This happened yesterday evening. Here’s Holly standing on the empty road above our house, baahing:
And here’s Misty, her voice too deep to do much baahing:
I’d been taking pictures in the garden, but the goats wanted my attention. Vesla was there too of course, but she was preoccupied. She was staring at something and I think the others could see it too:
Whatever it was was up on the hillside among the old tree stumps. Thistles and small hazel bushes have grown up in the past two years since the spruce trees were cut down, and there is a pine tree on the ground that blew over in the wind last winter. It would be easy for a lion-sized predator to hide in plain sight here:
She stood there for ages, maybe fifteen minutes, moving around but not taking her eyes off whatever it was. This is Vesla’s job, watching out for lions; the others never do it. I’m pretty sure she was looking at something:
I’d get her a pair of binoculars if I thought she’d accept them. Actually there’s nothing wrong with her eyesight or her sense of smell. Not being too worried for my own safety I walked up the hill to take a closer look, but all I could see was thistles. It’s too bad the goats don’t eat them.
They say cats can see ghosts… And when they stare to/at (?) the void that’s what they’re doing. Maybe goats can do it too.
(I love to see the girls again!)
Oh, I’ve never heard that. She was staring at the void, that’s exactly what she was doing. What do we call them? Ghoats? Goasts?
Haven’t you?! And I thought English people knew everything about cats…
Vesla is the Guardian: she’s a Ghostie Goat.
She’s watching to see that the ghost is clear.
I don’t think of Vesla as a Guardian reader; maybe the obituaries.
Quite: the Guardian is for sheep.
Daily Mail, Sun reader?
Corriere della Sera.
Perfect!
(You’ve scared me!)
Værens Gang?
Only for the crossword.
If you were to play this to the goats……..
Do you think they’d like it? What about Barnabas von Geczy?
Goats in my local paper — with a video:
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That didn’t work. Oh, well.
Did they listen to the music? Which one they prefered?
I don’t know yet, it was past their bedtime.
Also, they don’t really say when they prefer one thing to another unless it’s food. They will probably like them both or dislike them both.
After nearly a fortnight of autumn here (East Anglia) it’s back to summer today. But my chair legs sank into the lawn – we’ve had useful amounts of rain lately, probably the first since February. And so our tomatoes are splitting. Swings and roundabouts.
http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/08/29/2-girls-in-pjs-take-stolen-goat-for-a-stroll/
“Lived in their bedroom closet” haha. Very enterprising of them.
I suppose we’re really into autumn too, but now that it’s September I can tolerate it. Autumnal August was a cruel, miserable idea.
Weather pornography.
Yes, the idea that the seasons begin and end on the solstices and equinoxes is an abomination.
“the idea that the seasons begin and end on the solstices and equinoxes is an abomination”: it’s wotrse than an abomination, it’s a betise.
I don’t mind winter coming a bit late.
OED:
‖ bêtise
(bɛːtiːz, beɪˈtiːz)
[Fr. = stupidity, f. bête foolish, OF. beste BEAST.]
A foolish, ill-timed remark or action; a piece of folly.
1827 Lady Granville Lett. (1894) I. 406, I think it is an enfantillage, a bêtise, on the part of the Austrian Government. 1831 Disraeli Yng. Duke II. iii. xix. 256 This bêtise of a war has made us all serious. 1849 Geo. Eliot Let. 9 Feb. (1954) I. 278, I will not dilate on the book or on your criticism for I am so sleepy that I should write nothing but bêtises. 1893 H. James Let. 2 May in C. Mackenzie Life (1963) II. 309 If your public‥can’t see any of that charm, and wants such a bêtise instead, we are engaged in a blind-alley. 1948 ‘J. Tey’ Franchise Affair i. 9 In spite of her bêtise about striped suits he saw her point of view.
OED:
abomination
(əˌbɒmɪˈneɪʃən)
Also 4–7 abhominacioun, abhomynacion.
[a. Fr. abomination (13th c. in Litt.) ad. L. abōminātiōn-em n. of action f. abōminā-ri: see abominable.]
1. The feeling or state of mind of combined disgust and hatred; abhorrence, detestation, loathing.
1395 Purvey Remonstr. (1851) 7 Alle resonable men have greet abhominacioun of bodili sodomie. 1483 Caxton G. Leg. 431 [He] vysyted the hospytalles‥wythout abhomynacion of dyfformyte ne of ordure or fylthe of somme pacyente. 1525–30 More De quat. Nouis. Wks. 1557, 96 We se gret cause to haue it in hatred & abominacion. 1611 Bible 1 Sam. xiii. 4 Israel also was had in abomination with the Philistines. Mod. To regard smoking with abomination.
†b. Physical disgust, nausea. [So in early Fr.] Obs.
1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. (1495) vii. viii. 228 Yf gedynes comyth of the stomak the pacyent felyth abhomynacion and wamlynge.
†2. A state or condition giving rise to intense disgust; defilement, pollution, abominableness. Obs.
1413 Lydgate Pylg. Sowle (1483) iii. i. 49 What stynke and corrupcion what fylthe and abhomynacion is there withynne the helle. 1480 Rob. the Devyll 31 I desyre youe to heare my confession Of my greate synnes the abhomynacon.
3. An action, or custom, abominable, detestable, odious, shamefully wicked or vile; a degrading vice.
c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. B. 1173 (1864) 73 He vsed abominaciones of idolatrye. c 1386 Chaucer Man of Law’s T. 88 He‥Wolde never wryte in non of his sermouns Of such unkynde abhominaciouns. 1494 Fabyan vi. clxxxi. 180 Ye great abhomynacion of thyse tyranous Danys, that beat, robbed, and slewe ye innosent people without mercy. 1549 Latimer 7 Serm. bef. Edw. VI (1869) 207 What an abhominacion is it? the foulest that euer was to attribute to mans worke oure saluacion. 1606 Shakes. Ant. & Cl. iii. vi. 94 Th’ adulterous Anthony, most large In his abhominations. 1611 Bible Mal. ii. 11 An abomination is committed in Israel. 1682 Burnet Rts. of Princes v. 159 He was not guilty of these monstrous Abominations. 1852 C. M. Yonge Cameos (1877) III. xxiii. 355 Ninety-five theses, many of which were directed against the special abominations of Tetzel.
4. An object that excites disgust and hatred; a thing detested or detestable. (Followed by unto, to.) esp. in the Bible, a cause of pollution, an idol.
1366 Mandeville (1839) xxviii. 282 Fro him comethe out smoke and stynk and fuyr, and so moche Abhomynacioun, that unethe no man may there endure. 1382 Wyclif Matt. xxiv. 15 Ȝe schulen se the abhomynacioun of discomfort that is seid of Danyel, the prophete. 1535 Coverdale 2 Kings xxiii. 13 Malcom the abhominacion of the children of Ammon. 1611 Bible Prov. xii. 22 Lying lippes are abomination to the Lord. 1794 Sullivan View of Nat. II. Nor was it until the days of Hezekiah‥that this abomination [the brazen serpent] was torn from the land. 1856 Kane Arctic Explor. II. v. 59 Brewed up flax-seed and lime-juice and quinine and willow-stems into an abomination which was dignified as beer.
†5. loosely. An unpleasant or disgusting amount, etc. Obs.
1604 Dekker Honest Wh. (1873) 8, I ha spent an abomination this voyage.
It was a joke, Crown: an allusion to “It’s worse than a crime; it’s a blunder” as said by – oh, Talleyrand or someone.
Ah ha, a joke. I’d appreciate a little prior warning if you’re planning to tell more jokes.
Having told virtually everyone I know that Delacroix was the illegitimate son of Talleyrand, now they’re saying it’s probably untrue. Oh well, who cares.
You understand, I’m not (at the moment) complaining about what the weather does. I’m merely complaining about people saying “today is the first day of fall” when it’s September 21 or whatever. And railing at whoever started this abominable and beastly way of reckoning such things.
Whereas I couldn’t care less what people say – in the US it has something to do with not wearing white trousers during winter, though God knows why anyone would – I’m only complaining about the bêtiselike, abominably-bad weather.
I just like to complain about this particular issue of nomenclature. I’m not sure why. I have no complaint to make about the weather. My real complaint is about the fact that summer vacation is about to end.
White clothing on a snowy day would be useful if you’re trying to conceal yourself from a predator, or if you are stalking your prey. Ask any stoat or ermine.
But what do you wear to a wedding in early September? It suddenly strikes me that I have to decide this for myself by Saturday. A feeling of deja vu is coming over me. Rules about change of the seasons will play almost no role, I think. But would it be tacky to wear the same outfit that I wore to that July wedding?
=) Ø ! I just saw you in FB with the outfit you wore on July, very nice!
If it’s hot an sunny next Saturday, you’ll be perfect with the same outfit. If it’s gloomy I’ll just change the shirt.
Thanks, Julia. I do like the shirt.
I almost never go to FB, and I hadn’t seen the photo.
I’ll try to keep my eyes open if anyone takes my picture on Saturday.
What Julia said, that’s a great outfit. If you’ve got another lovely shirt like that one wear it, but otherwise, and unless it’s raining, you can wear the same one. If you’d been wearing a grey morning coat and striped trousers last time you wouldn’t have to wear a black coat and checked trousers for this one.
I never go to FB. I don’t really know my way around it. I have a little bit of a hard time going to my own page. I knew that our friend Libby had–what’s the word?–tagged me in a photo from her wedding, but I had not looked until now.
This is the one with me on the left looking like an old man in a floral shirt who’s half asleep? (Not true, I just tend to close my eyes at the moment of picture-taking.) And a little girl in purple in the middle, looking annoyed with somebody? (That’s our daughter Amadi, who is in fact the sweetest-tempered person in the world. I don’t know what her problem was. She had the honor of being the flower girl. The bride kindly allowed her to wear purple instead of saddling her with a horrible bright red dress as she did the bridesmaids.) And my wife Tesi giving her a look.
Saturday is predicted to be a nice sunny day. I won’t count on it, but I will permit myself to hope. Not for clothing reasons, but for the sake of the bride and groom.
Yes, that`s the picture. It’s nice. It’s evident this is a snap moment. Amadi is very pretty (with a lovely dress)! I’m very familiar with those sudden mood changes… -a girl’s trade mark, I would say-
“But what do you wear to a wedding in early September?”
Preferably full Morning Dress, including the topper. Then swank about: it’s a wedding and you are celebrating it. I don’t mind dressing up properly – it’s feeble compromises I don’t like, such as black tie for dinner, or – God spare us – the Business Suit.