Cruisin'

Helper Dude came just before I headed to the barn and started in weed-eating that lovely dratted weed under the oak by the woodpile.  It is such a pretty, lacy plant that later puts out tiny white flowers that turn into bijillions of dagger seeds.  It had not yet gotten to the flowering stage and the time to cut it back was now!

The sun put in a brief appearance while I was milking, but then the cloud curtain closed and the day was grey.  Again.  HD asked me how John Dear (aka The Tractor) was doing.  I said I was still learning his idiosyncrasies and one thing I had trouble with was that the gas pedal was like that on a car, press down, go fast.  Not so good on hilly property when instinct causes one to brace with one's feet going downhill.  He said, "But you have cruise control.  Use that."  "I do?  I have cruise control?"  It does wonders for a sixteen-year-old male ego to give a crash course on tractors.  HD showed me where the magic button was and how to use it, and also was able to remove the ball hitch the prior owner had installed.  Now I'll be able to use my little trailer while cruisin'.  HD also discovered that said owner had disabled the dead-man switch, a safety feature on most mowers.  I'd wondered about that, not that I get off and on all that much while John's working.  I truly appreciated the education.

HD's last task of the day was to trim Bessie Anne's nails.  Pedicures are not her favorite beauty treatment, even when she knows a treat is waiting at the end.  HD is quick and gentle and he uses a Dremel tool to smooth the rough edges.  I can trim goat hooves like nobody's business, but I will not cut a dog's nails.

The rain held off until just before Cam and Honey came for a visit.  Honey's thick German shepherd coat is like a sponge and when she gets wet, she stays wet.  Some years back Clay had given me a box of Shamwows, microfiber towels that are incredibly absorbent.  They actually live up to their advertising.  I used one to wipe down Honey.  Cam said she'd never been able to get Honey dry that fast and the dog had sometimes gotten a fungus from being wet for long periods.  I gave her one to take home.

It rained heavily all night, but it seems to have stopped (for awhile) this morning.  I feel like I'm the one who'll get damp rot if this keeps up.

It was a good day.