winter chores

Having horses makes you go outside in crazy weather.  It's 14 degrees with a wind chill of  -11.  Blowing snow.  It takes 10 minutes to put on wind pants, mask, hat, hood coat and gloves - but they keep me pretty warm.  Fumbling with bulky gloves makes door latches and blanket hooks awkward.   A 10 minute chore takes 20.  But the horses are now blanketed and fed.  The chickens and cats locked snuggly in their shelters.  And once I get back inside, I'm pretty warm, too. 

Windermere in Winter

First there is the loud, restless craziness of feeding time.
Horses kicking their stalls, neighs and shouts fill the frozen morning
The tractor roars as it brings into the barn, grain and hay
Then comes the calm
The quiet contented munching of hay
The subdued gossip of the grooms cleaning stalls
The plink of frozen turds landing in the wheelbarrow
As I tack up for an early morning ride on Lymond.