More windy grey days, I know spring is here because the wild plum has blossomed and the wind is blowing the petals off. It's kind of traditional now. The orchard plums are just starting and the nectarine down at the other cottage is showing it's bright pink flowers. The dwarf mulberry has leafed up and there are funny little fruits forming. There is a huge blob of rain just starting over us, the beginning of ten days of falls.
Belle calved last night, a little angus cross bull calf that has somehow been named Teddy. Oddly though, I keep pronouncing it with a New Zealand accent, "Tiddy". Perhaps I have been hanging around with Robyn for too long. Or maybe his name is actually Tiddy. Either way, he's up and drinking and very good at following his mum at heel.
I milked as much as I could while her let down lasted and put 5 litres of good colostrum in the freezer. One quarter is a little brown, I think that is the one he didn't drink from and the pressure has burst a few capillaries. I will make sure to empty that one until it comes good. Three days of colostrum and then good rich jersey milk for the house !
The lady who runs the restaurant that we ate at last Saturday thanked me for eating there when she came through the checkout this week. I mentioned that I had meant to buy some of her home made fudge but had gotten distracted. Tonight she dropped off a selection of flavours for me to try, which was very kind of her.
I have arranged for the once a month garbage pickup, it feel like a little luxury. Nice to be a bit pampered, especially since the back door slammed in the horrible wind and the glass window fell out. We'll cover that with a piece of board for the moment and replace it with perspex next time we get down to Launceston to buy some.
The grass has started to really stretch, if this rainy weather isn't too cold we might get enough growth to eke the bales out. Some people have started feeding soy meal and corn husks and other stuff that is actually digestible for ruminants but is generally considered feed of last resort. Chloe will be taking Freya and Zippy next Sunday, and Charlie will probably take Moose to Greenhams with his steers soon. That will be a few less to feed.
Finn went to the vet on Wednesday for a check of some skin patches. He seems to have some hot spots and the vet gave us some Neocort cream to rub in. He was also due for a vaccination soon, so they did that and it will save us a trip. Mind you, he does enjoy a trip out. He greeted all and sundry at the vet clinic and was the star at the supermarket when I stopped to pick up my phones, which I left there the night before accidentally.
I've been watching "The Great Kiwi Bake-off", and apart from the cool cakes and desserts (and breads), the location is just amazing. A farm on a promontory, green and blue and misty and golden light. Absolutely beautiful. Reminds me a bit of here (if here was on a cliff above the sea).
Still no action from the bank, I don't know what's going on there. I am going to plan as if it has been turned down, and if the money comes in I can replace what I am about to strip out of the credit cards. Not the best way to go, but the driveway grass is already a foot long since the last mow that Brad Hill did for me and it's only going to get longer, and cost $280 each time he mows it. While the interest rate for the credit cards is steep, at $280 a month the charge is comparable to not having our own mower.
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