AMJR PCF GENESIS

AMJR PCF GENESIS
Me and our mule maker - Genesis

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Bundling Up!

I have already checked on my pregnant girls this morning. No babies. Both jennets were in the run-in shed standing in knee deep straw, munching hay and looking quite pleased with themselves! I imagine that they will wait until it starts snowing tomorrow night to foal.....or maybe they will wait until Friday morning when it is supposed to be 3 degrees with a high of 16! For the next 7 days, our high temps will not get above the mid-20's. I have opened up pastures that were sowed in winter grass (Marshall Rye) that I was letting grow up because there are ponds in them for water. Breaking ice on fifteen 250 water troughs and refilling them may be near impossible come Friday. As it stands we had to break the ice around the edges of the ponds yesterday to allow the mares and mule babies to drink. Needless to say, the layers of clothing are increasing, which brings me to another problem: going to the bathroom.

Any woman, like me, that has completed the first half-century of her life knows that when you have to go....you BETTER go! This can get a little complicated when you have 10 layers of clothing on. It would be comical if it wasn't such a serious issue! It usually happens when you are in the middle of doing something - like hauling feed from the Co-op (this is a hypothetical - uh huh). While you are at the place of business, you might have the first urge, but to take all those clothes off while you are in the middle of something seems like too much of a hassle. You tell yourself, "I can make it back to the farm." Then you run into a neighbor or someone that wants to visit the farm and you have to be polite so you spend a few minutes talking on the loading dock after your feed has been loaded. Then you head for the farm. By this time, the urge to go is stronger. At this point, you recieve a call on your cell phone telling you that they need something on the farm ASAP from the Vet's office and since you are out, would you pick it up? Well, the Vet's office is past the turn-off to the farm, so your road and the lure of a nice warm bathroom passes you by and you continue to the Vet's office. By now, you have turned the CD player up and sing along (at the top of your lungs) with the Brian Wilson Christmas CD that you have not taken out since November (O Holy Night is a good one) to take your mind off the issue at hand, and you pull into the Vet's. My Vet's office has one unisex bathroom. What are the odds that someone is using it when you run into the lobby? Pretty damned good as it turns out. So, you grab what you need from the front desk staff and run out the door, all the time doing a little jig and telling your bladder that you WILL make it to a bathroom in the next few minutes and to leave you alone! Now your bathroom options are the saddle shop - with one bathroom that is inconveniently located in the middle of the workshop, or Kountry Korner, a convenience store/restaurant that doubles as Weakley County's "meet and greet" Mecca. At least they have more than one bathroom....so you head to "The Korner". This is where it gets sticky. Depending upon the time of day, you can be sure to see your postmistress, your plumber, your "gravel guy", your "hay guy", the County Mayor, the City Mayor, your realtor and other assorted folks when you walk into the Korner. Everyone wants to talk, and once again, to be polite, you stand there dancing from foot to foot while you exchange pleasantries and wish to God that you were home in your own bathroom! Finally, you can't stand it anymore and you run to the bathrooms. You have to remove the hooded thing that impedes taking your jacket off, your heavy jacket, your insulated sweatshirt hoodie, your insulated overalls, your sweatpants and longjohns. I have not actually timed this, but I bet that I have broken some Guinness record while doing this. Oh, sweet relief!!!!!! Now, you can relax......you can take your time putting on all your clothes which are piled on the restroom floor, wash your hands and return to public life. Just when you have settled down with a mega sized to-go cup of 1/2 mocha capp, 1/2 coffee (Jesus, isn't this what got me into trouble to begin with?) your cell phone rings. It is one of the guys at the farm wondering what the hold up is on getting the food back to the farm. How in Heaven's name can you explain what just transpired? So, you blame the delay on the Vet's office and head home. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

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