Cold, wet, raw day at 35538. Miles’ school on a two-hour delay. Barn chores for the third day in a row. Not my specialty, not my desire. I am reminded yet again. Three days in a row. Eagle Poise, Apse and Kissin Conquest don’t seem to care about my specialties, nor my desires. I bedded their shed down deep with fresh hay last night. They’re standing under a leaf-bare tree in the morning.
Blue rug off, thrown over a tack hook in the tack room. Green rug on. Bell boots tight, an extra twist. Gloves on. Gloves off. Gloves wet. Gloves wetter. Hook up hose. Unhook hose. Take morning temperatures. Check afternoon temperatures. Mix feed for the morning. Mix feed for the afternoon. Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat.
Then switch gears and fire up the laptop and deal with paperwork. Mountains of paperwork. Anti-laundering forms from sales companies. Really? If we are money laundering, we are doing something wrong. Hall of Fame surveys. Prove your validity. Vet bills for horses in training, road trips to the races, horses long since retired. Order win photos (a good problem). Try to find a captivating photo of the Lonesome Glory trophy (even better problem). More vet bills for horses we didn’t buy at the sales. An insurance form. Jockey invoices from May and June. Yeah, May and June. A daily (?) blog.
Twenty-two horses in training, three championships, and all the paperwork that goes with them. We have Annie, Troy, Kelli and others wading through it, keeping track of it, working at it. A full-time job. Along with barn chores. That makes two.
No complaints. Good to have work.
Remembering the sunny days on a wet winter day.
