A bald fellow in the parking lot at Carr's; Ron, Milo and the Mahoney horses
Monday, March 1, 2010 at 4:00AM ;)
I got up late today, never took a walk and, after I ate my oatmeal and read the Sunday paper - or at least those portions that I had not already read online from one source or another - basically spent the entire day sitting in front of my computer, working on a proposal that I must have done tomorrow. I am a long ways from being finished, so, once I finish this blog entry, I will go back to it.
The proposal is a long shot, but I've got to try anyway. I've found that funders have a very difficult time getting past the word, "blog," but the proposal involves this blog and it could make a big difference to it.
The only time that I stepped outside the house was at 4:00 PM. Margie needed to buy a few groceries at Carr's and so I suggested that I come along, sit in the car and listen to NPR while she shopped, and then afterward we could get coffee and go for a short drive.
So this picture represents the first stage of that process. Margie is in the store, shopping for a few groceries and I am sitting in the car, listening to the news and glancing into my rearview mirror.
;)
I wonder what she was going into Carr's to purchase? Cat food, I suspect. And some Vitamin C.
;)
Metro Cafe is closed on Sunday's, so we went through the drive-through at Mocha Moose, then went driving. As we passed by the Mahoney place, I saw the horses that are usually out in the field in this little enclosure. My friend, Ron Mancil, originally of the Arctic Slope, was with them, so I stopped to say hi.
;)
It has been a long time since I rode a horse. Over 30 years. At that time, Margie and I were still living on the reservation and we decided we needed a horse. We heard of one for sale at a ranch immediately over the reservation line, a gray mare, and we were told that it was a very good and gentle horse.
So we drove over.
Margie climbed on first and that damn good and gentle horse bucked her right off.
So I climbed on and the damn good and gentle horse bucked me off, too.
We decided not to buy it.
Mikey, a horse-shoeing housewife from southern Arizona and a frequent visitor to this blog, could surely have handled that mare, though.
;)
This is Milo. I tried to make friends with him, but he wasn't interested.
;)
Milo prefers the friendship of horses.
;)
Not long after the horse-bucking incident, Margie's family gave me a horse that they had already named, "Billy." Trouble is, it lived in Carrizo Canyon and pretty much went about its business as it wanted and we lived in Whiteriver, 25 miles away.
Every now and then, we would drive through Carrizo Canyon and we might have gotten a glimpse of Billy once or twice, but that was it.
We moved to Alaska shortly after that. Every now and then, we would receive reports that Billy had been seen here or there during family outings up the Canyon, to do things like plant and harvest corn.
I even think Red Nose caught him a couple of times and rode him.
But basically, my horse Billy lived a free life on the reservation and did whatever he wanted.
;)
I have some other horse stories to tell, including my best ones, but it would take more words and time than I am prepared to devote tonight.
So I will save them for another time.
Ron says horses are kind of like "smart moose."
Good thing they don't grow antlers. Someone would shoot them, for sure.
It reminds me of when I was a boy living in Montana, where cows were often referred to as "slow elk."
Local hunters were always gripping about out-of-state hunters who, folk-lore held, came into Montana and shot and even butchered copious numbers of "slow elk."
;)
Milo vigorously rounds up the horses. A good horse dog is indispensable when you live on a ranch.
;)
Just before we left, this black horse suddenly appeared and walked right up to me. I reached out and patted it on the head, then, fearing the horse would not stay long, lifted up my pocket camera and turned it back on, only to discover that it had been on all along. This meant that I had actually turned it off.
The pocket camera does not make transitions quickly. I had to wait for the lens to retract and the camera to shut off. Then, after I pushed the turn on button again, I had to wait for the lens to come back out and the camera to activate itself. By then, the horse felt it had learned whatever it was it needed to learn about me and so left as I quickly snapped this one, out of focus frame.
As you know, I love the pocket camera even better than my big professional cameras, but I tell you, it does cause me to miss a lot of pictures, just by being so damn slow.
Reader Comments (8)
You know, Bill, makes me laugh. I saw Ron and thought 'there's Ron'. I'm starting to recogonize people from a place that I've never been. Behold the power of blogs!
We had a Billy horse once. He was a retired (almost ancient) cow pony who was a lot smarter than five Iowa farm kids. He had an iron mouth and it was impossible to get him to cross a wooden bridge. But he was gentle and patient with us otherwise.
'The proposal is a long shot, but I've got to try anyway.'
Way to go! Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Good Luck!!!
Thank you for your wonderful blog. I read it first thing every morning and love hearing about Margie and your "kids" and grands-Keep it coming!!!
My sweetie is from the Nav res, but raised around White Salmon WA area. He is a horse person. I, on the other hand, am totally scared of horses and I know, that the horses know this. Which gives my sweetie and his family members plenty of laughs.
I resort to taking wonderful photos of horses.
All the best with the proposal :)
I love the winter coats on the horses. And Milo, what a face!! Good luck with the proposal.
Debby - It is kind of amazing, all right.
Whitestone - I know what you mean. When my uncle in Idaho first put me on a horse and sent me out to round up some cattle and move them to another field, it was a disaster until I just let the horse do what it wanted.
Funny Face - Thank you. If I get it, you will know. I caution, though - the odds are against it.
Thank you, Ann.
MAE - I would like to see your pictures of horses, sometime.
Ash - Thank you. Just seeing your name brings pictures of India into my head.
Shaela - Thank you, niece. And good luck with whatever projects you are working at getting together now.