Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Hard to believe it's November

Good morning all you fine shepherds. You notice, I don't use the other form of shepherd. Sorry, I have always considered it sexist to change the word to denote a female doing the job. Women can be just as good a shepherd as any male. Except in elections.
When I was working in retail....which I did as a mother....go figure, I asked why the male manager got paid more.....when his store was doing less business. I was told HE had a family to support. Nothing personal.
So yes, I do carry a grudge toward a society that values males over more experienced women.
I'll come back in two more years to rub it in....by then you kool-aid drinkers will be squirming.

BACK TO THE WEATHER.....It's been wonderful here in Missouri lately, sunny, warm but not hot, breezy, but not enough to lose too many leaves. The sheep are still on grass. I do need to repair the front ram pen, but since we are expecting rain....I'll wait. It's a whole lot easier to drive a post after a rain. The leaves have been in full color all week. Every bit as nice as the great north country. We did lose a ram lamb last week. Not a neat kill like a cat, so maybe that lone coyote that's been hanging around up in our woods. I will move the remaining half dozen ram lambs to the front over the winter....then perhaps when they are bigger they can go back into the meadow.
The lambs in the breeding pen were frisky yesterday. I noticed the one older ewe had a rumpled behind. She was likely breeding in the quiet barn, out of sight. The two ewe lambs were hopping and running with excitement....with their ram lamb doing the same right behind them. It was almost as good as the spring lamb races. Sheep can give us a good laugh sometimes....with their sheer exuberance for life.
I did mention I was looking into business possibilities, however the state of Mo has archaic sales tax laws.... I'm not in the mood to jump thru hoops. If there is anyone looking for a business idea....I can give you one.
We are waiting for word on a contract. Don't you just hate waiting for legal stuff to come back? While looking for a fixer house.....we found one we shouldn't buy.....so of course I wrote an offer on it!!!!! NO is just not in my vocabulary. Until I get that particular house out of my mind....I am waiting on looking at any others. Of course the house we live in is a kind of fixer house anyway. Believe me, we had a list of necessary items on our wish list when we bought this property in Mo.
A barn was at the top, the house was about fifth down the list. We live in a typical Ozarkian house. Small, remote, with a front porch and a tin roof.....it's plenty big enough for retired folks. This one was already re-habbed when we bought it.....by really nice folks, with practical ideas....if not pretty ones. So we are about 3/4 s of the way thru correcting the ugly.
I'll let you know if we can glue this contract together....Actually, if there is any other shepherd out there wanting to fix and flip a house....just for fun and maybe profit. Write me....I love that sort of thing. It tends to keep me going in the long 5 months between breeding and lambing.
I can tell you exactly what not to make an offer on....a house you fall in love with....one with impossible problems....that you want to live in....not resell. The money pit kind.....you can't want to buy them.!!!!....but just try to ignore them as you walk thru.....ha ha ha....A flipper must think like practical pig.....not his brothers! Oh well, shepherds build stuff out of straw and hay all the time. Perhaps bad training for a practical miind. I prop leaning fences up with branches too. Faster than going back to find a real post....the sheep don't mind. Yes, I am a dreamer.
Have a lovely fall day...and kiss a ewe for me.