We all know that ice is not nice. When you look down and see ice on a surface that you're about to embark on, you better have ice skates strapped on otherwise it's not going to be a fun trip. Well, consider doing this on a slope in heavy Boots while carrying buckets full of water or grain to your chosen destination, in my case the pig pen. I have been doing this for weeks now since we had that snow followed by rain which then turned into a nice thick layer of glossy ice. Our driveway has been like a luge lately and we've had to do a lot of walking up and down the hills instead of being able to get the vehicles up there. Not much fun after a trip to the grocery store. That is the challenges, and frustrations of living in the country.
Chores are even worse, everything I need to feed the animals is all up and downhill. It makes you very tired and by the end of the day, I am sore and achy from my muscles being so tight as I walk gingerly with the thought " don't fall, don't fall." It would be bad enough to fall and hurt whatever body part I happened to land on but the real possibility of falling while carrying the pig slop or two large buckets filled with water make it very unappealing. There's a reason they call pig food "slop" It is generally unappealing and wet. On top of the fear of falling myself and getting drenched in slop, there is also the fear of one of the animals getting hurt. Example, Duffer the steer who is young and naughty, thinks that it's very, very fun to knock over the water bucket when it's half full (and by the way half full about 20 gallons, yes he is strong enough to do this.) So when he spills 15 to 20 gallons of water in front of the gate where everyone convenes it makes a lovely sheet of ice, as I dust sand around for the fifth time this week, I tell him he deserves 50 lashes with a wet noodle for this and he only blinks at me with his long black eyelashes. (Now before you call bovine protective services, know that the wet noodle threat has long been used in my family by parental figures when a youngster does something naughty, but not truly punishable. This was usually met with giggles from the youngster).
The last thing we need is for a bovine to hurt themselves. My fears were also magnified this morning when I went to fill the aforementioned water pail to find droplets of blood in the fresh white snow this caused a moment of anxiety inside me that I cannot truly explain to you. But after finding out that it was just Duffer accidentally cutting one of his facial warts, I was no longer worried since the Vet told me that the cure for these was to cut them off anyway, and to think I almost became a Vet. Ahhh, I need coffee now.
Chores are even worse, everything I need to feed the animals is all up and downhill. It makes you very tired and by the end of the day, I am sore and achy from my muscles being so tight as I walk gingerly with the thought " don't fall, don't fall." It would be bad enough to fall and hurt whatever body part I happened to land on but the real possibility of falling while carrying the pig slop or two large buckets filled with water make it very unappealing. There's a reason they call pig food "slop" It is generally unappealing and wet. On top of the fear of falling myself and getting drenched in slop, there is also the fear of one of the animals getting hurt. Example, Duffer the steer who is young and naughty, thinks that it's very, very fun to knock over the water bucket when it's half full (and by the way half full about 20 gallons, yes he is strong enough to do this.) So when he spills 15 to 20 gallons of water in front of the gate where everyone convenes it makes a lovely sheet of ice, as I dust sand around for the fifth time this week, I tell him he deserves 50 lashes with a wet noodle for this and he only blinks at me with his long black eyelashes. (Now before you call bovine protective services, know that the wet noodle threat has long been used in my family by parental figures when a youngster does something naughty, but not truly punishable. This was usually met with giggles from the youngster).
The last thing we need is for a bovine to hurt themselves. My fears were also magnified this morning when I went to fill the aforementioned water pail to find droplets of blood in the fresh white snow this caused a moment of anxiety inside me that I cannot truly explain to you. But after finding out that it was just Duffer accidentally cutting one of his facial warts, I was no longer worried since the Vet told me that the cure for these was to cut them off anyway, and to think I almost became a Vet. Ahhh, I need coffee now.
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