Broke pitchfork handle

In between putting out another large hay bale for the cattle I will share some of the hay from the heifer's large hay bale to tide the cattle over.  I use a pitchfork to carry the hay from the heifer's feeder over to the wooden feeder in the main corral for the other cattle.   The hay can be tightly wrapped in a large hay bale.  And I can try to move a large amount of hay.  My pitchfork handle broke off.

Usually one can knock out the handle from the bottom.  But not this time as the bottom wasn't open.  I had to drill out the part of the wooden handle still in the metal fork.

I have a couple other pitchfork but they are not the same.  One is smaller and has a metal handle.  The other pitchfork has 5 tines, not six.  Not as useful for moving hay.

Initially I thought I may be able to whittle down the end of the broken handle.  But then I found another handle that was a little thinner and one I barely had to whittle down.   I gave the new handle a try and it has held up weeks now.

Cleaning snow off roof

We have warmed up finally from our recent cold February.  It was above freezing today and is forecast to be in the 40s the next week.  Much moisture is predicted.  This time rain.  

Yesterday afternoon I used the tractor to clean again the snow out of the corral and back of the yard.

After I had cleared the snow off much of the house roofs three weeks ago, it snowed again over and over.   With rain now predicted before the snow can melt I want to get the new snow off the house roofs again.  I don't want to chance rain on snow making it too heavy for the roofs.   But I didn't want to get up on the house roof again.  I have mostly rerecovered from the last fall and I don't want to go through that again. 

I got out my snow rake.  This afternoon I raked off much of the snow from the house roofs.  I stood on the ladder.  I also made sure the ladder was standing upright as much as possible.  Therefore I had to be careful not to lean back much when standing.

The house looks much better now.

River iced over

The river had mostly iced over a few weeks ago.  Then a day or two of slightly above freezing temperatures and the river opened up a little bit again.  Then cold temps returned and the river immediately froze over again. We were predicted to get slightly above freezing again this weekend (back to normal high temperatures) but the prediction now has changed.  Warmer yes, but slightly below freezing for high temperatures.  And now more snow through Sunday.  The snow started last night and is more than predicted so far.  Yup, whenever I finish clearing the snow, it then starts right back up again.

Before last weeks cold wave, this area was open in the middle.  Now I can walk on it and no cracking of the ice.

Here you can see where it didn't freeze completely over.

Bruises better

I heard from my doctor's office yesterday.  No signs of a cracked rib, lung damage or kidney damage due to my fall from the house roof.   I'm getting better faster than I expected.  My arm and thigh are slightly sore.  My back is better.  It's not like it was.  The back changes day to day where or how it is sore.   But it is much better.   No problems now getting in or out of bed.   Sleeping on my right side in bed can be annoying.  Sleeping on my right side on the floor is fine.  I think that is because, even though the mattress is firm, it still presses against the side of my chest area, while that area is not against the floor when I lay there.

Cold night. Frosty heifers.

Our coldest night of the Winter was early this morning.  -16 F.   The cattle did ok.  Here are photos of one of the replacement heifers.  The heifers' Winter coat of fur got frosty.  The heifers more than the cows.  Probably because more cows and they stay close to one another so they don't get as frosty.

Cleared snow in corral

Today after I put out another large hay bale for the cattle, using the tractor I cleared most of the snow out of the corral.  Less snow gives more areas the cattle can lay other than just in the loafing shed.  And would be less moisture, and mud, when the snow melts.  I also cleared most of the snow out of the south corral where the replacement heifers are located.

Back pain and snow clearing

Nothing is easy lately.   I am still recovering from the fall from the house roof.  Each day the arm and thigh bruises and aches are better.   But Wednesday morning I woke up to pain in the side of my back when I got out of bed.  Midway between the shoulder and hip.  What in the world?  Where did this come from? I didn't have this pain earlier after the fall.   The only thing I can imagine was that I was physically active on Tuesday.  We had cold weather Monday and Tuesday and six inches of snow and strong wind.  I spent time shoveling snow around my well pump house.  The pump house is insulated, but shoveling snow around it better protects it from freezing from a strong cold wind.

With the cold and wind the cattle mainly strayed in the loafing shed and corral, and out of the wind.  Their hay bale was out in the north pasture.  So they didn't have to go out to the hay bale and the wind I put some hay in their wooden feeders in the corral.  I put out a small hay bale and then using a pitchfork pried hay from the replacement heifer's hay bale and carried in over to the cow's feeder.  It was work but not painful work and I didn't feel any back problems the rest of Tuesday.

Wednesday however it was different. I tried to shovel some snow but that didn't last long as that activity was painful.  I had a dental appointment that afternoon.  Fortunately my pickup was a 4-wheel drive.  I took some ibuprofen, which I rarely take, and drove to my dental appointment.   I was having the start of a crown replacement.  Also at the dental office was a nursing student.  She wanted to take photos during the dental work so she could share them with her college medical class.  I gave approval to take photos.

After the dental work I stopped at my doctor's office.  He was out that day.  But I got an appointment made for Thursday.  Thursday I saw my doctor and described what had happened.  I wanted an x-ray of my back.  Either I bruised the back and ribs, or maybe cracked a rib.  Maybe the physical work on Tuesday caused the crack to worsen or have an impact.  Sometimes I think the painful movement is due to a bad bruise.  Somethings I think it is due to a cracked rib.  Did I sometimes hear the rib move?

No word back from the doctor's office.  He was waiting for an x-ray technician to look over my x-ray.  I hope to hear on Monday.

I'm find the back muscle is involved in more activity than I would have thought.  Certain movement lets me know to try to avoid doing that movement again.  Some movements I can't avoid.  Getting in or out of bed hurts a lot.  I'm doing that much slower now and in a different way when I can.

Today is the first day since Wednesday that I feel slightly better and didn't have to take any ibuprofen.  Or maybe I'm getting better at avoiding certain movements.  I did do some minor shoveling of snow the tractor couldn't reach.  It didn't hurt like the other days.

Wednesday when I started my pickup it struggled to start.  Like it wasn't getting gas.  After a few attempts the pickup then ran fine.  No other problems the rest of the day.  On Thursday, the engine wouldn't turn.  Like the battery was dead.  I put a battery charger on.  The charger didn't seem like the battery was dead.  When I tried to start the pickup the headlights came on and were bright.  Still no turnover.  One time I overrode the headlights and turned them off before trying to start the pickup.  The pickup started right up.   The rest of the day and multiple stops the pickup started right up.   Friday was grocery shopping day.  Again the pickup acted like Thursday.   This time turning off the headlights made no difference.  I let the battery charge an hour.  A few more attempts. Same thing.  Then another attempt and the pickup started.  The rest of the day and multiple stops, no problem.   Next week I will try again and see if the pickup acts the same way.

Normally I shovel the snow off the driveway and back yard.  That's not going to happen for now.  Friday it was time to put out another large hay bale.  I put a bucket on the tractor and cleared snow from a new area for the hay bale.  An area closer to the corral as Monday and Tuesday are predicted to be colder and windier again.  Once the area was cleared for the hay bale I used the tractor to clear the snow off the driveway and backyard.  Quicker and easier to do with a tractor.  I need time to recover and allow my back to heal.

February has been the coldest and snowiest month of this Winter and is predicted to be colder and snowier for at least another two weeks.  I can't wait for March to arrive.

What chased the cattle last week

I figured out what chased my cattle last Wednesday.  I talked with some neighbors to see if they saw anything.  Then a woman who lives north of me stopped me when I was bicycling and told me last week her son saw two dogs chasing the cows and then trapping one of them along the fence.   She said the one large was a large white dog, a Pyrenees dog.  The other was a medium sized dog.  She has seen them before in the area and said they are not her neighbors' dogs.  She thinks they may come from across the river and on the ridge.

I talked with a neighbor, Shane, to the south of me.  He has dogs, but not large or white.  He said several weeks ago he saw two dogs, one large white dog and a medium sized dog.   They were in the field south of my pasture, and west of his place, and they looked to be doing something.  He later went out and found what looked to be a deer carcass out there where the dogs had been.   He thought the large dog was a Newfoundland dog breed.  But Newfoundland dogs are dark, most black colored.  Shane also thought these dogs came from across the river and up on the ridge.

The river had frozen over along my middle pasture.  Earlier when I had looked for tracks I saw dog tracks on the snow covered ice.  Saturday it got warm and up to 40 degrees under a sunny sky.  So the ice melted in the center of the river.  No more ice bridge.  Until today.  Overnight the temperature dropped down to 10 above and the wind blew.  Still blowing. It is cold outside today.  The cattle are sheltering in the loafing shed and out of the wind.  I imagine the river iced over again.

Today I called the county animal control department and talked with Paul.  He was the guy who was called when the neighbor's cattle from up on the ridge and to the south got out and came down to the field south of mine.  People initially thought they were my cattle.   So Paul knew where I was located.  He will check around up on the ridge for these dogs running around and will talk to the owners.  I hope this ends the terrorizing by these dogs.  I noticed today two cows have a slight limp in a back leg when walking in the corral.  Probably from jumping over a fence.

This isn't a photo of dog who chased my cattle.  But I included a photo in case you didn't know what a large Pyrenees dog looks like.   Not what you want chasing cattle.

Fell from the house roof. I'm alive.

I am very, very, very sore.  Today I fell from my house roof to the ground.

Earlier I got my ladder out to close the upper barn door.  Over the Summer the latch had turned and now the wind was strong enough to have a little breeze through the upper barn and blew the door open.  I closed the door.

Since I had the ladder out, and our temperature was in the upper 30s and snow was melting, I thought I would shovel some snow off the house roof.   It doesn't get windy often, and with the snowfall earlier this year the snow fell down and wasn't blown off the roofs. The snow hardened and now couldn't be blown off the roof.  Last week I had got on the ladder and in several parts of the roofs I shoveled the snow I could reach by standing on the ladder.  Those areas had melted and now one could stand on the roof without a fear of slipping.

On the SW corner I shoveled the snow I could reach while standing on the dry roof.  Then I went to the roof next to the south part of the patio.  Again, I shoveled the snow I could reach standing on the dry roof.   Then on to the roof on the east side of the patio.   Again, I shoveled the snow I could reach while standing on the dry roof.  Then I got onto the ladder to climb down.

As soon as I was on the ladder the bottom end of the ladder slipped out.  I had the shovel in one hand but I reached out to grab the gutter on the house.  The ladder went so fast I couldn't reach the gutter.  Down I went.  I was on the ladder when the ladder and I hit the concrete patio. I was on my right side when I hit the ground.  It knocked the wind out of me.   I slowly got up and off the ladder.   No broken bones.   I didn't hit my head.  But my right side is very sore.  From just below the shoulder to just above the elbow.   My elbow must have been pushed against the side of my chest as that is sore.  Less than other areas.  Then from just below my hip to just above my knee.

Earlier when I cleaned the other parts of the roof I had the ladder very straight.  With the wind, when I was on the roof I was concerned the wind may blow the ladder sideways and over.  The last time I had put the ladder against the house I had the bottom of the ladder slightly further out.  The ladder was on dry clean concrete and I wasn't concerned it would slip as it never had done so in the many years and many times I leaned the ladder against this part of the house.  I was more worried the wind would blow the ladder over.  Well, that didn't happen.  And I had no problems climbing up on the ladder and onto the roof.  So I am surprised the ladder slipped out from under me when I got back onto the ladder.  And it happened so fast.

I put the ladder away.  It was now 2 pm.  I decided to lay down in bed and rest.  Rascal was very happy I did as he lays against me when I lay down and sleep.  "Not so much against me in certain areas Rascal."  I slept almost non-stop until 5:15 pm, and that was after having 8 1/2 hours of sleep earlier.

When I got up now and moved around I was still sore but now I was getting stiff in those spots.  Moving around did help in easing the stiffness.  I went out and checked on the cattle.  I moved slow.  I gave them a little extra hay - slowly.  Then I went to check my mail.  I decided to ride my bicycle.  A slow and stiff start, especially my thigh muscle.  But moving eased the stiffness.  I decided to ride a little further.  Then a little further. Then further.  I ended riding 3 miles.  It helped.

I don't feel the soreness a lot now when I'm still. But kneeling to put a log into the woodstove is not fun as I really feel the stretching of the leg muscle. Shortly after I fully keel and stop movement then my leg muscle feels fine.

It is going to be some days before I am back to normal.  I also will have to move the muscles and stretch them and keep active so I keep my full movement and not end up with a slightly smaller range of movement.  I haven't really looked to see how bruised I am.  When I first went to bed I looked a bit at my upper arm where I was sore.  It was red.

Where I fell.

I even dented one of the ladder steps with my upper body.  That is not easy to do.