Many years ago I worked on a farm alongside an old man called ‘Tidley’. Despite being a rogue, he was an excellent ploughman. He’d sit on his beloved Caterpillar ploughing all day. You could hear the engine singing: “Dunk, Dunk, Dunk, Dunk, Dunk!” as constant as a metronome, for miles around. He hated seagulls, young students (me!) and hard work. Often, I would have to work twice as hard, while he slept in the shade of a tree on a warm spring day! He now has the rest of eternity to doze, in a quiet country churchyard…
“You get more spuds in a bent row!”
Tidley Wilkins used to say.
If you don’t mow in a straight line,
You’ll get more bales of hay!
If you half-fill the muck spreader,
You get more loads of muck.
If you put in half the hours,
You’ll need twice the luck!
And if things go wrong,
Be careful when you take aim!
There’ll always be a youngster,
Who’s around to take the blame!
It has been pointed out to me by fellow farmers that the picture has been reversed as the furrows face the wrong way (it’s a farmer thing). The picture came from an American site on the internet. I use 99% of own-taken photographs. I apologise to all who may be offended by this and promise to take more care in future. I should possibly enrol on a course to teach me about farming!
I think it may just be Tidley, teaching me a lesson from beyond the grave, as he did all those years ago!
© Baldock Bard 2014
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The Baldock Boot Sale is now closed for the winter
returning for the twenty-second season on April 26th 2014
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