Farewell to a Difficult Season

Today is the last day of March - and hopefully the last day of what has been a prolonged, difficult winter season. I don't think I am the only one to feel this way: Many bicycle blogs have slowed down this month - with fewer posts and fewer comments, and lots of people have mentioned feeling dispirited.
Funny that March should be the month to almost do us in, rather than January or February. But the key word is almost. My unexpected relationship with Jacqueline gave me just enough of a spiritual boost to deal with the alarming situation that greeted me upon my return to New England: days of non-stop downpours and flooding! Well, I won't let it get me down. April is just a day away and so is the warmth and colour of spring.

In the meantime, I send my regards to all the excellent blogs that have bravely hung on through the entire winter, continuing to give us wonderful posts to brighten the dreary days: EcoVelo, Let's Go Ride a Bike, Riding Pretty, Cycling is Good for You, Portlandize, Suburban Bike Mama, and Biking in Heels, just to name a few.

Fat Pony

Here is Jack and my mare, Nita having a confab about not getting enough attention. Yeah, I agree, BlackJack is over weight. All of my horses seemed to suddenly get over weight in the past month or so. No, I haven't been riding enough, or doing ground work with them. Either I don't feel like it, or it is raining, or muddy, muddy, or I am busy at my job, or cleaning pens, and making sure water buckets are clean and full. It seems there are never enough hours in the day.

Double Coyotes

If you look close at the coyote on the left; under the coyote is a dark spot which is a prairie dog looking out of it's hole.

Flamingo Gardens

Today we headed over to Flamingo Gardens. It is one of those places that we said we were going to visit when we lived here, and never did.



There were some animals here and beautiful gardens. We rode a tram and got to hear about the different plants and trees there. It was very interesting!

A Horse is a Horse...or Not

Nathan has decided if you can't beat them, join them, and now goes out with me on the weekends to Sixteen Hands. Today I grabbed my real camera and grabbed some shots and we discussed how different the horses are from each other. I didn't know how distinct the "horsenalities" of horses were until I spent time here. They are all unique and all bring their own flavor to the sanctuary. As someone who had a lot of kids, I love this about the sanctuary.



For example, Willow is a deep thinker. She watches what is going on and seems pretty mellow, but she is as strong willed as they come when pressed by something she does not like.



Dakota is Mr Personality, winning over the visitors with his stunning looks and friendliness. I call him Mr Hollywood because I have to fight to get a shot of anyone else when he is around. He is ALL about the camera and will circle around with me to be sure I am taking pictures of only him.



Cherokee is our wise and gentle soul. He is pure, unadulterated love. If I am feeling down for any reason, five seconds with Cherokee is my favorite cure.



Dallas is one half of what I call the Dynamic Duo. He is energy, fun and joy all rolled up into one. Just watching him race down the track makes me smile. He is not really afraid of people so he can be quite pushy at times. He is smart as a whip and curious about everything!



Nova is a classy lady. She is above most of the foolishness that the guys engage in, but can hold her own against them if she needs to. I always imagine after she kicks the guys with all her might, scaring the living daylights out of them, that she walks away disgusted that she had to break a sweat in order to do it.



Most of the horses here have unique "issues", being rescued from abusive or neglectful situations. So they have baggage, just as most of us humans do. They are also able to still show us who they are, when they get to the point where they feel safe and trust us. Again, like most humans. It's a really interesting thing to be a part of that process and I am grateful each day I spend time there and learn more about it.



Living the life in FL!

Mirabelle's First "Hike" ..

So last Thursday we were running some errands in Shoreline and decided to stop by Shoreview Park as it was not raining and we needed something to do that was not our errands. Jennifer and I had stopped by there previously, but I think we were on bicycles and it was our turnaround point for a ride, complete with bathrooms. We only knew of the ball fields and were not fully aware of the wooded paths at the park. Heading there last Thursday, I presumed there must be some type of wooded trail system.

When we arrived last week we poked around a bit before discovering the map of the trails. We headed in for a walk. It turns out, for a city park, Shoreview/Boeing Creek Park has fairly rugged trails. Muddy eroded off camber trails provided us with some interesting footing as we headed down to the creek. Jennifer was fortunate enough to be wearing running shoes with some tread, while I was slip sliding around in my treadless Sanuks. There was a "wet" creek crossing that I had to help Jennifer navigate as she was toting around our precious cargo.

Some of the trees in the park were of good size too. (With signs telling you just how big they are.) Plenty of 200'+ Douglas Firs in the park with sizable trunks. We walked all the way down to Hidden Lake, and then back up to the dog run before eventually returning to the car. I recommend to anyone in the north end of Seattle to take a short trip up to Shoreview if they are looking to get away from their typical walks in Carkeek and Golden Gardens. Just be prepared to get your feet wet.

Fade to Black

[image via National Library NZ]

For as long as I can remember, the idea of Black Friday has sort of frightened me. The name sounds so dark and sinister - like a day of mourning rather than a day of shopping. And the reports in recent years of shoppersgetting crushedto death in stampedes have only strengthened that association. The possibility of someone wanting to save money on something so badly, that they are willing to wake up at 4 am, stand in line waiting for a store's doors to open, and then... walk over bodies in a rush to get to it, is upsetting. What can inspire that kind of drive for acquisition? - a laptop? a beautiful dress? a bicycle? Or just the very notion that "stuff is on sale today" and that "the thing to do is to go out and get those deals"? Year after year, I find myself recoiling from those messages -not so much in protest against consumerism, as in protest against being expected to blindly follow those crude marketing tactics.



[image via radlmax]

I want to be free to do as I like with my holiday weekend, and I don't want to becontrolled by a vague, socially-induced fear of missing out on a bargain.I will buy the stuff I needwhenI need it. "Black Friday" can fade to black; I am off to enjoy my day!