Sunday and Monday, August 17 and 18, 2008

Pat sold her jeep and today we went to deliver it.  I drove the jeep, and Pat drove John's truck.  There was a slight ulterior motive with this setup:  John and Pat thought I might be interested in the guy who was buying the jeep!  So, I drove up to his place in the jeep, and Pat waited for ten minutes before she arrived . . . to give us a chance to talk.  He was very nice, and interesting, but he kept talking about his old girlfriend . . . so perhaps she is still a current girlfriend.  Whatever!

Then Pat and I drove up to the outskirts of Farmington so she could look at a new diesel truck.  Pat liked it and bought it on the spot.  When we got back to the Roadhouse, John looked it over and thought it was a great deal.  Pat and I drove the new truck home.

Monday, Pat and Stefan went to the Roadhouse to work.  I always enjoy staying here alone.  Pat knows it.  She says she understands.  I say she wouldn't be living way out here if she didn't!  After doing the chores, I went back out to work with the horses.  Pat told me a way to teach them to "neck rein".  Neck reining is when you move the reins on the horses neck to tell him which way to go.  "Direct reining" is when you pull the right rein to go right, and pull the left rein to go left.  I see it as direct reining being like a stick shift, and neck reining as being like an automatic.  I prefer stick shift in my cars, and automatic for my horses!

So, I put Chaco in a stall and work with him for a few minutes.  He gets it fairly quickly . . . he always does when cookies are involved!  Then I bring him over to the fence and sit side-saddle on him for a few minutes, giving him cookies all the while.  When we leave, since horses are lined up at the gate because of the cookies, I take him out the back gate.  He is a little rapscallion-y with me, and I have to discipline him on the short walk back to the corral.  He's starting to annoy me!

Then I brought Sparky in because he wanted to.  He wasn't very cooperative.  He did okay with the neck reining, but kept wanting to bite me and the rope.  I turned him loose, and invited Chester in.  Mules are smarter, according to Pat, and he caught on immediately.  But, the thing with Chester is that he's stubborn, and although he knows what you want him to do, he's more likely to do what he wants to do.  And he is big and strong, so he often gets his way!