Just Horsin' Around - Thoughts on Central Texas Real Estate and More

This past weekend, Phil and I took off for a short overnight visit to our son P.J. in San Antonio, just a couple of hours away.  The plan was to spend the night at his place, go to Taco Taco on Saturday morning for barbacoa for breakfast, then go to the farmer's market and the San Antonio Museum of Art for a photography exhibit (photographs of food, hitting two of our favorite things).

But, as happens in life, plans can change. 

We woke to a rainy day, still very welcome after the two year drought.  Breakfast at Taco Taco was good, but they were out of barbacoa (only available Saturday and Sunday mornings) by the time we got there.  

After breakfast, we went to the Pearl Brewery Farmer's Market which, given that it was raining, was smaller than usual, but still a lot of fun and interesting.  If we'd been in Austin and didn't have a full day planned, I might have brought home some cabrito, but we weren't, so I passed on that for the day.  We shared a delicious almond croissant (breakfast having been more than filling) from a stand that has wonderful breads and pastries.   We explored the buildling a bit, went through a shop or two, and then headed for the museum, just down theroad.

When we got there, we realized that we weren't really in the mood.  Phil asked PJ if he'd mind driving around Phil's old stomping grounds a bit (Phil grew up in San Antonio). 

We ultimately ended up at the Japanese Tea Garden, and what a good idea that was!  I'd only been there years ago, on a weekend, and it was extremely crowded.  This day, with the rain, we had it almost to ourselves - I think only five or six other people came through while we were there.  This view is from the Tea House itself (photo below); if you look carefully, on the bridge in the center right of the photo, you can see someone's blue jeans, which will give you an idea of the size.

The Tea House, built entirely of stone.

We also saw this lovely tree, that looks like some sort of datura. Anybody know what it is?

Now, isn't that an absolutely LOVELY thing to do with an old quarry when you're done with it?

With one of the most serious droughts in decades here in Central Texas, pushing two years, grass not only crunching but powdering when you walk on it, giant cracks in the Houston black soil  here on the place, grass growing in the bottom of the year-round creek that's been dry that long, a lot of people, myself included, have been praying for rain.  I was on the verge of organizing an official Rain Dance. 

Then, on Friday, it started.  11 inches later, this was the view off of our front porch. 

Understand, the creek that rose this high?  Isn't visible during normal (not drought) times, because it's down in a draw. The hundred year flood plain is at the fenceline - you can see a fence post in the middle between the pecan tree and the peach tree in the central right part of the photo above.  (The photo below is my husband canoeing in our front yard before the creek REALLY rose - the fenceline is the one above, from a different angle.  Joey, the dog in the photo, thinks he's lost his mind.)

I35, a couple of miles down the road, had all six lanes closed.  We couldn't leave the place, anyway, because our 1/4 mile long drive was under water, as well.  When we DID get out, we couldn't leave one way on the county road because the water was over the road at one place and had torn away some of the road.  Fortunately, there are two other ways out.

We're discovering the joys that occur when the leach field is 18 inches under water for any period of time.

And the rains kept coming.  They're still coming, in fact, a little, though there is hope of drying up in the next few days.   I'm SO glad the drought has broken, and we'll get through this, but remember,

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR!

Yesterday, two Sprouts stores opened in the Austin area - one in Sunset Valley and one (the one we visited) in Round Rock.

Being the foodies we are, my husband and I made a date to go check it out the very first day they were open. 

We arrived separately (I was coming from showing properties in several parts of the area) and found parking spaces relatively easily, surprising since the parking lot was full, full, FULL!  This should have been a hint.

We didn't take a basket, as this was planned to be an exploratory expedition.  Good thing, too - the store was not only packed, but the checkout lines reached halfway to the back of the store.  We maneuvered our way through the various departments, checking out the produce and the items available and doing some comparison shopping.  A good selection of items that I've had to drive further into town, to Whole Foods or Central Market or Sun Harvest, to find (though I'm still going to have to drive all the way in to get my favored brand of peanut butter, Arrowhead Mills crunchy), and some new items I wasn't familiar with by old, trusted vendors.  The produce looked good, though I didn't see any local produce (we are, after all, in the middle of a drought, and that might have something to do with it), and local produce is one of the reasons I was glad to see them open.  We'll be checking out the bakery items in our never-ending quest for great bread. 

All in all, this looks quite promising.  I'll be making a serious shopping trip sometime in the next couple of weeks, after the "new story frenzy!" slows down a bit. 

Every year, the ERA Colonial Real Estate office in Georgetown, Texas, has a food drive for The Caring Place, an agency providing assistance for those in need in Williamson County and, thus, often in need itself.  

 All the agents take a neighborhood and distribute bags to be filled with food.  On a designated date, we re-visit our neighborhood and collect the bags put out on their porches by the residents of Williamson County who are aware that we're all in this together and who are giving their neighbors a helping hand.

Then, we all gather at the office and load up the haul into one vehicle and take it off to the Caring Place and unload it. 

If you'd like to experience more of this great and fulfilling event with us through photos, look here (and turn on your speakers). 

The Kiss

Remember when I posted about it all starting in the Cayman Islands?  And then followed that up some time later with a post about it blossoming in the Cayman Islands? 

Well, Monday, my daughter Jess and I were shopping and packing and getting ready all day. 

Tuesday, my daughter Jess flew to Canada. 

Last Wednesday, after a pre-wedding slide on the ice rink, in the company of a dozen of their friends, she and Chad were married.  They're starting their new adventure in Canada, where he'll graduate this spring and then there will be two years of grad school.  By all accounts, married life is blissful.  (Are we surprised?)  My Native Texan is going Canadian!  At least one, perhaps two, ceremonies, maybe in two different countries, are in the offing at some yet to be determined point in the future for those of us who couldn't attend and who think we really really should be able to!

           Be Happy, Young'uns!  Enjoy the journey!

I am on the board of an online group, ForeverMorgans, that is devoted to rescuing Morgans who are headed for slaughter, one at a time.  We rescue Morgans from brokers that purchased them to ship to slaughter.  We're working on getting our non-profit status.  We function through a YahooGroups list.  When a Morgan is identified, we'll decide as a group about making the effort to rescue that particular one (we can't save them all), and everyone will chip in - $10, $20, $50, one astounding time, $500 as a gift to the person who has everything.  These funds are raised to pay the "bail" for the horse, its quarantine costs, and transport to its new home.  We locate forever homes for these horses (an application must be filled out and approved by anyone wishing to provide the forever home - rescues can take a lot more in terms of time and money to rehab and gain their trust, and some of them may never be more than pasture pets, and the home has to be able to deal with all of these issues).   Mostly, members volunteer to take these horses and give them the love and care they need. 

So, it's basically a lot of people who love horses, and Morgans in particular, coming together to do something about the problems that the horses are facing through no fault of their own, because of overbreeding, because of the economy, for many reasons. 

The good news is, by talking about this online, I've had people from various breeds contact me to ask how they can get something like this started for their breed, as well.  So seeds have been planted and more horses may be saved. If you love horses, and you'd like to get something started like this for your breed, please contact me and I'll give you an idea of what we've found works and what doesn't.   We can't depend on the government to fix everything, folks - a lot of it is going to be up to us. 

One of our members, Sherrel Stephenson, posted her story to the list, and it spoke to me of what we're about.  I got her permission to post it here. Pictures will be coming later.  So, without further ado:

Sherrel and Honey's Story.

I wanted to let everyone know that Honey is safely home here in northern N.H.!  Finally!!!  I cannot thank all of you enough for saving her from a terrible fate.  A special Thank You to Helga who QT'd Honey and Elyse who fostered her until I found her "again".  Again, you may say.  Yep, again.  Let me tell you "our' story. You have that right. I hope it makes you smile and realize what terrific folks you all are and I'm asking God for a special blessing upon each of you.

It's been a long, but inspiring event which started last December when I "happened" onto the Forever Morgans site.  I love horses, all horses, but having been fortunate to have been raised in Morgan country around some of the best known old Morgan breeders/owners of the day, the Morgan Horse is my all time favorite breed.  I personally owned several Morgan Horses through the years and every one of them was wonderful; even the golden one who never bore Morgan papers.

I am sixty years old and started with my own pony when I was five.  That pony was the first of many personal horses and ponies through the next 52 years.  In 2005 I laid my last two old horses to rest and went horseless until the summer of 2008.  Not having a horse to care for and love got the best of me; no chores; no whinnies; no hot breath nuzzles on a cold winter morning, no bareback rides through the pines on warm summer evenings..no nothing.  I was an unhappy camper to say the least but I didn't really realize it.  I had friend's horses I could ride and I had the show circuit to keep me busy. 

Last summer a friend who had sold her Paint mare to a forever home told me that the forever home wasn't working out.  I had ridden this mare and I liked her, so I bought her.  I felt it was time for a horse and I was also worried that the mare would fall into the wrong home. She was young, well trained for the ring and was great for the trails.  My best friend bought an elderly Morgan mare from another friend and we had a great summer.  As fall and winter rolled around, I realized with deep regret that my Paint mare was going to waste with me.  She needed a job and needed someone who would take her to her potential in the showring; this was where she belonged.  She needed to go where she could be used twelve months of the year and our northern N.H. winters don't allow for that.  I don't show anymore so I made the decision that if the right person came along, I would let her go. 

In the meantime, I planned to replace her with an older, more seasoned horse that rode and drove.  We trail ride in the warmer months and drive year around.  I don't want to train and school a horse anymore; I just wanted a barn pet that was equally happy in the barn, the field and occasionally under tack..a buddy.

This is when I came across Forever Morgans.  This is where I first saw Honey.  During some short correspondence with Helga, I learned that Honey was a driving mare (probably Amish trained) but that it wasn't known whether she was broke to ride.  Knowing that saddle training a horse would put me right where I didn't want to be, I passed on her; but never forgot her.  The holidays came and went, I got busy with work and didn't pay attention to things. I knew in my heart that the right horse would come along and if I were patient, I would find one. I still had to find the Paint mare a new home first and after a bunch of inquiries which I wasn't comfortable with, I finally found that home for her.  It took four/five weeks to get the right weather to transport her out of the mountains and to her new home, but it was done.  This was during all the snow storms and sub-zero temperatures we had.

Now enter Jasper, my QH gelding.  The same friend who used to own the Paint mare, had purchased a sixteen year old, totally broke Quarter Horse gelding for her granddaughter last summer.  As it turned out, the child was not the least bit interested in anything "horse" except to get on and ride (when she wasn't busy with video and TV) and this didn't cut the mustard with Grammie.  So within a short time, Jasper came to live at my barn and become my trail horse.  He's great, by the way, but doesn't drive.

Anyway two weeks ago, I happened to be home for an entire day and sat down to the computer to "visit" Forever Morgans again.  The Good Lord must of put my finger to the "pc mouse" that day because it was one I shall never forget.  I was so stunned at the time that I "can't" (LOL) remember just how I came across the particular post, but I found that Honey was no longer in QT but was in foster with Elyse.  I thought she had been re-homed long before this and nearly dropped. I didn't need her to be broke to ride now; I had Jasper!!  I was so excited that I had a hard time to keep the ole fingers quiet enough to email Helga. 

I had excellent communications with Helga and Elyse and I realized that Elyse was in Massachusetts so I could pick Honey up myself.  I had to make arrangements to borrow a truck and trailer as my trailer is in the shop until spring and my truck isn't set up for a gooseneck (which is what I had available to use).  So I got this all arranged and like usual, there's always a glitch...........the damned weather up here.  I was supposed to travel to MA on Wednesday but we got hit hard by an ice storm and anyone who has been up here north of Mt. Washington knows that the only way out of Gorham is through a mountain pass or "notch".  The tractor trailer trucks were all parked on either side waiting for the ice to be cleared.  So, I let Elyse know it would be Thursday before I could head down.

We left Lancaster (where the truck and trailer were) early on Thursday morning.  It was very foggy all the way down I-91 until we got below the higher terrain.  We arrived at Elyse's around noonish and there was my gorgeous girl, prancing around with an equally gorgeous bay mare with an incredibly thick, wavy black mane and tail...Yep, I guess you know who that was...Angel.

Honey was a bit elusive to catch (she knew exactly what was coming, another trailer ride), but eventually Elyse was able to halter her and wal-lah a different horse.  Totally calm, willing and loaded right onto the trailer without a second look.  Lord, how trusting horses are even after what some of them have been through.  Elyse had an appointment elsewhere and we had a long trip home, so quick good byes and on the road we went.

The trip was uneventful for awhile.  Honey rode like she did it every day.  A couple of stops to offer water and make trailer checks and we were on our way.  We got to the end of I-91 and headed cross country to the opposite side of the state to home.  We ran into rain but the temps were in the forties so it was ok traveling.  Of course, then the mountains popped up.  Temps dropped, rain froze and speed diminished.  By the time we got to the mountain pass, we were just ahead of the rain changing-to-snow storm.  We got over the pass and arrived at the barn around seven PM.  She unloaded quietly off the trailer, gave the old gelding a secondary look, glanced at the Morgan mare and walked right into her stall like she had always been there.  I removed the halter and the first thing she did was lie down and roll; one side then the other.  She checked out her water buckets, took a mouthfull of hay and looked up as if to say "Ok, what's next?"  She got a small token amount of grain (as did the other two) and settled right in.  My best friend April who owns the other Morgan mare and is animal lover extraordinaire, stayed at the barn whilst this writer headed back out to return the truck and trailer.  I think she just wanted her own time to hang on the stall door and sweet talk to Honey. The roads by now were terrible but we made it, got the trailer unhooked and truck parked and I got back over the "hill" and home.  April called and said all was quiet and well at the barn, so I hit the hay, thankful for an almost #10 day.

This morning dawned bright and clear and the temps weren't bad.  I got to the barn and the first horse to whinny and say good morning was Honey.  She has made friends with the other Morgan mare, is eating well
and doesn't appear to give a damned about anything.  She is still aloof towards "Mr. QH" but then again, he is a "man" and therefore, not of much importance to her.  Both mares were turned out (she let me walk right up and put her new halter on) and walked side by side to the hay.  After a time, I took Mr. QH out on a lead and let him eat near them until it was obvious that Honey thought he wasn't worth the time of day and vice versa.  I hung around for quite awhile doing stalls and keeping an eye, but it wasn't necessary.  The three of them are like they've always been there together.  For once the pecking order hasn't changed and Mr. Q is still on the bottom of the list. LOL

More great happenings: Today I got word that the woodshop at the local State Prison has taken my Meadowbrook cart in for total refurbishing.  These men completely remodeled our Town Hall and also do furniture refinishing.  They do excellent work.  I have asked the foreman to replace some of the body parts with a lighter weight wood because Honey is not a big horse.  So in a month or so, her new cart will be ready. 

I have both a breastplate and collar type harnesses to use until I decide which Honey will like the most.  Then she'll get one all of her own.  In the meantime, we'll spend time on "bonding" and let her come into it at her own speed.  She does not know that she will never, ever leave, but I promise you all, I will do everything I need to do to give her the best remaining years I can give. 

I am going to get pictures of her and I may drive you bonkers with them, but hey; she's your's as much as she is mine.  I truly believe that. I hope that some of you will "vacation" in this neck of the woods and will please come and visit.  The coffee pot will always be on.

With love to all of you.
Sherrel

This great blog by James Quarello illustrates one of the "Duh!" moments of sustainable building and living - think about very simple every day physics (in this case, heat rises) and you can make a big difference. 

My buddy from Active Rain and Facebook, Stephanie Edwards-Musa, wrote this great blog detailing the "green" money-saving possibilities this year.  She did such a wonderful job that I thought it should be shared.

"Don't Mess With Texas!"  We're all familiar with this saying, but I've discovered hanging out in online relocation forums that a lot of people who aren't from here really don't understand what it's about. 

They think it's too aggressive.  They think that we're being pugilistic.  They think that we're saying that we're better than anyone else. Granted, there've been some riffs on the phrase that could lead to that conclusion - I, myself, have a cherished old red t-shirt that says, in big red letters, "Don't Mess With Texas Women".  Now, that's pretty accurate - we are known to rip off the velvet glove rather quickly, and a lot of us ARE armed!

This confusion has become widespread enough that I've actually seen a billboard by the Texas Department of Transportation that says, "'Don't Mess With Texas' Means Don't Litter".  Now, that's sad, that it has to be spelled out so bluntly.  

In actuality, "Don't Mess With Texas" is an award-winning advertising program sponsored by TxDOT intended to, with some humor, remind people that "messing" with Texas in the form of littering is not the manly thing to do.  Commercials with such Texas icons as Willie, Lyle, Stevie (yeah, a lot of our icons are known by one name), Joe Ely, Marcia Ball, George Foreman, and others encourage our citizens to treat Texas with respect, not throwing trash on her highways and byways.  We're proud of our state, with good reason, and don't hold kindly with people treating her with disrespect. 

So, when you're traveling in Texas, whether you're just visitin', or you've lived here all your life and all your granddaddy's life, or if you're relocating here, and you see a sign that says, "Don't Mess With Texas," just smile and put that trash away to throw in the trash can at the next stop, or put that cigarette (yes, they do count) out in the ash tray instead of throwing it out the window.  Texas will thank you, the environment will thank you, and we won't have to get aggressive or pugilistic with you!