Hot Saturday in July

Where's Frieda?

Frieda developed an affinity for a hidey-hole between the old rocking horse that had been made for my son and the wall. She spends a lot of her time curled up there.

She was sitting on a kitchen chair this morning and I said to Mark she always looks like she's thinking. I said I wouldn't be surprised that she's running complex math equations through her brain.

According to my weather app the rest of this month is hot and humid. It makes it impossible to enjoy summer. We have a nice screened porch we haven't been using as well as an open porch. We used to sit there in the evening and we ate in the screened porch. It's just not comfortable in 70+ dew points. If I didn't have the horses we would be up in Grand Marais, next to the Canadian border.

I'm starting to get produce, the zucchini plant is doing its thing. Soon I'll be swimming in those marvelous green thingies. The tomato plants are huge, the plants all seem to love this weather I do not love. My eggplants are enormous and will be producing soon. The cucumber seeds I planted late have germinated and are doing fine. 

We moved the mares to the east pasture so the geldings can have their gate open, allowing them access to an area with more tree cover than the large pasture they are in. It's hot and although I allowed some trees to grow in their pasture, being able to get to better tree cover if they want is important. The mares two pastures are open to trees, so they are always fine. The mares have belly high grass to chew down. They are up to the task.

Keetah had a followup vet visit yesterday. We are still being told there is a good chance her hearing will return but there is no sign of that yet. She has adapted and is no longer an anxious mess. I felt so sorry for her, losing hearing and unable to comprehend what is happening. It's a relief for her and for me that she has come to terms.

It's mid-July, hot and slow on the farm. 

Keetah's mini-me, Frieda.

Keetah still can't hear. She has an appointment with the vet as a follow up, I don't know what, if anything can be done. As an aside, see that wooly looking hair on her haunches? I had maybe two weeks of limited shedding in June. She's producing her version of wool again. This is the only reason I didn't want a German Shepherd, they are horrid shedders.

I watched the January 6 hearing yesterday. There must be consequences. If not, we will know without doubt the rule of law only applies to the rest of us. 

I watched the documentary by the British film maker who was given access to the Trump campaign in 2020. The thing that stood out starkly was the religious-like fervor of 45's followers. I knew they are ardent, but this is rapture. People cry at these rallies, they shout out "We love you". An older man told Ivanka how much he admires her dad and was choked up with tears streaming down his face. This goes very deep and is not going away. It left me unsettled, really unsettled.

We are having a rare nice day. Minnesota has become tropical, having regularly, dew points in the 70s. If I wanted that I would have stayed in Atlanta. Maybe not. Anyway....perhaps I will find some motivation and do something.

This is the potpourri of thought mulling around my brain this morning. 

 

Lovely Frieda

She looks like she's daring me. To do what, I don't know.

 

Webs Weaved

Yesterday afternoon this little guy sauntered across the top of my computer.

 I don't kill spiders. I have a weird connection to them, starting at age 14. Kate, also known as my mother, must have become aware of arachnophobia because she suddenly had it. The way it works with people like her is, once it's decided it's true. Period. You go along because that's what you have always done. So she was terrified of spiders. My younger brother, Robert, had a harder time with playing along as he got older and this was one he wouldn't do. He was the Golden Child, therefore he had more latitude with her, but you don't challenge someone with her personality disorder and come out unscathed. 

The point is, a bunch of adults and one kid all pretended Kate was terrified of spiders, just like that. Which leads me to never killing spiders. I have attached my feeling of helplessness in the face of malevolence to these creatures. One day, just a spider. The next, public enemy number one, a cause, per se, of many manic scenes where we all pretended this had always been. Except Robert. It did become a reality because that's how it works, one moment they know they are lying, the next they know it's truth.

I let the spider go to the edge of the computer, contemplate the next move, make the decision to clamber down the back to whatever fate may await it at the paws of Frieda.

Escapism

A couple of afternoons ago I was aimlessly scrolling through Britbox and I came upon this. I remember watching this series on PBS when it was released in 1981. I am a sucker for British TV and Masterpiece theatre was my place to go.

I watched the first of eleven episodes. It's going to be a commitment but I will settle in and relive that time all those years ago and watch it again.  

The series is based on this book, published in 1945. The series is said to be accurate to the book, which would explain why it's so long. The American Library Association put the book on its' list of banned books because it alludes to homosexuality. It seems we have come so far. You cannot hear the sarcasm and it's not possible to write it in. In his later years Waugh disparaged what he originally called his "magnum opus", finding it overmuch. I have not read the novel, I haven't seen the adaptation in over 40 years, other than the first episode, but I will say part of why I am a sucker for British period movies is that very quality, too much in a very British way. Maybe the second time around I will agree with the author. I kind of doubt it. It is the point, for me, after all. Also, Jeremy Irons really is rather beautiful.

Sage and Words

We've had tropical humidity for several days. I don't go on about that not being normal anymore, it's become our normal. My potted sage on the back deck thinks this is perfect, even if I don't.

I've been rather uncommunicative. I'm feeling the weight of our failing society and can't seem to shake it. Positive thinking doesn't work. I wish it were in my nature to be able to tell myself it's beyond my control and go about my business, unfortunately I am not made that way. Bright and cheery has never been me.

My dog is still deaf. I finally got through to the vet, she told me she's had a small number of dogs lose hearing with ear infection and they all regained hearing. I'm hoping. Keetah is to go in for a follow-up next week.

Mark saw a dermatologist this week. He sent tissue in for biopsy from Mark's arm and froze spots on top of his head that are precancerous. Mark is fair and he has male pattern baldness and a shaved head. He was told to wear a broad brimmed hat instead of the baseball cap he's worn for as long as I can remember. That's going to take some getting used to. I am thankful for my Mediterranean skin tone, I know it can happen to me but is not nearly as likely as to a fair skinned person. So, this is something more for Mr. Anxious to worry about and for me to stuff into my folder of things to pretend don't exist.

To end with a positive, the cucumber seeds I planted about a month ago are growing despite how hot it has been. Now that they have rooted they will enjoy the heat. All the vegetables I planted are growing like weeds, if they produce compared to their size I will have a lot to preserve.

That's it from my little plot of earth.

My purple potato salad! 

The purple sweet potato made a good substitute for the fingerlings I usually use. Firm and not sweet, a perfect combination with vinegar and tarragon. I don't like BBQ sauce so I use dijon mustard, liquid smoke and.....Old Bay. Not just for fish!

We had a wonderful soaking rain for three hours this morning. If all those fireworks the neighbor set off last night were what make the sky open up and rain, I guess it was worth it. There will be more tonight, maybe more rain? Maybe while they are doing their boom boom.

We haven't plans for this day, other than what we do every day. Monday is laundry day, so I'm doing that. Mark is cleaning the barn and Keetah is wondering what happened to her hearing. Mark said this morning the only member of this household that isn't damaged in some way is Frieda. Oh, good god, we are in trouble. 

Enjoy the day.

Life's Complications

Today's Lunch

Mark got the results of his blood work and he is pre-diabetic! His A1C and blood glucose are higher than mine and I've been the one flirting with diabetes all these years. He has to change his ways. He has developed a belly over the past few years, even though the rest of him is lean, unlike me. He has learned to eat much more vegetables than I ever thought he would, now I need to get him away from potatoes as a mainstay. He's not going to give up his evening beer, so we'll manage his carbs around that. He has come to appreciate beans more than he did, that's a positive. I have ribs cooking and I made a potato salad with a couple of purple sweet potatoes I had that were needing to be used. I like potato salad with tarragon, vinegar and a small amount of mayonnaise, the purple has colored the mayo!

 

I am so surprised about this turn of events, never did I expect Mark would be teetering on the brink of my family's condition. 

On the Keetah front;  she has given some indication she may have some limited hearing, and then it seems like she doesn't. I have a little hope for her.

We have neighbors who are fireworks crazy, so last night it started around 11:00 and I expect tonight and tomorrow as well. They set off the kind you see municipalities use, it feels like the sound will blow the roof off. This isn't legal in Minnesota but it isn't enforced. Too bad. I will never understand the fascination, especially considering what it does to wildlife, dogs and other domestic animals. I've had several dogs that were a total wreck from those damn things. Yes, it makes me cranky.

I think I will end here before I find something else to kvetch about, I have a good-sized stash, believe me. Enjoy your Sunday evening, may it be quieter than mine.

When it Goes Wrong

My dog came home from the vet Thursday very anxious. I assumed it was the stress of being poked and prodded. She settled down, but was edgy. Yesterday she was the same way, I still thought it was anxiety due to the vet visit along with having her ear treated. Yesterday evening I realized what is wrong. She cannot hear. Mark came in from feeding the horses, Keetah always jumps up when she hears the screen door slide. She stayed at my feet. I told her go on, it's him. Nothing. I said her name, nothing. She can't hear. I don't know what happened. I called the clinic this morning but they aren't open on Saturdays anymore. I looked up sudden deafness in dogs and ear infection can cause it, but only one ear is infected. It can be temporary. I'll have to wait until Tuesday and in the meantime hope she recovers her hearing. I had a basset go deaf. I thought he was sundowning, he got anxious in the evening. Turned out he had enough hearing to be startled by thunder and fireworks. He'd probably been losing his hearing over time because he never showed any anxiety, other than the sudden anxiety over loud sound. He was 15 at the time. They do adapt. I hope she doesn't need to.

Mark is spending the day with some siblings at his niece's lake "cabin" on a very expensive lake about four miles from our place. The niece lives in Missouri, they bought this place a couple of years ago and the brother, her dad, gets to use it as he wants. We had a light rain but it's supposed to become partly sunny and warm by early afternoon. So it's me, the cats and Keetah for the day. He'll be home in time to take care of the horses.

I brought these iris from my house in Saint Paul. I took this photo a few years ago, I think they are so pretty. So many of my iris are gone, grass can choke out everything.

I guess it's time to do something. Later.....

I'm Grumpy and I Know It

Today is better than it's been in awhile. The forecast is for hot over the next two weeks. It isn't my cuppa.

I've been navigating the insurance maze Americans must stumble through when seeking healthcare. I have been referred to pain management and rehabilitation and have tried to figure out if it's covered and if so, how much out of pocket will I need to pay. The online answers are ambiguous. I will probably need to spend a lot of time on hold to get an answer. This really is a sad state of affairs. I was put on a medication which is $500/month without insurance. $500  Yes, you read that right. It still costs me $46. I won't go into my usual rant, I'll let that speak for itself.

My dog needed to go to the vet yesterday because of an ear infection. She also needed a rabies vaccination. I don't know what happened at that clinic but all the vets are new to us. Walked out of there a lot lighter than we walked in. I have always been amazed at the price difference in small animal care and large animal care. Guess which one costs more.....yep, small. Not by as much as it used to, but still a lot. A few years ago my dogs had worms. I was given dewormer at $60, it had been put in a bag and stapled. The tech told me is was a special high value dewormer. I got home and saw what it was, something I could buy for a 1200 pound horse at $6 a tube. Can you tell I'm really cranky. If not, I am. 

Yesterday's court ruling regarding the EPA is just another indication that we are on the road to destruction. All of this is not helping my state of mind, which is tenuous at best. Anyway, I need to get it out somewhere and here is better than at Mark, especially now. The man has always been like an electric current runs through him, a high anxiety guy. He fell backwards on an asphalt tennis court almost seven years ago, sustaining a concussion with brain injury. We are a brain injured pair, which has it's challenges. Mine ramped up depression, his ramped up anxiety. I wouldn't have thought his anxiety could be any worse, I was wrong. He's been on a medication which tamped it down to almost tolerable but it stopped working. He's being weaned off that drug and will start something else today. In the mean-time, Holy Hannah. So I am doing my ornery rants here. Fun times at Worlds End, let me tell you. It seems I named the farm appropriately!

Let's end with my five years gone beloved Howard giving me the stink eye whilst sporting a nice horse manure stained snout. AROOO!