Carolina Hills Farm Animal Refuge Inc

06/13/2026

Mornin' y'all,

I'm feeling very discouraged today and thus have no words to share. Have a great day y'all.

Blues 🐕🎵 — “The Dog Was Right Again” is a humorous blues tale about...

06/12/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Thank y'all for all the tips and advice on my looming defrost project. Now question number two. Up north with the two freezers I just emptied the desired one , turned it off and let the ice slowly melt.

The freezers were in my basement with a floor drain right near by so it was no big deal to just let time and room temperature do the defrost work. The melt just dripped to the floor , ran into the drain and evaporated over time.

Here I do not have the luxury of either time , or allowing the water to just drip onto the floor since I have no basement or floor drain. I must be quick and neat so that the moisture doesn't create mold issues in my living space.

So , my question is this ... how best to rid myself of the ice quickly ... a blow dryer? An ice pick? I'm open to suggestions. I do believe that an ice pick could be the driest method but there are some inherent risks with sharp , pointy items attacking the inside of a freezer.

I know that some freezer shelves have cooling elements built in and there is some risk of puncturing a cooling line with the ice pick , thus rendering the freezer useless. Not a scenario that I care to deal with. I've no funds for a new freezer , that's for sure.

As y'all can probably ascertain via the above paragraphs I've little to let y'all in on regarding my days. This heat and humidity , though in it's infancy , is already making my life more difficult.

Even though it's not too uncomfortable in the house just yet I'm getting the feeling that I'll have to turn on the AC very soon , if only to reduce the humidity level to a point better suited for easy breathing.

Whereas I was full of ambition and energy , relatively speaking , last week , this week has been a real battle just to get anything at all accomplished. Fits and starts. That seems to be the story of my life these days. Ups and downs with no consistency.

Oh well. I'm here. I'm healthy ... again relatively speaking ... and I want for nothing. Personally anyway. Of course , farm-wise the wants are great. Donations continue to elude us to the point where next week's feed payment is in question , our funds are that low. Argh.

That's all the whining that I will subject y'all to today folks. I'm done caviling ... for the time being. Have a great day.

PS: I know it's a recycled pic , but everything hereabouts is a retread these days. My apologies.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

06/11/2026

Mornin' y'all,

There's little to report today , I'm afraid. Yesterday's feed run and errand trip did not yield any excitement and when y'all combine that with the current heat and humidity I'm not getting much done.

The next few days are looking even worse , climate-wise. Heck , according to the weatherman we're facing potential triple digit heat this weekend. Something that I'm not looking forward to in the least.

The impending heat wave does however offer me the impetus to take care of an indoor chore that's long overdue. That leads me to seek some reader's advice. I need to defrost my freezer and would like to know if there is dry ice available locally.

I'm concerned with safely storing a large selection of frozen foods while I undertake the defrost. You see I only have one freezer here on the Farm whereas I had two of them up north.

Back in NY when I needed to do a defrost job I just let my supplies dwindle until I could fit all my frozen goods in one freezer while I defrosted the other.

Here I do not have that luxury so I'll have to store all my food in a cooler for as long as it takes to get my single freezer back in efficient working order. Hence the desire for dry ice.

Maybe I'm being an alarmist? Is it possible that a quality cooler could keep all my food frozen for twenty four hours , or maybe less , without resorting to dry ice? I don't know , but I have much food that I do not want to lose.

Any tips or advice will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Sorry folks , but that's all I've got for y'all today. No Farm news. No new anything. Just more of the same old struggle to keep the doors open.

Have a great day.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

06/10/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Hump Day is here. Down here on the Farm that means it's feed run day. Time for our weekly excursion into town for supplies and such. Nothing very exciting. A stop at the dump. A few minor goods for the larder and a few hundred pounds of grain for the guests.

There won't be much happening since we're barely able to meet the feed expenses for the gang with the way things are going financially these days. We're good for one more week , this one , and then we're screwed.

There's still no sign of the "grant" we were alleged to have received from some company in Texas and since even some of our regular donors have ceased their monthly support we're facing dire straits indeed.

I don't know how much longer we can continue our operation with the current rate of support we are receiving. I know that I cannot afford to carry this operation out of my own pocket for very much longer.

Although we've had a reprieve of sorts these past couple months , since the beginning of the year I've had to personally supplement the feed budget three of six months , in addition to personally paying for the tractor tire/repairs which , by itself , absorbed a month's worth of feed funds. Argh!

Don't mind me y'all. Some days all I feel is "gloom and doom" while on others I see light at the end of the tunnel if you'll pardon my run of cliches.

To be honest there are days where I'm mystified that I've managed to keep this place funded and functioning for as long as I have. I've never been good at asking others for help but somehow I have been able to get by , barely , for these past six years. That's something of a success , I suppose.

In any event , that success may not be long in continuing I fear. I just cannot carry this burden both physically and financially for much longer without outside support.

I guess the next few days will tell the tale. If by some miracle that promised "grant" arrives we'll be secure for a few more weeks but to be honest with y'all it may just be a finger in the crumbling d**e.

The stress of constantly begging for operating capital isn't doing yours truly any good that I can see. Heck , who knew that the labor involved in physically caring for the animals would be the easy part? Not I.

I find it ironic , in the extreme , that prior to getting sick this operation was more or less self-sustaining , while now that I struggle some physically my burden is compounded by a lack of monetary support.

Not that the funds were overflowing prior to my cancer. Nay , it's always been a chore keeping the larder plentiful , just not so difficult as it has grown to be these past couple years.

Oh well. They say that all of life is cyclical. Comprised of ups and downs. If so perhaps we'll soon see some "ups" in lieu of these recent ever-present "downs". That would be nice. Lord knows , I sure would appreciate a little breathing room.

That's my sob story for today. Forgive me for being such a downer. It's not my nature. I've forever been a shining example of the "eternal optimist" and will be again but every once in a while the pessimism bursts through ... temporarily.

As they say "this too shall pass".

Have a great day folks and thanks for lending the sympathetic ear.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

https://youtu.be/uAzwji5Cfmk?list=RDuAzwji5Cfmk

Eric Idle leads the catchy musical number "Always Look on the Brigh...

06/09/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Happy primary day. Don't forget to get out there and vote for your preferred candidates. Voting is not only a civic duty but it's a right that millions the world over do not have the privilege of enjoying so make the best of your liberty. Not everyone can.

That's our PSA for the day. LOL. It's looking to be quite warm today ... and for the foreseeable future. Nothing but high eighties to low nineties for the next week or more. Probably the next few months actually. So it goes.

That just means getting outside earlier and quitting earlier here on the Farm. The critters need care regardless of the climate so we work. Heat and humidity be dam**d.

Yesterday we worked on a plethora of different projects , delegated as my physical condition allowed. First off was some fencing repairs and rehabilitation of the original goat pen that has fallen into disrepair.

This involves pulling up some t-posts , which can be a struggle , and fixing several wooden fence posts that have rotted away at ground level. I will admit that I'm taking the easy way out for now and am not installing new wooden posts.

I'm doing things the "poor man's" way right now since we're in the midst of a fund raising crisis and have no money to spare on new treated fence posts. My cheapo method involves standing the rotted post back up where it originally stood and driving a six foot t-post into the ground immediately adjacent to it.

Then I secure the wooden post to the steel t-post with screws and wire ties. Good enough for the time being. Especially if there are no destructive billy goats using the pen. Once I've re-secured the posts I need to patch many holes in the wire fencing.

You see , the original goat pen , built in 2020 with hand-me-down wire has many gaps that allowed the critters to escape. When I'm done the enclosure will once again be secure and then I can turn it into the nanny pen and separate the buggers once and for all. Or that's my hope anyway.

After tiring of driving stakes and cutting my hands on the wire I moved on to some plumbing issues out around the pens and corral. Replacing broken hose connectors and leaky fittings to ease up on water consumption.

Next up ... after getting tired from my physical labors , I transitioned to the John Deere for some easy , leisurely one might even say , hours in the tractor seat getting some more of the mowing taken care of before calling it a day , mid afternoon.

It was a full and productive day. Certainly not so productive as might have been accomplished by my younger self but fruitful just the same. LOL. I've tempered my expectations and as such seldom disappoint myself. Ha ha.

That was my day. How was yours?

Following my trip to the polls this AM I expect more of the same for today. That's about it folks. I've run dry on words.

Have a blessed day.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

06/08/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Happy Monday. I hope that y'all had as pleasant a weekend as I did here at the Farm. While yesterday was spent quietly with some auto racing and film going , my Saturday was a very special day for me , as I'll explain shortly.

My weekend started off on Friday with my semi-annual visit to the pulmonologist for my pulmonary function test. Before y'all ask , I cannot tell you how I did since I have to return in two weeks to get the results read to me by the doctor. Such a racket. Meh.

Anyway , the test went fine and I'm confident that the results will reveal a marked improvement over the previous one. As is my wont , I combined the drive to Aiken for the Dr's appointment with my personal quest for boosting my video library and my monthly need for groceries.

Thus , after the doc I hit up four different thrift stores on my way home in my quest for favored films. I'm very pleased to state that in these small shops I managed to procure four long sought movies to add to my collection , along with about a dozen others of lesser import , although still desired for the collection. Success number two.

Then it was on to my favorite grocer , Aldi's , where I stocked up on my favorites. Enough for the month , and then some. I surely do love that store , although this time I spent nearly double my usual. I must say though that the added expenditure was not because of price increases.

Nay , it was due to my selecting a lot more items than usual. I mean I got shrimp and chicken and pork tenderloin and beef fillets. Ravioli and tortellini and calzones. Donuts and chocolate bars. Bread and rice. weeks worth of nourishment for myself , all for under $70. I tell you , there's no better value for your money anywhere.

The shopping made my Friday. Great food and film finds never fail to put a smile on this old man's face. It's the simple things in life that make one happy in these golden years. I'm easy to please , what can I tell you?

But if that wasn't a good enough start to my weekend it took a major turn for the better the following day. You see , on Saturday I was paid a visit by and Waylon. Yup. We had our first ever boy's day out. Just the three of us since mama was working.

While we never left the Farm it was a very special day. One that I will cherish to my dying day. Just the boys spending some quality time together. Although it was exhausting. That little boy is a handful and a half , let me tell you.

Now that he's very mobile he's quite capable of running both his father and myself ragged. Gracious but the kid's got some energy. Holy cow. By the time the left for home I was more worn out than I was from my entire run in Aiken the previous day.

Truth be told , last week was a very busy one all around. I pushed the boundaries of my physical limitations daily from Tuesday right through to Saturday and was exceedingly grateful for Sunday's day of rest. But it was a fabulous weekend just the same.

I can only hope that y'all had a weekend even half as memorable as was mine.

Today's agenda has yet to be set so , rather than make predictions that may not come to be , I'll just bid y'all a good start to your week. Bless you all.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

06/07/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Happy heavenly 88th birthday to my mom. You sure are missed by us all. You'd love your newest great grandson. He and my boy paid me a visit yesterday for our first "boys day" together. What a special day it was for us all.

Bless you all.

06/06/2026

Mornin' y'all,

D-Day. What more can be said? Eighty two years on. Very few veterans of the campaign still live , but the memories will never fade for those of us who remain eternally grateful to the "greatest generation".

There exist so many momentous photos and videos of "Operation Overlord" that it's nearly impossible for me to choose which should be displayed to honor those brave men , but choose I must. So here you are.

I've put two choice videos on the page but I've never done such before and doubt if both will be displayed. We'll see what happens , but I may have to do an edit after publication.

The Omaha Beach footage is very impressive and must be included but I wanted to also include President Reagan's tribute to the Rangers of Pointe du Hoc.

Bless them all , for who knows what the world as we know it would be like without their sacrifice on that fateful day in June of 1944.

https://youtu.be/Mj-MO1yrdJI

https://youtu.be/pL5-OFpC4lI

This video features real footage from Omaha Beach, one of the most famous locations of the D-Day invasion during World War II. Shot in stunning 4K and colori...

06/05/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Yesterday featured yet another day in town. It was unplanned but necessary just the same. Unsaid in my previous post was the fact that despite a long litany of errands and chores accomplished , there remained more to be done.

I have to admit that on Wednesday I had run out of steam before the completion of my agenda. I still needed to get the grocery shopping done. Needed a trip to Tractor supply for several mineral blocks. Some shopping at the hardware store and some banking.

Today is going to be another hectic day and one that needs to get started earlier than usual so this post will be brief. Like very brief. As in done right now. I've got to get moving.

For those interested , I'm pleased to say that I had the opportunity to test out all of my "new" tools yesterday and they all work great. Not only that but , upon closer inspection , I discovered that I only have one of them in my existing collection.

So I got a trove of great new stuff , as the photos show. Even the flashlight works , which is great because mine died a long time ago and a simple bulb replacement didn't solve the problem. A great gift indeed.

I hope that y'all enjoy a pleasant end to your week. We'll return tomorrow.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm

06/04/2026

Mornin' y'all,

Howdy. There's not much happening at the Farm right at the moment. Yesterday's trip to town went off without a hitch , although I somehow managed to exhaust myself in the process.

It must have been the result of my very poor sleep the night before because the weather couldn't have been more beautiful. Imagine my surprise when i discovered that I needed a fleece yesterday morning when I went out to feed the critters.

It was so nice and cool yesterday and much drier as well. It was a perfect day for working in the yard but , of course , that didn't happen. Nope. By the time I returned from town it was nearly 2 pm and I was shot.

But I did get much accomplished , by my standards anyway. The trash was taken to the dump. I treated myself to breakfast at Hardee's. Big spender , eh? LOL. Then a trip to the pharmacy for my monthly meds.

From there it was on to the feed store and loading up a few hundred pounds of nourishment for the gang back in the barnyard. A stop at the Shell station turned Exxon out on highway 70 for a few jerry cans of diesel was next on the list.

That was followed by a stop in to one of our regular benefactor's homes on the outskirts of town where I was pleasantly surprised by a gift of a big bag of Hitachi power tools from BG. What a treasure trove he gave me.

As luck would have it , the raft of cordless tools he gave me use the same 18 volt Hitachi batteries that I already possess. Yup. His tools are the same vintage as mine and while he had two working chargers but not good batteries it's no problem for I already have 5 good batteries to choose from.

Amongst all the tools in the "gift" bag were a cordless impact driver and regular screw gun ... both of which I already have , but one can never have too many drills. But that was only the opening round.

For also in the huge tool bag were no one , nor two but three cordless tools that I do not have in my shop any longer. The great finds included a sawzall , a circular saw , a flashlight , an impact wrench and ... the coolest thing of all ... something I'd never seen in my forty years of construction , a cord adapter that allows the tool to be used without a battery.

I'd never even heard of such an adapter and I've been using professional grade Hitachi tools since the mid-eighties. This adapter cord extends the life and usefulness of these "cordless" tools indefinitely.

Such a brilliant invention. In all my years the idea had never occurred to me but upon seeing it for the first time my eyes bulged and I thought to myself , this is such a good idea , it's a no-brainer that I should have anticipated decades ago.

I couldn't even find any reference online for this really cool AC adapter for the tools. It's a marvelous accessory to have and I can't thank him enough for all the wonderful treasures bestowed upon me yesterday. What a great surprise. Thank you BG.

Then it was on to the market to play some Lotto and pick up a few items before finally calling it a day in town and heading back to the Farm. By which time I found my a$$ dragging and had to settle for doing a few household chores to finish out my day.

Who knew just running errands , getting in and out of the truck , loading and unloading purchases could be so tiring? Me , that's who. I've had enough experience these past couple years so that I should be able to determine my personal limits. But no , I never learn.

So that was my day. Much useful stuff attended to and yet , it seemed like a modest day of attainment. The story of my life. LOL

Nothing new on the Farm , I'm afraid. No tales of animal adventure. All remains as it nearly always is. Calm , peaceful and quiet. Good for me , not so good for y'all.

Have a great day folks and please ... Give if you can , we're struggling mightily these days to add to our coffers. Fund raising is exceedingly difficult right now. Thank you for your consideration and bless you all.

By the way we are an IRS approved 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible.

Square: https://square.link/u/EOVQGNVI
Stripe: https://donate.stripe.com/fZe4j76MQ0Tj5YQ9AA
Zelle: [email protected]
PayPal: paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/4319194
CashApp: $CarolinaHillsFarm