The word funk arrived in the United States from Scotland in the 20th century and meant a state of despair or gloom. Blue was an intensifier of the gloom.
Hence, blue funk, in this instance, means low in spirit, gloomy, melancholy, pensive and moody.
There are a lot of good things happening out there but we are all focusing on the bad and challenging stuff.
This isn’t just those of us in the rural sector. Surveys show confidence is low yet there are record employment levels and, if I gauge economic activity by the business of Hawke’s Bay roads and the building industry, things are booming.
Everyone around the globe is saying things have been too good for too long and the manure is shortly to hit the fan.
If Trump doesn’t do something really silly then Brexit will surely bring the whole house of cards down.
There are always economic cycles but it’s getting to the stage where it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy if we are not careful.
Many of us have had a brilliant winter.
Now the spring is not too bad either at the moment. My pastures are full of clover about to start extracting all that free nitrogen just wafting about in the air doing nothing.
It’s been several years since we have had a nasty drought on the east coast of the North Island.
The dollar has steadily dropped down to near 63 US cents and doesn’t look like it’s going to climb much by the time we are selling our export goods off our farms.
I just borrowed $400,000 from the bank and am paying 4%. It’s likely to go lower. A great improvement on the 27% I was paying at one stage back in the 1980s. That’s just $16,000 for the use of that money over the next year. I’m pleased I’m not an investor.
I cleaned up the rest of last season’s lambs several weeks ago. They were the hobbits, dwarves and poor doers from the autumn. They fetched $180 each. The dry ewes back in the winter were $130. People who had bigger ones did much better.
Sheep meat forecasts for the season ahead look very good. Like many others, I’ve had a terrific lambing with no nasty storms and look like getting a decent percentage out there so will have plenty to sell on a strong market.
It’s understandable if you dairy folk aren’t quite so chipper but if Fonterra’s forecast remains around that $6.75 level, it will be okay.
I’ve got a great family and many good friends so have much to be grateful about.
One of our bugbears is we are not feeling the love from city dwellers.
Given what we see via the mainstream media, it is reasonable to think there is a lot of antipathy towards the rural sector.
I’ve wondered if it is likely to be the vocal minority, the activists and such who are dominating the debate. When I bump into someone from the city, they always appear friendly and positive towards farming.
And it turns out most are actually quite fond of us.
A survey has just come out from UMR with some great news.
New Zealanders are almost five times as likely to hold a positive view of sheep and beef farming as a negative one – 54% positive compared to only 12% negative. They are more than twice as likely (51%) to hold a positive view of dairy farming than a negative one (20%).
Okay, so one in five aren’t fans but the other 80% appreciate the environmental work that is being done on farms, our contribution to the economy and export earnings and the good food that is delivered to their dinner plates.
It’s such uplifting news, I want to run into a city and give one of them a great big hug.
