Connecticut Donkey & Mule Show Makes the Papers

Ring of Fire Scene from the Bishop Orchard Show in 2010

Save May 7, 2011 to come to Guilford,CT. for the 
 Annual Donkey and Mule Show

                                                                  
Click on the link below to see the article from  "THE DAY"


The Day - Kim Brockett Helps Educate, Entertain News from southeastern Connecticut

You will see all kinds of action at the Donkey & Mule Show

                                               

The Whole Family Can  Show Donkeys & Mules

Get Your unemployed donkey out of the backyard and preparing for the  Bishop's Orchard Donkey & Mule Show.....

see YOU there!

                                                                                  

Donkeys Just Wanna Have Fun!

Coming into the ring for your viewing pleasure the obstacle class for donkeys. Let's see how our exhibitors have trained their donkeys to work their way through the obstacles. Then there will be the riding and the driving classes. Yes, they let donkeys drive but it has to be an automatic........ well couldn't resist the joke, the driving will be donkey to a cart and a exhibitor at the reins. There are many classes in a Donkey show and again I will be delighted to be the announcer for the annual Donkey show at the Brooklyn Fair in Brooklyn Ct. this Saturday. See my schedule of shows at www.carolynstearnsstoryteller.com

http://www.brooklynfair.org/ The show starts at 9:30 in the event arena near the cattle barns. Donkeys are such fun animals and a resurgence in interest has brought a large number to the fairs and shows held annually around New England and beyond. They are patient and thoughtful much like Eeyore from the Pooh stories. They may not pass an obstacle at first attempt but will ponder the risk involved and the value in doing as they are asked and will make a valiant attempt despite having fear issues.

The donkeys come in three sizes. There are the miniatures which are invariably cute, the standards which are the Grand Canyon type and made popular by the children's classic storybook Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry. Then there are the Mammoth Variety a rather large horse height donkey with magnificent large ears. My all time favorite donkey is a character named Jassper! He has the world's best ears! Jassper resides in Franklin Ct. on Blue Hill Farm and has many donkey friends, he is a gentle ambassador. Jassper recently starred in a video I made in a corn maze with his friend Tabassco and they will both be at the show Saturday. I will see them again next week when they come to the A-MAZE-ING Story Slam at Fort Hill Farms http://www.forthillfarms.com/ in Thompson Ct. The story slam is a storytelling competition and Jassper and Tabassco and possibly their friend Asster will be all ears as they listen to the tales told on the theme "In a Quiet Corner".

http://www.a-maze-ingstoryslam.ning.com/

After their fun at the story slam they will be at the Blue Slope Country Farm Museum Fall Festival in Franklin, Ct. Here they will also have some demonstrations of how to operate donkey powered farm equipment. Dependable and steady work habits the hallmark of the donkey as a farming partner , Jassper did some corn chopping last year very economically, he works for cookies! www.blueslope.com/fallevent

Come out and watch our friends in the show ring Saturday!

A-MAZE-ING Give A Donkey an Ice Cream Cone

Summer was soooo boring for Jassper and Tabasco, just green grass .... and more green grass. Jassper and Tabasco needed a DAYCATION! Their owner understood when they told him. After work one day they were loaded in the Corn Pro Trailer to go on a Daycation trip. How Excited Jassper and Tabasco were. They were guessing where they might go.

They passed a beautiful town green when they got off the highway. It had not been a long ride, what excitement could be in this quiet country town?

A sign showed them where they would turn and pointed the way to Ct. Grown at Fort Hill Farms http://www.forthillfarms.com/ . Blue Hill donkeys at Fort Hill, Jassper and Tabasco hoped they had more than green grass.

Tabasco helped find a place to park their trailer.

They soon new they were welcome at Fort Hill Farms and it would be a great Daycation!

They got tickets for the Corn Maze. They had never been in a corn maze before!

Jassper and Tabasco tried all the paths, up and down the hill and to the towers and had so much delicious fun!

Winding through the green paths was fun, and relaxing and sometimes they even felt like running a little.

They found answers to the quiz and looked at the secret maps. At the end they looked at the big map again and saw all the places in the maze they had visited. They wished more friends had come to the maze with them.

Back under the big tent they were told about the

A-MAZE-ING Story Slam

coming on Sept 4, 2010 at 1 p.m. They asked if they could come too.

Of course the answer was yes! Jassper and Tabasco would be "All ears" when listening to the stories at the A-MAZE-ING Story Slam. They could be really good listeners!

Jassper whispered to Tabasco that they would look it up on the barn computer when they got home. Tabasco had to try to remember the site address.

www.A-MAZE-INGStorySlam.ning.com



After all the fun in the maze little Tabasco was sooo hungry he was happy to see a little grass. Jassper had a better idea. He had heard from a friend at the Farmers Cow about the new ice cream and he really wanted to try it!

Jassper looked near the fishing pond but it wasn't there.

They found the Creamery and had a hard time choosing a flavor!

Other people were in line to place an order and Jassper got in line next.

Finally it was his turn to order, Mint please! and make it all natural.

Jassper's cone was so delicious!

Got Ice Cream?

It was an exciting Daycation at Fort Hill Farms for Jassper and Tabasco!

Now they will be counting the days until

Sept 4, 2010 when they can come back.

Will they be seeing you at the A-MAZE-ING Story Slam?

Jassper may tell you a story about Scarlet the new baby donkey at Blue Hill, but he may be to busy trying a few more flavors.

THE END!

Time For Story

1:10 p.m. Time for milking at our farm Mountain Dairy ( http://www.mountaindairy.com/ ). We all have chores that are set by schedule maybe none quite so time demanding as milking cows. None the less we set up certain jobs for certain times and it is no different with our storytelling.

Making time to get things done is a battle we all fight on a daily basis and when we start to get a real handle on it usually Murphy's Law is invoked and the whole system is in chaos for a bit. We make time to do the laundry because otherwise we won't have that fresh outfit for the next gig. We never miss time for coffee, well we don't want to be around each other if we do! We have time for parties, time for pizza and Ice Cream! There is time allotted for the income tax annually even if some take until the 12 strokes of the clock in the bell tower on April 15 to turn it in.

Storytelling is all about time and there are lots of stories that deal with time, didn't Cinderella have to heed the clock as well? I make time on Monday's to update my web presence. Usually it takes both cups of coffee to get the job done. Sometimes its half in the morning and half at night, that's OK part of storytelling is being my own boss, I'm never late for Me! Scheduling my chores to fit my life at a given moment in time is a real asset, especially around the farm schedule where everything can be changed with a rumble of thunder.

Tonight I made time to listen to the Teller-Phone. Not the phone call that offers me bargain windows, reduced rates on loans, a great new roof or any other deal of a lifetime. This Teller -Phone offers me a true deal, a free story. Better yet I can call next week and get another free story, and the week after, and the week after.... you get it! Tonight I made a little time for me. I dialed 617-499-9662. There was the momentary pause as the circuits connected and a slight click of the line opening and the clear voice of Clare Vadeboncoeur. www.goodheartpro.com Funny thing was it was a Donkey story. I had just sent a donkey joke to my donkey owning friend. Earlier I had posted pictures of Donkeys to my http://www.A-MAZE-INGStorySlam.ning.com/ because some are coming to listen and be "All Ears! I had an email recently about the latest birth at Blue Hill Farm Franklin, Ct. another new black donkey.

This week Clare was the host for the LANES Teller-Phone. ( www.lanes.org ) League for the Advancement of New England Storytelling. Each Sunday a new teller will come on line and tell a fresh story. I've already put the number in my cell phone so I can call often. I can't wait for the look of surprise the first time I do that and hand the phone to my nephew or niece. Instant quiet! Just so happened for me the story was a perfect fit for the unexpected donkey theme to my days.

Next I opened my email. There was the weekly post from Library of America, a publishing house who sends out a new story every week to read. www.loa.org right on the home page is a banner to sign up for the story of the week. I'll be going back after I finish writing this to read my story. Sometimes I only read the bit offered on the front page, some days the story is a perfect fit I click through to get it all!

Now I have made time to read, listen and write in my day, it's been a good day. In fact they don't get any better in a storytellers world than to read a story, hear a story,write a story, next is share a story. When my son comes in I think I'll have to tell him the Donkey story from Clare and finish out the day right!