Black Sheep Blog

Mr Business Editor has been busy of late, first going to the Gambia and now experiencing something equally as eye-opening. Here he is to explain more:

Today's story about the human cannonball appearing at the summer country shows has made me think about my own comparatively boring life.

Just the thought of coming from a "world-renowned cannonballing family" has made my village upbringing seem extremely tame. When i was young i did once try and be Superman by 'flying' off my climbing frame, but unfortunately that ended up in a fractured wrist and a lifetime of regret.

The readership of Farmers Weekly is getting younger, as seen by this picture:

The office is getting ready for the easter break, and for Mr Food Chain editor Andrew Watts that means only one thing: cross dressing.

Although he looks like the scariest waitress in the world, he is in fact 'supposed' to be an air hostess, ready (and as you can see willing) to go on a rugby tour.

Goodness knows what the real air hostesses will make of Mr Food Chain when they see him tommorow, but best wishes to him and to all you sheep readers over easter.

Well we've all had a great Easter weekend, come back renewed with extra vigour this morning.

However after visiting the canteen for lunch am a little concerned that our chef has been watching too much Agatha Christie -there was a strange tasting herb in the wild mushroom pasta - if you don't see a posting here tomorrow call for Hercule Poirot!

One of the few advantages of being stuck inside an office on a sunny day is the receiving of funny e-mails from all over the world - this is today's choice:

Only 3 men ever walked on water:

1. The 1st one was Christ...
2. The 2nd one was Peter (the apostle)...
3. After him was this guy ...

One the world's most famous horseracing events maybe occuring this Saturday, but there is another racing event that iwill literally be gripping parts of North Devon.

Six sheep have been in training for the Big Sheep event to be held in Abbotsham, North Devon on Saturday. The jockeys are toy animals with natty knitted tops.

The betting will be brisk as according to Rick Turner, the organiser, there were a few surprises last year when Alderknitty came in from nowhere and won first place.

Unfortunately the Black Sheep has pulled a muscle and cannot compete. Or maybe we have had too much Black Sheep Ale

Today has been a drama filled Friday as all the staff pulled out a horse number for tommorow's Grand National race. I felt confident as i stepped up,feeling that after years of obscurity, i would finally win the big race.

Dreams however, were quickly shattered as i picked out the 66-1 shot The Outlier .

Feeling dejected i put another pound in, hoping to pull out a better horse. This time i really did feel cursed, as out of the few left i picked a 50-1 Bellycassidy. I hope to be able to post success here on Monday, but i somehow doubt it!!!

It was with great inevitability that i walked in this morning disappointed with my lack of winnings from the Grand National event. I sat down in sombre fashion, lamenting how each horse i backed seemed to get into the lead and then fall in consecutive fences.

I sat there waiting for the moment and then it happened. A cheer arose from behind me, and as i looked around i saw the victor, FW publisher Trevor Parker, holding the cash and laughing in victory. Ruing my luck, i decided that i will never gamble again... probably until next year anyway!

Mr Machinery editor has been sent this picture; proof that everyman needs a good woman on his side:

Choosing a donkey as a defence witness in the neighbour dispute could be classed as a tad foolish, but for lawyer Gregory Shamoun, it was a way of proving his innocence.

Neighbour John Cantrell had complained that the donkey in question was brought by Mr Shamoun to annoy him; continuously making loud noises and leaving big piles of manure outside his door.

To defend himself, Mr Shamoun brought the donkey into court, presumably aiming to show how quiet the donkey could be rather than actually making the donkey speak, with carrots or maybe even a pat on the head.

The ploy worked and the dispute was settled out of court, maybe with the prosecution realising that cross-examining a donkey as a witness may be a little problematic.

Cats scare me...There I have finally admitted it to myself and to be honest with you I feel slightly liberated.

I don't mean they petrify me like scary clowns (just don't ask!), but there is a sinister element about cats that I just don't trust ( I think they stare too much).

Other people though love them, and none more than this blogger, who I found today while searching the blogosphere.

This is a blog offering cat advice, and what I especially like is:

• Her blog name: "How to hold a cat without losing an eye"
• Her "about me" description, where she calls herself a professional house sitter who has the ability to talk to cats (maybe that's where my problem lies... communication)

So if you have any cat problems let her know.

Today, in case you didn't realise, is St George's Day; a day to celebrate all that is Englishness.

From warm beer to continued sporting mediocrity, being English is a peculiar nation-something to be cherished and yet at the same time be somewhat embarrassed about being a part of(especially around times of sporting events).

St George is a saint who apparently fought a dragon. Although this is unlikely to have happened (it was probably a big badger), his influence is still felt through our flag, which is similar to St George's emblem.

So happy St George's Day, it may not be as big as St Patrick's, but it is our day, a time to celebrate a man who probably never visited England.

Reading about the unusually named 'ankle beater' job made me consider one of my first jobs.

This imaginatively involved nailing wood to other bigger pieces of wood to enable them to re-use them after they had broken. Similarly, in the same summer, I also painted a white wall white again.

The skills learnt during that summer led me to you fair reader; to prepare myself for the crazy life that is farming.

For the last month certain members of the office have been "pretending" to do worthwhile work, while keeping one eye on the cricket world cup.

I have never been so popular, with Mr Business and Mr Deputy Arable Editor especially popping over to ask about 'work-related' issues, with their concentration quickly taken by the cricketing action.

I'm not the biggest expert on cricket, but my bluff was quickly humbled by predicting a South African win over Australia, only to see them getting a good thrashing.

That's the last time the sheep makes any predication!

I can't say i'm an expert on many things (the office can testify for that) but i feel like i'm becoming a bit of a milk drink expert.

After Wondermilk, it was now time to try Moo Milk, a chocolate based milk drink that's advertised itself (i kid you not) as 'udderly mootritious' (a great tagline, i think you'll agree).

Ploughing can create some unusual shapes but we were impressed by this huge chicken that farmer Mervyn Bulled created.

The chicken measured 50 metres high and is going to be used to head an advertising campaign for Lloyd Maunder.

A 50m high chicken! What will be next, a 100 m high penguin?