Today i learned...

Fences are expensive.

And I mean really expensive.  The next time you are driving down a country road and you see one of those cheap barbed-wire fences, remember that cheap is relative.  

Sure, you can pick up a roll of regular barbed-wire for around 60 cents a foot.  But then you have to multiply whatever length you need by 4 or 5 depending on how many strands you are going to be using on the fence.  Pretty quickly you can find yourself shelling out $3.00 per linear foot.  Chances are, you won't be pulling barbed-wire for anything less than 100 feet at a time per side.

Add in the cost of those beautiful wooden posts for corner and center braces at between $10 and $15 each and pick up some unsightly t-posts (just under $5 each) to drive in every 8 feet or so and you've got yourself an investment.

If you don't see the fence in this picture, it is because you are not looking on the ground.

Full disclosure: This is not at all something I learned today.  I figured out the expensive part just a few months into our small farming adventure.  However, it is something fresh on my mind today because Emily brought the above photo evidence of downed-fence to me a few minutes ago.

To be fair, this particular stretch of fence was supposed to be temporary anyway.  But it turns out that a lot of our temporary fixes end up in service a lot longer than planned.  And, unfortunately, it simply is not time for a big fence project - the ticks are still alive and well, the temperatures are still in the 90s in the shade, and I have this totally rational​ fear of copperheads keeping me out of the woods right now.

Besides, we have floor tile to finish.

For now we will throw up some sort of emergency something to keep the donkeys from exploring all of Mayes County while we sleep at night.  And we will be praying that Oklahoma storms get all of the fence-destroying business out of the way over the next few weeks and before​ we make repairs.

Posted by Anita

Keeper of the ever-expanding to-do list.