Holy critters, is my job cool! Forget everything you've learned about dairy farmers, because there's a new cat in town and her name is Lucy and she's shaking shit up. Actually she's blindly feeling her way around the goat farm trying her best to learn everything quicker than quack. Just got back from my first milking shift and I feel exhilarated and ready to clean everything in sight. A huge part of working at a raw milk dairy is cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.
I used to think of myself as a messy and disorganized individual, my parents can attest to that. But as I've grown up, I've seen myself change into someone who values order and cleanliness. This morning Peter and I went for a walk around the neighborhood after breakfast and upon re-entering our little house, I had to remark on how stinkin' clean it was! Have I transformed?
So milking, what fun! I love the animals, and I think that is a huge part of enjoying this job. Even the annoying bastardy goats are interesting and responsive to my tone and mood. I appreciate the give-and-take involved in animal husbandry, the "reciprocity" if you will-- because these guys really do pick up on the human who's handling them. Tonight, although it was my first shift working at this farm and I've only ever milked 3 goats (as opposed to thirty-something)...I really felt like I got into the groove. There is a lot to think about and manage at one time when you have eight goats up on the milking stand. I'm used to only having one. But I got into the flow and really enjoyed myself.
Shout out to Smart Wool for keeping my feet warm while I worked in the cold for 3 hours in 30 degree weather and to fleece-lined Wranglers for keeping my booty hot. Such a great first day on the job! Can't wait to get back out there, to keep rockin' and farmin'. It's good to be back on a farm, lemme tell ya.
Now a farmer's gotta get her beauty rest.
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