My Valentine to You

 

Have I told you lately how much I appreciate your dropping by now and then? I have come to know some wonderful salt of the earth people (my favorite kind) on this blog forum and that is a Valentine all on it’s own.

Lots to catch up on… How about that non-impeachment joke of an event?  Without  going into a diatribe about how thoroughly disgusted I continue to be, this sums it up pretty well…

Anyway.. Onward.

We’ve had snow and the typical cold raw grey New England winter days… and my back and neck remind me I’ve been doing barn chores in this weather for oooh… about 40 years now, give or take a few….

Above is Leah, our showgirl-come- home, and she loves being a home horse with less responsibility 🙂

Below is our old boy, Max… glaucoma clouds one eye.  He and I match with about the same amount of greys and no fondness for makeup- thankfully I don’t have his chin hairs.

The EggPlant during a recent snowfall….  I have 8 new chicks of colorful varieties coming soon!….

Our daughter’s house in the field nextdoor….

 

My son and his fiance have a new baby… their first… and he’s of the canine variety – Meet Leo, a 4 month old rottie –  I get to babysit a few times a week when the boy is at work.

 

When your mom becomes a grand and  suddenly has that McDonalds money you were always asking for….

 Some Valentine Wisdom……

And finally — whoever Emma Knight is… she is definitely  of my people❤

Till soon, Friends…

 

 

 

 

Let go or be dragged….

You know what I love about being 55 years old? A few valuable pieces of knowledge become fully ingrained. People who are not interested in the truth and integrity of a thing especially when it doesn’t coordinate with their own prejudices or enrichment are not worthy of your wasted energy in trying to shed light. They’re not looking for light, they like dwelling in anger or hate or chaos, maybe mean is in their makeup and their brand of broken is not yours to fix. For whatever reasons, that’s their comfort zone even though it is detrimental to their own well being. This is no place to allow any time suck of your own.
Also, those people who didn’t value your presence in their life on any real level, those who you allowed to erode your sense of self worth in a relationship, a job force, a club, a friendship , whether in a monumental or peripheral relationship even in the school yard all those years ago if that applies to you…. anywhere on your life’s journey? It’s a beautiful thing to discover and know fully in your heart you were the decent human in that equation all along, and you still are. You cultivated a good human in yourself, and they are still who they showed you to be all those moons ago. Believe people when they show you who they are.
Anger has no place in a healthy heart – let go or be dragged, and pity those who can’t see beyond their own existence to value the good relationships they could forge, and for a better world for all, including themselves. (!)
Onward ✨

Therapy

 

Holy Government Shit Storms, Batman.   I just don’t have appropriate words.  Or rather I’m too disgusted by it all to speak without many, many expletives right now and we just don’t need any more of that, do we.

GOAT THERAPY!   I know I’m repeating a post theme here.. but I just love my goatgirlz…. Star and Bella provide daily entertainment and just plain love in the ways goats show it.  They call to us constantly if we’re out in on the property in range of their view,… so much so that Star actually gets laryngitis on occasion….  and when we enter their pen they’re on us like white on rice.

ART THERAPY!  I’ve been painting more too…. and managed to auction off one of my St. John paintings to benefit the animal rescue I have befriended on St. John – for $650.!  I’m no professional, so that’s a big chunk for one of my little paintings, I was thrilled.  St. John lovers from from all over the country were bidding and can you believe the winning bid, which I determined within hours of starting the process… lives about 10 miles from me?  Just over the river.   What are the odds?

This one just finished… the Nathan Hale House with an early evening sky….

Some funnies for you before closing….  and if you can’t relate on some level, you’re truly special 🙂

I’m not a  ritual-practicing religious person, but I find myself praying for our country’s soul lately.  Please… powers that be.. above all, Good over Evil.

 

Till soon, Friends…. thank you for stopping by – 

 

The best laid plans…

My son and his GF have been together for six years now, since High School days.  They’ve had an exciting year – the completion of their home just over the hill next to this farm, and on Christmas Eve my son proposed.  There’s a story behind it…. the ORIGINAL PLAN was a big surprise for his soon to be bride – We were going to take our annual trip to  the Woodstock  Inn in Vermont for a December weekend this year instead of fall foliage time.  She would be under the impression it was just us, as usual.  (Plans were made when we thought the pandemic would be winding down.)  When we walked into the main lobby, she would see a huge banner across their main fireplace that read Will you Marry Me  M………. .    Her parents, step parents and beloved Aunts and Uncles would be there among the Inn Staff with champagne in hand ready to toast – and we’d all spend a lovely weekend in that beautiful town celebrating.    But COVID raged on.  We could have kept our reservations… the Inn was gracious…  but Vermont has strict travel rules due to the virus and they weren’t adherable.. nor did any of us feel comfortable traveling as the numbers in the news  got worse.

The Puppy Plan materialized.  The young couple has been eagerly awaiting the birth of their rottweiler pup, from a breeder in Florida with an excellent long time reputation.  My blog readers know I am an animal rescue advocate, but my son was raised with our two female rotties and what he really wanted was a male rottie of his own.  The rescues we looked at had a few in the past year but not one I would trust with a young family and their first official dog.  Hence, a solid  ethical breeder ( not a mill).   SO… off he went to Florida a few days before Christmas in a rental mini van with his cousin to pick up the pup.  When they arrived home the plan was to have the puppy with a big bow and a ring attached. And we would all show up at the same time, he’d pop the question and we’d have a safe distance toast on the front porch.  Except she was called in to work.  So.. he arrived home with the puppy and fiance-to-be at work.    We then decided to hide in the house , cars behind the house and garage, and she walked in…. hugged the new puppy… and we all strolled out with that big banner in hand, her dad handed M the ring, M proposed to M… tears, cheers, toasts, and puppy love.

The new baby’s name is LEO, or King Leo the 2nd, as he is named after his (HUGE) father.

 

The moms, unmasked for the picture and champagne…

So.. while this was a weird Christmas and we really missed having our moms right there with us for the dinners and the presents, etc… there is much to celebrate as well.    The wedding will be when the pandemic is over and we can all come together to celebrate in a big happy way.  – Karen 💕

 

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas….

…. and for most of us that’s exactly what it will be, a “little” Christmas compared to what we’re used to.  Strange times indeed.  This past month I have taken a step back from newsfeeds and my appalled reactions to so much of it.   I am grateful for this family’s health including our mothers and for the promise of better days ahead.  I hope you are weathering the multitude of storms and are feeling some optimism for the future.

I put Christmas up here in this house before Thanksgiving was done – we needed the cheer so I pulled out all the stops – even the SnowVillage that’s been in big bins in the basement for years came back out.  It’s true we won’t have the bigger family gathering we usually do, but that’s OK – it helps to know we are placing some insurance on having everyone round the table again next year by being cautious this year.  This will be the first Christmas without Dad. (Fuck Covid)  Last year he brought with him a mini drone that he loved – we pushed it around between us and had a good laugh…. I can tell you for certain it will not matter, whatever the issues in a push and tug relationship, once they’re gone, you’ll be reminded of the good, the bad, and you’ll miss them.  Also, no matter what you thought you were doing right while they were around, you’ll find regrets.

 

From the looks of these gingerbread men you’d think we’d been drinkin –

 

Sally’s favorite seat in the mancave…

We’ve had some beautiful snow, although it makes barn chores a little more difficult. My goatgirls Bella and Star are not impressed with the white stuff, but have adjusted .. eventually.

SO much joy I get from these two… they talk to us all the time, huddle around our legs, I’m grateful I can hear some of their little goat girl mumbles… mehhh-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh.

More snow pics here on the farm….

My daughter’s home next door can be seen in the photo below…

My son’s home is deep in the mist of the picture below.   Happy News to share with you on that front in the next post…

Some laughs to share with you next…. and wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, a joyful, peaceful holiday season in whatever the ways you celebrate, and good health and much happiness in the New Year – XO

Sharing this beautiful song , one of my all time favorites… click on the link and click skip the ads… enjoy ❤

https://youtu.be/ChcR2gKt5WM

 

Till soon, friends…

Amen, America. Amen.

How refreshing it is to hear an intelligent rational all inclusive uplifting inspiring speech intended for All Americans and the World tonight . Amen and God Bless Us All- 💙🇺🇸❤️

A poem written by an unknown author (to me anyway)

I learned how to flinch.
Oh god.
Every lie. Flinch.
Every casual cruelty. Flinch.
Every appeal to hate, to division. Flinch.
Every grasp at more power. Flinch.
Tear down health
tear down decency
tear down protections to the earth
when our clock is ticking and the world burns.
Tear down science.
Tear us apart.
Flinch flinch flinch.
Drag us backwards with each all caps Tweet
with each temper tantrum
each demand for mindless loyalty.
Follow him
take off the mask
die for him.
Flinch.
I have been pulling inward for years
holding my breath
desperately numbing my emotions
afraid disgusted ashamed under siege
helpless
flinch
flinch
Vote
Vote
oh please my country vote
and I kept vigil each long election week night
watching results come in
refresh
refresh
refresh
bleary eyed
7 tabs open
afraid
watching the numbers
hold out hold out just a bit more
stretched taut
maybe maybe
please
take a sleeping pill and wake and back to the vigil
again
again
And Wisconsin is blue
and Michigan is blue
and I begin to hope
but I have learned to flinch.
And Georgia is blue
and I begin to believe.
Wait. Wait. Refresh.
And in a pre dawn vigil
Pennsylvania flips blue.
And I know.
And 4 years of compressed pain
comes roaring up
in a torrent of
ugly cry
shaking
sobbing
wailing relief tears
And I don’t flinch from them.

One has to wonder what toxic crap has oozed out of the ozone layer…

Yesterday Trump embraced the actions of Trump Train supporters in Texas who surrounded a Joe Biden campaign bus in an attempt to slow down the bus and run it off the road. Police were called and had to arrive to break up the attempt so that the bus could get to it’s destination.
Trump tweeted a video of the caravan surrounding the Biden bus with the caption, “I LOVE TEXAS!” I couldn’t care less if he were a citizen, whatever, dude. But he is the President of The United States- the behavior is disgusting coming from the highest office in the land.
Yesterday in this small town, a group of older women stood near a previously antagonistic Trump supporter, both holding up signs for the candidates of their choice. The good news – the normally antagonistic was kind, even took pictures for one another, it was the kind of encounter we should all be capable of. Meanwhile, several times young men driving by waved “the finger” at the group of women as they drove by. The President probably loves those young men of Ktown too.
Trump embraces the divide in this country, in fact he encourages it. Not fake news – his words and action speak volumes on their own without help from the media. How anyone hasn’t yet learned from the lessons of history that divided we will ALL FALL is beyond my comprehension. This is no longer about politics, tribalism is front and center and some of you are embracing it whole heartedly. Sadly, what I’ve come to know is, those who continue to embrace and cheer on Trump’s asshole rhetoric can only do so because that type of behavior, those “values” are part of their makeup as well. With some it comes as no surprise to me because I’ve seen it via bullying or juvenile mocking or racism in your makeup long ago.
For others, I’m sad that tax breaks for the wealthy and a false narrative that police are going to be “defunded” and the bullshit line that Christianity is being attacked are enough for you to not do the research to know that’s simply not true. For some reason you believe a five time draft dodging, never religious science and climate denying three time married cheating lying bankrupt foreign dictator coddling racist narcissist idiot is your hero – all these things proven by his past narrative and actions, not fake news. It’s as if some toxic crap dropped out of the ozone layer and half of us were affected.
FUCK THAT. We need more than thoughts and prayers to turn this country around, we need a government that works in a unified fashion and ends the divide of We The People, and I just don’t see that coming to fruition with the current cast of characters and while so many of We The People continue to embrace the divide, the hate, the rhetoric, no matter which side of the divide it’s coming from. One thing is absolute – It should NEVER come from the President of the United States in the blatant way it is now.
Tuesday one way or the other will not heal that divide.. it’s ultimately up to We The People, because our governing officials all across the spectrum are failing us. I already know who will be offended by this post if they bother to read it through, and that knowledge both saddens me and releases me from ignoring what I think is no longer ignorable.
Onward –

Some inspiration when inspiration is hard to find

 

Did you watch last night’s debate?  The moderator did an excellent job staying on point  and didn’t allow any steamrolling. I think the threat of mic shutting down kept the two men in check.  That tactic should be used in every debate moving forward, don’t you think? If only we could install a buzzer for any lies.    We did get some answers, and as usual, Tr*mp peppered his responses with many falsities.  I don’t think Joe did enough to rebuke Trumps’ claim that in all his years in politics he got nothing done.  Bottom line is, I don’t think either of them performed in a way that will deter their supporters or gain new support.  It is what it is. 

As I have stated here many times before, this farm and the animals in our care keep me grounded and I am so very grateful for their presence in our lives.

…and Fall in New England is just so darned  beautiful…. There’s no question in my mind it is truly a blessing to live in this region where each season brings it’s own brand of natural beauty –

Swans on the Connecticut River

Chapman Falls at Devil’s Hopyard

 

The Hammonasset River

Dealing with more of a stay-at-home approach during the pandemic has given me the opportunity to focus more on painting – this is my newest piece to be gifted to my daughter – her house on a misty morning in the field next door.

 

Wishing you good health and peace of mind as we all muddle through the election season  and pandemic issues and whatever the outcomes shall be – Hopefully we come out the other end of this year in better form all around.

Till soon, friends –

 

 

This and that and out and about

Just when we thought 2020 couldn’t get any more bizarre……

I need to make this clear before I go any further… I don’t wish harm or illness on anyone, ever.  That being said… it’s no surprise that the POTUS contracted Covid, is it?   As well as almost half his staff and a family member or two.  Not to mention the myriads we don’t know about who attended his maskless rallies in recent months and the myriads of dead (over 200,000 now and counting)  because he chose to treat the whole thing as a  “Democratic Hoax” in the initial, crucial first months.  He has no one to blame but his own arrogance, ignorance, greed.  It’s mind boggling.  A day ago I thought to myself….. perhaps… this experience will humble him some and he will come out of it with more empathy and smarts for the rest of us moving forward.    No… yesterday’s photo-op in a sealed car where he is again putting his secret servicemen at risk proved otherwise.  When he was initially diagnosed he also attended an event knowing he tested positive.. without notifying anyone until he was back at the WH.     He is so unfit for the position he holds.. on so many levels.   There are no excuses worthy of keeping him there.  I implore anyone reading this.. PLEASE.. vote him out in November.  Please.

The debate?  What a sh*t show.  What a shame.  And that’s all I’m going to say about that.

My son’s house just over the hill is almost complete – move-in day is just two weeks away and I am so excited for them.  As with my daughter’s home next door, the upstairs will remain unfinished for now, an effort to keep the mortgage down, expenses manageable.  When either start a family of their own,  the second floors will be finished.  When we bought This Old House and renovated her beginning in 2009, this was exactly what we had envisioned for the property – Being in the home building business, my husband has a good eye for property potential and I have been in love with this old house (“Saving Grace ” or Gracie as I call her) since my teen years.   We are so very lucky to have been able to acquire her and bring her back to life, and turn this farm into a family compound.  That both of my children are as enthusiastic about this farm as we are is more than just icing on the cake.

M  & M… at the granite/marble warehouse picking out counter granite…

Installed last week, and it is beautiful…  She is also an “M”… when she saw the kitchen almost finished she said… I am not worthy of this kitchen!… but she absolutely is, in spades.  Not only has she worked hard to pursue a career in the optics field, she is already a good cook as well.  I couldn’t be happier for my son, who has chosen a great partner to share life with.  More announcements on that front in the near future.

Meanwhile… I continue to find respite on this farm, my Saving Grace.  The GoatGirlz, Star and Bella are thriving here.  We are all enamored with these two silly girls and their calls to us whenever they spot us nearby.

Leah has become very comfortable with being a “home” horse instead of a show horse…  and we’re thinking we aren’t going to return to the show world in the near future.  The Sh*t Show is still out there.

On the health front, I have lost a solid 10 pounds in the last month, the next ten will be harder.  My relationship with food is complicated.  I love it, I love to make it for myself and especially for others, it is my anxiety and boredom reliever and has been for my entire life.  Bad habits are hard to break!   But.. with less sugar and carbs in my diet, I am feeling better overall – the fibromyalgia pain is less.    Onward…

We have not gotten as much use out of our little seaside cottage this year, too much going on around the farm and work, and of course not having the bigger gatherings there  due to Covid concerns.  Stella continues to be a refuge regardless and next year we’ll spend more time there for sure.

I’ve been trying to instill this next thought in my husband’s mind for 32 years now.  All work and no play makes Jack a very dull boy.  It actually makes him a very grumpy, overworked overtired boy.  Last weekend I did manage to get him to take a day trip to one of his favorite destinations, Vermont… and he actually smiled for a while and took a few deep breaths.  We came home with apples, cider and a pie from the Scotts Farms Orchard in Dummerston and cheese from the Grafton Cheese Factory – it was a very good day.  The colors are not quite peak here in New England, and after the recent tropical storm, here near the shoreline there are a lot of BROWN trees from the sea salt-stained winds.

Wishing you all good health and the happiness to be found in the places we call home, the family we love and the time we make for ourselves – it’s so important.

Till soon –

 

 

 

Like Gold

Here in CT, not much is more joy inducing to a horse woman than seeing the Holloway Hay Truck parked in front of your barn.  The Holloway  Family has been delivering their signature awesome Upstate New York hay to new England farms for many years.  We used to get a delivery once yearly, but when we moved to This Old House (Gracie as I fondly call her) we had hay fields of our own and the Mr. wanted to capitalize on that to save money.  Well, sounds good in theory, and we’ve been applying that theory for years now – but truth is, hay is harder to grow than you’d think, and not cheap.  Weather is factor, good machinery is important, knowledge and application of seed and fertilizer, etc.etc.  Good drying time and ventilation when stored is also important.

Also, cow grade hay and horse grade hay are two different animals, too.  What we’ve been growing is mostly cow grade – stalky, not enough grasses, timothy too gone-to-seed by the time we bale it.  So.. the cow farmer up the road who helps us with the haying gets most of it.   The rest isn’t enough for me to keep my guys in hay all year, so this year we ordered a full load from my favorite, Holloway farms –   and I now have 700 bales of  GOLD in our lofts.  It’s a beautiful thing.  You’d be amazed at how giddy a girl can be over a loft full of good hay that will last a whole year or more.

There are two cuttings of hay in this load – first cut on the bottom, the lighter colored, and second cut on top – considered the prized hay, tending to be more grassy.  Both are good feed hay, regardless.  A hay field in a good weather season can get two cuttings, one in June, the next in September-ish.

Fall has officially arrived! Do you decorate for the seasons?  As soon as the little pumpkins come out I’m all over it…. my daughter and I have already made our first trip of the season to Scott’s farm down the road  –

On the health goals front – using the SlimNation.com apps and menu plan, I’ve lost almost 10 pounds in 3 1/2 weeks – about 15 – 18 to go.  Feeling better, sleeping better, better attitude over all.   Going into the holidays will be interesting and a struggle with the diet because I love to eat, and cook and bake.  But I’m determined to keep it up, because feeling better is the only way to be if you can help it.  We can certainly control what we put in our mouth, right?   Lord help me please.  🙂

Till soon  friends –