These Boots Are Made For Walking...

Taking a moment, as I do throughout the day, to appreciate the good in my life, I noted how I could feel in my legs how much they have done for me today.

Morning yoga
Morning chores
Morning 2 mile walk with the poodles
Raking pine needles and cones
Weeding
Watering the deck garden and the lawn
Laundering horse blankets
Trip into Tumalo for a quick shop
Mid-day chores
Two hours of dance classes
Evening chores
A touch of housework

Oh yes, I am grateful for the strength in my legs and feet and for good shoes and clean socks.  Next I'll add foot lotion and a supportive bed to my list.

Hide and Seek

Bodie is small enough and spry enough to dive under my bed and clear the side rails--if he so desired, which he never does.  Pinkie, who is bigger and taller, has to wiggle to get in under there, yet loves to be there.

So, when they play Hide and Seek in the house, a totally unsanctioned indoor sport, Pinkie does her expertly executed chest crawl to get under the bed in record time and Bodie sits beside her uncovered paws, letting her believe she is hiding, and waiting her out.

Bodie has infinite patience.  Pinkie has ADD.

You know how it ends.

Choosing A Makeover

You know those sinus headaches that go on for a few days?  The ones that drag and hurt and pretty much cloud your entire being?  The kind that no matter what you do for relief, it won't budge?

Well, that familiar little no good pest has been around my head since Thursday.  What options did I have?  Be miserable sitting and doing nothing but complaining about my misery or keep myself occupied with other things and only be aware of the persistent misery when it knocks real hard?  I chose the latter.

The other things mentioned included two fairly late nights out involving some loud music and dancing.  Now, the dancing part really does help keep the pain at bay.  There is a reality bite here in that burning the midnight oil on consecutive nights and getting up early the next day while fighting off a physical challenge does take its toll.

What I want to say doesn't come out right.  I'm more irritated by silly things that on a normal day wouldn't even warrant an eyebrow lift.  I even missed dinner with my friend Bill last night because I couldn't get it together to communicate my intentions.  So, before bed I took some Tylenol night cold syrup.

Bodie woke me up around 2am to go out.  I have no idea how I made it to the door and back because I'm pretty sure I was sleep walking.  The chicklets woke me up around 6:30 with an alarming cheeping which caused enough concern for me to get up.  Upon trying to locate three chicks through very groggy eyes, I found two, and they were in a panic because one was missing.  We found her, tucked up under the flap of the cardboard box.  All was well.  Back to bed I went.

Sometime around 8:30am I got up.  While I knew none of my animals would die if they didn't eat before 9am, I sure felt like if I didn't go back to bed I just might croak.  Nonetheless, out we went for morning chores.  When I finished, I had to think about the list and knew I had covered the compulsories but I sure didn't do them fully awake.

I didn't even have energy to make something to eat.  I had a cup of Throat Coat tea, looked at Facebook, talked to the animals and then decided it was time to nap.  Oh, I'd say three hours went by, occasionally waking up to Bodie barking at any passerby or Pinkie curling up into my back and then getting down and back up again.

I had fed a light breakfast so the horses needed a lunch.  In the meantime, my friend Kim had called to say they could drop off a basketball for the goodles.  I'm not really sure what I said the first time I called her back.  Recognizing my lack of clarity, while I was outside, I sat down in the dry lot and I just looked and listened and breathed.  Shadow and Pippin found their spots to get down close by and chew cud, Red was doodling for his girls, my wild birds were so generous with their songs they induced an immediate smile, the horses were chewing hay, the canal water rushing by, Bodie by the gate listening to the street with one ear and watching me with both eyes, and Pinkie was curled up under my legs seeking comfort from the sound of a neighbor shooting.  Such bliss.  Such peace.  Such gratitude.  My heart smiled.

I called Kim back to invite her and Scott over for quesadillas.  Yum!  Black beans, chipotle sausage, roasted vegetables, mango and avocado.  I could not keep that dish to myself!  A quick dip in the shower, a little straightening up of the house, chop chop vegetables, a little uplifting message from Pema Chodron and we had a feast!

So, yes, I could have chosen to stay in the dark side of my mood and let the physical discomfort rule my day.  But after sitting out with the animals and just taking it all in, I heard them say, "We like it better when you're at peace."  And my day changed.

Goslings On The Way

Newsflash:  I seem to live in the flight path... of geese!

This morning starting at about 6am, there had to have been hundreds, as it seemed to me, of geese flying by on their way to Sunday Canada Geese-fest.

Some people wake up to a buzzing clock, a car alarm, a siren, dogs barking.  Not here.  Full on down alert.  And they didn't pass by all at the same time, it was a gradual pilgrimage to pond mecca.   Just as I dozed back off, another of flood of honks toward water's edge.

I don't mind.  I like the thought of them flying in pairs and I love watching them protect their goslings.  It's another notch in the life cycle kind of day.

Enjoy!

A Glass of Prune Juice Please

Without consciously realizing it, a change of perspective is in order for today. 

When we have something of weight running around in our brain, we often lose sight of the information we can gather if we sat back and let the thought run its course but without haltering it.  Our fight or flight  mode kicks in and our greatest defense, being still, gets trampled.

As I was sitting at my table at the base of this cherished mountain view, I tipped my juice glass all the way up to get the last drops of my unsweetened prune juice.  Aha!  Just as the Ace of Swords card in the spot of my unconscious symbolized, Aha! 

Through the bottom of my glass I could still look out over my deck, above the trees and to the mountains, but with a completely different point of view.  The landscape may be the same, but how I view it, how I think about it, how I'll proceed is all a matter of perspective.

A Wednesday Read

"Be content with what you have,

rejoice in the way things are. 

When you realize there is nothing lacking,

the whole world belongs to you."

~~~Lao Tzu

Celestial Wardrobe

Tonight's moonless sky

 like a rhinestone-studded

soft

black satin dress

 adorned

with a blazing sash

of the spiral Milky Way

no beginning

and

no end.

The Eagle Has Landed and Just Took Off Again

It was nine days ago that my parents arrived in Bend.  How is it that they have left already?  These days flew by.

Often I am told, "you're lucky" when I mention spending time with my parents.  Many people I know no longer have one or both of their parents.  I don't know if it's luck; maybe they really want to say "fortunate" or "blessed" or "charmed."  Or maybe lucky.

Whatever it is, I am grateful to have both of my parents alive and well enough to travel to the west coast and spend time at the ranch getting to know--and getting lots of love from-- my animals.  I so enjoyed sharing my ranch and dance life with them.

It is with all of my heart that I hope they can return for another visit.  Maybe I'll be lucky enough for them to stay even longer.

Safe travels my eagles.

Just Like a Strand of Pearls

One of the friendly guys at the feed store told me that chickens have a finite number of eggs to lay. He said, "...think of them like a strand of pearls."

What an analogy.

Yesterday, Alice, one of our Barred Rock hens, laid her first egg! I was sick in bed so Larry went down to collect Juanita's daily pearl and came back to tell me we were blessed with two pearls!

I thought it was pretty grand to have hens laying eggs. But now--we have Bend-cultured pearls. Perfect small, brown, smooth, sometimes warm, and laid with love pearls.

Tiffany's ain't got nothin' on this hen house!

The Universe Delivers

Find the good. Notice the good. See the good. Acknowledge the good. Be grateful for the good.

Our hens are now laying eggs--daily!

The sun and the water from the mountains feed our garden.

Our garden gives us delicious vegetables and herbs.

Spending a week with my father.

Satisfaction and enjoyment in teaching--doing something I enjoy.

Friends checking in at the right moment.

The kindness of strangers.

Watching a horse feel better after a lot of TLC.

Having Larry's pack returned with all of his belongings intact.

A busy season for vacation rentals despite the economic reports.

Hearing about family getting together for important events, or just to visit, and that they can.

Coming across people who can heal.

Being surrounded by beauty.

Food on the table.

Late summer snowfall on the mountains to keep water flowing.

Watching the young ones stay healthy and grow.

It's a Dog Eat Bird World

Oh, so much transpires in a day, it's hard to keep count and note the most notable. But this morning's event is blog worthy.

Something has been chewing on the lettuce and beets in our garden. We've been cursing the raccoon family we've seen around at 4am and a bunny we have never seen. Our scarecrow holding a rifle doesn't seem to be doing the trick.

This morning as I walked to the garden to water, I shooed away a menacing Magpie. We have a troupe of them--up to 15 or so. While they are very pretty, they are big, dominant and scare away all of our smaller bird friends. I digress...so, in defiance, he just jumped from the garden to perch on the barrel of the scarecrow's rifle. I gave him another shoo and he went up into the tree. Felon, one of our resident bird dogs, was accompanying me as usual for my morning tasks.

I didn't see the Magpie land down on the grass behind the Poplar tree, but Felon did. As I turned around, I caught Felon catching the Magpie--the bird never saw it coming and didn't have a chance.

While we do our best to discourage the dogs from bothering the birds around our parts, I must admit there was a hint of pride in my reaction. Good dog! What a catch! Just 14 more to shoo from my beets!

Felon paraded around the entire 20 acres with her catch, showing Larry and me her accomplishment for the day and taunting Jess, her co-hunter, with her possession.

But an interesting thing happened. The other Magpies mourned their loss. The entire flock swarmed down around her, cawing like I've never heard them before, landing, flying, crying, swooping. Felon was a little stunned by the sudden intrusion, then curious, and then took on the challenge. She darted around trying to snag herself another trophy. And what a good effort she made. The Magpies have retreated, for now.

Here it is well over an hour later and she is guarding her prize. She is spread out in the sun on the grass napping beside her kill. The victorious captor rests.

Life on the ranch can be harsh in some ways. It is just that---a dog eat bird world.

Could She Be a He?

Black Top. Esperanza. Alice. Peep Peep. Baby. Juanita. The names of our 6 chics, now 9 weeks old, and soon to be egg laying hens.

I was out watering the vegetable garden and I heard a call of some sort, something along the lines of the horn of a Model T Ford. "Well, that was weird" I thought to myself. And then I heard it again, sounding like it was coming from the chicken pen.

As I walked toward the pen, I saw Peep Peep, named so because she was the most vocal peeper at 2 days old when we picked up the chics, standing tall up on top of the water tower, neck stretched, tail straight up, wings pulled back, honking like a Model T Ford.

Not quite a cluck. Not a cock-a-doodle-doo. But definitely not a peep.

Okay, so we noticed that Peep Peep is a bit larger than the other 5 chics. She tends toward the bossy side. The beginning of her crown seems a little redder than the others, but is that really significant? We've been wondering.

Could it be? Could there be a cockeral amongst our pullets?

Stay tuned.

Music to my Ears

Here it is, one week and one day since arriving back in Bend, Oregon. Much has transpired in the past week, not to mention the drive up from Long Beach with my sister Laurie and Pooker, my bird. Happy to report in, all is well.

I woke up this morning to a cloudless blue sky with bright sun and fully snow covered Cascade views of Broken Top and South Sister. Despite being groggy from an overly eventful day yesterday, I just had to get outside and greet the morning.

Leighsa and Randall, the ranch owners, went away overnight so I am caring for the animals--a much enjoyed responsibility.

I fed Alibi, Farimer and Tripper--3 Arabians, and then Pippin a jumping Thoroughbred. All greeted me with horse smiles and morning whinnies. Then I walked up to the paddock on the far end to feed Slammer and Mia--an Arabian and Saddlebred mix and a white Arabian. Ruby, an 8 year old Thoroughbred with the longest legs ever and just beautiful doe eyes, is in the middle paddock and she accompanied me from one end to the other.

On the way back, I stopped in the barn to let Felon and Jess, the hunting dogs, out for their daily patrol of every square inch of this 20 acre ranch. They gobbled up their food, said thank you and dashed off.

The morning is so incredible, I wasn't quite ready to go back in the house. Besides, Ruby needs some encouraging to eat. I climbed between the fence posts and walked out to meet her. Pippin, in the neighboring paddock, walked along the fence with me. The three of us hung out for quite some time. Ruby was grazing on anything resembling the color green and giving me an occasional nuggle and Pippin was lapping up a morning scratch while his eyes drooped and his breathing deepened. Horse nap time. It's magic. This enormous head weighted in my hand.

Trying to keep Ruby interested in food, the three of us walked down to her hay piles and I gave her her power snack of oats of some sort. She devoured this, and the dogs sat in wait for any morsel she dropped. I just stood there. What magnificent beauty.

Long gone were the sounds of the sirens, buses, laborers, loud cell phone talkers and noisy engines of Long Beach.

It is nature at her finest. Two red tail hawks dancing overhead--could they be mating? A few of the horses were chewing hay: first the sound of hay straws rubbing against each other followed by a wet smack as the horses wrapped their lips around a mouthful and then the slow methodical crunching. Each one took their turn drinking water which starts as a juicy slurp to get the siphon going: a beginning to the approximate 5 gallons they'll drink in one day. Then their great exhalations which vibrate their nostrils and full lips. In the background, countless birds announcing the impending spring. And just in case this wasn't enough, several times I heard the neighboring chimpanzees squeal as only chimps do. All absolute music to my ears.

The air is fresh and light. The sun is warm. I can't wait to get my new lounge chair to bring out there so I can just sit, bathed in the warmth and doused in the perfect surround sound system.