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  We got an early start Wednesday morning because when I talked to my boss Ken the previous evening, he informed me that the alpaca needed to be back at the farm for sheering. You see, alpaca sheering skills are not common. Anywhere. These particular practitioners of the sheering arts hail from Australia and they travel the globe doing their thing, but we will get to that another time. So my marching orders(driving orders?) were Cleveland Ohio to North Yarmouth Maine that day. Julia and I had planed to spend the night around Albany and get home Thursday just to take it easy, I forgot that this is/was work. Lots of rolling highway and trees, lovely lovely trees. I will admit to getting vertigo as often the ground along the road dropped off quite precipitously. Traffic picked up once we hit the Mass Pike and the second bit of irksome stop and go delays were met on 495 North around Acton Massachusetts. After a stop at home to drop off my delightful traveling companion, Julia had had quite enough of the road, thank you very much, I pulled up to the barn around 8:00 to disgorge my charges. There was a festive mood at the farm that evening not for my return but because it was sheering day. I learned sheering day is an spectators event, and if you make it a party, you can get some free labor. As I made my departure for home and not being able to ask the alpaca directly, I gathered that the running, leaping and general frolicking, that the mules were as happy to be off the road as I was.