THE Christmas Fat shows are well under way at the local auctions now. It is a time when we can all get together and show some of our stock.

We have mince pies and sometimes a wee dram at the shows – but mostly a cuppa as auction marts are cold places.

We also have a good ‘craic’ with other farmers and auction mart staff. I personally love this time of year as everyone seems to be in an upbeat mood and the festive spirit can be awesome.

Don’t forget to drive past our farm in Selside to see the Christmas lights – and you can always call in for a brew if you have time.

It’s very wet and windy at the moment up here, though. Yesterday and today we have had three to four inches of snow, although most of it has gone already. The snowman is just about surviving.

Anyway, we had best get on with feeding the animals.