Boxing day at Santa Anita Opening Day.

That is famous country singer Dwight Yoakum in the cowboy hat.

One of the few women trainers Carla Gaines in the saddling enclosure

Marlane and Dasha

The crowd

 Doug, Dasha and I went to the first day of racing for the season at Santa Anita about an hours drive away. I was interested to see that Frankie Dettori had some rides as this is his last racing season. I won about $50 in $2 bets to win. Dasha was very interested to see it all. The crowds were pretty bad, Doug had to wait in line for a while to get food. At least I could get a beer right away. I learned how to buy a voucher to use for betting as did Dasha. The lines were so long at the betting windows we just got our bets in before the races started. In the end I just bet the last several races together. The weather was perfect about 70 degrees with some clouds. Several big stakes races of $200 to $300 thousand dollars prize money. It was announced as the afternoon racing ended that the money taken in betting broke all records with 26 million dollars. The attendance was about 41 thousand spectators.

Marlane with Frankie Dettori in the background

One of the horses in the paddock waiting for "jockeys up"

Two time Triple Crown winning
trainer  Bob Baffert with his two jockeys heading to the paddock.

Merry Christmas from our house to yours

Our tree

Our cat Smokey

Tandy session 5

 

Me and Tandy before his training session

Standing "ground tied"

Doug can ride Tandy but Dasha and I are not able to yet. This means that I have decided to "train" Tandy to be the best riding horse ever. I should mention that I am not new to horse training. Doug has done a lot of important riding work and now it is time for me to finish Tandy. I am starting Tandy off with grooming and being ground tied. Allowing clippers to be used for the bridle path. Letting me put his feet down for him when his feet are picked out. and not clamping his tail when I brush it. I am giving him a refresher of the Parelli seven games that Dasha has taught him, which includes for the time being rudimentary lunging. Clicker training also is incorporated and join up ala Monty Roberts. I am integrating a lot of horse training methods that I have learned over the past 50 years LOL and it feels good !

I get to ride

 I went on a half hour ride with husband Doug today, he rode Tandy. It is the first time I have ridden since I twisted my ankle about three weeks ago. It felt awesome to be back in the saddle again and my ankle felt completely back to normal. I did wrap my ankle in an elastic sock and also wrapped just below my knee with vet wrap.  I have an old injury there that was hurting because of stress on my ankle. I forgot to take a picture of me in the saddle,

so here is me and Coco after our ride. Temperature about 60 deg F ( Southern California USA)

Doug rides Coco

My ankle which I strained about a week or so ago is still bothering me, so I dare not ride. I asked hubby Doug to ride for me... he said she was a pistol. Coco has not been ridden out by herself for at least a year.

Doug coming in after a 30 min ride on Coco my step DIL took the video.

Husband Doug on my usual ride on Morgan Horse Coco, aged 23

My grand daughter

My son and my grand daughter Audrey aged 3 in October about to leave their house in New York 

 to walk Audrey to preschool which is just a few minutes away. It is cold there now.

A formal photo of my son Eddy and Audrey. This photo was staged and taken by my daughter in law Steph who is originally from S. Korea

. It portrays what kind of Daddy Eddy is. I am so proud of him and his family.

 

Thanksgiving and Doug and I celebrate our 19th anniversary

 

An unexpected injury

This morning out at the horses I was just going about my usual chores and I turned away from one of the corrals and stepped right into a big ground squirrel hole. I actually fell down... when you are 69 years old your first thought is have I broken anything. I sat there for a minute or so. Hubby Doug meanwhile was busy with his chores and getting ready to saddle up Knight. I got up and hobbled straight to the nearest bucket of cold water. Hector was the first to notice. He is the ranch feeder and stall cleaner. He does not speak English usually but he said the word broken. By then I knew it was a twisted ankle so I said its OK not broken. I wrapped it in vet wrap soaked it some more and sprayed it with horse liniment.  Doug finished my chores and got me into chair and I sat while he went out for a ride. I hope that this is a few days ankle twist. I am trying to remember the last time I had something like this. Tomorrow

I brought home supplies; vet wrap a horse bandage and liniment

My ankle wrapped in vet wrap. I am sitting here at my desk at home.

is Thanksgiving ,  thankfully just a few family members are expected and Doug and his son Jonathan are great cooks.

It was a beautiful day to go for a ride.

 But not without mishaps. Doug's stirrup leather broke going down a hill. I saw him get off and asked what are you doing. He was able to tie a knot in the leather, but it took a while, in the mean time Coco and Knight were both getting very restless. I kept saying lead him down to a flat area.  Someone stole our  mounting block that we had at the bottom of the hill. So Doug fell down while trying to get on Knight from a bank. He got on at the second try and Knight stood still, . Then Knight got a tumble weed in between his back legs but was OK with it, Then we had to walk the mile or so back home, no trotting because Doug forgot to wear his half chaps and the knot was right under his legs. I don't think Knight has ever stayed in a walk for so long, he is a very high energy horse.  The stirrup leathers have gone to a repair shop, the stitching was the culprit. I will take another mounting block down there at some point.

We have had rain and I am happy to be finally feeling better.

 

view from my living room

my back garden with colorful Bougainvillea.

I have had covid as tested by step  dil Dasha who had some home tests. It was pretty much a cough and not feeling my usual energy. I have had far far worse as in very bad flu in the past. Doug had it too but did not test as he is a strong objector to the whole thing. Neither of us have had a vaccine, and I am 69 and he 75. I suspect that there will be more of different strains going around and we were more susceptible immune wise because of going to New York and back. We have yet to feel strong enough to get back into riding our horses. But we will be back in the saddle next week.

I am grateful to have had some significant rain and no powerful winds as yet this fall. Wildfires are usually very prevalant  at this time.

I am back from a visit to see my son and family.

Doug and I went to New York for nine days and I will put on more shortly. And now I am sick with covid. But not too sick to put on  pictures.

Just before  heading to the airport to go home.

At the "little island " in Manhattan.

My son with his wife and my grand daughter.

Me and Doug at Yonkers harness racing track

The winner of the second race Huntress.

I got word that my mum has passed away

Mum and me a few years ago

 My sister Susan let me know yesterday that Mum had passed. Ivy Millicent Maund nee Grimes aged 94. She had quite a life, being a Land Girl for WW2 and marrying my dad who was a German prisoner of war. She had five children, losing one as a baby and another later on in her life. She was married twice and she leaves three daughters including myself.

Finally the house is sold !!

Gingers house now sold

 I am so very happy that we got word today that the money is in the bank and the house has "closed" It has been six months since Doug's mom died in March. The housing market turned cold and we had two buyers drop out. Finally it is all over and we are very happy !!!

Doug and I went to visit with my daughter and her husband.

Skyla now aged 14 came with me for a walk.

Skyla and one of the two horses.

The second horse

Ryan about to throw a toy for the two dogs.

One of the amazing plants in bloom that thrive in the area.

The creek that is dry in the summer.

Symba

Me with Ryan and Heather at a brewery

with Doug

From the plane Lake Tahoe

The ranch where we keep the horses

 My daughter Heather lives about an hours drive north of Reno. We had the luxury of flying there and back saving a journey of about 9 hours, it took an hour by plane. We stayed for a few days, and are fortunate to have family at hand to take care of our cat and the horses, and take us to the airport. It had been several years since we last visited. We visited the town of Susanville and the town of Quincy while we were there and I helped Heather plant things in her garden, including some spring bulbs. The climate is challenging as it is 'high desert" it get very hot and very cold in mid summer and winter with moderate temperatures in between.

On another note we have word that the house passed appraisal and it should close soon, possibly this coming week.

The house is in escrow

At last we have an offer which we accepted and the house has gone into escrow. It should take about three to four weeks for the paperwork to be done. The buyers are a middle aged couple who want the house as a second home.

The two cats may be friends !

 Many months ago we agreed to let my step son and his wife Dasha move in with us. This was so that they could save up for a down payment on a house. They brought their cat Yo Yo with them. All this time we have kept the two cats apart as Smokey attacked Yo Yo. But then they accidentally got together and some thing has changed. This is the best yet, lying passively together and being able to go outside at the same time.

New energy surrounding the house for sale

 Our agent Rob said that it was time to renew his contract with us. So we used this as an opportunity to write the listing description for the house ourselves. Also we are lowering the price again. I see in reading the description Rob had to leave out some details because of a limit on space.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/21350-S-Petaluma-Ave-Fort-Bragg-CA-95437/19204995_zpid/?view=public

I had a dream last night

That the reason why Gingers house has not sold is because there are three people who wish us negative energy. They are my twin Marion and Doug's ex Nancy. Also Gingers ex caregiver Crystal. Otherwise it is perplexing. Yesterday the price was reduced. So we shall see what happens next in the interesting journey of selling this house.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/21350-S-Petaluma-Ave-Fort-Bragg-CA-95437/19204995_zpid/?view=public

So things have changed

 we had the estate sale and our take was about 3k. We then used that to have a new heater put into the house, we were told that the house would not appraise otherwise. Now the buyers have offered a much lower price saying the roof needs to be replaced. They knew this all along. We have refused this offer and the house is back on the market. This morning the same buyer came back with a slightly higher offer, but unless they offer the same as the price that we agreed on , we are not interested. In the meantime we have three other "possible" buyers... stay tuned.

We have buyers

If all goes according to plan the house is in the beginning of escrow to an older couple who have llamas. Our realtor says that they will fit into the community well. He knows because he was our neighbor for many years and lived at the end of the dead end road that Doug's mother 's house is on, plus they are his personal friends. We counter counter offered and we are happy to sell for a little less than asking. The estate sale is coming up the weekend after next and hopefully most of the ex possessions of Ginger will be sold. The people putting on the sale have priced everything and are supposed to be experienced enough to know the value of things. They get % 40 of the take. I wonder how they will prove that, we will see.

No buyers yet

 Maybe it is the economy or factor X. I thought that the house would sell within a few days with multiple offers. But only one offer and many lookers. I would love some feedback. But my hunch is all the old over bearing furniture that we had to leave in the house makes it look as if Gingers ghost is still living there. The house does need a new roof, new main heater, some exterior paint and the carpets need cleaning. But the location is probably the best you could get in the area. I know because I lived across the road for 15 years. Plus there is a two story building that is unfinished, that could be rented. Doug and I plan to go back up there in a week or two. First we need an estate sale to take place. We have arranged for a professional to do that for us. Then if any of the furniture is left we will remove it and reassess the situation.

The house is on line and up for sale.

I am so happy to have been allowed to take all the photos.

 https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/21350-S-Petaluma-Ave-Fort-Bragg-CA-95437/19204995_zpid/?view=public 

Recovering from clearing Doug's mothers house

Before we sorted and cleared in the living room

After we sorted and cleared I "staged " for me to take photos

After I staged the room for photos

Husband Doug starting to clear and sort.