Clockwork

Yes, as soon as Tim headed off for the train, the temperature plummeted. A brief sprinkling of snow had graced the grass the night before. Not in any winter wonderland, but in a hastily cast array. But at least at that time the temperature wasn’t in baltic figures.

Monday took to the challenge and made sure it was nippy. The clear skies and sunshine gave a forgiving bow to the temperature. Everything outside (livestock and locomotives) all seemed fine. Until today. Tuesday decided to one up Monday and the temperature overnight was down to -7 degrees.

The cows had been moved to their winter housing at the end of last week and have been quite content missing out on the snow. The new batch of sheep that I bought a few months ago who refuse all bucket training, were finally glancing towards their hayfeeder. Although, it was only a couple of blackies who decided to investigate, the rest remain aloof at the hay concept. Our Icelandics never went five paces away from it, so hopefully the rest will soon get the gist.

So today’s issue was not with livestock, but locomotives. The tractor in fact. Having seen the forecast for more snow and high winds, I wanted to get more straw bedding down for the cows (no, they don’t need it but I like to make sure they have it when required). The tractor refused to start. It let out an unenthusiastic humph and refused to play ball. It prefers warmer weather. I understand, don’t we all? It can deal with chilly weather, but not the down right cold. And last night it was.

So, I’ll try again tomorrow. If all else fails, I’ll be manually rolling it in. I hope the cows appreciate the effort.