Self-portrait phone shot from the ranch
I've really been enjoying the snow and the crisp, cool weather! So has Djinni (pronounced Genie, my dog). Yesterday I fed the calves/cows/bull in the corral in the morning and then headed off the 32 miles to the county seat for Big Horn County. Basin is a small town with a gas station and a grocery store, but it's also the home of all of the governmental offices for the county. I finally got my Wyoming driver's license - so I am now an official Wyomingite! I took the time to look at a few homes in Basin, and also in Greybull - the next town north by about 10 miles.
I enjoyed lunch at the historic Greybull Hotel - and the woman working there showed me the speak-easy downstairs (where they still have dinner service), some of the old bricked up tunnels, and let me go explore the rooms upstairs in the hotel. It is really beautifully cared for! And the lunch was pretty good too. Afterward, I came back to the house, changed, picked up the dog, and headed out to feed the calves later in the afternoon.
By this time, the temp had warmed up to about 40 - the first time since the snows that it got above freezing. Here in rural Wyoming, where most roads are graded / gravel / dirt, things can get pretty messy. At the ranch in particular, it was a true slush fest. There was no place that I could park my vehicle and be assured of stepping out onto solid ground. By that time, I was committed - I couldn't just keep the dog in the car and stand to hear her cry. So, I fed calves, cows, and one bull while Djinni had a wonderful time. At one point, she even rolled around in a mud-manure-slush area. Oh. My. God.
In warmer weather I would have directed her to the creek to self-bathe - she's pretty good about that. She had no interest in doing that yesterday, so I did the next best thing: I gave her a snow-bath. The snow was dry, yet clumpy, so I was able to grab a handful and squish it into a ball. I used the ball to scrub Djinni's fur (until the snow disintigrated) and then repeated. I was surprised that this did as good a job as it did, and that Djinni stood there and even leaned into me to help out! Once she was clean enough to ride in my car, we returned to the house where I did my 2-step winter cleaning process that is great for dogs in cold weather.
I have a can of "dry shampoo" - basically, an aerosol powderized cleanser that you spray on and let sit for a few minutes before brushing it out. I hate how it works on me, but love how it works on my shorter and less curly-haired dog. After setting, you just brush it out. This leaves her coat shiny and salon-fresh, but I don't think that's a natural scent on a dog and I don't think she likes the smell either. I follow that by wiping her down with unscented baby wipes - they're thick so they grab loose hair rather than spread it around, and they seem to eliminate 'dog' smell and neutralize cleaning smells. She stands still and tall for me to do this, and just as with a water bath, is left refreshed and extremely playful!
Animal wise, lots of deer continue to graze nearby, but the new addition this week has been a couple hundred geese! They have bedded down in the pastures. I've never seen them bed down in non-waterside areas.
By this time, the temp had warmed up to about 40 - the first time since the snows that it got above freezing. Here in rural Wyoming, where most roads are graded / gravel / dirt, things can get pretty messy. At the ranch in particular, it was a true slush fest. There was no place that I could park my vehicle and be assured of stepping out onto solid ground. By that time, I was committed - I couldn't just keep the dog in the car and stand to hear her cry. So, I fed calves, cows, and one bull while Djinni had a wonderful time. At one point, she even rolled around in a mud-manure-slush area. Oh. My. God.
In warmer weather I would have directed her to the creek to self-bathe - she's pretty good about that. She had no interest in doing that yesterday, so I did the next best thing: I gave her a snow-bath. The snow was dry, yet clumpy, so I was able to grab a handful and squish it into a ball. I used the ball to scrub Djinni's fur (until the snow disintigrated) and then repeated. I was surprised that this did as good a job as it did, and that Djinni stood there and even leaned into me to help out! Once she was clean enough to ride in my car, we returned to the house where I did my 2-step winter cleaning process that is great for dogs in cold weather.
I have a can of "dry shampoo" - basically, an aerosol powderized cleanser that you spray on and let sit for a few minutes before brushing it out. I hate how it works on me, but love how it works on my shorter and less curly-haired dog. After setting, you just brush it out. This leaves her coat shiny and salon-fresh, but I don't think that's a natural scent on a dog and I don't think she likes the smell either. I follow that by wiping her down with unscented baby wipes - they're thick so they grab loose hair rather than spread it around, and they seem to eliminate 'dog' smell and neutralize cleaning smells. She stands still and tall for me to do this, and just as with a water bath, is left refreshed and extremely playful!
Animal wise, lots of deer continue to graze nearby, but the new addition this week has been a couple hundred geese! They have bedded down in the pastures. I've never seen them bed down in non-waterside areas.
Logically, this is where I would insert a photo, but there is a story behind that..... The other day I did some exploring on the other side of Ten Sleep, with Djinni, and we saw hawks, turkeys, an eagle, a fox, deer, elk, and mountain sheep! I was so glad that I had my nice fancy camera with me (Canon T1i) and I was snapping photo after photo. It's a digital camera, so eventually, I looked down at the LCD display to check my work, and I saw instead: "ERROR: No SD Card!".
Apparently, I had removed the memory card from the camera and inserted it into my computer - it's an easier way of copying images over than hooking up the USB cable. And, my card was still in the computer, back at the house. Which meant NONE of the great snapshots I just took were really captured. I think you could have heard my "Oh, No!" down in surrounding valleys! I will have to make a return trip, and it's looking like this weekend might be a prime opportunity!
Also in animal news - I've observed the buck and 4-5 doe harem still hanging out in the side yard - apparently they enter where the fence meets a very old and....not quite straight cottonwood tree. A portion of the fence is bent from prior cotton wood distress, and the deer can just step over the fence at that point. They bed down right on the other side of that tree, or further down the property in the brush closer to the stream. Two or three of them stand up when I take Djinni out at night - but they no longer run off. They stare, Djinni stares back, and I make a point to walk her in a different direction. At the end of our walk, we come by that side yard. The thought on this is that the deer have had time to decide if they still want to be there or not with my dog and I roaming about nearby. Sometimes one or two will spring-bounce off when we arrive at the end of our walk, but the others stay put.
As for me, I'm enjoying exploring in the snow, but have been wandering looking at houses in the region. The next few listings of interest will likely be day-trips, so I'll want to plan out Kathman's food (so he doesn't eat it all at breakfast!). I've been virtually meeting other Wyoming consultants and entrepreneurs through the WY Business Development Council, and participating in some video conferences with them. I have put off incorporating until later in the year / end of year for tax purposes, but if I need to pull the trigger before then I can. I keep waiting for gloomy weather to knock some reading and research off of my list, but the weather hasn't been cooperating! Not that I'm complaining. Happy Camper, indeed!
Also in animal news - I've observed the buck and 4-5 doe harem still hanging out in the side yard - apparently they enter where the fence meets a very old and....not quite straight cottonwood tree. A portion of the fence is bent from prior cotton wood distress, and the deer can just step over the fence at that point. They bed down right on the other side of that tree, or further down the property in the brush closer to the stream. Two or three of them stand up when I take Djinni out at night - but they no longer run off. They stare, Djinni stares back, and I make a point to walk her in a different direction. At the end of our walk, we come by that side yard. The thought on this is that the deer have had time to decide if they still want to be there or not with my dog and I roaming about nearby. Sometimes one or two will spring-bounce off when we arrive at the end of our walk, but the others stay put.
As for me, I'm enjoying exploring in the snow, but have been wandering looking at houses in the region. The next few listings of interest will likely be day-trips, so I'll want to plan out Kathman's food (so he doesn't eat it all at breakfast!). I've been virtually meeting other Wyoming consultants and entrepreneurs through the WY Business Development Council, and participating in some video conferences with them. I have put off incorporating until later in the year / end of year for tax purposes, but if I need to pull the trigger before then I can. I keep waiting for gloomy weather to knock some reading and research off of my list, but the weather hasn't been cooperating! Not that I'm complaining. Happy Camper, indeed!
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