Farm life..not so bad!

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On October 15 I got a ride down to Wellsford where I stayed at a farm for two weeks. I did not know what to expect and all I really knew was that it was a farm with a lot of chickens. When I arrived I was a little bit hesitant when I saw about seven chickens and a bunch of chicks living inside their home, chicken shit all over the floor and a sheep that thought she was a dog. I had to be very careful where I stepped because of the shit of course and also all the little baby chicks running around. I got over all that quickly and I could tell almost instantly that I was going to get along well with the couple that owned the farm (Conny and Chris). I felt very welcomed along with the other helper staying at the farm who was also from the US (Gerda from South Dakota). They took out a bottle of wine which made the transition for all of us a bit easier and we got to talking. Every time we finished a bottle of wine that night somehow another one would just appear on the table and someone was pouring me another glass. Every time this happened I could not hold back from laughing. That first night we drank more wine than I have ever seen and I was amazed to see how open Conny and Chris were. They shared a lot of their past with us and it became very easy to do the same.

My work of the farm consisted of waking up at 8am to feed the chickens that would literally swarm me and sometimes land on my head, cleaning up shit off the floor and feeding the lamb and dogs. It was not too much work and I felt I was not doing enough to deserve all of the wine and great cooking, but I learned to adapt.

Chris and Conny moved to New Zealand from Germany 11 years ago and Chris built their beautiful home. He is also a tattoo artist and they own a tattoo shop in a near by town. Chris often tattoo's the helpers that come and stay with them pretty much for free (a bottle of wine or two usually squares up the deal). I knew I wanted to get a tattoo but I had no idea what to get. Me and Chris got to talking and eventually we came up with something. I wanted to have a touch of some heritage in their so I was looking at Celtic knots then Chris came up with the idea of somehow incorporating a maze into the design because of a maze's meaning. It symbolizes the journey through life and the many choices you have. I eventually came across the Celtic Tree of Life and knew that I wanted to use it. So...my tattoo is pretty much all that and also represents my family(their support, roots my backbone.) It definitely hurt quite a bit but I got through it ok. After it was done, I went through about a five minute period where I thought, "oh shit why did I just get a tree permanently scarred into my back??" But that feeling past quickly and I really like began to like it. I surprised myself with the spontaneity of getting the tattoo. I always thought if I got a tattoo it would be something I thought long and hard about but I love the meaning behind it and the time of my life that it will always remind me of.

I bought my car the day before I left the farm for $1000 NZ. It is a Nissan. That is all I really know. The model seems to be a bit of a mystery. The registration says AD on it but I cannot find any trace of existence of another Nissan AD. But it seems to be a good car and she drives like a dream. Hopefully I will be able to sell it before I leave New Zealand.

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Photos

the morning stampede
..and yes the chickens do in fact have large talons

The tat
some great detail work