Several weeks back, we got a prescription for Prednisone for allergic reactions, as well as a recommendation for dosing for over the counter Benadryl and Ranitidine. At the time, we had many errands to run, and I opted to not pick up the medicines that day, figuring another day would work just as well.
This wasn't terribly prudent, as Phil was stung twice by wasps as he was setting up sheep fencing this morning. Within twenty minutes, he had hives from head to knees: lymph nodes, jaw, groin, chest, fingers. His arm swelled until his fingers hardly worked, and he lay on the bed, trying not to move.
I headed up to the convenience store, but they had no Benadryl. So I drove on, into the pharmacy, arriving five minutes before opening. I opted not to wait for them to fill the prescription, but hurried home with the over the counter medicines. Total trip time: just under an hour.
I wasn't sure what I would find. I had left without my phone, and if Phil's airways had begun to close, he wouldn't have been able to walk down to the truck, and certainly shouldn't drive it.
Happily, no worst case scenarios took place this time. He took four Benadryl and slept most of the day. His joints hurt, and I'm sure sleep is a welcome relief.
In the meantime, the tractor is ready for pickup. The garden languishes in the heat. I ran the water for the one segment that is irrigated, and hope and pray that the remaining plants will survive this hot, dry period, at least until Phil can irrigate them. Otherwise, that's a pretty serious hit we'll take.
At one point, before I got back with medicine, Phil managed to get four of the five pigs corralled in their new home, but they spooked badly and remain at large. Their only feed is in their new pen, full of feed, whey, slops: everything that should delight a pig's heart. But they prefer to wander, surely hungry, on day two of their self-imposed hunger strike. Hopefully they won't get too hungry and chase chickens.
I went down to see Fern. Her udder appears unchanged, but she did have mucus come out, so her time is getting close. Obviously. It was just a visible sign that something is happening.
The garden yielded the first tomatoes of summer today: beautiful orange cherry tomatoes, Sun Gold, I believe, seeds from Phil's grandpa. They were utterly delicious, warm in the sun.
I picked half the beets. As I did so, I wondered how to store them, how to provide them to customers who may want some. Our plan initially had been to have the metal building up, the storage area cleared and turned into long-term cold storage. None of that has happened yet, so I have a bucket of beets, and that amount again yet in the ground, far more beets than I want to eat in a week, that need some form of storage. Root cellar? We'll see. Maybe once we have the tractor again.
What you don't see in the photo below is 600 of the 1000 strawberries that arrived today. The poor plants were radiating heat after their trip in the delivery van, so I heeled them in and hosed them off. We ordered them as a gift to our future selves. I hope I can bless my future self with good will. Another 1000 plants is a good many.
And I ordered a few more blueberries. I long for organic blueberry smoothies, and I think I need to grow them myself to afford them.
The boys, I might add, were blessed with the box alone.
And Jadon had a birthday. He was utterly jubilant to have nine books for his birthday, every one of which sounded good. For those looking for a good educational and fun game, he enjoyed Ten Days in Africa so much, he got a new one: Ten Days in the USA. Good for geography, not too long, and enjoyed by most. (Personally, I was glad to have no more Legos. All those little pieces! And he's old enough now, I don't think he noticed the lack.)
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