Monday Video -- Pigeon Impossible

There's some great, independent animation being done these days. Here's one called "Pigeon Impossible." It's about 6 1/2 minutes long so wait until you can watch the whole thing. It's very clever.

Enjoy.

Sunday Reflections – The Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience

On Friday, November 13, 2009, 150 Christian leaders signed the Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience. These leaders were representatives of the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Orthodox Churches, and the Evangelical communities of the United States.

The opening statement of the Declaration clearly states its focus:

“We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are (1) the sanctity of human life, (2) the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife, and (3) the rights of conscience and religious liberty. Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.”

The Declaration has these words towards the end:

“We will not be intimidated into silence or acquiescence or the violation of our consciences by any power on earth, be it cultural or political, regardless of the consequences to ourselves.”

And these words:

“We will fully and ungrudgingly render to Caesar what is Caesar’s. But under no circumstances will we render to Caesar what is God’s.”

In the early 1700’s our country entered a cultural and political war against the King of England who gradually tried to take control of the lives of the inhabitants of the colonies and abolish their freedoms and liberty. Eventually good men and women stood their ground at great cost to themselves, their families and their fortunes. One of the great testaments of freedom and liberty came out of this defense – the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights.

We are now in a cultural, political and spiritual war that is trying to once again take over our lives and liberties. This Manhattan Declaration may or may not have the same impact as the Declaration of Independence—only time will tell -- but it is a call to all of us who profess Jesus Christ as Lord to stand once again to defend our freedoms and liberties which are granted to us by God and not by any government.

If you would like more information about the Manhattan Declaration you can go to this web site: http://manhattandeclaration.org/

Saturday Voice – Tired of Talking

I’m taking today off.  I’ve harped about health care enough and, unless our congressmen and senators grow some backbone, this travesty will come to pass.

Today is a good day to do nothing.

Friday Funnies

Here’s another commentary on our modern life for your enjoyment.

Thanksgiving

It’s Thanksgiving Day and Betty and I are having lunch today at the Prairie Star Restaurant on the Tamaya Pueblo. It should be delicious. In addition, we’re saving one turkey because Betty is having chicken and I'm eating steak.

Besides being thankful for being with the person I love the most and having a good meal together, here are some other things I’m thankful for this year.

As always, I’m thankful that God found me 25 years ago.

I’m thankful for two great sons who are good Christian husbands and fathers. And, I’m thankful they both found wonderful Christian wives who are wonderful daughters-in-law. Of course I’m thankful for Juliet, our wonderful granddaughter and Javier, our very special grandson.

I’m thankful for our church, Destiny Center, the friends we have there and the opportunities we have to worship and minister.

I’m thankful for Sugar and Morgunn, our very special horses.

I’m thankful for Galloping Grace Youth Ranch where we have so many new friends, especially Max, Michelle, Garrett, Brooke, Claire, and Grant, and the opportunities we have to work with horses and kids.

I’m thankful for our health – getting old is not for wimps and God has blessed us with the strength and vitality to keep going.

I’m thankful we live in such a neat place with our view of the mountains, our birds and animals that live around us, the great, sunny weather we have, and the magnificent big sky that lifts our spirits.

I'm thankful that there are some of you who actually read our blog -- you make it all worthwhile.

There is so much more I’m thankful for, but that’s enough for now. I need to go watch the Detroit Lions get beat again on Thanksgiving Day.

The Eyes Have It

If you're squeamish about your eyes, you might not want to read this post.

For two or more years, I have known that I have cataracts in both eyes. If you don't know what a cataract is, here's your 30 second lesson.

Light comes into our eyes via our cornea which is the outside covering over the iris -- the blue, brown, gray, or green part of our eye. Behind the iris is a lens that focuses the light onto the retina that creates the image that is transmitted to our brain by the optic nerve.

In normal vision this lens is clear. As we age (don't you hate getting old) this lens can become progressively cloudy which diffuses the light instead of focusing it and we get a blurry image. This clouding of the lens is called a cataract.

Originally, my cataracts were so slight that my eyeglasses were able to compensate. Fortunately, my right eye is still the same and will not need surgery -- at least for now.

This past June when I had my annual vision check I was told that the cataract in my left eye had gotten worse (which I already knew as my vision was definitely worse in that eye) and I would probably need cataract surgery in a year or so.

Since then, the vision in my left eye has gotten progressively worse. If I close my right eye at night when I'm driving, I can't read any signs and everything is blurry. Night vision problems is definitely a symptom of cataracts.

Yesterday, I went back to the eye doctor and he confirmed that the left eye was definitely worse. We agreed it was time to have the surgery as it would progressively get worse.

I will meet with an eye surgeon soon for a pre-surgery check and will probably have the surgery shortly after the first of the year.

Now here comes the icky part.

They will make a small incision in my cornea and slice the covering of the lens and peel it back. The great majority of the lens will be removed and an implant put in -- basically a flexible, interior contact. The lens covering will be put back into place and it will heal without stitches. The incision in the cornea will also heal without stitches.

I'll be limited in my activity for about two weeks with lots of eye drops -- both steroid and antibiotic drops. It will take about six weeks for complete recovery. Assuming no complications, my distance vision will be greatly improved when all is said and done.

I'm told that it is a relatively safe surgery that is done all the time. Let's hope they're correct.

The technology has progressed quite a bit. In the old days, all they could do was remove the lens and then you would have to wear really thick Coke bottle glasses to be able to see at all.

I kind of like the hair style and the bow tie -- they definitely go with the glasses.

Fortunately, I won't have to wear those glasses -- or the bow tie and hair style.

If you have an extra prayer, I will gladly appreciate it as I go through this process over the next couple of months.

I'll keep you advised.

Christmas of Horses Parade

This past Sunday Corrales held its annual Christmas de Caballos (Christmas of Horses) Parade. It's sponsored by our local horse association Corrales Horse And Mule People (CHAMP). I do the CHAMP newsletter and function as the "official" photographer.

Here are some pictures from the parade.

The Marines always lead the parade because it's also a Toys for Tots event and lots of toys were gathered for the Marines.

Then, of course, comes Santa in his carriage.

Of course, we have our rodeo Queens.

We always have lots of wagons, carts and carriages.

This wagon is carrying the University of New Mexico Lobos womens basketball team...


And, lots of riders with their horses. This first group is a local group of women riders called "The Hot Flash Riders."


Finally, a group photo of all the parade participants at the arena.

Kids who came to the arena got a carriage ride with Santa and there was Wagners fresh apple cider and cookies for all. A good day.

Monday Video -- Turkey's Perspective

Thursday is Thanksgiving and it's a day we all give thanks for all of our blessings. However, this song gives a turkey's perspective on Thanksgiving.

Enjoy.



PS: This has nothing to do with this video, but if you want to see some amazing videos of a full-grown bull being transported in a car -- check out this site:

http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/bullcar.asp

Sunday Reflections – No Coercion

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."  At once they left their nets and followed him. (Matthew 4:18-20)

As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. (Matthew 9:9)

When Jesus told Peter and Andrew and later Matthew to follow him, he turned and walked away to whatever he was doing next.  It says that they “followed him” which implies he was already on the move.  He didn’t stand there and watch Peter, Andrew and Matthew to see if they would follow him.  He invited them to follow and then gave them the room and the freedom they needed to make a free-will decision to follow him.  He moved on and they had the choice to follow or not.

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

When non-believers hear this kind of statement their first reaction is, “How narrow, how intolerant, how exclusive.” Yet, this is the widest, most tolerant, and inclusive statement ever made.

It’s really an invitation to all to come to the Father through Jesus.  There are no preconditions to be met, no conformations required – just decide to come as you are.

And, most importantly, no coercion.  He makes this most wonderful of invitations to all and he leaves it with us to make our own decision to accept that invitation or not.

“Follow me,” and there he goes.  Do I follow or not?

Saturday Voice – Health Care Redux

Tonight, the Senate takes a vote as to whether the Senate Health Care Reform proposal will be put up for debate. This proposal and the one from the house has several, in fact many, proposals that concern me greatly.

First, where in the Constitution is Congress granted the authority to even consider managing our health care? I know this is not the first time this has happened (e.g., Medicare, Social Security, etc.), but this will be one of the biggest power grabs in our country’s history.

Second, I do not want even a cent of my taxes to go for abortion, yet the Senate proposal will do just that. Again, where do they get the authority to force me to pay for something I find morally objectionable?

Third, if I were a young person (and I’m not), I would be concerned about being mandated to pay for health insurance and, if I don’t, I will be financially penalized and, in some proposals, even subject to legal sanctions.

Fourth, costs and taxes are going to go up. There is no way around this. You can not cover 37 million more people and it not cost more – particularly if a significant part of the system is controlled by the government which is very inefficient. A big part of the cost increase is supposedly covered by almost half a trillion dollars in reduction in Medicare costs through supposed fraud and waste. Do you really think this will happen? Government has never reduced spending or become more efficient in anything. If, by some miracle, the government pulled this Medicare reduction off, it would result in a reduction in health care for seniors which is already happening in other countries with socialized medicine.

Fifth, this will result in a tremendous increase in our country’s debt burden. The estimates you hear from entities such as the Congressional Budget Office are based on the assumptions they are given by the Congress. Congress has NEVER gotten an estimate right. In 1967 the House Ways and Means Committee estimated that Medicare would cost $12 billion in 1990. Actual Medicare spending in 1990 was $110 billion – off by nearly a factor of 10.

Sixth, all of this, especially the expanded costs, will result in medical rationing – long waits for tests and treatments, seniors being denied certain tests and treatments because their ‘value’ doesn’t warrant them. This is already happening in countries that have had this kind of government control over health care for years (e.g., Canada, England, etc.)

Finally, and this always gets my dander up, Congress will be exempted from the bill's provisions. What's good enough for us folks is not good enough for them. And, they will exempt their union supporters from a lot of the bill's provisions.

Health Care Reform is all about grabbing a significant portion of control over 1/6 of our economy and grabbing a significant control over our lives. It is a political bill, a payoff bill, not a health reform bill.

In Canada and England where they have had this kind of program they are looking at how they can go back to privatization of health care because it is costing so much money for tremendously reduced services. Why are we trying to move toward a system that has already failed in other countries? Do we really trust politicians and government agencies to make health care decisions for us and our loved ones?

There are solutions to what problems we do have. First, allow competition among health insurance companies across all states (this is not included in any bill). This would help reduce insurance premiums. Second, deal with the legal suits that drive up medical insurance premiums (this is not included). Third, look at health savings accounts that could be supported by government funds for those people who truly cannot afford insurance. Finally, where ever possible, get government out of the health care business.

As Reagan said, “Government is not the solution, it’s the problem.”

Friday Funnies

If any of you have older kids, you might appreciate this Friday Funny cartoon…

A Man of Few – But Incredibly Important -- Words

146 years ago today, November 19, 1863, four months after the conclusion of the battle of Gettysburg, Edward Everett gave a two-hour oration that few, if any, remember.

After he spoke, President Abraham Lincoln stood and spoke for less than two minutes when he said,

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate...we can not consecrate...we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government: of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Very important words indeed that can still be applied to our day, to our age, and to our lives.

Poems

When I was a kid in grammar school, we were required to memorize and recite poetry (I wonder if they do that today).  One poem I remember we learned is Longfellow’s “The Children’s Hour.”

The Children's Hour

Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupations,
That is known as the Children's Hour.
I hear in the chamber above me
The patter of little feet,
The sound of a door that is opened,
And voices soft and sweet.
From my study I see in the lamplight,
Descending the broad hall stair,
Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra,
And Edith with golden hair.
A whisper, and then a silence:
Yet I know by their merry eyes
They are plotting and planning together
To take me by surprise.
A sudden rush from the stairway,
A sudden raid from the hall!
By three doors left unguarded
They enter my castle wall!
They climb up into my turret
O'er the arms and back of my chair;
If I try to escape, they surround me;
They seem to be everywhere.
They almost devour me with kisses,
Their arms about me entwine,
Till I think of the Bishop of Bingen
In his Mouse-Tower on the Rhine!
Do you think, o blue-eyed banditti,
Because you have scaled the wall,
Such an old mustache as I am
Is not a match for you all!
I have you fast in my fortress,
And will not let you depart,
But put you down into the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.
And there will I keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away!

I didn’t know what a lot of the words meant, e.g., “Bishop of Bingen,” or “blue-eyed banditti” among others.  But, we were exposed to great literature at a young age.

However, my favorite poem from my youth is this one…

The Nonsense Poem

Thirty days hath September,
April, June, and no wonder.
All the rest eat peanut butter
Except Grandma,
She rides a pogo stick.

Now that’s great literature!

Memories - USS FRANK E EVANS (DD754)

It was the summer of 1969. I had received my commission as an Ensign in the US Navy in May and then completed Gunnery School at Dam Neck, Virginia.

I flew to the Philippines to catch a flight to the carrier Enterprise and then a helicopter ride to my new ship, USS WILLIAM H STANDLEY (DLG32). While I was in the Philippines I saw something that I still remember clearly to this day over 40 years later. I saw what was left of the USS FRANK E EVANS (DD754).

Earlier that summer on June 6, 1969 the EVANS was operating as part of a joint exercise with the Australian Navy in the South China Sea. It was a dark night. The EVANS somehow misunderstood the movement of the Australian carrier CANBERRA and turned in front of it. The CANBERRA's bow cut right into the EVANS amidships and literally cut the EVANS in half. Within a few minutes the front half of the EVANS sank, but the aft half remained afloat.

The aft half was eventually towed to Subic Bay in the Philippines and that's where I saw her -- at least the aft half -- tied up to the pier. It looked like a giant knife had cut her in half.

Here's a picture of the EVANS alongside the Navy tug as it was being prepared to be towed.

For a young kid about to begin his Navy career it was a sobering sight and I can still see it in my mind's eye as clear as if I just saw it yesterday.

Ironically, about a year later, one of the EVANS survivors was assigned to my gunnery crew on the STANDLEY. He was a good kid and a good sailor, but he didn't want to talk too much about his experience -- which was understandable.

Psalms 107:23-30
Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business on great waters, they see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; so He guides them to their desired haven.

WInter Visitor

If you recall, on Sunday morning we had a snow shower. During the snow, Betty said, "Don't move." I turned around and saw that we had a winter visitor -- a large hawk -- on the swing in our courtyard. What was also interesting is all the birds who had been flocking around our bird feeders were all gone -- probably not a coincidence.

Here's the first view we had...

Here's a closer view...

And a closer view from a different angle...

Shortly after our visitor left, all the birds returned to the feeder -- probably not a coincidence.

Monday Video -- Cute Quotient

This video of Welsh Corgi puppies is only 6 seconds long, but it will fill up your daily quotient of cute.

Enjoy.

Sunday Reflection -- Sacrifice

One of the great stories in the Bible is God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac -- the son who was a miracle gift to Abraham and Sarah in their old age.

Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about." Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. (Genesis 22:2-3)

Abraham learned of God's request and spent the rest of that day, all that night and a good part of the next day with this on his mind. I don't doubt that Abraham wondered many times, "How could God ask this of him?" I suspect he didn't get much sleep that night.

However, Abraham never hesitated.

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?" "Yes, my son?" Abraham replied. "The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together. (Genesis 22:6-8)

Poor Isaac had to carry the wood for his own sacrifice. He was confused, where was the lamb, but he trusted his father -- as Abraham trusted his heavenly father.

When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son." Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. (Genesis 22:9-14)

I can't imagine what was going through Abraham's mind as he built the altar and arranged the wood on it -- or as he bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar. I can't imagine what was going on in Isaac's mind as this all happened -- but he didn't resist his father. He trusted him to the very end.

I can't imagine what they both thought as Abraham raised the knife -- but they both still trusted.

The writer of Hebrews, inspired by the Holy Spirit, gives us a clue as to what Abraham was thinking.

By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death. (Hebrews 11:17-19)

Abraham knew that his God was all-powerful and even if he killed his son Isaac that God could raise him from the dead.

This is another example of the difference between belief and faith. Belief is knowing something is true. Faith is putting your life, or in this case the life of your beloved son, on the knife-edge of that truth.

May we all know God in such a way as to have the courage to live our lives on the knife-edge of our faith.

Day Off

My back muscles hurt a little this morning so I'm taking it easy with a heating pad on the couch.

Friday Funnies

Each Friday, I will try to find a cartoon, joke, poem, quote or picture that will tickle your funny bone... and, hopefully, they will reflect one of our interests. Enjoy.

Windows 7 -- Initial Impressions

As I posted last week, I got a new laptop with Windows 7 on it. Best Buy had a deal that you could get a Windows 7 upgrade package for $49 instead of $119 with that purchase. So I bought that for Betty's laptop. (They also offer a family upgrade for three computers for $149.)

Several of you asked if I would share my impressions of it so here are a few, early comments and I'll talk about it from an upgrade viewpoint using Betty's laptop experience. It's best to have at least 2 GB of RAM and more is better. Microsoft has a Windows 7 advisory software you can download to check your computer. If you have Vista (which Betty had), it's a simple upgrade (takes a couple of hours) and everything worked under the new system. If you have XP my understanding is it's a much more complicated process and you should check that out before purchasing the upgrade.

Windows 7 is a smaller (size) operating system than Vista or XP so it takes up less space on your computer. At first glance it looks similar to Vista, but there are some real differences.

The start up and shut down time is at least twice as fast as Vista (can't say about XP as it's been awhile since we had that system). Betty's internet and wireless seems to work much better than under Vista. All of her programs seem to load quicker and work smoother than before.

If you have two or more computers with Windows 7 you can set up a Homegroup that allows users to see documents, pictures, music, videos, etc. and access them as if they were on their own computer. You can decide what you want to share. The set up is intuitive and easy.

One of the features I like most is the ability to snap windows. I often work between two different windows at the same time -- taking information from one window to use in the other. Before I had to flip back and forth between windows hoping to remember what I saw on the one as I worked in the other. Now I can snap one window to the left half of the screen the other window to the right half so I can see both at the same time. I can go back and forth as I work and it makes it a whole lot easier -- and I don't have to rely on my aging, failing memory. As an example, Betty did that with Quicken and our bank statement to reconcile the two.

You can pin programs, documents, web sites, etc., that you use most often to the task bar. When you have one or more windows open in a particular program or web site, you can get a preview of all of them moving the cursor over the icon in the task bar. If you want to open a particular window you just click on the preview.

Another small improvement I really like is removing hardware. For example, under Vista/XP when you insert a thumb drive you have to go through a four step process so you can safely remove it. Under Windows 7 there's a small icon in the area where your sound, wireless, etc., icons are located. You click it once and then click the remove thumb drive icon and it's done. Again, very intuitive and simple.

Finally, the Windows explorer window is on the task bar and it's very well organized. Everything you need is right there in a simple, easy to understand format. Also, they have added "libraries" so if you have pictures in more than one place, all you have to do is click on the picture library and all your pictures will be there and it's easy to find where they are.

Those are first impressions and I'm sure I've forgotten something.

Net, it appears that Microsoft really listened to regular (non-geek) users to make Windows 7 the easiest, most intuitive Windows version yet developed. In my opinion, it's definitely worth considering.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Veterans Day

The picture below represents the best of our military spirit. Despite having to be hard and tough when needed, our men and women are still Americans with a compassionate, American heart.

This is Chief Master Sargeant John Gebhardt holding a wounded Iraqi child in 2006. She would cry and cry and his holding her helped her sleep.

Congratulations to all who have served.

Dan Cooksey
Lt. US Navy Reserve
1968 - 1972
USS WILLIAM H. STANDLEY DLG32

Concrete Everywhere

Over the past several weeks I've been doing several concrete projects for the horses. Not that Morgunn and Sugar "needed" what I did, but I think it makes things a little neater and more organized.

The worst part of all the projects was lifting the 80 lb. bags of concrete mix. I could have bought 40 lb. bags, but they were more expensive and I'm kind of cheap.

I needed four 80 lb. bags for each project so that meant 16 bags for a total weight of 1,280 lbs. And, I had to lift them them several times -- first, I had to lift them to get them onto a skid when I checked out at Lowes, then lift them into the truck, then lift them out of the truck, then lift them onto a hand truck, and finally lift them into the wheelbarrow for mixing. That's five separate times for a total lift of 6,400 lbs. Charles Atlas I'm not, but my back survived which is the important thing.

The first project was to pour a pad for their water tank which is located under our kitchen window. There was no way I could keep the water tank level between the rain and the horses hooves digging out the dirt around it. On the day I picked to mix and pour my first concrete project there was a slight chance of thundershowers. As most of the previous days with similar forecasts turned out to be no rain or the showers came nowhere close to us, I decided to forge ahead. Naturally, after I started, the clouds opened up and it poured. I couldn't stop as I was half way through the project so I mixed concrete in the rain, poured concrete in the rain, and smoothed concrete in the rain. The rain washed off the finish layer of cement, but other than that it turned out OK.

The second project was the entry to Morgunn and Sugar's stalls. We feed them in their stalls so they can eat at their own pace and be out of the wind and weather. When they walked into their stalls, their hooves would kind of "drive" and they would dig out the dirt at the entrance. This meant that they often hit their feet on the entry. So, I decided to pour a concrete ramp that would allow them to enter with out doing any digging at the same time. Having learned my lesson, I choose a bright and sunny day with no rain in the forecast.

The third and last project was this morning. I poured one more pad under the cover we have for the horses.

The reason for the pad?

We have two salt blocks for the horses -- one plain salt (white) and one with minerals (red). They go back and forth between the two. However, when they sit on the ground the sand gets into the holders and, if we get a really heavy rain, that spot may collect water.

So, with this new pad they should stay cleaner and be protected from any standing water.

That's if for me and concrete -- at least for now. I'm sure there's something else I'll think of, but for now the next thing I need to do is scrape and paint some door jambs.