The mornings are beautiful, the evenings fantastic, and the rest of the day sucks. It’s summer, and the monsoons won’t come till July. The days are hot, and oppressive leaving one drained, wanting to do little other than lay down, sleeping away the worst of the day. Here in the mountains one has little need for air conditioning of any kind as the expense is exorbitant, and the need is for a few weeks only. So one suffers through the short time between springs gentle warmth, and the cool refreshing days of monsoon summer. Have I gotten spoiled or what? There was a time (many moons ago) when 100-degree weather was nothing until it got into the teens, and a time before that when the heat didn’t matter at all. We haven’t broken 90 degrees yet, and I can barely make it through the afternoon. The ash gives me an excuse to stay indoors as it is unhealthy for horse, and human alike. Well I can’t spend the rest of the summer on the couch, so I have come up with a new regime. I’m going to try to get up early, feed early, maybe get in a ride or work the kids, then spend the afternoons in the house. If I feed early in the morning, then I can feed earlier in the afternoon, and return outside to do something once it has cooled down. Sounds like a plan to me.
I didn’t get my early start this morning as the acrid smell of smoke greeted me as soon as I went to let the little ones outside. The smoke was thick in the air. I had plans to do something this morning, but that changed as soon as I smelled the ash. A ride was out for sure as I wouldn’t want the horses to be working in the stuff. They take in a lot more air than I do. If it’s not good for me, as my sinuses were attesting to, then it couldn’t be good for them. I did get something done this evening though. After I fed I went back outside to fill the tank for the pasture horses. The air was clear, and clean once again with a cool gentle breeze for good measure. While the tank filled, I tackled the water pipe yet again. After being dug up a few times this year, it was actually easy digging. It had dried out just enough so that the ground was soft, but not sticky. As I suspected I didn’t get a good seal, and Lightning actually just pulled the pipe apart. I dug as far as the pipe, and hopefully tomorrow I will be able to finish.
In between filling the tank, I took time out to tease Lizzie. I have come to the conclusion that she simply doesn’t like Ibn. I took her around to the front of the stallion’s stalls, and she sniffed at the colts, struck out at Ibn, and touched noses with Jeri. Not once has she struck out at Jeri. When we tried breeding her the first year we had her, she tried kicking Ibn, and I know she was in. We never did get her bred, and of course last year we didn’t breed at all. I don’t have a problem breeding her to Jeri, in fact I think they would have a lovely foal together, I’m just not sure Jeri can reach her. He stands on his tippey toes to breed to Sadie who is 14.3 hands. Lizzie is at least 15.2 hands. I am willing to try, but I don’t think he can do it. Rudy says where there is a will there is a way, and Jeri has lots of will, lots, and lots of will. It would also mean that Ibn wouldn’t get any nookie at all this year. That’s downright mean if you ask me, and I’m sure that he’d have other words for it. At any rate she wasn’t in, and after nuzzling with Jeri for a bit, she went looking for grass to nibble on. There isn’t any of course, and since she was obviously not interested in anything else I put her away.
After finishing in the pasture I went to tackle the cattle wire panel between Lizzie, and Sierra’s waterier. Lizzie has kicked the you know what out of it, and poor Sierra cut himself again. It’s not bad this time, but right on the bone where the brass is on his halter. I have an idea how to sort of fix it. I can’t cut the panel; I tried, so I’m covering it with small mesh bird wire. Of course wouldn’t you know where I need it the most that’s the only part of the mesh that has come apart. I thought I saw a roll of wire to attach the panel back to the rails, but didn’t find any so I just put it up temporarily. What I really need is more of the “V” wire we have in-between the stalls. Rudy told me where he thought there was some left in a roll. Tomorrow I will try to hunt it down.
It took me forever to do that little bit of repair. It seems Sierra is just like all our kids in spite of the fact that his sire isn’t an Arabian. I spent most of my time pushing him away, keeping him from trying to eat the wire mesh, and wire cutters, and protecting my hair from little teeth. He was so on top of me getting into everything, wanting to see everything I was doing. Basically he was doing everything he could to be a pest. Sweet as he is, he can be a real pill at times, especially when I want to get something done. They’re just about all like that. Cleaning stalls is a real challenge sometimes. I know it’s a good sign in a little one, but when you are trying to get something done, it can be very aggravating. At least I came out with no more bruises on my arms than when I went in there.
By the time I finished that little chore, the sun had set, and it was getting dark. I had wanted to work at least one of the kids, but ran out of sunlight. It was so nice out, that’s what gave me the idea to work mornings, and evenings outside. In CA on Lewis Rd, Rudy put up floodlights so I could ride at night. I’d love to do that in our arena, only we’d have to have new electrical lines put in, and for some reason that costs money we simply don’t have. A line could easily be brought in from the main road. A few years ago Rudy looked into it, and it would be an easy thing, just a little expensive. Another great idea down the tubes because of money. Oh well maybe we’ll win the lottery or better yet start selling some horses. Everyone who looks at our horses says the same thing, we have wonderful stock, only we can’t convince anyone to buy them. We haven’t given up hope yet, we really believe in these bloodlines. If only the halter people who seem to have scads of money to spend on “pretty” horses would have an Aha Moment, and realize that pretty a good horse does not make, we would be fine. I’ll keep waiting for that moment, and pray that our someday will come. If you listen to all the people in the know, they say do what you love. Unfortunately what we love isn’t lucrative, and we don’t seem to have the knack that some people have to actually make money doing what we love. Instead we struggle along doing without so we can do what we love, raise horses. It’s an old, and noble profession, and we will continue to try for as long as we can.
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