Hiking in the Ozarks with Tonka

Tonka and I went out for a couple of days hiking in the Ozark National Forest. It is a place that is very close to my heart and roots. My grandmother, great grandmother and great great grandmother all had farms here. The trail winds through and close by these special places.

 This is Sylamore creek. It was named for Sylamo a Shawnee. My family settled next to a Shawnee village when they came from Tn. Tonka says it feels like home.

 Livingston creek down the trail a ways.

 Trying to take a photo of us together with the camera balanced on my pack.

 The rope swing at Barkshed.

 Taking a break in the water.

Tonka was either on a leash or in his muzzle. He can really scare people. We did not see a soul and that suited him just fine.

End of the trail.

Just How Smart is a Chicken?

The young female



The Male

 The two strays showed up a few days ago starving and dehydrated. Neither me or Tonka could run them off and I'm still trying to find the owners (doubtful) or get them in a shelter (difficult).
Anyway they are trying to kill my chickens so I chain them up during the day when the chickens are out and let them loose at night. Apparently one of the hens decided to roost in a tree last night instead of joining the rest of the flock in the coop.
I go for my morning walk and come back to hear the hen by the coop, so do the strays.
They go after her and so do I. I love a good sprint in the morning. (NOT) She heads towards the hay field and crosses the fence. I can't cross the fence very fast but the pups can. I thought for sure she was a goner.

 Then she did the one thing that would save her....
                                                              she runs straight to me.

        I scoop her up and save her from the dogs and return her to the flock.

I always thought chickens were pretty stupid but now I am beginning to wonder.

Words to Live By

Star Mountain

sold

1 * Accept the fact that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're

            the statue!



2 * Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat
      
        them.



3 * Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the

      middle of it.



4 * Drive carefully... It's not only cars that can be recalled by their

     Maker.



5 * If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague




6 * If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was

  probably worth it.



7 * It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a

   warning to others.



8 * Never buy a car you can't push.



9 * Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you

      won't have a leg to stand on.



10 * Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.




11 * Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.



12 * The second mouse gets the cheese.




13 * When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.




14 * Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.




15 * You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the

     world to one person.



16 * Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once.




17 * We could learn a lot from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty

      and some are dull. Some have weird names and all are different colors,

      but they all have to live in the same box.



18 * A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.



19  *Save the earth..... It's the only planet with chocolate!



20 * God is crazy about you. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise
every morning. 

Dancing Dream

The dentist came for the horses last week.


It was my job to hold a rope that was strung over the rafter and connected to the dental halter on the patient / horse. Missy had to have a tooth pulled. At the momet of truth she rears and backs.

Now I am of the "letting go" school but for some reason I didn't and was hoisted to the rafter like a rag doll.

I must have liked it because I did it twice.

And it was kinda fun.

I wasn't hurt, Missy said she was.

Anyway.....

I dream that night of dancing with a horse. A wieghtless, colorful , clear vision.

Dancing Dream is available here.



Rain, Rain and Raven Dance

It's been a month since my last confession errr...I mean ride.

Rain, rain, rain. Tornado warnings nearly everyday. Last night the cellar was full of water, well not full, just to the top of my boots. If y'all remember from the snow days I don't like anything to the top of my boots. I am getting taller boots. The other people were in sandals, so I was the lucky and driest one. They had to hold the yorkies or they would be swimming. Tonka was having a good time playing with the plastic jugs that were floating around.

 And when I decide to go ahead and stock our new indoor cement pond with catfish it goes and drains. But its raining still so maybe I should be ordering those fish....

Just got the lovely Raven Dance prints. The colors are perfect and they available here.

Feeding Horses in a Storm

Red Pyramid

The storms and tornadoes continue. Spending quality time in the cellar nearly every day. And the water OMG.

I have fed theses five horses through some weather but last night was the scariest feeding time I have ever seen. I waited and waited for the storm to ease up but it didn't so I went ahead and started with the wind howling, heavy rain and lightning. It looked like a hurricane. My old mare Missy wasn't bothered too much and went in her stall. I left the door open. The lightning would crack and the other horses were reluctant to come in the barn.

I waited some more. Missy finished eating.

The rain eased up. I decided to feed them all near the door and spread out the other four dishes and started them all at their own dish. A gust of wind would blow the rain in and they all spooked. I was focused on staying out of the way. They switched dishes.

Lightning would crackle, they spooked and went back to a different dish. Repeat. I tried to keep up with who was eating what but the constant spooking and moving in the dim light made it impossible. All the dishes got emptied but one and I picked it up and threw out the food. I would rather them have too little than one get too much. I practiced my dancing skills tring to dodge these fast and frequently moving horses.

Ready for some sunshine!!!

Moon Joy

Moon Joy
sold

We have been getting some rain and storms and although it is great for my fledgling little garden it has cut my riding time to zero.

I have just listed Moon Joy is sold but have more art on my website here.

The commission is almost finished. This is where I am now.

I should have it all done and ready for approval tomorrow.

We'll see.....