Five things I DON'T love about farming

Five things I DON'T love about farming:

1. You are your own boss.  That means its all on you – it can be a lot of responsibility. Sometimes our motto is:  “there is no fun in farming.”  Gotta get up at 5:30am because its going to be scorching hot that day and the hens need to get outside asap? Yep thats all you. Run outside at midnite in your underpants, guns blazing because the dogs are barking at something that is trying to kill the turkeys. Rally, baby -  and get out there. And if your plan doesn't work and its all a big failure.. that's right. Its all you. Its not always fun to be The Boss of You.

2. You CAN go to the feed store in your barn clothes, but if you forget and you DO go to WalMart... well, you're just biding your time until you show up on an email that gets passed around to all the corporate monkeys you used to work with. Smile sunshine, you're on “The People of WalMart.”

3. You get to be outside everyday. That means, rain, shine, snow, sleet, 105* heat index.. there is no such thing as "a day off."  And you'll constantly be dirty no matter what.

4. You have to teach yourself to be really observant. How could yo miss that little hen limping? Dang. Now you need to give her antibiotics and an emergency bumblefoot surgery in the bathroom.  One of your best layers is going to be off her feet - and off the job -  because YOU didn't notice. She'll look at you like you're a bad mommy. You are a bad mommy. Shame on you.

5. You have an excuse to be a weather geek – which is only fun for you. Your friends will cringe when you launch into your “weather Tourette's”... no, they don't care about the current barometric pressure or that there are cumulonimbus clouds with a vertical build on a north by northwest trajectory......

But still – its better than a corporate job.