Afternoon Edition...

From Jim: This morning we fed in the rain. This afternoon is glorious sunshine! It was chilly this morning-almost snowing. It's warm now! Bright blue skies with wispy clouds-lovely! The sanctuary had one of our volunteers work with the horses today. Irene is spending time with those critters that really don't trust our kind. They have not been treated well by two-leggeds and are rightfully cautious. Irene has the patience and gentle manner that can help rebuild a good relationship with our abused animals. It takes a lot of time and improvement is measured in very small increments. Even a brief nose touch is a big deal. You can't help but wonder how it would go if the roles were reversed? If we had suffered what these animals went through and now we were asked to trust again? I guess that's one of the reasons I like them so much. They are remarkable in their capacity to heal and move on. The ground here will dry out in a day or two and need some tractor work. The drainages will require cleaning up and the stalls will need mucking. We want everything in order for the next generation of flies-Man, do I hate flies! We're going to friends for dinner tonight, so we'll try to get the chores done early. It's better for everyone when we have a few minutes to clean up before going out. Eau-De-Horsey is not universally appreciated. We can hope that someday the rest of the world catches on, but for now, it's better to conform to standards not of our making. When I picked up this last load of hay, I got a chance to look over next year's crop. Something really comforting in seeing the young beardless wheat that will provide the herd with food. The planning and preparation for the care of 80 equines, 2 calves, 4 goats, 3 dogs, 8 cats, and a flock of chickens and guineas can be demanding and the consequences for messing it up are not nice. Thank goodness for the help we get from Lyle and from Brian, at Oroville Tractor Supply. (They like Eau-De-Horsey) It's time to post this and get out to the afternoon chores! I need to leave some time to love on some of the critters!