Friday, February 11, 2011

Sharp Predictions

It was a 'brisk" MINUS 25 below zero at 7 am here in the wilds of Vermont.
I checked on the cows early this morning and all was well with them.

However, the pump head was frozen.  I shoveled out an area until I found the extension cord to the heating tape and discovered that the weight of the snow had disconnected the 2 cords.  I plugged it back in and in 30 minutes the pump was warm and I could pull the handle up.

Then the pump nozzle exploded into 2 pieces and almost took my knee cap off.
I went to the local hardware store to get a replacement part and finally got water to the herd.




I hoped for an easier experience later in the day when I returned again for the evening watering.

So.........later....
As I slowly drove down the road this afternoon to water the herd, I noticed something fall out of a tree on the side of the road ahead of me.

It looked like a big snowy birds nest may have been knocked loose out of its branch by the storm of last week and finally fell out onto the snow bank and then slid onto the road right in front of me .

However, as I drove by the snow covered "nest" it moved......and started walking........

I hit my brakes and stopped.

Granted, I needed a distraction from the latest disaster at the farm, but not a weird one that I couldn't explain.

I grabbed my camera and started following it.

As it walked, the snow dusted off it and it became more obvious what this unusual creature was.  I looked up into the nearby trees to see if any more of these "nests" were going to fall out of the sky and into the snow banks below.




After I made sure my new friend was safely off the road, I continued to the farm and watered my cows and chatted with a few folks who stopped by.  I told them of the unusual creature who fell out of the sky and into the snowbank.
Their eyes widened as I told the story.  I was thinking they thought I had gone off the deep end, considering the events of the last 7 weeks, but no...... instead they told me............there is a saying in these parts of Vermont that "if porcupines fall out of trees in February, then cows will be out on grass by May."

and.....

That if you actually SEE porcupines fall out of trees you are supposed to eat picnic eggs, (otherwise known as deviled eggs in civilized areas) so that the hay fields will have higher yields.




Ok, I admit to being gullible.....but..... I DO know that my cows need lots of hay in the winter, and I will do everything in my power to make that happen so of course I came home and told my bizarre story.  

Next thing I know my 94 year old housemate is boiling eggs and mixing Miracle Whip.



She takes this porcupine-falling-out-of-tree thing very seriously!

The fields in this area WILL have high yields and sweet grasses!!!!





And I got to eat real picnic eggs in February, all thanks to a very unusual meeting with a solitary porcupine who fell out of a tree.

Move over Punxsutawney Phil, theres a new boy in town and his predictions are geared towards farmers!!!


27 comments:

  1. I have sat here and laughed and laughed. That is the best story I have ever heard and so glad you had your camera with you. It has been a very hard 7 weeks. :) That is amazing I think I like that better than that ole ground hog. I didn't even know porcupines got in trees. So glad you got to have picnic eggs.
    I couldn't believe my eyes when you said that that water pump blew apart in two pieces. AT least it didn't hit your knee cap.
    I will keep praying for you.
    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow. I would have loved to see that. I hope the predictions work.

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a day! Never heard the one about Porcupines , but Its a good one to know . And any excuse to eat Deviled eggs is a good one for me!

    ReplyDelete
  4. How funny! I've never seen a porcupine around here...but any excuse to eat deviled eggs is a good one! :) And I sure hope your fields have high yields!

    ReplyDelete
  5. oh how strange! i have never heard of that before and i am so glad you shared this wonderful experience! one would think it would get hurt falling out of a tree...so weird. its little eye is so cute peeping at the camera. i am so sorry to hear about the little calf who had to be put down. such a shame. grampie had huge snows in the old days. wonder why their roofs didn't fall in. my aunt has always gotten her roof cleared in montpelier and would complain about the costs but she was smart and kept the snow off. i hear those roof 'shovels' are hard to come by this year...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh my. From tears for Tiny Tim to tears of laughter! At times of frustration, my husband often suggests we leave Colorado and move to Vermont. As I share your stories with him, he may be changing his mind. Hope your knee isn't too sore. cheers. ann

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a great story! I have never heard of it before but I like it. I love "picnic" eggs...yum!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Geez, you come across some doozies!

    I'd tend to think this one would be more accurate, just because it would happen far less frequently.

    So let's hope this omen you are sharing works!!

    But here, I hope they are on grass in April, just like last year.... (I wonder what has to predict that...)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great photos ~ and how I hope those predictions are true! You had me chuckling ~ although it is not funny with happened to your pump and I do hope your knee is ok

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lucky you to see the porky pine! I've only see one on our property, about 25 years ago. Luckily, it's been longer than that since any dogs have come home with a "snout-full" of quills!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow. We got snow here in IN, but you really did get so much more! Since you visited my blog and asked so many questions about our "chicken tractor", here are the answers. My husband built it on top of some old wagon gear we already had. He says it's probably 14' x 8'. He says he made it like you would a hay wagon rack, but he made the sides go DOWN instead of UP. In the winter, it resides atop my garden, and in the summer, it stays in the yard, and we pull it around once a day. I have the greenest grass on our road, when it's not a drought, that is! Thanks for visiting!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Here's to high yields and sweet grasses!!!!....and picnic eggs!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. That was a great story! Hope it comes true for you ! I know you are so ready for all that snow to be gone. Hope you have a great week :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I've never seen a porky fall out of a tree. We have them all over around here. I've never heard that prediction either, but I like it. Early pastures would be a great thing.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Interesting story, and funny too. I don't think we have Porcupines around here. The only one I've ever seen was in a zoo.

    Came here from BPOTW.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Only in Vermont. But I'm going to remember it just in case it works in Alberta too.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Wow that is a funny story. I didn't even know that porcupines climbed trees!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I have never in my life heard of such a thing, but that is quite hilarious!

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a great post. It is so funny the porcupine landing like that. I love the way you wrote this experience. Nice pics. B

    ReplyDelete
  20. Pretty cool! I haven't seen any porcupines out and about, but when I do I'm eating deviled eggs. Here is to rich farm ground this sping!

    Linda
    http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete
  21. That is a really funny story! I love that you got to eat some picnic eggs in February, and that the hay fields will have higher yields this year - and all because you happened to be at the right place at the right time and witness that porcupine falling out of the tree. I just love this. Oh, and I'm glad you got the water pump working.

    ReplyDelete
  22. what a great story! and how funny that this is actually a saying! happy deviled egging.

    ReplyDelete
  23. oh dear I hope spring does come a little early and maybe I need to make a batch of eggs to help things along!

    great shots...

    ReplyDelete
  24. What a great story! And what timing you had to be there at just the moment he fell! Enjoy your picnic eggs. =>

    ReplyDelete
  25. What a great story! Seems that porcupines are taken very seriously in Vermont! And picnic eggs! Who would have thought they would figure into the mix :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Pretty amazing I would say. Mighty suggest you go buy a lottery ticket of some sort .m

    ReplyDelete
  27. What a perfect story.

    I would use any excuse to make and eat devilled eggs!

    This was such a fun post!

    Thanks for sharing it.

    A+

    ReplyDelete