Monday Bunday

I tell everyone that rabbits are not cute and cuddly, they are bossy and opinionated. The Cat Patrol knows this. (this is not my bunneh either.)

Grazing?

There are four of these turnouts available at Indian Hill. If someone else is waiting, there is a 15 minute time limit. Because I have to be carefull about the horse on the other side of the fence, Janow goes when it is not peak time and we don't wait or have to leave in 15 minutes.

You can see how bleak things look around here at the end of summer, and why it is wildfire season. California bad weather does not come as blizzards or hurricanes, it comes as wild fires. California leads the nation in wildfires. This small patch is safe from wilfires--nothing left ot burn.


Janow likes to be out here for short periods. Whenever we walk near here, he nods in the direction of the turn outs: "We could go here today..."
Remember, Janow has Peripheral Cushings and does better when he is a bit on the lean side. He gets lots of hay.
He rolls in the dust. He walks around looking for food. He eats twigs. It must be like eating the last of the warm wilty celery sticks that taste a little bit like salt because people have been touching them. He smells where other horses have been.

"What have you been eating...?"

current progress, how boring

Here are the ones in progress right now.



The brown one has been boiled and waits for laundering.



The pink one from last week is boiled and waiting laundering before the next pic, so you don't see it here.


The green one was started this week and I think that's it for batik on it. I'll get it boiled this week.

Is it Halloween yet?

Boo Hoo
Middle School PE class Course Description:
"Maximize physical activity with limited resources, space, equipment, money, time"
Welcome to life. You didn't think you were exempt did you? Sorry Hon, the teachers union can only do so much.




Rabbit
After more than a year and a half, Silver is giving me nose bumps. If it had been easier and quicker, I probably wouldn't think it was as important. For those who don't know, noise bumps are an indication of affection from rabbits. Cats too.



Feral Cat
The little tuxedo cat captured in our backyard by the cat rescue this summer, spayed, and returned, has been spotted several times in the past two days. I am putting out food. Her presence here is population pressure against new cats who may be fertile.



Homework
The first week of school has already turned up one late homework assignment. All he had to do was give it to me to sign, then return it. It got misplaced between my signature and his backpack.

Hot Water
The Spa is up and running. That was a project! Dave bought it used on Craig's List, then had to hire a company to move it to our house from Livermore. Then he had to get a contractor to level a spot in the yard and pour a concrete pad. Then he had to have the moving guys put it on the pad. Then we had to buy a gazebo. Then he filled it up and it leaked. Then he fixed the leak. Now we can use it. At 96 degrees, he is too warm. At 98 degrees, I am just getting comfy.

Limping Horse
Janow is much improved in the front lameness after having his hocks injected. He is signed up for the Chiropractor on September 9th. He seems more himself too.

Ouch
Mary Shelley bit me again. Between nose bumps, she bites.

Picture Card
All three picture cards are still pogged. This means that I have to click-unselect 110 pictures every time I want to upload, and that I can only take 6 pictures at a time. All the pictures are of sentimental value. They are all backed up. Dave said he would take care of it for me. After he did, I found that he had only write-protected each one so I could not erase them easily. This is not the same. I may have to buy a new one!

Supernatural
Joseph and I have been watching Supernatural TV show. It's like mini horror movies. Last night, after dark, in the spa, the radio turned itself way up all of a sudden and Joseph couldn't turn it down. Dave turned it off. "Why...?"
"Maybe it's haunted." I answered. Then I turned to Dave,
"Maybe that's why they sold the spa......maybe someone died in here!"

"MOMMMMMMM!"

Monday Bunday

Batik Saddle Pads in Progress

Here are all the batik projects currently in progress. They all start out with white fabric. These are all on a nice twill, lighter than denim, heavier than broadcloth.


They will be my thinest pads, with only one layer of needle felted poly to help keep the shape so you won't get wrinkles under the saddle. I am going to line them with more of the twill. It's not heavy, but I think two layers of nice cotton will be more absorbant than commercial pads and will wear better with less creep than flannel.

Because they are all going to be saddle pads, so each has two sides that are pretty much mirror images.

Having several going at once, it helps to have a good plan first.

The Good Guy

I have finished reading The Good Guy by Dean Koontz. If anyone else would like to read it, send me your snail mail and I will send my papereback copy to you USPS Media Mail.

A Chicken in Every Pot

Joseph saw Paula in the pot yesterday and I snuck this picture. That is why it is taken through the screen. If she had known I was there, she would have run over to beg.

And then there is Waldo. I decided to give each batik a working name to keep track of them. I have tried numbers and letters in the past and it's confusing. There are so many layers and steps. and a right and left side for saddle pads, that you can't do it one-at-a-time.

Waldo was dyed, waxed, and then dyed. It had one more wax and dye left, but I set it out to dry and forgot. The shade moved and the sun melted the wax, causing it to seep. So I had to boil each side, then launder to remove residue. The boiling took two days. Now I can wax it and dye it to finish.


I've been using leftover dyes to dye my socks. Once the mordant is added, the dye is only good for about an hour or so.


Currently reading "The Good Guy" by Dean Koontz

Veterinarian

No new pictures because:
Dave still has the picture cards all pogged up with photos of sentiment. I can take three photos before I have to upload. To do that, I have to un-click all of his. Too much clicking.

He bought a hot tub on Craigs list. We had contractors level a spot and pour a cement pad for it. After that, there are problems. Dave spends all his extra time on the problems.

The vet came for Janow yesterday to see a slight problem in front that has been bugging me a lot. I was afraid Janow was developing changes in a front pastern or coffin joint. He could not find anything to indicate that. Was it his damaged laminae? No.

His hocks were bothering him and he was mildly positive to flexion tests. X-Rays showed some slight narrowing of joint spaces, pretty good for a 20 year old horse. There was possibly more inflamation that would not show on x-rays. I had his hock injected with cortisone in case they were bothering him more than the pictures and flex tests indicated. He has stall rest until Saturday. Then he can come out and I can see if he is significantly better. Or not.

I will sign him up for the next chiropractic clinic.

Friesians are Iberian

My cousin Dana started a blog. She has Friesians. Click here to go . She is a newbie to blogs.

I went to a Horse Driving Event on Saturday. It's like Combined Training but with carts and carriages. It was fun. I met a lot of nice people. I wanted to go Sunday for the marathon, their version of cross-country, but I had a migraine.

I finished "Duma Key" by Stephen King. It was good. If you want to read it, I will send it to you, the first person to email your snail mail address. caradrouin@sbcglobal.net

Yesterday I wanted ice cream with Grape Nuts, so Dave got it for me. Joseph had never had Grape Nuts. Because he is lactose intolerant, he did not put milk.

"These are really crunchy."
"Most people put milk to soften them up."

He put Koolade.

"This is better! These are really good.............. The Barf Factor is going way up...... Do I have to finish these?"

Sunday Bunday

A Janow Story

This is an old picture that I found when I was scanning picture cards looking for one that wasn't crammed with Dave's pics that he can't bear to erase even if they are backed up. I think I need to buy a new picture card.

An old picture of us goes with someone elses Janow story.

Some history first: Janow is a confirmed nudist. He has NEVER liked a fly mask, managing to destroy them within days of purchase, soliciting assistance from neigh-bors if needed.

This year I purchased a new kind with huge bug eyes. He likes it, lowering his head to have it put on. Once, when he was tied for grooming, mask off, I looked up to see him standing with his face pressed into the mask where it was hanging on the fence. "Put this back on, please."

Someone elses story as told to me: She was walking up the lane past his paddock/stall when he whinnied to her. She looked at him and saw that his mask was off of one ear. She went into his paddock and fixed the mask. He put his nose into her stomach and nickered his thanks. She was blown away!

That's Janow, "Smarter than the average bear."

Barn Boy

The summer has been pretty good. “Not frantic” has been the theme and has been accurately executed.


I have had Joseph working for me at the barn, earning money. Grandmother was critical of how much money he was getting, and it sounded like a lot to him too, at the start. Then he started planning all the things he was he was going to buy and he found that if he got what he really really wanted, it meant he was going to have to save and not buy a bunch of stuff. He followed through, which is the hardest part of planning. He finally got his new air rifle, 1200 feet per second. He told me, out of the blue, that he liked it even more because he had to work so hard to get it. Of course, I feel vindicated because he learned something vital to adult life. Unfortunately, your mother is the last person to whom you can say “I told you so!”



Today we are planning a trip to the driving range at Spring Valley. Joseph is going to hit balls with a stick as hard as he can!