the milk just to be able to drink it. Maybe I should go that route? I dunno'... To me that kind of defeats the point in a sense, as I'd really like to have access to raw milk. 

  Ok, so maybe a couple of goats? Go back to the old days? Well, I could. And might. But I wouldn't be able to sell or trade the milk, since people around here prefer cow milk (and trading milk for meat/veggies/fruit is a big reason why I want a dairy animal!). But at least the goats would be affordable. Or would they? If I got goats, then I'd suddenly need special fencing, a killer electric charger, really good shelter so the fussy ladies don't get wet, expensive hay.... But at least I'd know for sure that I could drink the milk. 

  Sigh. It's complicated. I think this post is becoming more of an incoherent rant. Sorry. I've been thinking about this so hard, for so long that I think my brain is just about fried.

 Anyway, feel free to throw in your two cents if you like. In the meantime, I'll keep scouring Craigslist.

Know Your Bees

  I found this cool, free poster online today and liked it so much that I had to share it with y'all! These are the seven different kinds of bees you can raise, and a line up of their pros and cons. I wasn't super familiar with the Buckfast breed, but now I'm thinkin' I need to look into those ones... Sounds like they might be a bit better than the traditional Italian in many respects. 

Enjoy!

Ellie

   This is Ellie. She was one of the two cows that I milked for a year while interning. She and I had a very healthy love/hate relationship going. In other words, we liked each other at a distance. When it came to actually milking her, she had no problems with kicking me repeatedly in the shin, and spilling the milk. Nobody knew how old Ellie was; not even the vet could figure it out. Alas, dear old Ellie apparently wasn't immortal... She gave birth to twin heifers a couple months ago, and then died three days after that. I always try to put fresh flowers on her grave when I visit the farm... Because I'm ridiculous and sentimental in that way.

 Ellie, I don't miss you kicking me. But I do kind of miss your presence in the barn. And the way you were terrified of kittens. That was funny.

Price Slash on Consultations!

  If I may, I would like to direct y'all's attention to the top of this blog real quick... Up on the top bar is a button that says "consultation services". If you've never clicked on it before, I would invite you to do so now (and why haven't you clicked on it before now!?!?!?!? Just kidding...). If you already know what's there, well, go there anyway. Refresh that memory.

 

  Point of interest today is that I slashed the price of the consultation services by 50%. Kaboom! No particular reason for it, other than maybe hoping I can scare up some spare cash (which will most likely NOT be used to try and win a goat farm. Promise. Sort of. It's like a 78% chance that I won't. But I might use it to save up for a cow, because I want one. But that's another story.).

  Ten bucks is a good price for a huge email that probably has more information than you really needed. Seriously, folks. I talk too much when it comes to agriculture...

Write An Essay,Win A Goat Farm

  I'm not really sure what my logic is behind sharing this, seeing as it will reduce my chance of winning if I actually enter... But nonetheless I am sharing anyway.

   Folks, I have just learned that you can win a $350,000 goat farm in Alabama, for the price of $150 and the best essay you done ever wrote. I kid you not. The writer in me really, really, really wants to enter. I told my husband that if I find a spare $150 before the deadline, then I just might have to try it. Hey, I only live 6 hours away from the place, so it wouldn't be that bad of a move. LOL. 

  Here's the link with the rules, particulars, and pictures (their milk parlor and creamery is to die for! Eeek! The horned Saanens are kinda' giving me a raised eyebrow, but hey... Whatever floats your goat.) CLICK HERE FOR LINK.

I Am Home

Contentment.

  You know, I always thought I had a good handle on that word, that character trait. Turns out that I thought I did, only because I hadn't been tested on it yet. When the rubber meets the road, and your life isn't what you wanted/imagined, then you learn just how strong of a characteristic contentment is in your life.

  And in my life? Well, if I were in high school, being tested on it, I'd be lucky to find a grade 'B' written in red ink on my score sheet.  A score of 'B' isn't so bad though... Considering the fact that I've worked my way up from at least a 'D-' in the past few months.

   Yes I will admit it. I've really been struggling to be content in the last few months. Caught up in a selfish, ungrateful attitude, I couldn't see the blessings right in front of me even when they hit me in the head (quite literally sometimes; I tend to bump into walls). Transitioning to living in an apartment, in town, has been a shock to the system, and one that I have not gracefully adapted to. All I could see were the noisy neighbors downstairs, the lack of countryside, the rather annoying landlord... When what I should have been in awe of was the fact that we found a FABULOUS, affordable house to live in (clean, well taken care of, no leaky pipes or heating problems), we live ONE BLOCK away from the city pool, behind our house is a small fishing lake with walking paths and lots of wildlife, and we're five minutes away from historical, downtown; which has a plethora of awesome stores, the local farmer's market, library, and is also the happening ground for my yoga classes.

  But adaptation happens to all of us. An inner evolution of the heart. And this funny little house is growing on me. Sure, there may be a stark lack of counter space in the kitchen, but the 1930's vintage flavor of the whole room really does make up for it. And heck, cleaning is a cinch here.

  I'm sure this revolution should have come to me sooner, but being the mere mortal that I am, and not a perfect one at that, it didn't. But it hit me last week as I finished cleaning the whole place from top to bottom and surveyed the square footage before me, I realized... That I was quite content with this little place. A smile of satisfaction slid across my face. I was home. You don't have to live in the country to be a country girl (or guy). By golly, I could still have a booth in the farmer's market, make hog's-head cheese, and wear my cowgirl boots while living smack dab in the heart of downtown. As a matter of fact, it's a very fun challenge to merge and intertwine the two lifestyles. Country at heart, city at home.

  Kale yeah.

   ^The new, hip, way of making a point without quite swearing. I'm rather smitten with it.