You can fool the fans - but not the players.... John Cage

What weekend?

I admit it - I am spoiled. I work at home, I live in a beautiful place, and I am steadily working my way towards goals I have dreamed of. There is a studio filled with materials and tools downstairs, dogs lounging around under my computer desk, and horses just down the road. So every day is practically a weekend, right?

Well, I wish it felt that way, but the days fly by and there is always something that needs to get done that doesn't get done, the house always has piles of projects and "to-do"s, and I wonder how did I ever manage to work outside the house? And when work calls me away from home... it is probably actually a good thing. I tend to be a hermit otherwise.

This past weekend was truncated by work - good work, but work nonetheless. JC came home and was on his own mission to organize everything he brought home before returning to his winter job today, this morning. Then there was the time change. Did we even have a weekend?

 

I'm beginning to work in more of a production mode, and it is working pretty well with the way metalwork has to fit into all the other obligations of the day. I started out by cutting many rectangles and squares of brass, not just a few.

 

I took all those out to the bench grinder for one session of smoothing corners and edges. Working this way allows me to get into a "zone" of concentration and learn how to better my techniques as I'm working. It doesn't calm my impatience the way making just a few at a time does, but I think as this progresses there will always be materials in various stages of completion so that I get the satisfaction of the finished product.

It is easier to fit the work into my day this way, too. It is more focused. If I have a couple of hours to work there is a pile of material to work with. I don't have so much opportunity to spin - wondering where to start.

 

My work on Saturday took me to the "big" city of Ridgecrest, which sports a couple of big box stores including Home Depot. I went in looking for brass strips and came out with a length of copper pipe and a new pipe cutter. We'd learned how to make round bezels in one of Stephanie's classes but I hadn't yet incorporated it into my own work.

JC helped me cut rings from pipe - it isn't as easy to cut nice thin ones as it looked when Stephanie did it! And I developed blisters from turning the pipe and the cutter - agh! Physical labor.

 

I carved out a little time last evening to work with circles, again setting off the smoke alarm numerous times despite having cross-flow ventilation with two windows open AND the ceiling fan on.

 

But I am liking the round bezels with the ball chain accent!

The time change does one big thing for me - it gives me longer evenings inside. Summer it is so hard to get in early since evenings are the most beautiful time to ride and be outside but winter, winter is all about long evenings, music, fires in the woodstove, dinners with JC, and studio time.

In keeping with more of a production mode mentality I finished off the work session with prepping some pearls for adding later. Copper pearls with sterling silver wire... beautiful...

 

I still don't know where the weekend went but here it is Monday and work, responsibilities, routine, chores - all are calling with a mighty voice. At least I am up early.

Winter is coming! Winter is coming!

That's right, I'm a freak for winter. I L.O.V.E. winter. The holidays, the cold, the snow, the fires in the woodstove, soaking in the hot tub after a day of snowshoeing or skiing.... winter makes me happy. It just starts accelerating now that it is November and I've recognized already that there is no way I'm doing the holidays in a big way this year, not with a wedding in January.

 

I feel like kicking my heels up, though. Like Rhea. I remember a time when I could not catch my mare laying down, and to go out into an open space and roll? Never, never, never when she was younger. Now, thanks to Janet and Rebecca, she is a much more confident horse and she likes nothing better than a good roll in a sandy arena.

 

This one has been trusting from the get-go. She loves to sleep on her back with her little puppy belly exposed. She sure likes to snuggle, though, now that it is a little colder, and I have to fight for my chair by the window in the mornings. Me, the puppy, a cup of coffee and the laptop - that's how I start my day.

 

Even the cat can occasionally be caught in a particularly relaxed mode. Not so much with the puppy around but once the cold weather really sets in and it isn't so fun to be outside we'll be seeing more of this.

 

Yep, they are all expert loungers around here... hard to get anything done with every animal looking so cute.

Where did October go, anyway?

It is hard to wrap my head around the fact that it is November already. The weather (and the time) is just about to change and that may help me come to grips with it but winter is sneaking up on me. We've had such a beautiful October, just perfect weather. Beautiful fall colors, warm and calm days. Remind me of this once the wind starts blowing.

We went to get hay and my horse over the weekend and as always the dogs are so entertaining to have around. I think they enjoy being together again and tormenting the cat... and going just about everywhere with us.

This is Feather's spot in the Dodge - laying on the console with her nose as close to the vent as possible. Her back legs are on the floor behind our seats and she can ride like this for hours.

 

Chance used to get in, crunch himself up against one side of the back seat and stay that way the whole drive, his head up against the back door in what looked like the most uncomfortable position he could take. But obviously it worked for him. Bella wants to be up where the action is and she has taken to squeezing herself on to the console with Feather.

 

She keeps an eye on Feather since she is still low on the totem pole and Feather gets grumpy at times, but they rode like this peacefully on Sunday.

 

It was a perfect day for getting hay and horses. Grass-alfalfa mix is up to $14.50 a bale and that was a hefty check to write... and we need to do it about twice more before I'll feel comfortable with winter coming on. It will balance out with having Rhea home, though - no more full-service boarding and full-time training expenses.

 

It was very satisfying to get the hay stacked and the horse unloaded into her pen - and she was perfectly calm about the transition. I worked her yesterday and spent a good couple of hours with her and I know that we are going to be just fine. She's got a good head, she's attentive, and she is not spooky in the least. Oh, and she's had a good 6 months of full-time training. She was at Millpond for 16 months which I have to keep counting and re-counting - how did that much time go by already?

The dogs were very busy all day and were happy to retire to their beds when we finally got back home. It is funny how tired they get when we are out and about away from home and they don't get their naps in the sun. They got to get out and roam around at the hay barn, they played hard with the other labs and heeler at the Allan's abode, and then they were out once more at the saddle club.

 

That was it for this lab. I love how she sleeps like this and I love her big paws and silky coat. She is a beautiful dog.

 

Wondering why the heck I am flashing a light at her as she tries to get some rest.

It was a good weekend even though we missed our favorite Halloween party and didn't dress up this year. No dancing, no costumes, not even any trick or treaters. Saturday was a project day for me and Sunday was a horse day for us. And now it is suddenly November. Before you know it we'll be eating turkey dinner, then Christmas will be upon us and then.... yikes! The wedding!