Ridgetop - our place and how we muddle along

[Ridgetop]

The sheep will eat all the green before fire season.

DH says that food tastes a bit off. DS1, DS2, and I have no appetite (good for my weight I suppose). I am worried that if DH doesn't get better soon it will delay us getting to Texas for a couple weeks. I made him stay in bed today and he slept most of the day. Very unlike him.

At least DS2 called the union hall and told them he was positive for Covid. He is home. Watched all 5 Jurassic Park movies today and at times the roars and screams were drowned out by coughing paroxysms. Had to turn the volume up.

 

[Bruce]

I know YOUR sheep will eat the green before it goes brown but sheep pastures aren't the source of the devastating wildfires!

Man, I hope that y'all kick the Covid bug soon!

 

[Baymule]

At least you are keeping your sense of humor. Delay your trip to Texas??? NOOOOOO!!!!

 

[Bruce]

Drag DH and his deathbed there on time? NOOOOOOO!!! Best to wait until he is all better.

 

[Baymule]

Hahaha! Yes, he needs to stay home and be tended to by his loving, doting wife.

 

[Ridgetop]

He is obviously feeling better. Just called me on his cell phone to ask for lunch!

 

[Baymule]

RING! RING! RING!

ROOM SERVICE!!!!

 

[Ridgetop]

Took his phone away. Told him I needed to charge it.

The wind has been blowing badly - about 50 mph for 2 days and most of the night. Finally has stopped now. At one point was worried about the roof. We have lost the roof several times over 35 years. Everything seems ok today - stuff blown across the driveway and patio but not missing any sheep or anything!

DH has been sleeping in his recliner and has been so weak that needed both DS1 and DS2 to pull hm up and help him walk. Went down yesterday and got the new walker we had ordered for MJ and kept in the milk shed until needed.

OMG! It was on the top of the shelf on the side wall of the milk shed. DS1 and DS2 had completed moving all the stuff from the Connex into the milk shed and I had not gone in it yet.

The shelf that was placed against the back wall was still half empty while stuff was stacked on the floor in front of the other shelves!!! I had to move stuff around and climb over stuff to get to the rear shelf, then move the 10 five-gallon emergency water bottles on to the empty shelf out of the way so I could get to the shelf with the walker. The walker box was under the wheelchair ramp. Had to remove that, then the walker, then replace the ramp. Finally got the walker up to the house and assembled it. DH used it yesterday and today. He says he is actually feeling better just incredibly weak. Since he rarely gets sick, and usually is strong as an ox, this has annoyed him considerably. He is a bad patient. Luckily, he sleeps a lot. Gently placing a banket over him and patting him is all that is needed to soothe him. Plus cough syrup. And watching the football games.

DH has been sleeping in the recliner for the past 3 days. Slept in our bed last night. I was glad to have him with me, but his coughing woke me several times. Glad I had 3 nights of uninterrupted sleep before. He is doing better though and DS1 was finally able to get 2 bottles of Delsym cough syrup today. We ran out yesterday. Stores have been out of cold remedies. If you see cough syrup etc., snatch it up and put it in the cupboard for when you need it.

I am still coughing occasionally. DS2 and DDIL2 got a rapid test yesterday and are negative now. They are still coughing but are much improved - no fever or chills in several days. DD2 got a test and is positive, DSIL2 hasn't gotten his results back yet.

We are still coming to get to Texas but now it looks like we might not leave until the first week of February. I am worried about DH being recovered to drive. I don't drive the trailer. The trailer will be back the end of this week, and I will remove the dinette. DH will still be recuperating so I can get it done without interference. Then I will pack up the tools and with the help of DS1 load them in the trailer. The winter clothes will go in a large plastic container in the trailer. I have already cleaned it out and it can be loaded in the house.

I didn't order our insulated stuff since Bay said the weather had gotten warm but now I see that it is cold again in TX! I need to have DS1 order it.

 

[Ridgetop]

The Plague House seems to be resuming its basic function. DS2 eft ast night for Lake Arrowhead and 4 days of 24/7 emergency work in the heavy snow. DDIL2 is taking the opportunity to go to her parents for the week with Robert. Her father and mother haven't seen Robert for 2 solid weeks. Her dad is suffering from Robert withdrawal and they need to do an immediate intervention.

DH is feeling better and says he can walk better now although still using the walker. He is going to the VA today for a Covid test. Probably will be negative at this point. No fever for 3 days, and coughing diminishing. Needs to build up his strength again. He has lost 14 lbs, but since he was a BIG guy, he can afford it. I lost 10 lbs. and can also afford it. Hopefully I can lose some more before Texas - the home of Buebell ice cream.

The truck is repaired. Good news on the trailer - the shop repaired the one corner with water damage that had rotted some of the interior structure. They thought the other corner might need repair but it had to go to Ekhart for the trailer brakes and wheel bearings first. Then the trailer went back to the repair shop for the water damage and some rot in the other corner but didn't find anything so will just put everything back and we can pick it up. Vehicles are good for trip to Texas, other than work I need to do.

Looking forward to getting the trailer home and getting the banquette out. The drawer slide and trave lock under one side of the banquette longer works. I will remove both drawers and will use the good slides on them to repair the kitchen drawers that are having some slide lock problems. I will use the drawer fronts as cabinet doors for under the bed storage openings. If I don't get the under the bed storage openings built before TX I can do it when we return. That will get us ready for our next trip to Texas.

Later this week I will start packing up the tools we will need, including the electrical tools for electric outlets. I think I have some wire that will work for it in the shed, so we don't have to buy anything. I think I have a bunch of new replacement switches and outlets for repairs stored in the shed.

When we come home from Texas, I want to enlarge the shelters in the different pens. The small A frame shelter in the main night fold no longer holds all the sheep that are in that pen. It was pitiful during the rains we had to see them trying to crowd inside the shelter and standing sadly like sardines in a can. The A frame also has gotten worn away on the ground and water runs inside in a deep puddle. I want to build a raised rim around the new shelter footprint and fill it with sand/decomposed granite. Then instead of an A frame shelter, we will use some of our corral panels as supports to which we will attach the corral roof panels. Instead of a 6' x 12' shelter we will be able to put up a 12' x16' cover using the same 2 panels. Originally that is what I wanted to do but DH and our sons said we would not be able to walk inside. Since we don't walk inside the A frame shelters anyway it won't matter. I just have to figure out how to get my men to think it is their idea to do this work . . . . There was a time when I could do everything except the roof panels myself. I wonder if I could still move the stall panels and attach them, then all that needed to be done would be moving the roof panels.

Time to move sheep around again in the breeding pen. 4 are due end of March and beginning April and have already been moved out. 6 more are due in May and have not rebred so can be moved out. 2 rebred this month and need to remain in with a ram. 3 have never marked and need to also stay in with a ram. We will remove Lewis and put in another ram next week.

One yearling ewe has never marked and if she does not lamb this year I am going to do a close up inspection to make sure she is a true ewe, not a hermaphrodite. She has a somewhat rammy neck. She may go to auction. I bought her with her mother last year as a 3 week old lamb. She has never marked. Her mother has marked and is due in April. These are Lewis ewes and I love the bloodlines, but these ewes are flighty and have never calmed down. They are taller and larger than my normal Dorpers. Lewis breeds annually and I ama not sure that these ewes will breed out of season like my other ewes. I am not sure I like them, although I love my Lewis ram and will definitely buy another Lewis ram. I can get those bloodlines that way instead of with these 2 ewes if they don't start breeding to fit my plans.

I am going to get all the shots ready for the lambs, etc. in the creep to do tonight. The older ones need 2nd vacc and younger ones need 1st vacc. One still to dock too. And DS1 says he wants to tag. This covid has really put us behind schedule. Time to catch up. Once the new lambs are tagged, docked, vaccinated, they can be put in the creep with the older ones. Need to have all the lambs in the creep pen while we are in Texas for ease in feeding. Mid-March they will go to auction. Prices should still be good. Easter and Passover both are in mid-April this year.

Also need to clear out freezers and out some of the large cuts in the new freezer in the milk. That freezer is a special one made to resist extreme heat and cold, being manufactured specifically for use in garages and sheds. It was out of stock when we ordered it and we were going to buy a regular one but the store said the one we wanted was coming in on a specific date only a week or so later than the regular one, so we waited. It has an alarm in case the freezer fails and does not hold the temp. It also is supposed to keep everything frozen for 5-7 days in case of power failure. We figure we will take this one to Texas first and it can go in the barn or in the large workshop we plan to build. Already put some hams and turkeys that were on sale after the holidays in it. Need to move more meat into it. DS1 said we should order extra baskets for it since it has rims to hold baskets in the bottom and the top half. That will make it much easier to sort through our food. Our smaller regular freezer only has rims for upper baskets, which we use for smaller items, while all the food gets jumbled up in the bottom. The other larger freezer has upper baskets and lower plastic partitions to separate food. Both freezers in the laundry room are jam packed and some stuff needs to be taken down to the other freezer for long term storage. I also have frozen goat milk, and frozen goat and lamb colostrum that needs to be moved down to long term storage. I wish now that I had kept our old chest freezer to store dog food and grain. Gave our small old one to DD1 so if it goes bad, I will bring it home for that purpose.

 

[Baymule]

February is usually the coldest month. I sure hope we don't have the cold like we had last year. It doesn't snow every year, when it does, its' usually gone in 3 days. I hope we don't get any snow at all this year! I got moving to do
Y'all just keep getting better!