On Saturday morning after the snowfall, the stillness, starkness and whiteness of the countryside seemed impenetrable. I was glad it was over. We had been lucky. Everything looked so clean and the glare almost made me put on sunglasses.

The snow had drifted and lodged in various places. There is a weeping holly tree just out from the kitchen window. The snow had fallen on it and there was a distinct shape of a big bird – two black eyes, a big beak and a body. Every time I looked out it was staring back at me.

I asked the family if they could see it. Diarmuid agreed, but Colm explained to me that it is the constant cognitive conditioning of us to see things in shapes and patterns. He didn’t commit. Tim told me to take a photo as he would be gone the next day. I did and it wasn’t half as convincing in the picture. It unnerved me.

It was time to embrace the day. I got on all my layers. While I was listening to the Irish/Wales match last week, the commentators talked about some of the fans having heated trousers at €400 a pop. I’d have liked one for the snow and icy conditions.

Instead I made my own, two pairs of underwear, two pairs of trousers and wet weathers on top. It was just as effective as any heated trousers and mine was thermostatically controlled. As I worked and got hot, I just peeled off a layer. It took a while to get all the layers on though. I also discovered that my light garden gloves underneath the plastic gloves were just the business to keep the fingers warm. Improvisation is key in difficult conditions.

ROMANTIC

Tim and I headed out together. As we plodded in the snow, I put my arm through his and said “isn’t this romantic?” The man thought I’d lost my marbles. Maybe he’d some premonition of what lay ahead.

The snow blizzard was dreaded by farmers and many were adversely affected, left picking up the pieces. I was amused listening to Pat Kenny talking to Conor Faughnan on the radio as I went to work on Tuesday morning. While both men were complementary of the actions taken by the Government and the public services; the texts to the show were amusing.

One woman complained that her drive hadn’t been cleaned. Another person said that all households should be issued with a shovel and a bag of salt.

Another thought that some arrangement should be made with farmers to clear the roads, etc. The men discussed it completely forgetting that farmers were locked in by the snow and struggling to keep their own shows on the road. We really have an awful attitude in this country of expecting the state to do everything.

POWER OUTAGE

Unfortunately for us, there was worse hardship to come. We endured the cold day and continued to make sure the animals were fed and comfortable. The lads were almost finished milking and Philip and I were nearly finished feeding the calves when the shed was plunged into darkness. A quick appraisal of the countryside indicated that we were the only ones out.

We called our electrician, John Ahern, who was out within the hour. After some time he discovered the problem and had systems going again. Alas, he wasn’t long gone when the lights were out again, particularly the infrared lamps for keeping the baby calves warm. I hardly slept worrying about them.

The following morning John had to be chased up again. We hate to have to call in a service man on a Sunday morning, but that was just what we had to do. There are always consequences from weather events and it invariably costs money. I had five little calves scouring and cold. I thought “here we go down the spiral of disease”. I cursed the snow.

SUPPORT NETWORK

By mid-day, John our trusty electrician “who had waded through the snow to come to our aid” in his words, had all systems going again. He even brought free labour with him. His young son, Colman, joined in to help me feed the calves. His legs were buckling under the full buckets, but he wasn’t giving in. I offered to halve the quantity, but he wasn’t having it.

After that episode we were well sick of the snow. The thaw was messy and water flowed into every part of the shed.

That evening we were just leaving the yard for a cup of tea before milking when the Dairygold milk truck came up the drive. It was a welcome sight. We knew the crisis was over. Sean the lorry driver regaled us with details of what it had been like for him over the days.

He had a man in front of him in the jeep stopping traffic. He had a shovel and a bag of salt in the truck. He said “all I need is a meter of ground to start off the truck again”.

Every farm has a support network that we cannot function without, from the milk trucks and meal delivery men to the contractors and everyone in between. They have been life-savers in getting our farms back on track in the last week. Keep safe out there, because we need you and are very thankful for your continued good service. CL

Read more:

Katherine's Country: Spring is on our doorstep

https://www.farmersjournal.ie/time-management-on-the-farm-348566