Advantages of working outside

Advantages of working outside

One of the best parts of being a large animal veterinarian is getting to work outside. The thought of sitting cooped up in an office during the day sends shivers down my spine.

Of course not every day outside is beautiful. It's been cold, rainy, and dreary lately. So when the sun came out today, I was thoroughly enjoying it.

Every little boy loves wearing rain boots and splashing in puddles. Well I'm just an overgrown kid who gets to wear "rain boots" every day. Plus the recent rains have provided plenty of puddles for splashing in. In fact the alley I was walking down this morning was just one continuous puddle about six inches deep. You must be careful splashing in puddles on dairies though, because what you are splashing in isn't just water.

So as I'm carefully clomping along in my rain boots, making gentle splashes. It sounds something like "Closh, Closh, Closh."

Well I'm just closh, closh, closhing along enjoying the sunshine. When I hear a new sound - closh, closh, ssscchhluuusscchh. Which was the sound my boot made as it discovered a sink hole underneath the six inch deep puddle, and sunk my leg right in up past my knee.

I pull, and I pull, but whatever creature lives in the deep dark hole doesn't want to let go of my leg. Finally with a mighty jerk, my foot bursts free of the hole. Ahh, sweet freedom! It feels so freeing to have my leg out of the clutches of the evil monster in the hole. That's when I realize that the monster in the hole, still has his grimy little paws on my boot. So now I'm standing there like a flamingo on one leg holding my stockinged foot up out of the muck, trying to keep it as clean as possible.

Now, how do I get my boot back? I extend my stockinged foot up to a horizontal position behind me trying to provide a counter balance to my body as I plunge my arm down into the hole to retrieve my boot. In past my elbow with my face now just inches from the puddle, my fingers finally make purchase on my boot. I tug, but the monster is still holding on to it. I tug again, and think I feel it give. I start to stand back up pulling my boot with me, when the monster in the hole regains strength, and gives another mighty tug pulling my boot back down. In retrospect maybe I should have let go of the boot at this point, but being the competitive soul that I am I refused to let go in this game of tug of war. A game that I lost.

I'd like to be able to say that in the moment I tumbled over face first, that I'd been able to think of something witty, and humorous to better entertain those watching the scene. Something like "Timber!" would have sufficed. But all I could come up with was the somewhat crude, but completely accurate "Ahh, crap." (Note to self, when falling face first into a beautiful "dairy puddle" it's best to keep your mouth shut, rather than trying to be witty and entertaining).

Now that I'm laying fully in the puddle, no longer worried about trying to stay clean I'm finally able to extract my boot. Probably because the sea monster lurking down in the sink hole, is doubled over in fits of laughter.

I put my boot back on and continue my joyful closhing down the alley. But now I get to experience an entirely new and not unpleasant sound. Closh, sploosh (the noise the "puddle" running out of my boot makes with each step. Closh, sploosh, closh, sploosh.

Thank goodness

I don't have to spend the day cooped up in an office.