Favor and No Favor

Phil ran a LOT of errands on Monday. He went to the electric permitting office. There he said, “I am supposed to fill out an affidavit that states that my electricity will be used for a farm building.” The clerk didn’t want to give him the paperwork, since it was supposed to go to a structure. Phil said, “It will go to a pole, and that’s a structure, and that’s what Dwayne from your office told me to do.” The clerk said, “I’ll go get a ruling on this right now.” Thankfully, that individual was out to lunch then, so she gave Phil the needed paperwork. We will be allowed to get electricity! Yay! That’s the favor part.

The no-favor part was when he went to the DMV to get registration papers for our vehicles. After waiting in “a rather long line” (as he said), he was told that he could not register his vehicles because he had no proof of address. Without a permanent structure, he can’t get an address. And we have no bank statements, no voter registration, nothing, apparently, that would allow us to register our vehicles. That was a bit frustrating, since the van’s Colorado registration expired in August.

While Phil was away, I stepped out of the trailer, like I’ve done every day, and somehow caught the back of my foot and ankle. Like a bad toe stub, I saw stars. I lay in a chair moaning, thinking that all that existed in the universe was me and pain. Thankfully, such pain does not last long. I was soon able to get up and suffered no real damage.

But later, as I was gardening, my ankle and foot started to hurt. Maybe I rolled it a bit as I walked over uneven ground? I tried to push through because Phil had rolled his ankle, and then unloaded the entire POD, but by the time I was done with dinner, I couldn’t even walk. I went right to bed and tried to make it comfortable, but even the force of gravity was too strong. I was gasping, almost vomiting in pain.

Michelle Bessette is a physical therapist, so I called her. She told me the acronym RICE: Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. (I have heard elsewhere that ice initially will drive away swelling, but that over time, heat is better to restore circulation.) I could do the rest, and elevation, so I did.

While I was gardening, I was shoveling up some compost from the remains of my 10 cubic yards. Suddenly a brown head popped up, right where my shovel had been—I had uncovered the home of a toad. Isaiah was thrilled to have a plaything, so he grabbed the toad and he and Jadon took turns hiding it in the dirt pile and then uncovering it all afternoon. I was relieved that when they set it down at dinner, it was still able to hop away.

Our new realtor called to say that there was an interested buyer, but they wanted to know if they could make a two car garage. We sent along the plat, and that is the last we have heard. Nibbles, nibbles, nibbles on the house, but no closure. Lord knows.

We read a funny, funny chapter in The Children of Noisy Village. Jadon was screaming with laughter, and even Phil laughed aloud. They had me read the whole chapter again. So even though I was disabled, we still had a good time.

My ankle healed in the night, praise God.

Tuesday: I commuted in to the Zach Bush’s. I work on Sonlight work there every other Tuesday: they have co-op, and so are away. They also have a large deck, so I sit outside on the deck, and the baby crawls at my feet or sleeps on my back. Very peaceful and nice.

We moved the sheep and goats for the first time. We ended up leading the goats with a leash one-by-one, but then established a fenced runway for the sheep. We didn’t think we could catch and put a lead on those larger animals. All went well, and the four gestating ladies were happy to be in a new grazing area. The goats are getting plump! All that good forage must agree with them.

The wasps were mean today! They stung both Jadon and Abraham before breakfast was done. For a sting: make a baking soda and water paste for the wound, and take Arnica homeopathic tablets. No big deal!

I have forgotten to mention how proud I was of Jadon at last week’s Bible study. He eagerly answered as many questions as he could, and really participated. He has been a bit reluctant, so that was so great to see: my son wanting to study the Word.