Farming Future

Last weekend my husband and his two brothers set fire to a massive pile of dead trees/stumps/carcasses of various dead livestock…and it all went up with a gigantic ‘WOOF!’  Bit of fun.  Diesel always makes fires interesting.  You have to love a bonfire, especially one that sends off flames several metres high.  It won’t be long until the fire season hits us and such pyromania won’t be tolerated by the local CFA (Country Fire Authority).  Having directly experienced the Black Saturday fires of February 2009 there’s no mucking about with fire in the summer.

Today it is in the low 30s..temperature wise that is.  Wishing I was talking about my age, but that is in the mid to higher range of 30s! Ha!  I think it is about time I pretended I was ten years younger.  I actually could get away with saying I was 27 considering I have inherited by grandmother’s fantastic genes.  I might have inherited her short stocky stature and skin that is prone to little brown freckles (errkk!) but I also inherited her invaluable skill of looking way younger than I actually am.  My hubby is 25 so it is quite ok I think to say I am 27.  He’s a bit of a beardy fellow at the moment, refusing to shave, but it makes him look older.  It actually suits him (don’t tell him I told you that), but I do like a freshly shaven face.  He is, however, threatening to shave the beard and leave mutton chop style sideburns.  I shudder at the thought.  I’ve seen him do it before and he kept them for over a week at least.  It was before we got married and he made out he was keeping them for the wedding!  As if planning a whole wedding in 6 weeks wasn’t enough!  He was teasing, which is something he likes to do, probably just to frustrate me!  Got to love him.

My husband’s horse, Saber, is doing a lot better.  I went out with hubby down the road, he was on Saber, I was on my horse, Dancer (got to think of a better name), and we were moving a mob of cattle down the road.  My sister in law was on her horse, Mack, and as she said, it was like bloody ‘McLeod’s Daughter’s’.  She thought we looked like idiots (!) but it was kind of fun.  Dancer gets way too excited and wants to chase everything that goes moo.  My husband likes to make his horse do all sorts of crazy stuff that freaks mine out, and since I’m still getting back into the riding, I’m not that keen to go galloping down the road, clinging on to the underside of a horse.

I have to drive down to Pakenham (a 40 minute drive from home) soon..to take the eldest soon to meet his father who he sees every second weekend.  Yeah, one of those arrangements.  All I can say is..can’t wait until he either gets his own license or decides he does not want to see his dad because he has better things to do.  

Going on the train ‘Puffing Billy’ tomorrow for my mother in laws 60th.  Should be a bit of fun.  My two youngest boys should have a good time.  My 2 year old LOVES Thomas the Tank Engine so should go nuts over the steam train.  It should be nice to spend a day with my husband too and catch up with the rest of his family.  Apparently we have hired out a whole carriage!

Decided I need a new job.  The writing work is slowing down.  I only have 38 articles for this month and the same for next month.  Dropped from 85 a month.  This is bad!

Through the Old Gate to the dairy

From my kitchen table, where I spend the majority of my time writing, I look across to our side fence (depressing), and it is truly a jungle.  I can just see my bush roses (there are now two roses and a few more buds!) but the grass is so bloody long I could almost lose my toddler out there.  We don’t own a lawn mower, but I am kind of thinking if I wait a few more weeks I’ll be able to cut hay off it! 

It is a bit embarrassing really.  There is a vacant block next door to us which a fella down the road mows with his ride on mower.  He did it the other day, in the meantime zipping back and forth over our nature strip and kindly mowing that for us at the same time.  Perhaps we are letting the street down??  Do our neighbours whisper about our unruly garden behind our backs?  Hubby does bring his mum’s mower home from time to time, where it will then sit in our back garden for a couple of weeks because he lacks the time and the motivation to mow the lawn.  Last time he got started he ran out of petrol, so no go then either.  Next time the mower is here I’ll do it myself.  I used to mow the lawn myself when I lived on my own anyway but now I feel a bit bad about doing ‘manly’ tasks…just in case I’m stepping on hubby’s toes.  Honestly, I’m sure he’d be glad he didn’t have to do it.

Took the horse out for a ride yesterday.  My sister in law was out at the farm trying to catch her horse when I arrived.  He was a bit rude and didn’t want to be caught, but he hadn’t been riden for a while so there really wasn’t any way he was going to come in without a fuss.  My hubby caught him eventually, after a fair bit of chasing and no doubt a lot of swearing.  Once in he was as good as gold and my sister in law went off down the road and I caught up with her not long after and we had a good ride together.  I haven’t ridden much with another person, and she said she hadn’t either.  It’s a lot more fun than being on your own.  When I was younger I used to ride my horse while my younger brother scooted along beside on his bike.  That was ok but two horses out together is really good, except on the way home where they tend to want to race each other!  I look forward to going riding with my hubby, once Saber can be trusted not to take off.

This photo is the old dairy at my in laws farm which is still in use as my hubby and father in law bring some cows in to feed other calves.  I love this old gate.  Makes me wonder which one of my husband’s ancestors built it or if it was his dad.

The only bloom in my garden

Yes, Melbourne Cup Day, the race that stops a nation.  Well, it certainly doesn’t stop my husband!  He’s out in the tractor mowing our lease block to make silage for our sheep.  He’ll be sitting in the tractor talking on his mobile phone without drawing a breath!  Can you believe it is possible to make $2995 worth of calls and texts on a mobile phone in a month?  It is for my hubby!

I’m at home, the two little boys are in bed, my eldest is watching the third instalment of ‘Harry Potter’.  I wrote 11 articles yesterday so I’m a bit all ‘articled out’.  I’ve been watching a bit with him and helping him eat his gigantic hoard of Halloween treats.  No one ever went trick or treating when I was a kid, Halloween is not something celebrated in Australia but now…well..last night I had quite a few kids knocking on my door.  I was prepared and had lollipops handy. Didn’t want my letterbox covered in eggs and flour.  Another commercial holiday we have jumped on without knowing the real reason it is celebrated.

So my kelpie pup Penny has eaten all but one of my standard roses I put in the back garden this year.  This is a big deal because we don’t have much of a garden.  We have some overgrown grass, plenty of that in fact.  I do have one rose on a bush rose.  I love roses, by far my favourite flower.  I used to fill my last house with them.  I lived in a rental in Drouin, an old weather board house painted a French navy blue.  It was where I was living when I first moved out this way, before I met my husband.  I lived there on my own with my first son.  It was a good house, with a garden full of colour.  I’m going to have to replace my standards, it’s depressing in my garden.

Going to have to start Christmas shopping soon.  I have so many neices and nephews, 4 neices on my side and on my husband’s..well..let me count…5 neices and a whopping 8 nephews!  Going to have to have a serious budget for all that.

I’m going to have to wrestle the TV remote off my son at 2pm and watch the Melbourne cup.  I don’t even know who’s running.

I used to break in cattle for shows but I have never seen a horse being broken in.  My brother in law from up north bought an unbroken horse which my husband and mother in law were working on over the weekend.  Phoenix her name is and she is the prettiest chestnut with a white blaze on her nose.  My mother in law used to break in horses when she was younger, after she had finished milking cows in the morning.  She’d work on the horses then go and do the afternoon milk.  Busy day!  I watched her with my husband’s horse, Saber, and she really does have a way with them.  It was fascinating watching him respond to her.  He was running loose around the small paddock next to the yards and she had him trotting by just using her voice. 

My husband has never seen a horse being broken in either as he was too young when his mother was still doing it and he doesn’t remember it.  We’ve had to buy all the gear but my husband and my brother in law are anticipating that they will be breaking in more horses in the future.  My mother in law is helping them with Phoenix and passing on her skills. 

The photo is Phoenix getting used to the bridle and bit with a roller on his back.  There are reins attached to the roller which are quite stretchy, so as Phoenix walks around the yard and moves her head she feels the pull on the bit in her mouth.  Gradually she will start to respond to the bit, something we noticed she was starting to do. 

I took my horse out for a ride on Saturday and Sunday.  My 8 year old had a ride both days too.  He seems to be gaining confidence.  I am still leading him along, I have to get some extra holes punched in the stirrup leathers so I can adjust the stirrups to the right length!  I don’t want him riding by himself until I can get him a helmet, just waiting for a bit of spare cash.  The horse doesn’t look overly big for him but it is a long way up for a little fella.  He’s a bit impatient to ride by himself but I’m in no hurry.  I don’t want him falling off and losing his confidence.  I took him for a little trot yesterday, which he was a little afraid of at first, noticing the look on his face, but he was pretty pleased about it later!  Not so good for me since I have to run along side the horse.

Bit of a scare yesterday while I was on the horse.  Riding back along the road and got out the front of my in laws farm when there was a big crack from the massive cypress out the front, then suddenly a huge branch came crashing down.  Scary thing was we had just walked past it, the horse jumped and took off a bit but the thing was my 8 year old had just walked right under where it fell.  Thirty seconds later and it probably would have fell on him.

Phoenix responding to the bit

The personal profile I was asked to write has appeared on the Save Australian Farming website.  It’s a little weird having a page about my goings on.  It can be view at http://saveaustralianfarming.org/hear-our-stories/amber-rhodes.aspx

What a beautiful day.  Might go ride the horse this afternoon.

Right now my toddler is padding about the house with a piece of sticky tape stuck to the bottom of his foot and it is making a funny ‘stick stick’ noise as he walks.  I probably should go pull it off.

I’ve included a photo of my Dad on his farm patting one of his latest bull calves.  He’s only about 6 weeks old and he’s a monster!  He’s as tame as anything but a bit cheeky.  He trys to play with you, which in a bulls language means head butting you, and since he is such a boofer it bloody well hurts!  That’s his mum looking on.  He’ll be off to The Royal Melbourne Show next year for sure.

The pale green stool

I have been really productive today and wrote four articles for my copywriting job and did a lot of work on a book I am writing.  I hadn’t touched it for a few weeks but got all inspired about it again today. 

The two articles I wrote for Gippsland Country Life magazine have been submitted, along with photos.  I had to do a couple of re-writes but the editor seems happy with them now.  I wrote one article about my parents farm.  They have a beautiful house and garden on forty acres.  They have Murray Grey cattle, an Australian breed, which Dad likes to show, although he is coming to the end of his showing career.  I took photos last week and spent over two hours.  I can’t wait to see my articles when the magazine comes out, probably the start of December.  Also can’t wait to see what photos they use.  It will be very nice to see my name in the magazine crediting me to the words and pictures.  The money won’t be half bad too!

It is quite late and I am still waiting for my husband to get home.  He didn’t finish shearing until six and then had to go feed calves at his parent’s farm.  His eldest brother is down from Wakool at the moment, so naturally my husband is STILL not home.  He rang about two hours ago and said he was about to leave.  An hour after that he called again  and suddenly they are off hunting.  Gee..I wish for the freedom to be able to go and do whatever I want whenever I want.  I’m a bit narky today after having a sick toddler who has been alternatively coughing and crying all afternoon, a baby who did three poopy nappies in the space of about two hours and an eight year old who insisted on reading to me, even though I was sitting in front of my computer trying to work.  I think I need a break!

I have included a photo I took at my parents farm, the pale green stool my mum painted.  Thought it looked nice.  Wondering if this photo will make the magazine.

Had my heart in my mouth watching my husband ride Saber in the yards.  He is improving but really needs to be riden every day.  Unfortunately hubby doesn’t have the time, particularly not now shearing season has taken off.  Saber has a lovely nature, just doesn’t like anyone getting on him much, but he behaved himself…until hubby urged him into a canter and then Saber decided to go faster and faster (see photo and my husband’s facial expression!)  But hubby stuck on well.  We just need to put a bigger saddle on Saber.  He was using my stock saddle, which is only small, fits my butt fine, but hubby is 6 foot 1 and tall and lanky, so not so good for him!

Cougar has undergone a few name changes.  No longer Cougar he was then briefly called Stinger but now he is called Saber.  I quite like this new name.  This is Saber being ridden by my husband in the yards.

Another shot of Saber.

Last weekend was spend picking up horses and driving all the way down to Bairnsdale to buy a second hand stock saddle off the loveliest couple.  On Saturday morning my husband and I, with children in tow, went out to hubby’s cousin’s place to pick up the horse float, then we headed over to Bunyip to pick up Dancer, my little Palamino.  We didn’t assume we would have any trouble with her and that the assumption was we would find it difficult putting my husband’s horse on the float.  Forty five minutes later and my horse decided that getting on the float was the wise thing to do.  I was quite impressed that my husband didn’t get overly frustrated, although he was being watched by the previous owners.  Once on the float she was as good as gold and she has been great ever since. 

After dropping Dancer off at my in laws farm we went to get Cougar, the Quarter horse we bought for hubby.  He is the most beautiful looking animal and will be any one’s friend.  We were well prepared for a struggle to float him and brought along my husband’s brother but Cougar walked on like a champion. 

Once we got them home my husband couldn’t wait to get on Cougar, even though he is only green broken and hasn’t been riden since about July.  Amazingly he wasn’t too bad, although since that first ride we’ve discovered that he isn’t too fond of being mounted and he needs to be held.  He also needs to be worked a fair bit before he can be ridden out of the yards.

Dancer, however, is great to lead with kids, my 8 year old has had a couple of rides since we got her home, but she is no slow poke, despite her advancing years.  I took her out to round up the cows and she took off after them like a stock horse, consistently breaking into a canter, much to my alarm!  Remember, it’s been 20 years since I had a horse and I have only ridden properly a few times since then.  A couple of cows buggered off so my husband jumped on her, and despite his feet nearly dragging on the ground (!), took off at great pace after the cows.  In fact she was galloping!  When my husband got back he was most impressed and said she was keen as anything to chase the cattle.  He also said my little stock saddle was really good too, which I had picked up that morning.

I emailed the previous owners of Dancer this week and told them about her chasing the cattle like a pro and it turns out that in her younger days she was used to move stock.  Well, there you go!  Probably given her a new lease on life living with us!

I have included a photo of Dancer with her new stock saddle.

In the last two days I have bought two horses.  No, I suddenly haven’t had some unusual windfall, but the shearing season has started up again here in Gippsland so my husband is working full steam ahead again.  I found a beautiful burnt buckskin gelding but he has only been broken in since March, not so good for me who hasn’t really ridden much in the last 20 years.  I went and had a look at him about half an hour ago and bought him for hubby.  He’s a quarter horse and is the biggest smoocher.  Hubby was actually interested in getting an unbroken horse so this horse will be perfect.  He’s broken but still needs a bit of work, but he will be great around stock.  The funny thing is that his name is ‘Cougar’, which might not seem amusing, but it is when you think that I have just bought a horse for a man who is married to an older woman!  Ha!

The horse I bought for myself is a little Palamino.  She’s an old girl and only just over 13 hands, but then I’m only just over 5 foot tall so we are a perfect match for each other height wise.  Actually, the truth is, any bigger and I can’t get on the bloody things!  She’s  a good all rounder and doesn’t act her age, loves to jump and has a good trot and canter.  She’s going to be good for my 8 year old to ride too, which will hopefully build up his confidence a bit.  I think buying him a helmet is a wise idea.

I bought a bridle today.  The bit was almost as much as the bridle!  All I need is to get a saddle but there are plenty of great second hand stock saddles out there for sale.  I have found one out in Bairnsdale, which is a bit of distance from me but it could be good excuse to go for a drive. 

Here’s some photos of ‘Cougar’ the buckskin Quarter horse and ‘Dancer’ the Palamino.  Hmmm..not sure about Dancer for a name.  I once broke in a Limousin heifer called Dancer and she was  a right so and so!