RIP Davy Jones

 

Davy Jones, lead singer for the Monkees died this morning from a heart attack. I liked the Monkees and he always seemed to be a decent guy. He also liked horses which is a plus in my book.

What's a little disturbing is he was the same age that I am - 66.

I guess I'm at that age.

Off this topic, Betty and I rode Sugar and Morgunn in the back this morning and they did pretty well. They're still out of shape, but that will come with time and more riding.

Even though we haven't ridden as much this winter as we would have liked, we've ridden more this winter than any other winter. The weather and, more importantly, our health has enabled us to get out more with them.

Tomorrow, we hop into the truck and head North to spend a long weekend with the kids and grandkids in Fort Collins, Colorado. Right now the weather forecast for our trip looks pretty good, but this time of year it can change pretty quickly. That's why we're taking the truck and not the Mustang.

I'll try to post some while we're gone so be good.

Monday Video - Sheepherding Rabbit

Most of us think of rabbits as timid, shy creatures. If you remember the encounter of our courtyard rabbit, Peter, with the snake we know that's not true.

Here's another example of a less-than-shy rabbit. It's a little long, but listen to the song as well. This rabbit lives in Sweden.

Enjoy.

 

 

Sunday Reflection–God the Artist

As many of you know, I have been playing with the time lapse camera app on my cell phone.  Here’s the latest when I finally got a beautiful evening.

Well, here’s a link to a time lapse video by professionals with professional equipment.

However, the point of sharing this is not to focus on the photographers or their equipment, but to see the beautiful artwork of God the Creator, the great Artist – even in my amateur video.

Every morning when I feed the horses and clean up the nightly manure, the sun is coming up over the Sandia Mountains.  I often stop and marvel at the beauty that God is creating that particular moment.  They are all different and it lifts my spirit to watch him create.

Don’t watch this until you have a few moments to stop and reflect on the beauty of what you’re seeing and the creative Spirit behind the creation.

Click on this link:  http://vimeo.com/35396305

Friday Funnies - Cleo Rides Blaze

Baby animals are always cute to watch. Check out this young goat named Cleo as she tries to play and lie down with this very, very patient horse named Blaze.

Enjoy.

 

A Good Wednesday Morning

This morning was a good morning for us.

The weather was really nice - sunny, mid-40's air temperature, but it felt like about 60 in the sun. There was a little breeze, but not bad.

We saddled up the horses and worked them in the back for about 30 minutes. We thought about taking them out, but decided not to. Betty strained her back a few weeks ago. It's better, but still a little on the weak side so we decided to play it safe.

The horses did really well considering we haven't ridden them in over a week. They're out of shape so we'll keep their work to short times to slowly bring them back into riding shape.

The other thing good about this morning is the Sandhill Cranes are heading North.

They winter from Corrales down to the Bosque del Apache, a nature preserve South of Albququerque. They fly in loosely formed flocks - they're not as organized as Canada Geese.

When the cranes fly, they circle and circle in the sky as they move North. It's probably a way to keep oriented to the sun and landmarks.

And they fill the sky with their unique sqwawks. Once you've heard them, you always know that sound when you hear it.

Their travels North mean that Spring is on the way and that's a good thing.

 

 

Movies and Their Impact

Since it's been cold and windy and we haven't had time to ride, I've had lots of time to think - which can be dangerous sometimes.

For some reason, I started to think about movies that have made an impact on me. In some ways these movies changed me as a person and the way I think. I enjoy movies, but I have distinct criteria on what I want out of a movie:

1. Movies that make me think, or...

2. Movies that make me laugh, or...

3. Movies that show me something new to learn (as long as it's in an entertaining way), or

4. Movies that uplift my spirit - make me feel good about the human species, give me hope

I have no interest in movies that shock, or are depressing, or focus solely on human depravity.

Here are a few movies that fit criteria 1, 3 and/or 4. I left out the movies that make me laugh because there are so many and I don't think they changed me very much. The movies below are in a chronological order:

1967: "A Man for All Seasons" with Paul Scofield playing Sir Thomas More. More stood up to King Henry VIII when he wanted to break away from the Catholic Church so he could continue to divorce his wives. His principles caused More to lose his life. This was the year Betty and I got married and I was still in college. It was the first time that I had seriously thought about what I believed.

1989: "Field of Dreams" with Kevin Costner playing Ray Kinsella. "If you build it they will come." Although this is a baseball themed movie, it's really about how a father and son relate - or don't relate. It made me think about my relationship with my two sons who were growing into young men in front of my eyes.

1993: "Schindler's List" with Liam Neeson playing Oskar Schindler. Schindler owned a factory that supplied war goods to the Germans. Many of his workers were Jewish. Over the period of the war years he was able to bring other Jews into his work force thereby saving them from German persecution. He is credited with saving over 1,500 Jews. The movie is dark, violent and depressing in many ways. But it is also very uplifting. In the midst of such darkness, human courage and determination shines even brighter. It's one of the few movies where I cried at the end.

1998: "Saving Private Ryan" with Tom Hanks playing Captain John H. Miller. Everyone should see this movie to understand the sacrifices our parents and grandparents made to save our liberty and way of life. Everything I have read says this is the most accurate war movie made to date. It's gut-wrenching to watch, but I think we owe it to our parents and grandparents to do so to understand and honor them.

2001: "Band of Brothers" with Damian Lewis playing Major Dick Winters. Granted this is a TV series, but I have to include it here. I also read the book upon which it is based. It's also a very accurate protrayal of the sacrifices mentioned above for "Saving Private Ryan," but the reason I include it is it's an excellent primer on leadership. Dick Winters is a case study in how to lead and motivate men in difficult circumstances. I learned a lot from this movie and book.

2001-2003: "Lord of the Rings" with Eliah Wood playing the hobbit Frodo. It's an epic masterpiece that focuses on many Christian principles including honor, duty, sacrifice and loyalty.

2003: "Open Range" with Kevin Costner playing Charley Waite and Robert Duvall as Boss Spearman. This is just an old-fashioned Western about honor, duty and loyalty. Plus there is no better horseman in the movies than Robert Duvall. He sits a horse as well as anyone I have ever seen.

Well, that's it. I can't think of another movie since then that fits those criteria. There have been plenty of entertaining movies since then, but none that changed me as these movies have.

So that's my list. I would be interested if you have any you would add to your list.

Monday Video - Act of Valor

There's a movie out now called Act of Valor. We haven't seen it, but we will. It stars real-life SEALs. I had the privilege of riding in a bus in the Philippines with some SEALs back during the Vietnam era.

When there's a movie premiere the stars usually arrive in limos - not the SEALs. Watch this video of their entrance from their point of view. Their accuracy in landing in an urban area is incredible.

Enjoy. (PS: Sugar is doing fine. Just a short-term tummy ache I suspect.)

 

 

 

Sugar

No Sunday Reflection today - my horse, Sugar, is not feeling well. She started eating her hay normally this morning, then suddenly quit and laid down.

She got up again and ate for a few minutes and then laid down again.

She doesn't appear to be in distress. Hopefully it's just a minor stomach problem and will resolve itself. We're letting her rest for now. If things aren't better by tomorrow, or if she seems to get worse, then we'll call the vet.

UPDATE: Sugar got back up and is eating again. She also drank some water which is good. That's two of the three good signs. The only sign missing is seeing her poop. Eating, drinking and pooping are all signs of a healthy horse.

She did this once before about a year and a half ago. Horses are a lot like us - they just have some days when they don't feel good. That's where the phrase "being off your feed" comes from.

Friday Funny - It Should Have Happened

One of the things we love about our house is it is located in a place where there are no mosquitoes - none, nada, zip. Betty especially hates mosquitoes as they tend to love her.

 

One of my questions for God someday is why he created mosquitoes. I feel sure they must have some value in God's economy, but for the life of me I have no idea what that would be.

 

Perhaps it would have been for the best if this cartoon had really happened.

 

Valentine’s Day Sunrise

I’m still having fun playing with the time lapse app on my cell phone camera.  Here’s the sunrise yesterday morning.  It’s not as colorful as I was hoping for, but maybe I’ll catch one soon.

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to all of our friends and family who read our blog.  -- Dan & Betty

 

No Guts No Glory

 It was cold and windy this morning (Monday).  But we decided to get out and ride Sugar and Morgunn in the back.  It has been several weeks since we have been able to work with them and we were determined to get something done.  We did basic riding exercises.  I'm not sure if any of us enjoyed it, but Sugar and Morgunn worked pretty well.

It's supposed to rain tomorrow and Betty is taking a friend to a medical procedure so no riding tomorrow.

Sunday Reflection - A Time Lapse Life

If you're a regular reader of this blog you know I have been playing with a time lapse app on my camera phone.  It's been a lot of fun.

Time lapse photography is a simple concept.  You set your camera to take individual pictures over a set period of time.  The software in the app combines the individual photos into a movie clip.  The time lapse movies I have made recently are pictures taken every three seconds.

If you use a longer period between pictures, the movie gets more frantic, jerky looking - kind of like a Keystone Cops movie for those of you old enough to know what I'm talking about.  If you use a shorter period, 1 or 2 seconds, the movie is smoother and more continuous.

As I played with my camera phone, I started thinking about what a time lapse life would look like.  In everyone's life there are events, actions, thoughts, words, that we would like to take back, to have a do-over - but since we can't then we would love to skip over them.  Some are our own sins, some are events that have brought pain and trials into our lives.

One example for me is when Betty was seriously injured in a horse riding accident.  Our lives were filled with pain and trials for many months because of that accident.  If I could, I would love to skip over that point in our lives.  

It's said that we will stand before God someday and our whole life will be played out like a movie before us and all of heaven.  I picture a high-definition, 3-D, IMAX screen big enough for all the clouds of witnesses to watch the movie of my life.  It would be nice if that movie of my life would be a time lapse movie that showed only the good things that I did or that happened to me.

But I know that's not how it will be.  It will be a complete movie with all of the warts of my life showing on the big screen.

What I've come to realize is that those warts - my sins, my pain, my trials - are all important parts of my life.  They have contributed to the person I am today as much as my successes, my good actions.

The key is whether I give the warts in my life to God as quickly and easily as I give the successes.

If I could go back and change the past so that Betty never had her horse riding accident I would do it in a second.  But I can't.  However, from that experience, we have gained much.  Our relationship grew stronger.   We learned to rely even more on God's grace and healing.  Betty is a better and more confident rider now than before.  And on and on.

So, our lives are not a time lapse movie.  They are a continuous series of events, actions, words, thoughts - some we regret - that contribute to our growth toward the image of Christ if we are willing to sacrifice all of our lives, even our warts, to God.

Watermelon Mountain

The mountains that we look out on are called the Sandias.  Sandia is Spanish for watermelon.  If you watch this short time lapse video you’ll understand how the mountain got its name as the color changes to a watermelon color just as the sun goes down.

How the Sandia Mountains got their name.

The Work Is Done

The folks doing our landscaping work finished their work this past Wednesday afternoon.  We had a final walk through yesterday and made the final payment.

We had three things done.  First, they removed about 100 plants and bushes that were dead or badly damaged by last winter's freeze.  Second, they installed a new drip sprinkler system.  Finally, they installed a flagstone patio in our courtyard. 

This spring we'll plant 20 to 25 new plants.

Here's a picture of the courtyard after the dead plants were removed, but before the flagstone was installed.

Here are two pictures of the new patio.  It will give us much more outdoor living space for us and for company.

Mama Mia

If you’re a long time reader of our blog, you may remember Simone, our resident Roadrunner, who lived one winter in our stable several years ago.

Last year, she built a nest in our Cottonwood, but we don’t know if she had any baby Simones.  Well, she’s back in the nest in the Cottonwood again this year.

We’ll see if she has any babies this year.

Sunset & Moonrise

Because of the work on our landscaping, we haven’t done much this past week which kind of hampers any decent blog posts.

So, I’ve been playing with making time lapse videos.  It’s kind of fun.

The first video is last night’s sunset.  It wasn’t a particularly beautiful sunset, but it’s fun watching the jets heading West and seeing their contrails in the setting sunlight.

The second video is two night’s ago when the full moon was rising.

Monday Video - Bye Bye

I have never repeated a video, but I mistakenly shared this video last week with the Rodeo pictures post on top of it.  I think it's too cute not to see.

So, if you missed it last Monday, here's another chance to see a little girl reach out to strangers on an escalator.

Enjoy.

 

Sunday Reflection - Super Bowl

 Actually, I'm taking today off to watch the Super Bowl.

But, wouldn't it be great if we got as excited about Jesus and what he has done for us as we do about the Super Bowl.

Have a great day.

 

 

Friday Funny - Bird Likes Bluegrass

 I'm a traditionalist in most things, including my music.  I like folk, country, western and bluegrass.  I also enjoy watching birds.  So, watch what happens when a young bird decides to come listen to a little bluegrass music.

Enjoy.

 

The Work Continues

The landscaping work in our yard and courtyard is continuing.  The focus today, Thursday, was on the new patio they’re putting into our courtyard.

Just for the fun of it, I did a short time-lapse video of the work on the flagstone.  It starts a little slow, but picks up.