Category: Comments from Farside

Maybe a Month off Now?

Three weeks ago I was coping with cold weather and clearing a host of items that stacked up while I was writing my latest novella. In a neat repeat, this past two weeks has seen me writing the other planned novella, and now I have a month ‘off” – depending on the definition of ‘off.’ …

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Cold, Wet, and, well, yes, it IS Winter.

This morning it was minus 3 degrees. The geese don’t mind it being wet a lot lately, but they aren’t that pleased about frozen feet. I don’t mind the wet OR cold that much, I’m simply hoping we don’t get gales for a good while now. It’s always something. But I have stacks of firewood, …

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Writers Are Busy people

People often ask what a writer does, well I write and farm both, and that can keep me very busy, as in – mad day last Thursday. Typical writers day however. Got up at 7am, hauled in firewood, day is freezing, feed all the livestock including me.      Started writing at 8.30. Stopped at 11am …

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Winter’s Here.

Well, it’s now winter, the fire is going day and night, (except when we have overnight gales and I let the fire go out. Better safe than sorry.) I’m back to hauling in firewood every day, the hens have finished their moult and are fully clad once more, they’re still laying in a trickle, about …

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A Night Out

Thursday I went off to our nearest town to give a talk (followed by questions) on my writing. I enjoy such events and had a very pleasant time. I don’t charge for this if the talk is local (within 20k or so) as I feel that it’s not only fun for me, it’s good PR …

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busy, busy, and busier.

Having got my latest book off for the publisher of that series to consider, I have ‘only’ to write three new articles, my blog posts, a special review, get my annual flu vaccination, and move the sheep. Nothing at all really when you consider that I have two weeks in which to do that before …

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April was Wet!

In fact the geese have pretty much stopped doing rain dances, and are now doing ‘please stop the rain’ dances. I’ve recorded precisely 175mls for the month, (7 inches – and no comments required) and even our small plateau which soaks up precipitation is starting to look waterlogged. I’m not complaining, this has balanced the …

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It’s Been Very Wet Here of Late

And it certainly has. April to date has produced over five inches of rain. This has left me in turn with 5 happy geese, the gaggle having been out wallowing in all the puddles and honking joyfully. Not so happy was a hen I saw on the Tuesday morning last week. I have no idea …

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Farside Mysteries.

No, not books, I’m left here with an odd question, why do hens run? Looked across nearest paddock yesterday morning around 10am to see two of my hens going down that like racehorses. Came in just now and as I paused to look out of the kitchen window, two hens flashed past heading up the …

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The Storm that wasn’t.

Apart from the ‘a bit over an inch’ of rain we got here from Cyclone Pam, March continued to be a dry month. That’s approved by most of my creatures that prefer to be warm and dry given a choice of weather. It isn’t the preference of farmers however and the level of complaint is …

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