Yesterday Shelly and I were scheduled to take a group of ewes and a ram and a few lambs to a buyer in Denver. Where in Denver we weren't exactly sure. I love trips that include the phrase "not exactly sure" (typed with a sarcastic font). Shelly got the ewes and the ram loaded with no problems. I was loading the baby lambs into a kennel when one of the ewes started rubbing on Shelly. Shelly got a little emotional and explained that the ewe was her favorite, she was docile and would come up to her frequently and rub on her. The ewe is about a 172 years old and would surely be taken to sale and sold off as mutton. Shelly gave me that look. Needless to say the ewe stayed home. She will become a companion to Shelly's ram Nubie. I can't say no to that look.
The first part of the trip went fine. Other than Izzy Dog's gas problem, it was great as far as a road trip to the city with a "not exactly sure" destination goes. I demanded a stop in Castle Rock for cherry dip cone at the DQ. I figured it was the least Shelly could do since I gave the ewe a reprieve. Just inside of Denver we were able to contact the buyer of the ovine and got directions to his ranch. The offloading of the sheep went swimmingly and we headed out as quickly as we arrived. The trip home was going smoothly or so I thought. I didn't need a stop in Castle Rock but as Colorado Springs neared and began to feel the pressure of the three or so gallons of ice tea that I had consumed. I was telling Shelly that I would need a pit stop and Shelly was ignoring me. She was ignoring me and I smelled smoke. She was thinking about something. When I started to say something again she shushed me. I turned my attention to the sound of the truck. It didn't seem to be shifting as smooth as it should. Shelly pulled into a gas station with a large empty lot next to it. I went to the restroom. Upon my return, I was informed that Tom Truck had 1st gear and reverse. My cell phone (Shelly left hers at home) has been demanding that I plug in my charger eons ago. With what juice was left on the cell, we called a tow company. The company's dispatcher asked what kind of truck we had. Shelly emphatically replied with, "A really big, heavy truck." Love her technical terms. I would have probably said that Tom Truck was a one ton, diesel with a crew cab and a long bed. But heck, it wasn't me on the phone. In the next ten minutes, my cell phone received 7 automated messages from the tow company letting us know that there was a truck on the way to our location.
The wrecker arrived in about 20 minutes. I was impressed, for a moment. The driver got out of his truck, looked at us, looked at Tom Truck, looked at us again and shrugged his shoulders. He asked Shelly if she told the dispatcher that she had a big truck. Shelly nodded and said yes. He walked around the truck several times. Then he backed up and loaded Tom Truck up.
As the rollback came into position, the wrecker bobbled about and gave my heart a bit of a jump. The driver then walked around the two trucks several times. He then went to the front of the wrecker and stared at the front tires. After a few minutes of staring, he called his dispatch and requested a different truck. The driver pointed out to Shelly that the front tires were not putting enough tread on the ground. Tom Truck was too heavy and in my opinion too long. The driver unloaded the truck. While we stood waiting for another driver and wrecker, our rescuer Moe Moe showed up with our Tahoe. The wrecker driver assured us that they would get Tom Truck to the shop we requested so we hooked up the trailer, with our dogs in the back and headed up the hill. We had giggles on the way home and made it home in time to enjoy more giggles at dinner with friends. The whole event with the tow truck made me miss my father. Pop operated a towing service for several years, in fact he was loading a car onto his own wrecker in Florissant when he had his first heart attack. Pop went into the gas station he was at, told the clerk he was having trouble catching his breath, requested that she make a phone call to 911, and went back outside and finished loading the car. He said he had just finished when he noticed the fire department and a Flight For Life helicopter landing on the highway.
Today we had planned a trip to the zoo with friends. Thankfully! This last week has been a whirlwind. Jolene finished school for the year. She was voted the most likely to appear on Fear Factor. This was something I was not surprised by. We also jetted to Pueblo on Thursday evening to watch Jolene's first softball games of the season. I was very excited. Shelly was cranky and Jolene was full of worry. Thankfully it all ended up just great. Shelly only consumed a bag of sunflower seeds, three tacos at Chipolte, two hot dogs at the game and three bottles of Gatorade.
The kid is playing 3rd base and Shortstop this year. It's a huge change for me. Jolene played catcher most of the time last year and I REALLY enjoyed taking pictures. Maybe it just these particular games, they won by 18-0 and 16-2, but I find watching her play 3rd base really boring.
The zoo was a great distraction from the hustle of the last week and the upcoming plans for this week. Shelly and are members of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs. We haven't been able to go as much lately as I'd like. Occasionally we just stop by and feed the giraffes. They are Shelly's favorite and they are right inside the entrance. Today I purchased a frequent feeder card for her. According to the website you can save 25%, and I'm all about saving the green. I figured she's use at least half of the punches today and it might be incentive to get away again soon. I thought wrong. Shelly used up the entire punch card today. It was well worth it though.
Each time we go I debate as to whether or not I should take my camera. For some reason I think lugging it around is way too much work. I'm glad I took it today. I only got pictures at the giraffes but reliving Shelly's facial expressions is always good fun.
Okay I lied. I did get this picture of Shelly and Jim enjoying the mist machine. It makes me giggle too, and you can't beat that.
We are scheduled to have the sheep, alpacas and llamas sheared on Wednesday. I'm hoping that I will get a frantic phone call from someone and that someone will require that I leave the ranch for the daylight hours. I hate shearing. Uncle Dario has been giving the haircuts the past couple of years and the only reason I hung around was so that I could visit with Uncle and my Aunt Lori. This year Uncle came to his senses and scheduled a fishing trip or something so we have a new shearing company coming.
Other than that things are about the same around here. We continue to have a long list of "To Dos" and not enough days in the week to get them all done.
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