The Old Folks Home

[Arielle]

Quote:

My fear is that this year will be the begining of typical. THe number of over 100 days has been increasing in my neck of the woods; and the temps at 10-15 in the morning has been increasing too. Might need to move the horses in the house for warmth!! I remeber an old house in Bangor Maine that had the barn under the house-- now I get it!! lol

Back in '87 I spent the last 6 months of the year in Caribou. Seen several houses on top of barns built into hilltops. I always thought that was a risky way to have/keep critters, but understand the idea of a warm floor in winter!

Scott

that's common in scandinavian countries. I always thought it was kind of cool!
Seems really practical-- wonder what I am missing. What am I missing Scott??

neighbor lived in an old house, hallway and in law apt attached to the 2 car garage, which attached to an old HUGE barn with storage underneath ( or room for wagons and schoop poo down the trap doors!!)

We made it to the hotel safe and sound.

Glad all is well-- safe trip back. Maddie looks so peaceful.

 

[Highcotton]

Chickadoodles     You call THAT snow????      We(Chicago suburb) call that dandruff

That's why I live in Georgia. I walked to school before day one winter in Illinois. Thatmwas enough for me.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I fly occaisionally LOL

I hate flying but I have to do it to get to the amazing places this world has to offer.

I would rather be safe than not. I will drop trou if thats what it took. I lost my dignity years ago (when I had to lift my dress on an operating room table for surgery in a room full of nurses I know, then woke up with a catheter) so I am not offended by a pat down.

I have learnt over the years what to take and what not to take on board planes. I have had zip ties confiscated as well as duct tape. My last trip I had my hands swabbed for bomb residue.

I fly in shorts or light sweat pants and crocs. I wear a T shirt and a sweater. Everythying except my ID and boarding pass are in my satchell well before I get to the inspectors.

Its tough but with some planning, TSA is a breeze.

When going through security, I wonder why I didn't just show up in my 'jammies and slippers. After all I had to interrupt my sleep to get to the airport 2 hours early.

Oh, yes! St. Alphonso.

I've been singing that song for the last two months as I move birds, carry feed and water. "Trudging across the tundra, mile after mile."

Imaginitive, sometimes irreverent lyrics and an incredibly talented MoI band. Including posthumous, 97 albums released. Classical, jazz, rock, R&B, orchestral - most often all in the same song.
Mud shark, anyone?

We made it to the hotel safe and sound.

Safe and sound is a beautiful thing.
Winter travel is a challenge. A lot of flights cancelled the last couple days.

It was 4F when my daughter left here yesterday, 14F when she got to DC, 63F when she got to San Francisco.
It will be 60F when she gets to Tokyo in 14 hours and 75F when she gets to Bangkok.

No wonder she didn't wear a coat when she left with out -12 windchill.

We have 4 cows right now.

We only had beef cattle. Not enough space for anything now. An army buddy from Dallas I visited post-Vietnam showed me around his family farm. They had about a hundred Holsteins with full time farm hands just milking cows all day besides the family. It was an amazing thing to see. They had two stainless steel tanks and the trucks came twice a day to pick up milk.

 

[scottcaddy]

Quote:

My fear is that this year will be the begining of typical. THe number of over 100 days has been increasing in my neck of the woods; and the temps at 10-15 in the morning has been increasing too. Might need to move the horses in the house for warmth!! I remeber an old house in Bangor Maine that had the barn under the house-- now I get it!! lol

Back in '87 I spent the last 6 months of the year in Caribou. Seen several houses on top of barns built into hilltops. I always thought that was a risky way to have/keep critters, but understand the idea of a warm floor in winter!

Scott

that's common in scandinavian countries. I always thought it was kind of cool!
Seems really practical-- wonder what I am missing. What am I missing Scott??

neighbor lived in an old house, hallway and in law apt attached to the 2 car garage, which attached to an old HUGE barn with storage underneath ( or room for wagons and schoop poo down the trap doors!!)
It is very practical, my thoughts on risk are lighting and the fire danger from most kinds of lighting.

Scott

 

[chickadoodles]

When going through security, I wonder why I didn't just show up in my 'jammies and slippers. After all I had to interrupt my sleep to get to the airport 2 hours early.

Oh, yes! St. Alphonso.

I've been singing that song for the last two months as I move birds, carry feed and water. "Trudging across the tundra, mile after mile."

Imaginitive, sometimes irreverent lyrics and an incredibly talented MoI band. Including posthumous, 97 albums released. Classical, jazz, rock, R&B, orchestral - most often all in the same song.
Mud shark, anyone?


Safe and sound is a beautiful thing.
Winter travel is a challenge. A lot of flights cancelled the last couple days.

It was 4F when my daughter left here yesterday, 14F when she got to DC, 63F when she got to San Francisco.
It will be 60F when she gets to Tokyo in 14 hours and 75F when she gets to Bangkok.

No wonder she didn't wear a coat when she left with out -12 windchill.

We only had beef cattle. Not enough space for anything now. An army buddy from Dallas I visited post-Vietnam showed me around his family farm. They had about a hundred Holsteins with full time farm hands just milking cows all day besides the family. It was an amazing thing to see. They had two stainless steel tanks and the trucks came twice a day to pick up milk.

My husband worked cows most of his life. After he sold his heard he brought a few back here to the house to keep around. They are really pets for him. He goes out to feed them and they circle around him and he hand feeds them. Their numbers go up and down our are beef cows. When we get to many we sell some off and they start over. We mainly have them to keep down the grass in the pastures so we won't have to cut it. lol But DH loves his cows. Most springs we wind up with a calf or two. I lived on a dairy farm for a short time in Calif. They are amazing. I have always liked cows and bulls. When I was a kid I would go to the dairy and sit by the fence and the bull would come up and I would eat half my ice cream cone and feed him the other half. He loved it!

 

[Bunnylady]

Just heard a few minutes ago, the local schools are going to be closed tomorrow. That'll make 3 days in a row. They probably could have held classes yesterday; things didn't get ugly until late yesterday afternoon. Today, no way!

The precip part of this weather event is most likely over; the front is pretty much offshore now. We have a couple inches of white stuff on the ground. It looks like snow, but it isn't; what fell was mostly sleet. Because the air at ground level was so cold, most of what fell was frozen by the time it got here, so above-ground surfaces only have a thin coat of ice on them. That's a major blessing. What is on the ground has formed a crust that in places can bear the weight of an adult human.

DD went with me when I went to feed the horses this morning. The roads are nasty - solid ice in some spots, a slushy, slippery mess in others. Fortunately, most folks have enough sense to stay home; those that were on the roads were driving with an unusual amount of caution. While I was cleaning up in the barn, DD rode her horse. After being stuck in the barn for a day, Sunny was feeling pretty good; DD had a hard time keeping her down to a walk, and it was too slick to risk even a trot.

The minis were feeling frisky, too - Syd and Blondie were tearing around, bucking and kicking up their heels. I'd have loved to have gotten a video of them, but I had to just watch from inside the house; if I had gone out where they could see me, they'd have stopped. They managed to rouse Betsy (the mule) out of her stall, too, but her attitude seemed to be, "Stupid horses! Wake me when it's Spring!"

 

[Arielle]

Quote:

My fear is that this year will be the begining of typical. THe number of over 100 days has been increasing in my neck of the woods; and the temps at 10-15 in the morning has been increasing too. Might need to move the horses in the house for warmth!! I remeber an old house in Bangor Maine that had the barn under the house-- now I get it!! lol

Back in '87 I spent the last 6 months of the year in Caribou. Seen several houses on top of barns built into hilltops. I always thought that was a risky way to have/keep critters, but understand the idea of a warm floor in winter!

Scott

that's common in scandinavian countries. I always thought it was kind of cool!
Seems really practical-- wonder what I am missing. What am I missing Scott??

neighbor lived in an old house, hallway and in law apt attached to the 2 car garage, which attached to an old HUGE barn with storage underneath ( or room for wagons and schoop poo down the trap doors!!)
It is very practical, my thoughts on risk are lighting and the fire danger from most kinds of lighting.

Scott
Probably the same risk in the barn as the house. In general I wouldn't touch an old house because of the old wiring and no insulation. I'm starting to see the value of living off the grid and cutting out those risks and exchanging them for other risks.

Quote: I remember a trip out to Bartlet Is in Maine where the Rockerfellers run simintal crosses. THey had a new bull and while viewing him he came up for a visit. He was HUGE-- WIDE across the head. ANd the herd manager just held up his foot to block the bull from approaching any closer as his young son was also with us.

Always loved the smell of the dairy barns. . . silage. lol

 

[ronott1]

Probably the same risk in the barn as the house. In general I wouldn't touch an old house because of the old wiring and no insulation. I'm starting to see the value of living off the grid and cutting out those risks and exchanging them for other risks.

It would depend on how old the house is and if the wiring had been brought up to code.

The really old wire was wrapped with paper.

 

[chickadoodles]

Arielle:
I remember a trip out to Bartlet Is in Maine where the Rockerfellers run simintal crosses. THey had a new bull and while viewing him he came up for a visit. He was HUGE-- WIDE across the head. ANd the herd manager just held up his foot to block the bull from approaching any closer as his young son was also with us.

Always loved the smell of the dairy barns. . . silage. lol



Our bull and heffers are so friendly that when they see us outside they come running and mooing like crazy wanting a treat! Sometimes they even watch us thru the windows.
I have an down syndrome grandchild that comes to visit and I have worked hard to teach her that the cows won't hurt her. She gets scared when they lick her. I hold on to her the whole time.
My daughter said she never saw or heard of peeping cows till she saw ours!

 

[chickadoodles]

Just heard a few minutes ago, the local schools are going to be closed tomorrow. That'll make 3 days in a row. They probably could have held classes yesterday; things didn't get ugly until late yesterday afternoon. Today, no way!

The precip part of this weather event is most likely over; the front is pretty much offshore now. We have a couple inches of white stuff on the ground. It looks like snow, but it isn't; what fell was mostly sleet. Because the air at ground level was so cold, most of what fell was frozen by the time it got here, so above-ground surfaces only have a thin coat of ice on them. That's a major blessing. What is on the ground has formed a crust that in places can bear the weight of an adult human.

DD went with me when I went to feed the horses this morning. The roads are nasty - solid ice in some spots, a slushy, slippery mess in others. Fortunately, most folks have enough sense to stay home; those that were on the roads were driving with an unusual amount of caution. While I was cleaning up in the barn, DD rode her horse. After being stuck in the barn for a day, Sunny was feeling pretty good; DD had a hard time keeping her down to a walk, and it was too slick to risk even a trot.

The minis were feeling frisky, too - Syd and Blondie were tearing around, bucking and kicking up their heels. I'd have loved to have gotten a video of them, but I had to just watch from inside the house; if I had gone out where they could see me, they'd have stopped. They managed to rouse Betsy (the mule) out of her stall, too, but her attitude seemed to be, "Stupid horses! Wake me when it's Spring!"

I love to watch the animals when they play they are so comical!
Alot of the schools are closed here tomorrow also. They have closed the roads on both sides of us so my DH stayed home today. We still have some snow but it has started melting since about noon. I have not been out in it. The steps are frozen and I don't want to fall. DH did chicken chores thur this mess.