Catherine Friend's Blog, page 7
June 17, 2011
The Duck Saga Continues
A month ago I wrote about our duck, Mr. Bodgepie, being startled by a neighbor's dog and flying a mile to the south. Neighbor Bill saw the duck and called us. I 'visited' Bodgepie several times, but couldn't catch him. And Melissa agreed that if she went down there with a net, she'd be so determined to catch him she'd end up in the swollen Zumbro River.
So we let go.
I just got a call from another person on that road (Bill's daughter) who said Bodgepie has been showing up in their yard late at night, and early in the morning. They live about half way between the river and our farm. So Bodgepie is making progress.
The good news is he's still alive, and he gets off the river now and then. I just called Melissa and she's SO excited.
This weekend's activity? Duck hunting...with a fishing net, not a gun.
So we let go.
I just got a call from another person on that road (Bill's daughter) who said Bodgepie has been showing up in their yard late at night, and early in the morning. They live about half way between the river and our farm. So Bodgepie is making progress.
The good news is he's still alive, and he gets off the river now and then. I just called Melissa and she's SO excited.
This weekend's activity? Duck hunting...with a fishing net, not a gun.
June 8, 2011
Memoirist Caught Telling Lie
James Frey (A Million Little Pieces) and Greg Mortenson (Three Cups of Tea)? Move over. There's a new memoirist in town who's been caught lying.
In my first memoir, Hit by a Farm, I wrote about a doll I had as a child. The Jane West doll had bendable arms and legs, ugly tan plastic clothing, and a horse. I sold her years ago, and regretted it because she's now sort of an antique.
Last fall our friend Karen pulled a Jane West doll out of a box of junk her father gave her. Karen generously gave the doll to me. But in our discussion, someone raised the question---was there more than one doll of this sort?
I jumped online and found the truth. Jane West looks like this:
She's tall and blonde.
My Jane West, however, looks like this:
Oops. This isn't Jane West. She's Jane (and Johnny) West's daughter, Janice West.
Call the New York Times! I've lied! Punish me by putting my memoir on the bestseller list! Frey and Mortenson have survived the punishment (and have become incredibly wealthy,) so if that's the fate I must suffer for lying, so be it.
In my first memoir, Hit by a Farm, I wrote about a doll I had as a child. The Jane West doll had bendable arms and legs, ugly tan plastic clothing, and a horse. I sold her years ago, and regretted it because she's now sort of an antique.
Last fall our friend Karen pulled a Jane West doll out of a box of junk her father gave her. Karen generously gave the doll to me. But in our discussion, someone raised the question---was there more than one doll of this sort?
I jumped online and found the truth. Jane West looks like this:
She's tall and blonde.
My Jane West, however, looks like this:
Oops. This isn't Jane West. She's Jane (and Johnny) West's daughter, Janice West.
Call the New York Times! I've lied! Punish me by putting my memoir on the bestseller list! Frey and Mortenson have survived the punishment (and have become incredibly wealthy,) so if that's the fate I must suffer for lying, so be it.
June 7, 2011
How do we (as in all of us) do it?
It's been a week since I've posted. Darn. And I was doing so well there for awhile.
The good news is that I'm managing. I'm keeping the animals fed, moving them from pasture to pasture. I'm weaning the baby calves---down from 3 bottles a day to one. I know which ones are likely to sneak up on me and put their noses in inappropriate places. (If they weren't my animals, I'd report an assault.)
I'm not afraid of the four massive steers, and lead them from place to place like they're babies. (They ran up to Melissa one night in the dark and startled her, so she's been a little skittish around them. The next time we passed through their pasture, I volunteered to hold her hand if she was afraid. I'm so bad!) The other day they were so excited to be moving to new pasture that they thundered toward the gate, inspiring me to start humming the theme song from Bonanza. They must be at least 700 pounds now.
I'm appearing lots of places to promote my new book. And I've started a new novel and am playing with a few ideas for a new nonfiction book. Our capacity to create in the face of so many other distractions amazes me. I wonder if the distractions actually help focus our attention.
I've always wondered how parents juggle jobs and kids and kids' activities and house/bill needs and sleeping. I see now that you just do it because you have to. Just because we're having a bad day doesn't mean we can sell the animals or stop taking care of children.
In the past, if I'm not feeling well or am lacking energy, it's been so easy to let Melissa take care of whatever needs doing. I can't do that now. Other than a few minor meltdowns, I'm doing what needs doing. If the animals need checking on in the middle of a 100 degree day, I do it.
I think everyone should take a minute to give themselves credit for stepping up, and doing what needs to be done even if we'd rather make a batch of popcorn and collapse on the sofa....
which I plan on doing tomorrow... :-)
The good news is that I'm managing. I'm keeping the animals fed, moving them from pasture to pasture. I'm weaning the baby calves---down from 3 bottles a day to one. I know which ones are likely to sneak up on me and put their noses in inappropriate places. (If they weren't my animals, I'd report an assault.)
I'm not afraid of the four massive steers, and lead them from place to place like they're babies. (They ran up to Melissa one night in the dark and startled her, so she's been a little skittish around them. The next time we passed through their pasture, I volunteered to hold her hand if she was afraid. I'm so bad!) The other day they were so excited to be moving to new pasture that they thundered toward the gate, inspiring me to start humming the theme song from Bonanza. They must be at least 700 pounds now.
I'm appearing lots of places to promote my new book. And I've started a new novel and am playing with a few ideas for a new nonfiction book. Our capacity to create in the face of so many other distractions amazes me. I wonder if the distractions actually help focus our attention.
I've always wondered how parents juggle jobs and kids and kids' activities and house/bill needs and sleeping. I see now that you just do it because you have to. Just because we're having a bad day doesn't mean we can sell the animals or stop taking care of children.
In the past, if I'm not feeling well or am lacking energy, it's been so easy to let Melissa take care of whatever needs doing. I can't do that now. Other than a few minor meltdowns, I'm doing what needs doing. If the animals need checking on in the middle of a 100 degree day, I do it.
I think everyone should take a minute to give themselves credit for stepping up, and doing what needs to be done even if we'd rather make a batch of popcorn and collapse on the sofa....
which I plan on doing tomorrow... :-)
May 31, 2011
Meet the Lambs
It's been two weeks since we finished lambing. (Hurrah!) Everyone's out on pasture and doing great. I tried to take a video of the two lambs I'm supplementing with bottles running toward me, and then feeding them.
Two hands holding three things? I held one bottle between my knees, and one in my hand, while I filmed with my camera in the other hand. I kept dropping the bottles, frustrating the hungry lambs, and I ended up holding the camera backwards so I photographed my t-shirt instead of the lamb.
Gaack. I should stick with still photos. Speaking of which, here are a few....
Two hands holding three things? I held one bottle between my knees, and one in my hand, while I filmed with my camera in the other hand. I kept dropping the bottles, frustrating the hungry lambs, and I ended up holding the camera backwards so I photographed my t-shirt instead of the lamb.
Gaack. I should stick with still photos. Speaking of which, here are a few....
May 24, 2011
Duck Drama
Sunday was a bad day. Melissa broke the fence containing the steers, so she and Mary had to move them to a new pasture in the pouring rain. Later a neighbor brought his riding lawn mower for us to use (both our mowers are broken) and just started mowing himself. Pleased, I went on to other things, then remembered I'd left a net fence down in the grass near the vineyard. Would he mow up that way? About the time I'm thinking this, he hits it with his mower. He had to take the deck off in order to free his mower from plastic and fence wire wrapped around his blade. Totally my fault. Gaack. Luckily the mower wasn't broken.
Then his dog startled our duck, Mr. Bodgepie, and Bodgepie took flight, heading south. He didn't come back.
The next day, still no Bodgepie. Today Melissa leaves a message for a farmer who lives about a mile to the south (as the duck flies.) He called back late this afternoon. This morning he'd seen what he thought at first was a bald eagle, then he realized it was just a really big duck.
I drive three miles to the general area, a narrow road that follows the Zumbro River as it snakes through pasture and plowed fields. I'm scanning the trees, the road ditches, then happen to look up and see, way the hell out toward the river, a black and white spot.
I race home, get the binoculars, then race back. Sure enough, it's Mr. Bodgepie, perched on a dead tree about 10 feet out into the river. Crap. The Zumbro is fast and dangerous. I stop by the farmer's house and determine the pasture bordering the river is his, and I get his permission to walk out to the duck.
The grass is long, over my knees, and crawling with wood ticks just waiting to creep onto me, but I must try. I don't want to face Melissa--who loves that duck---without trying. So I crawl through the barbed wire fence with a container of cracked corn, and begin the long trek through the unfamiliar pasture toward the river. I get as as far as I can, about 20 feet from the river, then hit muck so soft I start to sink. I talk to Bodgepie, but he just stands there on his log. I don't think he can 'take off' because he needs more real estate for that. He's a duck, so he could swim to shore, but I'm not sure he knows that.
I dump out all the corn on the ground, thinking that might entice him onto shore, and hike back to the car. Melissa won't be home for awhile, but she won't be able to do anything since without a boat, there's no way to reach him.
I'm fairly convinced this story won't have a happy ending. We'll either return and find him gone, or be unable to rescue him and something larger will eat him.
I share this story because sometimes it's so easy to think that farm life is all cuddly babies and cute calves. It's also animals getting themselves beyond reach, through flight or accident or disease.
Farmers, whether they're aware of it or not, do a lot of letting go.
Then his dog startled our duck, Mr. Bodgepie, and Bodgepie took flight, heading south. He didn't come back.
The next day, still no Bodgepie. Today Melissa leaves a message for a farmer who lives about a mile to the south (as the duck flies.) He called back late this afternoon. This morning he'd seen what he thought at first was a bald eagle, then he realized it was just a really big duck.
I drive three miles to the general area, a narrow road that follows the Zumbro River as it snakes through pasture and plowed fields. I'm scanning the trees, the road ditches, then happen to look up and see, way the hell out toward the river, a black and white spot.
I race home, get the binoculars, then race back. Sure enough, it's Mr. Bodgepie, perched on a dead tree about 10 feet out into the river. Crap. The Zumbro is fast and dangerous. I stop by the farmer's house and determine the pasture bordering the river is his, and I get his permission to walk out to the duck.
The grass is long, over my knees, and crawling with wood ticks just waiting to creep onto me, but I must try. I don't want to face Melissa--who loves that duck---without trying. So I crawl through the barbed wire fence with a container of cracked corn, and begin the long trek through the unfamiliar pasture toward the river. I get as as far as I can, about 20 feet from the river, then hit muck so soft I start to sink. I talk to Bodgepie, but he just stands there on his log. I don't think he can 'take off' because he needs more real estate for that. He's a duck, so he could swim to shore, but I'm not sure he knows that.
I dump out all the corn on the ground, thinking that might entice him onto shore, and hike back to the car. Melissa won't be home for awhile, but she won't be able to do anything since without a boat, there's no way to reach him.
I'm fairly convinced this story won't have a happy ending. We'll either return and find him gone, or be unable to rescue him and something larger will eat him.
I share this story because sometimes it's so easy to think that farm life is all cuddly babies and cute calves. It's also animals getting themselves beyond reach, through flight or accident or disease.
Farmers, whether they're aware of it or not, do a lot of letting go.
Zoomin' Lambs
Our friend Mary spent five days here---feeding baby lambs and calves, planting flowers, fixing stuff. Let's hear it for friends with energy!
Mary managed to whip out her phone and catch these guys as they were zooming around. Too cute...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLvBBHe1u1g&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Mary managed to whip out her phone and catch these guys as they were zooming around. Too cute...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLvBBHe1u1g&feature=youtube_gdata_player
May 18, 2011
Elvis in the Office
What's in a writer's office? Secret stuff.
My 'stuff' has many themes. Here's one.
Yes, I know, I know. It's a bit much.
I have a problem.
But isn't admitting that half the battle?
My 'stuff' has many themes. Here's one.
Yes, I know, I know. It's a bit much.
I have a problem.
But isn't admitting that half the battle?
May 17, 2011
Sheepish about suggesting a book review
I like that my friends and acquaintances don't spend oodles of time writing reviews for amazon.com. You all lead rich, busy lives. This is good.
That said, the Sheepish entry on amazon.com looks a bit forlorn without reviews, and I know my editor's going to be telling me any day now that I need some reviews up there.
So if anyone's so inclined, I'd appreciate it.
(Of course, if you feel a need to post a negative review, I don't think you have time. You're way too busy. Thanks anyway!)
That said, the Sheepish entry on amazon.com looks a bit forlorn without reviews, and I know my editor's going to be telling me any day now that I need some reviews up there.
So if anyone's so inclined, I'd appreciate it.
(Of course, if you feel a need to post a negative review, I don't think you have time. You're way too busy. Thanks anyway!)
May 16, 2011
A Rising Moon Farm Monday
Here's my Monday.
6:30 Rise. Put on chore clothes (stained with blood and milk replacer and dirt, with bits of straw stuck in the cuffs.)
6:30-7 am. Feed myself. Feed dogs
7:45--8 am. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb up in big barn. Check to see if any ewes are in labor.
8:00--8:30. Mix up milk replacer and feed three calves. Feed chickens.Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes (sort of clean-ish jeans.)
10 am. Drive to Pine Island to buy milk replacer and sheep mineral.
10:30 Drive to Zumbrota to buy cracked corn for chickens.
11:30--12:30. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb again. Feed and water sheep. Check to see if any are in labor. Water the steers. Make sure they haven't broken something or been excessively creative in their naughtiness. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
2- 2:30 pm. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed three calves. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
4-4:15. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb. Check to see if any ewes are in labor. Clean out bottle and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
6-6:30 pm. Feed dogs. Feed myself
8 pm. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb. Check to see if any ewes are in labor. Mix up milk replacer and feed calves. Put chickens to bed. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
8:30. Feed Melissa when she gets home from work.
9:30 Change into chore clothes. Climb into bed.
No, wait, that's not right..... Hang on, I'll get it. Just give me a minute.
Okay, got it. Change into pajamas and climb into bed.
I'll bet you thought I was losing it, didn't you? Nah. I've got everything under control.
6:30 Rise. Put on chore clothes (stained with blood and milk replacer and dirt, with bits of straw stuck in the cuffs.)
6:30-7 am. Feed myself. Feed dogs
7:45--8 am. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb up in big barn. Check to see if any ewes are in labor.
8:00--8:30. Mix up milk replacer and feed three calves. Feed chickens.Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes (sort of clean-ish jeans.)
10 am. Drive to Pine Island to buy milk replacer and sheep mineral.
10:30 Drive to Zumbrota to buy cracked corn for chickens.
11:30--12:30. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb again. Feed and water sheep. Check to see if any are in labor. Water the steers. Make sure they haven't broken something or been excessively creative in their naughtiness. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
2- 2:30 pm. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed three calves. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
4-4:15. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb. Check to see if any ewes are in labor. Clean out bottle and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
6-6:30 pm. Feed dogs. Feed myself
8 pm. Change into chore clothes. Mix up milk replacer and feed bottle lamb. Check to see if any ewes are in labor. Mix up milk replacer and feed calves. Put chickens to bed. Clean out bottles and clean up kitchen. Change into regular clothes.
8:30. Feed Melissa when she gets home from work.
9:30 Change into chore clothes. Climb into bed.
No, wait, that's not right..... Hang on, I'll get it. Just give me a minute.
Okay, got it. Change into pajamas and climb into bed.
I'll bet you thought I was losing it, didn't you? Nah. I've got everything under control.
May 15, 2011
It's Raining Babies
Babies everywhere. Two long nights---up until 3 am. Acck. Melissa and I have bags under our eyes, and feel as if we're about to tip over. But we have babies....
