Random thoughts while self-isolating with 250 of our fuzzy, 4-legged friends.

• With Kansas City, Missouri’s announcement the other day that they were banning all gatherings of more than 50 people, the rhythm of what has been our spring calendar for the past 10+ years was officially thrown out of the window. No 2020 Futurity!? Heck, no spring show “season” at all for us. So truth in advertising: we were actually a day or two away from letting the good folks at Celebrity Sales know that we weren’t coming to KC anyway — even if the show and auction had gone ahead — such was our concern for the the very real public health threat posed by the escalating Coronavirus situation. Then the decision was made for us. That’s fine and it’s all certainly for the greater good but now our April is going to feel very different for the first time in over 2 decades. The last time we didn’t attend at least one alpaca show (usually at least 1 or 2 of North American, Futurity, or Mapaca) in the month of April, we only had one child and that kid is about to turn 22.
• The Parade of Champions auction was also just postponed, which is of course a bummer but also 100% the right decision for any number of reasons. Thanks to our friend and colleague Lynn Edens for making the tough call early.
• Oh, what might have been: our 2019 birth class will just have to wait at least another 6 months or so before making their show debuts, hopefully in the fall. The first of the Bataclan kids are kind of fancy. At least we think they are – talk is so friggin’ cheap though.
• Have been meaning to run an off-season/preseason training camp for some of my up and coming 2 year old Herdsires (looking at you Percy), so the whole not spending 40+ hours on I-90 this spring might well lend itself to that cause.
• Of course, the fact that there will be no care and feeding of a small, mobile alpaca army (and the 5 human team slated to travel with them) to and from Kansas City, means that we will now have the opportunity to train every last one of those 2019 weanlings if we so choose, instead of just concentrating on the 20-25 that would have otherwise formed the backbone of our Futurity team. Apologies in advance Kimmy.
• What an emotional rollercoaster it’s been these past six months. We sent our youngest off to college where, thankfully, he has really thrived, got to travel childless through Italy (!) last fall with our dear friends, dealt with different health challenges in both of my (Ian’s) parents (though both are fine now), while simultaneously watching the other 3/4s of my nuclear birth family (both my folks as well as my sister and her new family) go through crazy moves and house sales from their primary residences to brand new digs in nearby Hanover, NH and the Hudson Valley respectively. We also all lost our beloved Cristina, who when I was a young child in Guatemala, helped raise me and was truly like my 2nd mother. Meanwhile Jen’s age-defying maternal grandfather, Floyd, turned 100. And then, just when things couldn’t get any stranger: surprise — Maxy’s back home from college after his school wisely elected to take the rest of the semester online! Dinner for 3 again it is. I’m sorry I’m not sorry about that last part. Now, if I could just beat the little bastard at 8-ball…
• Jen bought a pasta maker, thinking we’re going to have some extra time on our hands during this whole quarantining business. Can’t hurt, might be fun! 🙂
• Will the AOA Natural Fiber Extravaganza get to take place in July as scheduled? If it does, we’ll be there.
• Stay safe and stay healthy everybody. Let’s all live to fight another day please…

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