Relative Something

*this* John W. Hays' take on things and experiences

Acknowledged Risk

with 6 comments

Yesterday was supposed to be the day I took Cyndie back to where her surgery was performed, for an appointment to get her stitches out. We ended up rescheduling, when the risk of severe storms loomed large for the time we would be on the road. It turned out to be a smart decision.

Our dog, Delilah, has been demonstrating an extreme anxiety over rumbles of thunder. Unfortunately, the thunder-booming storms started here on Wednesday evening, and her panic-barking kept me up until well past midnight. I was at the veterinarian’s office yesterday to pick up some new tick repellent, since our previous product isn’t doing the trick, and when I happened to mention Delilah’s anxiety, they asked me what we “give her” for it.

Hadn’t entered my mind to medicate her. Their first recommendation was Benadryl, but they also reminded me of the “thundershirt,” a hugging body wrap that calms dogs. Good idea.

Shortly after I returned from the vet visit, our predicted rough weather rolled in. I’ve been through worse, but we did receive a blast of wind, small hail, and heavy rain that more than convinced us we made the right decision to stay home. If we had gone, Delilah would have been trapped outside in her kennel during the worst of it. The folks at the vet’s office said dogs can, and do, injure themselves in their efforts to escape whatever is causing their anxiety.IMG_3734e

That wind would have probably put her into a tizzy, especially when it picked up and rolled over my woodshed, which is located right next to her kennel.

Lesson learned on the heartiness of simply standing the structure on stones in the ground. That was the design I chose, even though I knew it was a risk. On the bright side, it gives me a chance to try building my second structure ever, using what I learned on the first one. I guess the next one will have posts buried well into the ground.

I’ve discovered an interesting fact about how I see our woods. No matter how familiar I think I am with the views, after a big wind storm, I have difficulty identifying what is new damage, and what is old. There are plenty of downed or leaning trees and broken branches. In the area near the up-turned woodshed, something doesn’t look right to me, but I’m not certain if it is damage from yesterday’s event, or something previous.

Actually, with another inch of rain increasing the saturation of our ground, it’s a wonder there are any trees left standing at all.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Written by johnwhays

May 9, 2014 at 6:00 am

6 Responses

Subscribe to comments with RSS.

  1. also Scott says wood posts for the shed footings will rot. He suggests pouring concrete footings using cardboard cylinders to pour the concrete into, get brackets that go into the concrete that the shed would attach to (Menards has & can show you what you need) Wood posts should be a few inches off the ground so they don’t rot out 🙂

    scott's avatar

    scott

    May 9, 2014 at 1:07 pm

    • I can do that. Cyndie thinks I should add a trim piece across the front of the roof line like our hay shed has, to deflect some of that wind. Seems to me she just might have a point. It would give me a bit more cover to work under when I’m splitting, too.
      Thanks, Scott!

      johnwhays's avatar

      johnwhays

      May 9, 2014 at 10:17 pm

  2. LOVE the Thundershirt! It’s amazing how well it works. Kiwi doesn’t enjoy rides, she’d pant and pace back and forth – put on the Thundershirt, she cuddles up and sleeps while we travel. Do you know the story of Temple Grandin? Great movie explains the theory behind this……

    Judy's avatar

    Judy

    May 9, 2014 at 10:45 am

    • Hmm. I don’t recall that I know that story. Happy to know that it works for you guys. It is on our shopping list, as we know there will be more thunder to come…

      johnwhays's avatar

      johnwhays

      May 9, 2014 at 10:13 pm

  3. Hope Cyndie is feeling better. What a weather you have there! I admire so much your positivism and radical acceptance of the weather. We miss you two so much… For Cyndie lots of love from here and my good energy.

    C´Ubuntu's avatar

    duniamo

    May 9, 2014 at 7:01 am

    • Your good energy is working, Dunia! She is feeling better. Thank you for staying in touch with us!

      johnwhays's avatar

      johnwhays

      May 9, 2014 at 10:11 pm


Leave a reply to johnwhays Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.