The talk of our neighborhood is a visit from this gorgeous bobcat recently. The bobcat sat out on our neighbor’s pond for about twenty minutes enjoying a day of thawing temperatures. It is heartening to know this creature lives amongst us, though I would not be so happy if I was a local woodchuck. Apparently woodchucks are bobcats’ favorite snack.

Sometimes I believe I am surfing the wave of technology. Five or ten minutes a week I have this fantasy. The rest of the time the young people here let me down gently.

Such was the case this week as I trolled through our wonderful stash of animal photos, both those already decorating the office and those arriving now for our new Animal Wellness Collection brochure.

Yes, even I could see that the old photos you sent years ago have faded too much from the sun to be used in the new brochure.

Yes, even I could see that there were problems with lots of my early photography efforts, that maybe it was no surprise that an entire box of saved photos contained not a single shot that could be used.

The technology sticking points came as your pictures arrived. I loved them all. We got to see so many animal friends we have talked with you about over the years. We were enchanted with each photo update of an old friend and each photo introduction of a new face. AND I wanted them all in the brochure.

My dear layout person and technology wizard Jess gently let me down. For a number of days she stayed at her high tech home computer scanning, sizing, transforming each photo sent into a possible shot for the brochure. I stayed here, cooing over each new photo arrival. Then Jess came up with her mock ups and gently showed me why not every shot could fit in the brochure.

Editing is not my strength. Gentle Jess had her work cut out for her.

“Oh come on! What is wrong with this shot?” I would demand.

“Well, ” replied gentle Jess, “It really doesn’t fit with any Animal Wellness remedy description and I am not sure everyone would recognize that this is a photo of a dog.”

“It’s perfect for Showcats? This is a shy dog in need of that remedy.” I would whine.

“We only have 22 remedies to cover. Is this really the best one for Showcats?” she would counter in the most mild mannered way.”

“But it’s funny.” I would reply.

“Well let’s just put it aside for now.” Jess would murmur in soothing tones.

And so we got through the sorting and Jess managed to part me from the hundreds of shots I wanted to include in this tiny brochure, but that couldn’t fit.

To be frank, Jess had to practice a bit of animal whispering with me. Whenever I got uppity she would settle me down with layout speak about pixels, grain and resolution. Technology talk never fails to bring me back to earth. And the sight of serious technology equipment works even better. At one point, Jess took me to her space station computer to drive home her point, well her five hundred points really.

There at the bridge of the USS Enterprise her computer, she moved everything at the speed of light to try all 500 shots I wanted to include. AND I could see what she meant. I faced facts. I have no idea how she does what she does or what most of what she explained to me actually means or even what we were looking at, but I could see she was right. Not all shots could be used.

But all this doesn’t mean we haven’t enjoyed every last photo you sent, because we have! Enjoying your animal photo gifts required no technological skills. It was pure and simple old fashion delight. AND I THANK YOU ONE AND ALL!

This weekend we began our sugaring season.

It is always a bit of a guess when to tap the maple trees. Sometimes we do so midway through February and get an early run of sap if there is a very warm day. Sometimes, like this year when temperatures stayed in the twenties, we wait a bit longer.

However, we decided it was time to begin no matter what the thermometer was saying when Snowdrops poked their heads up in the shelter of the Arbor Garden.

I love how Spring (and Flowers) just won’t be stopped!

Besides the usual beloved trees down in the village of Meriden, we tapped a few very old maples at the farm where Elizabeth lives. These maples are in a hedgerow sloping down to a road. Because we were low on buckets and because of this nice downward slope, we decided to use tubing with all the taps flowing into one line with a big barrel at the bottom of the line collecting the sap.

Sounded good anyways.

I am used to technology getting way ahead of me in here in the office, but I was surprised when yesterday the maple trees with buckets were flowing so well that a few of the buckets were full while over at our higher tech piped line, there was no sap in the big barrel at the bottom of the line.

There is something much more elegant about buckets on a maple tree, but perhaps these trees prefer buckets to piping for other reasons than this aesthetic one. I went over this morning to fiddle and fuss with the line and to generally tune in to the trees. After this visit, I have decided that the issue is not so much a problem with the tubing as a reflection of this new location. It’s too early to know for sure, but I think these new trees are in a colder micro-climate than the ones we tap in town. I sensed they will need a few more days of above ground temperatures before the up and down voyage of their sap begins.

Maple trees have their own wisdom and sometimes all it takes is a chill wind blowing across them to make them wait awhile longer. The next few weeks will tell the story and teach me a lot about this new set of maple trees. No matter what amound of sap we get from these trees, I am glad to have a reason to visit this beautiful spot and I am grateful for the owners of the land for their generosity.

With fifty gallons of sap to boil down today, its time to begin the dance of March wherein I do a little work in the office then run out to stoke the fire then run back in to do a little work and so on and so forth. Sweet boiling sap. A Roaring Fire. Happiness!

Several of the young people around here have been getting up at five am to do a workout called, “Insanity” Having seen several of the moves, I think the moniker “Insanity” is an understatement.

Today, some of us at the farm upgraded from “Insanity” to a new workout regime, one that requires more strength, more endurance, and more dexterity than “Insanity” as well as the ability to dodge sharp objects while using a pair of pliers.

We call it, “Insanity with Quills.”

Here is an action shot.

Frightening, yes?

Not to puff ourselves up or anything, but Elizabeth (who is no stranger to the original “Insanity’) and I have practiced “Insanity with Quills” twice in the last week. Our workouts have been a two person, one dog experience, but we could definitely get the same workout with a third person involved. Maybe a fourth.

Like all good workout regimes, we were sucked in by the beginner lesson. The first time, it was a modest four quill removal experience. It was no picnic, but no one was left bloody. We proudly showed everyone who came to the farm the four quills we had pulled from young Reina’s nose.

Today, in blizzard conditions, Reina decided to test our mettle by engaging with another porcupine on another mountain top far far away from the first porcupine encounter last week. Because much as we loved “Insanity with Quills” we were taking our lunchtime walks a long long way away from where the first porcupine did his damage.

Nonetheless, Reina came back from a momentary dash off the trail and into the woods with 45 quills sticking out of her.

Like a novice skier who wanders from bunny slope to black diamond run without noticing the change in terrains, we were suddenly in over our heads.

“Insanity with Quills,” part two.

Here Reina is, after we have wrestled for half an hour to remove the quills in her legs, chest, and between her toes. OUCH! She looks relaxed, a bit wary, but nothing near as disheveled as the people she has left in her wake (that would be me and Elizabeth).

Yes, yes, we got all the quills out. More hours of fun wrestling. And now, it is officially time to retire, “Insanity With Quills.”

Do you hear me Reina? NO MORE PORCUPINES!

Reina’s comment. “This workout goes better with Anxiety, Animal Emergency Care, and Recovery Flower Essences given to all participants.”

Its that mud ugly time of year here.

I greet this weather with complete joy since it means that maple sugaring will begin soon, followed by a parade of spring FLOWERS!!!!!!

Ben however, needs to greet this weather with a hat on, or risk getting a chill.