Saturday Slightly Snowy

It took me 20 minutes to shovel a path to the barn this morning. After throwing a flake of hay to each of the horses, I strapped on my snowshoes to get the papers. With no tire marks in the snow on the road, I knew the papers hadn't come yet. They told us we'd moved to the snow belt out here in Selle. They spoke the truth.

I enjoy the snow storms out here much better than those we experienced at our former home west of Sandpoint airport. We could count on blowing and drifting snow when, a mile away, there was no blowing and no drifting. We spent many days during many winters walking to our cars parked at the end of the driveway. Also, we could often count on the snow turning to messy slush much quicker than it does out here.

Selle snow is nostalgic Christmas-card snow. It piles up and stays, and just when it's getting kinda ugly, some more snow comes to recreate a sense of winters of old. I like that, and I like the sound right now of the wind calmly roaring past this upstairs window. I'm situated at my laptop this morning where I'll soon have a view of the Cabinets and where I'll be able to see when and if the paper deliverer pulls up and deposits our Saturday morning editions.

One more reason I like the snow this morning is that my horses will not have to tippy toe around the ice in the one field near the barn which is safe for them to spend the day. The others have expansive ice ponds in spots where the horses could be frolicking only to hit that ice and go for an unwelcome slide. As I shoveled this morning, I could see that the frozen surface which sent me to the ground one morning has melted under the warmth of its new white blanket.

Lily has already wiped out once on one of the few recent days when the herd decided to prance and buck around their barnyard, feigning a horse war. Standing outside the barn, I gasped while watching her hit that ice in a small frozen lake on the east side of the pasture and go splat on her behinder. Thankfully, she jumped right up and did not limp off.

That experience has made Lily very wary of moving anywhere too speedily. In fact, the last two mornings, I've had to carry a pile of hay to where she stands when I first put her outside. As the day goes on, her courage increases and she expands her boundaries. They've definitely got a shock outside when they head for the field today with that 8-10 inches which fell overnight.

Another week has gone by, and this morning with no paper in sight yet, I'll just move on to the Saturday Slight:

• To Florine and Bonnie, thank you. There's definitely a geocaching trip in store next time Bill and I get down your way, and, Bonnie, we've got to do lunch. I had no idea that you were regular readers, and I appreciate your comments. Ya know, Florine, I still remember when we were supposed to wow the kids as faculty cheerleaders way back when I was wet behind the ears and you were already well on your way as a seasoned and popular English teacher and drama coach. You came up with a cheer using the word "erudition." Well, I was pretty stupid back then, a lot stupider than I am now, and I recall leaning over to a colleague and asking, "What the Hell does that mean?" Well, the unnamed colleague didn't know either, so I wasted no time that night seeking out Noah Webster, and I want you to know I've never forgotten its meaning even though I've never quite attained the stature to be called "erudite." You taught me way back then, there's more than one way to learn our language. Thanks for the lesson, Teach. Also, Florine, just for you, I left the dangling modifier in yesterday's posting. I considered correcting it, but after I saw your comment, I decided to leave a little reason for scrutiny on your part. You and I both know that "Once written," should have the appropriate noun following it, and that so far in life, I've not been written. Maybe when I'm erudite that will happen.
• To Dave and Karen in Texas, thank you also. Karen, howz Skip doing on that house, and when are we finally going to meet? To Dave, we've traveled a long road since our first day at Lincoln School, haven't we? Don't tell anyone, Dave, that Lincoln School is the subject of the cover art for my new book. A number of reasons led to that decision, the most compelling being that my educational journey toward someday reaching erudition started there. Finally, we Stinkin' Lincoln folks will get our due.
• To Cis and RMT, thanks as always. I love the Eleanor Roosevelt quotes and, at times, will find myself rereading them. To Heidi, it took me a while to remember your new last name, but eventually it clicked in this old brain. You might be interested to know that John Fuller, the horse shoer, came by this week and highly approved of Miss Lily. Like a dedicated horse shoer, though, he checked out the feet long before he looked at what they were carrying. He says they've been forcing her hooves for halter showing and that has got to stop. Through some of our gab and shoe sessions, he has spoken highly of you, so I know you probably like to hear about him. He's headed south to Mexico soon to bask in the sun, to do lots of reading and to get his body rested and ready for another season of nailing on shoes.
• Bill is now plowing the driveway with the tractor. He has to leave fairly early this morning to do some Presbyterian stuff, so we're guaranteed a clean driveway. I don't know how the roads are, but I've seen a couple of cars go by since sitting down here at this perch. Still no papers, though.
• Next week's calendar indicates that the supposed hibernation of the weeks after Christmas will abruptly end. Beside finishing a story about a lovely couple from Maine for the Appaloosa Journal, I'll be joining my sister Barbara for the first session of doggie obedience training. And, since we've been told not to bring Miss Pita or Miss Kiwi, I'm presuming there's gonna be some doggie owner obedience training. The instructor told me there'd be handouts and homework. I thought I had seen the last of that, but when you take your dog to school, not a lot changes from the human version. I'm sure the instructors deal with doggie owners the same way human teachers deal with parents. Everybody thinks their dog is the smartest and most beautiful pup in the world, and since everybody thinks that, there's a need for reality checks. Stay tuned. I'm sure we'll have some good dog tales ahead.
• There's also lunch on Wednesday with RMT and a Clark Fork-Pend Oreille Conservancy meeting. If there's anyone out there who's got some land in the Clark Fork or Pend Oreille watershed that ought to have a conservation easement ensuring no future development, let me know and I'll send you to the guy who knows all about such things. Anyone? Anyone?
• That brings to mind another development this past week. Anyone? Anyone? has told me he will write something for the back of my book. Of course, I don't know what Anyone will write, but even if he just signs his name, that will be nice. Since Cheryl Klein is doing the front cover art, and Anyone is appearing on the back cover, we've got a rhyme. I'll let you figure out the riddle, but I know Florine will approve of a little poetry to go along with my stories of teaching English.

Guess that's all for now. Coffee cult calls today. Haven't seen the ladies for several weeks and they're starting to talk about me at the Saturday gatherings. Lord knows what they're saying, so I'd better get down and defend myself. To all readers, including the naysayers, thanks for the support. I love knowing that people are reading. Happy weekend.