While MY day was full of meetings, driving, and barreling through whatever life threw at me, Drew’s was full of making new friends and going new places. Lucky little guy!
I like this human
My son is learning about horses, and so he groomed Drew for me so I could get straight to horse activities after work. He said, “I like this horse,” and Drew likes him, too. Drew likes everyone.
Mmm. Feels good.
After his beauty and bonding, I tried to show my son what Drew could do walking and trotting together but we got our feet tangled and I fell. Oops.
After work, Drew was a VERY brave boy and walked with me over to Sara’s house. He did perfect until he saw the young cattle dog. Not bad. Was great with the cattle!
I eat when I’m nervous
There, he was very patient as we tried to do the obstacles in the test he has to do. That was not great, but good for a boy who had no idea where he was.
Another new friend. Note the size difference. Aragorn was very nice.
We had fun, nonetheless. He’s at least tried the activities once. I’m sure he will do better tomorrow at the training arena. He was real good with the mailbox but I whacked him with the pole. I’m going to need help doing that from the ground!
I don’t t get it, Aragorn. What are we doing?
I’m proud of him. He did great walking back, but since a huge truck came down the driveway, Drew was glad to be home. He saw Apache and galloped FAST as soon as he was free. He made me eat his dust!
Little does he know he has more learning Saturday!
While I seem to have aggravated my weird shoulder blade issue and have to deal with sharp jabs, I’m doing just fine this evening. Mainly it’s because I got my scary hair taken care of.
It was too long and too grown out. But it looks spunky.
It was a bit challenging getting to Austin, though. My first delay was when a guy who lives down the road asked for a ride back from his broken motorcycle. He was nice. And they have cattle dogs, so of course he was. I’m glad I did that, because when I thought of texting the salon to say I might be late, I realized I didn’t have my phone. Sigh.
And of course, there were poky trucks and a construction delay to deal with. But, ha, I was only one minute late.
Blue hair and red face. It was hot under there.
I always enjoy talking to my stylist, Danny, who I have a lot in common with. He asks good questions, too. And I was excited to see they had a new bleach product that turned my hair quite blue. It was excellent and so relaxing to just sit there and process. Yesterday evening was hard. I needed to zone out.
So snowy and white.
When it was done and toned, it was eerily white. I think we have the ingredients for Ice Princess hair. I rewarded myself with a trip across the street to the Randall’s supermarket. I went there mostly to look at the flowers, which are always amazing for a small grocery. It didn’t disappoint. But I just got pineapple and some sandwich rolls.
And canned wine. Tastes okay and is pretty.
And now I’m cozy in the weird Doubletree hotel, listening to a strange noise that sounds like waves crashing on the shore. Austin Beach. That’s okay. I have wine, knitting, Olympics. Oh, and horse videos of the pattern I have to do with Drew.
What a nice afternoon I’ve had. I finished a big project, so I spent some time baking a fruit crisp with such nasty peaches that I threw in the frozen berries I found in the freezer to rescue it.
It looks good, anyway.
Then I got to spend some relaxing time with the horses. Apache is still doing well, and we even made it out to the field for a bit. I need just a bit more refinement and then maybe we can move forward.
I’m not Apache, but I’m also full of love.
Other exciting stuff for today was the unexpected arrival of the solar company, who told us our panels weren’t giving any power. We had no idea. But it’s fixed now!
And what’s this?
The above is the innards of our gate, which has also decided not to work. Maybe it, too, will get fixed. So yeah, it ain’t all bad. Nope.
I’m also cute.
You know what? It’s really good to have normal days out in the fresh air, enjoying the simple things like sunshine and animal buddies. It may not bring blog hits rolling in, but it feels good.
My heart is full. I was tired from work and hurting from lifting many heavy objects yesterday, so I went for a walk. I hadn’t planned to do much with the horses, because they did a lot yesterday, but I wanted to spend time with them. I spent some comforting time with Apache, then noticed Drew was looking at me from the other side of the gate.
Play with me!
I walked over and spent quite a while rubbing on his face and helping with his itches. He rubbed back, which is always so nice. He had such good breath. Then, I saw that the gate at the end of the little pasture appeared closed, so I went over to open it. I called to Drew, and both he and Vlassic accompanied me (Vlassic ALWAYS accompanies anyone who appears to be walking toward the cabin).
This horse is so cute that I will allow photos of my hair looking this bad to be published.
When we got there, and I realized the gate was actually slightly open, I figured Drew would go out. No. That little horse turned and matched my steps the whole way back. If I stopped, he stopped. If I sped up he sped up. Whoa, has he been watching Apache in the round pen? I was so happy that when we got to the end of the pen, he got lots of pets and loves.
Horse lips.
Yes, my little Droodles is GOOD at the canoodles. He must have spent ten minutes nuzzling me, checking out my ears, sniffing my head, and rubbing me gently. I just about burst into tears. I don’t think I’ve been shown so much physical affection by a horse, ever. Heck, he was more affectionate than most people are now that I’m old. I got some extra sweet selfies, and he tried to help by sticking his nose on the phone.
Canoodling
I do enjoy these guys. Fiona loves to cuddle while she’s eating dinner, and Apache is so good at making sure NO ONE gets into his pen at feeding time. Everyone else lines up like little soldiers, ready for dinner.
The sun is shining gloriously on my magnificent patchinessMine mine mineThank you, SunaVlassic helps the buckskin buddies with dinnerJust let me eat, says Mabel
You know it was a good day when the most stressful thing was trying to fix my Facebook avatar to look less like a hatchet. I think she’s a little better.
Most of the day was spent cleaning and organizing things. There was much heavy lifting, according to my back. I had help from my son some of the time. I’m teaching him ranch stuff.
Are you sure he wants to learn?
He washed a bunch of really grungy horse brushes, which I appreciated, and helped groom Apache. He lucked out and missed grooming Drew. He was encrusted with mud. I also hit a scab, which caused blood to spurt like crazy. Luckily I’d spotted bandages in the new trailer. He’s all fixed up.
My kid got a ground lesson on horse riding while I worked with Apache. I did darned well, if I say so, myself.
Then Sara came by and we looked at all the new stuff. She also says she thinks Peeper is a rooster. Damn. I didn’t see spurs…but that means I get more hens soon!
The only other news is this guy.
I found two of these poor young channel catfish in the middle of the pasture. They must have washed out of the pond at Sara’s. Poor guy or gal!
Let’s hope next week is better for all the residents here, fish, fowl, or fauna!
It’s a glorious day today, with bright sun that cuts through the cool air and makes it a real joy to be outdoors just messing around. All the remaining ice is melting. That’s fun for all.
The chicken coop’s north side had been a sheet of ice. I’m glad I got to see some of the ice sculptures and the chickens are glad the ice melted so they can eat the scratch that got buried under it. Also, Peeper is cute, so here are more photos of her.
ShinyWe’re all thawed out!Ready to layMy BABY
The horses are glad for the sunshine. They feel warm to the touch now. They are also glad their water troughs are thawing.
That’s a big ice cube.
It was sweet when they went to drink out of the trough. Apache figured out that if he nosed the ice, water would come up and he could drink. That was fun, apparently.
Just missed his big ole tongue here
Poor Fiona bopped her end of the trough, but it was thicker and she’s just a wee donkey. She was sad.
Boop, boop, damn.
Apache had her covered, though. He hit the ice extra hard and nudged some water over to Fiona. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it! Those two are such good friends.
He’s nudging here.
Drew wanted to come play with me, so we did some walking exercises (too damp to go fast) and then he got to graze while I went through the stuff in the new trailer. He got a bit annoyed as I kept trying things in him, but was ok until I put a soft, thick rope halter on. He removed it!
Yes this pad is short enough. Now take it off.
Sadly, much of the tack we got was for giant horses. In the photo above, Drew is wearing a cute green rope halter that had well over a foot of extra rope, which I’ll hate to cut off, because it has a decorative end.
I even now have raincoats for saddles. And a LOT of green saddle pads and blankets. Someone must like green as much as me!
I’ll spare you endless photos of bridles, since only three or four of my friends would care and two live within walking distance. I plan to clean a bunch of stuff up this weekend and see if it can work. I sure hope this halter works. It’s so pretty.
That’s pretty much the highlight of the day, which had some challenges, but nothing insurmountable. Things started out cold, which made me move kind of slow.
My role models.
The heater was having the same problem it had last year when it got really cold, not enough pressure to turn on. So it was a brisk 61 degrees as I tried to do my early meeting.
This is what it felt like. A giant ice cube.
The photo above is what was in each of the horses’ food buckets. We got 3” of rain over two days. It turned into sheets of ice. Brr.
Anyway, the menfolk got the heater going around noon, so I thawed out enough to record some voiceovers without vocal shivers. I’m relieved. Last year’s cold event was miserable with no heat.
I did my best to stop working around 2, since I worked such long hours this week, and I’m theoretically an hourly worker. But, of course I could not resist answering questions until we’ll after 5. It’s hard to not help!
Still, I got a bit of a nap in. When I awoke, Goldie was next to me, Harvey was draped over my lap, and Penney was on my chest and face. I must have been tired.
Lee gets the multi-dog nap thing, too.
It’s going to be a quiet weekend. I’m sure something will happen worth blogging.
Or you can knit and sit with me.
Oh! I did manage to brave the cold and see what was in the new trailer. It sure is shiny.
Fancy windows. Mysterious tubs of who knows what.
I was sorta glad to see that the trailer isn’t totally full. Maybe we will be able to fit it all in the new tack room.
I see a heater and some grooming stuff. A giant fan and translucent panels.
Well. Let’s see what happens. I’ve got nothing to complain about other than a bit of chill. It’s worse elsewhere. Love to all you readers.
Right on schedule, the yearly winter weather event has arrived. Here at the Hermits’ Rest, we are having a sleet fest. Elsewhere, it’s snowing or a wintry mix. We are safe, sound, and snug, thanks to all the winterizing the ranch community has done (I am so grateful to all). The cabin residents are stocked with water, since theirs has to be turned off, and all the animals’ water is taken care of, too. So yes, it’s a bit nippy out, and sleet sure can hurt when it’s blowing in your face, but who cares? Not me!
Hey, look at that!
Yesterday, the wonderful men of my household set off for the environs of scenic Cleveland, Texas to investigate a trailer for sale there. The resident nephew had been looking and looking for a two-horse bumper-pull trailer that I could eventually haul on my own to all these lessons and shows I intend to go to in the future. They all were either scams (like the dealership in Oregon pretending to sell a trailer in Texas), big messes, or gone very quickly.
I was getting so sad that I resorted to SnapChat filters to cheer me up.
But, this one seemed real, and the guy selling the trailer was apparently a real hoot on the phone. So, the guys and their funds set off, hoping to make a quick trip before the weather turned bad. Well, it was NOT a quick trip, but that was fine and dandy with them, because they had a blast with the older couple who was selling the trailer and some other stuff. They were both a real hoot, though they were bummed that they need to shut down their horse operation due to unforeseen circumstances.
Good thing this sleet didn’t start until this morning.
By the time the conversation-filled visit was over, the trailer had been procured for an excellent price, along with numerous gas or diesel saws and other tools (the people are moving to a place with an HOA that only allows electric ones), a lot of useful other equipment, and an incredible amount of horse tack and other supplies, some of it in original packaging. HOLY COW! Lee says it’s my birthday present for the next many years, but I will note that the money from selling the Austin house is also MY money, so I helped buy it!
I ran out and got a trailer selfie.
I’m guessing I can worm a LOT of horses now, and if I need to, they can all be snug in blankets (other than Drew). And I will no longer worry about my “carrot stick” (the thing that looks like a whip, but you don’t actually whip the horse with it) that is falling apart. There is an entire tube of brand-new ones in a tube, plus more loose ones.
WOW. Those blankets look too nice for a “regular” horse.
I’m told there were so many poop scooper rakes at this place that we’d never run out if we got them all. There is also every kind of horse tack in the world except saddles. Those were already sold. That is okay. I’ll be fine with what I have.
Lovely saddle racks.
This is MOST exciting. I feel like that little girl on the commercial who got the pony all gift wrapped. But, I’m so frustrated that the weather is awful and I can’t climb in the back of the trailer and see what’s in there.
Now here is what’s amazing. This trailer has barely been used, though it’s a couple of years old. And it has been kept in a garage (the folks had garages for every one of their many vehicles and trailers). So it’s in amazing shape. It has all the things I dream of, like tie-down things, windows that open and close, padding on the stalls, and a smooth floor that I can easily clean. Hooray.
Fancy tail light.
It has LED lights! They are very bright. It’s aluminum, so quite light. It theoretically could hold three horses, but we would need to use a larger vehicle than the Tahoe to pull that much weight. I think it will be great for all seasons and keep the dust off the horses. It will also keep the dust off my saddle, which will be able to ride in glory in the little tack room with the saddle racks.
So, what’s the catch? There is always a catch, right? It’s a funny one. We have no place to put all the “stuff” the guys bought, so I can’t use the trailer yet! (Good thing I have no lessons this weekend.) But wait, there’s another good thing!
Many horses can be encouraged to canter in the round pen with these!
The current plan (it changes daily) is to bring the really cute storage building we’d set up at the church over here and put it where one of the shipping containers is. It will be converted into a tack and feed room, which will make life just grand when it comes to feeding, grooming, and storing horse stuff! I think they may even make a covered grooming area and a spot to wash horses. Now, it won’t have a water heater like the fancy ones at the stable I visited last weekend, but this will be SO nice. The shipping container can be moved and be our hay storage area, which will mean a lot less hauling of hay from over by the cabin.
Here’s the other side. All that black stuff is, I think, translucent? Not sure. I’ll have to actually pry the back door open to find out. Darn ice storm. Lee says the door opens like a dream. Aah.
There’s a lot to look forward to on a wintry day so I’m feeling rather warm and fuzzy inside. I’m so glad we got a good deal on all this stuff, that the guys got to make some new friends, and that the new friends know their old stuff is going to someone who appreciates it. I’m still sort of in shock and SO grateful to Lee and the nephew. I just expected them to come home with a basic, useful, older trailer. This thing should last the rest of my life!
I sure hope to make GOOD use of the things we now have and share with others. I can’t wait for Kathleen to get back so she can squeal over it and for it to warm enough for Sara and Mandy to look around. It feels good to recycle/re-use all this equipment rather than buy new things.
And fire in my backyard, too! Bless that young man from the pool company for his perseverance! I spent a LONG time last night enjoying the fire pit and my new solar lights.
I’m in there, basking
It was warm and pleasant outside. I could even get out of the spa, relax in a chair, and get back in.
Nice lighting
The sunset was very pink, which made the clouds before the storms look more benign. It was so relaxing!
It’s not eternal, but it’s a flame!
All that relaxing was great preparation for some busy times coming up. I worked like crazy today and had plenty of energy to keep going. Hooray! The Pool of Dreams is a dream come true.
Ode to my lighting
I even got my son to help me put my old rug from my knitting room in Austin on the porch to make more of an outdoor living room effect. It’s an indoor-outdoor rug so should be ok.
The highlight of the day today was getting more propane delivered. A lot. And since I’m apparently the family propane waster I’m now paying for it. Ka-ching. I’ll try to ration my fire pit use. But not the spa. I love it.
We are sort of battened down for a winter storm right now. Well, most of us are. Lee and the resident nephew went somewhere in east Texas to pick up a beautiful second-hand horse trailer and some mysterious “other stuff” that I can’t wait to see. I hope the weather is kind to them!
If you ever doubted this old adage, you need to own chickens. Just looking at egg yolks makes it clear how their diet affects them. Check this out.
Look at that yolk.
I was enjoying my breakfast of hard-boiled eggs yesterday, I thought the yolk looked funny. There was a lovely orange border around the yellow center.
After briefly worrying about poison, I thought back on what the chickens had been eating a couple of weeks ago.
Shrimp. Kathleen said chickens love the shells, so I gave them a big pile, which did quickly disappear. I guess after they went in, they dyed the yolk, just like how flamingos turn pink!
Chickens love them. Chickens love everything. Photo by @Xana via Twenty20
How about that? I do notice that yolks are more pale when I have no fancy chicken feed available. And they are very golden when they get lots of veggies or can free range.
The Hermits' Rest 