I did it!

I got my nerve up and milked Bonnie.  I put the calf in the stall overnight so there would be milk for me, but after I had done so, I noticed Bonnie's back quarters appeared to have quite a bit of milk in them.  If I had waited an hour or so, the calf would probably taken care of it, since he's finally managing to consume all the milk she produces.  But it was getting late, so I decided to milk the excess myself.  
She was somewhat restless, and I was a nervous wreck, but I made it through the task.  Then yesterday morning I let the calf nurse on one side and I milked on the other, and this worked like a charm.  The cow stood firmly in place, except when the calf butted her trying to get more milk.  
Someone left a comment suggesting Cliff do the milking.  Ha!  It wasn't Cliff's choice to keep a dairy cow; he hates milking.  I'm the one who insisted on buying a Jersey.  It isn't like two old people need that much milk.  Also, Cliff's hands are so big that he'd have to milk with thumb and forefinger, and it would take him an hour (he did offer, by the way).  With his arthritis, an hour of sitting on a stool bending over a bucket would be pure hell for him.  
Cows used to have larger teats, but once milking machines became common, one trait breeders strove for in dairy cows was smaller teats.  Why?  Because the bigger the teat on a cow, the more likely it is to get stepped on by another cow, or to freeze in winter.  So these days, dairy cows have huge udders with small teats.  
Anyhow.  After buying two half-gallons of milk since the incident, looks like we're back to raw milk.  
The grandson, who took over Cliff's job when he retired, is now working twelve hours a day.  This was going to leave Titan, the Great Dane pup, alone for much of the time, so Arick's girl friend is bringing him by here so I can dog-sit.  He's a good pup, and sticks very close to the house at all times, so he's no problem at all.  
Because there is so much work at Cliff's old place of employment right now, he may have the chance to work there part-time, maybe one week out of the month.  I have mixed feelings about this, but it's up to him.  He could replenish his tractor fund with the extra moolah, which would be great for him.  But will it feel like retirement if he has to go back to work sometimes?  Or maybe he'd enjoy getting out and seeing his old gang at work; I'm leaving it totally up to him and keeping my mouth shut.  
Here's a blog I just discovered:  I read an article in Reader's Digest yesterday, "Things nurses won't tell you", and the article mentioned that one of the nurses they quoted has a very interesting blog.  "Head Nurse" uses some graphic language, so if you are easily shocked, you might not enjoy her brand of humor.  I found her delightfully, refreshingly funny.