Rescue Journal

murphy's law...

Carol  ·  Nov. 23, 2010

the power went out last night so every single heater, every single heat tape wrapped water pipe, every single extension cord that plugged into each water trough, every single heat lamp, the very expensive electric heated hose.....were totally useless on the very coldest night of our lives. the power eventually came back on sometime, i am not sure when..we were all comatose with the cold and locked into shivering frozen sleep. this morning i am starting with a sore throat and stuffy nose.

murphy is an uncooperative asshole.

Comments

Helga

Maybe Steve could work his magic and make some wooden shutters that could be closed across the windows at nightime. Its an old-fashioned solution but it works and would be permanent.

Carol

laura and i were just talking about this...you can still buy those plastic window kits. i just think the dogs will poke holes in it cuz they pretty much wreck anything not made out of concrete or steel.

Carol

ziggy is doing quite well...not coughing much but still has a lot of nasal discharge intermittently.

Carol

lots of people who raw feed their dogs also feed goat and some cultures have goat meat as a regular part of the menu..it is a combination of things that have driven up the price of their meat. goats have not had generations of unnatural farming practices poisoning them either so many folks believe it is a cleaner and healthier food.
but more folks do keep goats for pets then they do cows or the big farm pigs like ellie..so to them it seems akin to eating the family dog.
if we keep going the way we are heading..more goats will eventually be commercially farmed. they will have as sad and hopeless lives as any of the other commercial foods. and if the price is high for their meat..and they are smaller, quicker to grow and cheaper to care for then say a 1500 pound hereford or black angus...there will be more profits in growing goat meat then beef...it is just a matter of time before goats are as or more profittable to produce as any other animal we can eat. sad.

lynne

well ann next time i come i will be bringing flash cards with all the animals names and pics. we will soon have you knowing who is who. lol

amy

Sorry Linda, just reporting what I read. And agree with you.

As for Suzannes comment on weather proofing my hubby does the same to the kids' upstairs bedrooms. Old house. Does have storm windows but yes, seems to really help keep the cold out.

Linda de J.

Who cares if goat meat is lean. If there is a demand out there for lean...may I suggest exercise, reduced carbohydrates, and a low-fat, high protein, purely animal free diet. If recipes are needed, I would be happy to provide them having not eaten goat, beef, pork or any animal products for 40 yrs. and quite lean myself.

I hope for and consider Chewy in the realm of loved pet, living out his life as a cherished, leaping, goat valued by all the volunteers who clean his stall, provide him his ice-free water and scratch his little goat head.

suzanne

about 30 years ago i lived in an old house which had its original windows... translate single-pane. it was in CT thus beyond freezing in the winter because it also pre-dated insulation. i found at the hardware store (this was before home depot etc) a little kit which contained double-stick tape and rolls of clear plastic sheeting (somewhat akin to the plastic drop-cloths currently at HD for 50 cents each). One put the tape flat on the window trim (or wall)on the inside of the window, then cut plastic to be a couple of inches BIGGER ON ALL FOUR SIDES than the taped area and placed the plastic on the tape making sure there were no gaps. THEN, you aimed a blow dryer at the plastic and the heat from the dryer would "shrink" the plastic and make an insulating air pocket. i was able to add about 5-6 degrees to the temp without booting up my thermostat. i remembered this when you were talking about Frodo's sleeping arrangements. it really works. then in the spring, you just peel it off and toss it.

amy

I read that there is now a demand for goat meat as it was recently said to be low fat and very lean.

Man it was darn cold last night, you and the critters have my condolences.Brrr....

Carol

it is still freaking cold but the power is on so we have heaters plugged in everywhere. chewie is shut into his little house again tonight...he likes to sleep on his front porch but it is just too cold.

Linda de J.

I heard the power was out in Abbotsford last night and prayed it would not affect Mission.
Please let us know how everything is now.
Also, what's happening with Chewy?

Ann C

So I read the blog a few hours ago, obviously not paying any attention to the header and said to myself, Murphy? which one is Murphy? How come I can't keep these animal's names straight and why didn't Carol explain what Murphy had done!!LOL Oh yes we walk among you!! On a more serious note I hope you are all thawed out, that sounds like a dreadful night!

hornblower

The goat meat demand may be due to Eid.

Hope everyone is warm & powered again soon!

Brenda

Murphy is certainly predictable-as well as being an uncooperative asshole! I'm so sorry to hear you lost power - really shitty timing. Also, wanted to let you know that I heard on the radio that there have been 45 goats stolen in Chilliwack over the past month. Apparently, goat meat is in high demand now and a goat can be sold for $500 -$800 each. On a tip they found 5 of them on a farm in Langley and got them back, but thought I should pass this on. Makes me sick! What next?

Carol Ann

Oh Carol i was hoping it didn't affect you too last night. What a long cold miserable night. out about 12 hours and I wasn't ready. I will be better prepared next time cause I'm sure it will happen again. Need gas for generator. Hope everything is ok there. Now I have to bake .