Things have been tough here at Chuckling Goat the past week, and I have that nasty feeling that someone has located my last nerve and has been shredding it with a carefully sharpened fork....slowly! Bleurgh!
Let's see, what all has gone pear-shaped? Well, first my water kefir grains, carefully stashed in the fridge, ready to make coconut water kefir when the labels arrived, have died. At least, some of them have. I've been hovering over the bucket every day, prodding it hopefully, and only a few bubbles come up. where there should be masses, as the water kefir eats the sugar and produces its fermenting magic. Looks like just a few of the grains have rehydrated, and the rest are turning into an un-appealing mush.
I am so reluctant to admit that they're actually dead, fooling myself that they're just resting, just re-hydrating, checking them every day...but finally have to admit - the water kefir grains are goners!
So I order some more, wait for them to arrive, now they have to spend a week sitting in mineral water and organic sugar to revive them. All this before we can even hope to start on our long-awaited coconut water kefir, which like a mirage, seems to get further away, the more I chase it....aargh....
Then Rich and Benji both come down with some sort of stomach flu-headache-dizziness combo that puts them both out of action and flat on their backs in the lounge. We're so rarely ill on the farm that the menfolk, at least, don't cope very well! (and I'm not doing a great job either, let's be honest...sigh...)
With Rich out of commission I'm doing his bit and mine as well, taking the bins out, doing the school run, doing the morning milking, trying to get fluids down the invalids, rushing to the shop to get them yogurt and crackers when they can finally sit up, and in the meantime trying to put some new labels together in advance of our foray to the Allergy & Free From show, in Liverpool on Oct 26-27. We've never done anything like this before, and I'm frankly terrified out of my wits!
Thank goodness for our wonderful helper Emma, who has been a rock through everything, and her boyfriend Stuart is here helping out as well, so it's not as grim as it might be.
Also on the up-side is our brilliant young designer, Hanuman, who has stoically and patiently endured all of my rapid-fire and stressed-out instructions, and come up with some gorgeous designs, met every deadline. Top man!
Down-side, we've been selling out of everything lately (well, that bit is good, anyway!) and so have run smack-dab out of the polystyrene that we use to pack the frozen boxes. They can't deliver more until Thursday, meaning that we won't be able to ship out until Monday next week. Double-aaargh!
But Rich now seems to have finally turned the corner and has dragged himself out to milk tonight, bless him, but Benji is still lording it over everyone in his 7-year-old-emperor fashion, dressing gown knotted in lordly style.
At least they both seem to be on the mend, thank goodness. Not sure I could have survived many more days of man flu...
