What Is That?

I'm not sure if the animals are saying, "What is that?" or "Who are you?'  Because it's been so cold lately (not Fargo cold, but pretty darned cold for California), I've been wearing the fleece-lined pig hat Dave gave me last year to do morning barn chores.  It's a lot more piggy than the knitted pig cap he'd given me before, and it's definitely getting a reaction.  Sheila will not come out of her stall until she's given me a thorough inspection.  She sniffs the hat all over and then does a double check on my face, huffing warm breath over my eyes and cheeks.  Only when she's satisfied I'm really me will she allow me to lead her into the feeding room.  Tessie just makes a quick exit and Missy is more interested in breakfast.

The chickens couldn't care less what I've got on my head.  Celeste gets one glimpse and runs for cover.  She'll peek around the corner and duck back, and won't come out until I've taken the hat off.  Ralph takes everything in stride.

Deb sent an early morning New Year's Day text yesterday, ending with, "Stay warm, Mom."  Ha!  With that Arctic blast of the night before, the house was freezing, and I do mean 32 degrees.  Even with Stove trying his best, it was past 1:00 before I could even feel my face.  He's gobbled up half a rack of wood in just the past four days.  The cold has really affected Bessie's arthritic back leg.  Poor old girl hobbles around from one spot to another and it's painful to watch.  It was trash day and she couldn't make it out to the truck.

With the critters' reactions to my hat, I'm just glad I haven't run into my neighbors in the morning.  I can only imagine....