AWD

Juanita and I have been driving Chrysler product mini-vans for better than 20 years.  I am secure enough in my masculinity to not think anyone will mistake me for a soccer mom, and I like to be able to carry sheets of drywall/plywood/insulation/etc out of the weather without tarping.

Problem was, someone at Chrysler decided it was more important to have hiding seats than room for an axle underneath.  No more all wheel drive.

We live at 8500 feet, and we get snow up here.  It often falls on the roads.  The road crews are GREAT at clearing the highways, but sometimes we can't wait.  We NEED all wheel drive.

We tried waiting the folks out at Chrysler, hoping they would come to their senses, but no such luck so far.  Our '97 mini-van had 272,000 miles on it and I was getting worried.  That's over a quarter million miles.  The moon is less than 240,000 miles, and even NASA junked the rovers at that point.

So, earlier this week, we traded in or '97 for a '03 with 170,000 miles on it, to buy us some time.

And now, we wait again.

Bill

(When we pulled in with the replacement van, the horses were stone quiet even though it was well past dinner time.  They will recognize it soon enough, I'll betcha.)

Road Rage

 Heading down the highway yesterday we hit a traffic jam.

Gridlock, Colorado style.

We don't hear the horns here so much as dodge them.

Bill

February Routine

Our February routine is a fairly predictable one.

Get up, let the dog out, stoke the wood burning stoves, do office chores, if we have guests- make breakfast and feed the guests, feed the horses and haul a 6 gallon water can of hot water to their water tank. Back to the inside and work on chores around the place, until it gets dark and we feed the horses again.  Watch a movie while eating dinner.  Read, stoke the fires, go to bed.

No horseback riding in that list.  Limited outdoor activity, period.  With the temperatures running from 0 to the low 30's, and the wind blowing a lot of the time, neither us nor the horses are too thrilled with the prospect of saddling up and going for a trudge.

Get up, let the dog out, stoke the wood burning stoves...

Who was the genius that decided we should add the extra day in leap year to FEBRUARY?

Bill

How to Build a Snow Mountain

Let's just say that you will need ample snow... and a sufficiently ample tool.

Get ready ...

Get set ...

Go!!!

And LIFT .....

Again ...

Another pass .... you get the idea.

Finished product:  Mt. Park Inglot

Snow Day Play?

Usually when I enter the hay shed, I have to step UP a foot to get on the platform; tonight I had to step down.

It's less than 24 hours since the horses were running around on dry dirt, rolling and doing horsey stuff.  We now have a boat load of snow on the ground; hip deep on me and I'm not particularly short.  Bill looked out the window today and said the grays were running around in the snow.  I guess they just weren't going to let a little snow get in their way.  Wish I could feel the same way about it, but it is a lot easier getting around inside the corral where they keep it trampled down, instead of outside, even though it is pristine and pretty.

Their new shed:  do they use it?  Heck, NO!  Those white spots are the snowflakes still coming down.

Any of you HCR people remember the front yard of the Livery across the street?

This hitch rail is probably not going to do us a lot of good right now.  Mrs. Mom, can we come ride at your house?

Compass' car before she shoveled it out - THIS MORNING!

Outside one of our room windows; it really is pretty.

Yesterday - before snow; about the only action shot we could get and I'm sure you can all identify with this!

Juanita

A Hundred Foot Difference

Today the horses were looking kind of down.  Nothing too obvious, but the energy level was tanked.  Juanita thought a little change in scenery would help them, so we moved them into the neighbors empty coral while we moved some hay from the storage barn into the feed shed.

HUGE amounts of running, bucking, passing gas and rolling ensued!  The three of them were having the TIME OF THEIR LIVES!  They were moving around like five year old children with new tennis shoes.

WHEE!  WATCH THIS!  YOU CAN"T CATCH ME!

On and on and on for a good ten minutes.  And then I ran to get the camera.  Of course, that put an end to that.  By the time I got back, they were pretty much just standing around panting and smiling like the big dogs they are.

Now the snow has set in (10-20 inches expected by morning).

I wish we could have channeled their energy into moving the darn hay.  We would be done til spring.

Bill

Just Hangin

 Juanita and I went to the Denver National Western Stock Show last night and watched the draft horse "6 up" and "8 up" hitches.  We both forgot our cameras, so you'll just have to take my word for it, but nearly 8 tons of horse flesh pulling a wagon is impressive.  It was a very pleasant evening with friends.

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The weather up here is pretty nice today.  Temperature in the mid 30's.  Wind in the lower 20's.  Sun shining full on.  Time to do a little outside work.

Recyclables to the transfer-station.

Trash out to the dumpster.

Dog messes in back yard.

Move hay from the big barn to the feeding shed.
(If you REALLY want to get your horse's undivided attention, unload a ton of hay just out of their reach)

Now, time for lunch and a soak in the hot-tub, then maybe an old James Bond movie.

I'm okay with that.

Bill

Maybe the Bahamas...

It's snowing again today.

Wind is in the 20's

Temperature is in the 20's

I'm no longer in my 20's.

I KNOW why old people move to Florida and Arizona for the winter, 'cause I are one.

Bill 

My Turn

Beel keeps hinting it's my turn to blog.  Don't know why I have been absent so much from the blog world.  It's been busy, but not so busy as the summer gets.  I think it's just a different kind of busy.  My mom has had a couple health issues lately; not the complicated and tragic kind some of you have been dealing with, but time consuming for us, as it's a three hour round trip to check on her.  She wouldn't even let me know she had doctor's appointments until a couple days after the fact. (See where I get my martyrdom attitude?)  Now I insist on going to her appointments with her, so I can get the whole story, not just her 'maybe' version.  That was a trick in itself, finding out and getting her to let me go.  It's always difficult to accept the time when you become the support system for a parent, instead of the other way around; something I need to learn to deal with emotionally.  I've been lucky; a lot of you have already had to go through this, so some of you might have to prod me in the right direction now and then (no cattle prods, please - my titanium would not be pleased!)

We had a group of croppers in this weekend, which brought us back to reality.  You know, real work.  As I was stripping rooms after they left today, I looked out an upper story window and noticed Jesse just standing off by herself and ignoring "the boys" at the feeder.  Huh?  Jesse never, ever ignores food - and she is NOT a loner.  You just don't see her like that.  I watched for a while, thinking she could be in the beginning stages of colic, but didn't notice any real signs.  She was just hanging out, ears up and alert, squared up like some stallion standing guard, but NO motion.  I checked on her every couple hours and she just stayed there. 

Finally, I decided she was melancholy; no going out, no person to play with as we've been on the road so much; and the boys were boring.  I grabbed her halter, her frisbee and a pocketful of treats, and headed for the corral.  She couldn't get her head into that halter fast enough; she didn't care where we were going, but we were going!  Beel tried to get me to take the Flip, but I figured I would have my hands full as is - and boy, was I right.  I took her to the neighbor's big corral, turned her loose, brushed her and saw a spark in her eye.  We started playing frisbee and by the time the neighbor came home a few minutes later and let her two dogs loose, we had pandemonium.  Jesse doesn't usually chase dogs, but she had a ball today keeping her frisbee away from the dogs.  She raced up and down the hill, kicked up her heels, let loose good ole horsie farts and threw in some bucks for good measure, while I talked with the neighbor.  When she decided I had talked enough, she went to the gate and stared over at the boys in our pen, like she was saying, "OK, we can go home now."

I think I needed that time out in the fresh air as much (maybe more) than she did.  Of course, when I got back to our pen, it was very obvious both boys felt extremely slighted.  Guess I'd better make time for them tomorrow.  Oops, we're supposed to get another six inches of snow tonight.  Oh well, what's a little snow among friends!

Bionic Cowgirl

PS - I forgot to tell you all MY New Year's Resolution.  NO MORE BIONICS!!!

A Couple Monsters

 
 This morning Juanita and I went out to feed the horses, and as we walked up I realized something was wrong.  The two geldings, Ranger and Washoe were running around in a panic, and even Jesse was a little concerned.

"HALP! HALP! HALP!"

As I walked into the corral, hoping to find the problem, Ranger was very worried, stomping, snorting and staring off at the highway.  (Jesse and Washoe saw Juanita with BOWL FOOD and lost interest in the mysterious problem that still had Ranger worried.

"BEEL!  THERE ARE MONSTERS IN THE TREES!"



 Ranger, staring high into the trees  by the road, was on FULL ALERT.   Upon closer inspection, I saw a white hard hat near the top of a 50' ponderosa pine tree.

"Howdy!"

"Hi there!  I'm from the power company in Estes Park.  We're trimming trees near the power lines."

"No problem." I say.  "But I don't think I'm going to convince these horses it's not a problem..."

"Yeah," he says "they have been running and snorting pretty good."



We wandered back to the lodge, Jesse eating and Washoe and Ranger keeping watch.

"That's not the usual, Beel.  Peoples just don't climb up trees."

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A couple days ago we hit an after Christmas sale.

Someone got paid to build a moose, wearing a Santa outfit, sitting in a rocking chair singing "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer".

Sad.

Sadder still, I bought it.

I can't WAIT till next Christmas!

(I hope I haven't run the batteries down by then...)

Bill