Thursday March 31 2007

Kaidi

Today I left for town about 10 a.m. The dogs went with me and they had their first walk after getting to town. Next stop was the Pinedale cemetery. Last Sunday Joe had gone to Pinedale and picked up a bouquet we had ordered to put on his Brother Jim's grave. Well he walked around about an hour and couldn't find the grave, so he came home and brought the bouquet with him. Neither one of us could figure it out, because he's never had trouble before. I told him if he would like me to I would put the flowers on the grave today. Would you believe I couldn't find it either. I had only been there at the funeral, and it was winter with snow on the ground, but knew it was north of the buildings and under two huge pine trees. The whole thing isn't that big for gosh sakes.

Finally I gave up for the time being and went to lunch at the senior center. On the menu was chili and cornbread. I sat with Judi, Cindy Carlson and her daughter Jennifer and Courtney Skinner. We had a fun time visiting. The Skinners ran a dude outfit and kid's survival camp from Burnt Lake, so there were lots of stories about that and Mt. Everest and The 10th Mountain Division and history and Indian trails and legendary caves. After lunch I asked Judi if she wanted to go help me find the grave. We read the graves map AGAIN and Jud, not influenced by the ingrained idea that it HAD to be under two huge trees, walked right to it. Guess What! They cut both the trees down. In fact they cut 120 beetle infested trees down, and now the grave is in the middle of a very large open space. After putting the bouquet at the grave, Judi and I visited some more, and then Don the man who takes care of the cemetery (and is also the coroner) came and we talked to him. He said he saw Joe on Sunday walking around. I think we'll find it next time.

Next went down to Falers for a little bit of groceries and Sheral and Dick were there eating their lunch, so I sat with them. They are having a real serious problem with their water system, and he has a hole dug about 8' in the ground and as big as a room in order to fix some valve. We had a pretty nice visit until I needed to get going to make sure I got to my haircut in time. Also going through the aisles I saw Melita and Dona Rae. Melita hasn't been back too long from 6 weeks in Switzerland where she's from. We all exchanged our illness and Dr. related "stuff" and got caught up on that.

Luckily a few days ago Beverly jogged my memory that three of my grand kids have imminent birthdays, and when I looked at home for cards I didn't have any appropriate to send. Also needed one for my sister. So I had to go in the gift shop for cards. Then got my shopping done. Didn't need much since we just spent a bundle at Wal-Mart a couple of days ago. Over to get my haircut and arrived just in time. I took a picture of my beautician Kaidi to show you. I love Kaidi.

After that went shopping at the auto parts stores for Joe's truck parts, and all I could get was more brake fluid. His emergency brake drum that was being relined in Salt Lake City got sent to Evanston so it wasn't there, a mistake of the freight truck. The clerk said he was sorry and I thought of the price of gas for another trip. Told him we lived an hour away. Nope, not his fault.

Then I took the dogs to the Lions Park where they have a nice nature trail loop, and sat on a bench by Pine Creek writing the birthday cards and checks for the grand kids. Got to the P.O. just before they closed for stamps and mailed the cards. Yes, at least two will be late, sorry, but that's the normal story of my life. Dogs got all wet swimming in the creek. Stopped for a cold drink for the drive home.

Several places around Pinedale raise llamas or alpacas and I've been wanting to stop and photograph those. The day wasn't especially pretty for it, but I got some pictures of them to show you and will do that tomorrow.

Walking on the Nature Trail by Pine Creek

Along the way home near the East Fork River were large patches of shooting stars in the fields. It is a thing of beauty to see them like that.

The pastels I ordered came today, so picked up our mail and got the package from the UPS box. The dogs were ready for another run when we got to our gate. Raven especially ran right down the ditch with water flying the entire way to the house. What a happy sight. They had to stay outside until they dried off. I quick stuck leftover casserole in the oven, and set the table, then got the groceries put away.

I had the nicest most relaxing day in quite a while.

I had forwarded an email with a power point of Keukenhof, near Amsterdam, the world's largest flower garden, and couldn't believe how many people who wrote back and said they had been there!! Now I really feel travel deprived.

Wednesday May 30 2007

Blue Moon

This evening we had a Blue Moon, the second full moon in the same month. See that kind of lavender layer between the hills and the moon? That's air pollution from the oil/gas fields. We never used to have such a thing. You could not see the moon until it got above that layer.

Yesterday after I posted the blog we also trimmed Bobbi's front feet. I catch and hold them while Joe trims. Joe will do both their backs soon. Bobbi's feet are better than they have been for years, and surely that is because we are keeping her in and feeding her hay so she doesn't founder. She is about 25 years old now, so no spring chicken but she looks good. She gets more exercise in the corral than she does out in the field because she's trotting around all the time trying to keep track of Nube. She hates to be locked in there alone. Nube's feet had grown out too much and she had a couple of ugly chips but they trimmed up good. I've got them brushed and groomed, and Bobbi is even being pretty good about letting me comb out her tail. I'm about half through with her tail. It is beautiful and nearly touches the ground. She loves to be brushed.

Being on the WAOW board, at this time we are voting on line to say yes or no to accepting new members into membership. This is my first experience with this procedure. Its very interesting. They make a series of web pages to view the submitted artwork with places to comment and vote. Its not easy to choose, but we are trying to bring good quality artists into the group. I've laid off the other WAOW work lately because of the S&R Commander portrait, but have to get back to the final draft on the membership section of the bylaws pretty soon. I wrote yesterday finally and told the nominating committee that I wouldn't take the nomination for president. The thing is I really would like to be president, but sure don't want to go through all the politics and it will just take too much out of my life at this point. I don't have the ambition for it any more. I told my friend Judy and got the biggest kick out of her answer....."I know how you love to do that sort of thing. Just tell them if they want you to be president, they have to change the position to dictator, and then you will be happy to take over. :-)" Ohhhhh dear, she knows me too well. It's true. Very lacking in diplomacy, I'm used to dealing with onery horses and spoiled dogs. I would likely have no board left if I were head pretzel. Then I'd have to do all the jobs myself.

Yesterday we had some trouble with our well acting like there's not water in there after watering the yard for about 30 minutes. And this is spring - the water table should be way up. There hasn't even been water in the sump this year. Whether it's the drought or something mechanical I don't think Joe knows yet. It hasn't been that long since we pulled both pumps and renewed everything.

This afternoon and yesterday Joe worked on the brake lines in the old stock truck. I sit and pump the pedal to get the pressure up while he bleeds the lines, and it took about an hour each day. The brakes have always been a problem in that truck.

This morning Joe went to town to get his blood test. He was back before lunch time. Tomorrow I will go to Pinedale and pick up more truck parts for Joe, and get a few groceries. In the morning I'll call and make a reservation at Rendezvous Pointe, the senior center, for lunch. Then I have a haircut appointment at 3 p.m.

It was about 25 degrees here this morning, but warmed up pretty quickly. Got to nearly 60, but we're still having a cool wind. You need a jacket.

Tuesday May 29 2007

Western Tanager

Judi Had this bird on her porch the other day.

It ran into her window and was stunned

but she got the cat and dog in and it soon recovered.

Isn't he beautiful.

Fog on Hills in Back at Dusk

Joe's been the busy one again today. Was out working before breakfast - well.... edit that to say he first had coffee and doughnuts - mowed the back yard, worked on his big truck and I think his mechanic job is finished, went out irrigating for a while, and then told me to catch Nube and he trimmed her front feet. She was a good girl, but its still hard on Joe any more. Its a tough job. He's going to do her backs tomorrow. Then it will be Bobbi's turn.

Glad those of you who commented liked the pictures of the cemetery. Just going up the hill and into the cemetery feels like you are in another country. Not that long ago, the cemetery was fairly desolate and uncared for so its a big change.

This morning had over 60 messages in my email, and surely more to come. So figured I'd better spend some time to pare them down.

The weather is cool and breezy, but a beautiful sunny day. So far nothing of interest to report today.

Memorial Day Monday May 28 2007

Memorial Day

Every Memorial Day we take flowers to the cemetery in Green River where Joe's family is buried. We left about 7 a.m. (I hate early) and drove the back way on the dirt road to Farson. It was very dark and overcast. There were several big camps before the river with 8 or 10 trailers, trucks, ATVs, just circled in the sagebrush, looking like small towns out there. It feels like we're being invaded. It would be easy to imagine that they look a lot like a group of covered wagons on the trail would have. It was a nice drive through the back country this morning. And we saw quite a few golden eagles, antelope, sage chickens, the cattle looking good, many cottontails, and more ground squirrels than I've ever seen before. I don't know what that's about but they were thick everywhere. It's time now for the antelope to be having their fawns. I haven't seen any yet though.

It was about an hour and 15 minutes to get to the highway going that way. By the time we got to the Farson area, the sun was mostly shining. The Big Sandy Reservoir looked almost full. Amazingly traffic was light, even on the freeway between Rock Springs and Green River. We picked up the flowers at Up, Up and Away by 9:20. They were very pretty. Joe went to school with Susan who has the flower shop and she always makes us nice bouquets. The cemetery was beautiful this year, they are taking good care of it. The lilac bushes were so loaded with blooms, maybe prettier than I've every seen them before. The VFW was getting ready for their ceremony - thank heaven for those guys. There was no one we knew at the cemetery, so Joe said let's go have breakfast at the Tomahawk Tavern, actually the restaurant in there is the Crazy Moose or something like that. The food is always pretty good. Luckily Apple and Becky came in looking for us after a walk at Expedition Island, so it was nice of them to try to find us. We usually see them when we go down. Joe and Apple have been friends all their lives. We had a good visit. There was a white box full of leftovers for the dogs. Joe always like to drive past the house they lived in when he was a kid, so we did that, and also saw all his friend's and relatives places nearby. He names them all and notices whether the houses are being taken care of or not.

Then went back to Rock Springs and to Home Depot where we got a door knob bumper guard for the bathroom wall, and some extra light bulbs for his new halogen light in the living room. I looked for bedding flowers for my pots and there were essentially none. Next we went to Walmart. I power shopped in there for almost two hours, for groceries and anything else I could find on my list. Bought a new cordless phone for the studio. The old one was messing up the regular phone, and I've been without it after unplugging it a couple of weeks ago, so guess its time for a new one. Walmart didn't have any flowers either. So much for thinking I would get my flower pots planted. Maybe when we go to Idaho Falls I will find some there.

When I came out of the store Joe said it had sprinkled for about 10 minutes. He had walked the dogs while I shopped so we were good to go. We bought gas at Walmart and it was $3.15 a gallon, that's about 25 cents less than in Pinedale. Heading north out of town there was a storm black clear to the ground. You couldn't see 1/4 of a mile, nothing. It was awesome and rather frightening from a distance, but not bad when we got there. The worst of it had passed by then. Rain came down hard at first, then gradually let up, and it rained for about 20 miles, then the road was wet about to Farson - another 20 miles. From then on it hadn't rained a drop including here at home. (Although later Charm said they had a rather rainy day up at Boulder Lake.) The traffic was horrific going home, with streams of trucks/trailers/semis/cars coming out of Sublette County. At first while the road was wet the traffic just kicked up water and you couldn't see any vehicles that were coming, but no one seemed too inclined to pass anyway. The wind was really gusting across the road all the way back.

I asked Joe if he wanted late lunch/early dinner at the Country Burger place and he said no "we" didn't need lunch, so we didn't. I'm sure he was counting on an ice cream cone at Farson, but it was closed, so I told him he didn't need ice cream anyway. Disappointment hung in the air.

We got home about 4:30, got everything unlocked, groceries unloaded, horse fed and watered, and most of the groceries put away. Dinner was leftovers heated in the microwave. It sure feels good to sit and relax. There's a pretty lavender sunset tonight on the clouds to the east. The rest of the sky, with an almost full moon, was clear. It's surprisingly cold again. I still need to go out and feed the cats and then its jammy time.

Sunday May 27 2007

Boulter Family Visits the Old Homestead

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Sunday morning. An anniversary of sorts - I've been writing the blog for about three months now, and have certainly enjoyed the experience.

Joe wanted to leave early for the cemetery in Pinedale to put flowers on his brother Jim's grave, so he cooked his own breakfast and is on his way. The dogs are sitting in the yard howling. Raven is learning how to sing instead of just bark.

The Boulter family will be here about noon or one o'clock. John Boulter didn't call until yesterday, so I didn't do anything ahead for refreshments. But will make some cookies this morning and have lemonade. I'll have to do some housecleaning too. He said there are about 20 of them. Doesn't look like the visit will be rained out. I might write a little more later to tell you about the experience after they have been here.

I'm back, it's 2:30, and the Boulter family left a little while ago. They did get here about noon, and there were 25 of them - lots of little kids. Basically I think there were four (maybe five?) brothers and their families. Their grand and great grandparents homesteaded here, and the family was visiting their roots. They looked around while I tried as best I could to describe where the original buildings were, and where the old one-room school was down by the gate. The kids of course were more interested in the horses and fed them bits of hand pulled grass and then I gave them small alfalfa cubes to give Bobbi and Nube. They marveled at the old well pump, the original outhouse and wagon, and the layout of the original ranch fields and buildings. They all visited the Art Show in the Barn, since it was up. We had cookies and lemonade. It was a lot of fun having them here. Joe laid under the truck the whole time.

Yesterday I looked up information to make our hotel reservation in Idaho Falls next week, ordered Joe's prescriptions from the VA, got more paperwork done, bills paid and made the deposit on a "booth space" for the Green River Rendezvous Street Art and Craft Fair. I have quite a lot of my matted and shrink wrapped prints to sell. Sally Hayward is going to share the space with me. She has jewelery she wants to sell. Sally is my friend Gina's sister and they live in Arizona in the winter and also have a house in Pinedale. Isn't the Internet great! That is how we have met, so in a few weeks we will meet in person. I know I like her already though. We may have been introduced once before. I had been procrastinating and may not have actually gotten the booth if Sally hadn't said she was interested too, as sitting on the street selling my wares isn't one of my favorite things. I got started with updating the print price list, divided the total prints into the total cost and came up with the cost each. Now have to figure out what each of the sizes will cost - my mathematically challenged left brain wants nothing to do with it, however it's necessary to make a little profit.

The drawing for the Commander of the National Search and Rescue portrait is on the buckskin. I accomplished that yesterday and will let you know how it goes. Maybe we can do a series of photos on the blog as it progresses.

Interesting Turn of Events - This is the gallery where our WAOW show will be in next November.

Chicago police are searching for a couple who walked into a private gallery and stole a 17th-century Rembrandt etching from the wall. The etching, called Adam and Eve, shows Adam holding out an apple to Eve in the Garden of Eden while a serpent looks on. The couple, described as middle-aged, spent about five minutes in the Hilligoss Gallery Sunday afternoon before disappearing. After they had left the gallery, the etching by Rembrandt van Rijn was discovered to be missing. Gallery owner Tom Hilligoss estimates the value of the etching at $60,000 US. He was selling the etching on consignment as part of an estate sale. The thieves, who had been seen before in the gallery, may have targeted the etching after finding a buyer, he said. "They went straight for it," Hilligoss said of the thieves, who were not caught on security cameras. With files from the Associated Press

Saturday May 26 2007

Tom's Hay

Yesterday afternoon we left about 4 p.m. to go Pinedale and get more truck parts. It was about when we got there we realized we both had forgotten to bring any checkbook or money! But I had "the card". We were a little early so went to the Stockman's - Joe had a cup of coffee and I had some welcome ice tea. Then over to Tom and Joanne's in Bargerville. They have a nice log house there and a pretty good hayfield. Joe ran out and needed a little extra hay for Bobbi. We got there just about 6 p.m. after Tom got home from work. He's the saddle maker in town. Tom and Joe hefted a tall load into the pickup. Tom's hay is really nice. How come I didn't think to take pictures of them loading or with the truck piled sky high I don't know.

Joanne and I stood and talked about cats and horses and other important things. She is the one who gave me my two sister cats maybe four years ago now. They invited us to stay to dinner and Joanne had made the best chili out of local beef and bundt cake for dessert. I don't know if she had planned to ask us ahead or not, but we sure weren't expecting to get such a nice dinner. I was really glad not to have to go home late and fix anything. We had a good chance to visit. They are coming to our house for dinner in a few weeks. They had been invited all last fall and we never did set a date, so before we left we said it would be the 17th.

Joe said if any hay fell off I'd have to pick it up. I had been doing the driving, with the two dogs laying on my shifting arm. I told Joe no more of the two big dogs riding with us both in the front seat of the truck. It's too dangerous. I don't like them in the bed of the pickup either in case they fell out. So they may have to stay at home next time. They have had to stay home alone maybe twice in their lives.

We started home and the road in to their place is bumpy so had to take it slow, but when I turned onto the highway there was not a vehicle in sight to worry about all the way to Boulder. Angels had gone ahead and cleared the way. The evening was really pretty for a slower than normal drive through the ranch country. We stopped at the top of the hill at Irish Canyon and Joe tightened up the ropes. Then slowly again onto our dirt roads. There was a young moose right in the road as we drove along Muddy Creek. He was very gangly but gracefully jumped over the fence and crossed the creek. Picked up our mail out of the mailbox. A nice t-shirt I had ordered had come. I managed to avoid most all the bumps and potholes in our road. We got to the yard with the load intact about 9 p.m.

The drive brought back memories of all the many times I had loaded up the old Chevy pickup with hay by myself and drove it up to the lodge for hunting camp every fall. For many years I hauled most all the hay for the hunting horses, but was lots younger and stronger then too. And never lost a bale either. So this driving on nearly level roads was pretty easy. In later years when we had more help, the wranglers hauled a lot of the hay then.

This morning Joe was out at the crack of dawn unloading the hay into the barn. By the time I got up and got out there, he was about done, but I did get a few snapshots. The dogs are his helpers.

This has been a lazy day. Made Joe some buttermilk pancakes. Betty called this morning and we had our Saturday visit. Sounds like things are going fine at her place. She's been getting lots of improvements done in her yard. It's still partly cloudy, cool and breezy but warmer than it has been for a while. I've got a zucchini, mushroom, hot Italian sausage casserole made and baking in a slow oven for dinner. Will make some rice pilaf with it.

Friday May 25 2007

Barn on Horse Creek Road

8x10 Study/Sketch - Mixed Media

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This little painting was finished and framed recently. When they are not a major piece, I call these small pieces studies or sketches. It started with watercolor, and I added pastel and colored pencil to finish it up. Am taking my prints out to the barn for the art show. And hope some destructive rodents don't get in there. I'm trusting my cats to take care of them. Now I will also need to revise the price list of the prints to reflect the nicely done matting and shrink wrapping. That will involve some computer work and getting a list printed up. I'm thinking of taking the prints to the Green River Rendezvous 2007 Street Art and Craft Fair. You have to rent your "booth space". So a decision will need to made about that soon. I don't much like doing that kind of thing, but now I have all these prints (investment) and need to sell them. My weak point is business/marketing.

It is a dark and dreary morning, with a stiff breeze blowing. Years ago, it would have been raining with this kind of weather, but its iffy whether we'll get any moisture or not. The forecast doesn't call for more than 20% chance of rain all week and supposed to get warmer.

So far all that is planned for today is the usual routine, plus 3 loads of laundry, changing the bed, and later this afternoon we're both going to get some more hay from Tom for Bobbi, so she can be kept in the corral. i.e. I'll drive. Tom lives in Bargerville, between Pinedale and Boulder. The propane man came this morning to fill our tank. Then Joe went out irrigating. I've got my occasional miserable "allergy attack" for lack of a better description.

This is the weekend the Boulter family (see the March 25 entry) is supposed to come to spend a few hours here during their family reunion. The Boulter's were the ones who homesteaded our place in the early years of the 20th century. John Boulter said he would call me to finalize the visit but I haven't heard from him. I had planned to have some refreshments for them, but don't know whether to do that or not, and would need to be working on it tomorrow. I need to look up his letter and see if there is a phone number and maybe call, although they probably would not be there. Maybe they'll just show up. ??

Joe agreed to have a horseshoer come to trim Bobbi and Nube's feet. I need to find a good one and make the arrangements. Joe has always done it all.

Yes we did get some sprinkles of rain.

Thursday May 24 2007

Corral at Sunset

All went well today for our writer's group business meeting, Sublette County Artists Guild. I got got the cake made and everything finished up in time for our meeting. Charm came a little early and helped me finish up. She, Kay and Barbara also helped serve, I'm very grateful for their help. I'm always a little sorry at times like these that I don't have a large table to serve a bunch, however we managed fine with TV trays and holding our plates in our laps. Thirteen of us attended. We had a good meeting and got all the items on the agenda discussed. It took longer than I thought it might, but we had a very productive meeting. I'm proud of the group for all the community service things we are taking on and the way many are volunteering. After the fact, I wish I had taken a picture of the group, but was pretty occupied. We'll have another chance for that. It was so good to see everyone again. Oh yes, nearly forgot to tell you that I'm president of the group again. We all just kept our positions again for the year.

It's been very overcast and chilly all day. Bobbi got herself out of the corral into the yard this evening and we had to catch her and put her back. Fortunately she didn't get into the field or the job would have been a lot more difficult. At least she didn't go wild and try to escape or get to running around the yard or jump the fence. The dogs had to stay in the house so they wouldn't stir her up in the yard to where we couldn't catch her. So that got Sparky bent all out of shape. He was very indignant for quite a while. He thinks he's in charge of everything - the dominant dog. So not much else went on to talk about. I heated up leftover corned beef and cabbage with salad and store bought rolls for our dinner. And we have some of the strawberry cake roll for dessert. I'm ready to put my pjs on.

Wednesday May 23 2007

Tipis at the Museum of the Mountain Man

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We left for Pinedale about 9 a.m. this morning. It was very frosty early and breezy. Stopped first at the post office and was able to say hi for a few minutes to Debbie.

Took Joe right up to the clinic for his blood test but they didn't have any vials? so were getting some from Big Piney and said to come back in the afternoon. We got parts for Joe and this took several stops. His big truck emergency brake drum was sent off to Salt Lake City to be relined. Got gas. Then went to Falers for a few groceries, mostly fresh things. Mushrooms and zucchini looked extra good and I make a casserole we like with those. It has hot Italian sausage in it. I saw Charm in the store. While I was in there I ordered flowers for Mary Caroline.

By then we were just in time for lunch at Rendezvous Pointe - roast beef and scalloped potatoes carrots and homemade rolls. We sat with the Myers and Kellys and I really enjoyed the visiting. Judi had a great opportunity to get some books at a garage sale and I was able to pick a bunch of mostly art books. She will bring them out tomorrow. I can't wait to see them all.

At one we went back to the clinic, but then the blood pressure machine was broken? and he has to wait some more. He didn't get out of the clinic until 2:20 and hardly anyone else (patients) was there. I took the dogs for a nice walk near the Museum and liked the way the tipis looked so took some photos. Went back to get Joe and he was still sitting right where I left him. So I went and emptied the recycling stuff. He was done when I went back the second time. The drive home was pretty. The temperature dropped from 65 on the bank's termperature sign to 47 by the time we got home. It was nearly 4 p.m. when we got here, put groceries away, got a nice phone call from Sheral and Noleen.

Not surprisingly I wasn't feeling ambitious enough to do anything for tomorrow's SCAG business meeting. I never got the cake made yesterday, but I did get the agenda and the new meeting schedule typed up. Since we had such a big dinner at lunch, I made us a french dip sandwich. I worked a little more on my tipi pastel painting and its certainly changed or evolved from when I started it. It may be a keeper. I went out to feed the cats about sunset and took some more sunset photos.

TuesdayMay 22 2007

After The Rain - West

After the Rain - East

Finally.....we had a wonderful rain yesterday that lasted all day long. At 5 p.m. it began a blizzard with snow or freezing rain and wind and that lasted about an hour. Then it began to clear up. It got below freezing last night (have to check that lilac bush), the moisture on the grass was frozen with the drops flashing rainbow colors in the sunrise and all the ponds on the field were frozen. This morning doesn't look like we will get any more, but the forecast is still for rain and snow. Bobbi's corral is a muddy mess.

Snow Yesterday Afternoon - Nube - 5 p.m.

Yesterday I was able to shop online for some more pastel colors - I got all the unison greens and all the lights. And a couple of brushes from Dick Blick. So guess I'm in the pastel painting business for serious. I'll go ahead gradually and get the other colors too. When I did the quick draw at WAA it took a whole $5 stick of white to cover the painting. That was an eye opener.

Oh, I found that file of lost photos. They automatically went into a file I never made called digital photos - sometimes things do make sense. So added a few more down below to go with the messages I took them for. It's a little heavy on pictures, but that's o.k. If you check down through as far as Wednesday the 16th you will see them.

And thank goodness I finally figured out a way not to struggle with the spacing in the blog by searching for the answer. Probably everyone else already knows this, but it is <> with a p in between them ("it" won't let it stay in there to show you) begin paragraph; and < / p > end paragraph (letters with no spaces) and ta-daa everything comes out perfectly. A lot of extra time has been wasted trying over and over to get the photos, paragraphs and spacing to be uniform. Drove me nuts! I have to conform to "it". Though it may not be obeying me and coming out just as I'd like it, at least it will be neater.

Monday May 21 2007

Antelope

This is a painting I did from many years ago

and gave it to Debbie,

maybe for her high school graduation.

Came across it while working on sizing

photos of paintings for my website.

It doesn't actually have the red this strong in the painting.

It's very overcast, 38 degrees and is supposed to be 50% chance of rain and probably snow in the mountains today and tomorrow. Made Joe waffles and ham for breakfast. I have to get a shower and wash my hair. Today I'll get the bills paid online. I even actually enjoy that. Have to call the florists in Pinedale and Green River to get flowers ordered for Memorial Day.

Housecleaning....eehhhh. Cooking....eehhhh. And I'll work on my painting. The clinic is supposed to call with Joe's ekg appointment. I'll have more days away or busy in the next two weeks. Thursday is our first Sublette County Artists Guild business meeting of the year. I'm president and in charge of planning the meeting. Its going to be here and will be at about 2 p.m. My fresh strawberries and cream cake roll sounded like a good plan to have for the dessert and coffee. So in the next couple of days will need to go to the store for some fresh things. It's been a while since I went to the store - May 9 to be exact. Sunday Joe will go to Pinedale to put flowers on his brother's grave there. Then Monday we will go to Green River to the cemetery to put the flowers on Joe's family's graves and maybe see some of his friends. That will probably be a chance for shopping at Walmart. Maybe I can get my bedding flowers there for my pots. Thursday next week I go back to Pinedale for a haircut. Rambling on, aren't I. But I'm drawing a blank for writing anything today. Maybe later there will be something more interesting to talk about.

YESSSS!!!! At 8:50 a.m. its raining. I can hear the rain on my studio roof. Wonderful. Hope it will last a while, we need puddles. Days and days would be good.

It rained steady all day. By 5 p.m. it turned into a blizzard and snowed and blew for nearly an hour then began to let up. It was about 30 degrees by then and breezy.

Sunday May 20 2007

Venus and Luna

This photo I lifted from Spaceweather.com,

where there are more interesting pictures,

and where I read that on the 22nd

Saturn will be next to the moon.

Last night there was a beautiful sight in the Western sky. A crescent moon with Venus just below it. I've seen it a few other times in my life. My grandmother showed me the same thing once when I was about six, but the star was close to the tip of the moon. I've never forgotten that and think it was she who instilled my love of these beautiful things in the universe. It is a special memory standing together in her back yard watching that same moon and star. Now that memory seems as if it could be a sharing and continuity of awesome things passed down from our earliest ancestors. Perhaps when she was little she also stood on a summer night like that with her grandmother. She would be amazed and thrilled at all we can see today in the photos from huge telescopes and that man has walked on that moon.

My Photo of the Moon and Venus in Wyoming

I took photos of the moon and venus, and quite a few other things during the last several days, and then downloaded them off the card and thought I put them where I usually file them, but couldn't find them anywhere. So that is why I lifted the photo of spaceweather.com's photo of the moon and venus. (Days later I did find the file with the photos.)

Yesterday we had some thunder and hard wind again, with another 10 drops of rain. It got up over 70 but still felt cool. Sparky was terrorized by the thunder, but we are working on ignoring all that instead of consoling him. It seems he is a little better than he used to be, but while I try to ignore him, Joe holds him on his lap. So much for that theory. Today the morning was gorgeous, but by afternoon clouding up again and very windy.

Joe has nearly everything out of the shed where the cats live, so I've raked the ground in there while I could get to it and cleaned the place up. Also am watering the yard - it needs water badly. I can't believe how dry it is for the middle of May. I have lost three of my nice plants, all dead, and I'm sure it was because of that very long cold spell we had with 40 below for so long. They had done well for three summers. BUT!!! .....It looks like my 30 year old knee high lilac bush is going to bloom for the first time!!! (I would not be one bit surprised if it froze and killed the blossoms now.) I put three of them in when we bought the ranch from Joe's dad and this is the only one left.

Since I had several new paintings to hang I worked on reorganizing the Art Show in the Barn this afternoon. It is ready now if people want to come and see the artwork. I will have quite a few more new pieces to be framed too. Presently I'm working on a pastel painting of a tipi, which is not going well, but I intend to persevere.

Today I changed the sheets and did two loads of laundry. We had rib steak and onion roasted potatoes for dinner. We share one steak, so there is only one bone any more and I have to keep track of whose turn it is to get the bone, not an easy task. Raven got it tonight and it was really big and juicy. Her eyes were huge when she saw it. Sparky knows the routine and expects special scraps in his bowl if he doesn't get the bone - they are so funny.

Sorry I didn't feel up to going in to the dance recital last night so I hope I will have another chance to see Connie and Bernie soon. Maybe we can have lunch some day when they are in Pinedale again.

Saturday May 19 2007

View Toward the Big Sandy High Country Across Leckie's

The faint road lower left center is the Oregon Trail

and the one going up the distant hill goes to Big Sandy Openings

1955 International Stock Truck

Mechanic King Again

Joe's working on his old yellow stock truck. He's taking out the drive line, I think he said. He has two tractors and four trucks to maintain. Between his mechanic-king on all his equipment and irrigating he's been spending a lot of time outside in the nice weather. Then its watching the NBA playoffs, but most of that is with his eyes closed.

Yesterday afternoon I spent some enjoyable time working in my photo program and printing out a lot of prints for painting reference. Now to see what I do with them.

Yesterday I gave both dogs a bath and then brushed them out, the entire day of spa treatment. What an improvement and I bet they feel lots better. Raven is not lady-like at all and gets totally muddy, full of dirt and filthy, frequently snacks on horse manure. Sparky wasn't a lot better. It was a new experience because for the first time I bathed them in the bath tub. This is because I can no longer lift them into the utility room sink. The double sink is the perfect place to wash them because, once they are in there, there is no bending over. But the bad part is I have to lift them in and out. Also the hose with a sprayer I had wore out and I've never gotten another one, so it was the tub or the hose in the yard. Sparky was first into the bath tub. And he didn't want to get in but with encouragement he did and we got the job done. He loves to have a bath. Raven came in a few times to see what was going on. Draped with a towel to catch any unallowed shaking off, Sparky carefully jumped out of the tub and I led him with the leash to the back door and turned him loose outside to dry.

Later... after I rested... it was Raven's turn. She never comes in the bathroom much, and was scared to death of the prospect of getting into that white "pond". It took about 10 minutes of encouragement and me in the tub sweet talking and trying to get her to jump in. She weighs about 70-80 pounds now, (and Sparky is 65). Have you ever tried to move an 80 pound dog who doesn't want to budge?? She was glued prostrate to the linoleum saying "Mom ask me to go in any bottomless mud bog full of anacondas and I will go, but pulleeze....not the white pond!!" So at one opportune moment when she stood up from cringing on the floor, I grabbed her around the middle and got her front legs in and cutting her off from getting out, shoved her back end in too. Oh..... that wasn't so bad after all.... and of course she loves the scrubbing and attention. I couldn't believe the icky dark brown water and all the floating hair in our tub. When she was all rinsed off, and had the towel draped over her she daintily stepped out with never a shake and out the back door. So maybe there is hope that next time she will jump into the tub for me.

Well of course the whole bathroom needed to be cleaned and mopped up. I think I clogged the drain and have to work on that today. Then a washer full of sopping towels and the rug was run. Wish I'd gotten photos of them being bathed, but I had my hands full, so maybe next time. Later that evening I brushed out big wads of loose hair from them both. They fight over whose turn it is for that procedure and I have to keep ordering one of them back from trying to get under the brush so I can get the first one done. And Raven just cannot hold still. She is more wiggly than any dog I've ever had. I just sort of keep taking swipes with the brush as she passes by and eventually have brushed the whole dog. Still to do is to clip Raven's toenails, which also scares her to death. She shakes like a leaf through that whole horrid operation.

Yesterday evening I was invited to go to a dance recital in town tonight, but not sure I'm feeling up to going and driving home about 10 p.m. I'm spending the day considering what exactly to do, so that's iffy. Connie, who bought the lodge from us, called and invited me or us, as her granddaughter is in the recital and she wanted me to come and see them. What are the chances of Joe going? I'll let you know.

Friday May 18 2007

Pair of Red Tailed Hawks

Nesting in Tree on Our Ditch

This is a small slice of life at House on Muddy - hawks that are nesting nearby. (See the tree in yesterday's photo.) It's not that these are wonderful bird photos. They are just the best I can do with my dinky camera. It is not made for wildlife photography. I cropped and worked on them in the photo program to get the pictures this good. I'm ready for a nice new camera with a big zoom lens. We finally got a close enough look and have determined they are red tailed haws, which I suspected all along.

Six or seven skeletons were found on land near Pinedale when a skull rolled out of a backfill dirt pile where a new house is being built. They have been determined to be of greater than usual historical significance, Native American, and somewhere between about 2000 and 7000 years old. Some beads were also mentioned being found and possibly other artifacts. So far there are many mysteries. And the home owner who now !!owns the bones!! has put the septic tank work on hold so the bones can be recovered. We can go sift dirt if we would like to volunteer.

Our Dr. Judy Boyle's contract has not been renewed. I am quite unhappy about this turn of events. Our Rural County Health Board is management-challenged, and acts like a bunch of eight year old kids at times. O.K. I'm being really nice...... they are like eight year olds all the time.

My girls gave me beautiful golden earrings and a spa gift certificate for Mother's Day. Plus other things too. They were waiting in the mailbox when I got back from the convention, so that was fun to open presents.

No news here to speak of. If something happens to write about, I'll be back. Off and on its looking like it wants to rain. Chances are we will get none.

Thursday May 17 2007

The Fields a Few Days Ago

We have another beautiful spring morning. A good day for being out horseback. Richie's have taken their cattle to the desert this morning, actually beginning at dawn before I was even awake. All the ranching events signify marks on the calender of our lives more than just the dates. Its a never ending routine for all of them that can't be ignored by even those of us who don't raise cattle. I haven't had a chance to take any new pictures of the ranching goings-on, but you can see a few nice photos at Gina's www.horseback41.blogspot.com . She also has a great scene of feeding with a team and wagon.

Annoyingly, I finally realized yesterday afternoon that I also left my large black file box of reference photos over at the convention workshop room. It has also been found and will be returned to me with the paintings and matboards. Thank you very much Kay and Ron. Maybe next time I leave I should pack even lighter! - since I can't keep track of my posessions any more. What obviously happened is that I just didn't go back for my last load of stuff.

Joe has gone back to Pinedale today to get truck parts and a head of lettuce. He took Raven with him. Sparky had to stay home because he barked. He just gets too exhuberant and excited and Joe can't stand it. Poor little dog, I doubt he will ever really learn to control that excitement. But he's getting rather resigned to being sent back into the house. He will be so mad at Raven when she gets back. Now that there's water on the field they are both full of mud and dirt all the time.

Last night as usual I let the dogs out about 3 a.m. and after a few minutes they really started raising a ruckus. They bark sometimes, but this was serious alarm. I went right to the door and called them in. Raven was braver than I've ever seen her in her life, and just at the edge of the porch light's reach was a coyote slinking along the edge of the yard. Raven didn't want to come in and kept saying cum on let's all go get it, but she wouldn't go too close alone. That was the most vicious barking I've ever heard her make. Both dogs were very anxious. All three of us sat close and had to calm down. Likely there were several more of them a little further out. I'm always careful not to leave them out long in the dark because we know there are wolves around now, and people's dogs are getting killed right on their property. I hope I still have all the cats as well. Isn't it strange how they will welcome other dogs here, but hate the coyotes. It must be the same kind of thing that they know from a great distance that they want nothing to do with a mother cow.

There has been a beautiful Western Kingbird catching bugs in flight outside the studio window, coming back to perch on the fence between each bite. The frogs have been singing the last several nights. I'm always thankful when I hear them first time in the spring and enjoy the sound. I worry about the frogs disappearing. The wind and clouds came up something awful after lunch. Maybe it will rain.

My sister Gloria said this morning that she might be coming this direction from Green Valley AZ to Idaho soon to visit some of her kids who live around Twin Falls. There's a chance we could get together there. That is a 400 mile drive from here though. We will pursue the dates and plans.

Sent off the database list to Jo today. Next??

Wednesday May 16 2007

Working Cattle Next Door

This is the time of year the cattle are taken off the ranch fields and driven by the cowboys first to the desert pastures, and then in about 6 weeks to the mountains. The calves have been branded within the last week or so. They are miserable for a few days, but heal up fast. The cows wait at the gates ready to go and knowing they will be free until late fall.

First thing this morning I wrote an article for the papers about Mixed Media traveling to the convention and announcing the prizes everyone in our group won. I had a nice photo of our group to send to go with it. Yesterday I contacted the WAA president and they did find my package of matboards and two workshop paintings. A friend in Riverton will keep them for me until we get together in about a month. Was lucky to have them saved and returned, so am thankful for that.

Yesterday nearly finished up work on a large database address list for the new conference and art center by working on it most of the day. I'm waiting to hear back from a few people with their info and will be done with it for now. Glad to put those kind of things behind me. There is plenty with my other volunteer jobs to keep me very busy though.

Yesterday was still cool here, about 64 and breezy. But finally it is warming up with nice days. We are having smoke from somewhere making the atmosphere very hazy. It's finally nice enough to go out and garden. I'm planning a major change in the flower beds and it will be a lot of work. Should do it before the ground gets baked like a brick.

We've made plans and are looking forward to a camping painting trip in June up in the mountains with other artists. I can't wait for that one.

Heard a really discouraging thing recently. About how many meals you make for 50 years of marriage. Well I figured I'd been cooking meals three times daily since 1957 and that makes about 55,100 meals. And think about 25 years cooking at the lodge!! Yikes!! Just bringing it up because I have to go cook lunch now.

Joe is doing the dragging now (smooshing down the horse apples on the hayfield). The dogs go round and round with him for a while until they get tired and then sit on the porch and howl. He waits a while longer than most of the ranches because the horses can stay on that field until the grass starts to grow more. Now they will have to go to the sagebrush pasture on the other side of the creek until after haying season.

Joe Dragging the Field - John Deere B

Tuesday May 15 2007

Tom Lucas with the Bow Unstrung

Stringing the Bow

With the Bow Strung

Pulling the Arrow - 60 Pounds

One of our WAA artist members, Tom Lucas, was at the convention. He does regular painting, usually of beautiful still lifes of Indian artifacts, such as beaded moccasins or other items. But he is also well known for learning years ago how to build the famous Sheepeater Indian Sheep Horn Bow exactly like they made them centuries ago. He also is an expert flint knapper, which means he makes authentic stone arrowheads. He makes the arrows too which are very beautifully fletched. He has produced four videos of the various Native American artifact replicas he makes. The Sheepeaters lived a very reclusive existence in the Wind River Mountains. They hunted sheep and their bows were very prized by other tribes and were famous in the fur trade era. There happens to be one of the real Sheepeater bows in the Museum of the Mountain Man in Pinedale, which was found some years back on the Upper Green. I'm not sure if this is the only one ever found, or if there are a few more somewhere. Apparently the Smithsonian doesn't even have one. I should have asked Tom how many of the bows he has made, but several. It takes a set of bighorn sheep horns to make one bow. I was happy to get these photos of Tom with the bow and arrows.

Monday May 14 2007

Antelope on the Lander Cutoff

Our Mixed Media Group

at the Wyoming Artists Convention

in Riverton WY

May 11, 12, 13, 2007

Part of the Kathy Wipfler Oil Workshop

Convention Visitor


Another View of Oil Workshop


Lynn Newman Pastel Workshop Teacher
Painting Cherry Trees in Japan

Our Group's Studies

Lynn Working in Pastel
- "Vincent Van Goat"


Cottonwoods on the Hoback
Won Best of Show and Peoples Choice!!


Jody Photographing Flowers in the Wyoming Wind

South Pass

Red Canyon - South Pass

Friday we started over to the annual Wyoming Artists Association Convention to be held in Riverton. Charm and I met at our mailbox. We each drove our own vehicles because she went on to South Dakota after the convention to visit her folks. We went down the dirt road to South Pass called The Lander Cutoff (of the Oregon Trail). We had an uneventful trip over, except at the South Pass Rest Stop we saw a couple with two bum lambs they had put in the fenced "Pet Area" to let them walk there. They were very cute, and very tiny. They had them in their small SUV in a big plastic tub to travel to Vernal where they were going to give them to their granddaughter. South Pass had a lot of quite large snowdrifts scattered on the hills from the storm we had last weekend - the pass had been closed during that heavy snow. It was about 89 degrees this afternoon. We ate lunch at a new restaurant in Lander. We stopped at the Sprout's Greenhouse to get a gift certificate from Mixed Media for a member friend for a tree to plant in memory of her husband who passed away a few months ago. On to Riverton and registration, hauling in our painting entries for the art show. Checked into the motel. Driving around town was fun and interesting and the lilac bushes were blooming in profusion - very beautiful. I got some interesting photos of an old barn with an orange cat up in the high window that might make a good painting. Then later that evening we had the quick draw. I did a painting in an hour of Joe and Buster feeding 5 horses in a snowstorm. Kay A. bought it. Our oil teacher was Kathy Wipfler and I was lucky enough to outbid Sandy to get her quick draw painting. I love it and feel very fortunate to have it. I told Sandy I would share it with her. There was a bountiful hor d'ourve table at the quick draw so we didn't need to go to dinner, which was nice.

On Saturday it was up early and to the workshops. It's always so much fun to see all the artists and acquaintances again and get to catch up and visit. We also missed the ones who weren't there. It was a smaller group this year. I had decided to try the pastel workshop, hoping to find something that will shake me up into being more creative and out of my present "artist's block". Our teacher was Lynn Newman from Cheyenne. He worked loosely and quite abstract. Hard as I tried to begin the way he was teaching, I could barely force myself to get out of my rut more than momentarily. But did work quicker and had a lot of fun painting from one of his reference photos of a herd of goats. Then I learned I had won Best of Show with my pastel painting Cottonwoods on the Hoback. We had a buffet lunch and the business meeting at noon, and back to the intensity of the workshops. That evening we had a banquet with other celebrations. Charm, Sandy and I left early, and later when the others got back to the motel, a bunch of us sat out in the parking lot in lawn chairs and reminisced about all the past conventions. I laughed until I cried. One noticeable thing was how pleasant it was to sit outside in short sleeves in the evening. Something that only happens for a few months in Wyoming.

Sunday we repeated the morning agenda. Today in the workshop I began a colorful fall aspen scene with a road. We had some critiques of the paintings in the art show which are always very interesting to listen too. Then I was speechless when they told me I had also won People's Choice for the Cottonwoods, and got two more honorable mentions and a painting chosen to hang in the Wyoming Congressional offices in Washington DC for the next year. And at noon the convention was over. We packed up our paintings, a group of us had lunch together and then started on our different ways home. Jody rode with me to the Sweetwater, then got back in with Ruth and Sharon. We had a nice visit. There was a quite dramatic change in the two days we'd been gone. The hillsides on South Pass were covered with Yellow Mules Ears wildflowers instead of snow drifts. At the top of the bluff above the Sweetwater River I turned north and the others went on toward Big Piney. I had a beautiful drive home through the back country. Got home in time to fix Joe's dinner, but fortunately there were leftovers so it wasn't too big a deal. Unloaded the vehicle and found I had left my workshop paintings in Riverton somehow. I hope they haven't disappeared, because I was sure enjoying the two that I did. In the brown paper wrapped package was also a bunch of mat boards I use to do pastels on, and they aren't cheap. After feeding the cats I had enough time to download all my photos and got them sorted and labeled, and many of them "fixed" a little.

This morning - Monday - Joe mowed the front "lawn". He had done the back while I was gone. Its greener here than when I left a few days ago, but our country could sure use some rain. I have a lot of housecleaning to catch up on and some phone calls to make. Especially I need to track down my lost paintings and see if I can arrange to get them back.