01/06/2026
Winter, in all its splendor, is not for the faint of heart, atleast not if you have horses. The last few days up here have been rugged! The waterer froze. The propane stove in the feed room stopped working. The hay chopper thought it was just too cold to work properly. Each thing individually, no problem. Pile them all together on top of the other things that need doing, hoof trimming (man that rasp can hold the cold) mucking frozen (like golf balls) p**p, pulling hay nets on round bales, keeping them fed and happy. Then at the end of it all walking into a warm home. Feeling the wood heat soak into frozen bones. Thawing out for the next round. Feeling like you accomplished something good. Admiring my lettuce and spinach growing in the window. Its all about perspective. Its all about "what is your why?" The heat is back in in the feed room. The senior horses get 10 big, soaked buckets a day. They need to be kept above freezing because it takes about 4 plus hours to soak. The waterer is (for the moment) working and we always had water so the horses had buckets. I'm grateful they know how to tell me when something isnt right. My blessed father helped me chop the round bale and since he has super powers, was able to get the hay chopper to work. So all is well on the mountain and though I'd still choose this, I am dreaming of warmer weather (but not rain and ice).
