I’ve been everywhere man (except in front of my computer)

I think the last eight days mark the first time since this blog started in August of 2010 that I have gone more than a week without a post. Now I’d love to tell you that it’s because of a long and sustained period of trial and tribulations and that the blisters on my fingers have kept me from typing…but that would be a stretch. The truth is that I’ve really just been pulled geographically in many different directions over the past week and rather than sit down and right something completely incoherent (’cause what you’re reading right now is prose of course) at 10 o’clock at night when the dust on each day had settled, I elected instead to happily collapse into my bed or sleeping bag. A good chunk of the time I’ve also had the rather novel experience of being in a place — Greensboro, VT last weekend at Jen’s family’s lake camp for one — where there was a total lack of internet access. Highly recommended by the way, that whole unwired thing. Yes, the world does keep spinning even though you haven’t checked email in over 6 hours. Revelatory, I know.

Amongst my adventures of the past week I spent last Saturday (prior to leaving for said lake cottage) alone on baby watch whilst Jen and Kimberly were otherwise engaged. Those of you that know me understand that that is not something I aspire to do very often. Yes, I theoretically know how to lube up and go in after a dystocia were that truly necessary but the reality is that if ever there were something really funky presenting itself, I’d be calling our vet clinic for backup in the blink of an eye. Unlike my wife who seems to get cheap thrills out of successfully delivering anything the due moms can throw at her. As it turned out I needn’t have worried: though there was much saber rattling in the maternity, Ms. Moonlight was the only female that actually followed through. After standing there watching her hem and haw for 20 minutes with not so much as a cria’s nose presenting itself I excused myself for 10 minutes to go and get a cup of coffee down at the house…when I returned she was sniffing a newborn baby girl (La Vie en Rose’s full sibling no less)! She even let me get her daughter nursing less than 30 minutes later. I love it when my alpacas help me propagate the illusion that I know what I’m doing.

With Elite Legend due to head back to Idaho within the next 10 days or so for the next 12 months or so we’ve also been scrambling to squeeze in a few last minute breedings here and there with him. Having already spent the better part of the spring and summer here though, he’s been at Tripping Gnome (EL is co-owned by TGF, CCNF, and of course Snowmass themselves) for his final few weeks here on the east coast. What does that mean? Why drive-by breedings with our own Herdsire of course! So it was that Saphira, her cria, and I headed to Freeport this past Tuesday for a little mobile love with the 2010 and 2011 Herdsire of the Year. Fingers crossed that she takes. Plan B would be to slum it with one of the other Futurity banner winners (Archangel, King of the Ladies, or Precocious) we are lucky enough to have here in our stable. My road tripping for ‘paca love isn’t done yet either: Sugar Snow is due for breeding next Tuesday and though the route gets a bit repetitive after awhile, I do get to hang out with my friends and eat at the magnificent El Camino (“the road,” how appropriate) in Brunswick, so all suffering is relative. There was also the suggestion that we might even get to go and play on the water a bit next week if I can get my act (and my alpacas) together enough to leave earlier in the day. The sea and the boats that float atop it being my 2nd favorite environ (after this farm), that just might be too much to hope for.