If I was only as flexible as my schedule...

You all know by now, that any real work (as opposed to the kind I get paid for) has to be squeezed in on the weekend.  Amid errands, parental visit, etc.  We won't even open the topic of a social life.  In order to keep this six ring circus in motion, I have to plan very carefully.  But, really, why do I bother?

Case in point:  This weekend I have GOT to clean out the chicken coop - I can do it in one day, if I don't mind living on Ibuprofen for a week.  Both days are forecast with only a chance of rain, so I am hopeful.  The shearer was scheduled to come early Sunday morning.  And there is a perennial gardening class that I really, really want to attend at a local library at 11 on Saturday.  I'm supposed to meet someone for coffee at a town twenty minutes away the same day.  Not too bad, you say.  She's got two days to do four things.

Here's the reality.  The sheep need to be kept inside so at least they are somewhat dry.  The llama - due to the endless and polar-vortex-laden winter - decided that she was only placing her hiney two feet out of the run-in shed all winter to deposit her llama beans.  This growing pile, in turn, got trodden down, frozen, doused with hay, frozen some more, more beans, more hay, more ice.  You get the picture?  It is not pretty.  It is also a solid 12+ inches of muck.  Some of it still frozen.  And because of this barrier, the gate to the run-in shed is not usable.  And it has rained every freakin weekend which put the kabosh on me digging it out.  Ergo, they cannot be contained.

This means I have to play musical chairs with the goaties and come up with a dry space that will also be more contained - my sheep are not well-behaved when it comes to putting your hands on them (other than scritches and graham-cracker-giving).  Plan B has been developing in the wee hours of the morning, as I lay, sleepless, running the loop.  I plan(ned) to put the goaties in the side portion of their run, partitioned off with a cattle panel fastened (somehow) between barn and fence.  This will free up the barn for the sheep.  Notice how I am ignoring the llama?  The arrangement should not been a trial for the goats - only one night that they need to squeeze into the Dogloo.  Easy-peasy getting the sheep in and confined and very easy to get my hands on them.

Have you noticed the past tense creeping in?

The shearer now has a conflict and needs to come Saturday afternoon.  I now need to do almost everything in one day.  This wouldn't be quite as stressful if it wasn't going to rain all week.  I am hoping that it does not rain on Friday - too much - because I need to separate the goats Friday night and get the barrier put up and sheep in the barn.  Did I mention that I also have to deconstruct the goat feeder in order to accommodate the sheep?  And do this all after I get home from work at 6:30?  No?

Saturday now looks like this - much screaming all day by the goats who are now put upon.  Much pacing and carrying on by the llama, who is now separated from her sheep.  Me jettisoning down to the class to quietly sit and take notes (hahahaha).  Me jettisoning further down to have coffee with a friend and a nice, leisurely conversation (hahahaha).  Me jettisoning back north to meet the shearer and rassle sheep.  At least I'll have all day to relax and shovel out the chicken coop.