Behind Infinity

These days I’m getting pretty desperate when it comes to homework avoidance tactics. Last night my sisters were having a sleepover with Micah and instead of working on my Greek, I taught them the Hustle, which I learned a couple of weeks ago in Ballroom Dance class.

Then they decided we should videotape it in crazy outfits. And they decided I should post it on my blog “so we can be famous”. No, I was not drunk (although it would probably reflect better on my dancing skills (or lack thereof) if I had been.) Take my advice and just watch the girls (especially Brenna, on the end)–pay no attention to the blob in gold lame’ pants.

Autumn is SO my favorite season. I love back-to-schoolness (all of the excitement before the panic sets in), colors on the trees (and also the ground), “International Harvesters” hogging up the backroads and chugging through the fields, nippy (but not too cold) outside air, and getting to wear long pants, long sleeves, and soft sweaters again. Also, I love to plod around the neighborhood with my darling mare. Today we went for a ride back in the woods behind our house. And we took a video, so that you can come along:

My favorite part of riding in fall is hearing the leaves swush-swush and crackle underneath my horse’s feet.

Here are a selection of the photos “we” took:

our favorite field to canter in

entering the woods is like entering a totally different world. seriously. it’s just…beautiful.

the roof over our heads

the path before us

view of our house as seen from the chunk of land behind the pond

the fabulous Miss Jezebelle

The kids put up this scarecrow outside of their fort a few days ago and Jezebelle would not walk past it for ANYTHING. But today the scarecrow was dead, and she walked up to it with much caution and snorted. I think she was happy or something.

yesterday and today, Farmer Corky brought in the soybeans he was growing on our land. My amanals were kind of excited by the tractor.

Alrighty. Hope you enjoyed that. I have much more to say but I need to grade papers and plan lessons for my classes tomorow.

so, I am.

Actually, Loretta is. This is a guest blog about loretta’s day, as dictated by Loretta. Seeing as she doesn’t have her own blog anymore.

“Today I was late again this morning and I still haven’t done any of my greek homework even after I flunked my quiz yesterday. then I practiced her concerto which made my day. then I went to pedagogy class and dr. m told me that I played well on friday. then I went to a funeral visitation in jenison. it was a. c.’s husband who died suddenly last weekend. so all in all I had a good day except that some people have found my outfit questionable. (editor’s note: loretta is wearing tall boots and capri pants.) Tonight I will make myself chicken with lots of garlic. And I just found out that I kicked Jake’s but at tic-tac-toe.”

This morning I dropped my Dawg off at the vet to be neutered. I just have to say, what a fiasco they make it out to be. I really, really dislike small animal medicine. Consider this: the last time I had an animal castrated, all I had to do was call the vet and he came out to my very own barn. He dropped the horse right in its own stall with a hefty dose of Dormosedan (a sedative) and local anasthetic, and did the deed (while I watched). The poor little sucker was up and running around a little over an hour later, minus his masculinity and possibly a little sore, but none the wiser. I wrote a check, and Dr. Shaarda went on his merry way.

Puppy castration, on the other hand, is a much more involved process. Two days prior to the surgery, I had to bring the aminal to the vet for a pre-operative exam. At this exam they gave him all kinds of shots and ran a full panel of bloodwork. Why the bloodwork? Because they have to anesthetize him, of course! They also pitched all kinds of expensive heartworm medication and this vaccine and that vaccine and microchipping and blah blah blah and I just wanted to say, “shut up and castrate my dog!” But I didn’t. I paid a hefty bill and brought the animal home. Then I brought him BACK there this morning. Before I left I had to sign all kinds of paperwork, saying I knew the risks of the surgery and I wouldn’t sue them and blah blah blah, and I had elected not to hang IV fluids so I had to acknowledge the risks involved in that, they gave me a whole disclaimer speech, did I want to sign a Do Not Resuscitate form, ON AND ON AND ON. And again, all I wanted was to say, “shut up and go castrate my dog!”

They called this afternoon to say everything went well and he’s in recovery and did I have any questions. I get to pick him up at 4:00 today, at which point I’m sure they’ll go through all kinds of post-op care instructions, and send me home with expensive doggy painkillers. Please.

Perhaps this is all really insensitive of me and I’m actually a really awful dog owner. (Actually, it’s true. I am.) I should probably feel really bad about taking away the little chap’s man-erm, dog-hood. I should probably have gotten him a pair of these to make up for it. But seriously, I just have a hard time with the fact that my dog’s surgery is costing more than my horse’s surgery did. In fact, it’s costing more than I paid for the dog. In fact, it’s costing me almost as much as I paid for the little horse. I just think that’s a little bit extreme. If sedatives and local anasthetic in the barn stall was good enough for my little horse, I don’t see why we have to go to such great lengths for a dog.

But that’s just cruel and heartless of me.