Just as I was getting over my last lingering cold, I've come down with another one. Which reminds me of one of the first rules of country living: don't load yourself down with chores. Stuff happens, and the more unavoidable, non-deferrable chores you've loaded yourself down with, the less time is left over for emergencies,projects, or recovering from a cold.

In a regular job, you can take a sick day, but you can't tell that to the chickens. And, anyway, no one moves to the country just to trade the rat race for a chore treadmill. (Actually, some people do, but you don't want to be like them.) Keep your burden light, and you'll have time live your life, or at least take a nap.