Skip to main content

Fruits

Photo from www.healingharvestforestfoundation.org. 
1) a neighbor called this morning and said that FarmWife and her children ought to come pick his blueberries, which were weighing his bushes down to the ground. They picked about a gallon and the bushes looked just as fully loaded when they were done as when they had begun. I think this means it is time for the mules to be unleashed upon the bushes to do the rest. (FarmWife says that would be tacky, and that she was a guest, and that the animals were not asked along.)

2) FarmWife says I am too fat for big snacks like whole apples and carrots but that I can have little snacks like apple slices and carrot sticks. She also says that I can have one little pink treat per day from my good friend Jean in New England. They came in the mail and are delicious! To my friend Jean, my most brayful thanks.

3) The goats can reach the hay, and I cannot, but the goats' penalty for reaching the hay is that they never get a flake of their very own, but only the bites that they steal. I think that's fair.

4) FarmWife does nothing these days but work, work, work, but here is the fruit of her labor: money, which buys hay, which fills our barn until it nearly bursts. She is also proud to announce that she is bringing horses (and their human, from Healing Harvest Forest Foundation) to the Timber Framers Guild conference, the programming of which is what keeps her so busy. If you've ever wanted to learn about sustainable forestry and animal-powered selective logging, this is your big chance! She is so excited about this confluence of her personal and professional interests, she can't even begin to say. (You know you want to come. You just know it.)

Ears,
FenBar

Comments

Popular Posts

Here are the Cloud Dog's X-Rays

Here, for your edification, are the X-rays of dear Paisley's leg. There is, apparently, no new break (since his Monday siezure) but there is, of course, a great deal of abnormality caused by years of living with a shortened ulna. His pronounced lameness, the vet says, may temporarily improve. Unlike me, Fenway Bartholomule, poor cloud dog can't expect much in the way of a full recovery.   Not having the $$$$ for surgery to fuse the joint, we are working on making some sort of rigid splint to support the limb and prevent further degeneration. That is, the humans (with their space-age material inventions and their opposable thumbs) are working on making a splint; I am working on giving cloud dog brayful looks of support and encouragement every time he totters into the yard to relieve himself. As always, he fears me (me?!) and keeps his distance.  Ears to you,  Fenway

Vegan Spring Rolls

I, Fenway Bartholomule, am a vegan: of course I only eat plants, not people! My human is too, so I'm sharing my blog with her today so that she can participate in the 2014 Virtual Vegan Potluck ! When you're done perusing the recipe for these delicious spring rolls, click "back" or "forward" for the entire potluck experience! Virtual Vegan Potluck: Spring Roll Appetizers Beautiful? Check. Healthy? Check. Delicious? Check. Easy? Check. Fancy? Check. Quick to clean up after? Check. Vegan? OF COURSE! If you're looking for something portable, colorful, and crowd-pleasing for your next potluck, look no further than these simple vegan spring rolls! The best part? You can substitute ANYTHING. I never make these the same way twice, so play around with cilantro, kale, cabbage, scallions, or whatever you think sounds good! Ingredients Veggie mix: 2 carrots (grated) 4 oz mung bean sprouts 1/3 cup chopped peanuts (raw, or roasted and salted) or ...

The Scoop on Bird

 Human here, to give you the scoop on Songbird. He is shiny, sweet, and wonderful . . . and a little bit broken hearted. (Fenway was once, too.) As I've gotten to know him more over the last month, I've come to understand that he associates humans with unpleasantness, at least, and suffering, at worst. He has some gnarly scars. He flinches away from touch, though he warms up quickly when treats are involved. He's quite a foodie. He's easily startled. He's alert, and vigilant. He doesn't always feel safe. He also really likes it at my mom's house, which has a slower pace than the wonderful boarding and lesson barn where he lived in June. He appreciates the predictable routine, the long quiet afternoons, and the retired horses who give him company. He has flattened the grass under the big cedar out back and created nests to rest in. The soft footing at my mom's is better for his newly bare feet. He is starting to believe he'll be ok.  I have ridden him...

One person I miss

I have the best of friends around me here at this new home! I have my human Granny and Gruncle (is he a grandpa? Is he an uncle? I'm not sure), I have a horse companion beside me and two other horse companions a little further down the row, and I have a wonderful assortment of ponies, miniature horses, and miniature mules darting about and making adorable little sounds with their adorable little faces at all hours of the day and night. It's really quite lovely. I have chickens and rabbits and cats to befriend, and I have visits from the Woman and her blue dog.  My friend Scotty, who lives on my right, is a wise old chestnut with a soothing presence. My friend Cadbury, who lives on my left, is a fiery miniature stallion (a rescue, for whom gelding was medically contraindicated) who ensures our life is never boring.  I miss one person from the boarding barn—a sweet little girl who was the very first person I came to trust in that new place. She was kind to me from the outset, an...