The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: Pedwardine on August 20, 2012, 12:51:45 pm
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We're having such a crappy time of things right now. Had flystrike and Coccidiosis in the sheep, six lambs have died and we still seem to be on death watch re many others, just had my little cat Pixie put to sleep following her latest stroke, one of our favourite and very tame cockerels got in with the big boys in with the hens and they killed him, another nearly died of flystrike, one of my favourite hens, a little White Star was got by the fox, we're skint and everything is so daunting. I want the joy back.
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:hug: sometimes you get a run of hard times in smallholding, it knocks the wind out of your sails and makes you wonder if its all worth it :(
So sorry to hear of all the awful things that have happened, life is being very cruel to you. I hope it all picks up very quickly xxx
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So sorry to hear all that, so much loss. :( :bouquet:
Hopefully you're well through the worst of it, and can start to count your blessings and rediscover the joy in time. I'm the eternal optimist, and would project some of that your way if I could. :fc: :bouquet:
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Thankyou. I do feel like the stuffing has been knocked out of me. OH feels same way too. Difficult to bolster each other when you both feel as bad. It's got to get better ???
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big hugs from me x
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I am sorry things havent been going well and it is easy to pile those bad things in together and create a low mood but I just looked at your website and flicking through the pictures I can see you have a lot to be proud of and I would ask you to take a look around you and see the positive side of your personal story.
Good luck
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I'd echo above, and sending you a big wodge of love and best wishes :hug: . We had a bad run of doom over the winter and I know it seems like a pit. Is there anything you need (other than a lottery win ;D ) which one of us may be able to help with ( a change of scene, or to borrow, get or sell something..)? Do something nice for yourselves if you can, Love Fi xx
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So sorry things are going through a rough patch, for you. It does happens like that sometimes .....one thing after another happens, and even the smallest thing (not that any of yours are of course) can seem awful, when it happens amongst other bad events. Really hope things get better now, for you.
I have been there, losing my farm, losing half a house I owned, not being paid money owed by a brother etc. etc. Picked myself up, dusted myself down, and now our bad luck is with us again, involving my neighbour suing us for one of our animals biting him, amongst other things!!
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:hug: :hug: to you, Penwardine. It's horrible when so much goes wrong in such a short time. I just followed comosto's example and looked at your website. I was very impressed and it shows how much you have going for you. I think you need to focus on that, not easy I know when you're feeling down. I do hope that you start feeling better, both of you, and do let us know if there is anything practical we can do? :hug: :hug:
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Just keep going :bouquet: All will be well in the end :hug: It's so lovely to have this "family" for comfort :sunshine:
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:gloomy: will be :sunshine: again but I can't promise when.
:hug:
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I'm sorry Penwardine, life on farm is very hard sometimes and it gets you down. We had a crappy start to the year too, so i know a little of what you're going through and i have been known after a difficult lambing to howl my eyes out. Try to focus on good things even if they are only little and try to find one good positive thing a day and focus on that.
Things will get better they always do. Stay strong and have faith in each other.
A big hug from us :hug: and keep talking on here. we may not be able to physically help but we can give some moral support
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I'm really sorry too. I think most people with livestock will know the heart ache as well as the joy they can bring. Hang on in there, good times will be back :love:
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Sorry you are going through a rubbish time. Here's hoping things will improve soon.
Helen
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So very sorry to hear of your terrible news. I can only imagine what you are feeling having suffered so many losses at once.
Im sure that now things will start to get better for you. All I can say is chin up, and try and focus on the future. Try not to bottle things up though, let your anger, frustration and grief out somehow (without hitting your OH though please), as I know from experience that if you try and be brave and bottle things up, it makes things a bit worse.
Im sending you and yours a very big hug and my bestest wishes for a change of luck for you both.
Mary. :bouquet: :wave: :fc: :hug:
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:hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:
It will come right Pedwardine. :fc: for the sheep you are still worried about. When I'm sad I go and sit amongst the flock and listen to them munching away with no cares or worries :sheep: :sheep: :sheep:
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lots of hugs & positive vibes from here to you
... all of you who need some
:love:
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You have had a really tough time and it must hurt. There will be light at the end of the tunnel but you probably can't see that far ahead yet.
In the mean time I am sending you my best wishes and hope things improve quickly. :bouquet:
Sally
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I'm so sorry about all the troubles - they've really hit badly haven't they :-[ Sending you lots of hugs and all my best wishes that things pick up.
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Hello all you lovely people. I'm here at stupid o'clock in the morning. Can't sleep. Head full of 'stuff'.
I went on my website too and tried to think of all the good stuff for which I do have to be grateful for and put a posting on my 'diary'. We have fabulous animals who I believe love us and glorious friends, some who are neighbours who turn up with a much needed bottle of wine or a meal and some who are found in unexpected places like here. I'm so touched by your encouragement and kindnesses. We are in deep hole of doody right now but we've been in the s**t before and got out so we can do again. It's just been a particularly vicious session of late and we're so very tired and possibly a little depressed. You wake thinking "What's going to go tits up today?" and I think more does go wrong when things are feeling awful, often because you don't cope as efficiently with day-to-day stuff because you're so worn out and tired and tearful. I have caught myself thinking "Why are we doing this? What is the point of it all? Are we the right people for this life?" when I LOVE this life. It's just you experience the extremes of EVERYTHING in in it don't you and it ISN'T easy alot of the time. I've caught myself wishing to be without all the animals when I'd be absolutely MISERABLE without them. I kind of need sheep and chickens and dogs like I do caffeine. I'm addicted to them. I think I'd be more ill and stressed out without them. I do wonder wether we ought to scale it down a bit sheep wise, maybe, just maybe, we'd manage a little easier then. Barry and I might find time to do the things we can do to make some money even. We haven't any time like that at the moment and I believe it's important to have that outlet to do 'your own thing'. He's a fabulous artist but never paints now, I am a decent ceramicist, I can sing, I can do great things with crappy furniture but we never have time. If we reduce our load elsewhere perhaps we'll find the time will be there. I dunno. Shed load of dosh would help too ;D . If it weren't for my mum getting me an Aldi shop every week, we'd barely eat. That's not a good place to be is it!
Re the 'What can we do to help?' - Does anyone know of anyone who would like to buy a very old, and what could be a very beautiful, Rolls Royce (1933 20/25 Sedanca Deville-prob spelt wrong!). That would inject some dosh into our money woes which would mean less of me pacing about at stupid o'clock. Needs serious love and care but all is there except the lady on the bonnet and the picnic basket. It's no use to us but the money would be. Valued at £8,000 but anything reasonable considered.
Cheers guys X
:hug: back at ya.
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There must be specialist car forums where you'd find the enthusiasts who would pay the right money for such a special old car. Probably get the best price like that.
I know what you mean about getting so ground down you even think you'd be better off without animals :-* For a mad moment anyway.
However I think there's something to scaling down so that you have time for creative stuff too - and if you are creative, being able to create is a critical part of life feeling balanced.
Hope you can find your way out of this hole, quickly, to a better life :hug:
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Can only add my {{{{hugs}}}} and best wishes to everyone else's.
I've seen a lot of smallholders get to the stage where there isn't time or energy to enjoy what they've got. Reducing numbers (or breeds, or species...) sounds easy but of course isn't - but does help, especially if you actively fill that time with something else you reallly want to do.
You will get through this and you will feel the joy again. Promise. :hug: :bouquet: :-*
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Classic Car magazine is the place to advertise the Roller, they might have a website too.
Chin up , something will turn up in time . :bouquet:
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http://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/ (http://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/)
Also look at the vintage sports-car club http://www.vscc.co.uk/vsccweb/ (http://www.vscc.co.uk/vsccweb/)
There are many specialist RR collectors so there's a real market for this. I know a Spanish gentleman with over thirty but start here first.
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:bouquet: Hope things improve for you soon. Its so draining physically and emotionally when all the bad things come at once ...... as often seems to happen. All the best.
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See things are better already - sell the motor and that's the first good thing. Then your heads will come up and other good things will follow :thumbsup:
:hug: to both of you and :fc: for the poorly sheep.
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Your 1933 20/25 Sedanca Deville is a beautiful car & you really shouldnt have a problem selling it.
I am off to see if theres any money down the back of the settee :innocent:
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:hug: Can only echo others, remember why you love the life, spend time with your animals and things will get better.
Dans
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I, too, have wondered what life would be like with nothing to depend upon you, even a budgie or a goldfish. Bliss, i think, for a while and then...............????
Things will come 'round again and probably go tits up again but hang on in there, relax those tensed up shoulders, take a look around at what you've got and think of all the folk who would gladly swap their troubles for yours :hug: :hug: :) :)
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Can only echo what the others have said and add that s**t happens! Usually in buckets full, but the good thing about it is that it teaches you to be strong and there is light at the end of the tunnel i promise :fc:
Downsizing might be a good idea, it will reduce your feed bills for a start and give you more time to concentrate on each other and raising funds, pictures & ceramics make good chrissy pressies, so get creative. Check out Simple Simon's ideas re the roller that could really make you a good lump of wonga for a rainy day.
Keep smiling, remember the good times, they WILL come back.
All the best
Mandy :pig:
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This may sound silly and be completely off beam but check the lambs feet. A friend of mine was losing Shropshire lambs to flystrike and had a eureka moment at 1 am the other morning. Maggots in feet, lamb lying down with feet tucked under, maggots rapidly spreading everywhere.
Good luck and fingers crossed that Roller does the trick in the short term.
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Hi Pedwardine :wave: About reducing sheep numbers: this is what we had to do last year. Our numbers had crept up and up but my health had gone down and down, and my OH has had a major health prob for several years. We realised life was all about working with the sheep, no let-up. Parting with a large chunk of our breeding flock was very difficult but we sold our animals privately to people we trust, and we hear about them from time to time.
The relief of having fewer sheep is enormous. With the smallish numbers we have, inputs and gains about balance eachother out, whatever the actual numbers involved, so the only winners are us, with a more relaxed atmosphere around the place now the pressure is off. If we decide at a later date that we can manage more sheep again, well we can breed up our numbers or buy in new stock. We kept some from each bloodline so it should be possible for us to build back up again. Choosing who goes and who stays is difficult, but once you've made the decision there's nothing but relief.
An excellent side effect of reduced numbers is that the sheeps health has improved noticeably :thumbsup:
I just thought I would let you know that reducing our numbers has worked for us so it could be what you are needing to do :hug:
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Great advice and tons of encouragement. My low is coming back up again! :) You've all been there haven't you? Barry's read all the responses this morning. His faith in human nature is hugely restored by finding he has friends he has never met. Mine too.
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It always helps to know that other people have been in whatever trouble you find yourselves in. TAS has been a great help for me since I've become disabled. Just knowing people care is a help. Although I only have my three goats so don't know much about downsizing, it does sound like a good idea. I write as a former craftworker. I'm sure if you had time to do your crafts, you'd be happier, more relaxed people. If it's in there, it has to come out. When my ex and I gave up our business, then split up, for a while I couldn't face doing anything craft-y but it didn't last. I don't have all the equipment or the room (or health) to weave any more but I still manage to knit.
I think it's something you should seriously consider together. :hug:
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And remember Pedwardine..... all that sh1t in your life will make great compost.
Something good will grow out of it.....
:bouquet: :hug:
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We have all been there believe you me, even if you are not a smallholder. It will get better, we had to make hard decisions about three years ago and it seems there is no end, BUT I promise you it will get better and although i am not religious I do believe things happen for a reason and in fate. So try not to be too down, there is always light at the end of the tunnel, you just have to be patient.
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Even if the tunnel does seem to be unending at times.
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:hug: :hug: :hug: for everyone in long tunnels with the light rather small in the distance :hug: :hug: :hug:
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And remember Pedwardine..... all that sh1t in your life will make great compost.
Something good will grow out of it.....
:bouquet: :hug:
I shall remember this Suzie, what a great thought to keep with you through troubles :) :)
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No good advice just a :hug:
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Love that Suzie! ;D ;D ;D
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And remember Pedwardine..... all that sh1t in your life will make great compost.
Something good will grow out of it.....
:bouquet: :hug:
Sounds a good theory - hope it's true. :thinking:
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Truly sorry for your losses :bouquet: .
Just watch out for that light at the end of the tunnel :o - it may be a train. But what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger - so keep going :thumbsup: and good luck with the car sale.