Wish List....

The old mantel inscription was very appropriate for today. Although I am not burning wood for heat any more, I am still burning wood to clear land for pasture. If I was only "half warmed" today, it was enough! The horses need more summer pasture, hence I need more bush cleared. What I need, no, want, is a bulldozer! Seeing as how it is in the "want" list, I have to make do with the chainsaw and picaroon. This is the joy of being semi-retired, the trees will still be there tomorrow, and there is no hurray. Rationalization says that it is too warm out (-2C) for serious hard work, and exercise is good for you!

Similarly, paddock cleaning is fun! Do you know that 3 horses fill up 5 wheelbarrow  loads per week? What I want is some sort of mechanical contraption that will attach to the tractor that will pick up the poop faster than the old long handled shovel. I don't  "need" it, so the shovel will work for the next few years.  The saving grace is that the pile will compost down into "black gold". No, not oil, but the best dog gone fertilizer going. I am now working on the garden suppliment for 2011.  Every time those hay burners eat another $5 bale, I think  "Free fertilizer". Yeah, right!

Seriously, if I was still at my pre-retirement weight of 240 pounds, there is no way that I would still be doing this sort of work. Losing 65 pounds in a year gives a person much more stamina and more desire to get out and do things. How I lost the weight is another story. I don't believe in diets!

This is the time of year where the days almost don't exist. At 08:00, the sun is just peaking up. At 12:00 it is about 15 degrees above the horizon and at 16:30 it is gone! The shadows are always long, and a peaked cap is a must.

Anyway the differentiation between "needs" and "wants" is very important to us old time retirees. I wished I had learned the difference ( and applied it) at a much earlier age.