Time to Change Focus Again

Two weeks of Fiber Camp and now I have a few weeks off. All in all Fiber Camp went well. Had a couple of grandparents one day this week. Lots of ideas about what can be made from wool.

Now I have to shift focus. I want to work with the lambs and try to train them to accept a harness. That can be very useful. There are a few different people interested in buying lambs so may find the right home/s soon. I am sure it will work out. The rain has come again and they have enough to eat for now so no real rush except it is harder keeping track of 13 sheep and things are much better under control with fewer-- especially when I get busy with other things like fiber camp.

Tomorrow I need to cut poke berry and thistle before they flower and spread seed. Then it is up to the high pasture to cut the trailing nuisance up there.

Went over to a friend's house late this afternoon and for dinner. They have a BEAUTIFUL place and I told them all that was missing was a few sheep. I could almost see them like I could on our pasture before we had sheep come live here. They already have chickens-- it is a logical next step. They have a wonderful vegetable garden and some nice perennial beds and a several acre lawn. Why should they take time away from the things they love to mow the grass.

We were talking about how even if there are sheep to eat grass guys still like to ride tractors, (it is a guy thing). But guys can drive tractors to and fro to fetch things -- they don't have to spend so much time on a tractor and spend all the money on gas.

Fiber Camp begins for the Summer

Whoa, it has been a week since the last blog. This week of Fiber Camp is over and today is cooler so now is a good time to do many things but I am waiting for a phone call so I will write while I wait.

The phone call is someone who may be interested in giving a new home to some of the sheep and lambs. It is that time I guess. The lambs are still nursing when the mom's allow but certainly less frequently and they are old enough to leave this home and venture out. I will miss them individually but collectively they are just too many critters for the layout here.

Fiber Camp was great! I hope all my campers are as enthusiastic as the campers this week. This camp session had an attendance 300% greater than the last. The 3 were each unique but all possessed tremendous explorational skills. It was amazing watching the lights turn on in their brains. The main thing this week did for me was give me hope for the next generation. Not all the youth out there are couch potatoes and computer addicts.

I will make changes in how I do the next camp but all in all I think things went well. One thing I have to improve on is documentation. At first I forgot my camera and then when I did have it I forgot to take pictures much of the time. A great picture in the mind is of us making a large piece of sheet felt in a kiddie pool in the cabin because it was raining outside.

We also need more time to create more but, most days, it started getting too hot the last 15-30 minutes. The kids are new to knitting or new to felting, or new to spinning so instruction and practice take precious time but I have to keep reminding myself that it isn't product that is important but rather learning new skills that you can build on for the rest of your life. Hopefully, the children will come back while these new skills are fresh so we can continue where we left off and explore some more.

Each day started off with letting the sheep and Beau out to graze the lower pasture and the kids loved opening the gates and watching the parade. They got to know most of the names and would always ask who's fleece we were working with. That made me so happy to see them making connections and understanding the whole process. The animals are learning to make connections too and like having campers, especially Beau.

The Kirby Kid Visit

When you live out in the country you rarely have anyone come up the driveway except neighbors and the UPS guy. One day there was a young woman who's car broke down up the road. Today, a young vacuum cleaner salesman came up.

He gave me a rubber duck and asked me if he could clean my house. He said I didn't have to buy a vacuum cleaner he just needed to do 3 demonstrations a day. When I was in college I had a summer job going house to house trying to sell home improvement so I said yes. Besides, how could I turn down someone wanting to clean my house.

I told him I had no carpets just one rug so he vacuumed that and it never looked as good as it does now. Not good enough to buy a $2000.00+ Kirby though.

One guy takes three salesmen out and drops them one at a time at homes that agree to a demonstration. He keeps track of where he leaves them and goes back to pick them up when they call to say they are done. When the kid that came to my house called to get picked up, his boss said it would be a few minutes cause another guy was doing paper work. The kid didn't want to keep me from what I was doing SO we went outside and he helped me fill sand bags that I picked up today to divert the rain that goes into the barn when it rains hard.

I had tried to solicit help from a former client this morning to fill sand bags but she was baby sitting the whole day and so I thought it was going to be just me. I LOVE THE WAY GOD SENDS HELP WHEN YOU NEED IT> I AM ALWAYS AMUSED TO SEE HOW THINGS WORK OUT> COME ON _ A vACUUM SALESMAN?

MY COMPUTER IS DOING IT AGAIN BUT TOMORROW OR MONDAY I WILL HAVE A NEW ONE WITH LITTLE PERSONALITY (I HOPE)>

I gave up trying to get this sent out last night so here it is this morning. Oh, by the way, they told me my neighbor (the one whose drum carder I use) bought a vacuum. I should have said, "great, now I can borrow her's" . We borrow lots of things in the country (tractors, drum carders, spinning wheels, cross-country skis, canning pots, maple syrup evaporators .... why not a Kirby vacuum.

GARBLE

The rain came agaiN< THE NeW Barrel FILLED UP< AND THE BARN GOT VERY SOGGY!

GUESS WHAT, I AM GETTING A NEW COMPPUTER> NOT BECAUSE OF THE SPORATIC LETTER THING BUT BECAUSE it iS starting to freEZE Up and black out and such.

Anyway, it was a beaUtiFUl day todaY BUT I sPent most oF THE DAY spinNING WITH THE SPiNNING GROUP NORTH OF HERE> PICKED UP SOME GOOD TIPS and genuinely had a good time. Tomorrow, John anD I are going On aN excURtION TO Floyd TO AN ARTICAN FESTIVAL> I am GLAD IT IS SUPPOSE TO BE COOL SO I DON"T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THE ANIMALS AND WATER>

I have some ideas about the water situation that I will pursue soon. My focus now is on selling lambs, drumming up kids for camp, and getting the website finished. I will soon introduce my followers to the website.

Just talked to Lyndy. She wants more cute lamb pictures. O.K. Who wants these cute lambs? Sorry, the computer is NOT COMPLYING> I WILL TRY ONE MORE TIME> NOT TONIGHT< WAIT UNTIL I HAVE A NEW COMPUTER>

The Rain got out of Rhythm

I guess it is my fault that it hasn't rained in awhile--probably since my blog about how the rain was in sinc with my needs and plans. So today, John made a new stand for a 2nd rain barrel and I installed it. Now I have two rain barrels and no rain to fill them.

Guess I will drag the hose up but I never know how much water to put in because I don't know when the next rain will come and I don't want them to overflow. The one I have had for awhile isn't too much of a problem if it overflows but the new one is by the corner where the rain goes in and gets the barn wet.

I am hoping this new set up will help with that issue and I decided to use sand bags to divert water coming down the slope to the barn. I talked to the lady at the place that sells stone and sand and she is out of sand bags but is getting more. She said I should come there and fill the bags and put them on the truck instead of shoveling twice. Sounds good to me.

It has been so hot several days in the past couple of weeks. Too hot to shovel sand into sand bags and too hot to work in the barnyard except in the morning and evening. I was going to say, at least it cools down every night, but I don't think I will.

Chicken Troubles

AnotHEr white chicken is missing but this time there were some feathers. It is unsettling not to KNOW WHO CAME AFTER HER> FROM THE FEATHERS IT LOOKS LIKE SHE WENT THROUGH THE FENCE TWICE - once on the west side of the pasture behind the garage/barn and once on the south side. The most feathers were inside the south side fence. No feathers outside the fence really (maybe a couple). What does this mean?

After studying the crime site carfullY, it appears to me that something chased her outside to inside on the west fence and then caught up to her again at the south fence. It seems something either went through the FEnce (6 inch square) or over the fence, or swooped down from above. Not many feathers and no trail leaving the little pasture-- I am thinking hawk.

It is very sad as she was a sweet chicken. Now we are down to 3 chickens all brown. I ran into the guy that put me in touch with the guy who took the rooster. He said the guy really likes the rooster and gave him a few henS OF HIS OWN AND NOW THE ROOSTEr is very happy as well.

Maybe time to get a couple more chickens. Make a note* don't get white ones.

Reading with the Sheep..... and Beau

When I go out with the sheep and Beau, I am reminded of the book The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. Santiago was a real shepherd, not a one hour or two a day shepherd, yet I still identify with him.

When I read with the sheep, I think of Santiago reading with his sheep. He would travel from village to village and when he would finish one book he would trade it in for another. One of the passages I remember for some reason was about how he would pick thick books to read-- not because he had so much time but because he used his book for a pillow and thicker books were more comfortable.

In the morning when they go out, I take the time to clean the barn, fill the water buckets, pick up around the barnyard and such but in the evenings I take my book to read. The other-side-of the-fencers have decided that they don't need to do that so much anymore and the animals have fallen in to a routine so I don't have to keep a real close eye. Besides Beau is there.

Reading is something I really enjoy but I feel guilty reading when there is so much to do so I usually limit my reading to late at night before going to bed or when I am out with the sheep.

Lately, it has been really warm so it is sometimes after 7 in the evening that we go out. It is such a peaceful time -- one of my favorite times with the sheep.

And then we come back to the barnyard and I get to go back to a comfortable home with a bed and a real pillow. I am not a real shepherd.

confession: These pictures were taken on a morning outing but the routine is the same.