Category: Goat Love

My Top Life Moments from 2024!

Posted on by Markman

The Year in Review

In no particular order this year because how could I rank them, each one was awesome in it’s own way. Actually the last one I mention was probably the best. Can you guess what it was before scrolling all the way down?

First Up, Baby Bunnies born in the flowerpot on the deck, again!

I awoke, to my utter surprise one morning, to notice that three baby bunnies had been born in the same old flowerpot that previous generations of buns had been born in, running around the deck, in between the various pots. I suppose we were first alerted to their presence when we realized that Carson never came up to the bed last night. He was watching the bunny action apparently. We put out some carrot strings in the afternoon and by early evening, they were eaten, most likely by the one bunny that is still hanging around, although after today, I would imagine it will be on it’s way to it’s life’s adventure.

Visiting my first Salt cave Experience!

We had a “free” couple of days to stay at the Cape which we obtained last summer so we finally decided to use it up this weekend. So back down to Earth-3 we went. (Earth-3 being the place down the Cape that we regularly stay at – a time share that we have). So we arrived Friday night and we ended up using a gift certificate to a local restaurant that we’ve gone to a bunch of times and got rid of that. (The gift certificate was also a “freebie” since they messed up our later last time and this was the way amends were made). So that all worked out quite well.

Some other fun things we got to do on this mini-vacation was, as usual, our multiple visits to the Chocolate Sparrow, a place we love to get our treats from. We grabbed a brunch from a place called Grumpies and they weren’t grumpy at all. In fact, I’d say the food was actually really good. I would go back there. We got much needed massages from a lady we know down there who is amazing, and those felt really good. Late Saturday night LD got me a surprise experience, my first, being in a meditative salt cave. So that was pretty cool. The weather wasn’t all that great, a bit rainy at times and quite windy which made the air very cold, but nature is nature! We used the down time to catch up on some of our reading.

The Saco Maine Getaway Pre Prelude!

Saco, Maine sunrise

This was being back from a relaxing weekend getaway in Saco and Kennebunkport Maine. The sunrises in Saco were amazing and we stayed in the cutest little Airbnb right on the water. Would stay there again for sure! On Small business Saturday KPT had all these sales if you wore your pajamas so that’s what we did! Oh, we met up with our pal Em to hang out this weekend as well, and we got to meet Boomer and Pippa (not shown) again! A lot of shopping and laughs were had. It’s not as busy there as it would be during prelude but it’s pretty much the same vibe more or less so in some ways it’s better. Again, it was fun hanging out with Em, and the dogs with her pops, and again, the amazing sunrises right on the water. Thankfully it wasn’t even that cold, considering. It was nice to be able to have a little getaway to take a break from all the stressors of life.

You can click the pics below for a bigger version. There’s a new version of the gallery tool now even though I preferred the old one but that currently isn’t working with the latest update so I have to use this. The snow globe I climbed in could have been inflated more (thanks town!) and a quick side trip to OOB didn’t really add too much but KPT is always top notch. Ultimately it’s all about the views, the scenery, the friends and the laughs. Oh, the pajama Saturday shot of the three of us was actually taken by someone on the Chamber of Commerce pages for the towns of Kennebunk, KPT, and Arundel so we’re also on those websites. That wasn’t a planned thing, the lady just saw us and wanted to post us!

Oh, and yes, I am wearing Pac man pajamas and believe it or not, I actually got quite a lot of comments on compliments on then from many different people!

Visiting the Island of Nantucket with Great Friends!

Finally got to revisit Nantucket, it had been about 10 years since the last time we went and never over top this particular side of the island.

I loved the Sconset Bluff Walk. This trail is truly loaded with beautiful views. It makes me so happy I got to walk along it! The experience is constantly changing. One minute you’re walking through a quiet neighborhood, the next you’re passing through a yard and the next you’re walking under a canopy of trees. Flowers, birds, pathways to the water, and places to stop and take in the scenery are in abundance. This walk can be quick or long, depending on how much time you have. It’s a great place for a leisurely stroll or a more invigorating hike. Either way, you’re sure to enjoy the stunning views. I sure did!

I have to also express my gratitude to our wonderful hosts who were so kind to invite us to spend a few days with them on this beautiful island. They were so kind and generous with their time and hospitality, and I really appreciate it. We thoroughly enjoyed the beach, seeing the sights, and all the great meals and places we got to see like the Brotherhood and Millie’s and Claudette’s. I hope we can repay the favor one day.

I’m also so grateful for the opportunity to visit the rose-covered cottages in Nantucket. The winding lanes and idyllic scenery transport you to a simpler time. Each cottage has its own unique blend of architecture and blooming roses, which make it a one-of-a-kind experience. The smell of roses and salty sea breeze (and it was pretty breezy at times!) is a relaxing combination that invites visitors to immerse themselves in the serene beauty of Siasconset. It was a perfect place to slow down and enjoy the beauty of nature.

Pig Yoga? You Read That Right!

So much fun! I was surprised at how fun it actually was! Then it was an afternoon by the pool, a night of grilling and doing a fire pit. Beautiful day! One of LD’s childhood friends came up and did it with us while she was visiting, along with some other activities over those few days in the summer.

Group Shot! (I’m holding the bunny!)

Rhode Island Trolls and Elephants!

For my Birthday LD and I got to check out some amazing sights in the beautiful coastal areas of Rhode Island. First up, was a drive down to the charming community of Charleston, RI, a place we had never been. We were there to see the trolls Greta and Erik. There’s a bunch of these trolls up in Maine at the Botanical gardens, which I may get to check out and some point, but these two are newer and closer. I had a little bit of a hard time finding Greta, but LD, with her amazing tracking skills, was able to locate her pretty quickly. A nice woman who works at the senior center there nearby gave us some great tips on where to go and find them! (Each picture below is clickable to see a larger version).

Greta!
Erik
If you’re a troll park here

We were going to eat at a local place in Charleston but after a while that didn’t seem like the greatest idea so we headed over to Narraganset and ate at a place called The Coast Guard House, which amazing is literally right next to the Towers in a building that used to be a Coast Guard Life Saving Station back in the 1880s until the 1940s. The views there are amazing and the food was excellent, also the prices weren’t that bad! (I did get a little tipsy again on some drinks).

tipsy!

Then it was off the beautiful town of Newport to check out the installation of the elephant migration. We ended up going to the ones at Salve Regina University, although there’s some at the Breakers and a couple of other locations. The amount of detail on the elephants is truly amazing! We spent quite a bit of time there, plus it’s right along the cliff walk which is beautiful.

We finished off the day with a giant pizza! What a great day! Today I’m off to my very first ever reflexology appointment – we’ll see how that goes!

Oh, I almost forgot! I got some great gifts too! A Dunkins gift card from our friend Em, a foot massager, some capybara socks and a capybara shirt (I love capys!) , and some more fireflies to help light up the night in the back patio!

Giant Hungry Hungry Hippos!

This game was amazing, have to see if one exists in our area and if so need to get some pals on board to challenge us!

A Summertime Family Visit

Family came to visit this particular weekend. Sort of an impromptu visit but it was a good one. Friday night I grilled and we did a firepit as everyone got settled. Saturday we went to the DeCordova Museum in the afternoon to check out some sights, get some photo ops, etc. The hearts are the best thing there in my opinion but that slanted house which is a newer installation was also pretty cool. Naturally we had to pose with it, along with some other installations. Had pizza in the afternoon at the hotel, and then headed to the beach in the late afternoon for some swim time. I think the dog had the best time of all!

Sunday was another low key day, breakfasts and then I watched the dog while everyone went to the pool to cool off and/or exercise. I will say the dog was extremely well behaved and such a pleasure to be around. Such a sweet dog. Not sure how Carson felt about everything but he got through it. Late afternoon was another grilling session, LD and one guest helped with some amazing sides, and even had the landlady down the street over to join.

All in all it was a pretty amazing time! Go figure!

.I will admit, I am a little fried at the moment. Geez, it’s tough to get older!

Getting to Meet and Hold ‘4-Day!’

Baaaaaaa-mazing!
Cute jacket!
Howdy!
An ear biter!
Falling asleep

Hanging out with these baby goats this afternoon at a place in Northborough, Massachusetts was simply, “Baaaaaaa-mazing!” The goat from the video below we were told was only 4 days old! He has quite a set of lungs on him! Another goat also got to biting my ear, which while kind of funny, also hurt a teeny bit! And then a third goat fell asleep in my arms- she was a sweetheart. We did get an amazing picture and video out of it all!

A 4 day old baby goat that had a lot to say!

Honorable Mentions before we get to the Final!

I’ll just link the entries here because this post is getting WAY too long!

…But the Bestest Moment Has to go to….

We got to partake in an amazing experience, getting to cuddle and play with a pair of capybaras! I love them! Their fur feels like straw. I never thought in a million years I’d ever be able to play with a capybara, let alone two. I remember seeing this animal in a zoo a few years ago and only learned about their existence a few scant years ago. To me, they seem to be the next up and coming “big thing.” We also go to see a wallaby which had a baby popping it’s head out of her pouch every now and again, which was cool to see, and a special cat, some yaks, alpacas and, of course, some goats, but the capybaras were the stars of the show for me! We were lucky to even get into this experience as it is currently very limited but I hit it just right and was able to get us access. The location of all this wonder was down in Mattapoisett, a town down on the southern coast. It was a bit chilly.

I’m definitely going to visit them again this year and get even more interactive with them.

Some of the best books I read last year were:

I hope you all enjoyed looking through some of our memories from the past year, I know I have. Let’s hope 2025 has some good ones too.

If you still haven’t had enough you can check out some previous years:

2023 Moments

2022 Moments

Goats in My Pockets

Posted on by Markman

Spent some time yesterday afternoon visiting the sanctuary. We have to get to know these new goats better sooner or later! Plus we had some food we needed to drop off for the animals. For whatever reason, this one goat named Dansa really thought I had something in my pockets. We didn’t stay too long though, we needed to get back because we were having some guests over in the late afternoon, and that went really nice as well. We were going to do a fire pit but by the time they arrived it started to get a wee bit chilly so we hung indoors and ate pizza and calzones and chatted. I’ll try to get to the firepit this afternoon perhaps. But first we have a reflexology appointment in the late morning to luxuriate in! Oh, one other thing. While I was at the sanctuary I was pleased to learn they still had Stardust the Donkey’s 50th birthday party shirts for sale, so I got one. I wanted to attend his birthday this summer but the schedule just didn’t align. I am glad I was able to get one. In fact, I think I’ll wear it out today.

Currently Watching (or soon will be actually): The Stanford Prison Experiment: Unlocking the Truth . I have it all scheduled to record on the DVR on Wednesday night.

Currently Reading: The Barn: The Secret History of a Murder in Mississippi (review)

Sunday Full of Pool, Goats and Kittens

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What a full weekend this was! I think we might need to lay pretty low next weekend. After heading to the office to drop off some things it was off to the north to visit old G-town again. LD had seen that they were doing something with kitten so we said why the heck not. Since our friends also live in town, they were kind enough to let us have some of their pool time, so we floated there and hung with them and Mollie for a couple of hours. Then it was off to the farm. First there was some baby goat hang with some live music out on the lawn area which was actually pretty fun. After about an hour or so of that it was into the barn we went to do some yoga (which no one really does because you really just want to hang with the animals, at least in our case) although I did do some. I’m not as flexible as I used to be I am learning. Ouch! Oh, and then the kittens came out, so cute. Must only be a couple weeks old I’d imagine. Did you know that LD had never in her life held a kitten before? She had cats, but never from being a kitten, so this was pretty special in that way in that she finally got to interact with the little creatures. At then end we watched their mother nurse them as they were probably getting hungry and sleepy. So precious to see. We took well over 200 pictures from both events but I’ll just provide a sampling here for now.

World Goat Day Wednesday Morning

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Got another good lead on some dollhouse stuff. Amazing detail – like a 1940s radio with a dial that actually works, and Campbell soup cans and musical instruments, even a pool table, are you kidding me!? – the detail of these tint little things is amazing. You can tell some of it is pretty vintage. They’ll be great additions for the kids to interact with.

Spent the afternoon doing a bunch of weeding since it’s a bit on the cooler side today, but pleasant. The weather, not weeding. Weeding is not pleasant.

We watched the Connecticut Sun rip it up at the Garden last night. So cool that LD’s trainer has a daughter that plays on the team and another one that does the sportscast! Women’s Pro Basketball has really exploded in the last year or so! It was great to see so much positive energy on display. It’s a really good thing.

I heard today is world Goat Day so here’s some Goat pictures to celebrate!

Lunching with Alpacas and Baby Goats

Posted on by Markman

Yesterday was quite a hectic day for us. We met with a friend at LD’s office first since we needed to assemble a new office chair, which we did quickly, as well as bring back items that I’d need to take care of, such as repairing the dollhouses’ grandfather clock and getting rid of some old stuff. It was then out to the wilds of Northborough for lunch with alpacas. Now, the lunch consisted of little sandwiches and salad, but that wasn’t the point. It was actually lunchtime with alpacas.

So you eat, and then they bring down the alpacas, who you can feed, touch, hang out with, and photograph. That was really great, but then the proprietors decided to let the baby goats out to run wild, and you could feed and cuddle them as well. It was mayhem, but it was a lot of fun! Would recommend ten times out of ten! We must have taken hundreds of photos between the three of us, but I’ll leave this brief sampling for now.

Like I said, it was a pretty busy weekend all in all, but surely a fun one.

When we finally got home we arrived to see that LD’s old landlady left more containers and ingredients for us to make more lemon orzo chicken soup! It’s getting a little ridiculous that this lady likes the soup so much and wants nobody other then us to make it for her. Anyways, as tired as we were we decided to bang out two huge pots of the stuff. Amazingly we were able to get in all done under and hour and a half. We even added some kale this time, mostly because we had to use up the bag. I’ll be dropping off the various containers filled with this soup to her later today. Where does she put it all?

The wrought iron railing guy is supposed to show up this afternoon to go over some options to finish off the front stairs that was completed last month. Apparently there’s a separate guy from the mason that does that work (at least the folks that we know).

Oh! And we finally got back the workout template of all the exercises we did last Saturday. We’re supposed to these I think 2 or 3 times a week. I’m posting it here if you want to play along with us.

Circuit 1: 

  • Squat to Box 3 x 10 
  • Single Arm Bent over Row 3 x 8-10 each side 
  • Single Arm Overhead Press 3 x 10 each side
  • Lateral Lunge 3 x 10 each side 
  • Bicep Curls 3 x 10 

Circuit 2:

  • Romanian Deadlift 3 x 10 
  • Tricep Kickback 3 x 10 each side 

Baby Goats and Cambridge Bikes

Posted on by Markman
Baaaaaaa-mazing!
Cute jacket!
Howdy!
An ear biter!
Falling asleep

Hanging out with these baby goats this afternoon at a place in Northborough, Massachusetts was simply, “Baaaaaaa-mazing!” The goat from the video below we were told was only 4 days old! He has quite a set of lungs on him! Another goat also got to biting my ear, which while kind of funny, also hurt a teeny bit! And then a third goat fell asleep in my arms- she was a sweetheart.

A 4 day old baby goat that had a lot to say!

In the morning I headed out to Cambridge for a bike ride the city was running. Got to travel thru the city, mostly through Kendell Square, and down by Lechmere and M.I.T. As you can see from my stats it wasn’t a strenuous ride in the least, but it being my first ride of the season, my legs and back were a tiny bit sore after. There was no particular theme to this ride and the route had stretches that seemed a bit odd to me, like very narrow passageways which made all the bikes bunch up and the bottle necks. I did get to pass by where M.I.T. was showing off the the S.T.E.M. women orange statues which was something I had wanted to check out in the past. I might need to go down there at a later time to get a better look.

Sparkle

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Got to hang out with my friend Sparkle at the Sanctuary today. We went there after visiting LD’s old landlady whose husband recently passed away, so we were providing some support. I made some killer salmon and we brought bagels too and had a nice brunch visit.

Visiting some Goat Friends and Getting New Brakes

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We spent yesterday hanging out with some goats at the Sanctuary. I hadn’t been there in a while, and we dropped off some food for the animals. After all of that and returning home for some relaxation, we cooked up a storm, preparing a variety of recipes, some for later in the week. I finally had some time today to travel to Earth-1 and get my brakes done; it had been long overdue, and I’m delighted to be able to mark that off my list.

Currently Reading: Genealogy of a Murder: Four Generations, Three Families, One Fateful Night by Lisa Belkin.

Night Time Barn Visits

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Our friend from Maine that we hung out with last weekend came down for the day to spend some time with us and to finally Meet Carson. Carson was very engaging, didn’t hide, and I think legitimately had fun with her playing with him and getting all the attention and various gifts like treats, which he devoured happily. We made some pasta and chicken meatballs and side salads while she brought this amazing vegan dessert that she made which didn’t taste vegan to me at all. Like a suped-up peanut butter cup ball wrapped in chocolate. The main visit of the day though was to visit the sanctuary as they were doing a night tour, something they do once or twice a year, where you get to visit the animals in the evening. We also sat by their fire pit while listening to carolers and she got to pick out two stuffed animals from Santa. I also bought a calendar and a car magnet for LD. We’ll need to take her back there someday in the daytime so she can interact with the animals better as they roam around but this was a great introduction. I also got some more compliments on my scarf, people seem to really dig it. I must agree, it is pretty cool. Then we drove her home back to her apartment in Boston and then we came home and eventually fell asleep. All in all a great day!

Surrounded by goats
Can you spot the horses in Santa’s Barn?
The large firepit

Currently Reading book #46 of my year: Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke.

Small Business Saturday with Goats!

Posted on by Markman
Meeting Pascal
Hello Friend!
At Salvage Angel’s Popup Event
Check the cat in the window!
City boy at the farm

We did a few things for Small Business Saturday. First we took a ride out to Holliston to this little farm that was doing some kind of SBS event. With a purchase you got to hang with the goats for free so that’s what we did. We also got some amazing catnip there that Carson really seems to enjoy. I don’t know what it is about this particular stuff but I’d never seen him go after catnip like he does when encountering this concoction. They also had this cool light up goat like the reindeers we have but it was a goat and large! Can’t seem to find it anywhere online – would definitely get one if we can find it. After looking around the town a little bit (truth to tell there really isn’t a heck of a lot there) we headed over to Salvage Angel’s pop up event. Salvage Angel is like a place that sells antique and kitschy type stuff but every so often they have other vendors come by and set up tents outside to sell their wares. Got some stuff there too.

After all that we had to pick up some stuff at Target and Wal-Mart. (I know, Small Business Saturday?) The Target pick up was uneventful. You just go into the spot, let them know on the app, and they bring it out to you. The Wal-Mart run was a different story. The same basic concept except they seemed to be overloaded and couldn’t run it effectively. After waiting for long after a half hour we finally bailed and may attempt it another day. There was one point where the Ladydoc in utter frustration yelled out “Where are the workers!?” in typical LD fashion. I thought it was pretty hilarious but she was right and had a right to be annoyed. By this point we were getting hangry so we hit the local deli and got a sandwich to nosh on and some stuff to make for dinner tonight.

Making the Urban Look Beautiful

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And they say you can’t find anything beautiful in Somerville anymore…well, they’re wrong. I took this on Friday afternoon before heading back to Earth-2. Figured I’d take a walk around the old stomping grounds to see if I could get any good shots. I’m pretty pleased with how this one turned out. For those who don’t know it’s Powderhouse Park over by Tufts.

Currently Reading: Three books just came through on my docket: Eve, How the Female Body drove 200 million years of Human Evolution by Cat Bohannon, Making It So by Patrick Stewart, and Extremely Online by Taylor Lorenz.

Yesterday we went to the Sanctuary to drop off some food. I made a new goat friend. Her name is Dansa and she was very friendly. We then took a little jaunt to Jordan’s to look at chairs. Nothing really caught the eye although we did end up having some Jordan Marsh famous blueberry muffins. One home we cooked like mad people, a casserole, and two ground turkey dishes. I was prepping all the ingredients like crazy. It was a busy little afternoon.

Meeting Some New Pals

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Yesterday was a cooking day! We were on fire, in the morning cooking up all those apples – an apple crisp and some apple bread. In the afternoon we went to check out some of the recent arrivals at the sanctuary. Plus we had some canned corn and cat stuff we wanted to get over to them for some time now. In the evening we made a chicken dish and turkey meatballs.

The new paint on the adjoining kitchen room looks beautiful! The second coat will go on today and then it should be all done!

Gametime: Katti

Going on a Hayride with Baby Goats

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It may look like I’m walking a goat, but Ralphie here was actually walking me!

Going on a hayride with baby goats? And then walking them after? Hell, yes! Thankful that all the rain we were supposed to have pretty much held out for most of the day up in Georgetown, Massachusetts! Good memories were made this day my friends! You can click on any photo below for a bigger look.

Giving Snowball a trat
Walking Ralphie and Snowball
Ralphie walking me
Ralphie
Selfie Booth!

I ended up buying a Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 so the Fitbit is out. It just arrived so I’m off to mess with it now and see how it compares and what other cool things I can do with it.

I’ll Remember Every Moment, These Endless Summer Nights

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Endless Summer Nights

“Seaweed just went up my nose!” is a quote I overheard today from some kid playing in the seaweed at West Dennis Beach. I can honestly say that that is the first time I’ve ever heard anyone say that, so me being me, I had to make a mental note of it and share that with you all. So to recap today we slept in, then pretty much headed down to the beach and spent a good chunk of time there. I finally got to try out the Beau Jarden cart we got last fall and it worked flawlessly. So much easier to cart all our stuff around in. Anyways, I went in the water, LD went in a couple of times, and then I dried out in the sun and it pretty much wiped me out when we were done. I was so tired. But I rallied after some time to rest up and then we headed out to see a sunset. We chose Rock Harbor and this is one of the shots that I took tonight. This time I decided to walk further down along the marshy area then I have in the past. I covered myself up appropriately so that I wouldn’t get eaten by any bugs too badly and that was a smart move by me. This isn’t my first rodeo! What’s really cool about this pic is how the sun’s reflection kind of forms the shape of a heart! Then we went for ice cream and I got a burger. Now I’m uploading this to the website and going to chill the rest of the night.

I also wanted to mentioned that I learned today of some sad news. One of our favorite goats at the Sanctuary we visit recently passed away. This goat was special in that he was the goat that had been there the longest, 16 or years, and he was always such a sweetheart to us. He loved to be brushed too. RIP Eustis. We love you.

Snuggling with Baby Goats at Sunset

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Drove out to Salem Connecticut to visit this place that had an opportunity to hang with some baby goats, play and snuggles with them as sunset approached, and as the evening drew out, to put them to bed in their barn. Also live streamed over the Internet so there’s video of us performing these tasks over the wires.

Funny yhing is, although we didn;t know it at the time, the place is actually down the street from an Airbnb we stayed in a couple years back! The barn house that was connected to an alpaca farm. We were astonished at how close it was, not knowing!

Today we thought about checking out another event that we checked out exactly this time last year, but we are just tired and hurting from last night so we’ll be laying low I think! It’s also record Store Day and although we have a real jukebox, there doesn’t really seem to be any new vinyl I’m interested in at the moment. Plus the contractor is supposed to visit today to discuss kitchen stuff.

Easter Love in the Catskill Mountains of New York

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Back from a lovely Easter weekend in the Catskills of New York. We got to stay in a pretty cool Airbnb , pretty much a log cabin, with a wood stove fireplace and that is attached to an actual goat sanctuary across the way and they had baby goats, which of course we snuggled! We also got to “paint with goats!” Actually we got to do a lot of things there but one of the highlights was probably LD with a sweet baby goat that fell asleep in her arms for two hours. Pretty amazing to experience. Her name is Alora by the way and she is the cutest. Probably my favorite. Click on the pics for full length versions.

Afterwards we took a little drive over to the old Catskill Game Farm, where LD went to visit as a little kid. It’s abandoned now but we visited anyway. We also passed by the largest garden gnome statue in the world (at least up until 2007) on the way.

I might add more to this post later because there really is a lot more. One cool thing about the place that I forgot to mention earlier is that it was fully stacked but also had this somewhat amazing gameroom in the basement, with Poker, darts, air hockey, basketball, foosball, and even a full length ping pong table. I also spent some time in one of the various hammocks around the property. The place was pretty cool, I would definitely go back, and the drive is not bad at all.

Oh, there wasn’t even supposed to be baby goats there. we lucked out on that one. They got some goats in previously and apparently one male somehow slipped through the process and basically ended up impregnating a bunch of the ladies one night. That goat was super busy. But it worked out because baby goats are the best and it ended up being a great surprise and made the experience even better in my opinion.

Currently Reading: Pandora’s Jar: Women in the Greek Myths and The Chaos Machine: The Inside Story of How Social Media Rewired Our Minds and Our World.

Animal Hang and Shamrock Shakes

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Sunday hang brushing goats and visiting animals followed by a shamrock shake in RI

Early in the afternoon we decided to take a trip to the Sanctuary to drop off some food for the animals and we ended up staying there for a bit. Had to get in some goat brushing time after all. After hanging there for about an hour or so we headed down to Rhode Island, since it was only a half hour away from where we were, to get some vegan shamrock shakes that I place that we like was having as a March special. Minty green soft serve topped with shopmade whipped cream and gold glitter, and it was delicious!

A Little Sparkle to Brighten the Day

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Hanging in the horse barn!

This afternoon we took a little ride over to the Sanctuary. We actually had not been there in quite a while. It was nice to visit with our animal friends for a while, and of course, the various goats! Other than that, it was another low key day. Afterwards I pretty just wanted to veg in front of the tv so that’s what I did. However, I plan to be much more productive tomorrow running errands, replacing the screens to glass panes in the doors because it’s starting to get colder now, and a bunch of other little things.

Oh, one cool thing that I was able to figure out yesterday morning, is streaming from the phone straight to the tv, so we were able to watch an educational medical conference that LD was interested in, right on the tv instead of looking at the little phone screen or computer screen, and we didn’t have to huddle over a little screen to watch it.

Selfie with Sparkle
Meeting Arwen, a newbie
Cats on chairs

An Appearance of the Goat-a-Gram

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Goat-a-Grams for the Ladydoc

Yesterday I was able to get a couple of baby goats to visit LD for a continuance of her celebration this year. They were the cutest things, named Speck and Ziggy, brothers as it were. A nice thing that along with all the goat snuggles is that they were going to town on eating all the fallen oak leaves. I think they had as good a time as we did. It was a fun experience and they came right to the house. We also had a couple of guests visit which was also very nice. I’m glad the weather held out and didn’t rain. It was a bit windy (the remnants of Hurricane Ian) but nothing us hardly New Englanders couldn’t handle.

Little Speck and I hanging out

IF anyone in the area is interested in doing this sort of experience, hit me up and I can provide you with the details on how to get it all set up for yourself.

Ziggy and Speck
Just eating leaves
Goat Whisperer
Holding squirmy Speck
Just a sampling of the 185 pics taken today (click to enlarge)

Love These Comfortable Friday Afternoons

Posted on by Markman
Getting comfy for a weekend rest
Dixie says hello!

Happy Friday everyone! Even though the calendar says Friday the 13th, no bad stuff befalling any one of us today. In fact, we got a chance to spend part of the morning over at the sanctuary and got to see two new goat babies that they recently obtained. Named Dixie and Dickens they are both bonded brothers and look quite cute and curious. Their keepers are slowly acclimating them to the other animals and everything seems to be going well. A high point of this little trip was LD actually got to feed grapes from her hand to a turkey and to the giant tortoise named George. She said it was like touching a prehistoric dinosaur, the way their scales are and such! Anyways after such excitement, we really need to wind down a little bit. I had a pretty busy afternoon, and apparently so did Carson as evidenced by today’s picture post. That boy is just the cutest, isn’t he? You know the answer is yes.

If it’s the right chair, it doesn’t take too long to get comfortable in it.

Robert De Niro

I finally got around to updating the iPad to version 15. Took me long enough to get to that, huh? Also, I think I’m going to order a large pizza for myself tonight and just pig out.

Love Me Some Sparkle for a Saturday

Posted on by Markman
Sparkle the goat getting a neck rub from yours truly.

I noticed that I have to keep tightening my belt lately so I thought maybe I had lost a bunch of weight, but when I weigh myself it more or less says what it always had the last year or so, in the 160s. At my heaviest I was in the 180s but I generally average in the 160s apparently. I also got sucked into watching some This Old House reruns this morning, trying to learn some things and possibly get some ideas.

I feel you buddy.

Took a ride to the Sanctuary to drop off some lettuce and carrots as they were requesting some and we had ample supplies. So we did that and hung out there for about an hour. Then it was off to Home Depot for some plants and mulch. And then finally off to help console a couple of our friends who just recently lost their pet dog. We ate Montellio’s on their back deck in the sun as we talked and grieved the loss. Never an easy thing. After that we pretty much just came home and crashed. Ended up watching a Dateline that I had DVR’d but had to keep rewinding it to watch the ending like 3 times because I kept falling asleep! Was a pretty busy day I guess.

Marathon Monday Means Goat Baby

Posted on by Markman
Springtime!

Today’s the running of the Boston Marathon but I decided to use the day to get a bunch of work done. Work on LD’s website is just about completed, I got the menus to work and just need to add some graphics. Might spruce it up more or change the layout a bit later but as of now the site is live and working. Today was also the day the electrician decided to show up and put in the new dedicated line for the sump pump, While he was wiring that up I put together a desk that LD had bought for herself and replaced the “bunny nursey” pot back into it’s place on the back deck, just in case some bunny decides to use it again.

Then in the afternoon we went to the beach for a walk and then even later on, we got to hang with a baby goat who is literally one day old! His name is Cameron and he is the cutest little boy!

Meeting one day old Cameron!

Yes, Cameron was born on Easter, and that white goat which you can see in the left hand bottom corner of this photo is Mira, his mother, which is short for Miracle because when she was a baby she almost didn’t make it. She’s turned out to be an amazing mother to her baby – it was fascinating to watch.

2021 Year End Review

Posted on by Markman

A picture’s worth a thousand words they say, so here are some of the highlights from the past year. 2021 wasn’t totally terrible, and there were some really high points, but 2022 looks to be really special and hopefully will also be better in so many ways. We can hope!

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You can click any pic for a larger view

Photo Descriptions:

  1. Started off the year with the annual tradition of going to the beach on New Years Day. This was taken in Marshfield.
  2. Same as 1 above.
  3. Took a trip into Boston for something and had some eats from Luke’s Lobsters. On the way I snapped this pic.
  4. “Auggie”, a different looking wild rabbit that appeared only that one time during Inauguration time. Wonder what it’ story was. Didn’t seem like the regular kind of wild rabbits we have here.
  5. A pic along York, Maine
  6. Another pic of the Nubble from a different angle. I liked getting the perspective of the bench in this one, thought it made it stand out a bit differently.
  7. A shot of the Powderhouse in winter
  8. Another edited version of number 6.
  9. A shot of the Powderhouse area rotary and it’s cool sign back in winter.
  10. Nauset Light down at the Cape. This is the first time that I saw that a cottage next door was available for rent which we would later take advantage of, unbeknownst to me at the time.
  11. Another Nauset shot from this time period (possibly March)
  12. Another bunny decided to have it’s children in the pot on the deck, second year in a row – hope we can go for three!
  13. Someone was inspired to paint Nauset based on my photo in number 11. First time that I know of that my art inspired someone else to take it and create something else out of it.
  14. Shiloh the shy bunny. One of the children of Gracie, the bunny depicted in shot 12.
  15. Staying and the Viewpoint Inn in Maine which had these incredible views of the Nubble from it’s back yard area. Want to stay here again.
  16. Me in the car?
  17. Rango, LD’s soul goat, sadly passed away.
  18. An evening stroll one night at Jamaica Pond got us this shot.
  19. That’s me up in Salisbury under the docks after getting my second Covid shot. At that time, we thought that might be all there was to it.
  20. Boardwalk walks up on Plum Island.
  21. Another Salisbury Beach scene.
  22. Staying next door to the Nauset Light in a a cottage was quite a thrill and allowed me to get this wonderful photo as the sun started rising.
  23. My love of Pemaquid payed off when the moderator of a lighthouse group made this the cover photo for the month.
  24. Another hike on the Cape allowed us to capture this little walkway over a marsh.
  25. Skaket Beach
  26. Skaket Beach
  27. Visiting LD’s old boss and her husband in RI got us this picture shortly after.
  28. See 15 above for the story.
  29. Two juvenile hawks that we born around the house and kept screaming for weeks.
  30. The house next door to Earth-1 being torn down for more condo development, Sad.
  31. Hanging with baby goats and snuggles in RI.
  32. Staying at a farmhouse with an attached Alpaca farm was quite a different treat. I learned a lot about alpaca husbandry on this trip and the place was actually pretty cool.
  33. Looking at various lotus flowers at a place were we obtained special strains of hostas for planting. Looking forward to see how they produce this coming year.
  34. Cape summer trip. What I feel one of my better shots from the summer trip. Gray’s Boardwalk.
  35. Birthday trip!
  36. Plum Island again
  37. Lots of trips to Marshfield and got many a lobster roll at a place across the street from where this shot was taken.
  38. Lavellete NJ trip. It became my second favorite place in NJ behind Cape May!
  39. Me and my well endowed pencil. No pencil envy here!
  40. Another beach shot.
  41. Duxbury Beach boardwalk, another favorite beach location for walks and hangs this year.
  42. Staying at an Airbnb in Arundel, Maine.
  43. Under the lights at the Boathouse in Kennebunkport, ME.
  44. On a boat in KBP.
  45. Carson and Peng for the holidays.

More in-depth notes on above:

There were so many beach walks and hangs this year I can’t remember them all. Most of them were either to Duxbury or Marshfield, usually on a weekend day. Just to hang and walk mostly. A couple of times we used our chairs to sit out in the summer or even actually went into the water but many of the trips were just to walk.

The main lighthouses that we hug around this year were at Nubble Light in Maine (always a classic – staying right across from it away from the tourists was also a treat) and Nauset Light in Eastham down on the Cape. It was really cool this year to stay in a cottage right next door to the light and the beach was literally across the street. It also helped that it’s on a private dirt road so there weren’t many people around in that particular area. 10-10 would do again. Plus the place was so cute!

Getting our shots was big this year, for me it was a couple of trips up to Amesbury because that’s where I could get an appointment at that time, so we made the best of it by exploring the neighboring sights afterwards like Salisbury Reservation and Plum Island.

It was cool that baby wildlife decided to grace us with their presence, baby bunnies born in a pot for the second year in a row and didn’t mind Carson watching them. I think he was more their protector than an adversary if you can believe that. Baby hawks too, very majestic, but hopefully never found Shiloh and company. Shiloh, the last baby bunny that was scared to leave after all his siblings did. LD was kind enough to put out some water and a lettuce plant for him. The next day, two nibbles off the plant, two little poops, and he was gone to live his adventures. I do admit to having empty nest syndrome every time they leave us.

Staying on an Alpaca farm was pretty cool, in rural Connecticut with family. Learned a lot, also a bit of fly swatting which can be annoying. And got to hang with baby goats which is always a pleasure.

Celebrated my birthday on the Cape. Special times there and stayed in a pretty cool Airbnb called the Osprey Nest because it feels like its up in the trees. Although the place was a little small, it literally had everything you could possibly need. Plus they had this cool booth that I would use in the kitchen area. 10-10 would stay again. I feel I get some of the best pictures I ever take down on the Cape for whatever reason. It’s a beautiful area but there’s something more that I can’t place why.

Our one outing to New Jersey this year was at another BnB (BnB’s were big this year for us – expanding choices) in Lavalette, a cute little beach town. It was a bit downcast and windy while we were there but it was still pretty cool. I enjoyed the area so much that it’s my #2 of my fav places in that state. It just seemed to have it all to me, easy access to whatever you need, a beautiful beach and boardwalk, not really busy at all (and if you want that you could drive to the next down over – Seaside Heights). That particular trip didn’t exactly work out as planned but I enjoyed it.

The last BnB and most recent was in Arundel, Maine. Stayed there because the town of Kennebunkport was doing it’s annual Christmas Prelude. HGTV  featured the annual Kennebunkport celebration as the “#2 Christmas Town in America.” Plus we got to meet up with one of LD’s former colleagues and met the dogs Pippa and Boomer, and Boomer left quite an impression! Sailing up and down the Kennebunk River in a lobster boat while sipping coffee brandy on a sunny day was also rather enjoyable.

But as much as we enjoyed the few times away (choose to keep it rather low key due to the virus circulating, and were neurotic about being careful) staying at home was just as much so, whether with firepit outing with friends or just ourselves. Carson was also a really big help in that department as our mutual love him and for eachother kept us all sane.

I know I’m probably forgetting a bunch of stuff but these are the moments that I think were some of the high points, at least for me personally. I’d like to give all my love and thanks to LD for making it all happen and making me feel like the luckiest man alive every year.

Sparkle (Goats in Coats)

Posted on by Markman
Brushing Sparkle

Visited the sanctuary yesterday and even though they’re closed on Sundays the owner lets us walk around and stuff because we’ve been so supportive over the years, I imagine. I got to brush Sparkle pictured here which is a gentle goat that I don’t get to brush very often, but for whatever reason, this day she wanted some, so I obliged. She was wearing a red coat to keep her warm.

I had a weird dream last night which was an amalgam from school days to writing reports to me being in a chemistry lab in the 90s. I had to get this report done and I remember I stayed up all night, and also that I was mad at my cowriters for not contributing anything. For some reason I tried to finish it by writing it up in the hallways of the chemistry lab that I worked in in the 90s. Not sure why I was lying on a cart and trying to get the font right for the very long report title. Then I went to turn it in in a mixture of a classroom from my 5th grade and a conference room from the 90s over at Acorn park. Also strange was Hilary Clinton was there and was the professor, but all the desks were pushed back so that most of the room was open. I think the dream brought up feelings of pressures from having to get reports done but also career choices that, for good or bad, lead me to where I am at the moment. Part of me felt sad about it, but just a part. Figured I’d write this down before it fades from my memory.