[kevkev57]

I decided to ramble a

[kevkev57]

later !

[kevkev57]

I have decided to do a ramble, and you are my victims..

Friday is my treat day. If I think I have achieved a lot in the week, then I treat myself to some free time. I managed to work outside a lot this week, and it actually shows, which is pleasing.

Normally today its a little trip across the border into France. Market day. I have been getting a little bored with it to be honest. A few local produce stands are of interest, and I am launching into my own stand there soon. Apart from some cheeses and meat, its all gone down hill. Loads of old tack and plastic rubbish.

By the way this is a ' two coffee ' ramble or thereabouts.

My youngest son ( 18 ) is still in bed. I will give him a prod soon and find out why he is still in bed. Oldest son ( 21 ) is at his flat in Brussels, and ' her that knows all' or my dear lady wife is working , again in Brussels.

About my oldest sons flat. I go there once a month, and next week is the due date. Last time I asked him if he could clear a path for me to a chair. He is a young city boy and enjoys all the trappings, takeways, beer etc. The bad news is he is not to clear in his head as to what a bin looks like. How different two sons can be. The youngers drug is a day in the forest, for the other a day pounding the pavement in search of fun.


I have a horse problem. I am not a horsy type.  I do not dislike them nor like them. It just does not work for me. Anyway a friend of ours is asking to rent three spare acres I have. Land I bought as it ajoins my other land. Vacant and good for a horse. I am avoiding the issue. The horse is ok. Trouble is all the visits, you know the type of thing. The mother comes with her two girls, then the girls friends and then a mother of the girls etc etc. We enjoy complete privacy here. No one can pass by or enter easily. I guess we have become selfish in our desire for complete isolation.

I nearly said no to the rent request the other day. Then her husband, mentioned a deal involving free work on my two cars,( he is a garage owner ) services, MOTS, etc all free. AND some other ' freebies ' but for that I would need to go and see him one evening. Now having lived in Belgium for 15 years, I know how they tick. If I go to see him I will walk or stagger out, having said with a slur ' yes '.  It could even turn into a frank gallagher situation, who knows ?

Last week, I found out that she was really in love with this flipping horse. I can imagine its a sentiment that many of you understand. She was banging on and on about how she needed some land quickly. All I said was that if land could not be found, then the horse could be exported for sausage meat.  Well dear reader, you have heard of ' lead balloons' have you not. I swear that my invoice there the day after was 50 euros on the heavy side.



When I compare my other life, years back in England, I shudder. This is because I cannot recognize myself. It is like living two lives apart.  I got to thinking this in a supermarket the other day. Picture this. There I was walking out with two wooden veg crates that they had put out for free.  I was getting quite exicited by this little free gift, and the fact that a little more starter wood had been found for winter.  There are only two possible reactions about this...

1.  A good find, saving a few centimes ,and recycling, albeit for burning.

2.  I am a sad old git.

I will let you decide.  All I will add is that in my other life a wooden crate would only turn me on if it had a wad of cash in it and / or a lightly clad women attached to it.


My mind can wander onto obscure thoughts, perhaps its the isolation here.  I turned my thoughts recently to the matter of ' spot the Englishman '

What if a Belgian entered onto my land. Would he be able to spot that I am English from the surroundings ?  Outside the only give aways are a Belgian registered but right hand drive pick up. A mass of horse radish growing, and in season turnips and swede. These two veg are detested by Belgians, as thats is all they had to eat in WW11. This hate for the food has been passed down.

There is no English rose garden either. A while ago a work friend of my wife said " oh you are so lucky having an English husband, they are so good in the garden with the roses "  Now many things come to mind with that statement.  Firstly she had her rose tinted glasses on. Secondly I was deeply upset that the words after ' good in ' was not bed.  I went right off her, and have never met her. I should take my revenge and get her here one weekend. A tour of the nettles and weeds will soon send her back to reality .

Inside the house it is clear that an Englishman lurks here. Big clues....a leather chesterfield... BBC period series on dvd , and a lot more. Open the kitchen cupboards and the game is over.  Proper teabags, marmite , porridge , a selection of various sauces in jars and a bottle of daddy sauce. I suppose all run of the mill stuff for us, but maybe exotic to a Belgian. Mind you try feeding one of them mint sauce on lamb or marmite on toast for a laugh.


Carrying on with the food theme.  A few months back I went into our local lidl. I saw it was Mexican food week. The have them all ,German, greek, italian etc , but never English. I suggested to the manager as a joke that they could do a english week. He did indeed laugh. Imagine my face when I walked in several months later to a fanfair of Englishness. My delight soon turn to horror as various friends quizzed me about my empty trolley, well empty of englishness.  The reason was simple. Dear  reader, imagine if you can a frozen bag of fish and chips ( made in germany ) or worse still ' turkey dinner ' complete with a smiling turkey giving you the thumbs up inset in the union jack.  Well all this frozen stuff onlt sold months later at 50% off to apparently a group of dutch campers.

Kevin

[doganjo]

Please have another ramble again soon - I really enjoyed that.

As for the horse - for goodness sake stop being a hermit  - you will get to like the thing - and it's owners.

[Kerrygirl]

I also enjoyed the ramble its good to get stuff off your chest!

On the topic about the horse  I can see where you are coming from about having your privacy spoilt, I helped our a neighbour a few years ago who was weaning her foal from its mother and asked if she could join my mare for a few weeks.  Now this neighbour is in her 20s married to our parish and her parents (who live about 5 miles away) are very involved with her horses so at any time during the day or night they would call to see the mare.  One Sunday morning while we were enjoying the one morning we get to sleep in they came in to our yard at about 7.45 am    After that we kind of felt violated so once mare was gone we didn't offer anymore to take her or any other horses!  But in saying that they are really great neighbours and I cant complain about them.

Wondering how you could get out of it, what would turn me off would be: no water supply, inadequate fencing, something wrong with the ground ie - horses could get worms from it or another thing I have heard but not sure if its true because in my case its not - horses are meant to hate pigs, now ours are separated by a ditch but no problems.  Hope I was of some help 

[doganjo]

Since it is your land you can lay down ground rules(pun intended  ) - state what times they may visit the horse.

[sheila]

 Good ramble. I do enjoy a good moan myself at times

[Hilarysmum]

loved the moan, now go get some pigs, great animals.

[kevkev57]

"Since it is your land you can lay down ground rules(pun intended  Wink) - state what times they may visit the horse."

What like horses visitation rights..  The problem here for me is that it begins to get a bit regimented. I don't even wear a watch these days !
Kevin

[kevkev57]

" for goodness sake stop being a hermit "

Now that is the problem. I think I and my dear lady can do ' hermit ' does that make her a ' hermitess ' ?

Kevin

[kevkev57]

'One Sunday morning while we were enjoying the one morning we get to sleep in they came in to our yard at about 7.45 am  Huh?  After that we kind of felt violated '

You have hit the nail right on thre hoof, or something like that.

Can you imagine the same person coming to visit a chicken at this time ? For its morning rub down, carrot and pat ?   What is my point ? Not sure  really , but there seems to be a bias to horses going on here. When was the last time you saw someone take their favourite two sheep out for a drive in the trailer ? Or across country for a rodeo or whatever you call it.

Kevin

[Kerrygirl]

I dint really give my chickens any pat downs but when you see the horses enjoying it then its nice.  I also don't take them for drives as they can be impossible to load (again I will admit I am too soft for the larger animals!) but my Red Setter is great company when I am driving!  I must say I am on the fence with this one though on one hand sharing your privacy with others is quite hard and then as I said in my introduction I used to ask Santa for a horse every year for a long time - so I have always loved them. 

Last Sunday evening when I was pottering around the front of the house feeding all my small animals, a man and a toddler came to the back of our house following a cat and were petting him.  I was on the phone to my sister so I didn't acknowledge them as I did not want to seem too inviting.  Had all animals sorted at front of house and then had to feed my two mares when I heard the same man and child our the back of our sheds!  Which meant they were wondering about our farm.  I then heard him say to the child "come on and we will go over to the horses", to do this you are walking right across our yard to them.  I then asked them if I could help them and he replied "Oh we are just taking a walk around", I then told him that we are not running an open farm to take a walk around, I also stated that farms are dangerous places to be about when he said "I F*!"ing well know farms are dangerous, I also stated that all our animals are farm animals and not pets and that if they would like to see them then they are most welcome to look in from the road but not to enter our premises again.  After they left I felt really unnerved as I didn't like the thought of strangers wandering around our farm without any invitation. Honestly people are strange! 

[Fluffywelshsheep]

OMG to swear in front of children as well, so people are unbelievable, I love animals too but would never go in to a farm/house unless it was business or i had been invited in , I would 'pat' a horse on the side of a road/field. Some people are so weird.

[doganjo]

I used to ask Santa for a horse every year for a long time - so I have always loved them. 

He he, me too.  When I left school I never seemed to have both the time and the money at the same time so have never managed to have one.  Guess I'm too late now.

But everyone needs their own space so other people should respect that.

Yes, Kev, if you decide to allow your friends to let the field you should lay down horse visiting times - not before say 8 am, not after 6pm in winter, maybe later in summer as people like to go on evening rides down country lanes.  It's your land, it's your life and it's your right!  I'm horrified at that man a) wandering around someone else's property without permission, b) giving his child the wrong impression that it's permissible to do so and c)swearing in front of a young child.

[sunnyjohn]

Hi Kev,

I can identify so well with your 'story' and your plight re the horses. And your story-telling skills are priceless. It was almost like reading a chapter on Joanna Harris' 'Chocolat'! You should consider writing in your spare time  - OK, what's 'spare time'?

I agree with your / others' comments re privacy / violation. Maybe it's an 'English' phenomenon; 'The Englishman's Home is his Castle' syndrome? By nature of its' location, farming and its' cousins; smallholding, forestry and nurseries, are usually isolated from urban settings. Whether people take up the activity because they like isolation, or they prefer isolation because they become used to it is debateable; both may apply.... But like many, I like being able to 'do my thing' without offending anyone, nor anyone infringing my freedom and privacy.

Like many on the forum, I'm sure, I've extended the hand of friendship and offered help, only to find later that there's an unexpected 'price' in the form of people wanting something 'extra'; dropping in unannounced or feeling they have some rights I never intended to give. It's not that I'm especially unwelcoming, but I do like to have some control over what I do, when, and for whom. Like when I'm in the middle of doing something and visitors (however nice and welcome) drop in and stop me completing it. Have you ever felt, like I have, that you're part of a conversation, but another part of you is somewhere else, mentally working on the job you'd started, or the problem you were trying to solve?

Some years ago, when I was keeping bees in Warwickshire, I was approached by a friend of a friend to park my bees on his farm to help pollinate his crops. It was beans that first year, and it proved a mutually beneficial arrangement. I got more honey, and he got more beans. His farm was over a mile from the nearest, rural road, and they rarely had visitors. A notice by the road gave a phone number to check if they were in, and asked unsolicited callers not to bother. I was politely asked to arrange visits in advance. I respected that, and rather sympathised, quite wishing to emulate their life-style. Farmers are not always rich, of course  , but with a spot of spare land close by the house, and farm machinery to use, this family had built a swimming pool. In the summer, the farmer's young children, and sometimes the parents if they had time, would play in their 'garden' and frolick in the pool, all as naked as nature intended. Apparently I was accepted as a kindred spirit, after a few conversations around the subject, as, despite arranging my visits when they were convenient, I often found the kids romping around 'sun-clad', and the farmer's wife, too, a couple of times! It was no hardship, I should add! And when I was dressed up like a 'spaceman' in my bee kit, on swealtering days, I seriously envied them....

I've moved from that area now and I no longer have any contact with them, but aspects of their lifestyle were appealling and remain something I'd aspire to. OK; I'm well aware how there are times when the rain's p*ssing down and the wind howls, and you have livestock to look after or your crops are being dashed to the ground and ruined. After all, Thomas Hardy's 'The Mayor of Casterbridge' was written from fairly real life! But the balmy days hopefully make up for a few rotten ones.

Your description of your kids is so evocative. I can picture them.... Please write more and let us hear more of your 'ramblings' and have a peek into your privacy. I/we promise not to call on you at unsocial times or bring all my friends/family along...! Thanks, Kev.

John