Mom asked for Snow, and other “stuff”

     So my mom asked why I haven’t posted snow pictures here on the blog of our farm, etc…. I told her they’re all on Facebook and if she’d only just come around to the thought of a simple facebook page commitment, she’d get to enjoy all those pictures like everyone else… not to mention pics of her family and friends (some older than she!)… who embraced Facebook for that very reason.   I tried setting her up, and it lasted for fifteen seconds.  That’s no exaggeration,  maybe 20 seconds to be safely accurate.  A minor hissy fit ensued and the page was taken down.  About 25 of her friends/family even friended her in that 20 seconds, welcoming her to the 21st century!… and yet.

  So, mom, these snow pictures are for you, and then on to some other “stuff” to share, like recipes and a sneak peek at my rocking horse restoration project.  Oh, how I have loved this project.

So… SNOW….

Frasier for good measure….

 A great lemon bar recipe for those of you who like to bake, and love lemon like we do.. These are delicious.  However, I attempted them with a gluten free flour to use in the crust.. the Crust.. was Dust.  So, don’t do that.  Follow the recipe given in the link HERE .

    One of my family’s favorite soups will be served for dinner tonight – a perfect winter eve’s comfort food… although, it does involve Velveeta (is that even a real food? I don’t dare read the ingredients list).   Because I only serve this a few times a winter season, we’ll look the other way, OK?    Recipe HERE  *not my photo





    A sneak peek at the rocking horse restoration – before and after to come soon… almost done!

  I’m too lazy this morning to figure out how to rotate the image.. but you get the picture…  stay tuned!

The “C” word

   So many people dread the idea – because it’s my generations time,   I hear it so often.  –OMG- I’m going to be 50.  Holy crow, we’re FIFTY!  HOW DID WE GET THIS OLD??… 
 
   I  really and truly look at it as a blessing.  So many people don’t get the opportunity.   I can honestly tell you the only thing I have dreaded about becoming fifty years old was those heinous words I knew I would hear my GP utter as we wrapped up the 50 year physical…. “So the only other thing we should do is schedule a colonoscopy, a screening recommended to everyone 50 and older”.   (gulp).  And there it was.

    Yes, I’ve been dreading the “C” word for many years… at least 20.  I’m not exaggerating one little bit, either.  I never thought… OMG, someday I’m gonna be 50!… no, I only thought… OMG someday I’m gonna be 50 and be told a colonoscopy is recommended because I’m 50!    Now keep in mind, lest you think I’m nutz  –  As someone who has been a chronic worrier since the dawn of the ages, stress induced IBS has been a sometime companion throughout my adult life.  Nothing drastic, just mild annoyances when major stresses… stressed.   So the thought of someone looking up in there with a camera was terrifying… OMG, what would they see?  It must be a mess in there!

  And there’s all that embarrassment, or the idea of it, anyway.

   If you’ve not gone through the ordeal already, I’m here to tell you… all those years of ridiculous worrying and the anxiety over the IDEA of a colonoscopy… were just a waste of precious time.  Believe me when I tell you, it’s no big deal at all.  NO BIG DEAL!!!!!!

    The prep is better than it used to be, so I’m told.  I had no problem drinking down the two 8 ounce glasses of salty lemony stuff. Holding your nose helps and drinking cold water immediately after too.  The aftermath of drinking that stuff wasn’t horrible either.  You just need to stay sorta near a bathroom for 24 hours.  The hardest part for me was drinking only clear liquids or sucking on hard candies for that period of time, because this girl loves to eat.

    The procedure itself – I have no knowledge of other than I changed into a gown, an IV was inserted, some pleasantries ensued… I was wheeled into a room with bright lights and friendly people who were joking about this and that and who’s going where on vacation and was a certain star related to me because we share the same name……………………………………….

And that was it.

I woke up and it was all over.  The Dr. came in shortly thereafter and told me all was well. Yep… all those 20 or more years of anxiety over… nothing.  The relief that comes with KNOWING there’s nothing is tremendous.

SO.. if you’re about that age and you’ve been putting it off, don’t.  It’s nothing.  And if they find something, those kinds of cancer are slow growing and the odds are you’ll be healed because you caught it early.  It’s that simple.

Worry… it’s like a rocking chair.  It will give you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere.

Palin? … or Progress.. …

   If you dared to click on the post after reading that title, no, you won’t be subjected to another lengthy political rant  because frankly, I’m too disgusted… her return to the arena produced it’s own sort of shock and awe  around here, forgive me for resurrecting that phrase too…..

     Maybe just a brief one –  So.. If you’re still a Palin supporter after all this time… I have to ask you… WHY WHY WHY?… see transcript of her pathetic endorsement of Trump here.    If he’s not regretting that action by now, there is no hope… at all.

   And.. it gets better  – if  you really haven’t had enough… if you’re still standing strong in Palin territory  –  (can you see Russia?… just wonder’n) .. then take a gander at this… she flicks responsibility of her son’s  assault of his girlfriend off on someone else…. The President of the United States…. shock and awe again.  Read HERE

    That being said.. I’m just gonna shut up and move on.. to progress… of the rocking horse variety.

    You’re relieved, aren’t ya.

    After discovering my rocking horse is indeed about 110 or so years old, but the paint was bastardized and the tack not original (actually vinyl and deteriorating quickly)… I decided to strip him of all the crud and give him a makeover.  I used acetone to get all the debris off his frame,  and my son and I pulled about 2,479 brads (tiny nails) out of his tack and stripped him bare.

  Then I went to the hardware store for advice on the best paint to use –  Amitha Verma chalk paint, clear wax and grey antique finish… I used painters tape to cut out circles and create the dappled grey effect with two shades of chalk paint –

… and this is where we’re at…  Notice his new ears – courtesy of a grey pair of suede work glove thumbs.  I’m waiting for a real horse hair bundle to arrive in the mail for his mane and tail, not the kind with hyde attached –  no horses were injured in the acquisition of such hair – they regrow what is cut off, and yes I tell myself that regularly because  I gotta believe it.

 I’ve also ordered some leather. I’m not a saddle manufacturer, this is gonna be interesting.  As for the base – I think I like it original, scuffs and chips and paint splatters and all.  What say you?…

I found a Treasure at the Trove

    Before I reveal my awesome find, a shout out to one of my readers who sells pieces at The Trove in Old Saybrook (you know who you are – don’t want to reveal your name if you prefer privacy)  Is that your toy stuffed horse on wheels I almost bought? (black, very worn and much loved)… would love more info on it if so.

     So the Mr. and I took a ride yesterday to browse The Trove, and as soon as I stepped inside the back warehouse/shop… there he was.  I had been looking for him for years… and immediately I said out loud…OMG! There he is!!….  to which the shop owner was a witness and  The Mr. knew immediately this wasn’t a good sign as far as he was concerned…

  He’s not subtle. 
     I love the antique toy horses in all their forms and as a child, wanted anyone I could get my hands on.  One friend had the bouncy horse and another had poncho, the ride along… I asked for a ride on those ponies any chance I got.  I had my own collection of Breyer horses, and they sit in a barn in my basement today. 
    So.. most antique rocking horses, if you can find them, are expensive.  I was thrilled to see the sticker price for this fella and they gave me 20 percent off.   I wasn’t sure if this was an authentic older rocking horse, but it sure looked like it had all the right qualities.  When I got home I found out it’s the real deal, and I got it for a fantastic price.   I had planned on restoring it.. as in stripping it down and repainting, etc…. but when I found out it is actually an 1890’s horse, I just know I really shouldn’t strip it.  The real horse hair tail will need replacing because it fell out in my hands this morning, (rot) and his ears are missing so I will find grey leather and give him new ones, but that might be the extend of my restoration plans other than soap and water before I bring him in the house.  On the fence about  just what I should mess with – replace the tack, leave it?  add a mane, leave it bare?  Any suggestions appreciated…. any antique  rocking horse experts out there? 

  I found this one below for sale here in Connecticut, believe it or not…  and it’s in far worse condition for five times the price.  Same maker for sure… yet that information isn’t available, there are no stamps or identifying labels on these horses.

http://www.rubylane.com/item/707339-RL1116/Antique-Carved-Rocking-Horse-c-1890

KMax comeback and About That Quarter Horse

   
      My daughters show horse, Max, had colic surgery five months ago.  If the horse survives the colic and surgery, the recovery is a long process. The cost of colic surgery nowadays can be upwards of $12,000. and some folks opt to put the horse down simply because of the cost, let alone the recovery process.  We had medical insurance on Max, so we proceeded with surgery, even though he was 19 years old.  Max has done very well, thankfully, and at the five month mark, K can begin to ride him again – just a ten minute walk at first, building up to regular work routine within a few months.
 
      On Saturday we took a walk around the ring. I expected him to be jumpy, spooky, high as a kite after such a long hiatus.    Nope – he showed his quiet well behaved nature through and through –  I loved this horse before for taking good care of my daughter in the show pen, and I love him more for coming through this ordeal like the super trooper that he is.

     Max will be 20 years old this spring, so we’re not returning him to show.. he’ll live an easy retirement life here on the farm.  Oh, how I wish all horses had such luck.

     Both Max (left) and Opie (right) are Quarter Horses.  It’s my favorite breed and I’ve owned several over the years – the main reason is their temperament.  There are always exceptions, but the quarter horse is known for their steady, quiet, good natured no nonsense work ethic.  They have been bred over the years so that there is a wide variety of body types – Opie is old school – I call him my cow pony – he’s short and stout.  Max is taller and more refined, you can see it particularly in his head and neck, although those big ears are a throwback to… something else entirely.     His build makes him more versatile for different jobs in the show pen – he was ridden both English and Western and carried it off pretty well.

  P.S. … although it’s not the quarter horse culture way – I strongly recommend helmet wearing at all times when riding, no matter how sturdy you think your horse is.   Too many very seasoned riders have suffered dibilitating TBI’s from falls off their horse –  I discovered my helmet was taken over by mice in the tackroom, I’m shopping for a new one today.

 It’s a beautiful thing –

Words of Wisdom for 2016

  A friend sent this to their Christmas Card recipients  –  I’m sharing with you because I think most of what I read is  pretty accurate.   These are some of the  words left by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, a  well known motivational speaker who passed on this year.

1. Cooperation is healthier than competition.  If you’re always in a hurry, always trying to get ahead of the other guy, or someone else’s performance is what motivates you, then that person is in control of you.

2.  If you love people you don’t try to change them.  Love is the ability and willingness to allow those that you care for to be what they choose for themselves without any insistence that they satisfy you.

3. Ignorance is not bliss.  The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.

4. You are not a victim of the world.  How people treat you is their karma: how you react is yours.

5. You find yourself in solitude. You cannot be lonely if you like the person you’re alone with.

6. Rejection makes you stronger.  Be grateful to all those people who told you no. It’s because of them that you managed to do it all yourself.

7. Self worth cannot be verified by others. You are worthy because you say it is so. If you depend on others for your value it is other-worth.

8. You don’t attract what you want in your life, you attract what you are.  If you’re obsessed with defeating the other guy and winning at all costs, then you’re guaranteed to attract the vibrational equivalent of this thinking into your life – even if you do yoga and stand on your head chanting mantras every day.

9. There are no limits to what you can achieve – you are a no-limit person.  when you argue for your limitations, all you get are your limitations.

10. Heaven on Earth is a choice you must make, not a place you must find.  Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world.  Same world.

11. All that you need is already within you.  You have everything you need for complete peace and total happiness right now.

12. There is no end to personal growth.  Individuals who use self labels are stating “I’m a finished product in this area and a I’ll never be any different.  If you’re a finished product all tied up and put away, you’ve stopped growing.

13. Follow your heart and you will be successful.  Doing what you love is the cornerstone of having abundance in your life.

Christmas 2015

    There were a few meltdowns and a squabble or two… because I do keep it real here. But all in all it was a lovely Christmas –  some friends and some family – we were here, together, sharing  laughs, enjoying some good food, and many thoughtful  – useful- gifts were exchanged.

      Right this very minute at 7 am on the 26th the mister is  heading outside to take down the outside lights (he can’t help himself).. but I love our tree so much I told him it’s staying for another week. It’s been up since Thanksgiving weekend.   Meanwhile our 93 year old neighbor has just put her tree up with the help of her sons and she will enjoy it through January.   Which camp do you reside in? The early bird or the last minute into the new year Tree People?

      I hope your holiday was a joyous one in the ways that you like to celebrate with the people you care about. May we all be blessed with a healthy, happy, politically and mentally sane 2016.

A bag of split peas

       I rushed through the isles grabbing this and grabbing that while trying to remember what my Dad needed at the -home- and what my family needed at the homestead.  I felt the usual irritation rising at the prospect of another visit there to drop the stuff off, which was probably driving the rush down the isles (it wasn’t necessary, the hurriedness…. nor was the irritation if I’m being truthful).  I pulled into a checkout line and flipped through the e mail on my phone until it was time to unload the “stuff” onto the belt. I did it with stealth speed, true thing.

      Then I noticed her.  An older woman who looked like she had seen hard times for sure.  She held a single item in her hands, a bag of split peas.  If I had bothered to look around just a little, I would have seen that she had been behind me.. with one item. Although she was waiting patiently, I surely would have let her go ahead of me, had I noticed anything besides my own hurriedness  in that few moments.  When our eyes met, I apologized for not having realized she had just one thing and I surely should have let her go ahead of me.  She was kind with her response, indeed.  No irritation in HER stance.   I had the cashier add her one little bag to my total and said Merry Christmas.  I almost felt foolish doing so, but let me tell you …..

  It may as well have been a bag of gold.  Her eyes lit up as if she could not believe her good fortune at having a simple bag of split peas paid for by a stranger.

One.. Simple.. Little.. Thing.

She has no idea, but she taught me something and she made my day.  Hell, she made my Christmas.  Her face.. her gratitude.. over something so.. little!…

And just like that, my day was turned around.

It’s All Good.

Randomocity

  So tempted to talk about the pathetic list of presidential candidates and their debate behavior, but none of us need another one of those rants right now, do we. Something that irks me more than even Donald Trumps in-your-face obnoxious behavior?  Get religion out of politics.  It does not belong there.  Your religion is not my religion is not their religion. Any of your religious beliefs should not hold law making or program cutting weight.  Enough said.

 
     We’re having a Christmas Eve gathering here of family and friends, and I’ve been making batches of cookies to set out as a big platter with the desserts.  Two new fun things I tried, and they are no bake .. so easy to make, pretty .. and most importantly delicious.

Christmas confetti Truffles….  recipe HERE.

Chocolate covered oreos with crushed candy cane topping.   No recipe. All you do is buy a package of oreos, two bags of Hersheys Special Dark Chocolate chips for baking, etc.  and crush some candy canes. Melt the chocolate in a pot or the microwave, dip the oreos in the melted chocolate to coat them and place on wax paper, sprinkle with the crushed candy canes and allow to dry and harden before putting in tupperware in freezer or refrigerator until ready to serve.  THEY ARE DELICIOUS!

     

  An update on my father – He has settled in to nursing home life as well as can be expected.  He did take a fall a few weeks back and cracked his hip – was walking around unassisted with his door closed, two no-nos they have asked him not to do and he fell into the door.  A week later after pin insertion surgery at the hospital, he was back at the home and is once again not listening to care instructions.   He complains constantly about the food, which is actually very good considering it’s a care facility – and when I bring him something different to eat it’s not the right thing and he would rather have had something else.  The something else is not right the next time.  

I have stopped getting angry. That’s a big step for me.  Finally I see that all his issues have nothing to do with me. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.   It must be very lonely, living in a self that is so –  self centered.  I am glad I don’t know what life is like for someone who doesn’t look beyond their own being, their wants, their ideas… to the vast and interesting and enriching world and relationships that are before us all.

His loss.

 I’ve been running a lot of errands for the holidays and this… this is the face I get when I walk out the door with my Jeep keys in hand….

 Frasier is my rescue dog. I’m telling you.. there is no greater love.  

 Speaking of which, we’re holding an adoption event in Cromwell, CT this weekend for two dogs that have been in a CT shelter and now foster for a while.  We’d love to get them a home for the holidays at last.  If you’re local and interested, go meet Dottie and Nanny  this weekend!

Boys in the Trees

   If you’re my age or older you’ve  probably sung along to at least a few Carly Simon tunes in your younger  mad-love angst-ridden years.  I’ve always loved her music, and that of her famed ex-husband James Taylor too.   Until now I only imagined what their (story-book?) life must have been like as a couple and always thought it a tragedy that they weren’t able to keep it together for a long and at least sometimes happy marriage.  Having never really delved into the whys of their break-up, I just enjoyed the music and hoped for a reunion someday, if not as a couple, then an extremely talented duo who’ve brought so much soul to  music over the years.  One of my all time favorites is a concert Carly gave on the Vineyard Haven docks, Marthas Vineyard.  Not just because I love that island with all I’ve got, but it was her best most natural performance in my opinion, in a place she loves and calls home.  You felt it if you were watching.

   I just read Carlys newly released memoir, Boys In The Trees –  what  in my opinion appears to be a thoroughly honest, (sometimes embarassingly so!)  heartfelt account of her life story. That era was just before my coming of age so I wasn’t fully aware of the movement in the music world back then, but.. wow.    To say I had no idea is an understatement… and for those who want to read it I won’t spoil your read by putting the contents here.  Some of the artists are still entertaining today, it’s an interesting look back.

  Two things I can tell you without spoiling too much.  James Taylor does not speak of or to Carly Simon.  He pretty much “erased her”, in her  words in interviews, after their early 80’s divorce, although she only eludes to this in the book.   She treats him fairly here, but honestly.  Which is to say she doesn’t sugar coat their problems at all –  hers or his.   His heroin addiction since his teen years and chronic infidelities made him pretty much non-present in their ten year marriage and he owns up to it in subsequent interviews too, so it’s not bull.  Her anxiety and  insecurities stemming from the non-approving relationship she had with her father made her disfunctional and accepting of really poor treatment and low self worth, which ruled the landscape of her life for so very long.

      While it’s clear JT suffered depression and the ills of a substance abuser, I still can’t help but like him a lot less now.   Hard to believe the man who wrote and sang so many soulful songs of longing and caring and love and loss is the one who now thoroughly cuts out such a significant partner of his earlier days – one who stood by him when he needed love most.  His children should matter to him more than that.   He actually describes himself as a self absorbed artist who wasn’t fully present for his first set of kids or his first marriage.    

    I guess some habits never die.   You’re so vain, James, and the song wasn’t even about you.