Hey Sweetie,
I've said it before and I'll say it again. A ride with my friend Linda isn't just a ride, it's an adventure! I got up bright and early, even before my alarm, had breakfast, caught and saddled Flash in time to load him up in Linda's trailer just after 8:30, and off we went, plus Holly, fifty one miles to a trailhead (sort of, but actually the side of a road) near Jellico Plains. We got out our clippers and started climbing and clipping, clearing the trail for a club event they're having here in a few weeks. Flash only had one problem, same as before, where he doesn't like going over a log that's too high and too close to a drop-off (I can't blame him, he's much smaller than the two walkers with us) so we had to do a little extra clearing to get him around the top of the tree, but it wasn't very much and didn't take long. The rest of the way was gorgeous with only the usual overgrowth. We essentially climbed up a mountain, then rode along the ridge for awhile, which I later discovered was actually the border between TN and NC when I overlaid it on Google Earth, then back down the mountain. A great 9+ mile loop! There were a few slippery spots, but for a flatlander, I thought Flash did a magnificent job. Of course, he kept trying to get in front, and we finally had an opportunity and he took off, though he didn't go as far or as fast as I thought he might, probably because he's somewhat out of condition with all the sitting around he's been doing during my recovery. But he certainly enjoyed being in the lead for awhile! Holly's horse took a fall on some rocks and nearly went over the edge of an embankment, but she managed to step off and he managed to fall with his front feet under him, so he was able to right himself, thank goodness. Apparently, another time they rode out here, one of their group slipped in almost the same spot and plunged downhill a ways, and it was quite the production to get him back up to the trail. Her horse had a bit of a scrape on it's leg, so we stopped and bandaged it up. Fortunately, I had grabbed my first aid kit this morning, so I had some gauze pads and she had some vet wrap, so we took care of it in short order. No limping, and the bleeding stopped by the time we got back to the trailer. We loaded up and headed toward home, stopping at a Mexican restaurant for some lunch and a daiquiri, which was wonderful. Just as we were going through the nearest town to Linda's, she turned up a steep road and suddenly, her truck stalled. Apparently she let the fuel get too low and on the hill, all the fuel ran to the back of the tank and just quit. We were nearly blocking the road, so while I directed traffic, Holly hitched a ride to a nearby gas station, bought a two gallon tank and was brought back, and we managed to be back on the road in less than half an hour. Of course, halfway through that adventure, it started raining, including lightning, just the kind of thing you want to have happen when you're directing traffic and pouring fuel into a tank! At least it was diesel! I was afraid two gallons wouldn't be enough, and that it would have to be primed, but fortunately, it all worked out and we managed to get it started and to the gas station, all the time the rain getting harder and harder. We finally made it back to the farm just as the rain was starting to let up a bit. We got out the horses, checked on Holly's horse's leg and found it was in pretty good shape, so they treated it and let it go out in the pasture. I waited until the rain stopped before borrowing the four-wheeler to carry my saddle and stuff to the trailer and put it away. I was going to hook up the truck tonight, but I'm on such a hill that my front end would have been too high for the night, so I decided to wait until morning. It's not like I have a lot of stuff to pack up, and no horse containment to put away, so it should be easy to get out, as long as the ground doesn't get so soft that I get stuck in the morning. Another band of rain came through, so that's a distinct possibility! I closed up the barnyard and kept the horses down here so I wouldn't have to try to chase them in the big pasture in the morning, that should speed things up as well. Anyway, it was a wonderful, adventurous day in an absolutely gorgeous forest, the Cherokee National Forest, with exactly the kind of riding I love, though I wouldn't mind doing it without having to clear it for a change! That's okay, I'll take it! I filled up my ice machine and am icing my leg down well tonight, I'm pretty sure it had a good workout going up and down those steep mountains today, though I took enough ibuprofen this morning not to notice, yet. 🙂 Looking forward to a hopefully uneventful drive to Kentucky tomorrow! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hey there, Sweetie!
Another good night sleep, had breakfast before feeding the horses so I could hang onto Apollo. Today is finally his day for a ride! It feels like such a long time since that's happened! I put Flash in the big pasture where they were last time, then saddled up Apollo, put on Lola's orange vest and away we went! It wasn't a very long ride, but that was what was necessary for both Apollo and Lola. They did great! It took a little while for us all to work out the stiffness, but once we were warmed up, it was fabulous! It was a bit wet after the rain last night, but it felt good as it was heating up. We did less than three miles, took us a bit over an hour, which was perfect. No one got too worn out, and we all got some exercise. I felt better for getting it done! Then I spent most of the afternoon trying to solidify my travel plans, eliminating some places and opening up to others. At least I now know where I'll be going next week and the week after, the rest it still up in the air until I find out which rides want my help. Just floating along, searching for 70 degrees as usual! Not finding it yet, though, it was pretty hot today until a band of thunderstorms went through. Much better now, so I'm hoping for an even better night sleep, though that hasn't been too much of a problem lately. I like that Lola can wander around here and the horses, until today, have also been hanging around the trailer and the barn when they weren't grazing. I even got Flash to come across the pasture for a mint this evening, though Apollo didn't bother. Anyway, a good day, though I'll be ready for some new trails by next week! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hi Babe!
Though I didn't get a very good night sleep last night, I had a wonderful day! I am SO back into my happy place! After chores and breakfast, I saddled Flash and we were off on what was supposed to be just a pleasure ride, with the one job of retrieving the rope that was borrowed to give the photographer something to grab onto as she climbed down to a tree next to the river to get pictures of everyone crossing the river. Not long into the ride, though, I started seeing step-in fence posts with arrows on them, so I made a mental note to pick those up on the way back. Shortly before I reached the river, however, I started seeing ribbon markers, so I started to collect those, thinking they would just be a few that were missed. We reached the rope and I managed to get that put away, then Flash and I crossed the Etowah River, which was moving pretty fast and was a bit deep! If I hadn't know of all the other horses that had crossed it, I might have thought twice about doing it. My feet even got a little wet, even though I pulled them up pretty high. Very exciting, though, and Flash was very proud of himself when we reached the other side! Good boy! We then turned west and almost immediately began running into more ribbons, so I kept picking those up. Managed to get quite a few! We took the blue trail all the way to the second road, but I didn't want to take that south to camp, it was too stony, so we doubled back until we reached the yellow trail, which took us on a direct route back to the river crossing, where we got to do it again! A few more turns and we were back at the sign posts, so I managed to pull those out, though that was not easy! Got back to camp after an absolutely fabulous ride, perfect weather, couldn't have asked for a better day. Definitely back in my happy place! Flash was perfect, and I'm happy to report that even though he was doing his silly antics with Apollo on Sunday morning, the bitey-face and rump rubbing and making Apollo squeal, since I started riding him on Sunday, that has all stopped. Just boredom, I knew it! So happy! Fed the horses, got the truck mostly hooked up and most stuff put away so it will be an easy departure tomorrow morning. Not sure where we're headed after Linda's, I have some planning to do. Footloose and fancy free! Love you, darlin'! Good night!

Hi Sweetie!
I am loving the cooler temps here, though I've heard that it's just as likely to be very hot and humid at this time of year, so obviously I've lucked out. Had a very good night sleep, took some ibuprofen as soon as I woke up in anticipation of an active day, got served a lovely breakfast of eggs benedict by my neighbor Jim Ong, got the horses fed, and before I knew it, I was saddling up Flash and was ready to go! I tracked down Michelle, one of the managers, and she sent me off on the red trail, with instructions to pick up all the markers I saw, and it would loop back to camp, so off we went. The dry day yesterday and overnight did wonders for the trails, they weren't anywhere near as slippery as I thought they might be, and they went through some beautiful terrain! I hadn't noticed how hilly it was here (the camp is flat), so I didn't put on his breast collar, a decision I was later regretting, though it wasn't too bad. The route I took didn't take me over the bridge or fording the river, so I'm hoping that I'll be allowed to stay so I can experience them. Before she left, Michelle told me about some other markers I can pick up tomorrow, so I have a plan and an excuse, at least. We were back in camp before 1:00, I sorted out the markers and left them at Shannon's trailer, along with a boot that someone had hung on the limb with some markers. I was surprised I only found one, considering how many people seemed to have lost boots yesterday. It was a lovely ride, perfect temps, very few bugs though a few biting flies found us on occasion, yet a very pleasant ride. I settled down for the afternoon to take a break, since I've been mostly going non-stop this week, glad to relax a bit. Read, watched a movie and an hour of TV, won't be long out of bed again. The place is almost empty (I think I just heard the last vehicle leaving) and I expect it will be a very quiet night tonight, which I'm really looking forward to. I feel like I'm having a little mini-crash from all the effort, even though yesterday was a slow day. Anyway, I have finally hit the road and had my first event on the road, am feeling great! Love you, babe! Good night!

Hi Sweetie!
What an incredible day! Got up bright and early while the temps were still cool, and shortly after breakfast, got Flash saddled up and headed out on the trail. What bliss!! He stood perfectly still while I fumbled around trying to mount on the onside, which I managed to do without too much trouble, and off we went! I was so anxious to get going that I forgot to fly spray him, or to check on my supply of insect repellent, and it wasn't long before the biting flies were swarming. The only answer, of course, was to outrun them! So we did a lot of gaiting. Interesting, though, as soon as we crossed Black Prong Road to the western section, the flies all but disappeared! Not a long of water over there as a rule, probably why. But there wasn't a lot of water over on this side either, the spring that's usually 2-4 feet deep also had NO water in it. I've never seen it that low. Good time to trim the trees there, though, I'll have to let Ranger Rick know. Anyway, we had a fantastic ride, and my leg was no worse for the wear, thank goodness! I can't believe it's only been 18 days since my surgery, and I'm out riding! Incredible! We got back just after 11:00, rinsed him off before I put him away, then came in and iced my leg, my usual regime. I was just about to leave to take the little trailer to Helen's when I got a phone call from the organizer of next Saturday's ride in N. GA, saying they could use me, so that sets up the first stop in my schedule! It also pushes me to get a move on, get everything packed and put away and ready to roll by Thursday! After the call I went to Helen's and put my little trailer under her little roof, then packed her into the truck where we first stopped for gas in her little lawnmower can, then off to Willard's for lunch with Jo. Got back to camp around 2:00, and spent a bunch of time on the computer getting my stops and travel plans sorted, getting appointments to get my hair done, changing my address, getting an appointment for Lola up in TN, just a lot of organizing. Tomorrow I'll have to do some more of the physical type of organizing, especially in the back of the trailer, but it's nice and clean after I pressure washed it a few weeks ago. I'll be busy for the rest of the week, but it will be worth it to get out of this heat! Anyway, finally settled down for the evening, no dinner for me tonight after a big pulled pork sandwich for lunch, and few PT exercises, I even took a hot tub because my scar is THAT healed! I'm sure it took much longer last time, maybe it's the red light treatment, and a lot of it is the stellar seam that Dr. Siebuhr made. So happy!! Another early morning tomorrow, gotta get the heavy lifting done before it gets too hot! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Darlin'!
How happy I am that I had a good ten and a half mile ride on Flash today! Jo has finally worked her new horse up to a trotting pace, so we did almost the entire trip at a decent speed for a change. It made Flash and me so very happy! We got to do a bit of cantering, which was the most comfortable ride for me, though his gait, as always, was smooth as silk. Thankfully Jo brought me some extra strength Tylenol, which I think made a world of difference, I hardly had any pain at all. The bend in my knee is actually the most comfortable at stirrup level, even more so than when I'm lying down or in my recliner. Fabulous ride! There was a decent breeze so it wasn't too hot, though it did get a little buggy in spots, but they bothered Jo's horse a lot more than Flash. I think we outran the worst of them. It is so very dry, even the deep spring was the lowest I've ever seen it. But I hear rainy season is starting soon, so I'm going to appreciate the dry weather while it lasts! Before we went out, though, I had to climb up on the roof again to secure the antenna down. I had left it open in order to ask the trailer guys how it could be fixed, and they didn't tell me anything new, so I'll just have to figure it out one day. I diligently followed my pre-surgical routine, and will soon be off to bed. I only plan on doing a little housework and laundry tomorrow, I've been wearing myself out doing physical stuff, so I'm going to regroup and conserve my energy for the big day. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Babe,
Think I had a bit too much wine last night, had a kind of rough night sleep. Was awake and reading when I heard the horses going at it this morning. I don't know what's been up with them lately, if they're just bored or what, but their bitey-face routine has become more violent, and they're going at each other butt to butt, kicking. I've been hearing the squealing, which didn't worry me too much, but I saw them kicking yesterday and didn't like that. Well, this morning, it was the worst, and Flash ended up lame. When I came out, he was laying down, which is not typical at this time of day, and I saw a bad scrape on his leg and he wouldn't put any weight on it when he got up. So, obviously, I couldn't ride him today! Not happy about this behavior, so Apollo is going back on the highline, hopefully Flash will stay away from him now. Anyway, did the usual morning chores, then started to get ready for a scheduled ride with Jo. Spent some time scraping off Apollo's winter coat before saddling him. Jo was kind enough to help me crudely trim his feet, we just took off the biggest overhanging chunks, which were huge since I haven't been riding him lately. We got out late, about 10:45, and it was a pretty slow ride (I think Apollo had a few bruises on him as well, though they weren't as obvious), and we got back just after noon, doing just about three miles. But it was good for Nikki, it was the spookiest part of the forest, and she managed to lead going over water a few times, though still not the deep spring. Helen was waiting for me when we got back, and we headed off to lunch a bit later, joining John the Goethe mechanic at his table, and had an enjoyable lunch. Tried to relax the rest of the day, got the horses fed moments before the first of a couple of rain fronts came through, and settled down for my usual evening. The rain finished just a bit before my usual hot tub time, and soon the moon was out, a beautiful night! Worked out perfectly. Of course, my knee is quietly screaming at me, so I'm headed to bed early. Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hey Babe,
A good night sleep, woke up before my alarm, did my usual stuff until Jo got here just after 10:00. I got Flash saddled up and we were off! I lengthened my left stirrup a bit, since that was causing me a bit of pain last time I rode, and the result was much better. I rarely had any pain, except the very occasional twist, and we even did a little trotting today. Once again we took mostly the blue trail and Nikki was much better with the puddles, and almost no hesitation on the big spring this time, so it seems Jo's making some progress with her. After trying an endless number of different bits, which Nikki chomped on so continuously she couldn't focus on anything else, Jo finally put a hackamore on her, and the difference is night and day! Nikki was much more relaxed today, and we all had a lovely ride. Of course, Flash would have like to go a lot faster a lot more often, but he was a good host and didn't fuss too much at the slower pace and only occasional trot. At least we had a nice ride, and my leg didn't hurt too much afterward! I even used our new mounting block for both getting on and getting off, using the off-side, and it worked well. After I put Flash away, Jo and I chatted for a bit before she left, then I took the rest of the day off, watching movies, icing my knee and generally relaxing. So, a good day! Splurge on a nice piece of top sirloin and had a pleasant evening before my usual hot tub and shower. Heading to bed shortly! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hiya Babe,
Had a good night sleep, was up at a good time, and was feeding the horses when I got a call from the doctor's office with my MRI results. Definitely some ripping and tearing and damage. They've forwarded the info to the doctor I want to use, hopefully he can get me in within a few weeks, but he seems to be the best, so I'll wait for him. I spoke to my supervisor about my need to stay here longer and to do less hours of work, and he was fine with all that. Now that I have a plan of action and a bit of a time frame, I can get busy doing the things I need to in order to get ready in a relaxed manner, including my unfinished taxes and the work on my roof, though I'm going to solicit some help with that. Once I get up there, I don't want to have to keep coming down to get things I forgot to take up with me! But that's in the future. The trailer repair shop finally came around today and finished working under the trailer, so I guess the basement cover is as good as it's going to get for now. Today, my leg was actually feeling pretty good, and know that Flash has been running circles in the paddock, I decided it was worth the risk to take him for a short ride. I mean, the damage is already done, I don't think I can do too much more to it, right? Besides, I need to locate the trail that Karen has been on me to mow, so I took it on. Flash was so eager he met me at the gate and practically stuck his head right into the halter! I managed to get him saddled okay, took a minute to get him close enough to the picnic table to step up on his off-side, but he was fine with it. We've done that a lot, so no big surprise. So off we went! I crossed the street and followed DeDe's instructions, and before long, I was at the spot I think Karen meant, so I took a pic and sent it to her to confirm, and it was the right place. At least I know now where it is, though when I'll get out there to mow it is anybody's guess. Flash was perfect though, as usual, and we even got a nice canter in, even though I kept my left leg out of the stirrup most of the ride, I found it was uncomfortable twisting in the stirrup. Got back to camp, managed to dismount at the picnic table on the off-side, again, with only a moment of issue, then untacked him, gave him and Apollo a nice rinse off (Apollo was standing at the fence looking forlorn, like he always does when someone else is getting a bath and he isn't), then settled down for the rest of the day. Glad to get a ride in, even though my knee is a bit more swollen and sensitive tonight. It was worth it! Felt better after my hot tub and shower, off to bed soon. Good night, sweetheart! Love you!