Watching Season

 

It definitely is that time of year when we WATCH STUFF more than usual. 

We watch sports, either on TV or in person. 

We watch the news. 

We watch the weather. 

 We watch movies or special series.

Lots of watching, 'cept maybe for grass growing.

Yesterday, after watching a recorded version of the first episode of this season's "All Creatures Great and Small,"  I spent some time watching a frustrating drama right next to the barnyard gate. 

This outdoor event featured another episode of all creatures being naughty. 

After a few days of watching my horses take turns chewing up fence boards and a wooden post while happily watching me watch them and yell to "Stop," I decided it was time to extend the electric fence wire along that board and to that post. 

"STOP" was not working, and the snowballs I threw at them hardly hit the mark. 

So, I decided it was time to extend the electric wire over that segment of board fence to its post near the gate.

The post is old, as is the board.  And, we still have several weeks of winter, so if the horses chewed too much of the post and board, they may just eat their way out of the barnyard. 

If the electric fence would work, that would buy us time until spring. 

I had no way of checking to see if the wire was still extending from the juice in the barn and around the barnyard because of deep snow. 

So, I brought out the spool of electric wire, the fence pliers and a nail. 

Fortunately, I could get through the snow to grab the wire that had been tied off a few feet away from where Bill had installed the gate last fall. 

With a little help? from my friend CB, I managed to splice wire together, nail the insulator to the post and finish the job.  

If the electric fence worked, no more teeth would be doing their beaver work on the fence. 

After plugging in the fence charger, I stood outside doing some more watching.  This time CB's curiosity about the deed just done kept those nostrils busy for several minutes. 

Either the brand new sight of the wire and insulator kept his attention, or the fence was working. 

Horses seem to know when the electricity is flowing through the barnyard. 

I'm still not sure if my patching job did any good, but I did notice later that all three horses were showing some new respect to the area where they had created a pile of sawdust in the snow. 

Fingers crossed. 

And, so watching can occur outside and inside.  Last night we watched the football National Championship game for the first half.  Not exactly exciting when one team is crushing the other. 

Tonight we'll watch the Golden Globes with special interest in how the film receiving the most nominations does. 

We assume our friends in the Aran Islands, where portions of The Banshees of Inisherin were filmed, may be watching also. 

 I'm also anxious to see which tune earns the Golden Globe for Best Song.

My favorite is "Carolina" with Taylor Swift.  This simple but pure piece provided a hauntingly beautiful touch while watching the credits in the movie Where the Crawdad Sings. 

Golden Globes

Leading film nominees

The Banshees of Inisherin:  8

Everything Everywhere All at Once: 6

Babylong:  5

The Fabelmans: 5

Elvis:  3

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio:  3

Tar:  3

Best Song

"Carolina" Where the Crawdads Sing

"Ciao Papa"  Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio

"Hold My Hand"  Top Gun Maverick

"Lift Me Up" Black Panther Wakanda Forever

"Naatu Naatu" RRR

And, the TV watching will continue through the winter, not always in real time, with college basketball and recorded episodes of 1883, 1923, All Creatures  and Alaska Daily.

Bill will continue to watch Gonzaga women in person, and we'll both plan to watch as many of Willie's games as possible. 

All this watching definitely means that we also need to get off our behinds and get outside to do just as much walking as watching. 

There's nothing wrong with that. 

Happy Tuesday. 

GO, Banshees!  GO, Taylor!