Do you ever feel …
… like you are living the same thing each year? Over and over again. The same progression. I almost called this post Blowing Snow. I must have called twenty posts Blowing Snow in the last four or so years that we have been writing and reading this blog together. Snow falls then it blows. Often. 
Yet every time the snow blows it is different. The light is different, the temperature, the animals, the views. Every time the snow blows across the roads, hiding the sky, dancing down through the cracks in the barn to alight on the heads and backs of everyone – I even brushed snow off Geraldine the peahen this morning- it is new. Every time I am entranced. Every time I find it worthy of comment. The snow, the wind, the bird.
And Alex’s udder. She should not have long teats swishing about under there and getting longer and how often have we watched an heifers udder swell, or a pigs udder swell, do you remember Mama the sheep, Marmalade, Daisy: years we have done this – worrying about me going away, worrying about everything being alright worrying about the due date, the weather, the milk. Ticking our readiness off on our fingers, consulting the diary again and again. Every time is different but the same. 
Everything is new every day. I HATE it when I hear people say “Been there Done that”. In that bored voice. I want to growl at them. Or bite their arms. It is so cruel. Because it smacks down anothers enthusiasm for life. Because we all experience every day differently. Even if it is the same day over and over. No-one has been where you are now or done what you do. No-one.
In fact this is the very premise that this blog is dedicated to. The same farm, the same girl, the camera and one day. Every day. Even when nothing much happens at all – which is often – you and I comment on the ordinary and we always find something new. We are endlessly entertained. 
Good morning. Yesterday we had blowing snow. Just a little snow fell in the night then it blew so hard and so high I could not see the sun. The blowing wind was cold but once it had died I shooed everyone out into the sun. And that felt better! I carried buckets and buckets of water to the truck and drove it across the Way to the West barn for the cows and pigs and chickens there, twice. Then carried buckets and buckets of water to the cows and pigs and birds here, twice. But that’s OK it is only while we are below freezing and next month when I scale a cliff in Australia with my daughter I will have good muscles! The wrong muscles for climbing but muscles never the less!
I hope you have a lovely day,
Love celi
62 Comments on “Do you ever feel …”
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Sheila’s awfully close to the little pigs at feeding time 😉
What a ravishing colour Sheila is in the sun – she’s a true auburn. The twins are much more chocolatey. And beautiful Alex with her luminous eyes and thick, lush sunbleached locks. I will never tire of hearing the routine, the day to day, the blowing snow and the buckets carried. Never stop, Miss C, never stop.
I agree!
Me too. Never stop!
Make that three agreed!
Make that four. I know how the days can seem the same, yet they aren’t really, there’s always something just a little different. Sheila is so gorgeous.
I agree with you! Same chores every day, different each and every day. Wondrous even during “inclement” weather! Hope you have a lovely day.
oh oh hope that udder contains itself for another 6 weeks – at least. The snow changes your landscape completely, every time. Laura
Ah yes, Groundhog day. Repeated over and over for deeper appreciation. So many opportunities to see the full magic and majesty of life. I often feel that way too. But then something changes, just one little thing and everything is different. You are so right. We never step in the same moment twice. I have never seen your “blowing snow” so it was all new to me. 🙂 Thanks for sharing it. Have a marvelous day too.
I totally agree. It’s like we need to find the Extraordinary in the Ordinary, right? 🙂
So true! And to realize that every moment of the Ordinary is precious and open to wonder and joy! That is something to be mindful of, for sure! 🙂
To re-inforce your message: https://vivinfrance.wordpress.com/2015/05/28/the-poetry-of-every-day/
If I ever say “been there, done that” it is in fellow-feeling over something troublesome or irritating, it is definitely NOT a putdown.
Keep warm,
love,
ViV xox
Please tell us about the ?lemons? on the stove in the last photo. 🙂
Ha! I wondered too, but I thought they were oranges…. what is she doing with oranges (or perhaps lemons?) in a pan on the stove…. hmmmm 🙂
YES! I am boiling them. To make an almond flour cake. I am creating it for my daughters birthday cake. Still working on it though. These are oranges but the cake lacked depth (taste wise) so next time i am going to use three oranges and a lemon, then see. You boil the oranges, mash them to a pulp then make the cake – stand by! c
Oooh! Waiting with baited breath for the whole story!
Sending you a recipe by email…
I have a good recipe that I have I used for years. I use Meyer lemons but you could use oranges or a mixture of oranges and lemons instead. http://www.sunnycovechef.com/lemon-almond-cake.html
Oh my, you got lots of snow there ! Hah, it’s the first real snow for Geraldine and for the twins too… I so love fresh fallen snow, a white blanket lain all over together with a blue sky and the sun sparkling on every tiny snow cristal. Heavenly. I get a deep feeling of a very clean air and atmosphere. And that white blanket covers and softens all the little imperfections you normally see. It’s got something like holy pureness (oh, maybe my own wording 🙂 ?). Snow makes a completely new world. For a while… . We have a stormy day today, no snow at all.
Beautiful shot of Sheila and the twins – it looks so peaceful, all three munching together, united… And I love the kitchen pics – looking at them gives me a warm and comfortable feeling…
Enjoy your day, Celi!
Want to add something…
Watching the pigs again and again. – Khalil Gibran with his words On Marriage comes to my mind:
Fill each other’s cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.
Does anybody remember? Great how you manage that with the pigs, Celi. They obviously are enjoying and are very content on that. That way they’re able to stay close. Each to his own. Love it.
I like the ordinary. Then you know everybody is ok. Ha ha growl or bite their arm! If I remember rightly didn’t you bite someone on a plane or did I dream it? Have a lovely day 😀
No I bit him alright! I wonder if i can find that story again – I love rereading the old stories.. c
I agree and I see at least one chicken is in a warm bath! The smell of food cooking when you come in the house is always welcome. Small pleasures add up.
Wise words, even in the most mundane task there is always some nuance that changes the picture. Good reminder to keep eyes and ears open and acknowledge how unique the world, and life, really is.
there is nothing ordinary if you truly stop look and listen. Your photo of the oranges in the pan on top of the wood stove (?) is so beautiful-just like a painting.
Well the way Miss Ann looks at this.Is if I get up each day wow I made it,Snow or no snow I am here to see the snow.
I love the daily tasks… to me they are important in my “stewardship” to the land and animals… to family and friends. To be productive and have purpose in life is admirable… those ordinary daily tasks are important to all who are affected. But to see or detect the subtle nuances of each day… of each task, from day to day – that’s where the real gift is experienced.
Well done, Celi, as some Greek philosopher also said, ‘You can never step in the same river twice.’ It’s the very ordinariness of our days that makes us appreciate the really notable moments that we keep and reminisce over. Much as I appreciate the ‘not much happened but it was all beautiful’ ones, my top favourites of your posts over the years are those with food discussions and the special occasions, e.g., http://thekitchensgarden.com/2012/06/26/the-long-awaited-day-the-old-codger-comes-home/ What ever happened to Dale? Is he still your Old Codger living on his own with some assistance from a generous neighbour?
Mary
Yes! he is well and just the same but older – I am making fried rice with the above chicken for his lunch.. c
And he IS rich too… surrounded by his loved books and a continuing delightful sense of humour, what more could one ask? Just the sort of person you’d love to spend a lot of time with. Was Ton his pup before coming to live with you?
I so want to sink my teeth into that chicken leg!!! What’s going on with the lemons in the water?
Oranges, I made them into a cake – it is a middle eastern idea – the recipe is not right yet though.. c
Dan swear that the orange cake in the Woman’s Home Companion is the best cake ever. I have not made it yet – as I don’t bake – but maybe, just maybe his birthday this year.
Having ordinary for a companion can make for a very pleasant and productive day. The pot of oranges… are they for marmalade, orange curd or to make juice? Come on spill the beans and take me out of my misery!
Cake – and a wonderful scented air freshner.. c
Two for the price of one!
Inspiring words! So important to tell ourselves and each other. And as for muscles, you have strong spirit- ones too. The blog posts help me workout that way each day.
There is something soothing and reassuring in the ordinary – but from experience something special and different always sneaks up on us to take us by surprise. Love the oranges and what you plan to do with them!
I can imagine coming into the house and run into that smell! My mouth is watering.
I like the same old same old, makes my life so much more comforting.
Linda
The phrase I dislike most, besides the one you dislike, is this: “It is what it is.” Do not say that to me. Or use the word “awesome.” What does either mean? One seems an avoidance of whatever the issue may be. The other is so generic and overused that it holds no power.
It would be useful for me to carry buckets of water and build up muscle to carry my first grandbaby due in a few months. Once upon a time, many decades ago, I was a strong-armed farm girl carrying buckets, scooping feed and manhandling a wheelbarrow.
Me too
And my hometown, BTW, is Vesta.
My mother’s given name too, though she went by her middle name (Viola) all her life
Viola – i like that too… c
Old folks and V names. Enter my cousin Velda. She and my father were first cousins. When she was Only 86, she said, “I need a new body” and started swimming. She’s a slow swimmer, but finally worked up to 28 laps, half a mile. During this time of swimming, she had a physical at the doc’s, who said to her, “Your bones are no longer osteoporotic and you have gained back 1 1/2″ of the 3” you lost to aging. Bolstered by this report, she enrolled in college. Finished undergrad (with credit for a book she had written) and started on her Master’s degree. Then she broke her hip. In hosp for 3 days and rehab for 2 weeks. During that time her college classes came to Her. When she graduated at age 91 and crossed the stage to get her diploma, her whole class stood up for her. Pssst…she’s now working on her Second Master’s at age 93. Much love to all you folks, Gayle
My grandparents eloped when he was 22 and she was 15. When my mother was born the Dr asked my grandfather what her name would be and Grandpa B replied “Vesta”. So here’s the thing, “Vesta” was Grandpa B’s ex girlfriend. No idea why Grandma B didn’t speak up and say “not a chance”. My mother told me she remembered Grandma telling her that her name was Vesta but she would be called “Viola”. My niece was given the middle name Vesta after her grandmother – my brother didn’t know the story. So the name and the story have been carried on.
Congrats to you cousin. Makes me think I should learn to swim – nope, terrified of drowning!
The word “awesome” has not passed my lips in perhaps 10 years because I get physically ill hearing it. The other word is “impacted”. And now the latest is beginning each utterance with “So…”
However, I’m guilty of “you know” spoken ad infinitum,and ad nauseum I’m afraid. Verbal tics–so irritating. So difficult to get rid of.
I love that red and white pitcher!
Interesting progression in the last photos…..bird on railing, bird in pot…….I know it’s not the same bird, but if you were new here……..?! I make a boiled orange cake, about the only sweet thing I bake, they’re quite delicious. And so easy.
Prepping for tomorrow’s class, reading JRR Tolkien’s ‘On Fairy Stories’, I read this and had to run back and share it with you: “The seed of the tree can be replanted in almost any soil, even in one so smoke-ridden (as Lang said) as that of England. Spring is, of course, not really less beautiful because we have seen or heard of other like events: like events, never from world’s beginning to world’s end the same event. Each leaf, of oak and ash and thorn, is a unique embodiment of the pattern, and for some this very year may be the embodiment, the first ever seen and recognized, though oaks have put forth leaves for countless generations of men.”
That is a wonderful piece – thank you for bringing it back for us! c
I imagine the opposite, what if every day, every season were new… like a traveller always seeking, acclimatising. Which for me is interesting for a time but it’s good to appreciate the familiar and rewarding to work with we have.
I have to admit that I do get bored at times with the sameness of my days of commute, work, commute, home, take care of cats and home, eat, sleep, repeat. But it only takes one thing to wake me up out of my usual routine (a gas water heater leaking and needing to be replaced immediately, or God forbid, one of my cats getting ill) to make me realize how blessed I am to have such a comfortable routine…
I bet bored is not the word you mean – tedious possibly – and repititive – like me – but never bored!.. c
you are awesome; there’s elegance and nobility in the ordinary
And the progression of the seasons – so stately.. c
It is when the unexpected happens, especially of the ‘bad’ variety that we recognize the stability and contentment the ‘everyday’ provides: the usual, the expected, the comfortable . . . many of my ‘todays’ may seem ‘the same’ to an onlooker – to me each is different and full of plans and I have never been bored in my life . . .
Lovely! c
I do well with routine, it outlines my day and keeps me from frittering to and fro willy nilly. When something interesting or fun comes up and I sort of toss my routine to the wind it makes me feel reckless and alive. What baffles me is how, after doing the same chores the same way day after day after day you can suddenly one day forget to do one particular thing? How can you just blithely skip over one thing that you would normally be able to do in your sleep? (Can you tell I totally forgot to close one of the coop doors and few nights ago?)
PS I think the word ‘transparency’ should be stricken from the language!
There is something new everyday 😃
You’re right, every day is a lovely day. No matter what is the same, what is different, I’m glad to be here to see it.