planted the four yearling eastern gammagrass that I dug up from root shoots back in the spring….they were in five gallon buckets and I had to dig holes big enough to put the five gallon plants in….then watered and mulched…..the roots were in the bottom of the buckets….amazing root growth…..then made a run to ashland cvs,,,the feed store and walmart and dollar tree
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
mow paddock big bull 4b….open big bull 5a…..planted 10 plants of eaStern gammagrass seedlings …..waiting for the battery for the drill to recharge….posted photos somewhere on facebook….facebook is acting all weird lately and not working the way it did a few weeks ago……the afternoon was pretty warm until abput four oclock….then we had a pretty good blow and some thunder in the distance…about 4:44 it started raining and rained for about 25 minutes…..after it stopped I poured out abOut a tenth of an inch from both gauges
Wednesday, August 31, 2022
had entered days events but excel deleted them
Thursday, September 1, 2022
had entered days events but excel deleted them
Friday, September 2, 2022
the horses and donkeys and the mule were in big bull 5a this moRning and had pretty well munched it down…..they will get another 24 hours and then we will open the four corner lots for 2 or 3 days each…..those lots are a little bigger than the ten divisions of big bull field…..once i called them up and gave them their morning handout i began to get things in order to plant the last 10 eastern gammagrass seedlings….they all went into the grouNd okay but the ground is pretty dry…… but now I have four rows of eleven each…..i took a photo and if it looks good I will post it to facebook…….having done that I took the 3910 and drove next door to see where they were harvesting timber….. pretty big operation….they were not all running but there were three fellers at least two timber jacks and one of those semi mounted limbers….I have been hearing them all week but could not see them from here….while I was over there I mowed the back side of the boundary fence….then I came in for lunch and then started the mowing again….mowed the front and along the drive….then decided the rest of the yard did not need mowing yet
WOKE UP A LITTLE BEFORE 6:00 AM AND THE DAY WAS OVERCAST AND GLOOMY …..WATCHED THE NEW WEATHER GIRL ON CHANNEL 12 TELL THE WORLD THAT FROM RICHMOND AND SOUTHEAST IT WOULD BE A RAINY DAY…..i AM 25 OR 30 MILES NORTHWEST OF THAT AREA AS SOON AS I STUCK MY NOSE OUTSIDE IT STARTED RAINING IN BEAVERDAM….HAVE NOT YET CHECKED THE RADAR ON WEATHERBUG……rained most of the day….
Tuesday, August 16, 2022
bush hog paddock big bull 1…..open paddock big bull 2a…start mowing grass again….did the front and along the drive and the trailer lot….had dominoes pizza for supper….day turned pretty as the afternon progressed….temps were moderate…mostly sunny and no rain
Wednesday, August 17, 2022
another pretty day….supposed to be hotter today…..horses were near the open big bull pasture when I went to feed them….had to call them up the cow lane to get them to the stable….my right ankle was being problematic again…..it was swollen and sore so I just laid around on the sofa and let it rest…..didn’t even put a pair of jeans on today…..wore my sweats all day long Thursday, August 18, 2022 Another pretty morning….my ankle is much improved this morning….the flerd came right up the cow lane as soon as they saw me going toward the stable…..they are eating now…going to ashland feed store in a bit to restock some feed ingredients then home to resume grass cutting…….As I finish this days report it is actually Friday morning….just came in from feeding the mule and dispensing token snacks to the horses…..I did cut grass for a couple of hours and then I got a reminder of an event Thursday afternoon so I came in and took a bath and went to the event…so more grass cutting tomorrow.
Friday, August 19, 2022
Friday morning my ankle was initally pain free but now it hurts a little….I think it is getting better though….another pretty day but it is supposed to be warmer today…. Saturday, August 20, 2022 bush hogged big bull 2a and opened big bull 2b for the flerd…..then started mowing again with the riding mower. Got the whole yard done this morning except for the trimming …..but that never ends….figured out that lace up shoes are agravatting my ankle…..by lunch time my right foot was sore again….spent the afternoon with my feet up and watching some of the old cowboy stars on the western channel. gonna go do the afternoon feeding in a little bit
Sunday, August 21, 2022
Sunday was another do little day…the equines were in big bull field so I once agaian let them thru the shortcut around the old baarn site to go to the stable for their morning handout….they only get a morning handout becase Dixie is getting to be an older unit like me….so she gets to eat morning and night….the otheers just get a taste so they won’t feel neglected….Had a facebook memory pop us over tyhe weekend….it was a ten year old photo I took of Stewart riding Dixie when we went to Delaware to look at her….does not seem that could have been ten years ago…..we also stopped briefly at Wye Plantation on that trip….ankle is still being a little problematic but much improved over last week….did mow and close big bull 2b and opened big bull 3a…..i have decided against sowing fall covers this year….save a bit of money and we have grass foujr feet tall that we are grazing now and i have alll fall for paddocks to regenerate. light rain in the afternoon…..I caught up on my randolph scott movies Monday, August 22, 2022 so far we have been a little slow this morning. The day dawned dark and gloomy but now the sun has burned thru and it is warm and sticky….poured out a little over a tenth of an inch of rain from both gauges this morning…..went to best buy and bought a new laptopp this morning….still do not have it configured as I have to get verizon to help me connect my hot spot to the new laptop…..will try to do that wednesday after the balance doctor
Tuesday, August 23, 2022
my ankle is a little better this morning…..bush hogged lot big bull 3a and opened lot big bull 3b…..the horses were waiting for me at the old barn site gate this morning waiting for their morning handout….made a run to the transfer station and got some gas and diesel fuel while out….the store in beaverdam has off road diesel and it is about 50 cent per gallon cheaper than highway diesel…toOk a couple of bags of trash from the computer room….have another bag or two that needs to go in here….took a bunch of floppy discs and other storage medium that I now have no way to access…..stuff been sitting on shelves around here for about ten years….got a lot more junk to haul…..but my leg has started to fuss at me so I will sit it out for a while….about 11:30 in the morning I went into the kitchen to get a drink of ice water from the refrigerator…..saw a movement outside the kitchen window….turned to look and had a parade of wild turkeys going thru my baack yard not more than 20 feet from the house…..there were young ones and a couple of older ones….I counted nine but I didn’t see the first ones so I have no idea how many there were…..but i sure enjoyed watching them until they disappeared in the millet
Wednesday, August 24, 2022
well today was the long awaited visit back to the ear and balance center…..they put me thru a series of tests while looking for the problem…..the good news is they discovered the problem……the balance nerve in my left ear is not working….they opined that this was not a new problem….I agreeed and told them I have had some balance issues for years but it seems to have gotten worse lateley….doctor explained that my right ear had been compensating but was just not as efficient now as it used to be…..there is an option of balance therapy but he suggested waiting a while to see what happened and the theraphy needed to be at regional memorial which is a hike from here….suggested i avoid putting myself in compromising positions…..no climbing, no ladders etc….i agreed that I had already made those changes…..so now it is about 2:45 and I am back home…..gonna try to finishe getting my new laptop set up……oh ankle has been im[proved so far today but still sore….at least it is holding me up…..may try to resume walking tomorrow…easy stuff on the big track at PFP
Thursday, August 25, 2022
these new computers…….every one is different in how they store files and how to retrieve files……just spent fifteen minutes tryi ng to find this file on the thumb drive…..hopefully sucessful….did find severall instances where the old laptop continued to jump from cell to cell makig for some illogical reading…..mowed and closed big bull 3b and opened big bull 4a…..steering was weak on tractor so put some more hydraulic fluid in and then worked on fence for a good while…..discovered that the PPRC is having a ride at trevillians Saturday….gonna try to go…..ankle was much improved today but did no try any walking other than here around the farm
Friday, August 26, 2022
TRip to ashland today…..just routine stuff….cvs for prescriptions, walmart for few staples, feed store for some low things, hardees for breakfast…..back home by 11:30 and began cutting grass….hooked the trailer for Saturday…..jess finally called….he had been in hospital for a ruptured eardrum but is out now and doing okay…..don’t know why this took up an extra line but afteer trying to fix it for fifteen minutes it still is not right…..then suddenly it fixed itself and erased my entry so for for saturday
Saturday, August 27, 2022
did not go on the pprc ride today…..woke up feeling less than stellar….then the weather guy called for a lot of heat….my foot was hurting again….i just decided not to go…got plenty to do around here ….cut grass most of the morning….got most of the riding mower stuff done….still need to do the old garden plot and the push mower trimming…..has gotten pretty warm outside.
Sunday, August 28, 2022
Sunday morning…..pete is pretty lame on left hind….have not picked it up yet to investigate…..dont have a soaker big enough to put on him…had one but lost it in the barn fire…..mowed the old garden plot while the horses were eating…then left the three big ones in the old barn field that was partI have a sore toe that my shoes hurt so I sat on the sofa with the fan blowing warm air and just watched tee vee…..did open the old garden plot and mowed it with the riding mower…..that grass grow so quickly and thick that the push mower just can’t handle it anymore…..i just mowed it a few days ago…..as soon as I get my gammagrass planted I will let the flerd have the area
the donkeys again got into the garden plot…..this time one of the little stinkers grazed some of my eastern gamma grass plants that I have started from seed….some of them even were pulled out of the cups….red solo type cups….what was amazing is the volume of the roots….the bottoms of the cups were a mass of roots and the soil for the most part was tightly bound. I put them all back and watered them well and I think they are going to be okay…..when I plant them next month I will try to remember to take some photos….only a couple of weeks away now……my ones i dug up from root shoots from my older plant and transplanted to five gallon buckets have grown like thunder and I will have to put them in the ground somewhere as well…..one of them even bloomed this summer….i have four of these in buckets and 42 in cups
Friday, August 12, 2022 .
Today I had to wait until after lunch to get any mowing done….grass was wet….so I let the flerd into the yard to work on grass…they really do help but it is not nice and even…..did a lot today but nothing major….cut back the grapes and the blackberries and mowed around them with the push mower…..the grass in the old garden patch was simply more than poor hop sing could handle….so i had to take loose a panel to gt the riding mower in there to finish mowing….gonna let the rest of the yard go til Monday…..my neice is playing in a tennis tournament in ashland sunday, so I am going to go and watch her..these are the USTA mid atlantic regionals..never seen her play and she is supposed to be pretty good…she has been to national tournaments….she and her husband have both been instructors
Saturday, August 13, 2022
made a forAy into ashland this morning…..needed some new shoes so I went to walmart to see what they had….bought some bedroom shoes and some rubber slip ons. When I got back I bush hogged the upper tank field and let the horses into the old barn area and opened big bull 1 for them….on the way back out i found where the lightening strike a couple of days ago happened…..there was a tall pine fifty or sixty feeet behind the house and on the back side it had a lightening scar from top to ground.
Sunday, August 14, 2022
got up early and went to ashland to watch Jennifer play….she is part of a team but she was playing singles and won her first match….she had about a two hour layoff and then played another match….i did not stay for the second match I came home and took a two hour nap
WELL I HAD TO GET UP AT 5:30 TO FEED THE STOCK AND GET A BATH AND DRIVE THE HOUR TO THE HOSPITAL….BUT I GOT IT DONE….THOSE MRI MACHINES ARE NOISY…AND THEY HAD ME STRAPPED DOWN LIKE HANNIBL LECHTER…BUT I AM FINISHED AND BACK HOME….THIS MORNING i POURED OUT AN INCH OF RAIN FROM YESTERDAYS RAINS…COOLER AND OVERCAST HERE AT HOME…..STOPPED AT TACO BELL TO TRY A BREAKFAST BOX AND AT TEN MINUTES TO NINE THERE WERE STILL NOT OPEN…..WHY SPEND MONEY ADVERTISING A BREAKFAST BOX IF YOU DO NOT OPEN TIL DARNED NEAR LUNCHTIME…. DONT SEE HOW THEY CAN POSSIBLY WIN THE RESTAURANT WARS…..it is now a little after 6 pm and it is storming again….Today has pretty much been a do little day…sitting on the porch enjoying the cooler weather and watchng it rain
8/7/2022
POURED OUT ONLY A TENTH OF AN INCH OF RAIN THIS MORNING FROM BOTH GAUGES…..I SWEAR I THOUGHT IT RAINED MORE THAN THAT SINCE EVERYTHING IS SOAKED SOPPING WET…BOTH ARE UNOBSTRUCTED AND BOTH.WHAT IS INTERESTING IS THE GAUGES ARE ABOUT FIFTEEN FEET APART….AND BOTH ARE ABOUT CHEST HEIGHT…ONE HAD JUST OVER A TENTH AND THE OTHER HAD UNDER A TENTH….TOO WET TO WORK ON CUTTING GRASS THIS MORNING SO I DECIDED TO TAKE A WALK…..WALKED 3.57 MILES ON THE PERIMETER LOOP AT POOR FARM PARK….THAT PUT ME OVER THE THREE BIG HILLS AT THE NW CORNER…..THEY ABOUT KICKED MY BUTT….HOME NOW AND GRASS HAS DRIED SOME, SO BACK TO MOWING……MOWED GRASS MOST OF THE AFTERNOON WITH THE RIDING MOWER….PLAN IS TO DO SOME TRIMMING WITH THE PUSH MOWER TOMOROW…ALSO HAVE A GRAZING PADDOCK TO BUSH HOG
8/8/2022
WELL IT HAS BEEN AT LEAST 24 HOURS SINCE IT RAINED….SUN IS OUT AND IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE WARM TODAY…..
SUNDAY MORNING DAWNED A BIT GRAY AND OVERCAST AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT COULD RAIN ANYTIME BUT IT HAS NOT RAINED….GOT SOME TRIMMING DONE IN INTERMITTENT LIGHT SHOWERS…..THEN ABOUT 1 PM IT STARTED TO SURE ENOUGH RAIN….I GOT PRETTY DAMP BEFORE I GOT IN THE HOUSE….LET THE HORSES GRAZE THE OLD BARN SITE….THE GOATS SAID IT WAS RAINING TOO MUCH AND THEY STAYED IN THE STABLE..THE PURPOSE IS TO GET THEM TO TRIM THE WEEDS AROUND THE JUNK THAT IS STILL SITTING THERE WHERE i CANNOT MOW…THE DONKEYS ARE WORKING ON IT NOW…I DID SPEND A FEW MINUTES IN THE TRAILER AND DID A FEW MINOR LEATHER REPAIRS…NEED TO GET ME A NEW HOLE PUNCH….ONE i HAVE BROKE IN MY HAND…..RAINED MOST OF THE AFTERNOON….THERE WAS A BREAK ABOUT 4:30 WHICH ALLOWED ME TO FEED THE STOCK AND THERE WAS ABOUT 6/10 OF AN INCH IN BOTH RAIN GAUGES…ACCORDING TO WEATHER BUG RADAR THERE IS ANOTHER BAND OF RAIN APROCACHING FROM THE WEST
8/1/2022
WELL THE SECOND BAND OF RAIN APPARENTLY MISSED US….I POURED OUT THE 6/10 OF AN INCH FROM BOTH GAUGES THIS MORNING….DAY IS GRAY AND STICKY BUT FORECAST CALLS FOR CLEARING WITH THE EVER PRESENT CHANCE OF SHOWERS….I AM GOING TO TRY TO GET A WALK IN AND THEN GOING TO THE FEED STORE……HAD A NICE WALK At PFP….3.54 MILES….THREE LOOPS AROUND THE TWO TRACKS…THEN TO WENDYS FOR LUNCH AND THE FEED STORE…HOME TO UNLOAD FEED…..GOT ME A NEW LEATHER PUNCH
8/2/2022
DAY DAWNED NICELY…BUT IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE ANOTHER HOT ONE….bush hog and broadcast front 8…..stock to front 9…trim mowing….talked wth Zack about water heater…..hot and sunny but not as bad as weather terrorist predicted….did some domestic chores…..JUST MOWED THE GARDEN PLOT A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO BUT IT NEEDED MOWING AGAIN…..CHOKED POOR HOP SING OUT THREE TIMES….RIGHT AFTER WE DID THE CHORES IN THE EVENING WE HAD ANOTHER RAIN STORM ROLL THRU….ANOTHER FOUR TENTHS OF AN INCH OF RAIN….NOW THE SUN IS BACK OUT
8/3/2022
THIS HAS BEEN A DAY….SPENT THE MORNING TRYING TO GET A WAY TO DRAIN THE HOT WATER TANK….FINALLY GOT A DRAIN RIGGED AND THEN THE TANK STILL WOULD NOT DRAIN……WHOLE HOUSE CUT THE PUMP OFF AND DRAINED THE WHEN THE PLUMBING CREW CAME THEY HORSED THE OLD TANK OUT FULL OF WATER….THEN INSTALLING THE NEW TANK WAS A PIECE OF CAKE….CAUGHT AND HALTERED ALL THE EQUINES THIS MORNING BECAUSE I THOUGHT THIS WAS FARRIER DAY…..REALIZED AT 10;30 THAT i WAS A DAY AHEAD OF MYSELF…..NOT DUE UNTIL TOMORROW…..DID CLEAN UP THE FENCES IN FRONT PADDOCK 9….THEY HAVE ONE MORE DAY IN THAT PADDOCK…..FINISHED MOWING THE GARDEN PLOT AGAIN…..WITH ALLL THIS RAIN EVERY FOUR OR FIVE DAYS……FRIDAY WILL BE THE MAIN YARD AGAIN….WARM TODAY …IN THE LOW 90S …..JUST REALIZED THAT i HAVE NOT YET BLOCKED THE DRAIN HOLE i CUT…..MUST G DO THAT TO KEEP MY LEGLESS FRIENDS OUTSIDE.
8/4/2022
AWOKE THIS MORNING WITH MY RIGHT FOOT AND ANKLE FEELING LIKE I HAD BUSTED THEM…..CANNOT RECALL ANY INJURY AT ALL….i CAN WALK BUT WITH A DECIDED LIMP…..HAVE NOT DONE MUCH….BUSH HOG AND BROADCAST FRONT FIELD 9…..SPRAYED HERBICIDE ALONG JACKS FENCE ALONG FRONT FIELD 9…BY THEN MY FOOT WAS HURTING ENOUGH THAT i DECIDED TO RIDE TO ASHLAND TO PICK UP MY PRESCRIPTIONS AND HAVE A WENDYS BIG BAG LUNCH….APACHE GOT THE CHICKEN TENDERS…..NOW WE ARE JUST VEGGING UNDER FANS…ALSO GOT A PLATE TO BLOCK THE SNAKE HOLE i CREATED IN THE DOOR YESTERDAY WHILE TRYING TO DRAIN THE HOT WATER HEATER…..FINLAAAY GOT THE HOLE TEMPORARILY PLUGGD AND HAVE A PLUG DESIGENED FOR THE JOB…..DIDN’T DO ANYTHING THIS AFTERNOON IN AN EFFORT TO REST MY FOOT
8/5/2022
WOKE UP THIS MORNING AND MY FOOT WAS STRAANGELY BETTER…..STILL NOT 100 PERCENT BUT AT LEAST IT IS NOT THROBBING WITH EVERY STEP AND THREATENING TO GIVE WAY UNDER ME…..GRAY AND GLOOMY DAY SO FAR THIS MORNING BUT A LITTLE COOLER THAN IT HAS BEEN…..WENT TO BEAVERDAM AND GOT SOME GAS FOR THE MOWER AND DIESEL FOR THE TRACTOR….MOVED THE HORSES TO LOWER TANK PADDOCK….HAD A QUARTER INCH OF RAIN IN THE GAUGES THIS MORNING…..DONT KNOW WHEN IT RAINED….NEARLY LUNCH TIME AND GRASS STILL WET….NEED TO START CUTTING GRASS AGAIN…JUST FINISHED TWO DAYS AGO….FOOT HAS HELD UP WELL TODAY…..NOW 7 PM….BEEN HEARING THUNDER SINCE 4PM….WEATHER BUG SHOWED US IN MIDDLE OF A BIG RAIN CIRCLE ABOUT AN HOUR AGO IT STARTED TO RAIN AND RAINED HARD ENOUGHT TO BLOCK THE DIRECT TV SIGNAL…STILL RAINING MEDIUM NOW….GOT TO HAVE MRI ON MY HEAD TOMORROW TO SEE IF WE CAN FIND CAUSES OF MY BALANCE ISSUES….
not yet gone outside this morning…it is some cooler but still sticky humid…..ended up spending a good part of yesterday scheduling tests for my balance….did not awaken this morning until 7:15…..I think I am learning how to do this retirement thing….poured out another tenth of an inch from overnight….then while i wass feeding the mule it started to rain again and has been raining for over two hours now…scattered passing shower my big old butt….looks like an all day rain to me…stuck in here doing laundry and other domestic chores….was thinking about going to one of the parks and taking a walk….but not in the rain….been too hot the last three or four days….temp is finally tolerable and it is steady raining….at least it is good for the pastures….but I will have to start mowing lawn again when it stops raining….have not finished from last week yet….rained for several hours and we had another three tenths….then Luke came and filled tims nitrogen tank….sun came out so after lunch I went to Poor Farm Park to walk…got a little more than a half mile from the car and it started to rain again….made it back to a pavillion and had to wait out a 15 minute rain delay…after it stopped I thought it was not done rainingso figuring that while I was close I went to walmart for some milk and hot dogs for APACHE….while I was in there another storm rolled thru and rain on the walmart roof was deafening..I had to wait at the door for the rain to slack up enough to get to my automobile……home now and it won’t rain again until I stick my nose out the door again…
7/27/22
BEEN ANOTHER WARM DAY…..WAS RAINING AGAIN WHEN I WOKE UP BUT SOON STOPPED…..MOVED A BRANCH OFF THE ELECTRIC FENCE IN THE BACK YARD AND STILL DID NOT HAVE ANY FENCE….GOT MY METER AND STARTED WORKING…FOUND A DEAD PINE ON THE FENCE…..GOT THE BIG SAW STARTED AND FREED THE FENCE…..THEN REPAIRED THE CORNER OF THE FENCE…..STILLL HAVE SOME SERIOUS SHORTS BUT HAVE ENOUGH FENCE TO KEEP THE CRITTEERS IN…WENT TO MONTPELIER AND GOT SOME BARLEY SEED AND BUSH HOGGED AND BROADCAST FRONT PADDOCK 7…..OPENED FRONT 8 FOR THE STOCK….TAKING AN OPPOERTUNITY RIGHT NOW TO COOL OF IN FRONT OF A FAN….
7/28/22
BRIGHT AND SUNNY THIS MORNING…WEATHER TERRORIST ARE PREDICTING ANOTHER DAY OF SUN INDUCED DEATH…HOT AT THE END OF JULY…..WHO WOULD HAVE SUSPECTED IT….ME…I AM SPENDING THE MORNING DOING DOMESTIC CHORES AND ALTERNATELY SITTING IN FRONT OF THE FAN….LATER i WILL START CUTTING GRASS AGAIN….STILL TOO WET THIS MORNING…..DECIDED TO GO TO THE RED HORSE TRAINING CTR MONTHLY BARN SOCIAL SO THAT TRUMPED CUTTING GRASS….ENJOYABLE LOW KEY AFFAIR AND A GOOD POT LUCK MEAL THAT i DID NOT HAVE TO COOK
7/29/22
WELL SOMEHOW THIS THING HAS DECIDED I AM NOT SUPPPSED TO ENTER ANYTHING TODAY….TWICE NOW I HAVE MADE SIGNIFICANT ENTRIES ABOUT TODAY AND IT HAS DELETED THEM……i CUT GRASS MOST OF THE MORNING AND GOT ALL OF THE RIDING MOWER AREAS DONE…..WAS ABOUT TO START TRIMMING WITH HOP SING WHEN i HEARD THUNDER…..THEN IT STARTED RAINING AND SUDDENLY IT WAS POURING….i GOT STUCK IN THE TRAILER AND WAITED OUT THE DOWN POUR THERE….DURIGN A BREAK i CAME TO THE HOUSE AND IT IS POURING AGAIN OUTSIDE….MY TWO RAIN GAUGES BOTH HAD NEARLY A HALF INCH IN THEM FROM THE FIRST SHOWER……I POURED THEM OUT AND WOULD BE WILLING TO BET THAT THEY HAVE NEARLY THAT MUCH AGAIN NOW….WAS GOING TO TRY TO RIDE AT LAKE ANNA TOMORROW BUT NOT SURE i CAN GET TO THE TRAILER TO HOOK IT UP NOW….DID BUSH HOG AND BROADCAST FRONT 7 AND LET THE STOCK INTO FRONT 8
7/30/22
TODAY HAS BEEN SPENT IN THE LAKE ANNA OFFICE OF DR CONDI…..WE RODE ABOUT SIX OR SIX AND A HALF MILES, MOSTLY ON THE LAKE SIDE AND WE DID ALSO DO THE SHORT LOOP ON THE NORTH SIDE….EXCELLENT TIME AND BEAUTIFUL WEATHER AND LITTLE OR NO BUGS AND GOOD COMPANY…THIS THERAPHY SESSION CERTAINLY DID ME A WORLD OF GOOD…..i ALMOST FEEL HUMAN AGAIN…..DR CONDI IS AN EXCELLENT THERAPIST. THE PARK WAS PRETTY BUSY TODAY….LOTS OF WATER CRAFT…LOTS OF TRAFFIC LAKE BOUND….ONLY SAW ABOUT TWO HIKERS AND WHEN WE STARTED OUR RIDE THERE WAS ONLY A COUPLE OF HORSE TRAILERS IN THE LOT BUT WHEN WE CAME BACK THERE WERE QUITE A FEW..WE DID SEE A COUPLE OF OTHER RIDERS HEADING OUT WHEN WE WERE HEADING IN. TRAILS WERE SLICK WITH QUITE A FEW BLOCKAGES OF DOWNED TREES BUT WE FOUND WORK AROUNDS FOR ALL OF THEM….ALL IN ALL A WELL SPENT DAY….i GOT BACK IN THE HOUSE AT 2:11 IN THE AFTERNOON….SO ENTHUSIASTIC THAT i LEFT THE TRAILER HOOKED UP…
today was warmer thaN yesterday….it was 98 at one time here today….but it was not unbearable….this morning I painted the back side of the panels I started painting yesterday…..then hop sing and I did a little trimming until one of his front wheels fell off…..just needs a new lock nut…I remember when I was a little kid my cousin, David, and I cut my grandmothers grass……with an old reel type push mower….it took both of us to push it….now that was hot work….she also rigged up some rope harness so that we could pull the cultivator thru her half a acre of garden…..but that was generally easier than pushing that reel mower….went to Dominoes this afternoon and got pizzas for a couple of days meals….they had a sale of some sort so I got two….they have improved greatly since the last time I got one…..I even called them back and complimented them on the pizza quality today……had sausage and green pepper today….the other one is pepperoni and black olives…..
7/24/22 had typed nearly a paragraph and this dad gum computer just deleted i all…..try again….last night on the idiot box Dennys played a commercial about a breakfast summer slam special several times…..decided I wanted to try it…..was worth the trip….I have long thought they made as good a pancake as anyone in the business…they were veeery good and the hashbrowns, fried eggs, bacon and sausage were icing on the cake…..from there I went to ace and got some locknuts for hop sings wheels….gonna go out in few minutes and fix em and go back to cutting grass. I did put in a good sized load of sweaty stink work clothes and they are in the dryer now…need to do some cleaning in this dirty old house….naw….I would rather stand in the blazing sun outside. the day ended with a rusing thunderstorm and the electric blinking off….after the storm passed thru, we had a half inch of rain in no more than ten minutes….i rode the local roads trying to find where the damage was but did not see it even though there was loads of debris on the roads…power came back on at about 8:05….found out this morning that the busted wires were about six miles from here toward beaverdam proper
7/25/22 a do little day….mostly watched tee vee…
7/26/22 not yet gone outside this morning…it is some cooler but still sticky humid…..ended up spending a good part of yesterday scheduling tests for my balance….did not awaken this morning until 7:15…..I think I am learning how to do this retirement thing….poured out another tenth of an inch from overnight….then while i wass feeding the mule it started to rain again and has been raining for over two hours now…scattered passing shower my big old butt….looks like an all day rain to me…stuck in here doing laundry and other domestic chores….was thinking about going to one of the parks and taking a walk….but not in the rain….been too hot the last three or four days….temp is finally tolerable and it is steady raining….at least it is good for the pastures….but I will have to start mowing lawn again when it stops raining….have not finished from last week yet….rained for several hours and we had another three tenths….then Luke came and filled tims nitrogen tank….sun came out so after lunch I went to Poor Farm Park to walk…got a little more than a half mile from the car and it started to rain again….made it back to a pavillion and had to wait out a 15 minute rain delay…after it stopped I thought it was not done rainingso figuring that while I was close I went to walmart for some milk and hot dogs for APACHE….while I was in there another storm rolled thru and rain on the walmart roof was deafening..I had to wait at the door for the rain to slack up enough to get to my automobile……home now and it won’t rain again until I stick my nose out the door again…
Baby Jim Photo courtesy of The Old Cowboy Archives
I had a phone call yesterday from an old friend. We attended college together back in the late sixties and the early seventies.
We attended together our freshman and sophomore years. Then I ran out of money and went to work for my uncle Sam for a couple of years. God was looking out for me and even though I volunteered for OCS and Airborne and Ranger School, I ended up fighting the war at Fort Carson Colorado….but that is all fodder for other stories.
When I went back to college I managed to cram a four year course of instruction into eight short years. I enrolled and managed to get a third year taken care of but again had to drop out and get a job to support the expected addition to the family. That took a couple of years. when I finally got back to finish my degree, a mutual friend told me that my friend was back as well.
Turns out he had done some time with uncle Sam as well and had survived the bungle in the jungle. We were both married and living in Roanoke and we commuted to Tech together quite often. This was during the gas shortage of the early seventies.
After graduation I again lost track of my friend for several years as I was cowboying in Ohio and Virginia and he was a chemical engineer travelling the united states.
Somehow we reconnected a few years ago….I don’t even remember how….but we tried to maintain at least an electronic connection.
Some of you are aware that I used to write a little and published a blog for a good while. This is a habit that has eluded me pretty much the last couple of years.
My friend called me mostly to see if I was still extant because he had not heard from me for so long…..lots of excuses for this but none that justified leaving old friends in the lurch.
jogs my memory that I never had a lot of friends…..mostly because my friends wives almost unanimously thought I was a bad influence. Heck even my first wife ended up with that opinion.
A little rough around the edges and while not a tall man, I could be a little tough to deal with….and for many years, what I thought had a way of falling out of my mouth, which always managed to upset others.
In my later years I softened somewhat….to the point that Marie used to get mad at me because she thought I let people take advantage of me. Little did she realize that I was merely trying to control my worsening temper and stay out of jail. I had become like my dad….a strong man with a hot temper….except he was mostly quiet and I was loud.
But I digress immensely……I have been fortunate to have some good friends in my life. Like some who call just to see if I am still breathing. Then we ended up talking for an hour and seven minutes.
Got to thinking about how I communicate and what I could do better…..in recent years I have used social media more and more….for a while I was a regular on a couple of cattle boards….have not visited one in about a year and a half now…..I have hundreds of facebook friends many of which I have never met….
I decided to go back to my roots and communicate in a longer form which suits me better….going back to the blog format and will let people know of the post with short notices.
So far 2022 has not been much of an improvement on 2021. Started January with a barn fire where I lost the barn and the tractor and a substantial amount of tools and equipment.
Thank god there were no animal injuries…..I only had a couple of cows left and my sons Jessee and Matt came and got them the afternoon of the fire as I had no feed or any way to feed them….so for the first time since 1986 there is not a bovine in residence at Pipe Dream Farm…..I do miss them and every time I step out the door I still look for the cows. Now I have begun to say to myself as I glance around…”dumbass ….they are not here…”
The equines are still present and tolerating me.
Still in cleanup mode at the site of the fire….but the snowstorm last week created a slight delay. the 1 to 3 inches predicted turned in to 10 to 12 inches of heavy wet snow and the power went out everywhere about 9:30 am last week and lasted about five days here….some people were out for ten days…..it was the biggest damage since hurricane Isabell in 2003
I was not too worried…I had a generator…..dual fuel and would run on gasoline or propane….lost all my gas cans in the fire….learned the lesson that propane will freeze up in cold weather….the generator will run about an hour and a half and then it freezes up and the generator quits.
Trying to find a replacement for the old tractor….went all the way to Staunton this morning to look at one….still negotiating a few issues.
A neighbor brought me a skid steer loader to feed the horses round bales.
Still have not figured out what I want to do about the barn….I need storage space for feed and hay and the tractor…but without the cows I do not need as much barn…..got to finish cleaning up the debris from the old barn….I have already sent off a 40 cubic yard dumpster of scrap metal and am in the process of filling a 30 yard one now. slow work because I have to sort wood debris from the metal debris which means deconstruction of everything.
As i sit here on the eve of the day of completion of my 73rd trip around the sun, I wax somewhat philosophical. It is hard to believe that tomorrow is the 34th anniversary of my 39th birthday.
It will be followed on Sunday by my grandsons 18th birthday. Happy Birthday Fisher.
I was contacted earlier in the week by my former boss and she invited me to join her and my previous coworkers and the new folks for lunch this afternoon. It was great to see them all and to catch up on everyone’s adventures and challenges. We had a nice lunch as well.
This has been the most unusual year of my life. I thought 2020 was unusual….2021 seems to have said hold my beer and I will show you unusual.
For those who may not know….I finally retired with the change of calendars in January. I had some significant leave time and so I actually stopped working on December 8th of 2020.
Right on cue on the 21st of January I had my heart attack….Dr. Rohatgi did a catheterization procedure and opened the blockage and put in a stent and pulled me through….bad news is he found three more blockages and had to go in a few weeks later and put in a couple of more stents.
On follow up testing he found signs that my right aorta had problems and sent me to a vascular surgeon who in March cut my throat and removed the blockage…..He said he could not explain why I had not had a stroke. The vascular surgery cut a few nerves and so a lot of mornings I wake up feeling like I have been in a fight. It is finally starting to ease up some.
But I survived that as well and on further followup with Dr. Rohatgi said my heart was normal. That is in large part due to my new pass time….walking….I now endeavor to walk at least three miles every other day. It has also helped me lose some weight…..but fear not I still tip the scales at about 11 stone….that is British for 220 lbs. But now my pants are all too big for me and I look like a clown with a poor makeup job…..
I figured while I was on the downhill slide that I better ride all I could while I was still able….
Naw that has not worked out so well either…..All spring it was so rainy that most parks stayed closed and would not allow riding. When it stopped raining it got so blamed hot that neither Dr. Condi nor i wanted to venture out. So instead of riding twice a week we managed to get out about once a month. Here lately we have done a little better. But lately I discovered that The Coggins on the equines had expired and had to have them retested. Results came back today and we are legal again to be out in public.
And viola……it is mid October…. Inflation is sky rocketing…. Energy prices are doubled so far this year…..We wrapped up a twenty year war by surrendering and giving the enemy 89 billion dollars worth of equipment……the economy is crashing……the border is being overrun by people not subject to the covid mandates or anything else…..the government is into mandating every aspect of our lives….covid is the gift that keeps on giving…..shortages of everything are on the horizon…..you can see the ships sitting in the harbors…..jobs everywhere and no one wants to work…and why should they because the government is paying them not to work….not sure I want to work because i don’t think I can afford the taxes any more….they taxed me a lot of dollars on social security last year and I had to dig deep to pay it because there was no withholding….…….no one speaks english anymore as they rely on profanity and double talk….most fast food is now drive thru where there are no menu boards except at the order point so people wait in line to sit at the order point and say uuuhhh….
The Covid seems to have installed mass insanity as a side effect.
I don’t know why I am still here while so many that I have known and cared about are no longer here. There must be a purpose….There must be something I have got to do. But apparently I have not gotten it done yet…
I wish I had a clue
I think often about my mortality…
I have had my final arrangements made ever since losing Marie.
I am more careful now in my daily life
I think often of what becomes of my animals if I suddenly disappear. This worries me…
I wish I had a clue.
I hope to be able to keep riding. It is what is keeping me sane…If I am….
TODAY was a walking day. So I decided that I would go back to Washington Lacy Park and go back to the new trails I found a few days ago. This time I took a bag full of hand tools and some flagging tape. I did not walk but 2.97 miles but had a decent workout with carrying and using the tools.
My ambition was to mark and do a little trail work on the two new to me trails. ……. this we accomplished.
I was pleased to notice that several folks have ridden these trails since my original post. There were numerous hoof prints and other signs of equestrian activity along the trails
below is an aerial photo of one of the trails marked. This trail is actually a branch off of an existing trail that seems to be used significantly. I did not walk the existing trail today so it does not show up on the GPS generated route. I have attempted to draw in the existing trail in yellow….the location is not exact. The trail I worked on and marked with pink ribbons is indicated in red. It is not quite as disjointed as it looks on the photo….I did a good bit of walking back and forth in an effort to make sure the pink ribbons were visible from both directions. Both of these woodland paths run from the powerline to one of the crush and run roads that run across the southern portion of the park. the entrance to both is where the tire and bicycle tube hang in the tree near the powerline….there are also pink ribbons there as well. a little ways in the new pink ribbon trail branches off from the old trail…..
the net result is now there are three possible loops in this area.
farther south is the road that only needs a little bit of work to create a nice loop. There is a section of six or eight pine trees down and I need to get my chain saw and equipment back there to open the circuit. I can open it in an hour or so if I can get the equipment back there. either side is rideable now but those trees and some swamp prevent a circuit until altered…..this trail is marked with white flagging tape…..one side is right down the power line and the other is thru the woods.
pdfangus 
