What a Day!

Yesterday was a day! It was one of those days when you need to be flexible. Big time.

Lisa dropped the dogs off at 8:30 and we got them settled, and then I put Tammo on a leash and headed to the car. "I won't be too long, " I said rather breezily to Craig as I left. "Maybe an hour and then I will also swing by the barn and check the horses when Tammo is finished at the vet. See you soon!"

And off the two of us zoomed.

We suspected that poor Tammo had developed an allergy to something outdoors. Corn or soybean related, dust from harvesting, or some other allergen, but he had begun itching and scratching and chewing constantly. His eyes were rimmed with pink, watering, and swollen at times, and his ears were hot to the touch and itchy. 

Time to see the vet.

He was in worse shape than we'd realized. In between his toes the skin was bright red and inflamed, and the vet was concerned that he'd scratched his cornea while seeking relief. After an hour long exam complete with an eye test and ear cytology and cleaning, the vet confirmed our suspicions that he was very allergic to something in the environment and that he had a lot of inflammation and itchiness as a result.

Poor puppy! He's now on several meds and getting some relief. Last night he slept the best he's slept in about a week. (So did Craig, Pepper, and I.)

Our vet's office is close to the barn, so I popped Tammo back into the car and drove out into the country.

The horses were out in the south pasture and grazing. All was good with them. I proceeded up to the new barn to check and be sure all was well there, too.

It wasn't. 

There was a very loud noise coming from Tim's shop. Was someone in there and working? Tim had told me that the man who sometimes comes out and uses Tim's power tools had been told that the shop was unavailable while Tim was out of town. Had he come out anyway?

That man's car was not present; maybe it was someone else? Or had someone been in the barn going through Tim's things? Had we had a break in?

Suddenly the loud noise stopped. I really needed to check inside and find out what was going on. Calling Craig, I let him know what I had heard and that I wanted him with me on the phone as back up and to call for help in case someone was inside.

As I opened the barn door, a new noise began. A hissing sound coming from a corner of the shop.

I recorded it so I could send it to Tim and let him know something was up.

Just as the previous noise had, the hissing abruptly stopped. I closed the barn door and was getting back into my car when (you guessed it) the loud noise resumed.

I went back inside and recorded that for Tim too, and then finally headed back home.

Craig said it sounded to him like an air compressor, but neither of us could figure out why it was cycling on and off that way. Had someone been inside the barn and maybe messed with it? 

I sent the videos to Tim and then I called his son, Riley, who lives in town and is back-up if I have a problem. He agreed that it sounded like an air compressor but had no answers as to why it would randomly start up - I've been checking the barn daily since Sunday and there had never been anything amiss the other days. Why now? What caused this?

A few hours later Tim texted me and said it was the compressor, but no one has any answers yet as to why it started cycling out of the blue.

So, almost three hours after leaving home with Tammo, we got back home. Nash was thrilled to see Tammo and ready to play, but Tammo had had a long, stressful morning, and wasn't feeling well. He promptly hopped onto the couch next to Craig and crashed into a deep sleep.

The day wasn't over yet, though. It was actually my birthday and I heard from all my children and their families throughout the afternoon. A friend dropped by and I had texts and messages on social media.

Thoughtful guy that he is, Craig organized a family dinner out, inviting Lisa, Curt, Vanessa, and the kids to join us.

While you'd probably never guess the name of the restaurant since it's a small local one, can you tell where we are? Hint: it is very meaningful to me.

Here is something else to guess, just for fun. Music City Son Cole and his family sent me a gift that goes along with a new hobby of mine.

Any guesses?  On either the gift or the restaurant location? Put them below in the comments and I'll spin to win tomorrow and send something out to the winner.

More on the birthday celebrations in the next post.

Stay 'tooned!