My Horse Ranch ("I'm a Country Girl!")

Yesterday I had a hundred story ideas come to mind as I was looking at new places to move to.

One place I called about, has 12 acres and has had horses boarded there. So I called, about the place, thinking I could board horses and he said sure.

I'm thinking about boarding everything: people, dogs, horses, sheep, you name it. I'm thinking about how I can board off of boarding even. And board off of boarding off of boarders.

So I'm trying to be convincing of course. Then we get there and I see the barn. They're more like lean-tos. I don't know if he was testing me or not but he asked, as we're walking over a hilly mound, "Do you think you'd do lunging?" I laughed and said no, I would be the one lunging after the horses. I said I could probably do it bc I know how it's done, but then I'm looking at the hills. There wasn't more than 1 foot of flat pasture. I told him I am just sort of the daughter of a mother who knew all about horses. She could train, I said, I just remember some things she did. She rode dressage and did jumping, I said, and I just got onto a horse, even bareback, now and then.

I saw myself, on a horse after 10 years and saw it just tearing off with me, into the hills, with all of Wenatchee and their binoculars out. Every time I said something about what I could do, I saw the comical side of it.

12 acres is a lot of work. If I did it, I could think creatively and do a good job. But I heard myself say, in reassurance to him, when he said animal control had been called in the past...I said, "Oh don't worry, I"ve herded cows that got out of fencing before--I'm a country girl."

I'm a country girl?

The phrase ringing in my ears. I kept seeing paris-hilton-pippi-longstocking images of myself. Rephrase, I was born in the country. I know the country. But I also love the city. I think I'm right down the middle. I know I'm not a suburb girl.

I told him I would just be putting out ads right away before having a plan, but at least he was open-minded about letting me use or develop the space however I like.

I have a ton of ideas running through my head. He said I'd have to fix the fence in the back, which I could do. I am thinking a mixture of a couple horses eventually, sheep for the hills, and a chicken or two. And a small organic garden. That's just the outside.

I don't know if I would turn the house into renting rooms, or a sometime shelter for abused women, or a crash pad for egg donors. Or a combo. I have to have an office and private space but I could get a good lock.

He showed me the tractor in the barn. It's a 1950s tractor. I had another one of those comical flashes, seeing myself try to drive a tractor.

When he took me back he asked why I was living next to a tennis court. Do you play tennis? he asked. I said no, I didn't know how and I would be more embarrassed to try to play tennis in Wenatchee public eye than get on a horse. But then I said I could probably do it if someone showed me how. I said at least the balls are soft if they're flying at your head.

Then, I was walking home last night and going to find this other place to look at too, and I ended up going and going and I could find the road. I got lost and then I see this "gold star" right ahead, on a house, as I'm walking down 5th, and next, I see this yellow truck that looks like one that belonged to someone I used to know and then, right in front of me is the driveway to that house. I thought, "Oh my gosh. What the heeeell?" I felt like I was caught in the middle of some kind of kaballah maze. I only noticed the star because at the last visit my son was saying he wanted "a gold star" and didn't remember what the cross was around my neck, saying, "what's that?" Anyway, kind of kidding. But it is true that I ended up there without knowing that was the way to that house. I was driven there but didn't pay attention to where we were going.

Anyway, I'm thinking about a lot of things.

Hmm, probably not sheep. I could run it if someone else was doing hands on work but that is a LOT of work. Just putting sheep out on pasture is one thing. Then I started reading about castration and vets and...maybe someone could do it more naturally. You have to have a lot of good grass though. I don't know that Wenatchee ground is conducive to grass and I can't imagine goats love to eat sagebrush.

Then I read, "You must be strong to raise sheep." They talked about flipping them over, etc. That rules me out!