goats and chickens that he kept in his barn in Sandy. In the fall he'd put a layer of straw in there for the winter so the chickens and goats could stay warm, then in the spring he'd clear out the "used" straw. Well, grandpa was sick, so my brother and I were asked to go help out at the house.

It was spring, so it was time to clear out the old straw. My brother and I went out there with a wheelbarrow and rakes/shovels. Upon opening the barn door, we were hit by a wave of putrid stench. Gathering strength, we went in and and started to scrape the shovel along the wooden barn floor.

Well, our first introduction to the barn smell was roses compared to what hit us once we started shoveling the straw. Turns out there was TWO layers-grandpa had been sick the year before as well and someone had just put a new layer of straw over the old putrid straw. Those chickens and goats had crapped and peed in that stuff for two years with very little ventilation. Each scoop brought up a dripping mess and subsequent dry-heave.

The great thing is after about ten minutes my uncle asked me to go help him with something else, so I readily abandoned my brother, who took at least an hour to finish up the job.