So instead of my usual long-winded blathering, how about a photo essay instead!!
My tack cupboard #1. Somehow I ended up with two tack cupboards, probably because I've got seniority (having boarded at Windsonnet since 1998...yow!) and I've just got so much junk....the price one must pay for owning the ultra-versatile Arabian breed...that's why I need three saddles, 6 bridles, 4 halters, and a harness!!
Sure like to know what the heck happened to my iPod Shuffle I THOUGHT I had left in a spare brush bag on the upper shelf...it's not there now, but my heart won't allow me to believe that someone stole it. I might have taken it home, but I can't find it there. Like locking the barn after the horses ran off, I have it padlocked now, but hopefully it turns up. Otherwise I hope the thief enjoys Bollywood music and Weird Al tunes.
Off to the pasture to get the horse. Happily Quzqo was already up front, waiting his turn to get a drink.
Playing peek-a-boo behind his buddy, "Bill" the Paint horse.
Bill never did let him get his drink, so I brought him out of his pasture and he was able to get a drink in the neighboring paddock. Gotta get a good drink before the workout he was in for!
Sophie the Paint mare watches from the other side of the fence. I remember when Sophie was foaled on the farm years ago...she's a couple of years younger than Quz. Sweet little pudgy gal!
Since it's Sunday, that's Bran Mash Day! Today's Mash featured a fresh, crisp, locally-grown Ginger Gold Apple, with a carrot and dried molasses mixed with the bran and water!
Bran Mash...Garrrrrrggggghhhhhhh
Quzqo is THE drooliest horse I've met (recently...there was a Thoroughbred back in the early '90's who'd drool his grain and leave puddles outside his stall). He just loves his bran mash, and slobber-drools ridiculous amounts!
Senior Corgi, "Lola", helps herself to some bran-and-horse-spit-spattered mash from the floor! Yummy!While Quzqo was enjoying his mash and being brushed, they had a couple of new horses loose in the indoor arena, who didn't WANT to be caught. They were tearing around the arena, bucking and snorting and blowing, galloping and careening.
Quz was fine with that until one of them came up and stuck its head through the rails and tried to get at the bran bucket. Then Quzqo pinned his ears and started to swing his hind end towards the rails, ready to kick. That's when I'd decided he'd had enough (he was almost finished anyway) and moved him away from the rail and into the cross-ties for harnessing.*Sigh* Time to work. Such enthusiasm.
But O, what a dapper lad once he was dressed!! No, I don't use the overcheck, it pisses him off, and he's fine without it.
I know some folks insist that hitching up a horse by yourself is dangerous and shouldn't ever be done, but I say it depends on the horse. Quz has become so blasé about the whole thing, it's simple to hitch him up while he's in the cross-ties, then lead him out the wide barn doors, cart and all. He stands good as gold while I get in the cart (now), and waits until he's asked to move forward. Usually.
We headed off towards new adventures, cutting across the barn lawn towards the road, avoiding the driveway where Carlos the Spaniard was mowing, and Bob the owner was sawing logs with a chainsaw. Yeah, I think we'll avoid that part of the facility for now:
Beautiful looking weather, eh?
Quzqo started his usual toe-dragging "I don't wanna leave the barn" act, but a bit of pestering with the whip on his butt got him moving at a brisker walk ("Feel the lash of my whip, horse!!")(Yeah, light fwapping on his well-cushioned behind, real abuse there). We were walking nicely down the roadside, I heard a motorcycle coming up behind us...no worries, it wasn't a big one -
SCREEEEEECH!!
For some reason I have yet to figure out, the motorcyclist JAMMED on his brakes a few yards behind me, so much so that I could smell the burning rubber, then accellerated rather shakily off, his bike stuttering and sputtering until he got it into gear (do motorcycles have gears? I assume so) and disappeared. Don't know what that was about, unless he was daydreaming and all of a sudden a horse and cart appeared on the shoulder of the road and he panicked. I thought we were visible enough, with the SMV triangle sign on the back, and I was deliberately wearing my bright neon orange "Club Gitmo" t-shirt, plus the horse is WHITE... Well, glad the guy didn't flip his bike and crash into us or something.
Happily, Quzqo barely twitched an ear. That's my boy!
For something different this time, we headed straight down the road, instead of turning at our usual intersection. We've never gone down that side of that bit of road. Traffic was nearly non-existent, so I felt safe enough driving in the right lane, not on the shoulder.
Down another residential street, where we came across a pair of Huskies in a fenced-in yard. The dogs were at the corner of their yard, standing stock-still, watching us. Quzqo saw them, and froze in his tracks, staring at them, ears pricked...ready to jump sideways. I urged him forward, he started to veer to the left. Yes, of course by that moment a car was coming towards us. Thankfully the dogs began to bark frantically...Quzqo went "Oh...dogs...okay", lowered his head and walked calmly forward!
Once he knew they were just dogs, he was fine. That's why I hate it when people stand frozen, not making a move or a sound so they don't "scare the horse", not realizing that that's exactly what DOES scare the horse. I always call a greeting, to get them to move or say something, so Quz knows they're just people and nothing to worry about.
We continued on down the unpaved portion of the road, and at long last, a photo of the scary redneck hovels on "Deliverance Drive" that I've mentioned in the past!
Scary broken-down singlewides, empty ramshackle hovels, a truly amazing compound that originated as a small travel trailer with little wings and rooms built on to it. Trash everywhere...no excuse for that, not with a recycling drop-off point maybe 1/4 of a mile away. Quzqo didn't do his normal spooking this time, maybe because nobody was home and hanging around in their yards to frighten him.
We did encounter "Killer" the Spaniel, but he only ran onto the edge of the road to bark at us. We were trotting past at a pretty good pace, and were by his property before he had a chance to get his scary, angry Redneck owner out there yelling at us.
Further down the road we once again encountered the Flags-And-Hockey-Sticks mailbox display that was the scene of much consternation a few weeks ago. Thank goodness there was no wind today, and we passed without incident.
At the end of the road it turns into a two-track into the woods. Things seemed quiet enough, and I knew where there were wide spots in the trail to turn around if needed, so we went on in!
There are a lot of surface roots making the road kind of bumpy, and I know further on there's some big dips, and a couple of hills with loose sand. My biggest worry would be what if we met dirt bikers, ATVs, or oncoming trucks or cars? There's very few places on the side that we could pull over to....if I'm just riding, it's easy enough to climb up the roadside and wait in the trees, but not so with a cart.
After about a hundred yards we came to a clearing, and being the cautions (coward) soul that I am, we pulled up in there and started to turn around. Quzqo began to be a stinker, and refused to turn, but tried to head into the trees, I got him 3/4 of the way around when I saw a glint of light to the right...coming down the trail was a huge red Dually pick-up truck!!!
Lord, I know You are watching over us!!! And for that I thank You!!!!
I backed Quzqo up into the clearing, well off the two-track, and the truck trundled past, filling up the entire roadway, a fat, old, pickle-puss of a woman at the wheel. She didn't even glance our way, I wonder if she even realized we were there!
Back the way we came, I, at least, was disappointed, as I'd love to drive that entire trail through the woods, as it comes out eventually at a paved road that loops around back to the barn. But not at the risk of meeting a Dually or worse!
Quz was happier than anything to be heading HOMEHOMEHOME, and trotted energenically back the way we'd come, past the Hockey-Flags, past Killer's house, past Deliverance Drive, down Reynolds Road back towards the barn.
You might remember the Great Forest Caterpillar Invasion of 2009... I'm sad to report that those trees that were defoliated by those caterpillars haven't really recovered:
Doesn't look much better than it did back in June. Sure hope those trees can survive the winter, I doubt they got much food stored up with no leaves.
Our shadow as we made our way home.
Back at the barn!
I deliberately parked my blue Forester off to the side, just in case I didn't make it back to the barn, and had to go to the hospital instead...this way it's not in the way if it had to sit there a few days.Hey, I seriously take this sort of thing into consideration! Lessons learned in the past, believe me!
We were gone around 2 hours, a good drive indeed! Quzqo was suitably tuckered out, and ready for dinner!
Hurry, Monkey Slaves!!! I hunger for my grain!!!
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