FEVER TODAY...FERVOR TOMORROW!

The weekend brought a slight fever, runny nose, aches and sore throat...this dang wind that constantly gusts across the plains must have brought something that my body didn't like too well. I didn't even go to church...that's bad! Monday morning brought a call-in to the school secretary requesting reinforcements in the form of a substitute. It was granted and I was able to lay low most of the day.

At 2:00 sharp, I entered the examine room of a great general surgeon here in Vernon - Dr. T. I was prepped and ready for my procedure. I had a smallish raw sore at the base of my neck - that hadn't healed in probably close to 2 years! I knew I had to have it removed, but never got around to it...ya know how that goes. Today was the day. As I lay on the examining table with my disposable blue paper "blouse", Dr. T entered and we engaged in an enlightening conversation about what was about to take place. The sore, he said, had to come off and had to be sent off to the lab for testing. It was only about the size of a pea, so I really never thought it was much to bother with...anyway, I was glad that I was finally having it looked after. It didn't take too long, and the only part that hurt was the needle that stuck in my neck and injected the deadening fluid. After that - it was a piece a' cake! Although I did bleed like a stuck pig, I didn't feel a thing. He had to close it up with 5 stitches and here's what I am hauling around with me now... The incision is a good 2 inches long! We'll see what the test results show...if it's skin cancer or not. It makes me regret all of those many times that I abused my skin in the past...

Then, 2 1/2 hours later, I was sitting in my family physician's office to see if he could do something to help this sinus junk that I picked up from somewhere... I am so thankful for medicine, doctors and the availability and freedom to take care of illness when necessary.

By the morning, I was better (well enough to face the friendly faces of my little friends at school). The morning shower water stung the incision, so it wasn't a very injoyable waking up. School went fine and as the day progressed I returned to normal function.

After supper, we decided to cut the remaining calves and with Jake returning home after work right at that same time, we gathered ropes, gloves, pour-on wormer and some cubes to lure the calves into the pen. It worked, Dyke wormed the cows in the pen and I wormed the longhorns and a couple that outsmarted the lure and remained outside the gate. (The longhorns have learned not to like Dyke at all, so with a few cubes poured on the grass, I was able to basically walk up to them and pour on the wormer while they ate.)

Once they were wormed and settled down, we let the cows out and kept the calves back, so that we could castrate. It got a little "western" when the ropes were thrown and the bull doggin' was on! I stayed by the fence, ready to climb at a moment's notice,afraid that I'd rip my stitches out if I got too involved...I left the wrestlin' to the guys! The sun was on its way down, so we were racing the clock...

All in all, only one calf was almost on the "too big" side...300 pounds of wild, raw bull was enough to man-handle in one night! Of course, I did the honors, while Zack squeeled as if it was happening to him! One set of nuts was as long as a dollar bill and almost as long as my knife (so I just had to get a picture!) The dogs slurped them down in one gulp! By then it was too dark to do much more outside, so we headed in for baths and bed!

Fudge and her new calf (2 days old) wanted no part of this rodeoing...and headed to the lower pasture before the "cube lure" got the best of her! Her calf will be ready to cut by the end of school...we're not waiting until it's 300 pounds! The nuts are actually easier to grab and pull when they're so big like that, but without a squeeze chute, it can get pretty hairy takin' 'um down.