Hey smart kids and folks out there — Question — at 10:00 am  Eastern Time  how much of the world is on the same day as we are?  Figure it out — tell me and tell it at your first opportunity at school this fall  — tell them it was your crazy Grandpa’s question! — or your Grandpa’s crazy question!  b kind when you select which it was.

From photo shoot:

Grandson’s diary June 27, 2013:  What did I do yesterday?  I will try to remember.  First I made coffee, then sat with Grandma and read numerous newspapers on our I-pads, resolved some travel plans for July, Created blog for June 27, scrubbed garage floor and my bathroom, Washed cleaning rags, had lunch, WENT ON PHOTO SHOOT (some results shown above) with 5 friends (one being Grandma), spent 1 1/2 hour with Perla — I feel we are making great headway — hope she does — We are working on three things:

1. Walking very much like in a heel competition if she were a dog.

2. When riding her, go where I ask and away from herd and barn.

3. Jumping in trailer when I ask and stay there in a total relaxed state of mind.

Then grilled dinner, transplanted some geraniums that needed bigger pots, mowed weeds in corral, had a beer, swatted mosquitos, read Farley Mowat, woke up and decided it was bedtime at mid-night!

I am sure you will never ask what I do all day again!

Just got an invite to go the eastern end of the Island to do a photo shoot of the flowers in bloom.

But first let’s see what was going on in 1903  in June 24-26:

24. Took props to Hooversville, bought feed for $2.50, wire, scythe snathe, and steeples for $3.85.

25. Plowed for buckwheat, cultivated corn, and loaded props.  Paid Hiram Weaver $10 for lunber, and Frank Eppley $11.00 for making mine props. Mejlon Berkey plowing done in spring.

26. Warm and pleasant. Worked on the road with team for Mehlon Berkey. Made Icecream in evening.

 

Yesterday I learned a lot about training a horse to into a trailer — maybe not enough to be fully successful — but I hope enough to trailer Perla to the Parade on the 4 of july – We always ride in that.  I will explain what I learned at another time   — But the foundation of my learning centered on this thinking:

I am the problem, not the horse — of course after 6 hours of rough trail – I was not in the same frame of mind as I am when loading the trailer at the barn before a ride — I am sure I was anxious about it — what do we do if my horse does not enter trailer — do we have to ride back to barn — all of that anxious thinking demonstrated lack of confidence  and horses can pick up on lack of confidence because they depend on the head horse to be confident and protect her and the herd.

— if that confidence is not there — then what —- You got it — Perla takes over the leadership role — and says she as the new leader “I sure as hell ain’t going to lead that fearful man into that cave where there might be a bear waiting to eat us. I am a good leader.”

So, I demonstrated confidence yesterday — hopping into the trailer beside perla — showing no fear of entering that small cave with a 1,000 pound crazy animal that may panic and stomp all over me like one did in Texas once to beak and arm and do even more damage — not me —  I hid all fear — kept it inside me and sweated a lot but  I hid it!!! Yep — I ain’t afraid of nottin — not me boy — what fun — cause it worked — together we entered the cave — success is always fun — hope we — me and Perla — can continue our success program!  We will see.

Now for what went on in 1903 June 19 thru 23:

19.  Plowed for buckwheat – to Hillsboro for lumber and milk trough.

20. Sold two turkeys = 31 1/2 # – 12 cents.  Schoolboard meeting to sell contract for new school building a Menges .  Cow came fresh.

22. Put milk trough in cellar. Hauled props. Borrowed $50 from Harvey Shaffer. Bought potatoes for 60 cents, plow point 30 cents, and pop for 5 cents.

23. Rained in forenoon. Afternoon I took two small logs to Hillsboro and got them sawed and plained for boardwalks. Bought 14# lard from Grand mother. Paid $2.00 for it.

That is life on a homestead in Pennsylvania mountains in 1903.  How much of that stuff did you do in June 19 – 23, 2013 — It is only 110 years later U know.

A 8 hour trail ride — lots of words, but I wanted to get it off my chest.

Last Saturday was a nice sunny day — from time to time a threat of rain — but none came.

Forecast for Sunday was more dire.  So, say we — lets ride today instead of tomorrow – Sunday. Mr and Mrs H said they would cut some trees that had fallen over the last quarter  mile of trail and return to pick up their trailer.  I would travel to Whitney Bay to pick up my trailer. 1 hour spent.

Take two trailers to the road on the north side of the Island and park them at the entrance gate to a coastal resort.  We would ride through the woods from the farm — using logging roads, old homestead roads, and new “Jeep”/”snowmobile” roads — No one but Mr H knew of the chain of roads through 5 miles or so of northern Michigan “forest” but we had faith that he knew the path to take– he assured us,  with the tress they cleared from the end of the trail,  we would have clear sailing — I mean clear riding.

The trip to deposit the trailers was 4 miles by road.  Mrs H. picked us (me and Mr. H. ) up in her truck. One half hour spent.  Back to the farm.

First chores — bringing horses to the barn, putting fly spray on them, saddling them, and riding to the trail head —  1/2  hour

Three horses — one golden colored 16 year old quarter horse “Goldie”, one 6 year old beautiful black Icelandic know phonetically as “Aus Dees”, and one 10 year old Icelandic named “Perla”.

Already 2 hours into the project — 2 more trail hours planned to ride to trailers.  Off we go. Clip/Clop on and on through some of the most beautiful forest with wild flowers every where – deer are glimpsed from time to time -all through as series of homestead roads and new logging roads —

then we needed to join up with a set of new “Jeep” roads.  What is a jeep made to do —  — You got it — see how much mud can be splatter over them — through mud holes that look like rivers — some actuallty flowing — what do horses like to trail through — You got it -nice smooth trails with flowers and grass to munch on

— WOW three hours of splashing through mud hole after mud hole — water up to the cinches , wet feet in the stirrups – hooves slipping and sliding — one hors loves water and wants to lie down in it with rider (me) on it — did that once — feet even wetter — one horse refuses to enter water and needs to be coaxed or lead around through the woods and underbrush.  — and one that is unpredictable and tries to brush rider in mud puddle by getting half way thru and turning left or right to brush rider off using trees along the puddle as the “Knock-Off” weapon.

As a result of Mr H’s inexperience with”Jeep” roads after a week of rain — Two hour prediction  became 4 hours – with  constant “working” at helping the horses deal with the unfriendly environment we put them in — this sport we called trail riding!  Mrs H says — worst trail ride ever — and she is an experience trail rider.  I said, quit an experience because I am not experienced and thought all trail rides were rides to h_ _ _.  — now six hours in the project.  Mr. H is saying nothing!

WOW — there are the trailers — I will not bore you with any details — but here is an overview — we have 3 horses that love to rid in the  trailer and go off to a new experence — Well, they want no new experience today — 2 of them refuse to enter — I am sure they think we lead them to a cave at the end of the mud holes (that is what the trailer must look like to their minds) with a bear sleeping in there  — ready to wake up and eat them when they enter.   So, one hour later — with sweating riders – wet feet – tired bodies we were able to convince all three horses the we had full control of the bears, would protect them from the bears  and would have their food awaiting them back at the barn with their buddies.

In addition, I did explain that a 15 minute ride in the trailer was a lot better then that 4 hours ride back to the barn — the only alternative for them and us of course.   Whew!!!! they agreed and jumped into the trailer.

Back to farm we go — un-trailer the horses, brush them down, muck out barn — poop from the 4 buddies left behind all day.    I think that adds up to about an 8 hour trail ride –completed in what seemed like only 14 hours — I still have muscles that hurt — and a horse that now suspects that all trailers are caves with bears in them!