Ever hear/read the long funny story about someone starting one thing, being distracted by something else that needed to be done, being distracted from that by yet another thing that needed to be done (and repeat), working hard all day, being exhausted by the end of the day, and nothing got done (I've included the full story below)? That was written about me, I'm sure of it!
"Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D.
Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.
This is how it manifests:
I decided to wash my car. As I start toward the garage, I notice that there is mail on the hall table. I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car. I lay my car keys down on the table, put the junk mail in the trashcan under the table, and notice that the trashcan is full.
So, I decide to put the bills back on the table and take out the trash first. But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the trash anyway, I may as well pay the bills first.
I take my checkbook off the table, and see that there is only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk in the study, so I go to my desk where I find the bottle of coke that I had been drinking.
I'm going to look for my checks, but first I need to push the coke aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over. I see that the coke is getting warm, and I decide I should put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold.
As I head toward the kitchen with the coke, a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye--they need to be watered. I set the coke down on the counter, and I discover my reading glasses that I've been searching for all morning.
I decide I better put them back on my desk, but first I'm going to water the flowers. I set the glasses back down on the counter, fill a container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote. Someone left it on the kitchen table. I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, we will be looking for the remote, but nobody will remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first I'll water the flowers.
I splash some water on the flowers, but most of it spills on the floor.
So, I set the remote back down on the table, get some towels and wipe up the spill.
Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do.
At the end of the day: the car isn't washed, the bills aren't paid, there is a warm bottle of coke sitting on the counter, the flowers aren't watered, there is still only one check in my checkbook, I can't find the remote, I can't find my glasses, and I don't remember what I did with the car keys.
Then when I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day long, and I'm really tired. I realize this is a serious problem, and I'll try to get some help for it, but first I'll check my e-mail."
I recently purchased my first milking goat (and pair of Pilgrim geese), which was an udder (sorry, had to!) balm after my Briefest-Goat-Ownership-in-the-History-of-Mankind-Incident (no, I don't want to talk about it except to say he was a sweet goat that happened to be Houdini in a previous life, and I found him his permanent home in under 24 hours - yes, I suck, no, I don't regret rehoming him).
Angie is an 8 year old Oberhasli doe from St John Creamery in Lake Stevens (www.stjohncreamery.com/index.html). Marcia walked me through what owning an Ober would be like, and answered a slew of questions prior to my friend Judy and I trekking out to St Johns to pick up "a suitable Ober doe". When I met Angie, it really was love at first sight. There's something about her face that is just incredibly kind and sweet. She's quiet, was already in milk and patient with my fumbling as I learned to milk her, and won't put up with any nonsense from either of the 2 borrowed Fainter bucklings that are keeping her company.
With a new farm animal comes new chores, responsibilities, and expenses...not to mention projects. LOTS of projects!
First up was borrowing a feed container to be used during milking (bucket clipped to the chain link fence with a carabiner, check).
Then slowly introducing her to some grain with the feed while being milked, to help her maintain weight (a little plain oatmeal mixed in with her regular feed, check).
Next will be the first "build" project specifically for the goats: a hay feeder. I found the PERFECT one here: www.thesawyerfarms.com/recycling. It's even for Obers (mostly)! :) The design is excellent, it will protect the hay from rain, and collect any fallen bits so that the goats will be encouraged to eat those because they'll be off the ground. A nice bonus is that the same design can be used to make a goat water trough with another plastic barrel.
After that, the second "build" project for the goats: a mini barn/shelter. I found an ideal one on the same website/post as the hay feeder.
While I was searching for hay feeder and shelter designs for the goats, my brain started unexpectedly opening several more To Do Project tabs: duck pond design, water filter/pump for the duck pond, fodder for all the livestock, permanent chicken coop designs, and on and on and on. Basically, although our little farm has come a very long way in the year we've owned our property, there's still a lot to be done, and I'm really excited for all of it!