Miscellany

Madeline’s serves are getting better – those pig chores are paying off! She’s getting a little muscle on that stickgirl frame.

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At lunch today the weatherman reported that we had climbed above zero for the first time in 84 hours. Everyone is holding up remarkably well.

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Olivia had another follow-up appointment with her otolaryngologist in Iowa City yesterday. The $19k eardrum looks good 🙂 She doesn’t have to go back now for a whole year!

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I called my mom last night and asked, “What does pain in your shoulder that moves around mean? Blood clot? Heart attack? Stroke?” I’m sure she loves those kinds of calls. Went to the doctor this morning, and the diagnosis was pleurisy. I kind of suspected that, but I didn’t realize your lungs go as far up into your shoulder as they do. I don’t know what makes me so susceptible to it – this the third or fourth time I’ve had it.

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This weekend I attended the INCA (Iowa Network for Community Agriculture) conference. I was also one of three presenters for the “Makin’ Bacon” workshop. I was so glad to see Mark’s comment in the post below about it, because I was so nervous! Not about speaking in front of people, that doesn’t bother me. But life has just been so much lately that I didn’t feel adequately prepared. I didn’t have a nice Powerpoint, just a bunch of pictures of the farm in a PDF file. I wrote notes – on cards even! – and then just held them and didn’t even look at them. Just rattled on and clicked through the pictures. And of course I tossed and turned that night afterwards, over-analyzing it, thinking I probably talked too much about the non-pork parts of our farm business and not enough about regulations pertaining to retail marketing.

But all-in-all I really enjoyed the experience. It’s fun to get to share your experiences with others, i.e. help them not to make the same stupid mistakes you’ve made. I hope to have the opportunity to do it again sometime, somewhere.

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I spent the night before the conference with my fellow farmchick. If she ever invites you to spend the night, take her up on it! It’s more of a luxurious getaway than a sleepover. She and her DH are the hostess/host with the mostest/most. Dinner, local wine, homemade dessert, sweet gifts, a warm comfy bed, and a farmhouse breakfast. Plus she hung around “on call” to pick up my daughter from her volleyball tournament if needed, easing some of my neurotic worries (though nothing short of medication can ease them all.) Thank you, B & L, I am so grateful for your wonderful hospitality!

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