Sudokuaholics Anonymous 11

'Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect' ~ Chief Seattle, 1854 Native American

Julie, great topp!

I don’t like the transition lenses because they don’t get dark enough outside and take too long to transition back inside. I have multifocal glasses, both normal and sunglasses. There was a special deal, buy one get one free. I suggested just distance lenses to the optometrist, but he was worried about me reading the dash. I do it all the time with regular sunglasses so I’m not sure what he was worried about.

Someone asked how Julie's and my husband were going. Can't answer for Julie but all is well with Colin. It is so refreshing to have things back to normal. He's enjoying his 'indoor' job.

Now let's hope Midge's son gets much better soon.

Good to hear both Julie and Cyn's hubbies are going o.k. Thanks Heidi - my son is on the improve - he made it worse for himself by doing his computer work too early. Apparently that affects the eye focussing and headaches. Anyway, he is so bored with his restrictions, he is going against drs advice and going overseas - I think to Jeju Island, South Korea but I am not sure. He is 42 and this is the son who goes to the airport and buys the first overseas flight out of Australia that has been cancelled. No wonder my hair is going grey! Glad you fur babies are settling in Suzy.

Thanks for your input on transition lenses, Suzy. It sounds like there has been little or NO improvement since hubby last had a pair. Your complaints sound just like his complaints back when he had them. It seems to make more sense to have regular indoor prescription lenses and prescription sunglasses. Tomorrow is our return trip to the ophthalmologist. We probably should take a bit of time to talk with the person who sells glasses there. I'm not sure if hubby's eye will be healed enough to get new lenses, or if we'll need to wait a while longer.

Cyn, it's great that Col is doing so well! How exciting that things are back to normal!

Midge, thanks so much for the update on your son! It must have been challenging keeping him safe when he was young. It seems as if he is a confident person who likes to be in control. I hope he will take some precautions when he goes overseas.

MIdge, it was great to see your post on Facebook and all of the welcoming comments!

Heidi, was this the day the farrier was expected? I hope all of the horses cooperated and have new shoes!

MizT has posted a few times in the past week on Facebook as well. She is still trying to get some answers about the cause of her pain and trying to find something that will help.

The bed is calling, so I will say Good Night. Sending {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, healing energy, prayers, positive thoughts, and for all!

Yep... the farrier came. I had the horses up in the barn lot, and they were very cooperative... except Whimsey, who was in season so her hormones were affecting her brain. Even Shadow behaved. He usually doesn't because he's almost completely blind and gets scared of every atrange move. He's also a wild caught Mustang, and is reverting back in his old age.

I missed the discussion about transition lenses. I have had them for many years and love them. My only problem is driving into underground carparks the lenses take too long to adjust. After nearly hitting a car once that I didn't see, I now just pop them on top of my head as I drive in.

Midge, from a mother's point of view I can see how your child booking a flight like that might be worrying. From his point of view, how exciting! What an adventure.

I appreciate the input about transition lenses. We looked at 2 samples today while at the ophthalmologist and glasses location. Thank you, CynB, for your insights. I hadn't thought about driving into underground carparks - or some of the driving we do occasionally in Chicago, where there are sometimes a couple of layers of streets, as a 'ground level' street and a 'Lower' street of the same name with somewhat less traffic and access to other levels of shops or parking.

Cyn, another great insight about last-minute purchase of airline tickets. I also saw it from the parent point of view. Now, I can see that it might be exciting to be so spontaneous - and probably a nice reduced price on the airfare. That approach to travel would be difficult for me, but I can see its appeal.

Heidi, I'm glad things went pretty well for the farrier. How long have you had Shadow? If he was a wild-caught mustang, is it usually hard for him to deal with getting shoes? I'm guessing your farrier has had some experience with your horses and their idiosyncrasies.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! We have tickets for an orchestra concert, then got a call tonight to meet friends for dinner on the same day. Seems we have NO plans, or too many.

Sending healing energy, , {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, prayers, and positive thoughts for everyone!

I got Shadow when he was 2 years old. My farrier is also a skilled horse trainer and specialized in Mustangs for years. She started training Shadow shortly after I got him, so he knows her well, and trusts her as well as he trusts me. But over the past year, as his vision went, he's gotten really spooky about being touched unexpectedly. When working with him, you have to maintain a constant quiet, calm chatter to him so he knows where you are every second. If you forget for even a few seconds, he kicks... something he's never done in his whole life here. When out in the pasture, he sticks close to one of his 2 best friends: Sadie and Red Hawk. When the farrier is working with him, he has to he tied up face to face with Sadie so they can touch. Sadie is fine with that as long as she is the FIRST horse to have her feet trimmed. If she has to wait, she loses her temper. Once she's done, she can calmly stand there for hours gloating over the others that she's done.

I let the Alpacas into the barn lot last night, since they had their pen grazed down. They are thrilled. It's a bigger area, about a third of an acre. And it has plenty of cool shade. It's been 88-89 ˚F / 31.5 ˚C every day lately. Alpacas do not love the heat. Their native climate is very cool up in the Andes mountains.

Tired. Very tired. I was outside filling up the alpaca's water tanks and Mike the Vet showed up. He wanted to work the cattle herd.... both his and mine. So I helped as much as I could... and probably a lot more than I should have. I was horrified to discover that Duke, my bull, has a serious injury to his sheath, rendering him unable to breed. We're going to keep an eye on him for the next 2 months, and if it doesn't get back to normal I'm going to have to ship him off to the packing plant. What a disaster! He has top bloodlines and cost me a fortune. Two of my cows behaved horribly, and will be sent to the sale barn this Fall, along with the last ancient cow. And maybe the lone cow that survived Smokey's attack. She's still badly maimed and quite traumatized. She may never be able to breed again. That would leave me with 3 or 4 cows. Mike's planning on bringing his bull over here so we can get cows bred.

Heidi, such good things you and your farrier have done for Shadow. I can imagine how easily he could be spooked if touched when he wasn't aware someone was around him. A running dialogue seems like a good plan to keep him aware that he's not alone. How nice that he has a couple of good friends and Sadie has figured out a way to be first for trimming and then be there for Shadow! They all have their own personalities!

Hooray for the alpacas and being allowed in a larger and shaded area. Undoubtedly they enjoyed themselves!

Heidi, you definitely had a long and busy day. So sorry to hear about Duke. Hopefully the next couple of months will see him return to normal! I guess it's good that you had the chance to work the cattle and find out which cows you will take to the sale barn next time. Your numbers are definitely dwindling. Does Mike have a large herd?

Still no sign of MizT here. It's too bad it's so hard for her to get to her computer. Hopefully she is getting some pain relief!

I just looked at the time and am shocked. I had started a load of laundry, but must not have read the clock correctly. It's just now spinning, so I will need to find a way to rush the drying process or put a lot on drying racks and hangers.

Sending {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, healing energy, positive thoughts, prayers, and for everyone! Good Night!

Another day has slipped by. I'm not sure where the time goes.

We went to a very enjoyable concert in Chicago - all Spanish and Latin American music with an excellent guitarist and a person who played a bandoneon. A google search describes it as a 'type of concertina, played by holding the instrument between both hands and pushing in or pulling out, while pressing the buttons with the fingers. It has an essential role in the tango orchestra (orquesta tipica), and in fact has become almost the symbol of tango. Its beauty is in its power; it provides a somber, sensual sound.' It's smaller than an accordion. Prior to the concert an excellent lecturer talked about the pieces on the concert, the composers, and the bandoneon.

After the concert, we picked up a pizza & joined our D and grandie for dinner. (SIL is out of state visiting his Mom and Grandma.) When it comes right down to it, we left home around 12:15 and got home around 8:15, so that's where a large portion of our day went.

And now, after spending some time practicing, it's time to head to bed. Sending , healing energy, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, positive thoughts, and prayers to all!

Tired again. I just picked up 160 lbs of alpaca feed and unloaded it myself. I left the mineral for the cattle and horses in the back of the truck for Mike the Vet to unload. I also decided to stop and pick up some take-out chinese food, since I've been craving some something fierce. I ate only a quarter cup of my favorite egg foo young, and had to pull off the road 10 minutes later to throw up. I don't think I'm ready for it yet. The dogs will enjoy it, at least.

Oh yeah... I've also been cutting down a few trees with my chainsaw. In the past 5 years they've been growing up around the yard, and some were interfering with the security lights in the front and back. They were 3 different species... Silver Maple, Wild Cherry and Tree Of Heaven. I didn't have to cut down any elms. The last grow about 15 feet a year, and had trunks about 9'' across. There are still a lot of them left in other places, but I did need the lighting in front of the yard and lighting up the barn lot. I cannot pull start a regular chainsaw (both of my elbows have been reconstructed) so I got myself a battery operated one on line. It can't cut anything more than 10'' across, but if I have a tree that big to remove, I can hire a professional. And yes, I know enough to make a V notch on the side that I want the tree to fall on, before sawing on the opposite side, so I have control over where it falls. I will have some nice firewood for next winter, at least.

Oops... the Tree Of Heaven grows 15 feet a year, not the Elm.

I submitted some alpaca avatars when I first bought my alpacas a month ago. They still haven't been approved. Does anyone approve avatars any more?

Yesterday after reading Heidi's final post (at the time) about the Tree of Heaven, I tried to post a comment, and was 'greeted by a page I had never seen before announcing 'File or directory not found.'

And now I got the same message

Heidi, with all you're doing, it's not a surprise that you're tired! If you unloaded 160 pounds of alpaca food, I certainly hope it wasn't two 80-pound bags! I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have been 20-pound bags. I'm guessing lifting 40-poound bags might be your limit. (I don't think I could handle much over 20 pounds myself.) I'm glad you left the mineral for the cattle and horses for Mike to unload from the truck!

Let's try another paragraph:
It's too bad you weren't ready for the Chinese food yet. I hope the first taste helped relieve your craving for now. Do you need to avoid certain food additives or seasonings, at least for a while? I hope you had something else at home that you could eat!

Thanks for reminding us that you're careful with the chain saw. We once had a small electric chain saw, but didn't replace it when it died.

I'm not supposed to lift over 25 lbs, and those were 40 lb bags. I was a bad girl.
And I've been sticking to nice, safe protein shakes since then. They settle the tummy nicely.
The mineral for the cattle was four 50 lb bags, and the horse's mineral blocks weighed 75 lb each. Those heavy blocks were Mike's suggestion, not mine. I would have gotten them 50 lb bags instead.

With an electric chain saw, I'd need at least 1/2 mile of extension cord, or a portable generator or if I could find one, a current bush...

That's why I use a battery operated chain saw. I also have a back up battery. The brand is Black & Decker. No extension cord. No mixing gas and oil. No pull starting with a cord that breaks. Just a light weight chainsaw. And the chain is very easy to keep tight. I bought it on eBay.

I’m just home from the dentist. Not fun. I had to have a tooth pulled and it didn’t go well. I now have “communication between the sinus cavity and mouth” and have to go to a surgeon. Sigh

Suzy!!! That sounds horrible!

Mike the Vet just dropped off a bull here. He's a big black ''Balancer'', which is a cross between a Gelbvieh and an Angus. He and Duke already are getting along, and he's excited to be among so many open cows.

I'd have thought that Duke and the 'new guy' would be at odds over the harem...

Both bulls are used to being in with other bulls, and are laid back gents. I prefer easy going bulls. They produce easy going calves.

Hi, Everyone! I'm trying earlier in the day to see if I can post.

Morning all,
Sorry you're having trouble posting and getting error messages Julie. I'll let you know if I get one when I try to post this.
Ouch Suzy, just ouch!! Hope all goes well when they come to fix it up. When will that be?
Heidi, sorry your craving for chinese made you sick. Glad the protein shakes are sustaining you though.

No error message here, Julie.

Well, the girl moved in most of her stuff last night but won't be sleeping here until Saturday. Love her to bits, she's my only daughter but we haven't lived together since 1997 when she was 25 and she was bossy then. I suspect trouble. Also neither of her kids are happy about staying with their Dad for the duration, they love him but... So I expect they might be sleeping on my floors and couches more often than not. Sigh! I'm too old for this.
Wish me luck!

, CynB.

You’ll be fine Cyn. Stand your ground. Maybe remind her she’s not your mother if she tries to boss you around.

I sat in the dentist chair for almost 2 hours yesterday. I hope to get the special X-ray he ordered today. I’m having an ultrasound for something else and will take the request with me. I can’t get into the specialist for over 2 weeks. My face is throbbing

Mike the Vet is fascinated by the alpacas. He can't believe how intelligent, curious and easy going they are. Until their indoor pens are built, I've given them access to the center aisle of the barn.... since we're having thunderstorms almost every day. They discovered it VERY quickly and are enjoying watching every move he makes from the shelter of the barn door when it's raining. When he arrived with the bull today, they were loose in the barn lot. As soon as they saw his trailer behind his truck, they ambled calmly into their pen so he could pull into the barn lot and unload the bull without them being in the way. Any other animals would have to be herded back by people. The alpacas learned to do it themselves after being directed only twice. They're always watching everything that's going on and show no fear. Just a lot of curiosity. I'm SO glad I got them!!!

My newly planted dwarf apple tree was doing just great. It's only about 2 ft tall. New growth leaves in abundance. Last night deer discovered it. No more leaves. I will put a fence around it and hope it recovers...

The alpacas sound neat. I'm enjoying hearing about them...

BOPP post:

I'm enjoying the alpacas so much that I'm considering just selling the rest of the cattle and concentrating on alpacas. There would still be cattle on the farm, just not mine. I'm not going to rush the decision, though. With their shorter gestation, and plenty of sale barns around, I can make income from cattle faster and easier than with the alpacas. I'll make the decision in the late Fall.