The dog days of summer

My new deck is coming along. It is going to be so nice. Of course, it better be, for what it is costing! I'm really going to enjoy having a deck behind the house.

It finally rained a bit. I got over an inch of rain last weekend, the most in several months. Though it's still very dry. I put the ewe lambs in the hoop house, to give the pasture they were on a chance to grow. The ewes are still out back with a round bale of hay. The drought hasn't seem to affect George's body condition. I've still got over 20 ewe lambs to sell. I may keep an extra two. I'm not going to tell my family. They already think I've got too many sheep. But, I'm a sheep specialist. I supposed to have sheep.

McComb survived his clipping ordeal. For the first week or two after he was clipped, he acted very lethargic. He had developed a couple of hot spots on his back legs. Hair is starting to grow back, and he's back to his old self. He looks quite good with his short hair coat. I know he's got to be more comfortable. Zak is doing fine. The hot weather doesn't seem to bother him. Today, Max brought me a bird. He wanted to bring it in the house. I said no.

This week starts the Garrett County Fair. My niece Samantha will be showing both a lamb and goat. Her shows are on Tuesday. Next week, she and I are going to Williamsburg for vacation.

The Redskins scored two touchdowns late in the 4th quarter to win their first preseason game against the Titans. The third string quarterback Todd Collins led the rally. I had already given up on the boys in maroon and gold. They were playing as bad as last year. A paltry offense. Neither Jason Campbell nor Mark Brunell played well. Is there going to be another quarterback battle brewing in Washington?

My dad and I have been going to Hagerstown Suns baseball games. They're not very good. They're dead last in their division. When we went last, they lost 3-1. They only scored a run because of a trick play -- they got the opposing pitcher to balk when they had a runner on third base. We did get a free cheeseburger when the designated opposing player struck out. Poor guy. Every time he batted, the crowd chanted, "Burger King, Burger King." Hey, we needed something to cheer for. When we were leaving the stadium, we each got two loaves of bread.

There are six miners trapped in a coal mine in Utah. After so many days, nobody's holding out much hope that they are alive. My prayers go out to their family and friends. Coal mining is so dangerous, but it's such a vital source of energy.

My favorite season of the year is approaching. I've got to start figuring out which ram to put each of my ewes with. This year, we will be using three Katahdin rams. Snow Wolf, my homebred ram, will be getting some girls. He's the biggest ram of the three. It will be the third year of breeding for Hurricane and Bull's Eye. We'll probably get one new ram next year.