Weather, Animal Excursions, and Upchucking

This is the forecast for south central Kansas for Wednesday:

"Severe thunderstorms are expected to develop Wednesday afternoon along or west of Highway 14, then move northeast during the evening. The risk for severe storms is higher west of a line from Salina to Winfield, with the greatest risk across Pratt, Kingman, Barber and Harper counties. Large hail and damaging winds are likely and tornadoes are possible."

Highway 14 is five miles west of our home. We are west of the Salina to Winfield line, in Reno County. If these storms pass over us late enough in the day, perhaps there will be less chance of the most severe aspects striking here.

I'm adding prayers for safety to my prayers for rain.

Grant's cynical comment, after I read the above quoted paragraph aloud: "Well, maybe we'll get a little rain at the tail end of a big storm."

The National Weather Service site also reported that May 9 (yesterday) was the earliest date on record for temperatures having topped 100 degrees in Wichita. Exactly one week ago today we had patchy frost in the area--some of the cold severe enough to kill warm-season garden vegetables. On Friday and Saturday, the highs will be 68-70 degrees--ideal, in other words. We end up with some good averages in Kansas--enough extremes, and a few very moderate readings--but not too many, so as to avoid monotony.

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Yesterday some of the hogs that reside on this farm went visiting the neighbors--all the way to Dwight's farm about a mile west of here.

We were first alerted to something being amiss when someone knocked on the door at 5:00. By the time Hiromi got dressed enough to go to the door, all he saw was the newspaper on the porch floor and the carrier's tail lights disappearing out the driveway. So he went back to bed. He had been sick during the night and needed more rest.

At 7:00 there was another knock, and Hiromi repeated the getting dressed routine. This time it was our neighbor, Jamie, who said the paper carrier had stopped to tell him that there were hogs out at the neighbor's place. So Jamie kindly came to tell us.

Hiromi called the home of the people who own the hogs. No one answered. I remembered that at least part of the family had gone to Colorado for the weekend, so Hiromi called their neighbor, Joe, to see if he knew who was doing their chores. Joe said the chore boys had not gone along, so he would go over to inform them. I don't know how that went, but before long, I saw James near the hog barn shading his eyes, peering intently toward the east. That was the wrong direction, as it turned out.

Thankfully the hogs did not take a side trip through the nearby garden--not ours, at least, and I presume--not Dwight's either.

I laughed when I realized that at least five househols, besides the paper carrier's, cooperated to get this little problem rectified.

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Quote for the Day:

Yesterday morning--

Me (to Hiromi): You're the noisiest thrower-upper of anyone I've ever heard.

Hiromi: Me?

(to Grant): Did I wake you up?

Grant: It was loud enough to wake the dead. I don't think involvement of the vocal cords is necessarily required for throwing up.

At this point Grant performed a perfect roaring re-enactment--sound effects only. Hiromi had the good sense to laugh. He even asked for a demonstration of normal throwing up sounds. So Grant and I made discreet little gagging noises with abrupt cessations to show him how it could be done.

Grant had been sick the day before, at which time his throwing up sounds were more than role-playing. Fortunately, this ailment has come and gone within 24 hours for most of the people affected. Three people at Jared and Yolie's house had it the same week Grant got it. He works there, and Clare lives there right now. So far, I'm hale and hearty.

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I'm off to water the garden.