Wednesday 13 February 2013
I hate February, roll on March!
Having made a nice cuppa, throwing jacket potatoes in the Aga and some Pork and Stilton sausages and stoked up the front room fire, I've just enough time to write another blog page!
I've just come in from a snow blizzard happening outside! Boy the wind is cold and the little tiny snowflakes feel like tiny pebbles hitting your cheeks! Definitely the coldest and nastiest day so far this winter. The snow is drifting and swirling through the yard and into all our buildings. The horses were keen to come in tonight as they were shivering. They've got an extra warm fleece rug on tonight.
This morning I went to Wellingore U3A in Lincolnshire to give one of my talks "Tales from a Farmers' Wife" and not a drop of snow anywhere, but jolly frosty and very, very cold. It was very cold in the village hall too, but the audience were extremely friendly and made many great comments about my talk. I do seem to meet the nicest of people doing this job.
Also, Mark is getting very tired and almost fell over going upstairs today, misjudging the steps. And this was in the house not outside!! Even with all the extra help and with Harry home for two weeks half term break, it doesn't take the pressure off milking at least 10 times per week. Tomorrow the relief milker is coming for afternoon milking so Mark can stay indoors in front of the fire. And does he need it. As we had a very hard frost this morning, everyone got excited about getting the muck out of the farm buildings and up into the fields, out of the way, without making any more mess than usual. They did nine loads and emptied all the sheds, then bedded the cattle with fresh straw. Now that's quite an achievement
Talking of Harry Barnes, in between playing on the quad bike in the snowy fields, he's meant to be revising for the dreaded GCSE's. His first Maths paper is the week he goes back at the end of February, so after lunch everyday (including weekends) "we" have been doing Maths papers and struggling to understand each question. Luckily Charlotte did A level Maths so when she returns home is able to help us out.
Today is also Ash Wednesday (who forgot to make pancakes yesterday?). I've announced to my family that I'm going to give up bread for lent! The choice was bread or chocolate and I think bread will be easier!
I hate February! Roll on March.
Sunday 3 February 2013
Thank Goodness the Snow's Gone!
Hurrah the snow has gone!
Over the past two weeks we had snow on the ground. It does cause so much MORE work on our farm. For instance, our staff find driving conditions early in the morning quite dangerous getting to our village on top of a hill when the snowploughs and gritters haven't heard of Somerby let alone serviced the roads around here. Frozen pipes, hoses and milking parlour add another half hours delay in getting started at 5.30 in the morning spending time defrosting before Mark can turn the machine on. Then scraping out 100 cows worth of dung from the cubicle shed outside to the muck store, pushing it all into 6 inches of powdery snow, makes the tractor wheels skid round quite a lot, I've found. When it comes to the thaw last weekend we found we were under water again! This time ia river flow found a way into the milking parlour pit, then out in the feed shed where the cows stand (and deposit dung) eating their silage. Consequently the flow of water washed out all the dung into the outside yards where it stood for a day or too! Again, couldn't scrap out the cubicle shed into 6 inches of standing water! All in all, the pressures on the family to do all the necessary work, at this stage of the winter, had its toll on us after two weeks.
So, through social media, we got the word out we were looking for more help in the form of a lad or two to help us. Think we had about 4 phone calls, and invited all of them to come over and see us and show them what we wanted them to do. One man said he could milk and do the tractor yard jobs. Our spirits were raised and after exchanging payment terms, we asked him to come in for 7am the very next day. Alas, it was 8am when the house phone went saying he couldn't get to us as his car wouldn't start! I went to see Mark in the parlour, who was furious at being let down and his hopes were dashed again. After seeking references, we decided not to pursue this guy any more.
Where are all the unemployed around here who are desperate for work? Does no one want a regular outdoor job working with animals? A few months ago, I asked an 18yr old local lad in the village, if he would come round at weekends to do the tractor work in the yards for the winter. He'd be finished by 9am so could get on with other things. Couldn't believe his response. He said he'd rather have a lie in bed at weekends due to spending Friday and Saturday evenings in the pub!
Anyhow, we now have two young student lads, taking a few days each to help with all this winter workload. All I can say is, thank you guys, we need all the help we can get. Hope they stay till the end of winter - whenever that may be.
Over the past two weeks we had snow on the ground. It does cause so much MORE work on our farm. For instance, our staff find driving conditions early in the morning quite dangerous getting to our village on top of a hill when the snowploughs and gritters haven't heard of Somerby let alone serviced the roads around here. Frozen pipes, hoses and milking parlour add another half hours delay in getting started at 5.30 in the morning spending time defrosting before Mark can turn the machine on. Then scraping out 100 cows worth of dung from the cubicle shed outside to the muck store, pushing it all into 6 inches of powdery snow, makes the tractor wheels skid round quite a lot, I've found. When it comes to the thaw last weekend we found we were under water again! This time ia river flow found a way into the milking parlour pit, then out in the feed shed where the cows stand (and deposit dung) eating their silage. Consequently the flow of water washed out all the dung into the outside yards where it stood for a day or too! Again, couldn't scrap out the cubicle shed into 6 inches of standing water! All in all, the pressures on the family to do all the necessary work, at this stage of the winter, had its toll on us after two weeks.
So, through social media, we got the word out we were looking for more help in the form of a lad or two to help us. Think we had about 4 phone calls, and invited all of them to come over and see us and show them what we wanted them to do. One man said he could milk and do the tractor yard jobs. Our spirits were raised and after exchanging payment terms, we asked him to come in for 7am the very next day. Alas, it was 8am when the house phone went saying he couldn't get to us as his car wouldn't start! I went to see Mark in the parlour, who was furious at being let down and his hopes were dashed again. After seeking references, we decided not to pursue this guy any more.
Where are all the unemployed around here who are desperate for work? Does no one want a regular outdoor job working with animals? A few months ago, I asked an 18yr old local lad in the village, if he would come round at weekends to do the tractor work in the yards for the winter. He'd be finished by 9am so could get on with other things. Couldn't believe his response. He said he'd rather have a lie in bed at weekends due to spending Friday and Saturday evenings in the pub!
Anyhow, we now have two young student lads, taking a few days each to help with all this winter workload. All I can say is, thank you guys, we need all the help we can get. Hope they stay till the end of winter - whenever that may be.
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