Hay delivered, and some rain, too. A long road ahead of us all. Sales, subscribers, and shares very much needed.

Photo copyright Aji, 2018; all rights reserved.

We got the hay delivered yesterday and it truly is premium stuff — some of the best we've ever seen, and in this drought, that's saying something. Actually, it looks like our hay used to, before climate change and drought decimated it over the last couple of years. Johnny had nine bales left (that's it; in this drought, there won't be any more of it), so we shuffled some things and bought that, too. To give you an idea of how bad this drought is, for those of you who don't depend on the land: One of the people he buys from, in CO, has acreage that normally gives him 5,000 bales of hay per cut (yes, five thousand). His cut this year? 150. You read that right; one hundred and fifty. And there's no more water, so he won't get another.

Shade loves the new stuff. Miskwaki likes it, too, but Shade is just beside herself with happiness. When I checked her on as soon as I got up, she whinnied at me as I came in the gate, for the first time in more than a week. She was staring right at the empty trough the way her mother used to do, as though if she glared at hard enough she could summon more hay out of thin air.

We got a decent rain last night (the grass is still wet), and we may actually get a little more later on today. Meanwhile, we both have another long day ahead of us (and a long road still ahead of us all), and I still have only one good hand (and a hell of a lot of nerve pain, the kind that can bring your to your knees without warning). I have to get to work, so it's just cut-and-paste from here on out. We very much, very badly need sales and new Patreon subscribers, and since this is early July, if you subscribe today, you won't be billed until August 1st. Here are the links and a request to share them, because without those sales and subscribers, I honestly don't know how we get through this:

• My new Patreon, The Interstices (Writing Between Worlds);
• Wings's site, for sales, with new items posted;
• Wings's direct PayPal link;
• A way to buy me coffee (which actually goes to all of our medical bills, which continue to mount);
• Amazon wishlist, which mostly consists of animal and household stuff;
• Partial registry #1, from Bed, Bath and Beyond. There are new kitchen-y things on it now, stuff that I didn't realize we'd need to replace (either because the RV ruined it or because we gave it away when we had to downsize).

I had said that I'd really like to raise another $500 in subscriptions before July is out, just to have a little more to throw to the medical wolves that are constantly at my throat. Now, we've got a lot more that needs to be done, too, and I'm damned if I know how. The truck was more than enough to throw a wrench in the works, but this thing with Shade? And once you're in it, you have to keep going; there's no way out but forward, whatever the result. So please, please share the links. Thanks to everyone who has kicked in on Shade's behalf already; we're profoundly grateful, and we love you all. Shade does, too, even if she can't verbalize it. Especially now, because if there's one thing that girl loves, it's eating stuff she likes.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2018; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.