Spent a great afternoon with Wanda Waters, April Baxter, June Chism, Laurel Waters, Evelyn O’Hara, Rebecca Douglas and Carole Larue, going out to Wanda and Lou’s place to see the new crop of colts from Wild Card. Wild Card is their Colonel Freckles-descended stud horse, a perfect gentleman, and the horse Robert Duval chose to ride in one of his movies. A great performance horse, a great stud and gentle as a kitten. Most of Wanda’s colts are so popular they are sold as soon as they are six months old, but I think they keep them there at the ranch until they are two.

Wanda and one of the six-month old babies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here he is running alongside the van. And below, us, standing around in awe and rather avid appreciation of these gorgeous young things.

 

 

 

 

 

 

June Chism giving a loving stroke to a beautiful little buckskin. June is going through chemotherapy. Healing touches…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Above, April getting up close and personal with two bays.

 

 

 

 

 

 

These three on the right are younger than the rest, they’re only about a month old and so the older six-month-olds scare them to death. All the time we were in the pasture they stuck together like three peas in a pod. Re; windshield picture. The van held no terrors for the rest of them, they were chewing at the windshield wipers.  On left, Evelyn and the little buckskin; he’s looking at her phone to see if his picture turned out okay I guess.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then a great lunch at the main house, thank you Wanda and Laurel! So happy to be out there and get to see the new babies! That’s Evelyn O’Hara on the left and April and then June on the right. Several of Wanda’s two-year olds are going to CalPoly for their horsemanship and competition program, students take one horse for the whole year, break and train them, see to all their medical needs, feed them etc. CalPoly is very happy with her horses and want more. Gorgeous day, good friends, good food!

Then the Fall Festival, where my musical group played, making as much noise as we could over the sounds of the crowd. We actually got paid!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Diane Causey with her hammer dulcimer — “You’re up!” Chuck (on mando) and I, Tom (on fiddle) and Diane played the tune of ‘Mary of the Wild Moor’ and then flowed straight into ‘The Outlander Song’ properly known as ‘Over the Sea to Skye’, which was Cathy’s solo.

 

 

 

 

 

Setting up; Cathy with her guitar and Kim behind her and Tom messing with his fiddle’s electronic booster thingie. Mark Hall (voice, guitar) set up all the speakers and electronics, he is very hardworking and helpful to all.

As I said we did fine, our singers are very good, and I went shopping among all the booths and found a great handmade pot to put on my hearth that will hold all my whistles. I have a terrific new A whistle, made of carbon fiber, and as soon as I can afford it I am gong to replace all my other whistles with carbon fiber ones from Eric the Flutemaker. They have a beautiful crisp sound and are right on the money as far as tuning goes.

Okay I have got caught up with this blog. Girl Dog sends her regrets for not appearing but she is at the vet’s having surgery for a recurring cist, we have had freezing and below temperatures and the most horrible wind yesterday, it went up to 40 mph. So I have not gone to get her and can’t get over the mountain pass until tomorrow when I am sure there’ll be no ice and I won’t go sliding and whirling around as I come down the far side of the pass.

Because of a sudden norther and a drop in temperature from 74F to 31F, horses to get up to the corral and hay needed hauling for them, dog to veterinarian, I didn’t get to post for Veteran’s Day but although a day late, here’s to all my relatives and friends who served; those who are gone, those still with us.

But especially to my Dad (deceased, Navy WW2 Pacific) and to James Marshall Jiles, Texas 36th Division, killed at Anzio Beach March 1944.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We didn’t do too much riding this year, as my other cousin Cindy had just had open-heart surgery and needed my cousin Susan’s care quite often. Cindy’s husband and kids were also with her a lot.
But Susan and Mark threw a wonderful barbecue and party and Susan got Bobby Lewis, one of the best fiddlers in southeast Missouri, to come too, and he and I played together, luckily I had brought my D and A whistles, we had a fantastic time! Loved playing with him, I wish I were better. . .

 

Since we didn’t ride all that much I went for long walks in the woods north of Susan and Mark’s place and took lots of arty nature pictures. The sweet gums (above) were brilliant. This is along Beaver Creek.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Megan Harris, wildlife zoologist extraordinaire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Megan Harris, she and her husband Russel work for the Forestry Service, he is a firefighter and she is an expert on bats. It is wonderful to ride with her as she knows every birdsong and every animal track we ride past and never misses.

Below, Susan with her black-and-white pinto named Doc and his one blue eye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then when we got time to take a short ride, Susan got a branch caught in her necklace which she was wearing outside of her hoodie, and it tore off, a valuable diamond which meant a lot to Susan as it was a recognition gift for raising so much money for Haven House (battered women’s shelter) there in Poplar Bluff and she had had it for years. So we went back on foot with a metal detector and found it! In all those leaves! Great joy reigned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I would post more pictures but am having trouble transferring from phone to downloads. This was a great year! Less packing and loading horses and cooking gear and cowboy beds etc. etc. and slower, quieter, just as much fun. Susan and Mark drove me back to St. Louis for my flight home, then two hours drive from San Antonio airport to home, and at last in bed with a good book. And a cat. Obligatory cat picture.