Hey Darlin',
Had another lengthy night sleep, starting to feel like I'm regaining some energy. After my usual chores, I even got busy and did some housework, vacuuming and reorganizing my wardrobe a bit. Jo and I were supposed to go do some trail work, but it rained off and on during the morning, so we weren't able to do it, which was fine by me. I also spent some time online. I decided to break down and rebook another flight for Africa. The ticket price was considerably more than my original ticket, but at least it will get me there without going through the middle East, where there's a bit of a conflict going on right now. I'm pretty sure my ticket will be refunded, since there are very few flights going in and out of Doha, and in particular, none to Kilimanjaro as of yet, but if things do suddenly clear up, I bought a refundable ticket, so I won't be out any money there. More than what I wanted to pay, but it's either that or scrap the whole thing if Qatar doesn't reopen their airspace in time. My hosts Chelle and Eric arrived home before noon, so I don't have the place to myself anymore, and Lola's back on her rope. When I was feeding the horses this morning, I noticed Apollo had an open wound on his belly, about six inches long and maybe 3/4 of an inch wide, so I put some wound spray on it. I had noticed him trying to scratch his belly on the ground the other day, thought it was just itchy winter coat coming off, but instead found this wound. Naturally, I'll keep an eye on it to see how it progresses. Settled down earlier than usual in the afternoon, bingeing on Monarch of the Glen, nice to have a quiet day. Feeling a lot more refreshed. Good to have a rainy day once in awhile, everything turning so green now! More rain and cooler temps tomorrow, so we'll be walking early, something I skipped today because I thought I'd be out in the forest. Won't be long out of bed! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hi Babe,
Woke up very early, worked on my shoulder for a bit, then ended up falling asleep again, then woke up much later, so a late start to the day. I still felt like all my limbs were extra heavy this morning, though. After chores and breakfast, I managed to buck up enough energy to take Lola for our two mile walk, did a few minor chores, then sat outside for a couple of hours waiting for a FedEx package for Chelle's husband that needed a signature. True to form, they were half an hour later than their two hour window (big surprise!), but once I got that, I made a big bowl of popcorn and watched a cute little rom-com. Just what the doctor ordered! I still feel a bit rundown from not having a day off in so long, so it was nice to do very little for half a day. I'm back to watching a couple of new seasons of Monarch of the Glen, which just became free on Prime, and settled down with a lovely hot tub and shower. I'm hoping to get to bed early tonight, could use a bit more sleep! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
Had a good night sleep, and right after chores I got busy on a list I created yesterday evening and this morning. Little jobs have been piling up, and the last few days, I kept forgetting what they were, so I would get to bed and realize the stuff I still had left to do, thus the list. That kept me busy and focused through the morning, then a nice rainstorm came in. Everything has been suddenly going from drought brown to luscious green this week! It's been lovely to watch, though I've been compelled to start pulling weeds out of the lawn before they go to seed. In the afternoon, I headed over to Val's pavilion where they hold a line dancing class led by Susie, the woman I rode with earlier this week. I'm afraid it revealed some serious deficiencies in both my body movements and my memory! I thought I was pretty fit, but I found it somewhat challenging, though I suspect some of it was that I was wearing the wrong shoes for the activity. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Never have been a big fan of line dancing, but it was a nice social event anyway. I brought Lola and she had a good time wandering all over the field and saying hello to everyone. Got home, did a few more chores and repairs, then finally settled down for the evening, had my hot tub and shower, Spanish lesson, all done for the day! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
Today's big adventure was to finally get my molar cap on. It took some doing, it seemed to be a bit big, but the dentist (not my usual doctor, because she is on maternity leave) eventually managed to get it comfortable. Picked up my mail and did a little shopping at Walmart, skipping by my usual fuel fillup, since the prices are sky high and I still have half a tank. Later I learned that the oil consortium has agreed to release a whole lot of reserve oil to quiet down the market, no doubt because they all realize that helping the USA (and the Donald) at this moment in time will be to their benefit in the long run. I'm sure it will soon result in lower prices, which I can afford to wait for, since I don't have that many places to drive to for awhile. Got back home about 2:00, did a couple of chores, then took the rest of the afternoon off. I'm still feeling very tired from the energy spent last week, I feel like I haven't had a day off in ages! Settled down for the evening, had my hot tub, and even got to see an ISS flyover while I was in there, and I won't be long out of bed. Bourbon and Spanish lesson is all that's left to do! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hiya Babe,
Woke up early, worked on my shoulder, fed the horses and Lola, had breakfast, my usual morning. Afterwards, I started a load of laundry (my quilt) in Chelle's big washer, then Lola and I took our walk around the neighborhood. Just as we were leaving, Amazon came by with my first delivery of the day, a 15' sewer hose so I could empty my black water tank. Even with Chelle's loaner, I was about 10' short, so I ordered this to finish the distance. I like this new one, it shrinks nicely, and is easier to do than the Rhino. I also bought a six-pack of zippered storage containers, I think they'll be better for storing the hoses than the garbage bags I've been using. I wasn't sure about what I would do with the rest of them, but I figured something would become obvious. As soon as we got back, we finished that dumping job, started another load of laundry (horse blankets), then headed out to get hay. I went by Triple J first and got a 21-bale bundle of coastal, which looked decent, then off to Tractor Supply to get some feed, fill up one propane tank, and get some feed and supplements for the horses. Our final stop was at Farmers Hay Direct for Chelle's two bales of alfalfa, which took a little creativity to fit in the truck that already had a big bundle in the back! But they managed it. I couldn't believe it when I went by a gas station that had diesel at $5.59 a gallon! There's a little kerfuffle going on over in Iran, and the threat of an oil shortage is getting the markets a bit excited, but I'm sure it won't last long. I hope not, because my flight to Africa depends on it! Qatari airspace is closed at the moment, so I did some research yesterday on alternative flights from other cities (Amsterdam and Istanbul seem to be my only options outside of Africa), but I'm still hoping things will settle down before I have to leave. Most of the other stations I saw hadn't gone that high yet, so we'll see. Got back home, stacked all my hay in the shed and Chelle's alfalfa in her shed, and by then it was 4:00, so I was done for the day. Well, almost. I had taken my horse blankets out of the washer and set them outside to dry, and it suddenly occurred to me that my one of my new little storage bags would be perfect for my summer blankets, instead of the plastic bag I've had them in. I knew something would come up! Guess I'll do the same for my winter blankets tomorrow. Finally settled down for the evening, finished off the 12 Monkeys TV series, then decided to watch the Bruce Willis movie that inspired it all. I liked the series much better, though it was obviously a lot more complicated and mentally challenging, but I enjoyed the comparison. Took my hot tub, shower, Spanish lesson and finally, a nightcap, off to bed soon! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
Slept deeper than even last night with my earplugs, woke up when it was still dark, only to realize that that was the new 7:00. Grrr! I hate Daylight Savings Time! Just when I get used to it being lighter past 7:00, it suddenly goes to 8:00 pm! Really screws me up. I wish they would just get over it already. Anyway, I did some laundry, then drove over to Val's and spent a couple of hours helping with the cleanup, then one of the horse owners, Melody, invited me to a party at her house, so I went over there for a bit. Saved me from having to cook and cleanup dinner. Got back, fed the horses, took a hot tub just after sundown (at 8:00!!), then settled down for the evening., as if there was much of an evening left. Almost too late to watch even an hour program on TV! Made a date for riding in the morning, so I'll be off to bed early. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Babe,
Had another good night sleep, though once again was up before the alarm. Fed the critters then headed over to FITS by about 7:30, and by the time I had breakfast there, the LD riders had left at their 8:00 start time. It was a pretty relaxed day, where I intermittently drove around, pulling pink flags, signs and a few posts as people were leaving, until the last riders came in, when I finished pulling out everything and putting them all into the little shed where they belong. Everything was in, so I rewrote the sign at the entrance to read, "I'm on my 2nd, 3rd glass of wine, park wherever the hell you want! JJ." Tongue in cheek, of course! The party started, and I had several glasses of wine, then left after the sunset, managing the get the horses all done before it got too dark. Jumped into the hot tub, but near the end it started to rain, so I cut it short and headed inside. A shower, a last glass of wine and a one hour TV show and I'm falling asleep in my chair. Heading to bed ASAP! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie!
Finally, had a great night sleep! Put earplugs in and slept hard and sound for nearly seven hours, so woke up refreshed, even at 5:40! Got my chores done, skipped breakfast until I arrived at the pavilion, where their fabulous chef had a lovely sausage and fried egg sandwich for me. Spent the day once again chasing down people who can't read signs, or don't care to. Was particularly disappointed in the fact that one space, reserved for my friend Meg, who I knew was coming back at 3:00 am, had to have been disappointed when someone (who will not be named, but I know who they are) decided to park one of their many rigs in her space. I mean, it was empty, right? So that was enough for them to take it over. The result was that Meg had to park crookedly in an entirely different space. Very glad that despite that, she won the 100 mile ride! People just don't seem to realize the domino effect they create when they don't follow instructions! I had another guy park his truck in such a way that it blocked two of the three exits in the car parking lot, but that started by one woman who parked in the middle of the "road," then someone else parked next to her, and by the time she left, two others had taken up residence, and that meant everyone had to go around them, creating more wear and tear on the field, which is what I'm trying to minimize! Sigh... Anyway, overall, it was a quiet day, helped as many folks as I could, grateful we didn't have another major storm come through, though it was a close call, with cells on either side of us. I finally found the last arrival, who bypassed the sign and didn't call me because she instead called her friend who said "come on down" and I never saw her come in, but I called her, through a circuitous method of obtaining her phone number since she didn't have it on her registration, and finally confirmed her arrival, which meant my departure was possible. Again, the domino effect. I arrived back home a bit after 8:00, fed all the horses, fixed the water tank for mine, since it was empty, likely because my curious Mr. Apollo probably knocked it over, poured myself a bourbon, took a hot tub, started my laundry, and settled down for another short night, though everyone I expected to come in has arrived, and everyone else is a day rider, so I don't feel compelled to get there too early. I expect my day tomorrow will likely be spent starting to pick up flags and other markers in areas that aren't being used anymore. It's all over by tomorrow night, so Sunday will be cleanup. Then I can crash for a day or two, if my dog and horses let me :-). Heading to bed after my second bourbon and a shower, and hopefully another good night sleep. Good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
I can't believe I'm saying this, but I still had trouble sleeping last night! After a hot tub, a hot shower, a cup of super strong Sleepytime tea and a melatonin pill, I still tossed and turned for a long time. Then, just as I thought I was drifting, Lola started getting restless, climbing the stairs, panting heavily, and generally being noisy. So some more hours went by. I finally fell asleep at some point, but it didn't seem like I got much before the alarm went off. Oh, well! I was up before dawn, had a quick bowl of cereal, got my chores done, and made it to camp at 7:04, two minutes after I got a call from a camper trying to get in. Wow. I spent the day mostly trying to deal with people and parking. It's amazing to me how thoughtless and inconsiderate some people are. Not most, but some, and it's that some that seem to take up all my time. I had people parking outside the car parking area, I had someone park in an alley instead of the parking area, and before I caught it, five more people had parked next to them, so the entire parking area went from four rows to three, so then people started the fourth row outside the parking area. I had folks parking along a fence where there was clearly a gate for entry, blocking the gate. I had riders that parked their trucks in front of their trailers, rather than alongside of their trailers, thus blocking the road. I even had one rider who had FOUR vehicles in front of her trailer, all of them encroaching on the road, and she was on a corner, which meant if I had tried to make that corner with a big rig, it would have been nearly impossible! Certainly much more difficult. I had one that, even though I showed them their site and delineated their flags, parked completely perpendicular to their site, taking up two and a half spaces, totally in the wrong direction. People just don't listen or comprehend anymore, IMO. Other than that, it was a much less busy day than earlier this week, only managed to get about 12k steps in today. Had a lot more food available, including breakfast, which means I won't have to take time for breakfast tomorrow, I can get it onsite. Just as the ride meeting was ending, I checked the radar and saw a storm coming, and since I was done for the day (everyone coming for tomorrow morning was already in), I raced home to try to get the horses fed before the downpour. Didn't quite make it, but managed to get my horses hay out just before the heavy rain, and was in Chelle's barn feeding hers during the worst of it. It rained a few more times during the evening, much appreciated to cool things down from this very hot day. Happy that it will tamp the dust down, too, it was starting to get bad today. Anyway, poured myself a drink, took a shower, and plan on heading to bed shortly. Praying for a good night sleep! Good night, baby! Love you!