Archives for July 2020

Hi Sweetie!
What a busy day today! After breakfast I took Apollo for a short, four mile ride, doing some of the trails backwards for a change, just because, as you know, every trail looks completely different going in the opposite direction! After we got back, I decided to run into town. I was getting low on horse feed and my Tractor Supply 10% discount expired today, so I ran out to stock up on everything, and they had every kind of feed I needed for a change! After that I was going to head to Walmart when I saw a Meiers right in front of me, so I decided to give them a try. I know we were always impressed with them, and it turned out to be very serendipitous, as they had a few things that I haven't been able to find lately, most importantly, JOINT JUICE! Walmart stopped carrying it and I haven't been able to find it anywhere, but there it was! I stocked up on it bigtime, I probably have a six-month supply now! I also got some new sunglasses, Walmart's selection was horrible, but this one had a sale going on so I bought two nice pairs. So I'll be going to Meiers whenever I can find one for awhile. When I got back, I started a load of laundry, then decided to take one last trip on the lake with the kayak, so I headed over to the boat launch and had a nice one hour paddle around. I crossed the lake over to the beach again and took a swim, then let the wind, which was a bit stronger today, help me drift back, though it wasn't exactly going in the right direction so I had to compensate occasionally. And I saw a bald eagle fish hunting! What a magnificent bird! The cormorants were still around, too, along with a bunch of others. Once I got back to camp, I deflated the kayak and put it away, and proceeded to start doing some packing. Evidently there's rain and cooler temps coming in overnight, and rain is forecast tomorrow. I considered taking down the screen room today, but it was so dang hot, in the 90's today, I decided I'd take a chance. It's scattered showers, not an all day rain, so hopefully I can get everything in before it gets too wet, if the forecast turns out to be right for a change :-). Then I filled up the water tank and the horses' water, then I pulled the truck around to the back of the trailer and topped off the tires. I had noticed when I put the spare on that it was about 10 pounds of pressure less than it should be, so I got out that Slime inflator and fixed that, then checked and found that the rest were down just a bit, so I did the rest. I checked all the fluids and everything on the truck, I must have a leak in the power steering unit (even though it's only about a year old) because it was low again. When I changed the oil a few weeks ago I noticed quite a bit of wetness down there, but couldn't figure out where it was coming from, now I think I know. I'll have to take a look at that sometime, see if I can fix it. Everything else was good, though. It was 8:00 by the time I got everything done, but I feel like I'm as ready as I need to be. It's going to be in the 70's tomorrow, so it will be much easier to work in the cooler weather, if it's not too rainy. Anyway, that's all the news that's fit to print! I've had my shower, now I'm off to bed. Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hey Babe!
Had another great day today, slept so late Trish went on a ride without me, but that's fine! I knew she was an early riser, and I slept later than I expected, and then I joined her as soon as she got back from her short ride and did just under another five miles. This is such a small trail area that we keep having to repeat trails just to get some miles in. When we got back we took the kayak out on the lake again for a couple of hours in the beautiful sunny weather. Once we got back, she was packed up and ready to go in no time, and then I spent the rest of the afternoon working on my travel schedule for August and September. I just remembered the horses will be due for a new Coggins and Extended Health Certificate pretty soon, so I had to start researching that as well. It seems to be coming together, but I'm having one problem at a place I'd like to go, but there are two nights in my planned two week-long stay that are already booked, so I'll either have to move from my site to another site for the last three days, or move on to the next campground, if they'll let me stay longer than the usual 14 days. A quandary I'll have to resolve somehow. Otherwise, I think I've got a plan to get me through to the Skymont Endurance Ride in October, all subject to change, of course! So a great day, beautiful weather, good company, couldn't ask for more! But it's late and it's time for shower and bed, so good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hi Darlin'!
Life couldn't get much better with days like this. My new friend Trish arrived around 11:00 with her TW named Eli, and once she got settled in next door, we saddled up and went out for a lovely ride. The weather was perfect, not too hot, though hotter than it's been, but it's nice and cool in the deep woods and even the open areas weren't too bad. Of course, Lola came along and enjoyed herself, too, dropping her belly into mud puddles whenever she had the chance. After we got back, we changed into swimwear and took the kayak out to the lake where we paddled and drifted, watching the birds fish (I looked them up later, they were cormorants, sit on stumps like a wading bird, but fly like a duck when they're taking off) and generally just enjoying the sun and the breeze on the lake. We got back from that adventure hungry, and she had brought a bunch of stuff along, like leftover pizza, summer squash and cold pea salad, all of which was lovely, and after that, we headed back out for another ride on the other side of the park, basically going on all the trails we didn't go on earlier. Once we put the horses away, she went off to the bathhouse to shower while I did the same in my trailer, then she came over and we watched a recording of when you did the one-man show Clarence Darrow in Monteagle, which she thoroughly enjoyed. By then it was almost 10:30, so we obviously had to call it a night. She's an early riser, so we parted ways for the night. Looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow! Couldn't have asked for a better day! Fantastic! Off to bed now, good night, my love!

Hi Babe!
After another decent night sleep and a good breakfast, I saddled up Apollo today, he certainly needs some exercise! I planned about a 5-6 mile trip around the park, finishing off a couple of trails I missed the other day of Flash. Another nice ride, absolutely perfect weather, very easy, mostly flat, good footing. I also found the trailhead for a trail that leads to the lake, but it looks like it's supposed to be just for hikers, not sure if horses are allowed on it. Maybe I'll ask about it, or maybe I'll just try it out and see what happens :-). I was hoping that with the change in diet to alfalfa that Apollo might show a bit more energy, but not so much. Sigh... I love him to death but he's gotten so slow, especially compared to Flash, it's so boring to ride him. Oh, well, he's still my go-to horse! As long as where I'm going to isn't far or fast! It was a nice ride though. Gave him a bath, then I expanded the fence a bit, no one seems to mind the fence so I spread it out a bit to let them get to some more clover. After a quick snack, I got out the inflatable kayak and proceeded to inflate it, changed into my bathing suit, got everything I needed together and drove down to the boat launch where I had an easy launch. The wind was coming from the perfect direction, so I paddled upwind all the way across the lake, stopped briefly near the beach to swim, just to get wet, then paddled a little bit parallel to the shore, then finally stopped paddling and let the gentle breeze push me all the way back to the boat ramp while I luxuriated in the beautiful sun and surf. I should probably feel guilty for enjoying myself so much, but alas, I don't! A perfect summer day! Was out on the water for almost two hours, then headed back to ramp, then back to camp. What a beautiful day! I read for awhile, had some dinner, watched a little TV, now I've just got to shower and get to bed. It's a lot cooler tonight, so I'm hoping for a really good night sleep. And my friend Trish is coming tomorrow, she's rented the site next to me and bringing her Tennessee Walker, so we should get a good ride in tomorrow, and maybe a kayak trip as well. Just having too much fun! I don't know how I stand it! Good night, sweetie! Love you!