Happy Valentine's Day

Guess what we got? More snow and lots of wind...
The howling outside had the cats freaking out. But at least there was some sun, and with enough layers it even felt sort of warm. Or at least not too terrible if you could manage to stay out of the wind.

When we got to the farm the driveway was drifted in badly enough that even 4-wheel wasn't going to get us up the driveway. We hiked up. I headed out to hay the horses. G was hooking up the trailer to deliver a load of sheep, so T hopped in the tractor to get the drive cleared.

Which, of course, had to be just a tiny bit exciting.See the trailer? It was sitting half into the ditch. The driveway's glassy-ice under the snow. G turned and the trailer just started sliding. The pick-up's white, so you can't really see it, but I think it may have a new dent or two from the mailbox.

The horses found the un-sticking process must-see TV. Me? I stayed busy with the hay. It was much more entertaining from a distance - LOL! They eventually unhitched the truck and used the tractor to push the trailer back on to the road, and G headed out. I fussed with the horses and played with the dog while T finished cleaning up the driveway.

My camera has decided to do weird things in the cold. See the lower right edge of the middle picture up above where it looks sort of spliced? Well I didn't Photoshop it - and I also ended up with this one. Both of them look perfect in the previews, but when I open them...
Not sure what's up with that. Hopefully something a change of batteries and/or a new disc will fix.

Thursday thoughts - Of nothing in particular

In Sunny's opinion, grass is something to be thankful for.

The first round bale of the season is out, but none of the horses are interested yet.

A bit of warmth, and all of the past weekend's rain means that there's new grass poking up, and it's getting all their attention. Sure, they might snatch a mouthful of hay on the way up to water, but the bale is pretty much pristine at this point. Still, it's okay that it's there. This way they'll be used to having it available, and won't gorge themselves silly they way they might later when there isn't any greenery attracting their attention.

The forecast for this weekend is windy & warm (60's) - sweet! Good for grass, and better for fencing. We'll (fingers crossed) work on the front alley like I'd planned for last weekend. Wearing blaze orange, highly visible from the road... hopefully our presence will deter any idiotic road hunters before pheasant fever gets the best of them and they start blasting away across the pasture.

In other news - I picked out a new camera.

I was this close to buying another Nikon Coolpix like the one Sunny stepped on - but then I actually got my hands on a Coolpix L16 the other day. Unfortunately, in the multiple new editions since my trusty L6 came out, Nikon's moved the SD card slot from the side of the camera (where it's super easy to access), to the battery compartment. That's bad news in my book.

We have several of the more expensive Nikon digital SLRs at work. They're great cameras. But we've had to send them in numerous times to get the battery door hinges & latches replaced. The battery springs are too strong for the thin plastic catches on the doors, and they don't stand up well to frequent use. I've never used the cable that came with my camera for transferring pictures - I prefer popping the card out and using a card reader (that way I don't have to install any extra software on my computer). So with this design I'd be putting a lot of extra wear and tear on those flimsy little plastic catches. I just don't think they'd stand up to it. And replacing those doors isn't cheap. :(

Glad I discovered the Coolpix are now made that way before I ordered one.

So I explored the alternatives, and found one made by Canon. A Powershot A590. The reviews on CNET and elsewhere were mostly positive, so hopefully I'll like it when it arrives, which it's supposed to do tomorrow!

I'll keep using the Nikon at the farm, though - I just won't have to worry so much about it getting smashed! (Does anyone else experience camera withdrawal when your batteries go dead or you forget to bring it along? I guess there are worse things to be hooked on though - lol!)

Camera Damage

We've had high wind advisories here for the past two days, so my plans to ride haven't quite materialized. I had feed and a new mineral block in the back of the car I wanted to take out to the farm, so tonight after dinner T and I headed out for some pony time.

The herd was up on the hill enjoying a semi-fly free evening, and they were all happy to see us.

The three Stooges?

We fussed over them all a bit, scratched ears, checked for bumps & bangs, etc. I've gotten into the habit of always taking a halter & lead along just in case someone needs to be hauled back to the barn for doctoring. No one needed anything but attention this evening, but since we had the halter along, I had T hold Thunder while I bounced up and down next to him, laid across, and then swung a leg over.

He's still at the thinking about it stage, but mostly just cocked a hip and accepted the attention. I'd meant to do more with him this summer than I've had a chance to, but he's stayed sensible with what I have had time for.

The whole herd followed us back up to the lot, just in case something more than scritches & pats might be forthcoming.

Too bad, guys!

There was only one casualty of a very nice hour - I dropped my camera, and I think Sunny pawed at it before I found it. It still takes pictures, but has a lovely crack and a black mark across the viewscreen. Could have been worse, I suppose - at least I can still see the bottom half of the picture!