Melody's Great Driving Adventure

I may have to give up on road trips. This trip to Wisconsin to get the cow was a doozy!

We left about a half hour late; that's not unusual for me. Not too far from home, I realized I'd left the IPASS at home, and was heading for the (lovely) Illinois Tollway. Back I went, adding another half hour. Having realized the night before that my halter was for a calf, a stop at Farm and Fleet was necessary...where we also picked up some shavings, (bedding for Mary's goat) some kitchen things, and some road food. Farm and Fleet...gotta love it!

Once on the road, I thought, "This is it! We're off!" Never think such things. No sooner had I done that, when the very nice lady on the radio said, "Long delays from Rte 39 to the Beloit toll plaza, due to an accident blocking two lanes." This is typical for Illinois roads, so I should have planned for it...but didn't! Not only was there an accident, but also the perennial road construction that IDOT likes to bless us with. An hour later, we crossed the Wisconsin state line; I could have done that in 20 minutes on side roads from our house if the Tollway weren't "faster."

I had looked at the map the night before, thinking that our destination was about 2-2 1/2 hours away. More like 3. So, having left at about 11, when all was said and done, and giving time for a burger at Culver's in Madison, we pulled up to the barn at about 3pm. We left about 5. It took that long to meet all the cows. Our "hostess" really wanted us to meet them, and see how she was "decorating" them with Christmas...antlers. You really had to be there.

If you had, the sights and smells would have made you sad. Let's just say that this was a true cow rescue, and leave it at that.

We loaded the cow, which meant I had to back the trailer to the barn. Wendi, I did it on the second try. It was a piece of cake! Getting out...not so much. She failed to tell me that I would need a 4-wheel drive to do that; I don't have one! Fortunately, a neighbor was willing to come and pull me out.

I was worried about leaving so late. The terrain where she lives is very hilly, and I had already been using 1st gear much more than I liked. With a full-grown cow in the trailer, it was even more fun. But we had to hurry; we needed to get to the vet for health papers, and she was leading us there at an alarming rate.

The vet was a peach. She was shaped like one, too. It made me worry when I said, "When is the baby due?" and she said, "Next week." Then she said, "I don't want to get into the trailer with that cow." No, sweetie, you won't have to. Let's let that baby incubate until it's ready, OK? After a brief check of the cow's eyes and general appearance, we had health papers and were headed down the road.

Now we had to deal with a 6 year-old boy who had been cooped up in a car seat all day and was getting hungry. We told him he could pick the restaurant for dinner; he picked Chili's. "Mom," Mary said, "these are tiny little towns. There's not gonna be a Chili's." "No, but Madison is an hour away; we'll find one there." But, each of those little towns was a source of disappointment for Sean. "No Chili's here, Grandma Melody. When will we find one?" "Soon, Sweetie." Finally, we did, and angels sang.

We finally got home just after 10pm. I had already decided that the trailer wasn't getting backed in that night. But April, or Half and Half, whatever her name is, needed to be unloaded. That's when we learned that she really wasn't halter trained. I mean, we got one on her, but she planted those feet and about had to be dragged to the pasture. Ever danced with a Jersey in the pale moonlight? (I didn't know I always wanted to say that!) But that's what happened. We pulled and poked and danced her across the farm, in the light of a full moon.

It was quite the day, and made me almost want to give up road trips. Almost. But she has to get to Ranchwife somehow!

On the road again...