From the Farm
Feb 15, 2013
15 February 2013
Thanks everyone for the support emails about the conflict at the market last week. The thing for me was those people who have known me for many years had total understanding where I was coming from but for people who have not known me for as long it read totally different. Well I did only get 13% for English at school and 96% for Science so I write as I talk. I have to remember I am not just talking to old friends and relations who in the past we worked together to build bridges.
Beate and Ruth did a visit to the old folk home with Taiyo the Kune pig, a pair of modern game bantams and Archie the dog. The visit went very well and gave a bit of something different to the people, and it look as if they will be asked back.
Ila is back from up north and has helped me to finish sorting the sheep for tupping as we always like the rams out before Valentines Day and we have made it. We are short of ewes this season so have not any for sale as usual, as we had heaps of male lambs this year.
Wally has fitted in well cutting firewood, fixing broken rails and gates, all the stuff I should have done but just can't get around to it. Nerida, Wally and I have been doing more sorting out the workshop to make room for the next lot of work.
A few visitors this week. Sandy Southcome called to look at building sites. My old mate Peter called as its only a week before he goes back to his new longboat in the UK. I think I would love it in the summer but the winter wow a year or so back his longboat was iced in with the bananas frozen solid beside the bed.
Had a day visit from Peter Holbrook who bought pigs from me over 30 years ago. He brought a friend John to buy European wild pigs to farm and ducks to train his working dogs on. He bought some Polish chickens to take home to his wife.
The guy Ray Earnshaw who has bought the old Douglas school called in. He is wanting to swap a polled Wiltshire ram but I no longer breed polled ones and all my others have gone. His mother has mini ponies and I have to call in to get them into harness. Ray has set up an upholstery workshop in the old school, great to see the back country filling up again.
The Taranaki Farmers Market was a good one, the weather was good, lots of out of towners. I was pleased to see Karran Nicol and her husband down for the weekend to see their son.
Beate and Ruth did a visit to the old folk home with Taiyo the Kune pig, a pair of modern game bantams and Archie the dog. The visit went very well and gave a bit of something different to the people, and it look as if they will be asked back.
Ila is back from up north and has helped me to finish sorting the sheep for tupping as we always like the rams out before Valentines Day and we have made it. We are short of ewes this season so have not any for sale as usual, as we had heaps of male lambs this year.
Wally has fitted in well cutting firewood, fixing broken rails and gates, all the stuff I should have done but just can't get around to it. Nerida, Wally and I have been doing more sorting out the workshop to make room for the next lot of work.
A few visitors this week. Sandy Southcome called to look at building sites. My old mate Peter called as its only a week before he goes back to his new longboat in the UK. I think I would love it in the summer but the winter wow a year or so back his longboat was iced in with the bananas frozen solid beside the bed.
Had a day visit from Peter Holbrook who bought pigs from me over 30 years ago. He brought a friend John to buy European wild pigs to farm and ducks to train his working dogs on. He bought some Polish chickens to take home to his wife.
The guy Ray Earnshaw who has bought the old Douglas school called in. He is wanting to swap a polled Wiltshire ram but I no longer breed polled ones and all my others have gone. His mother has mini ponies and I have to call in to get them into harness. Ray has set up an upholstery workshop in the old school, great to see the back country filling up again.
The Taranaki Farmers Market was a good one, the weather was good, lots of out of towners. I was pleased to see Karran Nicol and her husband down for the weekend to see their son.