OPINION: Covid is not gone and the vaccine is not 100% protection

The rooster crowed again so we had chicken and dumplings for supper last night. My close relative thought the hens needed "a man around the house," as she put it, so we went to a farm auction and bought a pretty colored rooster. He had bright feathers and she was sure she wanted him. I sorta warned her that this bird was a game chicken and unlike most of the sweet little hens she lovingly cared for daily. Oh, she blew that off and kept on bidding. When it was all said and done, the crowd applauded her and her rooster!

That feller cost a lot of money and embarrassed the heck out of me! I hauled it home and stuck him in the coop with the girls and never wanted to see him again. He worked like a cuckoo clock, crowing on the hour day and night -- mostly night! We talked about it some -- she for killing him and me saying to sell him! Then that morning dawned and she grabbed him by both legs and did him in with her bare hands! So we tried to eat him with some dumplings. The longer you chewed, the tougher he got. Dog got the carcass and promptly buried it!

The cattle all seem to be doing fine. Cool weather has perked up the cows that calved in September and the calves, 97% calved, are growing and I am very pleased with them. We had an easy month of calving, used low birthbweight semen and selected bulls that were producing what they should. Our cleanup bull bred six cows and his calves were easy deliveries and looked pretty good, too.

Steers are on the sell list, and I am thankful we grass-fed them to over 900 pounds because grain is higher than a cat's back! If you were only feeding one milk cow to save money, you would be worlds ahead to sell the cow and buy the milk!

I had the horses all shod yesterday. The paint pony got the front end shod and bare on back. The kids still pile on him often and love him. I ride mine, not hard but just a perfect pace around the place. My offspring won't ride or even show interest unless they have a kid on a horse. They hauled to play days and ropings and a rodeo or two but they never wanted to take part. I was disappointed when they were young but am so happy now that they leave mine alone and don't bring home nags for me to feed!

It is my opinion, and everyone has one, the covid is not gone and the vaccine is not 100% protection. We all must use our gut feelings and read all we can about the reason we decide to champion. My personal outlook was and still is to hurry and take the vaccine. I have friends who have had all the shots and still tested positive but they did not get sick and die. They were tired and had to rest to recover but are over it and test negative.

I hope all the hesitation in this country is due to sound questions and not being hard-headed and cocksure of how tough we are. We will get through it but, like diphtheria, we won't rid the planet of the germ. Trying to save lives is the object of my reasoning.

Deer season is in full swing around here and so it is a good time to buy ammo without that quizzical clerk asking questions. And "Remember the Alamo!"

Bill is the pen name used by the Gravette-area author of this weekly column. Opinions expressed are those of the author.