One of the reasons I got this camera was that I'm an artist and I have plenty of inspiration around me. Because I looked after my elderly mom who had Alzheimers, my time outdoors was limited - so being able to grab a record quickly was a good backup strategy.

I bred dairy goats for awhile in the early 90's and loved it - but lost nearly all my herd to a very bad disease over 10 years ago.  The place has been a bit sad and deserted since then.  A few weeks back in casual conversation I acquired Boris - a boar of a special species of pig we have here in New Zealand called the Kunekune.  They are pretty laid back and are not really commercial meat pigs (thank goodness) because they are short-bodied and carry a lot of fat.  Being intelligent and human-oriented, they are mainly pets, sought after by what we call "lifestylers" - people living away from the cities on small blocks - often commuting to work in town so they can enjoy a more peaceful, rural lifestyle with some small animals around them.

Boris has transformed my sadly deserted breeding sheds and pens by captivating my heart and inspiring me to find him a mate - Natasha - who, as it happens, came with a ready-made family of 4 youg piglets - 2 male and 2 female.  For the first week our back garden was Piggy Heaven.  Natasha pottered around, revelling in the good grass and the Wandering Jew (at last! somebody who will deal to my Wandering Jew!!!!!).

Then - I think she decided it was time to finally wean off the piggies - Natasha transformed herself into a cross between a battering ram and a fencer's nightmare.  I have pretty good fencing - mainly 8 wire high tensile, with netting in some places - because goats are a drama to contain unless you are well prepared.  But Natasha stuck her nose underneath and went "boof!", breaching my netting fences and finding some weaknesses in my 8 wire that had crept up on me unawares over recent years. (How come a fully Tanalised tie-down fence post managed to rot off at ground level in dry volcanic soil?)  It was like dealing with a Houdini - no sooner had I put her somewhere "secure"  than up she popped like a nightmare on short legs where she wasn't meant to be - with the piggies trailing in her wake. Natasha the army tank!

Finally I put the piggies in one of the pens in my shed for a couple of days while I heightened security on our once-was kitchen garden - which has rabbit netting almost all the way round, and let Natasha do her thing.  She settled down a treat...........  Peace descends on the valley again - at least for a while. Thank Goodness!