Shenanigans volunteers to be the getaway vehicle if he can have some CANNOT BE MENTIONED IN THE PRESENCE OF MINORS cake... with a bubbly malt beverage chaser... I told him it was no go... not safe to drink and drive, donchaknow. He is sulking now... donkeys can sulk a powerful sulk...
Did you see the recipe for Chocolate Espresso Pecan Pie I posted over on the P&L sulk thread? MMMmmmm! Made that a couple of weeks ago.
It's getting a bit breezy out there now. No outside work today. =0( Bummer, guess I'll have to stay inside, read and eat cake.
First Snow!
The cake is a very, very good cake. Too bad you don't live any closer... I don't think this will ship well.
But I've been thinking of making fermented sugar cane liquid Balls...
3 pm and the flurries are getting the car all wet... little snow dust piles in the corners. That's about it so far.
Ever had 'em in chocolate?
Back to the snow . . .
(Partial cross post) Just went outside. Everthing in the big GH looked okay except for the fig, which froze a few nights ago. We only got about 1/2 inch of snow last night but it't still on the ground and icy.
The door to the little GH is frozen shut. That's where my most tender plants are, the 3 citrus trees and the tomato seedlings (counted 38 yesterday) and the 3 older tomato plants that actually have tomatoes on them. Guess I'll have to wait until the sun hits that side and melts the icy door before I can check on them..
The door to the barn is also frozen shut. I knew it would be because it was so drippy wet yesterday. I have water pipes in there that can feeze -- I put electric tapes on the ones that go to the water tank from the well (I do have 110 AC current in the barn) but am depending on a 100-watt bulb to keep the temps above freezing above the pipes that got o the house. Having trouble figuring out the timer -- it is one of those new-fangled ones where everything seems to be backwards. The barn is also where the meters etc for the solar system are so I need access. I bought a small aluminum canopy to serve as a roof over the door about 2 years ago but it is still in the box.
We supposedly had 70 mph winds during the night, which I believe from the noise made by the deck furniture blowing back & forth all night. Just read on the internet news that the Phoenix area had a bad dose of winter winds last night, too.
How did you all do last night?
Jay after i typed my response i did a "duh" LOL just to tired to go back and correct myself. Then feel asleep on couch oh my back
well a good storm is on the way to the midwest . but more Chicago then Ohio . but we may get some 50 mph winds ! yikes.
hmmmm better battan down the GH last time we had an issue of it blowing away !
Put some alcohol in a spray bottle and spray those doors where they're stuck, AZ.
It's just downright wicked out side. We got a foot of snow last night, and now the wind has kicked up something fierce, gusts up to 55 mph and it's driving the snow into drifts and scouring the ground bare in other places. So the walk to the barn is bare earth and thigh-high drifts. Bah. And then the wind swirls the snow so I can't see diddley. Hauling water to the donks is just no blamed fun today... and Trombone didn't take any, so now I worry about him.
My SO is stuck in town and I'm solo out here... don't that just beat all? At least she's safe... roads are closed, so only the most stupid or the most desperate are on them.
Fjord horses! They'd be so happy right now...
http://www.nfhr.com/catalog/index.php?draftg=1
I'd love to have a working team of these guys... small enough to tack up, cheaper to feed, and great personalities! A lot like a donkey (only I would miss getting hit in the face with the long ears)
Okay, I'll try alcohol on the doors, maybe the cheap kind not the Jack Daniels, right? Supposed to be 8 degrees here tonight. Brrrrr. Hooked up a NEW 12-volt deep draft battery directly to the bank of 12Vdc light bulbs in the Big GH, will go out and turn them on about 8 pm to see if they'll stay on all night without zapping the battery.
The kids came out today and lined the ceiling of the Big GH with 1" bubblewrap and it looks great, I am hoping it will help lots. Was supposed to have been 12 degrees last night and the temp in the Big GH was just above freezing when I went out there at 7 am.
Snow here is mostly melted. When I went into town today I was surprised to see lots of snow. And ice. Pretty but I didn't have to shovel it. My son did, though, the snow plow left 3 or 4 feet of snow in front of his driveway.
Re fjord horses, the Type B minis I used to have were of Icelandic stock. They were about the size of a Shetland pony and were chubby -- in Iceland, they retain all they can of whatever they can find to eat, to keep them going in the cold weather. They did'nt mind the cold weather at all. I miss the little guys, they had such sweet personalities, but they needed to be trained and played with. Sold them to an Apache family with 5 children.
I didn't know Fjords came that small... the ones I've seen were around 14 HH, a nice size, small enough to harness easily, powerful enough to get some serious work done.
Or are you actually talking Icelandics, which are different? Which I also didn't know came that small. =0)
I've harnessed a Belgian (once) and it was a chore to reach that high... it was leather harness, which weighs a ton, but even nylon harness would be a trial. The collar alone was a 'umphf' hoist.
It's been a heck of a week here... after the snow got nice and drifted, and around 4 in the afternoon on Tuesday, my jack got cast in his run-in shed. As I was going to get the ropes to roll him over, he wiggled himself around and stood up... but unfortunately he'd gotten a hind hoof under the wall and when he stood he sliced open the heel very badly. Fortunately my SO had just come home from town, so I had help, but it was a rough night. The old truck was parked in front of the horse trailer and was dead beyond reviving even with a jump, so we had to roll it out of the way with all the snow piled around. Finally managed to find my tow chain, and use the good truck to pull it out of the way. By that time it was getting pretty dark, and I'm trying to find the chains for the trailer (I've never had to use them, so they're just stuck... somewhere) while SO is calling vet to tell him we're still coming, and unloading all the junk stored in the horse trailer. Found the chains, unfortunately they don't fit the new truck, but at least the trailer won't fishtail... provided we can get out the drive! Get the trailer hitched... the dang running lights are only working intermittently... get the chains on by lantern light (wind's still howling)... and pray the jack will load... can walk (I slapped a bandage on him immediately and he's just been standing tied for an hour and a half). Oh hosanna, he not only walks, he trots and drags me up to the trailer... slight pause near the jenny... through thigh-high drifts... and jumps right in. Bless you, Levi! We begin our 15 mph drive 15 miles into town in the pitch dark on icey roads with snow drifting over them. How Fun! This is certainly MY idea of a good time (how does one make this drip with sarcasm?).
We made it to the vet's by quarter to 7, the vet took the bandage off and it turns out Levi has nearly completely cut off his heel... I'm thinking that's it for the big white guy while the vet just takes a scapel and slices off the flap, rinses the foot, and re-bandages it, saying I've seen worse grow back just fine. What?! You're joking? No huge surgery, no extended hospitalization, no huge bill that spell doom? Nope... just find a box stall and keep his foot bandaged. It'll probably take a year to completely grow back out, but the prognosis is good, very good.
We even got home by 8:30 that evening. The vet bill was only $418, $150 of which was emergency and exam charges.
Finding a box stall around here is a pain, took me a day to locate one, but Levi's now ensconced in a riding school that works with at-risk and handicapped kids and he's becoming a star! He loves it, by all accounts. I'm not surprised, he's quite the ham. And I changed the bandage Sat. expecting to be majorly grossed out but it is just the one outside heel and there's a nice healthy granulation bed already down, no seepage and Levi is walking fine.
I've already got new chains for the truck. But I'm glad that that's done... it's just changing bandages every 3 days for probably 3 months... not any soaking or anything. I've got the farrier coming out to take a look at the foot Friday... he's seen more of these partial amputations than anyone and can give me the best idea of what to expect and look for, as well as whether we need to put a special shoe on the foot to prevent contraction or protect the newly healing area.
Anyhew, that's where I've been this last week... =0)
So glad Levi is doing well. Can't they scare the crap outta ya sometimes?!!!
What an ordeal! Thank goodness it turned out okay.
My ponies were of "icelandic stock". I didn't know Fjords were a specific variety. Mine were about 10 hands high, I think, if I remember right. Ingemarr's mother was about 6 inches taller, I don't think I saw Kollbein's mother. The breeder was "breeding down" to try to get the smallest ponies he could. Saw a TV show on Icelandic horses and before the owners turned them loose for the winter, they would blow into the horses' nostrils, then in spring when they came back the ponies could identify their owners. Funny, I used to blow into my ponies' nostrils because they liked it! Wonder if they would remember me. I used to sing to them, I'll bet they'd remember my voice (unforgettable, haha.)
I always breathe into my horses' nostrils to calm them. I always felt like it made us "one" somehow.
Ah, Icelandics are indeed a very different breed from Fjord horses... different country of origin and more a riding animal than a draft animal. I went to an Icelandic demo a few years back that was held at the Albq. skating rink, on the ice. They showed the Icelandic's tolt, a smooth gait, rather like the slow gait of a Saddlebred. And like the slow gait, it can be taken up to some speed... they really got those ponies to flying around the rink. Smooth as ice! LOL
Thanks everyone on Levi's behalf. He's really enjoying the attention, though the folks at the stable says he's banging at the door to get out into the run, and when he's being ignored. Little attention glutton. I changed the bandage today and it still looks good.
It sure is quiet around here in the mornings now... none of the other donkeys are anywhere near as loud as Levi.
AND I managed to get all my Xmas packages mailed BEFORE Xmas... I think that may be a new first for me. LOL
Jay congrats on getting holiday packages mailed . ! a great accomplishments LOL i m one who waits until the last minute. yikes.
but this year i m donating in names of family members.
i m doing the Heifer fund. i like that site and its goals. They do a lot of good in this world.
so i m donating ducks and chickens to needy familys .
Oh my a donkey that demands attention . what next ? LOL poor thing. :)
ok blowing in noses of horses ??? i don't know on that one . LOL
we have a half dead raccoon on the base of my mail box ? yep he is slowly dying. I don't have a shot gun or i would have shot him and put him out of his misery . poor thing.
so i hope our mail carrier is careful. i may call and give a heads up on it. i m sure he may be dead by afternoon ? i hope.
Oh, sorry to hear about the raccoon... some yahoo around here gut shot a porcupine and left it wounded and I went over and crushed its head with a big rock. Ugh, but I couldn't let it suffer.
I like Heifer, too. But my family has an 'attitude' and get quite sniffy about donations made in their name. Living in McMansions and they still want more...
{rolling my eyes}
Jay I had an event horse that severed her heel like Levi. She recovered in about two months and went right back to her former activities with just an asymmetrical foot to show for her experience. The scar was a little fragile so she wore bell boots most of the time to protect it. Hers was a front heel.
I had forgotten about the extra gait Icelandics are supposed to have. Mine may or may not have demonstrated it, but I knew so little about "regular" gaits I wouldn't have known -- they were too small for me to ride.
I have 4 grown kids, their spouses, and 12 grandchildren so I just gave up this year and got gift cards for them. I just got them stuffed into envelopes and ditto all the Christmas letters, and will mail them Friday when next I go to town. And I actually went out to my storage unit and fished out some Christmas decorations to cheer this place up a little. Over the past year a great deal of other stuff got moved in there so it takes quite a bit of digging to find anything.
But I am ready to bake, make soup, read books, pay hospital bills, putter in the GH, work on the fence to keep the neighbor rancher's cows out, and so forth.
Still working on heating the GH but finally figured out how many lightbulbs I can put out there with just the one 12V deep draw battery and a set of ancient quad panels. Gave up on the 8 old 6V T105s, they are just too tired. So the answer is three each 12V 25W bulbs for 13+ hours, or 3 each 100W ac bulbs and an inverter and timer for 3+ hours. Last night I did the 25W bulbs and they were still burning this morning at 7:30, and I am sure it helped a little. It was 24 outside and 40 inside. Not bad!
Wow, that's great in the GH, AZ!
I always read your solar posts with interest; that's something I've yet to take on. I get so confused so quickly when I start reading articles and looking at diagrams, but little by little it's starting to soak in. I think I know the difference now between an inverter and a charge controller... LOL
Thanks for the 'insider' info, PorkPal... but if he heals that quickly, Levi will have to leave his new fan club much sooner than he'd like. I'll try to break it to him gently...
It's 60º and mostly sunny here today... finished my online shopping and now I've got to start getting this place put together for the next storm... clean up the dogs yard, fix up a better shelter for their doghouses, straighten the house up for possible visitors.
Read, eat, sleep... this is my Xmas wish! LOL
FIL is coming tomorrow to shoot the coon. I think its sick . It just lifts its head and is curled up in a ball. poor thing.
go figure i couldn't get any animal control or game warden out here to get it ?
wow Jay 60 !
My parents are true tree huggers so they love when i donate LOL
AZ i have no idea what you just said ? but sounds great with it being 40 in the GH.
got more cookies to make tomorrow and a fruit cake !
Yeah, I've got some cookies to make, too. =0) Now that I'm getting my life back on track.
Nobody responding to your 'coon call is probably another result of all the local budget slashing that's been going on... our road only got the plow run over it once, in one direction, after a foot of snow. Usually they go up and down and clear the whole road, but this time they only cleared one lane and never came back.
Yeah, it was 60º this afternoon, but 14º this morning... quite a range.
I'm trying to figure out what kind of 'sunroom' to build for the dogs... we're both going away over the holidays, and the woman who will be housesitting will be working, so leaving early in the morning. Right now I'm thinking a plastic lean-to against the board fence where it will get sun ASAP in the morning... but may go with quickie plastic GH and put the dog houses in it.
Jay, where you going for Christmas? When we leave, which is not often, we take our 2 dogs with us. We take Galloway, the BC, because he is a Sr citizen and I want to keep life on an even keel for him. We take Cowboy, the mastiff cross, because he is mean and I don't trust him to not bite the hand that would be feeding him. Also, if he got tangled up with his chain nobody could safely get close enough to him to help him. He is mean but he is a great guard dog and as submisive as can be with me and DH. He also submits to Galloway like a pup. My only fault with him is that he is a chicken killer.
I am going into another retreat, and so is my SO in another direction... no dogs or children permitted.
I'll try and post pics of the construction process, with my usual ample notage, because this lean-to would also work for an small attached coldframe if you made it a bit bigger.
It could be a sort of build along with me... Thinking about that first bed of spring greens...
I thought you and your instructor had parted ways. Is this a different one?
Well, the plans of mice and men... and women oft go astray. I didn't document the building of the doggie sunroom, but we did manage to get it done over the weekend and now the dogs are ensconced inside by the fire while snow piles up (miniscully) outside on the roof of their new sunroom... ???
But here's a pic of the test run. The SO has crawled in to spread the straw and the dogs are helping... first by knocking her over, then by sitting on her while they wrestle with each other...
Thie big dog likes to sit on us while the smaller dog tries to get her off. It's a strange version of king of the hill... queen of the human lump. LOL
More fluffing...
LOL! I love it :) I need me some snazzy cammos like those; already got the muck boots. Man, my feet FREEZE in those things. I think I need to wear two pairs of socks with them or something. For goodness sakes don't let MY dogs get wind of the fact folks build them sunrooms. I'm still trying to convince them that feeding is optional if they don't behave :D
Cabela's microtek for the pants, in several fashionable camo patterns. =0) We love 'em... synthetic so they're warm if they get wet, rugged as all get out (I've had one pair 3 years and the knees aren't going out yet), breathe and yet block the wind, lots of big pockets, and they come in lined or unlined. Oh, and they're soft and flannely, rather than stiff and unbendable like Carharts. I don't hardly wear jeans anymore.
If they came in a denim look, I'd never be out of them.
Hi, I just got Jackie Clay's book "Starting Over"... she writes for Backwoods Home mag, and a year after they got their homestead, her husband passed away. It's her story of carrying on regardless. I got all the back issues of BHM, and there are a number of stories of women who continued on sans partner... you're in strong company!
Backwoods is running a special right now on their anthologies and other books, including Jackie's. I'm learning tons more about self-sufficiency... like a way of keeping things cool without a spring house here in the high dry...
Hmm, didn't have the lined ones and the other ones not in my size. Nice bibs though. Might be out of my budget range this year and a 'wish list' item for next year!
I love that website, it is dangerous for me to go there...haha!