What's Up...the Temperature, That's What!

Still hot and going to be 100 plus again all week.  I have to get everything done outside by about 10am and then I start melting andhave to come into the house.  The A/C is keeping up and I am so happy about that.

Wiseguy and I went for a nice drive today.  We encountered a dog that kept barking and coming towards us but I kept saying "Bad Dog!" and it finally left.  Wiseguy was fine.

We are still having a bit of trouble on turns.  I really think he gets it into his mind where he wants to go and then doesn't want to do the turn.  Anyway, we worked through that nicely and did some tight circles and some good work on listening and we had a great drive.

Hubby is the best.  He is trying to get an antennae onto the Toy 4 runner.  Turns out it is a bigger job than he thought but he is valiantly giving it his best shot.

I am fertilizing using the pressure pot for the next few days.  It is so convenient.  One of the  best ideas I ever had:)

102F Yesterday and 99F Today

Let's hope this is a trend.  The mini horse looked fine all day.  The goats looked super.  Anything under 100F isn't so bad.  We had 16% humidity today which is not high by national standards.

It still feels pretty warm by 10 or 11am and that is that!

105F ... Briefly

We hit a high of 105F but the clouds were forming and the wind came up so the temp started going back down a bit almost immediately to 102F.  The goats and the horse actually look like they are doing okay.

I took off early from my cleaning job.  I told my client it was so hot I would try to push hard and get out a bit early.  I got home at about 1pm.  It was 102F and still rising.

I set up a sprinkler on a post that holds up the fence dividing the goats and the horse.  I ran some cool water into the water troughs and let them overflow to get some fresh cool water into the animals.  Then I ran the sprinkler for about 20 minutes.  I do think it at least gives it a cooler feeling on that side of the pens.  The little horse and the goats hate rain and probably won't play in it but at least I can try to cool it down a bit, especially if it gets even hotter on any given day.  100F is hot but 105F feels like you are in an oven.  I used to live in Las Vegas so I know all about hot but I worry about my goats and horse.

104 F ... Again

Yep, super duper hot again.  Trying to get things done by 11am and then stuck in the house except for brief forays out to make sure the animals are fed and have plenty of water and the garden watering stays on proper rotation.  Towards 7 or 8 pm the temp has dropped back into the nineties and going out for a bit is doable.

Looks like it is going to be  a long summer.

Everyone's veggie gardens took a big hit this spring and ours was no exception.  I did get three young crooknecks off one of the two summer squash plants that are growing pretty good.  I also seem to have tomatoes coming on.  I need to put some calcium on them as I usually have problems with the fruits if I don't.

Some of the beans are trying hard.

The corn is tasseling and it is only 18" tall at best.

Some of the melons are starting to get going but it doesn't look good over in that section of the garden.

The miniature horse looks okay but he was panting a bit when we went out to feed him.  I have been making sure the animals have fresh cool water twice a day.  I am concerned that we are being threatened with even hotter weather like 111 degrees.  That might be a bit much for the goats and the horse.  Let's hope the weather forecast is wrong as usual and that it is actually cooler than that next week.

Hotter than the Fourth of July

The Fourth of July was a beautiful day.  If you were in the shade it was in the nineties and it didn't feel too hot although I wouldn't have run a marathon in the sun or hoisted hay bales or anything like that.  We ended up going to a neighbor's place for a rib cook off.

The last two days have been ridiculous hot.  104F yesterday and 100F today.  I had to go to town for some groceries and believe me I was sitting at the front door when Costco opened.  Fortunately, they opened at 9:30 which is half and hour early.   They do that when it is going to be ridiculous hot out.  Yeah!!!!

Of course, even though I said I was on a tight budget, I saw something I couldn't live without as I came in the door.  A four slice toaster.  When I looked at toasters at Christmas time, I didn't buy one because they were around $80 for a four slice toaster.  WTF? You say. Yeah, that's what I said, too.

Well, a Kitchenaid toaster was $40.  Our old four slice toaster has been a two slice toaster for quite some time now.  Like a year.  So, like any frugal person, I said, "Hey, so it is a little inconvenient and one person has sort of cold toast, bagel or bun by the time I get done with two sets of bread."  Not anymore:)

Hubby likes that protein powder but it has gotten to the point where I don't know if I want to buy it anymore.  A bag was $50.  I am not kidding!  It has more than doubled in price since he started drinking it several years ago.  The good news is that he drinks it for breakfast and it does last a couple of months.  Since he has to wait a full hour after taking his thyroid medication, this has been the best way for him to eat breakfast on the way to work.  So efficient and cost effective on that level.

Since it has gotten so hot I picked up some easy and fast to cook foods.  I got laundry soap and automatic dishwasher soap.  Bagels and ham for sandwiches.  Cheerios and milk for breakfast.  TP because if I have less than a two month supply I seem to go into panic attacks:)    Nothing too fancy this trip.  

No 7-up sodas.  I have been mixing up the lemonade from powder.  Not only is it not fructose, I drink less of it and it is cheaper.  Trying to lose weight or at least not gain anymore.  Now if I could only cut back on/quit smoking.

I bought a bale of timothy and it was $18.75 but it was a little over $20 with tax.  The last bale of orchard grass I bought was pretty crappy.  Rocks in it and weeds with large stick stems.  I don't want the mini horse eating that.  I'll feed the rest of that bale of orchard grass to the goats.  They think they are getting a treat.

Naturally, the absurd price of timothy at the feed store motivated me. When I got home, I got back on Craig's List.  We had two twine hay lined up in Washoe Valley for $7 a bale but that fell through.  I called on the eighth since they were supposed to be baling on the seventh.  She got really weird, asked me how I found out she had hay.  I told her Hubby called her from CL and she said she would be baling on the seventh.  She said the equipment broke and don't call us we'll call you.  Okay??!!!  I get it, you are getting a better price or you are just paranoid.

I called on some hay in Washoe Valley that is $10 a bale but it is fairly heavy two wire bales so at least as good a deal as the other stuff. It is grass hay with a little bit of alfalfa mixed in.  He feeds it to his horses.  I like the smaller bales better than the big ones because they are easier to move around.  He said call him tomorrow morning and come get it tomorrow evening.  Looks like he will help Hubby load.  Let's hope this works out since even if we pay $50 in gas it will be $12.50 per bale instead of $20 per bale.  I'll still need to pick up some alfalfa but it looks like I might be able to get that for a better price this year.  One load of hay at a time, I suppose.

Veggie Garden

First of all the fire is out!  Yeah.

Hubby and I have managed to replant the veggie garden.  Let's hope we get something out of this garden this year.  Today is hot and windy.  The thermometer on the breezeway is reading 99 degrees.

Yesterday I took the little horse for a walk since my arms are sore from cleaning so many houses and I didn't want to use my arms for driving.  Today I am still very sore.

I wanted to get a lot done outside yesterday because the weather is supposed to be rough today.  I got two sets of sheets washed and hung out to dry.  Also, a couple of other loads of clothes.  Can't dry laundry outside when the wind is doing 25-40 so today will be out of the question:)

I planted the petunias I bought.  I also planted the red hot pokers I grew from seeds even though they are tiny.  I am getting tired of keeping them watered.  I hope I get some of them to live since the two I already have are really awesome.

I have three sage plants to get into the ground.  They will be a nice addition to the yard.  Hummingbirds love them.  My hummingbird yard is starting to mature and there are hummers buzzing all over the place.

So, today I went ahead and hooked up the little horse to the cart early before it got hot and windy.  He and I had a very rough time.  He didn't want to do a tight turn at all.  I don't know what his deal was.  I will have to get back out there and try again at the first opportunity.  I am not giving up on my efforts.  Every once in awhile we have a really bad day.  So far, the next time out on the road ends up being fine so we shall see.

Terry says maybe his feet are sore but he was quite happy to trot around without a cart yesterday when I took him for a walk and he is out there prancing around in the wind.  The farrier is supposed to show up in another week.  Crossing my fingers that it will not be windy since I would definitely like to get his feet trimmed and check to make sure they look okay.

I am running the water in the veggie garden for an hour this afternoon to try to keep those new seeds hydrated.