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First thing this morning, I walked two miles. With a 100 acre farm, it’s not unusual for me to walk around a lot anyway, but that is mostly broken up in the pursuit of various chores. Fitness walking–walking in a concentrated effort for cardiovascular strength–is a different thing. Weston is taking a fitness walking class this summer, along with a calculus class. I decided to use that as my inspiration to get back to fitness walking myself, even though Weston is walking in Morgantown. When he gets back in another five weeks, I want to be able to keep up with him! I decided to start walking out toward the back of my farm, where the road turns to dirt and it’s pretty isolated. It’s a pretty way to walk. The road is enfolded by an arch of trees, thick woods all around, birds singing in the twisty limbs, sun peeking through the leaves. It’s uphill all the way for a mile, then I come to a cemetery, touch the gate, and turn around for the much easier downhill home.
After that, the farrier arrived for a big day. The farrier days here get bigger all the time. Because Jack has trouble with his hooves (always has, before we had him, before the people before us, and perhaps into infinity–we don’t know all of Jack’s history), the farrier comes every 6-8 weeks to do the donkeys. I’ve started also having him help me with the goat hoof trimming, because that’s hard to do alone, so every other time he does the goats, and now every other between time he will be adding the horses. If he ever runs out of things to do, I will have him polish my toenails. (hahaha)
Morgan decided she HAD to go camping with a friend this weekend, so it was all on me to get ready. Getting ready for the farrier means:
1) Shut the main front gates at the driveway. (Security measure.)
2) Get the donkeys out of the upper pasture WITHOUT letting the horses out.
3) Convince the donkeys to go into the front barn yard and on into the alleyway of the barn where I can shut them in to await the farrier.
4) Open the main front gates at the driveway for the farrier.
(There’s a lot of “non-fitness” walking involved, just sayin’.)
When the farrier arrives, he whips together a makeshift halter out of a rope and I hold each donkey as he does the hoof work. Jack goes first, then he’s ejected from the alleyway so he doesn’t try to kill the farrier while the farrier works on his BELOVED POKY. Then I shuttle the donkeys off to the back barn yard while I get the goats. We get the goats in a stall and I tackle and hold each goat as the farrier trims their hooves. I am covered in filthy hoof prints from my ankles to my forehead by the time this is over.
Then I take the goats back to their yard, the farrier leaves, and I repeat steps 1 through 4 again to get the donkeys back to the upper pasture.
Then it’s time for bed. Where did the day go??? Oh, wait, it’s only 1 p.m………….
View from the studio deck:
I think I shall plan nothing but “fitness” walking for tomorrow.
