It's Too #$%#@! Cold Out There!!

December in Montana. Not for the faint of heart. Sub 0 temps and snow and wind. It just plain hurts. I envy bears. They eat themselves silly all spring, summer and fall then sleep all winter. Heck they even give birth in their sleep to babies the size of nothing. They are the smart ones.

Saturday we had the Storm of the Century which means we really haven't had one like it since the 90's. Ugly, ugly weather. Sometimes I wonder why I just don't live in a condo with a kitty. Feeding horses and doing chores in this is tough on a 53 yr. old body. The only perk is that the chickens are locked up and I get more eggs that way.

Fall thoughts

A very nice weekend saw me going for my autumn trip to Yellowstone. A 300 mile + day trip. Beautiful day with my Dad. After all he is the reason I get a $15 discount on Yellowstone's entry fee. He loves to go down there, maybe not as much as I, but he had a great time anyway. In the Lamar valley we just missed wolves chasing elk, but that's my wolf luck always down there. I just miss them every single time. Just the usual elk and tons of bison sightings. A raven at the McDonalds parking lot in West Yellowstone put on a show begging for food while sitting on my side view mirror and almost coming in the car. That was all the wild life for the day. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don't. The last time I made a fall trip I witnessed elk fighting, too close for comfort buffalo bulls and swans. I never regret a trip to the Park though. It clears the mind and makes me feel whole. It's a feeling all should experience.

Summer's over

The perfect last summer weekend. Although, here in Montana it is starting to look like Fall. The high country colors are starting and we've had snow on the peaks. Today I took a hike with my niece. Actually 2 short hikes about a total of 5 miles in length. Saw a couple of beautiful waterfalls and the woods were peaceful except for a lot of families cramming the last of the season in on the trails. Every one of us greeted each other on the trail. Took pictures for the other. Something about nature on a nice day that creates fellowship. We all know what is coming. The long dark winter and if one isn't a skier like myself, it's too long. In my next life I think I'll be a bear. Eat myself silly all summer and fall, sleep out the winter unfazed and give birth in my sleep to a baby the size of a peanut. Now that's life!

August

My mother would have been 80 years old today. At first I could picture her mourning the thought at turning into an octogenarian. Then I realized she would have preferred that to dying at 58 years old of PSP. I wonder how different our lives would have been if she had not got sick. I would trade it all to have her back and let her see her granddaughter who is walking in her piano playing shoes.

Summer is waning. I miss it already. I am planning future hikes and things left to do in a slight panic because I know what is coming and it seems to go on forever.

ah summer!

I love the sound of a rainbird sprinkler in the evenings like I'm hearing right now. What a pretty summer so far too. I finally have the place the way I want and it's working fine. I get uneasy when I get so satisfied. I have a tendency to wait for the other shoe to drop. I want everything to stay the way it is now. It would be nice if summer in Montana could last forever, but the skiers would hang me. Can't tell I don't ski do you? Winter? I just do chores with a ton clothes on. Right now, chores don't take long and to go outside all I need is a pair of Crocs or tennies. My family always teases me on the Summer Solstice that it now is goint to start going back to darkenss. Not funny! I love summer so much that if I was a pup, I'd roll on it.

A Perfect Weekend

Of course it helps to have perfect weather for Father's Day weekend. I spent the day yesterday with my Dad. Heck he lives with me, but yesterday was one of those great days. We spent the afternoon together working on fence so we could move our senior horses up closer to the house. He's 81, I'm 52. He is a power tool genius and I needed that to power bolt and reciprocal saw the fence. We've always worked well together on farm work. Dad's happy with the fence, I'm happy and the 3 old horses are happy with their knee deep grass. My pasture rotation works out better too this way.

Today I decided to assemble my new hammock. Of course couldn't get it done without Dad's help. He got a good laugh when I tried out my new hammock and fell out of it, twice.

It's weekends like this that are remarkable and memorable and stick with you forever. Happy Father's Day Dad!

The weather today was so lousy that we were prisoners indoors and the only thing interesting on the TV was the Belmont coverage. Now that the world is thoughly disappointed in the outcome, we move on. Big Brown was not in the mood to race in the sweltering heat in NY and Kent Desormeaux did the right thing pulling him up when he felt no horse under him. Brownie is too valuable to abuse into an off the board finish. That's the way the horseshoe bounces I guess. We'll have to wait and see what happens next with the horse.

On the political side I watched the fooforaw that was Hillary's concession speech. In typical Clinton controlling, dramatic fashion they kept everyone waiting. Then they made a grand entrance. Hillary took her deserved applause. Her speech was great for the first 10 or 15 minutes then it went on. And on. I started surfing channels. Checked back and she was still talking. Started surfing again, checked back, for fun this time, and she was still going. Somebody pull the batteries from that thing!

The Triple Crown?

Tomorrow by this time we'll know if we have a Triple Crown winner. Can Big Brown do it? It's been 30 years since we've had one. Big Brown is the real deal and the best horse IMHO since AP Indy who could have won it in the early 90's if not for a bruised foot the day before the Derby.

Brownie is push button and versatile which is what can win this race tomorrow. The only thing I see that can hinder him is the unknown factor of the 12 furlong distance. If Desormeaux can keep him cool on a hot day and have enough in the tank when he asks him it's a done deal. I don't think it will be Secretariat-sque, but I think he can get the job done. The sport badly needs a hero right now. His people aren't as cool as Big Red's, but more like the less likable Seattle Slew's connections which wasn't Slew's fault. He was spectacular. They aren't squeaky clean and do not give you that warm fuzzy feeling that was found in Secretariat's story and to a lesser degree, Affirmed's, but beggars can't be choosers. The big bay horse has the charisma of Secretariat despite his connections. Does he have the bottom to get there? Oh how I hope so.

The Last Best Primary

Montana, the Last Best Place and also the last primary of the election season. Obama will probably win here. He was here a couple of weeks ago in Bozeman and several thousand showed up in the huge MSU fieldhouse to see him and hear him say his patented 'change' speech. Bill showed up a few days later to about a thousand people in the lowly Shoroyer gym to show how Billary hasn't forgotten Montana also. Shows me who is going to win this primary.

I've been on this Earth only 52 years and every election cycle, especially when there's a Lame Duck in the White House, there's the candidates that say they are going to change the way things are done in DC if elected to the presidency. Every single bloomin' time they say that. Now that's really cool to the young voters. Wow, he's going to change everything. To that I say "p'shaw!" It's never happened in my lifetime. After the election reality sets in and those fine stump speakers find out how Congress and Washington work from the White House perspective. Get real! Not going to happen.

Zoom Zoom

I just wasted most of the day watching the Indy 500. We all watch to see if Danica Patrick will be the first woman to win the 500 and of course she had a her first Indy 500 DNF. I guess my second choice would be Marco Andretti to win, but he came in 3rd of 4th. I don't know much about open wheel racing so they are about the only names I know. I lived in Indianapolis from late 1965 to late summer 1967. In other words 4th and 5th grade because my Dad was transferred there as he worked for Eli Lilly. It was culture shock for a Montana kid to move there and both my sister and I didn't cope too well, at least she didn't as much as I. I do remember going to the time trials for the 500. Also, we got to ride around the track in a van at 95 mph. Something I don't think is done anymore for insurance and safety reasons. It was fun though. The racing names of those times were Parnelli Jones and Mario Andretti. I remember the people of Indiana were some of the nicest folks I have ever met. I mostly remember pining away for some kind of landmark that wasn't flat. I went through DT's without mountains. My Dad was then transferred to Boulder, CO so that emotional issue was solved, but that's a subject for anther time.

Now, tonight is NASCAR's Coca Cola 600. Their longest race. Now NASCAR is something I do know about being my father's daughter. Of course I root for Dale Jr., being my father's daughter. Memorial Day weekend car racing, a kick off to summer. A typical one here. Under 60 degrees, cloudy and lousy weather.

Drought's Over!

OK, I'm over it now. If I wanted to live in Oregon I'd be walking on Canon Beach in the rain in the morning. It does create a little excitement instead of foreboding on how much hay is going to cost, is there going to be enough hay, etc.

I'm easily amused by the whims of spring. The grass is so green it hurts your eyes and that's on a socked in gray day. Imagine what it will be like when the sun comes out. The white water rafters and kayakers are licking their lips in anticipation. The fly fisher persons can't wait for the water to go down. I'm just relishing it not being dark and cold, but being light until 10pm and playing outside until then. I always have a to do and to go list this time of year, but most of it doesn't get done. That's OK, to me it's the thought that counts.

I'm also happy that I don't live next to a river right now. That would just ruin my whole spring. All that snow still up there in the mountains and all that record rain this week. Haven't had a good flood for 10 years. I'm happy to be out of a drought cycle nevertheless.

I think that when the time comes I'll have put on my headstone, "Spring always comes".