What's the hurry?

You can't rush things in North Devon - if you try to, it only leads to frustration.  There is no such thing as "quickly popping to the market" - after talking to cousin Vanessa, auntie Liz, Celia on the olive stall, Stafford on the flower stall, and assorted friends and neighbours, that's the morning gone.  You wouldn't dream of rushing past without a howdy...that's not the way things go down here. 

It's not unusual to come across two cars side-by-side in the middle of a lane, facing opposite directions, with the occupants passing the time of day through the windows - and happy to move on when someone else needs the road.  I've sat for over half an hour this way, with no traffic coming along, cutting the breeze and catching up on the latest.  If it's not cars, then it'll be tractors as farmers go about their business, or sheep being moved.  Good time for reflection, unless you are Ian, when it's a good time to eye up how someone else's sheep look compared to yours.

A few random observations from the last few weeks...

We have been moving the sheep from field to field as the grass needs eating down, and last time I brought the tudduths from six acres to Gratton, Sonny and I ended up herding our sheep and two male pheasants, who decided to make the trip with us.

We have one calf who has decided that instead of seeking out his mother for his milk, he will stand wherever he happens to be and bellow at the top of his voice until she appears over the horizon.  At 11:30pm this must be somewhat annoying for our neighbours.  Meanwhile, the calves are getting cake now and the mad dash for the pen when we turn up in the morning is a treat to see.

Ian has been away, and of course the cows always decide that this is the best time to give birth.  On my morning rounds, I found one of the cows with a good foot-length of leg sticking out the back end, with no calf readily following it.  After a call to Farmer Rob, we delivered a lovely red heifer - presented backwards, and needing a lot of pulling to get her out.  My first attendance at the birth of anything bigger than a sheep, rapidly followed by a more natural, no-help-required, second heifer at dusk a couple of days later.  Two down, five to go.

The new girl and her mum.

Meanwhile, Ferdi the Friesian calf who was adopted onto Mrs Brown Cow a while back is doing well.

Ferdi and his friend.

Helping Farmer Rob load wool into the trailer the other day, I mis-stepped out of the back and ended up on my butt in the wet in the yard.  Why does this keep happening to me?

We like buying locally - and that includes straw when we can.  I am standing in the yard in the photo below, looking at the straw our neighbour has sold to us - not sure you could get much more local than that!