Oh Yeah, My Truck...

OK, so my truck was sick. See if it was below 60 Degrees and had to sit more than 4 hours with out running the engine (like when you are sleeping) It would not start with out at least one hour of the engine block heater being plugged in. Well folks, that will leave ya stranded at a barrel race, work or even at home if you cant plug it in!!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!! Well finally I talked hubby into putting it into the shop...UGH, it was very broke. My Lift Pump which brings the fuel from the tank to the injectors, and my injector pump were toast. Well, i cant say toast, but not good. Anyhow, they told us that changing the lift pump "MIGHT" fix it....$600 later...nope. Then they say changing the Injector pump "MIGHT" fix it....for $2500....OK, when they said that, I said DONT TOUCH IT, I AM PICKING BLACK UP!!!! Well, when I got there, they went to cranking the starter....for 10 minutes....GRRRRRRRRRR!!!! I was soooo mad! Then it did start and I was going to go to walmart....I saw might light on and I was still in the parking lot of the dealership...it was the check engine light that was NEVER on...Well he turned it off to clear the code and she did not want to start back up again...I was PISSED cause it was 80 degrees out and I did not have the issues 5 days earlier when I dropped her off!!! So I was on a mission...to either find a way to fix Black for less or to find another truck. WOW...what a stressful week!!!
After all the stress and deciding that I needed Black fixed and could not or did not want another truck, the dealership called......and said...... "Mrs. Myers, this is the service manager at Weaver Brothers. I was on vacation when your truck was in here....and I heard that you were not happy when you left.....well, I can fix your truck but the only way this will work is if you bring the truck back to ME and let me fix it...." Me.. "OK, how much?" Him... "well ma'am,we can change the injector pump and since you have not paid for the lift pump we installed already, we will only charge $500 total for both pumps and can have it ready for you tomorrow if you get it here today!"

Folks, i would be a damn fool not to jump on this! So I did and they had her fixed by lunch the next day! She now cranks right off! It got down in the 30's Saturday and she fired up with out being plugged in!!! OMG I was/am so happy!

Hello!

Hey guys! Sorry I have not posted sooner. My Wrist is just now healing. I managed to sprain my wrist correcting Gabe for biting me.....So it kinda makes it hard to type! Yesterday was a hard day. We needed to load the colts to run them over to the vet for coggins test.....Well back two years ago we aquired a stock trailer that is perfect for hauling colts...BUT hubby took out the floor and began to "work" on it.....now over a year and a half after he took it apart, I finally show him WHY I needed that stock trailer in one peice about 7 months ago....Because I needed to load mares and foals to teach the foals how to load!!! Have you ever tried to load a foal in a slant trailer with rear tack????? Anyhow, we tried to get them loaded yesterday in the slant trailer. We took the slants out, but there is no place for leverage in a slant trailer!!! So I was on the rump of Dually and he was handling the head and butt rope.....Well, Dually was just being a yearling that has never been loaded...he reared and I slipped landing at his feet..........Lucky for me Dually felt me back there and he stopped and hubby stopped pulling on his face....BUT the backside of my rib cage on the right side is SORE.....I think I was kinda "stepped on". And the way I landed hit my hip and shoulder. So I am SORE. Of course its right where my bra would sit so I cant even wear one right now unless I have too. Not sure if I actually broke/cracked my ribs, but they cant fix that anyhow. It did knock the wind out of me pretty bad. Scared the shit out of me too. Once I stood up I told hubby that I was done.....he was going to get the stock trailer fixed or he was going to figure out how to load them by himself. Since both colts are sold, I need to get the coggins pulled!! Well, i called the vet who refused to come out (5 miles down the road) to pull the coggins...Well I was crying and somehow he decided that he would drive over and pull blood for me. THANK GOD. We went ahead and pulled coggins on 5 horses. I figured that since I am sure we were gonna have to pay a farm call, may as well get everyone done!!!!

So, i slept. I slept yesterday away and this morning......When I hurt, sleep seems to come easy. I think my body wants to heal. But today I went and got stuff to make Jeff some more Chocolate Chip Cookies.....He loves them! So I made some more from scratch then I did a few loads of laundry and cleaned out the mouse terd cabinet...YUCK.....I think the mouse is DEAD so I had to pull everything out of the cabinet and clorox it all!!! YUCK!!!! Still working on that but its kinda hard when you cant really reach for anything....

I am Here!

OK, sorry for no updates. A lot has been going on. First of all, Hick is back at our house. I sold him to my farrier in exchange for services....and that was all of 3 months ago. Well, I heard that Hick was being starved down....they were right. So we went and picked him up after I told my farrier (now ex-farrier) that someone was interested in him and I was coming to get him. He had mentioned sell him to pay us off.....I loaded Hick up and never looked my farrier in the eye. He did not make any excuses. I did not give him the chance because I was going to kick his ass. Anyhow, Hick is home Here is a before and after pic...



Yeah I am pissed. But I did what I could and got him home. Basically he was rode HARD and not given any groceries. Only grass and a round bale...and not de-wormed either. I rode him yesterday and on one hand, he was way better than before...no more buck no more rear....BUT he was OFF. I know his back needs to be adjusted and it seems he is sore on his hocks. I will get him fixed up in due time.

Joe is doing GREAT! I worked him yesterday too and WOW. We warmed up then I put the little lite hack on him and climbed on. I was trotting him around the round pen and decided to ask him to zig and zag....OMG that horse can flat out MOVE! I asked him to turn into the fence a few times too and I got to tell you that I almost lost my seat! THEN he asked me if we could do it at a lope...he likes to gain speed going into his turns! I love it! So we started doing it at the lope and he got faster and turned harder! Thank God for the saddle horn! LMAO. Anyhow, Joe is not for sale anymore. We are almost over our little issues and I am in love with the way he moves!!!

Health update.....Jeff has strep and guess what. Now I have fever, a rash and sore throat...Hmmm. Jeff has been in bed since Friday. I bet I am SICK...GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR I would say that I will go to the doc tomorrow, but my co-worker left town and I have to work...SO....Anyhow, Jeff is going. He has that rash ALL over. Be aware folks, this strep is spreading like wild fire!

Good Morning.

Yup, I have been a little distant....But trust me, you would rather me that way! My hormones are raging...has to do with the new meds the doc put me on. I have not been sleeping more than 2 hours at a time and boy howdy....have I been cussing! But, I will be OK. Here is my little rant for the day.
Yesterday, I ran in Crockett! Gabe and i are a little slower right now, but we have changed our turning style....For some reason, he has begun to hind end pivot on the back side of the barrel. Its great! I think its because he can move better with out the saddle pinching him. Also, I have been rubbing his ankles and stifles down with surpass before our run and he is back on pureform. So, all in all, he/we are doing better. But we need to get the forward motion back to gain our speed again! OH and some sweet girl closed the gate for me so I did not have to worry about him running anyone over......BUT since it was a first for me with out being at WBR or Destrys....so I did not push hard home. BUT I think it landed us in the 5D...I dont know for sure though because I had to get home to meet the dentist. Tottie, Lynx, Joe and Gabe got their teeth done last night and I must say...POOR JOE!

OK, i have to say this or my head will explode. What is wrong with people? I mean...why do folks assume that I hate them? Why do folks assume that I think they are guilty? "Now that I appear guilty by knowledge I was not in the same state as you when this happened." this was stated...Ugh. Um, I dont think that she did anything...Anyhow, it pisses me off. Number one that some folks think its funny to piss me off then number two...that they get mad at me when it upsets me....I give up. Evidently I am a horrible person and dont have any sense of humor. Oh well. For those of you who are actually my friends out there, thanks. Sorry that I am so horrible. I live to ride. I live to take care of my husband and love my little family. I live to live. I have few friends that I can seriously call friends. You know who you are. I have a lot of acquaintances. I decided right now that I will only allow positive people to be in my life. Not to say that I wont be the shoulder to cry on, but I cant allow anyone else to tear me down. So, unless you plan to be a god friend through thick and thin, please walk away. Unless you plan to support me and allow me to be supportive, then please, stop calling me. I will understand. Love me.

Garlic Man's Cookies....YUMMY!

Oatmeal / Chocolate Chip Cookies

The challenge: When we considered doing a story on oatmeal cookies, the first place we went was the back of the Quaker Oats box, and the cookies the Quaker recipe produced were very good. Nonetheless, we wanted something more—more chewy, more moist, and more substantial. We were after a big, moist, chewy cookie with lots of real oat flavor.

The solution: After literally months of testing, our final recipe was in fact still very close to the Quaker Oats recipe that had gotten us started, but we had discovered four simple changes that made a significant difference in the end result. First, we substituted baking powder for baking soda. The baking powder gave the dough more lift, which in turn made the cookies less dense and a bit chewier. Second, we eliminated the cinnamon recommended not only in the Quaker Oats recipe but in lots of other recipes. By taking away the cinnamon, we revealed more oat flavor. Third, we made our cookies really big, doubling the amount of dough most recipes recommend dropping onto the cookie sheet. We had learned that small cookies tend to be dry; by increasing size, we got more moisture and more chewiness. Fourth, we increased the sugar in our cookies, and this made a huge difference in terms of texture and moistness. Sugar makes baked goods both more tender and more moist because it helps the end product retain water during baking. In addition, by encouraging exterior browning, sugar promotes crispness. In the end, we had gotten even more out of our new oatmeal cookie recipe than we’d hoped for.


BIG CHEWY OATMEAL-RAISIN COOKIES

Makes 16 to 20 large cookies

If you prefer a less sweet cookie, you can reduce the white sugar by one-quarter cup, but you will lose some crispness. Do not overbake these cookies. The edges should be brown but the rest of the cookie should still be very light in color. Parchment makes for easy cookie removal and cleanup, but it’s not a necessity. If you don’t use parchment, let the cookies cool directly on the baking sheet for two minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened but still firm
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
3 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups raisins (optional)

1. Adjust oven racks to low and middle positions; heat oven to 350 degrees. In bowl of electric mixer or by hand, beat butter until creamy. Add sugars; beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time.

2. Mix flour, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg together, then stir them into butter-sugar mixture with wooden spoon or large rubber spatula. Stir in oats and optional raisins.

3. Form dough into sixteen to twenty 2-inch balls, placing each dough round onto one of two parchment paper–covered, large cookie sheets. Bake until cookie edges turn golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes. (Halfway during baking, turn cookie sheets from front to back and also switch them from top to bottom.) Slide cookies on parchment onto cooling rack. Let cool at least 30 minutes before serving.



Here are some variations. (We all like some variety in our lives, don’t we?)


GINGER OATMEAL COOKIES

Omit raisins and add 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger.


CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL COOKIES

Substitute 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips for the raisins.


NUT OATMEAL COOKIES

Omit raisins, decrease flour to 1 1/3 cups, and add 1/4 cup ground almonds and 1 cup walnut pieces along with oats. Almonds can be ground in food processor or blender.


ORANGE AND ALMOND OATMEAL COOKIES

Omit raisins and add 2 tablespoons minced orange zest (remove zest with peeler, being careful to leave behind any white pith) and 1 cup toasted chopped almonds (toast almonds in 350-degree oven for 5 minutes) along with oats.

Another Great Weekend!

Well, I took Gabe and Gauge (my dog) to Conroe this weekend for a HUGE barrel race! Well, we planned on staying the whole weekend regardless of the fact that they were sold out of hook ups and stalls....We managed to get a stall, but had to run a generator Friday night. Gabe was slower than normal this weekend, but we had 3 good cans Friday night winning 2nd in the 4D! Man, we almost had that saddle!!! Finally got to bed around 2am.....and woke at 4am...That was it. Well, finally, after waiting all day, I got to run again! This time we were slower, but we managed to be just slow enough! Again we managed to place! We took 7th in the 6D! Yeah, it was not our fastest runs, but I was very pleased when i went and put all that money in the bank! Over $600!!!
My truck gave me some issues with starting on Sunday...took 4-5 hours....sigh. But we got back to the arena and I bought Gabe some bling! I will have to get my new headstall and then take glamor shots! The rest of the money went to bills and an entry fee....for Destry's Race in April!