Laborious Labor Day

My shepherd friend Mary Liebau, the long distance endurance rider who rode a pony all the way across Ireland and also Nova Scotia, came to see me today. She brought a homemade remedy for my sick kitties. I couldn't get my vet on the phone today and called Mary to ask if she had any cat cold medicine and said she had just the thing. I showed Mary my new digs and she was very impressed. We talked all about this and that and, as farmers often do, we got on the subject of hay. Everybody is filling their hay mows and selling their surplus bales to those poor folks down South who are having that awful drought. Mary told me the farmers around here with any hay to sell are getting $5.00 a square. Since we are still having to buy hay that was a shock to hear. Mary mentioned her neighbor was cutting his fields and since he doesn't have any livestock she thought he might be willing to sell some. Matt took off to check it out and bumped into Bill the Pig Farmer on the way. He told Bill he was looking to buy hay and left to find Mary's neighbor. Low and behold, a while later, while we were working in the barn, Bill and his father, Bill, pulled in and asked if we wanted three wagons of hay for a really good price. We jumped in the truck to go check it out. Well, the hay is absolutely gorgeous, and we took it all. Turned out to be about 400 bales, a fraction of what we need but it felt good to get started on building a supply. These first bales will serve as insulation over the barn apt. It was 41 F. the other morning which served as a reminded that cold is on the way. So we spent Labor Day unloading hay and sending it up the elevator. Matt was on the hay wagon and I was on the ramp, making sure the bale is correctly situated with the bottom firmly planted on the step that pulls it up. If not properly placed it can come flying off and kill somebody. Clouds rolled in and we were nervous but got the job done. Figure we need twelve more wagons to get through the winter. It sure is pretty hay. I raked up what fell on the ground and gave it to my bunnies.