Happy birthdays to us!

Written to Tchamantché by Rokia Traoré

Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss.
- Benjamin Button

Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday to Lone
Happy birthday dear Rance and Lone
Happy birthday to us!

Whichever week ends up comprising April 30th (my birthday) and May 3rd (Lone's birthday) inevitably and invariably goes down in my myopian world as the best week of the year! When the calendar gods demonstrate their munificence by blending these two big-league dates with an International Workers Day that falls on a Friday, thus delivering a three-day weekend, the trifecta is complete. Add to all of this bounty a visit from our very good friends Paula and Leo, and the long weekend was nothing short of perfect.

Before celebrating, however, we had to do a little work, more specifically tagging the heifers' ears. Because our corral is somewhat primitive (read: really, really primitive), Wilson and Clair had to lasso the heifers, as opposed to running them into a chute, after which we all helped to wrestle them to a standstill before tagging them. Once again, man bested beast, but the beasts put up a respectable struggle, and certainly earned our respect. In my wildest fantasy I would never have guessed that a cow could jump over a nearly two-meter tall fence...surprise, they can. All things considered, we managed to complete the job with surprising ease -and thankfully without incident.

In other work-related news, Marcos and his father finished constructing the walls of the new storage room, which is looking very good...from any angle. All this progress in less than two weeks!

While Marcos and his father focused on the construction of the new storage room, Wilson, Agenor and I began dismantling the old pig pen. While we were working, the happy hogs were busy rooting up their new digs.

On Saturday morning, after a delicious breakfast, we took Paula and Leo for a long walk aound Alfheim...culminating in a visit to our magnificent waterfall.

Big news on the brooding hen front: dwarf hen mother is at it again, together with her full-sized sister. Combined these batches should produce more than 20 chicks. Together with light-brown and white-speckled hen and her nine rapidly-growing chicks, our poultry production is more than on track. Equally exciting, Sandra, Alfheim's lone duck, and Dan the drakes better half, is starting to lay eggs...two at last count and increasing daily.

Finally, on our last trip to São Paulo, Lone and I saw W., Oliver Stone's unusual and inescapably interesting George W. Bush biopic. Josh Brolin's arresting turn in the leading role is scary good...a doppelgänger. Richard Dreyfuss's (one of my favorite actors) portrayal of Dick Cheney is also a treat. Lone called it one of the scariest movies she has ever seen.

And lest we never forget, I will leave you with 3 Bushisms from the Top 10 Bushisms of 2008:

• "I didn't grow up in the ocean -- as a matter of fact -- near the ocean -- I grew up in the desert. Therefore, it was a pleasant contrast to see the ocean. And I particularly like it when I'm fishing." --Washington, D.C., Sept. 26, 2008
• "And so, General, I want to thank you for your service. And I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who are trying to defeat us in Iraq." --to Army Gen. Ray Odierno, Washington, D.C., March 3, 2008
• "I'll be long gone before some smart person ever figures out what happened inside this Oval Office." --Washington, D.C., May 12, 2008

To quote Monty Python...Say No More!