We spent the day up on the mountain again yesterday. I was riding bareback on the suburban grass eater all day, while Bob slaved away inside removing the infamous floating wall.
At one point I saw him coming across the bridge in his demo regalia (space suit, face mask, and goggles) and he was carrying a gas can.
“You’ve been out here for a long time, I figured it was time for a fill-up.” he said.
He was right, there was only about a quarter-inch of fuel left in the tank.
We hired a man with a tractor to come out and bush hog the pastures. When the Octogenarian was here she had the young man from down the road keeping the place looking like a park! However, when she left and we asked him to continue the service, well, since we weren’t around every day he seemed to lose interest. But hey, it was summer, he’s only 17, and he had friends to hang with and football practice. I actually do ‘get it’ , but we decided we couldn’t support his summer activities and had to let him go. 😉
That left the 2 – 3 acres around the house, cabin, and pond to mow. Going non stop, it took me from about 9:00AM til 1:00PM. I was almost done and I looked up again to see Bob out by the drive and waving at me. He wasn’t looking so cheerful this time. Disengaging the blades I zoomed up to the drive. I arrived to find that while he was working he had been stabbed in the forearm with a very ugly and rusty nail.
It had been well over 10 years since his last tetanus shot.
He had been prying off the old oak planks on that floating wall, when one of them swung back. The weight and force of the plank falling then drove a nail right into the muscle causing the puncture and resultant swelling. We talked about whether or not to go to the ER for a tetanus shot because we knew the ER would be expensive. Being nervous about infection we went anyway.
One shot, a prescription for antibiotics for prevention of infection (2,000 mg per day!) and $200.00 later, we were on our way back to finish and clean up. Oh well, it’s only money, and money well spent judging by the high dose of antibiotics prescribed.
So, as it stands:
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- The pastures are bush hogged!
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- The back rooms are gutted and await wall reconstruction. (Standing in the middle of the now gutted back rooms looking right…)
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- (and left.) Note the nasty, rusty nails, but he still got that wall down!
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- This is premium cabin construction! I will explain more in my next post!
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- I couldn’t wait to see under the paneling in the living room. This is very encouraging; NO TERMITES!
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- Tyvek is such an attractive look. Don’t you think? (BTW, That is ME under all that gear! ‘-)
In my next post I will explain a bit about cabin building in the 1800s! It will be interesting! I promise! 😀
Life on the Farmlet 
Oh, Lynda! I love that you keep us up to snuff on the progress of the mountain farmlet! These photos are priceless! I’m glad Bob is doing well, and $200 is not a bad cost for ER treatment. FD and I both had ER visits and some physical mishaps while kicking this 10 acres into shape. It’s all part of the adventure, eh?
On the “bush hog”, when I first moved south, I was confused about the proper term, bush or brush hog? It turns out both are appropriate. Up north we simply called them mowers or shredders. I think the bush/brush hog term is more southern.
Hi Lori! We are trying to be careful since we are both in the official “Old Fogies” category now. HA! We went to bed reeking of liniment last night. I have to say, it is hard work, but it will be worth all of trouble when we are done. It has taken so long to get to the point where we can now begin to reconstruct and not DEstruct the place.
I had never even heard of a bush/brush hog before we moved here. I was reading this morning that Bush Hog, a company here in Selma, AL coined the term ‘Bush Hog’ for this device. And although both are used, the term is ‘brush hog.’ Using “bush” is sort of like saying ‘kleenex’. One is a brush hog and the other is a tissue where we have substituted the brand name for any item that is similar in use.
I have to say, that my all time favorite example of this custom, is when someone here in the deep south asks me “What kind of coke do you want?”, when what they really mean is which kind of soda would I prefer. 😉
Yup, “Bush Hog” has definitely become the generic term, alright… That’s all my Dad ever called it (even ‘way up here in “The Great White North” of Canada, eh?; )
We were in Windsor, Ontario for a wedding this weekend… Did you know that Windsor is on the SOUTH bank – across the river from Detroit? OR, that nearby Point Pelee, the southern-most place in Ontario, is farther south than parts of Northern California?
Love the description of a lawn mower!
Hahaha, Thanks Claire!
I feel for you on that lawnmower. I have to do the same on four acres of our land and it is mind-numbingly boring 😦 Mind you, so many guests seem to think it fun that I have to do it seldom now 🙂 Hope Bob’s arm heals fast – that seems a lot of cash to shell out – can you claim it back?
Annie, I saw a video of a lady who quilted using an old hand crank sewing machine while she plowed her thousands of acres of farm land. The tractor was massive and had a GPS system that allowed her to set it and sit back while it did all the work. One assumes the only reason she was there was to watch the gas gauge and for stray animals. Anyway, she cut all her patches and put them into a basket and then used the hand cranked sewing machine to make her patches as she babysat the behemoth! Too bad we can’t multitask on our mowers too! 😀
As for Bob, he does heal fast, but we really won’t be able to recoup the cost of the ER. We have to spend THOUSANDS in medical expenses in order to be able to claim them as a deduction on our taxes.
The ER is expensive, but not getting it taken care of may have been a lot more costly. It’s looking good!
Agreed, Patti, and thanks!
Even I can agree that there might be a bit too much mowing to be done there. Pay my travel expenses and I’ll pop over and do it for you.
OH what a lovely thought, but you simply must bring along Mrs. Tootlepedal too! 😀
No problem.
😀
Poor Bob. 200$? Thank God for European healthcare. All the life-saving hours I’ve spent in ER havec cost me nothing (except of course the monthly contributions when I was working). I just don’t understand that Tea Party!
Great pictures: you have your work cut out.
Viv, we sure do! I’ve got it all planned out in my head, now I am waiting for it to be reality. 😀
Those tetanus shots are so easy to get behind on and the consequences are really awful … while I hate that poor Bob got nailed (I had to laugh at the name of your post), I’m glad he is now up to date!
And you?
That video you described above is fairly astounding … I have trouble cutting a straight line when seated in my non-moving home!!
I am still in range, LB, but should probably think about redoing it in the next two or three years. That last one hurt like way more than heck! 😛
Just for you, here is the lady on the tractor! 😉
Oh my gosh! That is amazing! Loved her comment about her old farm lady hands.
What really struck me is the immensity of that field!! That’s a whole ‘nother perspective on farming, isn’t it? At least from what I see here in SWVA.
I know! To be honest, I don’t think I could live in a place like that. More power to her that she can keep herself occupied while she travels that ocean of dusty soil!
Oh geez! Punctures are the worst for getting cleaned out… Soaking the wound in previously boiled and then salted water (as warm as he can take it) would be good to help flush/draw things out. Best wishes to you both.
He’s going to be OK, Deb. I remember my mom doing that trick with Epsom salts whenever I got an infected cut or stepped on a nail. I still use it whenever I feel like a cut is not healing right away. It works well and it works FAST!
Can’t take the possibility of tetanus too lightly in this day and age. Hopefully the antibiotics will keep the wound from infection. I’d still be washing it clean with boiled salted water too.
One nasty infection could result in the worst imaginable disaster.
$200 was well spent on this occasion.
Vicky, the shot and the Dr. were a no brainer. It was wondering about waiting 24 hours and paying $35.00 at the Dr’s office, vs. going right away to the ER and paying $200.00. Some infections can come on really fast! When Bob got home yesterday he said his arm was tender, but not painful. The wound is healing fast! 🙂
The biggest thing about a puncture is, that you don’t want the skin to heal too quickly and trap a pocket of infection; that’s why the saline soak is SO effective: it keeps the wound flexible, enabling drainage for as long as there’s any sign of redness or pain.
Oh and, speaking of flexibility, I know you won’t forget to use honey on those dressings; )
Nope! 😉
I love reading about your adventures but sorry about the nail!
Julie, I’m so glad you are enjoying our misadventures in home remodeling, and hey, Bob’s wound is almost forgotten! He really heals FAST! 😀
Gosh, you are working so hard Lynda with Bob, you did a good thing to go for the tetanus shot but I can’t believe how expensive it was..!
I like very much Bob’s space suit!!
We are, Chantal!
About that space suit… Although Bob’s space suit looks exactly like mine the one you see in this picture is ME, LOL!
I was going to ask how the wound is doing but then I read the last note. Glad things went well. Wish I closer when we visit Alabama.
Thank you, Margaret, and, me too! Maybe after the dust settles we can plan to meet up on the mountain? I would love that!
That was a very good decision to go to the ER for the tetanus shot. I need to check mine. I know I had one in 1987, and have had another since, but I have a feeling I might be behind. Two hundred bucks is a lot cheaper than a funeral! Another thing – have you two gotten your flu shots? I got mine about two weeks ago. The pharmacist said they were expecting an early season, for one thing, but he also said they have a good match this year between the strain and the prepared vaccine. In fact, I’ve already bumped into a couple of people who’ve had it. Ounce of prevention, pound of cure and all that!
Linda, the two times in my adult life that I got deathly ill from the flu (temps up to 104 and sick for two full weeks) were the two times I did not get my flu shot! I know a lot of people are afraid of vaccines. *However, most who are afraid of them were not around to see how really dangerous the illness’ were that they have been formulated to protect us against. At 60 and with a compromised immune system from diabetes and asthma (both controlled) well, I’ll take my chances with the vaccines, thank you. They have kept me alive and kicking till now! 😀
*(That was a difficult sentence. I hope it said what I meant. 😉 )