I'm grateful for: spending lots of time outside with the goats, chickens, dogs ...; falling asleep and getting a nap; Eliyahu coming to me in the night.

I was able to sleep in today, and after that it was all about goats. No, not all about goats, but it feels like it, because having goats colours everything we do. :-)

First thing after eating breakfast I went out with Simcha and Eliyahu and we practiced putting the goats on leads in the shed. It has to be the three of us because when Zechy and Havva go to the states, if John is at work that's all we've got - a cripple, a 12yo and a 7yo. We were able to do it, not as smoothly as I would've liked, but it worked.

Then we hooked Balta (the big sheepdog) up near the cottage opposite the goats, and let Chamudah out to run around freely. We can't let Balta run freely because she won't come when called. I really feel badly for her, but we don't seem to be able to fix this. So she stays chained up or on a lead pretty much all of the time. Then we waited to see if the goats would come out. Then we encouraged them. Then we herded them outside. Made harder of course by the dogs. Unfortunately Chamudah had gotten the idea that they belong in the shed, so kept chasing them back inside whenever they came out. She did the same thing with the chickens when we first had them and put them in the shed. She's smarter than she looks, but not quite smart enough.

Unfortunately when hooking Balta up she dashed off towards the goats. I already had the lead hooked up so she didn't get away, but I'd had it in my hands and now I have some really, really bad rope burns. Bad, blisters and everything. On both hands in some of the worst places.

I spent the next several hours holding ice packs, and watched an episode of Star Trek with the kids (Zechy, Simcha and Eliyahu). Havva was at work at the library and later (I found out) on a bit of a date.

I actually fell asleep before the end of Star Trek and napped for a few hours. Had to cancel the trip to the acupuncturist because I couldn't possibly go to Be'er Sheva and manage to keep an ice pack on my hands.

I woke up to the news that Havva was on this bit of a date. She had met a man on her way home from work and he asked her out tomorrow night. Then was in the neighbourhood (he was collecting charity for a school) and asked her to walk out with him to the park. So that was the bit of a date. Havva says he basically never shut up. At one point he said that he would let her talk, and let her for maybe five sentences, and then he was off again.

He seems extremely taken with her, phoned her several times after he had left (he kept getting dropped into voicemail, once he got hold of her he stopped calling), and was very concerned that he hadn't said the wrong thing and scared her off. Havva said she's worried he's weird, and I told her that he's male. They are ALL weird. ;-)

In any event the date is on for tomorrow night. I wonder what he will be like. I told Havva she is not going out with him without he comes up to the house to be looked over. I'm such an ima.

We let the chickens out to range a bit an hour before sundown. This is a good time (for all you city folk) because we know they will go back in the coop to roost when the sun starts going down, so we've got a natural limit and some control from the get-go. If we had trees, we might worry about them roosting in a tree (which they used to do back on our farm in New England), but this is the Negev desert. We'll only have trees if/when we plant them and if we irrigate them. I have a peach tree in the front, and am hoping to plant clementinas (clementines? I can't quite remember the English) in the back. But in the meantime ...

Letting the chickens out was good. The rooster and the dark brown hen immediately dug out a space and took a dirt bath. They also ate so many bugs I am hopeful (almost) that we'll see a difference immediately. We won't, but it did my heart good to see the bugs getting et.

We put grain in the henhouse when it was time to roost, as an additional incentive to get back in, but we still had to rather push the rooster through. All was happy after that, though. I didn't see the chick today. I hope all is well.

Getting the goats back in the shed (they had finally come out and were enjoying the eating experience) was more complicated as they had all managed to get tangled up with the fennel plant (that's what Havva calls it - it smells like fennel but isn't), and had to have their leads sorted out. We don't keep them on leads in the shed, and being zoo animals they are more comfortable in the shed than outside, but I think that will change quickly. Goats are quick, and curious, and bright. These certainly are.

During all this with the goats and chickens, I also braided to large braids of garlic. Unfortunately the greens had had too much chance to dry, so the braids aren't as good as I might have hoped, but they are hanging in the house, and I have enough garlic for one more small braid. Each one is better than the last. Next year, I'll get them while they are fresh.

John borrowed a kind of mower from our neighbour Zion. (I think I spelled it Tzion last time - same person, the word doesn't spell right in English). It's hard to describe, but it did a spectacular job of cutting down all the dry stalks in the yard. It's electric and we had a bit of trouble with the extension cord, so what is mowed is a perfectly round area from the centre point of the mirpesset (porch, balcony). It's so much better than having the old nasty stuff sticking up all over, and of course we can all use more of the yard now. Also Zion pruned a huge bunch of his hedge and gave us the cuttings for the goats.

Apparently Zion absolutely loves us having goats and chickens. He grew up with them and while he doesn't want to be tied down by animals to take care of, he really likes that they are right next door and he can sort of have them when he's around. He has a new puppy, I don't know if I wrote that before, and the puppy has decided he loves Balta. They are so cute together. The puppy is name Buhbe, like the Yiddish word for grandmother, but the puppy was named by a French girl so it might be something entirely different.

Havva also received her letter of acceptance from the school of Chinese medicine she had been checking out. Now she has to look into what kinds of assistance she can get with the tuition, but we'll make it work - or rather, Hashem will make it work - somehow.

John made some lasagna, so we had that for supper. John made a quick run into Netivot as it turned out we hadn't some basic necessities, then made popcorn and went to sleep. Havva, Zechy, Simcha and I watched the very last episode of MASH. And went to bed, where I am now with Eliyahu, who woke up and John wasn't in the den, so I told him he could sleep with me tonight. That may have been a mistake, I probably won't get much sleep tonight.

I wanted to be able to do it. I want to be the sort of mom who's kids can crawl into bed with her when they are scared in the middle of the night. It sucks that I can't be that sort of mom, at least almost never. Tonight I could do it, and if I pay for it a bit, well, that just sucks.

I didn't write anything to Hans yet tonight, and don't know if I will. I feel like there is so much to write about, and then it's already after 2am, and I'll certainly have too much to write about tomorrow. Which is his birthday. Sucks.

The Kassam barrage continues today. A little old lady told John that the reason our moshav hasn't had anything bad happen is because it is protected by the Baba Salli (can't figure out how to spell that in English, either). It's a point of view, for sure. I suspect it has more to do with geography - we're just not in line with the main targets. But then one has to remember that they actually had a rocket land in the sea (which is to the WEST of Gaza, we are to the EAST), so probably what they are aiming at has little or nothing to do with it.

mahvalicious sent me a wonderful you-tube video today, but I'm not smart enough to know how to put it in here. I can hopefully manage a link:

Remember Me

Okay, that's it if it works.

Hans is theoretically in basic training now. We are supposed to get some kind of letter from his sargeant or C.O. (do I have a clue about these things? - no), but we won't be hearing from him for a while. Happy Birthday Hans. We love you and miss you.

Now it's pretty much all gearing up for Havva and Zechy leaving, and then getting ready for June and her mother coming to visit. Never a dull moment here, I'll tell you that.

I'm listening to Audio Estimations: Gingerbread Dynamite. Way fun stuff, people.

:: Yesterdays : Tomorrows ::

~~~Last Five Entries~~~
Hi and goodbye - 2010-10-15
I'll be moving on - 2010-10-10
Gold membership and stuff - 2010-10-10
Decisions, decisions - 2010-10-07
Days to go - 2010-10-06