Warren's spirit

Warren lived on a friend's farm with a herd of cattle and several draft horses and a couple ponies. He was very happy to have 40 acres to romp on. I still frequent the farm to get my horse fix and visit with my friends. We took the old draft and one of the ponies for a ride in the back field the other day. I saw Warren's hoof prints in an area we had ridden the week before. Part of me wanted to preserve that place and never let those tracks be disturbed. Then I realized that I am clinging to everything physical I have of Warren, knowing that this is is all there will be. The physical does not matter. It is Warren's huge heart and spirit that I truly connected with and spirit is eternal. His body could not sustain him any longer and it was time for him to let it go. Warren's spirit lives on everywhere. I can feel him in the field, hanging out in the trees.. watching me wander all over the field. He is with me.

Warren

You know me and therefore you know the big blonde Belgian draft horse, Warren.

I have been staring at the screen trying to find the right words. Warren had a very sudden and severe colic Sunday afternoon. We took him to Oregon State University veterinary hospital and he went in for surgery. There were no twists, but a great deal of gas in his colon. We still don't know what caused it or why. His 24 hours of post op were very slow for recovery. Tuesday night was promising; he was looking and feeling better. While we were visiting, his heart rate came down and he was more like his normal curious and social self. Wednesday morning he hit a wall. On our Wednesday evening visit he let us know it was time to say good bye.

Warren, the giver, prankster and strong, gentle soul.

12 and a half years he has been a wonderful part of my life.

I am sad; I will miss his physical presence, our rides through the woods, his mighty shoulder, his big, warm eyes, his "talkative" lip. His spirit will always surround me and all the other lives that he has touched in his 14 years.

I share this with you because directly or indirectly he has touched all of your lives.

Warren, you have given so much. You are a tremendous horse with an amazing spirit and so much loved. I am thankful for every moment we shared together. Your physical presence will be missed, my dear friend, but your spirit remains with me always.

Out in the woods

Did I mention that I love my job!? Today I went out to the remote town of Packwood to review some practices done on forestland. Today's task was to verify that the 10 year old, densely planted timber stand had been pre commercially thinned down to the target density. The trees were packed in at over 1000 trees per acre and after thinning, the stand was at 375 trees per acre. That means there were lots of little trees cut down so the remaini trees could have light and space to grow healthier and taller. My co-worker and I hngiked around over slash from the thinning and counted trees in 1/50th acre plots we averaged out plot data and determined the stand density for the property. This is only a small piece of the many unique requirements of my job, but I really enjoy it.

Good bye 2010; hello 2011!!

The last few days of December always generate a time of reflection and a sense of hope and anticipation for the new year. What will 2011 hold??
Only time will tell but I am looking forward to it!

Winding down the year already!? Reflecting on 2010.

I can't believe it is November already! Its slightly embarrassing that this is my first post for 2010. But that is just the way of it.

Headlines for the year include:

• Family, Fashion and Fun: A trip to New York for a fashion show, family reunion and an expedition.
• Feeling Effects of A Crippled Economy- we both faced major changes in our jobs as a result of the economic times.
• Eastcoast comes West: Mom and Dad venture out to Washington to check out Seattle, visit with us and explore the Oregon coast.
• Yard Produce and Putting food By: Our front yard garden produced enough for canning; we have beets, green beans, potatoes and carrots put up for the winter!
• Big Birthday Catch: A birthday fishing trip yields 2 Steelhead for the freezer and a commitment to fishing the local rivers
• Baby boom: There is a new baby boy in the family and another cousin and a nephew are arriving in early 2011.
• 200,000 mile club: Acquisition of a "new" car and I come to the realization that all of our vehicles have over 200,000 miles and run strong and reliably thanks to the skill, care and diligence of the man in our house
• West goes to the Southeast: A visit back to Georgia to be with family and and cheer on friend at a huge horse event
• Searching for Caches: We discovered the adventures of Geo caching - great fun and it requires gadgets, a sense of adventure and being outside!! Does it get any better?
• Your how old? CARDED on 30th Birthday!
• Star sighting! Rainbow Brite and her Sprite, Twink, appear at a doggie costume contest at a local restaurant on Halloween
• Burly Blondie Relocates: Warren moves to a pasture in the country and befriends a herd of cows, other draft horses and ponies and thrives in his new farm!
• Fruit loopy: A determination for growing a lemons in the balmy pacific northwest! A lemon tree makes a a new home in our quaint little house.

Phew, it has been a busy year thus far! I wonder what 2011 has in store...

Go Capri!

A winter Project for Russ was going to be to get his 1974 Mercury Capri up to driving status again. Mostly it was tires and a tune up that it needed. He figured it would be a slow winter project. Well.. the lugs were hardly snugged down before he was ready to tune it up and drive it to work again. Needless to say, the Capri is alive and breathing and going strong these days and Russ couldn't be having more fun zipping around town in the little cruiser.

Girlfriend's Half Marathon

The day before the race, I decided if there was an opening, I would sign myself up and run it. The weather was promising to be pretty decent, cool but not rainy. It turns out there was one opening, so I got my number and I was signed up to run. The entire time, I am thinking what in the world am I doing!? Ah well. 13.1 miles around Vancover, it will be a nice stroll through the city....

The race was geared towards women, pink shirts to wear, and chocolate to eat and firemen handing out water at the finish line, what fun is that!?

Saturday morning I met up with my co-workers, stretched out and lined up for the race. The announcer said go and away we went. I stayed with my competitive co workers for the first 2.5 miles but then decided if I was going to last another 11 miles, I needed to knock the pace back a little bit. So down the Columbia River I shuffled with a mass of women all ages and builds. It was actually pretty fun being in the group. There were refueling station every 2 miles so you could pace yourself that way: just get to the next tent, there is water and energy gels (yuck - but they do provide a boost if you can choke them down) I met up with a lady that had all sorts of timers and watches going off that was going about the same pace as me so I stayed wit her and chatted for about 5 miles and then again had to slow up the pace for myself. By mile 10, I was starting to feel the muscles tighten and it became a push to keep going but the end was insight. Just go around the fort, back up the hill, through town and you are over the finish line! Becky and Denise were already across the time by the time I got to my last mile. They were doubled back and cheering me on, I sprinted the last 1/2 mile and I had done it! 13.1 miles!