new calf
Friday night, a new calf was born on the farm. No name has been chosen yet. Have any ideas? The calf’s mom is named Lilly and has a grandmother named Rose Bud. There is also another cow on the farm named Daisy. What kind of flower name do you think would fit the newest critter?
federico and tomás
I needed a fox and a tortoise for a work project and created these two.
My Spanish speaking coordinator has dubbed them Federico and Tomás. I'll bet these two are going to show up in some crazy adventures together.
cooper’s thing
Cooper has this strange habit of staring into space with a mouthful of water for a few moments before swallowing. It’s so common and so unusual, that it has become his thing. After swallowing, he smacks his lips. Every mouthful seems to contain the tastiest water he has ever drunk. Life is good with simple pleasures like that. Good for you Cooper, enjoy your drink.
belle’s locks
Belle is one of the percherons at the farm. Just like her mother, Maggie, Belewas born black, but is turning white. Her main was the first to change. Now her coat is speckled, well on it's way to becomming white.
Not all percherons cange color as they grow. Belle's little brother, Sampson, shows no sign of changing and will probably remain black.
red tailed hawk
Yes, I know. It seems obvious. Red tailed hawks do indeed have red tails. Kind of a rusty red, but red none the less. Who knew?
Kit or Kate?
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| Kit |
Kit or Kate. I am not quite sure which is which. One is darker than the other and I can never quite remember if Kit is the darker or the lighter of the siblings.
What I do know is that they are both well behaved mules. Fine mules. Big mules. Much bigger than old Jack, the ancient mule that passed away last year.
Whether Kit or Kate, we had a nice long conversation. I babbled on while she just looked at me, occasionally blinking. She didn't seem to mind having the company. I enjoyed my end of the talk. Animals are calming, especially Kit or Kate. Who ever you are.
haley and the horses
I think you might remember little Haley from some of my previous posts. She is a remarkable little girl. An area that I have noticed Haley having an exceptional gift is with the horses on the farm. Not just the horses, anything equine, such as the mules and the donkeys seem to all love her.
The horses seem to universally ignore me and most other people. I could wave fresh clover and juggle apples while completely naked and they wouldn’t even glance in my direction. Haley on the other hand simply has to walk over to the fence and call their names. Soon, she has them all going all crazy for her affection.
I’ve noticed the “Haley Effect” on many occasions and have often wondered about her way with the horses. She doesn’t feed them treats . She does talk to them and she does pet them gently. Is it her gentleness or something else that they like about her?
The Haley Effect only seems to apply to the equine breeds. Sarah, the resident barn cat, only tolerates Haley as much as she tolerates the rest of us. Pet her a little and scratch her ears a little more and she is about done with you.
Once picked up, Sarah quickly frees herself and goes looking for someplace else to take her nap. The other farm animals just ignore Haley as they do the rest of us. The one exception might be Zack, the goat. Zack thinks he is a draft horse and that might be the reason he likes Haley. If she’s good enough for the rest of the horses, Zack figures she’s good enough for a goat-horse like him as well.
Who knows? However, as long as I see those horses become so affectionate in her presence, I will always find the reaction remarkable. Especially since they are never phased by somebody as wonderfully kind, good looking, intelligent, and friendly as me. Dumb assed horses. I don’t want to be your friends anyways. Me and the rest of.. I mean, me and the hogs are going to hang out in the sun for a while.
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bat for lashes
OK then, we have established that the flamingos are number one on my list of favorite critters at the zoo. Number two are the huge bats. Flying foxes. They are almost canine until you remember the enormous wings that envelope their bodies as they hang down from the ceiling. Each like a giant webbed hand.
I do like the bats.
flamingo Shadow
As you can see, I have been to the zoo again. I don't keep flamingos in the back yard. Really, I don't think they would like the cold or the snow. Every time I visit the zoo, I spend time with the flamingos. They have that vibrant and saturated shades of coral color that I don't see in my every day experience.
So, I have a whole flock of flamingos standing in the bright sun. What can I do with that scene? Maybe the challenge is one of the reasons that I like the flamingos so much.
The first thing I always do is break the big picture into it's smaller parts. I like to find the details and the individuals within the flock and focus on them. I usually leave the big picture up to others and go small.
I think this approach worked out pretty well. How about you? How would you tackle a large flock of flamingos at the zoo?
tim mcmurdo 