All I have to say is they don’t leak! I got up bright, and early today (same as usual), let the dogs out, made me a cup of coffee, ate my breakfast, took a shower, and started my daily routine. First I have to feed, then Rudy calls, and we talk a while. It’s a beautiful day, and the hummingbirds are feasting on their breakfast. They have to eat a lot to make up for the cool night. Did you know that hummingbirds slow down their heart rate during the night so they can last until morning without eating? I didn’t until I saw a piece on them on TV. They are truly amazing creatures, and I love watching them.
Back to my day. April comes over, and we chit chat before she starts working. The stalls are first. Needless to say I haven’t had much time for stall cleaning, I don’t know why, after all I haven’t had much to do lately. I just run around like a chicken with its head cut off most of the time. Anyway, I show her where I am currently dumping the manure. It works great for landfill, and I have a drop off between the road by the arena, and the flat area below. It is full of large boulders, and medium sized rocks. Eventually I will be able to use my mower on the hill all the way down. Getting grasses to grow is the hard part. It may take a while as some parts are all major rocks, but I will get it filled eventually.
I take off for town, get gas, go to the bank, and then proceed to the Mercantile where yet again I am exchanging pipefittings. By the time I get home April is ready to quit for the day. She got the inside stalls, and half of Marina’s paddock area. Marina had a wonderful time in the arena running her little (ok so not so little) butt off. April is quite done in (after four hours of stall cleaning who wouldn’t be), so I told her to quit for the day. Like the manure is going somewhere, it will be there tomorrow, and the next day, etc. We talk a little, and she tells me that her mother decided that she didn’t want Lizzie after all because she is so old. I tell her my idea about Jeri. She’s always wanted a boy, and he can’t do anything with the girls, but still will make a great riding horse. If well taken care of he has at least another seven years or more ahead of him. I also ask her if she knows what Becky charges for teeth floating, she doesn’t but it’s a lot less than Warren. I have to get the boys teeth done. Warren will cost me about $350 - $400, which will take me a while to get since he won’t let us charge anymore. I have to call Becky to see what she will charge, then save up my money. I also have to put away more for feed since winter prices are coming, and the striped hay I am buying isn’t as nutritious as it has been in the past. I need to feed half, and half, and of course the other half is much more expensive. I eat tortillas, and cheese, and they get premium feed. It’s ok because I need to loose some more weight so I don’t need to eat as much.
April likes the idea of taking Jeri, but I can tell she is thinking about it, and what she will have to do to be able to keep him. She’s on disability, and gets very little from the government. I don’t know how she lives on what she gets. I need to start on the floats, and she takes the truck back home so she can fill the water tank. I told her she can do whatever, and when it’s full bring the truck back, and take her jeep home. That way I won’t have to waste 2 ½ hours waiting for the tank to fill. She takes off, and I start putting parts together. I’m right it doesn’t take long for the first tank though the float is lower than I expected it to be. I go to the next tank, put it together, and wait a while for the glue to dry. Now comes the moment of truth, I turn on the water. The one tank was full so I couldn’t see it fill (it was the one with a drip). The second tank was down a lot, and it filled just fine. It finally stops, and there are no leaks. Problem is it stops too soon. The water level is about four inches below where it should be. I go back to look at the first tank, and it’s leaking like a sieve, great. There is no way to take the float out without breaking the seal on the pipes I have glued together. I go back to the house to get some more tools, and my camera. I’m bound, and determined to get this fixed today. I put the vice grips on, and the glue hasn’t quite hardened completely, good. I pull it apart, and tighten the first coupling (or whatever it’s called), with the vice grips. I sand the pvc, apply the glue again, and wait. It is excruciating, but still I wait. Finally I go up to the water main, and turn the water back on. Yes, no leaks! It only took me three weeks to do it, but it’s done, sort of. I put in new rubber sealing (ok it’s for doors, but it’s close to what is supposed to be there), and then put on the lid. The ball doesn’t even come up to half of where it’s supposed to be. I put the other lid on, and to me it looks like it is even worse. I think they will still be able to get some water, but I won’t know until tomorrow whether it will fill enough so they can reach it with their noses.
Back to the drawing board again. I tell Rudy I’m going to have to be creative. My float works, but it is too low. If they had done it right in the first place I wouldn’t have to try to come up with a new, and unique design for a float system. I’m quite tired, and disgusted at this point so I go up to the house to get something to eat, take my pill, and lay down for a nap. Things are always better after a nap doncha know. I fall half asleep, and dream that it’s raining. Gee I wonder why I do that, wishful thinking of course. Ok I go back down to the barn, and feed checking the wateriers which are way too low, but it will just have to do for now. By the time I get back April is coming back with the truck. She loves my (Rudy’s) truck. I told her Rudy hates it (it’s not a GMC), but I just love it. It’s an old ’89 Ford 1 ton 4x4. It’s not fancy (understatement of the year), but it’s cool. We chitchat a little, and she tells me if she can ride Jeri she’s going to take him. She has to do some fencing, but she doesn’t care. I told her to work with him first in the round pen with just tack, and then later get on his back. I rode him once in five years, and he hadn’t been ridden since his owner gave him up at the ripe age of 15, now he’s 23. His owner had diabetes, and could no longer ride so she gave him back to his breeder, Sandy, and from Sandy he came to me. He had fits when Rudy rode him because Rudy is a man, and he’s a woman’s horse. Horses are funny sometimes, but only one woman ever rode Jeri, and that’s all he knows. He will be randy since it has been so long, but I don’t think it will take much to get him back to behaving under saddle. He’s a very sweet boy.
Such a beautiful profile on your horse!
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the horse feed. I seem to always be buying beet pulp and grain stuffs for them while I am scrimping on my groceries.
LOL- WOTD= Moneyn