Decent 3-day weekend.

I should finish reading the awful paper I'm reviewing. I don't feel right just saying REJECT, so have to pick out some specific things to ding on it. But I'll probably not force myself anymore tonight.

I did some corral cleaning with the tractor on saturday and cleaned two cartfuls out of my anchored portable shed. Needs at least 3-4 cartfuls more to be decent. Dad showed me a trick with the tractor loader that works slick. I need to do another 2-3 hour session with the tractor in the bigger corral still though. But I needed to ride too. Took just a short ride on Shade on saturday. Sunday I rode Grey and had a gal come out and ride Lady from a CL ad. I don't think she'll come back. Well I have to email her but she has not gotten back to me; I think she is only going to go for the free month to accompany me on Sadie if she comes back at all. That would be fine but mom is doing a bit more and I would be most comfortable with her. But this gal was doing ok with Lady swirling around while I saddled Grey so I think she would be OK if Sadie would spook and dump me rather than being a passenger on a runaway after the loose horse. Then I had my weekly ride on Sadie. I think she's ready to ride out with a buddy.

Today I rode Shade, took a 4 mile loop with Ole, then a short break, I grabbed a Luna bar and my camelback and put the barefoot hoof boots on her front feet and we went down the gravel road about 2.5 miles Turned around and it was very soon threatening to rain, so instead of adding the 1 mile out and back side road I had planned, we power trotted the whole way back. Beat the small hail storm just BARELY --it was sleeting after I had pulled the saddle and went in the house to get a screwdriver to pop hoof boots off so I ran out to the shed with her. I just held her and we stood for the 4-5 minutes while it was pea + sized hail before I took off her hackamore and I ran back to the house in the rain. I went back out about 40 minutes later and took the hoof boots off after the rain had quit.