We don’t know why they do it, nor do we understand when they do it. If you stand next to the barn on any summer afternoon here, you feel like you’re standing next to a furnace. The hotter it is, the more likely they are to do it.
It’s what we call the daily lineup.
When it was the Fabulous Four, they’d stand in the same order every afternoon, each always facing in the same direction.
Here’s the lineup from yesterday:
Those remaining from the Fabulous Four continue to be creatures of habit. Ellsworth (Happy) still stands at the north end of the barn, always facing north. And Nigel (Bashful) generally still stands at the south end of the barn, also always facing north. Bernard (Dopey) is always somewhere between, always facing south. Being a creature of habit myself, I’d be with this group if I chose to take part in the daily lineup.
These last few days, I haven’t been able to take a picture of Bernard in the lineup before he sees me and is on the move. (He’s been feeling very needy lately.)
The rest of the herd, not so much. Patrick (Doc), Gracie (Snow White) and Buck (Sneezy) aren’t particular about where they are in the lineup, or which direction they’re facing. If Don decided that he’d like to bake by the barn with the Boyz and Gracie, he’d be with this group.
September 2011 lineup:
August 10, 2012 at 7:22 am
The timing on this post is so strange… I was just thinking about “The Daily Lineup” earlier this week and I was wondering how it has developed with the new additions. Thank you my Psychic Donkey-Blogging friend!!!
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August 10, 2012 at 3:45 pm
You’re very welcome.
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August 10, 2012 at 9:25 am
All’s right with the world!
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August 10, 2012 at 3:46 pm
Shirley,
Yes, it is!
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August 10, 2012 at 9:46 am
Ramsey already has his spot in our lineup all picked out, just inside the barn door, tight up against the wall. I can see his head peaking out as I write this.
That Doc, er Patrick, sure has grown. He looks to be the tallest donkey in the herd now. Is there a saddle in his future?
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August 10, 2012 at 3:47 pm
KM,
I was wondering if anyone would notice that. You, my friend, are extremely observant. Patrick is standing on a concrete stoop in front of the tack room door, giving him several extra inches. 😀
Give Ramsey a kiss for me.
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August 10, 2012 at 9:53 am
I can’t answer your poll question; it’s too hard for me! 😀 I need my schedule, but have to change up something every once in a while or I go batty. That’s what Miss Chef is for–she makes sure I don’t get stuck in a rut.
I wonder if the barn baking is like a Donkey Sauna. Do they go plunge their heads into the water trough after a while? 😉
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August 10, 2012 at 3:50 pm
Flartus,
And that’s what Don is for – he too makes sure I don’t get stuck in a rut.
I wonder and wonder about the barn. I can understand it in the winter, but I find the lineup is a much more popular event during warmer months.
Bernard did go straight to the water trough last night as soon as he left his post at the barn… 😀
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August 10, 2012 at 4:45 pm
Huh, just noticed I was still Flartus here…there, that’s better.
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August 10, 2012 at 4:49 pm
Hi Alison!
*waving* 😀
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August 10, 2012 at 8:10 pm
That’s kind of odd . . . that they want to be next to the hot barn. I thought at first maybe the insects bothered them less there, but insects don’t seem to be put off by heat, so that blows that theory out of the water.
I like my habits . . . I’d like to be able to develop the habit of not working but that doesn’t seem to be in my cards.
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August 10, 2012 at 8:15 pm
June,
I’d like to develop the very same habit, but it doesn’t seem to be in my cards either. 🙂
p.s. Are you writing a book yet?
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August 14, 2012 at 4:13 am
That is so interesting – the fact that they do the line up and also that no-one has yet figured out why. They are all stunning, though.
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