Sunday, April 10, 2005

The Eternal Move

My life continues to be interesting (as in the Chinese curse). I sold my house - closes the 15th of April, I hope. I have a fencing contractor working on sheep and dog fencing at my new place, so I can move my critters off the property by the 15th, my last day for using the 10 acres I sold last month. The easy access by vehicle is at the end of those 10 acres, so moving the critters before the 15th is important. I haven't yet found someone to do the hauling. I may be backing up to the gate in my van, moving 10 at a time.

I've been spending every spare moment moving something somewhere. I have to clear my barns by the 15th of May, and it is too wet and steep to get a vehicle to any of the barn doors. So it's haul the stuff to the van, move it, haul it out to store at the new place.

My neighbor took his horses back yesterday, and pulled a bunch of fencing panels and a kennel down to the end of the property where it can be loaded into a vehicle. Saved me time, arm and back muscles, and much frustration. He also moved the picnic table, so I can take it over for the dogs to play on.

If the fence gets put up in time, and I can find someone to haul the sheep in time, I need to put up a temporary fence at the corner to corral the sheep so they can be loaded. If all of those things don't fall into place, I need to fence in an area of the property I still own and the piece I've just sold, to keep the critters up there. Then I need to figure out how I'll manage to move them.
Today the weather held out long enough to get a vanload of stuff moved out of the barn and then onto the new place. Then it started raining.

Charlie (my working Pyr) carefully watched everything we moved. He came into the barn to see what we were doing. He stood by the fence watching us load things into the van. We even had the gate left open a lot of the time, and he never even tried to leave. He doesn't like things being removed, but if that's what I want, he'll go along with it. But not happily.

I'm now down to thinking less than a week in advance. Anything more and I get overwhelmed. The problem is, once one task is completed I'm hit up the side of the head with the next task that is due immediately. I just keep going, moving on. One day I'll be sitting on my porch, watching the mountains and the cows in the valley and my critters in the field, surrounded by my dogs, peafowl and geese, and this will all be over.

Sunday, April 03, 2005

The End of a Busy Day

I'm moving. It's difficult enough moving a household, but add in a farm and it begins to seem impossible.

Today a friend and I hauled the extra gates we had pulled out of the fields last week down the creek path to the nearest road. Gates are heavy. The road is about 1/4 mile away - not a long walk, but a very, very long haul. Then we loaded them in the van and took them to the new place for the fence I'm having put up there.

Charlie the Pyr watched this, watched the horses and sheep watching, and joined all in trotting along with us on the other side of the fence. Nice to know you are providing entertainment for the critters.

On our return, I saw something large and white laying out in the field. It wasn't moving. It looked fluffier than a sheep.

I parked the van, and could see that the lump had still not moved. I got in the car and drove back down to the end of the field. The large, fluffy white thing that still hadn't moved looked very much like a Pyr. I ran into the field, calling "Charlie!" I ran and ran (he was near the center of the field), calling his name. I was certain by now that he had been shot in his own field. I was within several yards when the completely inanimate object raised its head and became Charlie. An alive and well Charlie.

Charlie looked at me with interest. I don't normally run through the field towards him, screaming nearly hysterically. He got up. I knelt down and opened my arms, and he came to me. He was a bit surprised at my joy and delight. He enjoyed the hugs. We walked together back to the gate, and he was disappointed that I left him there.

The neighbors off the far corner of the field had a gardening crew in, mowing and making noise. I think Charlie was out there keeping his considerable bulk between the noisy strangers and his charges, and just sort of snoozed off.

I'd been feeling tired and run down after two days of hard labor. Now I'm quite awake. And very, very glad that my wonderful guardian is still alive and well.