Winter Woes at the Farm

Winter storms have dumped about 71" of snow in Connecticut in January, and dealing with it has been a monumental problem at the farm. Reaching the barn has meant shoveling and re-shoveling a path through snow knee-high or deeper.  Clearing the driveway to the barn has been impossible, which means bags of grain and bales of straw must be dragged to the barn on sleds. Complicating matters, Len fell on January 21st carrying a bale of straw down wooden steps and broke a rib or two. Laid up for the better part of a week, he's on the mend and has been slowly able to take on a little of the farm chores and ongoing clearing of the layers of accumulated snow. Unfortunately, more winter storms are forecast for later this week.

Mike off to China!

On January 4th Mike left for a 14 month teaching assignment in Chongquing China.  He will be teaching English at the Aston School.  Although he was not scheduled to start teaching until January 12th, he was "thrown into the deep water" as he put it within days of his arrival.  His emails have been very effusive about his early experience of Chinese culture in Chongquing, the food, and friendly encounters with locals and attempts to communicate.  In a word, he "loves China!"