Things To Do This Weekend

We rented an excavator to do 4 jobs around the farm this weekend.

1. Make a road along the fenceline to the back corner

2. Dig up the frost free hydrant to replace

3. Level the spot beside the shop where the RV is sitting

4. Bust up the hot tub & bury it in a hole & cover it with the fire 

Or, that's all things Lan will be doing. I mowed a large section of the front pasture to have a tack sale in there this weekend. I will move all the cars to the back so there's room for the guests to park.

I've got saddles and all the other crap not needed any longer and I'm going to sell it all, or as much as I possibly can. I'm sure I can get about $300 for Joeys saddle and maybe $800 for Wifi's dressage saddle. There are a bunch of old bridles and other junk too. 

I've got some household crap to sell too, actually lots of crap.  

Kitchen appliances, some clothing, a few other things. 

I just want it all gone.

Brandan 'fixed' the photos on my computer and now its all ruined, nothing is in the folders as they should be.

 

Hair

This is my hair now, its been growing since 2022, so 4 years so far

This was when we lived at the old farm

Triathlon hair, I LOVED it when it was this short

Starting to grow it out

This was my hair when we went to Sali's Game Of Thrones party

During Covid

During covid I was so sick and at the end of September, when I was mostly well, this was the length when I got it cut. More than 22" was cut off and donated to make wigs.

And a bit after the hair cut!

Then ~ vs ~ Now 

Theres a lot less hairs growing now, not nearly as thick as it was 5 years ago.

Heat

When I was growing up we had a trash burner in the kitchen that would heat the whole house. We also had a natural gas heater but the trash burner was warmer. I always loved backing my butt up to it to warm up on a cold winter day.

When Mom decided to rent the house out she removed the trash burner and it's been sitting in her basement since then, about 40 years. I REALLY, really want it for the Pioche house. The power goes out so often and when its only 22* outside, having a wood burning stove will keep us toasty.  Mom has said we could have it but I didn't feel like she really meant it when I asked if we could put it in the Pioche house. Is it because Mom is 85 and might never travel to Pioche to see our house? Maybe. Is it because she just doesn't want me to have it? Another maybe. Or is she letting Candie have it for her house? That's a very strong probably. All I know is that it would be perfect for our tiny home.

They don't use a lot of wood, the fire box is actually pretty small. The ashes fall through the grates on the bottom and are collected in the bin below it. 

This stove pictured isn't Moms, it's just online but this is the same kind.

Mom told me she wants to give me more money, for our next vacation, but I have no idea how much it might be. I have a feeling she's giving Heather a HUGE amount of money for a down payment on a house somewhere. H made an offer but that's all I know. I hope she's going to let Ashleigh live with her, since neither of them needs to be mooching off Mom & Don any longer, and when Jordan gets sick of his dad again then he can go live with H too.

Mom & Don gave half the business to Jordan & that lazy shit hasn't done shit to help run it. 

 

Our Next Vacation

We'll be heading to Pioche but taking a little longer route than straight down. Last year we went through Winnemucca to see the Gypsy Horse Fest show and it was very nice to see the horses but I was disappointed that there were only about 50 horses, max, at the 'west coast' show. I liked that they had it at all and that I got to go but it was a long way out of our way to see so few horses. It was an extra 500 miles and a day of driving to see the show.

This is the realtors photo of our house in Pioche, the one online for the sales photos, May 2024.

Our 1st visit, May 2024. 

I didn't think about taking a front yard photo on this trip.

June 2024,  our 1st trip as owners. 

When we arrived the front door was wide open.

September 2024, 2nd trip

December 12, 2024, no photo!! but I had just turned 62 & we flew down, went to Zion & got my America The Beautiful pass and went to Pioche.

April 2025, 3rd trip

September 2025

We had taken the trailer down in spring.

The yard was FULL of tumbleweeds, took me days to get them all pulled up.

I have full trips of photos missing or in other folders, lost for now. Dang. 

Its 5 weeks till we leave again to head down, we're planning on heading thru Utah & visiting the Dugway Geode state park where we will dig for our own geodes. I will definitely take an arrival photo this time, and every trip after this one.

I'm going to be looking for the perfect house numbers/sign for the front.

Things I Want

I want a 4 wheel marathon carriage for Amble

I want a well fitted saddle for Amble

I want a hula hoe for me to remove weeds in our Pioche yard

I want to go to Pioche!

 

Sigh

We drove the hour to Shelton for the tack sale, minutes before we arrived I got a text from the saddle fitter, she was there and had her eye on a Tucker saddle so when we arrived the first thing we did was use the cut outs to measure and it looked pretty dang close to a fit. So Lan & I drove all the way back home, loaded up Amble and hauled her to Shelton to check.

And it didn't fit.

I mean, it fit really well but Amble is just so round that the saddle rocked side to side, no matter what pads or shims we tried. Two hours. And still no saddle.

Don't laugh, we were changing the stirrup length.

I will hold onto the cash ($900) and put it toward a cart but I still need to ride so I'm thinking its going to be with a bareback pad. 

Tack Sales

There is a tack sale an hour away from our farm and I'm planning on being there early. I have my saddle fitting forms, and Sarah the saddle fitter, will be there doing her thing so if I have any questions she will be able to answer them.

The sale should have about 30-50 saddles and maybe, just maybe, 1 of them will fit.

IF none fit, there is a saddle 90 miles south, nearly into Oregon, that will work for now but its $650, its a POS and its a long way away in case I have to return it.

Wish us luck.

I'll Ride Anyway

I don't have a saddle but I'll try to ride anyway.

 

Feeling Defeated

I had the saddle fitter out today and I learned a lot but mostly I discovered I might never find a saddle that fits Amble. Shes SO flat and wide that nothing we tried on her would work, theres no way to ever get any of them to fit. I'll have to look for a draft horse XXWide. The tree can only be 16" long and overall length can only be 23".

 

When Plans Go Awry

Wildfire

Wifi

This girl is 18 today!

And this girl, Ambleside, is 4.75 years old. I've made an appointment for her to get a saddle fitting in a week & before then I need to gather all the stuff the fitter requested:

Saddles

Blankets

Pads

Amble will be getting a bath between now & then and I'm hoping to get Lan to scrape all the poop out of the arena so we can use it. I'm so broke (and today is payday) but I *might* be able to get a few loads of sand to put in the arena.

And let me throw this into the middle of my post for whatever good reason:

We loaded up the truck & trailer and went out to Tahuya, had a lot of fun.

This photo has been taken by use a LOT of times and this year, in March, there is very little snow in the Olympic Mountains.

Closer shot

It normally would look like this

I'm waiting to see if we get chosen to go on the Cross State ride boot camp they are doing in April on the 11th & 12th. Its just the one night of camping with your horse to learn about all the stuff they do in camp and there will be 2 short day rides. I tried to get on their list but the leader guy said they're only taking people who are doing the ride this year (which we're not, Amble is NOT ready for that) so we're on the waiting list and will only find out on the 7th if we can join or not. either way, I'll be able to ride Amble IF I have a saddle that fits her well.

This old Abetta is my best choice but Stephanie has an Arabian saddle that she will bring over to try out as well. I'll have a variety of saddle pads and blankets for the fitter. Honestly, I have never even sat in this saddle.

I also don't have a bit large enough for her mouth and I know I could buy one for $60 in Spanaway but I really do not want to drive that far to get one. I WILL drive that far though because they are the only store that has them in stock, ordering online would take too long.

Anyway, its pouring rain, another pineapple express is here and we've gotten a lot of rain today. I was supposed to work but I'd have been extra and working in the rain & I just couldn't handle that thought so called in. I'm not physically sick, just sick of work.

 

When?

With all the work our Pioche house needs, 

when would be a good time to begin to purchase things for the house? 

I'm talking about a bed and other furniture. I did buy a cute lamp, a toaster and an oblong braided wool rug at a yard sale the other day, a few other things too, all for $18.  The girl just wanted to get rid of stuff, she wasn't worried about getting rich off her grandmas' things.

from a yard sale the other day. There was SO MUCH STUFF that I liked, including lots of horse things but I am trying to be in the mindset that I don't need all that crap.

I feel like I DID need this, a Bissell Little Green Carpet Cleaner that I bought new and today I used it to clean our recliners and dang, they were nasty. They are Lazy Boy recliners, so I'd like to keep them working and looking nice.

I really got it for the Subaru; the seats and floors are pretty icky from sitting for 3 years and having mice in them for who knows how long. 

I also got a new hen, I paid $30 for a Brown Orpington hen, she's just beginning to lay and last week at Melisa's house Coco was trying to be broody. Today she gave us an egg.

Shes been here for about 48 hours and already a coyote has tried to get her. Tomorrow I'll leave the coop run closed and hope she doesn't fly out.

Morning Tea

How do you like your tea? 

I like mine made with Yorkshire tea, from England, and what I've got now was brought to me FROM ENGLAND by my friend, Michelle.

It HAS to steep for 3-5 minutes and after that I add sugar and a dollop of milk.

I am drinking my cup of tea now.

I do not drink coffee, its icky.

 

AITA?

Within the last 2 weeks I've asked several people if they want to go in on this half a beef and everyone, EVERYONE, said NO.

So I forked out $1,155 to the farmer for the half beef. Then I forked over $300 for the cut & wrap, then I paid $200 for the fuel to get there & back.

After we got home last night & I put everything into the freezer and saw just how small that cow really was, I already knew I wouldn't be giving any to anyone. I discussed this with Lan and TOLD HIM that everyone had had the opportunity and EVERYONE said no.

So today he took T bone steak out of the freezer to feed his dad, after I had specifically said not to. I'd rather buy other meat for him, saving this meat that I PAID FOR, for us. Yes, his dad does a lot for us, yes, we/Lan might inherit everything his dad has but who knows? 

Know what he said to me? That I give away all the eggs.

The FUCKING EGGS.

We'd be swimming in eggs if I didn't give them away.

So I'm not giving any more away for a while and let him dispose of them in whatever way he chooses.

  

That Feeling

 You know that feeling you get when you have finished something that you have practiced for and looked forward to for a very long time and now its done? But, what do you do now?

That's how I've been feeling since I decided not to do the cross state ride. 

I know we're going to go to the Pioche house, I know we will get some awesome things done there and we'll have a great time in the desert on the sxs but I feel like something is missing, I feel a little despondent about it. I feel like this was my one & only chance to do this ride and the chance to do it won't happen again. I know Amble isn't ready and I simply couldn't do that to her but inside ME, I really needed this. 

I'm whining and shouldn't be.

Feeling Better

 I'm feeling better about my recent life decisions. I KNOW Ambleside won't be ready to go on a 2 week trek across the state, I'm not going to be ready and I don't feel like Lan is too excited about it. Even as I was planning on the ride, I was dreaming of being in Pioche and working on the house.

I've started watching a LOT of YouTube renovation channels, there and thousands to choose from. What to do in a bathroom, what not to do in a kitchen, how to change this for that, how to make this better or hide that. It's all available at the tips of our fingers. Most of the people are flippers and I'm really not interested in their cheap changes, I really like watching the people who are going to live in their homes once they are finished. 

Janna Phipps has been great, for a young girl she's fun to watch and her disposition is funny. She can take a down turn and make it UP. She can cry and then sees the bright side.

In other news...

I have paid for 1/2 a beef and we should be able to pick it up in a couple weeks I guess. I'm not asking for them to do anything extra, mostly steaks. I'll be glad to not have to go buy hamburger at the grocery store.

Amble and I will be having another driving lesson with Stephanie, she will be here in an hour. She texted that she wants to drive Amble in her halter and since I did that myself last week I know Amble will be OK with it. I might need to use a better halter, her regular one has squared metal side thingys and the long lines don't hold onto it well.   I just grabbed one of the leather halters thats been hanging on Bucking Brown and washed it up really quick, that might work.

I need to go open the gate for Stephanie, take some boxes out to the barn for her and sweep the barn aisle. I'm looking forward to this lesson.

Re-evaluating Life

 I've decided to not do the John Wayne Riders & Wagons ride across Washington state this year. Its been a Bucket List item for 30 years, I wanted to do it with Joey but never got around to it. Now, I have Amble and was planning on it with her this year but we're not ready; I don't have her saddle figured out, I don't have a cart that fits yet, I don't have money ($3,500) to buy the cart offered last week, I need to sell these ones that I do have that are way too small and I don't have the $2,000 to pay for the ride this year.

We DO need to go to Pioche and work on the house there and we do have cash for that but its a separate account and neither of us are getting into that money.

I also have a big too much personal debt and can certainly pay more of that off.

I'm sad today, having made all these life plan changes.

Friday the 13th, 2026

 I thought we could just sit at home & avoid any bullshit today but 

NOOOOO, 

bullshit came to our door, quite literally, via USPS.

On February 2nd, I complained to my boss about my back hurting so I got off work early and I went directly to a chiropractor. He doesn't do L&I claims and told me DO NOT tell them you saw me at all, so he is now out of the equation.

The next week my supervisor encouraged me to fill out a 'Green Packet', our departments on the job injury paperwork. You fill it out, turn it in and when you go to a doctor they give you a claim number. I found a chiropractor who does L&I and I've seen him about 4-5 times already. Meanwhile, I got a letter saying L&I WOULD cover my injury. Now, today, on FRIDAY THE 13TH, I get a shit-ton of letters from L&I saying they are reviewing my claim and might not cover it.

My boss told me LOTS of people in our business get this exact injury and that's why she wanted me to fill out the green packet. She thought I'd be out of work for a long time but I came back on my next scheduled day because I don't have an unlimited amount of PTO and I certainly wouldn't want to waste it on a work injury.

Heres a photo I took of one of the many xrays the doctor took, this shows how my hips are rotated, the left one looks smaller and my butt crack isn't in line with my tail bone. 

I didn't get a photo of the head so I borrowed one from the internet, this one has teeth missing, lol.

The head xray of me was awesome and next time I go see him I'll ask if I can get a photo of it.

And, in horsey news, I have received the neck strap retainer strap attachment that goes to the saddle on Amblesides harness and I have ordered the noseband hangers, the new crupper and a browband. I bet that fucker doesn't work or is too big or whatever. with the amount of money I have had to pay for all these new/missing parts & pieces to the harness, I could have ordered a brand new custom Comfy Fit harness made FOR AMBLE from Chimacum Tack.

I've also had to order about $300 of parts for the wooden cart.

February Already

 I can not believe how fast time flies, seems just recently I was 12...

Yesterday we drove 400 miles r/t hauling Amble to the trainers, just so we could check out a cart.

And its a dang fine cart!

I have only 1 photo of it now, with another horse pulling so I'll post photos IF I get to buy the cart.

Anyway, long day that was exciting and fun.

I've been working on the old wooden Jerald cart Meghan gave me, too bad I didn't realize how many parts she had removed from it by the time she gave it to me. I've already spent about $300 and it easily needs another $300, just for silly little things. I'm just going to get it done and sell it, all monies going toward the new cart.

Jerald Cart

I'm putting a little effort into fixing up the Jerald easy entry cart I've got. It was supposed to fit Amble but its way too small, it's for a 14hh horse, not a 15.2hh one.

this first photo is a google image and how mine is supposed to look.

Heres mine now

I sanded the pieces a little, so it would accept the new clear coating. 

I'm pretty sure with about 4 coats that it will look just short of amazing, for it. The boards have 1-2 coats on each side, the shafts have 3 on the back, just 1 at this end.

I've ordered & received most of the small parts it needs to make it complete and I'll still need more, I'm sure. I bought a new singletree (which needs a few holes in it) and a cross bar (which needs to be shortened) but I didn't stain either and I also didn't sand them and I think you can tell with the cross bar but oh well. I'm not going to have it any longer than I need to.

In other news, the beautiful saddle I bought for Amble has been sold for $1,000 (I had $1,300 into it & never used any of the pieces) and the consignment store gets to keep I think 20% so I'll get a nice check to put toward a marathon cart <- IF Teresa and Will have one to sell me. 

Today I had another lesson with Staphanie but I went to the barn where her 2 mini's are living and I drove Bo. Hes a skinny little guy, has a disease that took all his front teeth but they all get the BEST vet care available.

These are Laddie, the mini I gave her in 2018 and Bo, the little guy with no front teeth. Sweet boys.

Stephanie dolled them up and I took photos for her & she ChatGPT'd this photo.

 

I'm A Snake

This is one of the x-rays taken of me today and I'm pretty messed up, all wonky, crooked and misaligned. 

I've been selling at work all summer which requires me to reach out a window to cars to take payment and to return their cash change or credit cards. I try to use my right arm equally but it hasn't worked and I'm now just in pain.

Too bad I can't even say its caused by my horses bucking me off or anything.