October 1, 2001 ~ Is There Something Wrong with the Cows?

It's an indescribably eerie sound, the lowing, mooing, and braying of well over a hundred cows and their calves, and it continues day and night, without ceasing--long, mournful calls, in every pitch, echoing about the valley.

Morgan and I were walking past a man in the parking lot last night who was staring off into the direction of the pastures with a horrified look on his face.

"What's wrong with the cows?" he asked.

"The calves are being weaned," Morgan explained.

"They call back and forth for a few days every year when this happens," I added.

It is a rather horrifying ruckus. They sound as if they are being tortured.

Footnotes:

weather: Cool, clear.

bookmarked: Archeology textbook, some Bible readings for class, and more out of Van Jordan's poetry book, Rise.

writing focus: Response essay to Bible passages. I'm also writing tons of posts to the RAGING debate going on in the forum of The Well right now.

observation: Those cows are LOUD.

watching: We saw Planet of the Apes (the new version) in the second-run theatre last night. It was better than I had thought it would be, despite the time paradox and the not-very-well-explained end (everybody else in my group didn't get it until I told them what the inscription that had flashed up, briefly on the screen meant). Overall it was an interesting movie with an important moral question as it's basis.

heart warmer: Some thanks are in order. Liosha is an incredibly wonderful individual. She gave me tons of advice on health care and the system that I am struggling against right now, and I can't even begin to thank her! Also, Kris is selflessly offering monetary assistance should it become necessary, and his generosity brings tears to my eyes. I hope I won't have to take advantage of it. Lisa's kind words, support, and overwhelming sympathy came right when they were needed. I love my readers! I love you all so much! You're great!

random: "Are you vegan? You don't look vegan. You're not vegan." ~ Said to me at the café today by a fellow vegan. I promptly corrected him, and he apologized for his appearance-based stereotype. I just thought it was kind of funny. You see, not all vegans have dreadlocks, hippy clothes, and smoke pot! We're a rather diverse group of folks. ;-)

mood: Hopeful.

journal land:

"God, it broke my heart. He's been so outwardly thrilled at home that I had no idea any of this was bothering him. (I figured that would come later, when I actually started to get a belly, and it would be more imminently real, you know?) Jason and I talked to him for a long time, but it boiled down to he would always be my first baby, I would always worry about him, and that there are always going to be a million things he can do with us that the baby can't because babies are little, and stupid, and he's a big boy who can hop on one foot and read whole books by himself. Stupid being relative, of course. It's not a baby's fault its only interests are ingestion and defecation, and the Spider Monkey likes to feel smart. He really got into the idea that he'd be able to do multiplication while his new sibling would only be able to suck its toes. He swears that he will teach Weasel Baby to count to 100."

~ Saundra in this entry of Headspace.