Goodbye 2018. 2019, bring it!

2018 and I said our good-byes in a big way this weekend.

When we moved in to this house almost 7 years ago I was excited to see copper pipes. This year, or maybe last year, I learned that when copper pipes age they develop pin hole leaks. I have now had they pleasure of the company of plumbers 4, well actually 5, times to replace or repair sections of pipe because of these leaks. Friday the most recent pin hole burst open, thankfully in a place that did much less damage than the last one. I want to start by saying I have an excellent plumber, if you need a recommendation. But he has been in great demand this weekend. He got to me Saturday morning. Friday night I turned off the water to the house after filling up some jugs and buckets. Saturday afternoon, less than an hour after he left, the pipe was spraying a mist on the basement wall in the same spot. I was also working in the basement while he was here, so I know he was working hard on the leak. He was as frustrated as I was to hear that it was leaking again.

He tried to come back Saturday evening but I couldn't stay up late enough until he finished another job. On Sunday, circumstances beyond his control kept him away. On those days I turned the water on long enough each day to refill my water carriers; enough to drink, wash my hands and flush the toilet a couple of times. He came back today and fixed it. I just ran downstairs to double check to make sure it wasn't spraying again. Fixed. It's good to have water on demand.

Also on Friday I got a text with these pictures.

You may remember that about 5 months ago I gave three goats to Chattahoochee Hills magnet school for their agriculture program; two does, Dena and her daughter Qunita and Dena's boy (neutered) Paco.

 I've been to visit them since then and met the other goats in the pen with them that included a couple of bucks. So Thursday or Friday Dena had two babies. I think they are both girls, but I didn't really get to look closely enough. They were squirmy and not used to being handled. I got the okay from my friend who is the principal (who had sent me the photos of Dena and her babies), and Saturday I went by the school to visit. Dena looks a little ragged, as you do when you've just dropped two babies, but the babies are gorgeous. I also noticed that Quinta is pregnant. She has a full udder, and I expect will probably drop hers soon. I asked my friend to make sure he tells me when hers are born. This time I will remember to take raisins to the new moms.

Sunday was kinda chill and laid back. Just before time to start evening feeding and lock-up I made a run for Chinese take-out, ice cream and bourbon. A girl's gotta have her treats.

This morning was business as usual, up just before sunrise to feed everybody and milk Daisy. It wasn't until a couple of hours later, after coffee and breakfast, that I realized a tree had fallen on a fence and goats were out. I don't know if you can picture this, and sorry, I was a little too frantic for actually taking pictures, but when I walked up the hill to check on the goats, everything looked fine until I realized that when Daisy and her babies walked by the fence post between their pen and the very open field next to it, they were on the wrong side of the fence post. I should not see the fence post in front of them when they walk by it. Shit! I had just casually walked up their in a pair of Crocks (don't judge!) that I usually wear only around the house, especially when the mud is this deep. I carefully walked into their pen, around mud holes to see if I could get them back in. I got alfalfa out of the storage shed to tempt them back in to the feeder, but I couldn't compete with the greenery on the other side of the fence. I had to run back to the house for my boots and some pears. I got them back inside the fence but couldn't keep them there. As soon as I went to the open spot to try pulling the fence back into place, they followed me to see what I was doing and went back through to the other side to munch.
I don't know my neighbor on that side very well, but I have his phone number, so I sent a text to see if he was at home. He and his teenage son graciously came over to help me keep the goats in while we fixed the fence. It is very much a patch job, but it should keep the goats where they belong for now. Tomorrow morning I will take a walk around the larger fenced area to make sure there are no other gaps.

Plumbing problems, new goat babies to visit and a goat break-out have made for a kinda hectic last few days of the year. But I'm gonna call it a successful weekend. Plumbing is fixed; babies are adorable, and my goats are back inside repaired fences with the bonus of having friendly helpful neighbors.

As I write this the fireworks and gunfire for New Year's Eve have already started at just after 8pm. Every New Year's Eve and July 4th I listen to gunfire knowing that the bullets fired into the night sky by drunken revelers, come back down with enough force to injure or kill a goat or chicken. And every year I promise myself I will put better roofs on their shelters. Sigh.

Here's hoping we all have a happy and successful new year.