When last we left the scurs and Weather Eye they were predicting a slight chance of snow the Wednesday before Christmas. Who knew? Will Old Man Winter overdo it again on the stool softener or will he remain bound up for another week? Starting Wednesday, cloudy with highs in the low 30’s and lows in the upper teens. Thursday, mostly cloudy with highs in the upper 20’s and lows in the upper teens. Mostly cloudy Friday with highs in the mid-20’s and lows in the mid-teens. Saturday, mostly cloudy with highs in the mid-20’s and lows in the mid-teens. Partly sunny on Sunday with highs in the mid-20’s and lows in the low teens. Monday, partly sunny with highs in the mid-20’s with lows in the mid-teens. Mostly cloudy for Tuesday with highs in the upper 20’s and lows around 10. On the 7th we see the sun rise at 7:47 a.m. and our days are getting longer once again at a minute and change every day. The normal high for January 7th is 21 and the normal low is 4. The scurs are hoarding their Christmas goodies knowing full well that it’ll be a long pull until Valentine’s Day.
Not a lot of activity in the fields especially after the blizzard that occurred on December 23rd and 24th. Soils froze pretty hard and getting in and out of some of the field approaches even if one did want to venture forth became treacherous. Many buying decisions are still being made as farmers prepare for the upcoming season. The crop prices have shown signs of strength which is great for those who had good crops and better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick for those who didn’t. The talk among many is they’ll probably plant more soybeans this upcoming season as the price and inputs dictate the crop formerly known as “poverty pods” is once again in vogue.
At the ranch of course we had a lamb born during the night of the blizzard. The blizzard had caught me a little off guard. Having sought professional help to make a daring mission to Spring Valley to retrieve an organ donor Studebaker and tandem disk, the forecast worsened throughout the day. By the time we unloaded the disk it was pouring rain and I was soaking wet. Not long after that the snow started and visibility became an issue. With the manure forks still on the skidsteer and the spreader still attached to the tractor it was decision time: Attach the bucket on the skidsteer and put the blower on the tractor or punt and leave everything as is? I decided to prepare for the worst and managed to get soaking wet again. I felt better though even as the power flickered most of the evening. Mrs. Cheviot had called and decided to stay in Albert Lea, a wise move since the outline of the barn would disappear from view, the light on the side providing the only proof it was there.
In the morning the storm had blown itself out leaving 1’ – 2’ drifts scattered across much of the yard. When I did chores I could see the lot while not exactly clear was still open enough to feed grain and allow the brood ewes access to hay. No sign of any ewes lambing the night before but after I finished the morning chores I checked in the lambing barn just in case. Sure enough, there was a ewe with a lamb up in one corner. It was cold but warmer in the lambing barn than it would’ve been in the main barn so penned them where they were. The lamb was smart and the ewe accepting so half the battle was already won. The day went relatively miserably after that, having issues with the snow blower, freezing my butt off on the skidsteer and a pickup that didn’t start. Fun never stops somedays.
It appears the last of the cleanup trips to Mom’s are finally over. It has taken its toll. Major portions of 15 of the last 16 weekends have been spent at Spring Valley along with a couple more trips there during the week. I like to think of time as a pie, partially because I like pie and partially because it makes an easy visual. There is only so much time in each day. It is partitioned or sliced off into necessary portions including things like sleeping, eating and watching Gunsmoke. Like wealth, when time is redistributed something has to give. This could’ve been a wonderful year to catch up on many of the projects the past several fall seasons had not allowed. Storm damaged trees to cut up, brush piles to burn, a building to tear down, a fence to move, straw to procure and I could’ve had the barns cleaned several times over. Instead, the best I could muster was an afternoon off just to get partially done cleaning barn. Something wrong with this picture.
When time redistribution happens it tends to have a domino effect. As mentioned, I wasn’t ready for the blizzard. With bedding being used sparingly and no time to get more along with the barns not being cleaned, lambs in particular are more vulnerable to pneumonia. A total cleanout followed by a freeze up and deep bedding works wonders to keep all the animals healthy. Cold damp weather along with ammonia coming off a manure pack is particularly hard on young lambs’ lungs and they have to be watched like a hawk. Sure enough, both lambs needed to be treated with antibiotics when symptoms arose. They’re doing well now but there were days when we weren’t sure they were out of the woods.
Now that the project at Mom’s is done, it’ll be time to shovel the snow and ice out of the spreader, pry the apron chains loose, fuel up and cross my fingers to finish that project. I just hope the snow isn’t too deep to get out to the field and that the manure pack isn’t too frozen now to go through the spreader. If it is, then the manure will have to be stockpiled, something I avoid like the plague. Spring manure application ahead of planting is iffy at best. Plus, stockpiling provides the perfect breeding ground for flies as opposed to exposing their eggs to the savagery of our MN winters when spread across a field. Yet another small example of the domino effect resulting from time redistribution.
In the meantime I have to thank Mrs. Cheviot from the bottom of my heart for hanging with me throughout this ordeal. She was chore girl when days were long during my weekends away. She also put up with Ruby, the consummate daddy’s girl. Even though we weren’t in total lambing mode, there was still plenty of extra to do especially considering Mrs. Cheviot was working 6 to 7 days a week herself. She did her level best to make Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s special even though there wasn’t much time to enjoy it. If and when Governor Killjoy loosens his grip on the hospitality industry, I’d say she needs to be treated to something special. Maybe a weekend with Auntie Mar Mar. Betting any video evidence would need to be destroyed.
See you next week…real good then.