Bits and Pieces

There are 26 new foals playing on Assateague - well, actually, 25, since Bat Girl and her colt are at the Carnival Grounds on Chincoteague, keeping Randy company.  Randy herself looks much better, and Bay Girl is also doing well with all the grass and hay.  Bay Girl was looking pretty poor after she foaled Friday, so she and the baby were moved to an area where they can be looked after.  We've lost one foal so far this year - not quite sure why, but Lady and Prince's chestnut foal did not survive it's first 36 hours.  Since Randy aborted after her quicksand ordeal, and both Wild Island Orchid and Surf Queen died while pregnant (also from being trapped in quicksand), we'll have a few fewer foals that usual this July.  And, since we have only 26 on the ground now, it seems that the majority of the foals purchased at the Auction on 26 July will need to have the owners return in October for a fall pick-up, since the foals will be too young to wean from their moms.

   I had to laugh at three teen-aged boys.  On Sunday, the three of them (two aged 15, and one 16) stole a Jeep in Aurora and drove it up to Boulder to buy a cheap cell phone. They had contacted the owner, and the boys and the man met at the Bustop, the bar and stripper club on North Broadway.  The man passed the phone into the Jeep for the boys to look at; and the boys decided to drive away without paying for the phone.  The phone owner threw himself into the open window, and was hanging there by his waist.  The driver kept the Jeep going, and the third boy pulled a pistol out and placed the barrel on the phone owner's head.  The driver looked over at the gun, and was so distracted he ran the Jeep into a parked RTD bus.  The boys all jumped out of the car and ran away, having pushed the cell phone owner out of the window and onto the ground.  Police caught all of the boys and also found the phone and unlicensed gun.  The phone owner was treated at the hospital for cuts, scrapes and bruises, and released.

  I was so very happy to see that Don Blankenship lost his race in West Virginia.  Felons should NOT be allowed to run for office, period.

  And, of course, the idiot in the White House has decided to back out of the Iran Nuclear Treaty, just as he said he would during his campaign for President.  A lot of past Presidential advisers believe that this will be the first misstep that starts our country into a slippery slide into a full-out war in the Middle East again - just like Iraq...  That orange-painted anus is doing everything he can to completely annihilate all the good things that Obama and Clinton worked so hard for.  - I am still amazed at his dismantling of the EPA; especially since it was formed by Nixon.

  And, suddenly, all this information regarding unusually large payments made to Michael Cohen, the personal counsel (attorney) for the Chief Chimpanzee, is appearing on the scene.  Four $50,000 payments from AT&T; $500,000 from Columbus Nova, an investment firm with close to ties to Russian oligarch Victor Vekselberg (who is a close associate of Vladimir Putin); four payments of $99,980 each from Novartis Investments S.A.R. L., a part of Novartis pharmaceuticals; and a $150,000 payment from Korea Aerospace, all were paid to Essential Consultants, the shell company that Michael Cohen owns.  All in all, over $4,400,000.00 have been paid into, and out of Essential Consultants between September 2016 and April of 2018.  And, don't forget that Michael Cohen is one of the  Finance Chairmen for the Republican National Committee....  What exactly was all that money for?  Why did it get paid into a shell company?  Where did it go?  What was it spent on?  Something seems rotten in this information....

Tonight's News Headlines

"Several Injured After Vehicle Rams People Leaving London Mosque: Witnesses"
"U. S. Warplane Downs Syrian Army Jet In Raqqa Province"
"Gunmen Attack Resort Outside Mali's Capital, Two Dead"
"At Least 62 Killed In Forest Fire Still Raging In Portugal"
"U. S. Navy Confirms All Seven Missing Sailors From USS Fitzgerald Found Dead"
"Iran Fires Several Missiles At Syria Following Tehran Attacks"
"Trump Attorney Says President Not Under Investigation - Then Hedges"
"Six Top Experts Resigned From Donald Trump's HIV/AIDS Advisory Panel"
"EPA Acknowledges Delaying Methane Rule Might Make More Children Sick, But It Will Help the Oil and Gas Industry"
"North Korea  Accuses US Authorities Of  'Mugging' Its Diplomats At NY Airport"
"Turkish President Erdogan Condemns US Warrants Issued To His Security Over Washington Brawl"

What does this say about the state of our world tonight?  All evening, I have had the old song "Eve of Destruction" running through my head...  Barry McGuire released his version in 1965, followed by a quick cover of it by The Turtles; I also remember Paul Revere and the Raiders having it on an album in the early 1970s.  My Uncle fought in Korea in the 1950s; and I grew up with the Viet Nam War - we were usually eating supper and watching horrific news with Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather.  It was a nasty way to grow up, but my Dad, having been in the US Navy for 22 years, believed that my sister and I should see the world as it was/is - and not through rose-colored glasses.
   I have managed to sail into my sixty-first year with, I think, a pretty even look at the world.  I will be the first to admit that I have a "bleeding heart," and sad stories always make me cry.  baby animals make me "coo" like an idiot, and I mourn the death of everything, while I also realize that it's all a part of the cycle of birth,life and death.  I read constantly - histories of different areas of the world, archaeology, explorations of land and sea and space, and a lot of fiction for pleasure.  I have read the Bible, the Torah and the Koran.  I enjoy learning, and applying what I have learned to my everyday life.  I dislike conflict and will do my best to avoid it.  But I am very happy to listen to my friends, whether they are discussing troubles or joys, and, if asked for an opinion, I try to give a measured one - trying to see it from all perspectives.
    I am worried about my country, the United States of America.  There is a narcissistic nincompoop sitting in the Oval Office.  He is not a leader.  He is not a politician.  He is a real estate man who has multiple bankruptcies, who cannot and will not obey laws, who buys his way out of the troubles he causes himself.  He does not work or play well with others.  He has the mind and temperament of a child stuck in the "terrible twos."  He is poorly educated and does not read.  He does not know the history of his own country, let alone the entire world.  According to people inside the White House, he shouts back at the television when someone says something he doesn't like. Yet he is in charge of our nuclear codes.  He is the "Commander in Chief."
   I am truly frightened.

A Snowy Weekend?

Today has dawned bright and partly cloudy - a wonderful change from yesterday's heavy cloud cover. I started reading Jack Whyte's The Forest Laird last night at the Broncos-Raiders halftime break. I put it down at 3 this morning, knowing I had to get up at 5:30.... So I'm running a little late this a.m., but that's OK. It's all of 45 degrees out, and not expected to get much warmer. The weather folks say that our high temperature of 40 degrees will occur soon after midnight for Saturday, and that the temperature will slowly drop all day - and the snow is supposed to begin around 7 p.m. Last night, the weather man said Boulder would probably get 2.4 inches of snow; then he said that his personal feeling was that Boulder would get 5 to 9 inches, so we'll see. I'm going to have to play Sunday by ear - when I come home to see the kids, etc., because of the snow. Aiko and Yoshi's folks come home around 9 p.m. - so I'll leave a little before then, probably getting a ride from Kathy or Jim to get home, as the low Sunday night is forecast at 5 degrees.

  I do not mean to take anything away from those who died at Pearl Harbor on this date in 1941 - but did anyone else think it was ironic that Japan suffered a 7.3 earthquake this morning? Natural disasters are awful. War is hell. So many good men and women gave their lives in so many countries during World War II - and I look at the current tensions in the Middle East, and I pray we won't have another World War (because with all the weapons of mass destruction that are scattered around the world now, I fear the annihilation of the human race). Who ever thought that a baby boomer would be writing that?

  Pulpit, an 18-year-old stallion, died unexpectedly in his paddock at Claiborne Farm yesterday. He was the sire of Tapit, and had been in excellent health. ... Here in Colorado, the BLM is investigating the deaths of 19 horses at one of the correctional institutes that breaks and trains BLM mustangs - you can buy a mustang or burro for $125 from the BLM, but you can purchase a trained riding horse for $1025. Several horses were found dead in a corral, and quite a few more were in such poor shape that the veterinarians decided they needed to be euthanized. Necropsies are being done, and tests are being performed on the horses grain, hay, and water supplies. The correctional institute is under a quarantine.

  I hope that you have a great weekend!

The State of Everything

When Finn and I went to grab the newspaper this morning, there were snow flurries. Right now, the sky is an intense blue and there are just a few tiny cirrus clouds within view - and the sun is shining so brightly that I wish I had my sunglasses on, here in the study. The study is on the north end of the house, the top floor, and has windows on the east, north and west sides - none of which have blinds, curtains or screens. I think that even a screen would cut this light just a bit... Finn is used to playing with Skippy, who stands his ground, and boxes back - after all, he's a 25-pound Maine Coon Cat. My cats haven't been with Suki and Boo in a while, and when they and Finn met, it was an instant chase scene. Finn is about 75 to 80 pounds now, about twice the Sammies' size, and he needs a visit to the groomers. At the moment, he looks like an off-white bearded collie. Imagine being 6 to 8 pounds and having that behemoth running at you; I think I'd run, too. - Otherwise, the kits are really enjoying the house - two staircases, lots of hidey-holes, and lots of windows with extra-wide sills. The kits spent yesterday afternoon soaking up the rays in the southern windows of the den. .... Zenyatta has been bred to Bernardini this week, and Rachel Alexandra was bred to Curlin last week. We'll now have to wait to see who drops what when. I realize this is not a race! I'm just hoping for two beautiful, healthy foals. .... Gee, Peter Forsberg returned to the NHL and then left before I got to see him play. My two favorite basketball stars here in Denver are/were Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups. Now they are gone to play for the New York Knicks. The only good sports news I've heard recently is that John Elway put Champ Bailey's original contract offering (dated from during last season) back on the table, and Champ has re-signed to play for the Broncos for another 4 years. Hooray! At least there's something to cheer about!

Back in the mid-60s, and then again in the late 1960s, a very popular song was titled "The Eve of Destruction." With all of the civil unrest in the Middle East and Asia; the earthquake in New Zealand; the stagnation of rebuilding and health care in Haiti; the fires, floods, and cyclones in Australia; and the on-going "War" in Afghanistan, I'm beginning to feel as if "The Eve of Destruction" should be my generation's theme song. And my body feels like it is self-destructing, too. (I know... Whine, whine, whine.) Walking down the drive to get the newspaper caused me to cough for over an hour this morning, so I've cancelled walking any dogs until at least Monday of next week. I hate feeling poorly.

While sitting here, checking my e-mail, and looking at news reports, I have a great view of a large cottonwood tree, a handful of blue spruce, several aspens, and some pines. I've observed finches, sparrows, nuthatches, wrens, robins, magpies, crows and ravens making use of the trees. This morning, I was amazed to see, first, a large red-tailed hawk, sitting almost at my eye level in one of the aspens; then, a short while ago, a bald eagle alit in the cottonwood. That big bird totally made my day!