Shapeshift
Good goat times today. A tough day. The goats are good and it’s always great to be with them. I’m not in the best condition, though.
Started with a depressing dream about depression that left me yearning to stay in bed, stay under the covers, dream up something better.
But I got up and I got going. And a tough walk to the goats. The weaher has improved. It’s noticeably warmer now, above freezing. We had a lot of rain but most of it passed by is during the night. Lots of water and mud and patches of ices here and there. Not great. But the real problem is my shape. Gone pearshaped. I’m really not doing so well. My back is killing me. But worse is I can barely walk for a minute without being out of breath. The last month-ish I have been in my chair so much, I haven’t been going out as much as usualy because of the sickness, the holidays, the weather, the depression. I can really feel it now. That walk I used to be able to take in 20-25 minutes before I hurt my back, 30ish minutes after. Now it feels like a marathon. I was telling Jeanette about it when I got there, and she said she could tell I was out of breath. After warning me about the worst patches of ice.
Yeah, I really need to get in better shape. Hopefully you will soon see yet another in the long list of “So I started exercising again” posts. Because yeah the last time it didn’t really take. I also got back in the habit of eating candy and bad stuff over the holidays. As I usually do. So I gotta kick that again too.
Lots of stuff to work on. I just need to be able to walk to the goats without feeling like I’m going to have a heart attack. I need to be able to move the tubs or other things around without having to sit straight back down to gather strength.
Who knows, maybe I got some longhaul covid in me, I never did get tasted for that because I am so smart s m r t I mean s m a r t. Anyway, at least that would be some kind of excuse. But I still need to get back to exercising and to eat better. I might need to take a day or two to recoop now, we’ll see. I need to do better fro the goats, I haven’t been there for them as much as I want to. After that heroic trek through the aftermath of the snowpocalypse I have not been running on full strength.
Wish me luck!
Always good to spend time with the goats. They’re not happy about the muddy and icy ground of course. They’d prefer the snow I think, once it’s solid on the ground. But they’re chugging along twards the spring, as are we all. We had some sweet visitors today, they had to navigate the ice and mud to come up to the goat house because they arrived just when I had put out breakfast for the goats, and you know they’re not going to leave breakfast to go through mud and ice to come say hello. But the visitors we’re happy to come up to the goats and everyone had a good time.
I’m going to sit and stare blankly into the void for a minute or two, then get soup cooking. Maybe I should pop some painkillers into the flourballs.
We’re already three weeks into January, sheesh time flies when you’re rambling on Facebox.
22/1 2024
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Jeanette working to clear some of the ice one the walkway from the goat house. Hacking it away with a shovel. She got some of it. The forecast looks like more rainy weather above freezing, so it will probably all be gone soon.
There will still be snow pics and vids on the goat page for a day or two, for those that don’t know, the posts on the page are always a little delayed, because I have to come home and sort and edit it all, which can take a while if there’s a lot and I’m pooped. The stuff I post here is (mostly) up to date. So that’s why there’s a bunch of snow on the goat page and not so much here. The more you now.
22/1 2024
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Jeanette found this pallet and dragged it to the goat house, so I could do something with it inside. Good thing she did the lugging, I would have blown a fuse if I’d done it in my condition today.
And here is another demonstration of what I mentioned recently, how Bella is real quick to eye and opportunity if you put a tub or a chair or anything in a place where she can use it to reach something higher up. Here using hte pallet for al ittle boost to reach some bark on that tree, though there’s not much left anyway.
22/1 2024
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Slept for about 12 hours. Not feeling great. Got a text from my housing org saying that my heat may be off briefly because of a burst pipe somewhere. Everything’s coming up Milhouse! At least it’s not freezng. But it’s still cold, for me. I am feeling pretty defeated, but you know. One day a day. Gonna edit some goat footage and watch some Step By Step. Not only downloading all the old SNL episodes, but also teh complete SBS series, because nostalgia is a powerful drug. I love the codeman, man. Yeah buddy.
I just want to sleep.
23/1 2024
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Here is what I did with the pallet. Yeah nothing revolutionary, just some extra height to the steps up to the platform. In hindsigt, I think the higher step should be horizonstal instead of vertical, I’ll probably change that. I wish we had some more tiles. I think I’m going to ask Jeanette if they are expensive, maybe I can pay for a handful out of my own pocket, to have a good step up on both sides instead of keepign the tub there. We’ll see. I do think it was good to take the tiles and put them in the ground outside, it has made the goats more willing to go out when the ground is wet.
OH and also, put the camera down Bella wants treats.
23/1 2024
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For the premium subscribers, a preview of a future video.
Nothing like a vicious goat attack to lift the mood.
23/1 2024
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Hey hey, thank you so much Traci Stone for the wonderful card! Beautiful family photos. Traci is one of those oldtimey friends that I have seen grow up and become parents and it always makes me happy and makes me feel like the world is worth fighting for, because heck my friends have kids that are going to have to live in it so we better take care of it, and them.
Thank you, Tracer!
23/1 2024
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It wasn’t until fairly recently that it occured to me that Sky’s beard is coming down in two strands kinda like Luna’s.
24/1 2024
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I’m not sure what Sky is doing to Bella, but I think we need to call HR. Wait, that would GR I guess.
24/1 2024
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Good goat times today. Managed to drag myself out again today. Even though I just wanted to stay under the blankets… but it’s good to get out. And it was a lovely day. A beautiful sunny one. Although the morning was dark and with a strong, cold wind. The remnants of another big storm passing through overnight. But shortly after I got to the goats, the winds started dying down. And then the sune came out and it was quite lovely. The goats went out in the smaller pen and were snacking on branches and stuff. It’ll be nice when the green grows again. There’s still water and mud abounds, we’ve had so rain. But today it was good. Nice visitors too. We had some visitors that we haven’t seen in a while, but I’ll cliffhanger that for a photo later. And we had visitors from the neighbour school who brought a christmas tree for the goats! Finally a new tree, and the goats dove in and started munching on it. While Jeanette and the school visitors went to the campfire Jeanette had lit earlier. I don’t know if they had smores,but they had hot chocolate. Lucky beans!
I’m just glad I got out. And I felt a bit better than I did Monday, my condition a little better. Let’s hope it’s progress.
25/1 2024
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Look who was allowed outside today!
No, I don’t mean Jeanette. We don’t keep her locked up. But the feathers! We got the chick squad out. Jeanette let them out while she was outside working. They have been stuck in their coop since we lost one to the fox in December. I have really missed having them around. It didn’t take too long before they came into the goat pen and hung out with us. I hope Jeanette will keep letting them out now and then. She was telling one of the visitors that it was like being out with a group of kindergarteners, constantly making headcounts to make sure you’re not missing one. We’ll see how it goes.
I am not sure if you can make it out on the photo, but the’re some smoke in the background from the campfire Jeanette lit up. She came and told me in the morning not to worry if I smelled smoke, she was lighting up the fire site.
25/1 2024
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Not just good goat times today. Also good exercise times today. Yes, believe it or not. After I came home from the goats I jumped on my exercise bike. I had this plan, either brilliant or insane, that if I was already up and active, maybe I’d be motivated and capable of getting on the bike. So for the first time in a couple of months I got on my bike and I managed 42ish minutes, which isn’t bad considering what incredlbly bad shape I have fallen into. Brilliant and insane? Ask me tomorrow and we’ll see if I have any legs left. After all the walking and being outside, it might not have been smart to strain my legs further. But hey, I did something. We’ll see how it turns out, if I can keep it up, if I can walk two steps tomorrow. I just need to get in a shape where I can walk to the goats without feeling like I’m having a heart attack. Then we’ll take it from there.
25/1 2024
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Aw. I was happy to hang out with Red Sonja again. I missed having her come running to join us. She was a like a fourth goat, excited when I handed out snacks. Also good to see the sun again. I hope we’ll be spending a lot more time with Sonja and the sun in the future.
25/1 2024
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For the premium subscribers, here’s a little Behind The Scenes video. First we have the prep work, when I start messing around with my backpack the kids get real excited, they always think I’m too slow getting the snacks out.
And then a series of 3 shorts clips where I’m sitting with Luna in my lap. But the thing to pay attention to is Bella. See how she noticed the camera on the tripod and then starts going in for the kid. And I have to hurriedly get Luna off my lap so I can run interference. I can’t afford to lose another camera! It’s just kinda funny how you can see the moment when Bella notices the tripod and you can practically hear the gears starting to turn in her head. Must… destroy… tripod…
26/1 2024
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We’ve had a ton of rain lately, and a ton of snow has melted. But now we got lakefront property, so that’s something.
26/1 2024
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The goats working on the new christmas tree. The school neighbours had said before christmas that they’d bring over their tree, maybe even more than one. Glad they delivered!
26/1 2024
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goatlog
27/1 2024
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Goat butt parade in the sunshine.
27/1 2024
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I love a sunny Sky.
28/1 2024
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I don’t want to call the guy from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones a liar, but I find it really hard to believe that he’s never knocked on wood. What, he grew up in a neighbourhood where all the doors were made of metal? He always rang the doorbell, ALWAYS?! I don’t but it. Seems fishy to me.
28/1 2024
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That’s all for now.