coldest day of the year (we hope)

It was frigid today - I could feel the cold on my cheeks and it didn't feel good, so I came back in and got a balaclava to wear. It about drove me crazy but it took care of the cold face.

Most of my barn time was spent managing water - clearing ice out of troughs, carrying buckets of warm water out so they had the choice. Keil Bay and Little Man prefer the icy water in the troughs. Cody and the donkeys prefer the warm buckets. 

I didn't ride, even though the wind was almost totally gone. Mainly because the ground was frozen hard - in those mud clump formations that just plain hurt to step on. I pulled horse blankets off mid-day when we got up near 20 degrees. They'll get them back on in a bit, for the night.

Most of my writing was done in the waiting room at our dentist's office while my son had his teeth cleaned. We stopped on the way home and got peppermint ice cream from the local dairy. Once home it was time to start getting horses in for their pre-dinner tub hay, and of course, more warm buckets.

Woodstove is going strong, we just had Italian wedding soup with local sausage meatballs and cornbread, and I think the cats and Corgis are finally settling in for the night. One more cold one and then tomorrow we're up near 40. It will feel like springtime after these single digit temps!

cold, cold night

I've decided I like writing at the end of the day about that day versus writing the morning after the day, if that makes sense... so tonight I'm adjusting the blog to reflect this.

It is very cold outside. About 17 degrees right now, with wind blowing. Husband brought all the water buckets in and we filled them with warm water, then took them out to the barn - I figure at least they'll have the choice - the colder water in the big troughs or warm bucket water, at least to start the night with. They got their usual warm wet beet pulp tubs too.

There was no riding today. The rain cleared up by noon but the cold wind came hand-in-hand with the sunshine - the hay tent was blowing like the sail on a ship. The crazy equines were clustering around it, then galloping away when it blew up. I put them all in the arena and let them play that game for awhile, then put their hay in the back field and left them to it. They cantered to their hay piles and the donkeys went at full gallop with a few bucks thrown in for good measure.

I did my writing in the truck today while daughter had her riding lesson in the colder-by-the minute wind. It was good to get home tonight and settle in for the evening.

The wood stove is hot, I have laundry going which I'm hoping keeps the well pump going, there are two cats in bed with us, and the rest of the cats (and the Corgis) have warm spots. I'm finally starting to yawn so maybe it's time to say goodnight. :)

very lazy day

Yesterday, Sunday, was a lazy day - I was inside for almost all of it writing, editing, and trying to get some tidying done around the house. The equines were all lucky to be out grazing hay - there was rain on both sides of us that never managed to close in. Today is a different story - it's 51 and raining and later this afternoon when things clear, the cold will descend. Down to 7 tonight and high of 22 tomorrow, then 13 tomorrow night. Once we get to Wednesday things will be a bit more normal for us in terms of January temps!

If the sun comes out soon enough today I will get a ride in - but with 22 and winds tomorrow I will likely let Keil Bay have another day off. I'm going to use the time to catch up cleaning, get ahead in my writing, and be ready to roll back into the arena on Wednesday.

Last night we met my husband's parents for dinner in our favorite restaurant and had a lovely time. The owners of the restaurant are horse people, as are many of the staff, and many of the customers dining there. They have a sign at the very elegant front door that says: boots and breeches welcome. The food is locally sourced as much as possible and we love it. This time of year we tend to visit more often - all of our birthdays fall between the end of December and the end of April. We were there last week for a birthday celebration and last night to treat husband's parents. Now we have to wait until the end of February for the next birthday!

party and working on the books

Yesterday was cold and cloudy and we had a party to go to during the afternoon, so we rushed to get chores done and I managed to keep my writing time intact before it was time for us to leave.

Our local feed store, the first place I went to check out after we made the offer on November Hill, is one of the best parts of living with horses in our area. The owner bought the store 20 years ago when he bought farmland here and realized the need for a feed store that served people who live with horses, cows, goats, sheep, dogs, cats, and all the maintenance and repair that comes with keeping these animals happy and healthy.

The day I went in to check out the store, I asked about a certain feed that I was using for Keil Bay, which they didn't carry. But they ordered it for me and had it ready and waiting when we moved in, and that was the first of many such experiences I've had there.

The feed store immediately became part of our extended family. D. and his staff (3 of the friendliest, most helpful people imaginable) were always ready to help with products, recommendations, advice on seeding fields, fencing, anything related to farm maintenance - and just standing there chatting about life in general. They have the kind of store where when asked "how are you?" they want the real answer, and vice versa. They sell good products, they respond to customers' needs, and they're also friends and neighbors.

Several years ago D's daughter started working in the store. She brought a ton of new ideas and created a huge organic/sustainable farming section. She took special ordering to a whole new level - bringing in specialty oats, organic whole flax seed and alfalfa pellets, and specialty pet food. If I need something, I ask D. and I ask M. If they don't have it they figure out how to get it. D. had her first child while working at the store, and then her second. A whole new subject to chat about was born.

I can buy horse feed products there, riding breeches and boots, gloves, clothing, locally raised beef, chicken, and pork, grass seed, hoses, buckets, shavings, stall mats, fence posts, fencing, wheelbarrows, mowers, hay,  and they have a fridge where I pick up my raw milk each week. (they don't sell it - they allow the farmer who does to put it there so I can pick it up) I've joked before that if they put in a coffee shop I could just go there and not have to go anywhere else in town. 

D. retired at the end of December, and 200 of the store's regular customers got invitations to a surprise retirement party. We also got news that J., the employee who takes care of the machine side of the store, bought that from D. J. was hired when he was 14 years old as part-time help and he now owns his own shop - and repairs everything from weed-eaters to top of the line mowers. If we need a part, he gets it for us. We also learned that D's daughter M. has bought out the feed store - so the family tradition continues. 

It was a great party. They fed us and served great beer and wine, and D. made his way around to talk to every single person there. Which was easy - because he knew every single person there and we all had stories to tell and things to say.

My story had to do with the latest feed store "save" - my haybarrow's axles had rusted through and I had asked M. if they had them - she said she could get them but I'd need to measure and make sure what I needed b/c different brands had slightly different sizes. It turned out that what can be ordered are full "kits" that include axles, wheels, and other parts that we didn't really need. The next time I was in, I mentioned this to the "guys" - A. and R. - and they asked which wheelbarrow it was - I showed them the one in the store - and they disappeared.  A few minutes later they reappeared from the attic with the exact part in hand. $10. 

D. was thrilled to hear that story because that's the kind of store he's created. It's a family business, a community business, and a real treasure for those of us who shop there.

We got to catch up with our across-the-lane neighbors, and, as I was leaving, one of the store employees brought a woman over to introduce - she'd seen my name in the sign-in book and wanted to meet me - we'd just exchanged emails about my auditing a Mark Rashid clinic coming up later this month. More on that later! 

It wasn't a day of riding, but it was a great way to celebrate the passing on of a store to the next generation. We're so glad it will stay in the family!

cold day, huge equine work-out

Yesterday the high was around 32 degrees here, and with winds gusting up to 35 mph it felt colder. I pulled out my trusty 18-year old Lands End knee-length squall parka and wore it over my pajamas to do morning chores. I was warm as toast.

I only need this level of warmth a few times a year if at all, but when needed, it is perfect. A couple of years ago the zipper broke and I contacted Lands End, who offered me either a new parka or paid shipping for the existing one so they could send it out to be repaired. I opted to send in my old trusty coat. A couple of weeks later it came back nicely repaired with November Hill hay remnants still in the pockets. 

Before I went out yesterday morning, I glimpsed flashes of color through the kitchen window. A closer look revealed Keil Bay and Cody in the arena, walking, trotting, and cantering, then galloping around. In emerald green and purple plaid. The Little Man was in the open gate watching, and the donkeys were right behind him.

Cody tends to go a bit wild in his arena work-outs, but Keil Bay, trained in dressage his entire life, offers circles of the usual size, shoulder-in, flying changes, and generally seems to be doing a shuffle of all the dressage tests he's ever learned. Cody arches his neck and tosses his head and Keil is perfectly "on the bit" - just in front of the vertical.

I had already determined it was going to be a day I did not ride, but this cemented that decision. They took care of their stretching and opening all by themselves!

Last night the predicted temp was 13 degrees. My barn thermometer said 0 just before sunrise this morning. Husband put out 3x the usual amount of hay and they had cleaned it up. They had also broken through the ice on the water trough and drank enough that the water level was visibly lower this morning. Every year when ice forms (usually less times than the fingers on both my hands during winter season) I consider whether to get water heaters for the troughs. And every year they keep drinking the cold water and I figure it's probably best to keep things as they are. They get salt in their feed tubs both morning and night, and if we have several of these extremely low temp nights in a row I warm up the troughs with hot water. 

Today we're entering a warm-up that will last until Monday, when the night's temp is predicted to be 11 degrees. We're on that crazy weather rollercoaster again.

Writing-wise: I continued working on exploring the minds of two characters, did some research on an old hotel in Paris - which reminds me - has anyone stayed in one you'd recommend? I am looking for something old and expensive, but most of all distinctive. I'll be traveling there via the internet only, so cost is no object. :)

I also returned to my chapter by chapter editing of Never Not Broken. The chapter I'm on right now is getting almost a total rewrite, so I'll be working on it again today.