First impressions

Hello from Ireland! I have just a bit of time to write, but I really wanted to share just a few miscellaneous shots and thoughts since we began our trip last Sunday.

Here's Roxy, my farm pup, sound asleep on my lap as we drove to the airport. During our time away, she'll be staying with my mom. She *loves* being with my mom:

Our flight path was Portland to Philadephia, Philadelphia to Dublin. While we were in Philly, we decided to try Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches. They were yummy:

My first glimpse of Ireland:

Look! A field of Canola:

Our rental car...steering wheel on the right:

We thought it best to write a small note for the dash to remind us that things work differently on the roads over here:

Jim's GPS doesn't have a map of Ireland loaded yet, but at least we could confirm we were in the country we thought we were:

Our first two nights were spent in a town called Kilkenny. We found a 13th century tower adjacent to a church that we just had to climb:

Going up was a lot more fun that coming back down. Talk about a tight squeeze:

Not being a real fan of heights, I sucked it up and thought of this as practice for the staggeringly high ocean cliffs I'll be peering over later in the trip:

They say things differently here in Ireland:

Another case in point:

This had me worried. Washed rooster - in a bag - really?:

Fortunately not. Seems they call some potatoes here "roosters":

Hunky Dory chips are big here in Ireland:

You have your choice of cheese and onion, salt and vinegar...

and...Buffalo. Jim, of course, had to try the Buffalo:

Third ingredient on the ingredients' list is "buffalo flavor", in addition to all sorts of other nasty stuff. It's important to try new things, right? (Once was enough, though):

We took a day trip off to the Wicklow mountains and to a small town that was featured in our very favorite Irish t.v. series:

Anyone recognize this place? (I'm high-fiving you, if you do):

The use of baling twine is alive and well here in Ireland. It's even the same color as ours:

Our favorite thing is the unexpected. We are travelling with virtually no itinerary and very few reservations. By venturing off the beaten path, we are encountering many lovely, seemingly hidden, surprises:

Look at this guy. Isn't he incredible?:

Thanks for all the lovely comments on my last post - I love that there are so many fellow Ireland-lovers among us! ♥

A place I've never been

After what feels like months of preparation, many, many to-do lists, and a whole lot of work, I'm leaving Critter Farm for a bit.

We - my man and I - are heading to Ireland, a place we've dreamed of travelling to for more than a decade.

Interestingly, getting to Ireland right now is a bit of a dicey proposition. Ever since the volcano in Iceland, known as Eyjafjallajökull ("AY-uh-fyat-luh-YOE-kuutl-uh"), started spewing giant, travelling clouds of ash, Irish airspace has been forced to close almost every other day it seems. The most recent ash cloud measures approximately 2,100 miles long and 1,400 miles wide and seems to be hovering just off the west coast of Ireland. Travel is always an adventure, isn't it? We are keeping our fingers crossed that it will be physically possible for us to land in Dublin when we get there on the morning of 5/10.

Though I will miss my animal babies, rest assured, the farm will be in good hands. I'll try to post at least a few farm and Ireland updates while I'm gone. This is assuming that they actually have Internet over in Ireland. (joke)


Tá súil agam go bhfuil lá breá agat!

Standing in a field of canola

When I drive out of my small town currently, the color on the hillside to my left is startling:

This crop hasn't grown here before:

It's Canola (Brassica campestris). I have seen fields of this growing in the hills of Germany and in Japan but not in Oregon, yet I never questioned why this would be:

As I've watched this crop develop over the last couple months, I've learned a bit about Canola. Its growth is highly regulated and only since last fall has it been approved to be grown in our area. There are two varieties, canola grown for bio diesel and the type grown for edible oil. The two varieties must be kept separate to prevent cross-pollination and contamination. It is also not allowed to be planted in the same field for more than two years out of five to prevent a serious disease known as "blackleg".

The bees love it and for this reason it is not allowed to be grown in a number of Oregon counties. It is believed to attract bees away from specialty seed crops such as carrots, which require the bees for pollination:

Did you know the name "canola" is derived from the words "Canadian oil, low acid"?

Mostly, I just think it's pretty:

My boy, Beau

I haven't talked much about my new donkey, Beau, lately other than to mention his hoof and eye problems. While these concerns have taken up a lot of my attention, he is such a good boy that I feel he deserves to have a bit of blog attention that isn't health concern related.

My Beau is big for a standard donkey. He stands 48" at the withers, which is 12hh for any horse-people out there:

He turned seven years old in April. Almost everything he does is done with slow and deliberate movements. I'm not sure whether this comes from his size, his troublesome feet, or his personality - it could be a combination of all three. Regardless, his slow progress up and down our hills often reminds me of Eeyore from "Winnie the Pooh".

Beau and Chester couldn't be any more opposite in personalities. Beau's calm and quiet demeanor is an interesting counter to Chet's quick moves and big-n-sassy attitude:

Yes, Beau loves the carrot coins as much as everyone else here on Critter Farm:

Remarkably, the llamas are fairly easy going around Beau. Where this would never be attempted with Chester, Kai and Beau will often eat from the same bucket:

Beau, however, has been known to - accidentally, I believe - offend on more than one occasion. When this happens, the llama ladies don't hesitate to give him a good swift one between the eyes:

When Beau's goofy side shows up, it lightens my heart because it shows me he's finally feeling better than he was when he first arrived here:

Who doesn't love a good bear hug every now and then?:

One of Beau's favorite things to do is eat the moss off our big Douglas Fir trees:

He'll stand there for quite a while, slowly chewing, thoughtfully biting:

He's almost zen-like in his total absorption in the moss:

He's so absorbed, he doesn't notice Chester come up behind him. Can you see that look in Chet's eye? We'll talk about that some day:

From the looks of the bark on the tree, others have been nibbling here, too. Not good for the tree. Some chicken wire wrapping may be in order:

Now that Chet knows I've got the camera, he tries to get into all my shots. Especially if those shots appear to be centered on Beau. He's got a jealous bone, that guy:

Here's what's left of our Christmas tree:

Both Beau and Chester still love to chew on it. Giant toothpicks?:

Look at those chompers:

Watching Beau, as I have since he came to us in January, he seems to be a supremely gentle soul. Everything about him is just a little slower than every other animal here on Critter Farm. This allows him to observe everything going on around him:

He didn't bray when he first arrived here, but Chester has taught him what to do at mealtimes and he's got a great voice:

My boy, Beau: