You Can't Never Tell

You just can’t never tell.

That’s a southern saying I’ve heard my whole life. I hadn’t used it very much until I moved out to the country. Now I rather like it. It just fits some things. Like…

Spring has really sprung around here.

I find myself basking in the warm sunlight, thinking of where to plant a garden, NOT MISSING the SNOW!

What?! Me? NOT missing the snow?! That’s crazy talk.

But true. I’m not. It was wonderful while it lasted. But I’m okay with the arrival of warm spring weather. Even my daughter and Blue, the dog, were out in the front meadow spinning and dancing with joy on our first warm, sunny day. (Can you see the flower headband around her head? My flower, hippy farm child.)

See? You just can’t never tell. We loved our first winter here at the farm. But looks like we’re going to love our spring too!

We even bought matching new spring shoes at The Great Wal for $1 each pair. No kidding! $1.00 for mine; $1.00 for hers. (Yes, call me BIG SPENDER.)

And.

Out in the middle of our pasture, all by itself, we found these jonquils. They had to have been planted by a squirrel or a chipmunk. It was a beautiful surprise. They weren’t just plain, basic jonquils either. They were frilly and delicate.

You just can’t never tell what you’ll find.

Oh, and the farm vet came to visit my horses for the first time.

My Great White Horse somehow, somewhere, some way got a very large cut on his handsome head.

And. The new Rocky Mountain horse, Snickers, needed shots and his teeth “floated.”

(“Floated” is horse language for “filed down.” I think horse owners say “floated” because it sounds like more fun when you tell the horses about it. “Hey Snickers, you’re going to have your teeth floated today!” He looks up at you and says, “Okay-fine.” Yep, that sounds much less scary than “Hey Snickers, you’re going to have your teeth FILED DOWN today.” In which case, he’d run up the mountain to the upper pasture and I’d never catch him.)

And. Lord have mercy, the colt, Jessi, needed to be “gelded.”

(“Gelded” is horse language for “castrated.” I think horse owners say “gelded” because it sounds like more fun when you tell the horses about it. “Hey Jessi, You’re going to be gelded today.” He looks up at you and says, “Okay-fine.” Yep, that sounds much less scary than “Hey Jessi, you’re going to be CASTRATED today.” In which case, he’d run up the mountain to the upper pasture and I’d never catch him. Or maybe never see him again in this particular situation.)

But since I had learned “horse talk” already, it went smoothly. I gave the horses the medical news and they said “Okay-fine.” However, I MYSELF dreaded this day for weeks. When the vet’s office asked me, I told them—no, they certainly could not count on ME to assist. Please bring help with you, I said.

And then the day arrived.

I, myself, had actually doctored The Great White Horse’s wound. Yes, I cleaned out the large gash on his forehead, and had been putting horse wound care ointment on it. Me.

That is very UNLIKE me. I don’t do blood. I don’t do injury. Especially on such a Great Big Creature who…..have I mentioned?…..is moody. But this I did. And I did a good job. So, as it turns out: You can’t never tell. By the time the doctor came to out to the farm, The Great White Horse was looking good. No need to any further medical intervention. Check me out. ha!

So, Snickers was next on the list. He got all his shots and then was sedated a bit. The vet put this weird contraption on Snickers’ head to keep his mouth open.

And then he filed any sharp teeth down so he could eat easier.

As it turned out Snickers ALSO had an eye infection. He had injured his right eye somehow and needed all kinds of drops and ointments. He would have to stay locked in the barn for 5 days. Poor Snickers. He thought it was over with the teeth. Nope, he had 5 days of misery ahead locked in the barn all alone.You just can’t never tell.

And Jessi. Poor, poor Jessi.

Jessi walked right into the round pen, enjoying all the attention. Yeah! Lots of people to play with! He had no inkling of what was in store for him. (Can’t never tell.) I had started feeling queasy during the Snickers treatment, so I hung back at the barn for Jessi’s.

He received some super strong sedatives and the next thing you know…

He’s down and they’re working…

I’m feeling even sicker at my stomach at this point. Almost like I’m going to throw up.

I never imagined I’d react this strongly to Jessi’s gelding procedure.

You just can’t never tell.

Finally. It was over and he was back up. Everything went well. The doctor offered to give the, uh, let’s say, product of the surgery to our dogs. I hollered, “No thanks,” from the barn, so they were tossed out into the pasture by the creek. Can I throw up now? No, not yet.

But soon and very soon I could. You see, it turns out that I had caught my daughter’s stomach virus. It wasn’t me being a weakling afterall, it was a flu!

You can’t never tell.

Meanwhile, back in my kitchen:

I had something rising under this towel while all the commotion was going on in my barn and in my pasture.

What’s under the towel?

BREAD!

Rosemary Bread

So I came in and I baked it. But I didn’t get to enjoy it’s deliciousness.

I went to bed for the next 2 days with the stomach flu.

You know what? It occurs to me as I write this that “You just can’t never tell” means one thing and one thing only. It means YOU CAN ALWAYS TELL. It doesn’t mean you CAN’T; it means you CAN.

Because. Remember the double negative rule from English? A double negative makes a positive. So you can not never tell means you can tell.

So, there you go. You really can always tell. I think that’s true now that I consider it. Yes.

• Spring follows winter and is a delightful change.
• Spring brings yellow flowers and cheap new shoes and causes people to dance (in the front meadow or in the office parking lot.)
• We are all stronger than we think. We can and will take care of whatever needs to be done.
• And you can always find something yummy rising under a towel in the kitchen.

So until next time, Friends, savor the flavor of life!

Do what you need to do!

Lots of love, The City Farmgirl, Rebekah

 

Rosemary Bread

• 1 TBSP yeast
• 1 TBSP sugar
• 1 cup water, warm
• 2 1/2 cups bread flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp dried crushed rosemary
• 2 TBSP butter

Directions:

1. Place yeast, sugar and water in a large bowl and allow mixture to become bubbly.
2. Mix in 1 TBSP melted butter (not hot), salt and 2 cups flour.
3. Add rosemary.
4. Knead for 10 minutes by hand until smooth and elastic (or 5 minutes in food processor).
5. Put dough in oiled bowl and cover with towel.
6. Let rise in warm place until doubled (about 1 hour.)
7. Punch down and divide in half. Let rest 5 miutes.
8. Spray cooking sheet with cooking spray.
9. Shape dough into 2 small round loaves.
10. Sprinkle a tad of rosemary on top and press down lightly into surface.
11. Place on prepared cooking sheet and let rise again, covered, until doubled (about 1 hour.)
12. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
13. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned. Brush with remaining butter.
14. YUM!