Vampire Hall

Vampire Hall was a busy place yesterday.  Every one of the numerous chairs was filled.  It's not only a place for phlebotomies, but also an infusion center for cancer chemo patients.  I'll say this for the vampire nurses and their acolytes, they are wonderful, caring hostesses, offering warm blankets and pillows.  Bakyt has been my nurse before and I'm a big disappointment to her.  "Can I get you a cookie?  How about a cookie, or maybe some juice?"  "No, nothing, thank you."  "You really should have something."  "I couldn't get it down."  Finally, seeing her sorrowful face, I accepted a cup of coffee.  The one thing I do really well is bleed, so well that she couldn't get it to stop.  Well, she asked for it.  I did my part.

On the way home I stopped to vote.  As I was signing in, I gave my last name and a woman in the back of the room said, "Would that be ____________, mother of many goats?"  Laughing, I said yes, but I didn't recognize the speaker.  I haven't seen Joyce for fifteen years.  It was she from whom I bought my first goats, Lucy and Ruth, all those years ago.  She and her husband Glenn were wonderful, patient mentors and taught me so much.  What a pleasant end to the day.

I didn't earn my pay yesterday,  A trip to the Hall really takes it out of me in more ways than one.  The most I could accomplish was taking the trash down to the big road, and that was a sad trip for me.  Knowing how afraid Bessie is to get out of the truck now, I had to sneak the bag out of the house when she wasn't looking and make the drive without her.  I guess that's the way it will be going forward.  I gave her a treat when I got back just as I would have had she gone along.  Some habits are too hard to break.

The wind and rain held off until after dark, but there was enough of a chill in the air to justify firing up Stove in the late afternoon.  It was an interesting day.