Hawkeye, Horse Extraordinaire

This and the photo at the top of my blog, is Hawkeye. He was a palomino, half-Arabian x Appaloosa. He could do anything, and most things he did well enough to win if we were competing. He drove single or as half of a pair when I had young horses I was teaching to drive too.  At those times, I called him my ‘Anchor’. He’d pull anything you hooked him to, including a motorcycle from the mud in the river bed. He would obey voice commands or even just my body language, even if i was dozens of feet away from him. I used him to compete in anything obstacle, driving or riding, pleasure driving, log pulling and competitive trail rides.

He also jumped anything you aimed him at and I showed him in hunter/jumper classes. He didn’t show well in pleasure classes. The judges said he was too animated for Western classes, and not animated enough for English. For driving he had the best ‘hang time’ in his extended trot of any horse I ever saw.

I got Hawkeye when he was a month old, for a high school graduation present. When the woman that owned the mare got the money, she took the mare away from him and left him orphaned at the breeder’s ranch, where I worked at the time and raised him until he was three months old. Then I took him home and his training started then, I literally bomb proofed him. I wanted to prove that Arabs didn’t have to be flighty crazy horses. When someone, usually a kid, would get lost in the riverbed or desert by where we lived, I always participated in the search with Hawkeye. In the middle of the night, with choppers hovering over our head to tell us to meet up, or that the kid had been found, didn’t ruffle him. Once, we saw a hot air balloon coming down in the desert and raced to where it would crash. It barely missed a saguaro, and the balloon pulled it along the ground for a hundred feet, but the people were okay, and I got to have Champaign with them to celebrate a successful, though unplanned, landing.  It was the only time I had Champaign. Must be an acquired taste.

When he was 24 I retired him to someone with a barn that wanted to learn to drive a cart because they couldn’t ride anymore. I had gotten married and moved, and we no longer had horse property. That’s a mistake for another blog.

 

Hawkeye, Mia at the reins

 

New Favorite drink – it involves chocolate flavor!

I found a new favorite! Its an Italian Creme soda from Laundry World in Rapid! Italian Cream with CHOCOLATE and MINT!

Italian soda from Laundry World in Rapid City SD

Is it not the most beautiful think you’ve ever seen? And it tastes even better ^.^)

What are these freshwater bugs?

They came with live freshwater brown worms for feeding aquarium fish. Just to look at them without bright light behind them, the ‘fingers’ or whatever that is on the inside of their bodies are not visible. They cling tightly to whatever they’re climbing, including my finger ^.^)
I thought at first they were snail poo, as when they are threatened,
they roll into a round ball.

Its all about our minds ^.^)

The Noble Eightfold Path
Wisdom
1. Right View
2. Right Intention
Ethical Conduct
3. Right Speech
4. Right Action
5. Right Livelihood
Mental Development
6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness
8. Right Concentration

http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html

“When you become a Buddhist, it seems that the problem of personal shortcomings is difficult to deal with and this perhaps can be discouraging. How then does a person deal with what he knows to be his own imperfections and shortcomings so that he will not be discouraged?” ~Question

“One has to understand the nature of these shortcomings and limitations. Once we realize that our habitual patterns have caused us problems and we have started on a path, we begin to understand the need to transform these patterns.

In Buddhism, we talk of different methods and different techniques that one could use in cutting through neurotic patterns and our shortcomings. Once you are able to apply these methods and teachings, you are able to understand the importance of their application and sense the benefits, one has no doubt about it. Once you have experienced the benefits you can change your patterns for good.”
~H.H. Karmapa

http://www.kagyu.org/kagyulineage/buddhism/bec/becqa.php

Great, custom glasses chain!

glasses_chain1

Laura, who works at Dakota Rollers also does beautiful bead work. She made this awesomely cool glasses chain. Dakota Rollers, 605-718-7010

If You’re Gonna Drive that Truck,

Drive that truck! I swear, there should be a special license. I see them all the time, driving on one of the lines, either too far in or two far out, like they have no idea where on the road they are.

And yes I drove a truck for the first 4 decades of my life, [wait, that makes me older than i am, oh well] I pulled long stock trailers, and even pulling a trailer, I parked perfectly because i didn’t want to take the chance on inconveniencing someone else!

I would have never walked away leaving something I drove, parked like that. As it was I was too far over, but when i got there, the car that was in his place was over too far, and with the world xmas shopping all at this one little Walmart in Rapid City, I was lucky to find a place at all. If I hadn’t been too far to one side, it looks like the driver of the pickup would have just squished me anyway.

It seems its only at xmas that we find the bone in our bodies that is sharing, so how about a little thought for others? At least park straight and share the parking lot with some courtesy!

And another thing, the next time someone leaves their cart on one side of the isle, while they go to the other side to look, effectivly blocking the whole isle – I’m gonna just run them over!

I can see it now, woman arrested for road rage inside the store.
lol
^.^)

Just look at the beautiful Betta Fish Tattoo, pls ignore the chubby old feet :D

Just look at the beautiful Tattoo, pls ignore the chubby old feet

I got Darkmoon17′s betta drawing tattooed on my foot today! Just look at the beautiful Tattoo, pls ignore the chubby old feet I didn’t plan on getting it colored, but tattoo artist, James Ann, owner of Gypsy Rose, in Rapid City, SD mentioned color and it is gorgeous. Now if I can just get my real bettas to spawn and make babies like the one forever on my foot, lolz. I took the black outline pic when i thought we were finished. Then she started with the color and the fishy almost came to life!

Ice Trees, December, 2011

Rapid City SD Ice_trees-12-13-11

Ice Trees, Rapid City SD

Winter wonderland 2010

Growing up in California and living in the Arizona desert, I didn’t know ice really formed on trees like this. Just like the ‘sprayed’ xmas trees in the store, only natural and much more beautiful. And more dangerous. Solid ice was not only on the trees, but on every surface. Including the roads it was like trying to drive on a giant ice cube.

Snippet from Quirt and Brody Ride#2 – Doppelganger

 

Quirt and Brody: Ride#2 Doppelganger

Snippet from Quirt and Brody Ride#2 – Doppelganger.