Not much "om"...but lots of laughs!

So, I'm sure you're all aware of the recent rise in popularity of various activities one can enjoy in the company of adorable, cuddly...goats? Of course, I'm primarily talking about the phenomenon wherein people gather to engage in the restorative practice of yoga, accompanied by a bevy of barnyard beasties. (That IS where you thought I was going with this...right?)

Well, ever since this became a THING, I've been dying to try it. Apparently (and not at all surprisingly), other folks in my bootcamp gang felt the same way (because really, why wouldn't this come up in ordinary, everyday conversation?)...making it an obvious choice for one of our Summer Field Trips.

Our Fearless Leader did the research for us, and found a farm outside Durham that offered the experience. Alas, the date agreed upon for the outing--because it happened to work with most people's schedules--originally conflicted with Derek's move-in weekend for his apartment in SC. However, once he and I altered our plans slightly to accommodate some last-minute chores we tacked onto our To Do List...it turned out that I'd be able to attend after all....whoo hoo!

Then it was just a matter of meeting up on a Saturday morning to carpool waaaayyy out into the middle of nowhere (or so it seemed on the 40-minute commute). Once we arrived, our group joined the others who'd chosen the same session, to get oriented and situated for all of the fun. One thing that led our pal to choose this particular operation is that they limit the classes to 20 people...to ensure that there are enough animals to go around, for everyone to get individual attention if they so desire. (And we definitely DID want that, obviously!)

Then we entered the fenced-in area (underneath a tent canopy that mercifully shaded us from the August sun, although it couldn't mitigate the humidity. Never mind, we were totally ready and willing to suffer for the cuteness, y'all...), set up our mats, and prepared for...Close Encounters with Capras. The instructor had mentioned that in terms of the actual yoga, we could expect it to be very...loosely structured....shall we say. In other words, you were welcome to follow the directions and do the poses she described--or simply ignore her completely and just hang out with the fuzzy guests.


Once all the preliminaries were squared away, she opened the gate...and allowed the welcoming committee--a whole gaggle of goats, two sheep, and one large (120 pound, they said!) shaggy canine--to rush the enclosure. It was just....an overload of both pandemonium...and preciousness, I tell ya. Some of the visitors settled down immediately on a convenient mat, while others wandered around and checked out as many potential head-scratchers as they could, before deciding where to plop down and rest. And the one who stopped by to say hello to me? Ahem...pooped on my mat. Gee, thanks, buddy--I so do NOT recall signing up for THIS! (We'd been warned that this might happen, and assured that someone would come right over to pick up the pellets if we waved a hand...so it was really only a momentary problem, thank goodness.)


As you can probably imagine, not a whole lot of vinyasa-ing was even attempted, with all the distractions and opportunities to, as the instructor noted, "snuggle" with the friendly farm dwellers. Incidentally, that was another selling point for this location: they actively train their animals to participate in social situations, so they're not only unintimidated by humans, but eager to interact with us. In fact, after moving through a couple of half-hearted stretches, I found myself with a new mat-buddy...who then commandeered that same spot for the remaining time...even when I lay back at one point and placed my head (gently) on his (or her, who knows?) back.

Needless to say, most of what occurred involved the humans giggling, petting, and cooing over the creatures--and of course photographing the shenanigans. Near the end, one little dude decided to take advantage of the fact that he had a ready-made source of tasty salt at his disposal...and began licking my neck. Okay, THAT...was a freaky sensation, I'm not gonna lie. Fortunately, a bootcamp amiga came to my rescue when he (she? whatevs...) took it a step further and started pulling on and nibbling my hair. Kids...what can ya do? (Ha! Sorry...but you had to expect that at some point, yeah? It was inevitable. And let's be real: I'm just shocked I made it almost to the end before letting that one out...you're welcome...)

To sum it up: this adventure might not have been all that um...meditative...but it still somehow managed to be relaxing...and super-entertaining! Plus, there were a few of our compadres who wanted to come this time but were already booked, and you know what that means...we have to GO BACK! You know, just "for them"! Yaaayyyy to more hanging out with our hoofed homies!