Ep 236 Susan's Shire: Introduction

With the past weekend in the rearview mirror, we’ve wrapped up October, Halloween, and the craziness of voting here in the U.S. -- at least for most of us. Some will still be dealing with both the last little bits of voting in person and leftover Halloween candy for the rest of the week, and both might be somewhat traumatic for us in some way or another. But we’re feeling lighter already and a little slaphappy, so we’ll bring up some ideas that seem far apart, but are actually con...

2 Marras 202045min

It’s donkey time again! The Donkey Welfare Symposium was a wild one last October (there were libations and tattoos and singing farriers and speakers from exotic ports of call), and it looks like this year’s virtual conference will follow that theme. “Donkeys in the Wild” is kicking off virtually on October 30 -31, 2020, and we’re celebrating by bringing you our interview from last year’s event with Jessica Anselment. This intrepid soul is the author of two donkey-related chi...

26 Loka 202034min

It’s alive! And kicking. Or squirming, as it were. Either way, it’s not pretty, and is akin to the horror films that many might be ingesting this month. In the true spirit of the upcoming Halloween observances across the land, we’re going to bring you a podcast filled with gruesome tales of things growing where other things don’t want them to grow. John Hurt will not participate, and neither will Kurt Russell, and no one’s body parts will end up anywhere other th...

17 Loka 20201h 5min

Rock and roll music and the combination and recombination of genetics have so many commonalities, and not just on the math end of things. They both started with older things and brought in new things, and are constantly bringing in more influences to make something old stronger, or something new and different. We all march to a different drummer, after all, so there is a beauty in how the pieces go together no matter which you prefer. The music of the spheres can mean a perf...

12 Loka 202045min

Introduction: We’re on the road again (albeit with a little bit more “distance” in our distance these days). This week we’re celebrating our new favorite color – “Gotland Gray.” We’re bringing you a conversation from last year’s Sheep and Wool festival in Rhinebeck, New York, where Amy Corey of Little River Farm told us a little bit about the characteristics and history of the Gotland – the petite-with-a punch-sheep. And Amy is pretty good at pronouncing those Swedish...

5 Loka 202017min

No, we’re not in India for this one, if you wondered about that after that title. We’re closer to Rhinebeck, New York for this week’s podcast. On October 17-18 the New York State Sheep & Wool Festival will be held – albeit virtually – so we’re taking you back to remember the fun from last year. We’re celebrating all things fiber, including the beloved cashmere sweater. Okay, so this podcast is not so much focusing on the sweater (that’s Elara’s vote), as it is foc...

28 Syys 202022min

Justin Morgan DID have a horse. And it was a beauty. One of the quintesenntially American breeds, the Morgan horse sprang from the loins of a stallion named Figure, a.k.a. Justin Morgan(‘s) Horse. And that was not the only Spring that Sprung, as anything that trots or drives in North America probably can thank Mr. Morgan, piano teacher and blacksmith on-the-side for participating in the cancellation of debt through livestock trading, leading to a subsequent horse breeding ca...

21 Syys 202034min

This week is the first part of two on the indomitable little powerhouse horse known as the Morgan. Justin Morgan probably would have done just fine as a composer and the local town clerk, but he did have an equine that became much better known than he was (thank you, Marguerite Henry). We met up with Pam McDermott of Dawn Wind Morgans in Myrtle Creek, Oregon in the summer of 2017. Pam graciously sat down and spoke with us about the connection she feels with this little hors...

14 Syys 202040min