All The Pretty Horses

Love love love this movie. Starring Penelope Cruz and Matt Damon.   Based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy.  Romance & Horses.  I'm swooning!

Buenos tardes...
From Small wonders

This Makes Me Incredibly Happy :)

So... I'm putting a round bale out the other day, and I had to stop to take these photos.  This is Mila, giving the gears to my Janie mare.  What's so special about this?  Well, this is my lame mare!  And she's loping!  She's actually loping.  It's like she forgot herself for the moment, and just decided to feel good again.  Inspite of her pain.  This is the coolest horse I know, and although I'm sorry I will never have the chance to ride her, I think she was brought into my life for other reasons.  We two have a lot in common, and I think I can really learn a lot from her!

Good Day,

from Small Wonders

Well Said Edna

"I am glad that I paid so little attention to good advice; had I abided by it I might have been saved from some of my most valuable mistakes." 

— Edna St. Vincent Millay

This is my newest find.  What a fascinating woman, and one of the few who write poetry I like and can read!

Good Day, from Small Wonders

The "choicest" of supplements for our animals.

"What are those red things on the ground?" you ask.  Well,  they're the remnants of the crab apples from the flowering crab apple tree. Oh.. they're fermented too!  Which explains the plethora of animals under said tree. Birds, bunnies and dogs have found some prime real estate at Small Wonders.  Could this explain the apparent lethargy in the above mentioned animals??  I'm thinking probably. Ive heard of this phenomenon with  monkeys and elephants,  but not in dogs.

Good day... from Small Wonders

Now playing at Small Wonders

Philadelphia with Tom Hanks.  We certainly have come a long way with discrimination against those afflicted with AIDS. A great movie. I forgot how good it was.

Slacker...

Okay, yes I have been slackin' a fair bit, as far as the blog is concerned. I just realized I haven't written anything since Feb 22.  But truth be told, I just haven't had the urge to post anything "trivial"  and let's face it, as of late, everything seems "trivial".  And then I realize that maybe sometimes living "trivial" is a good thing.  You  know, to not take things too serious (which anyone who knows me, knows I have a nasty habit of doing this).  So my latest goal is to try and be a little more "present" in my life.  To try and not think of things past, or things yet to happen.  By doing this, I hope to keep negativity at bay.  Easier said than done (FYI)

So.. tomorrow is a big day for me.  Treatment # 3 ( but the first full blown chemo) and yes,I am a little nervous about the whole thing.  I guess because I really don't know how I am going to feel.  I hope I can continue to ride, but not really certain how my back is going to be.  I rode Maya the other day, for the first time in two weeks, and she was awesome!  Such a classy girl!!

And I did something really rash.  I cut my hair REALLY short, and dyed it RED.  Like really really red!  I figure I'm only gonna have the hair for another few weeks, so why not?  I've gotten many compliments, and many stares.

Reading waaaaay toooo much lately too.  My eye sight is getting so bad.  I have to put my glasses on to see my phone!  You know you're getting old when.......  I started doing a little research on a hiking trail in Spain, that I would like to do in the fall (fingers crossed I will be able to go this fall)  It's called the "Santiago de Compostela"  or the "Camino".  This is a pilgrimage that has been walked by millions of people, dating back to medieval times.  It is roughly 800 kilometers that starts in France, and ends in Santiago, Spain.  Most people do this walk in 35 days (ish) and it is quite rigorous.  Everything you need for the month, you will carry on your back, and along the way you will stay at various "refugios" along the way.  (Various rustic forms of shelter, consisting of hostels, monasteries, nunneries, inns, etc)  For a few Euros you will get a bed in mostly dorm like settings, and sometimes a meal.  Not bad eh?  There are people who refuse to stay in said accommodations, preferring more comfortable hotels.  But to me, if you are going to do the pilgrimage,  you should live like a peasant, living simply.
 
The trail is names after St James (one of Jesus's deciples) and it is said that if you complete the hike, all your sins will be forgiven.  Strangely, though, most people are not catholic who do this walk.  Most do the "Camino" for other, spiritual reasons.  Some need a break from their chaotic lives, and need some time to think.  Some do it for a physical challenge.  So do it in hopes of meeting someone, maybe falling in love.  And some do it for a myriad of reasons.  

So... what am I doing in the mean time... I'm trying to learn a basic Spanish.  I am gonna take a class at the college next month.  I'm gonna start training, as by the time I go, I need to be in really really good shape.  In order to complete the pilgrimage in the 35 days, I have to average over 23 kilometers a day.  So I have been hitting the Green Way, and loggin some miles in my new hiking shoes ( Love them btw... and just discovered the wonder of the   R.E.I store , not too far from Somerset)  My next purchase is a back pack, which i will have to load some weight in there, and do some more miles.  So if you see some crazy lady with a back pack on the Green Way, no worries... it's just me!!

Good Day,
from Small Wonders