Hard Work and Endurance Gremlins

 It's been busy at the ranch these days.

Shortly after closing, some guy showed up and did an inspection for the insurance company. We then received a list of "corrections" needed in order to keep our homeowner's insurance.

Most of these things were straightforward and not unexpected, even if time consuming. There was a lot of junk laying about and the pool needed to be taken the rest of the way down for the winter. The roof was arguably in really bad condition and we knew that.

What wasn't expected was the item telling us we had to fix the broken windows. Uhhh.... There are no broken windows. It took a bit, but we realized that, with the AC units in the windows and boards above them as wind blocks, it might appear windows are broken.

Now, I don't know how it is someone can see an AC unit hanging out of a window and think the window must be broken but here we are.

In service of all the work to do around here, I went and bought a dump trailer. It's not a cheap thing, but boy is it handy. Already we have used it 5 times, in less than a month. I was at the dump 3 times in the first week alone. And there's more to do yet. Hopefully we've removed enough to satisfy the insurance company for now, because I don't know how much more work we can get done before their deadline.

While we were doing all that, I had the driveway paved with asphalt and the roof on the house and carport replaced. The driveway took 2 days. The roof nearly a week. The roofing was a nightmare. The sellers had never done the roof properly, simply adding shingles on top of what was already there. Which leaked anyway. Since the roof has been done, we've discovered the vent fan in the bathroom actually works. The carport roof had 2 layers of shingles *and* a layer of cement tile, far more weight than it rightly ought to be trying to handle. The carport roof is visibly bowed due to the weight. At least now the roof is a darn sight lighter than it was. And doesn't leak.

For my next trick, we're looking in to having solar installed. The electric bill around here is absurd. Not to mention, the electric around here is a bit unusual and needs some serious upgrading to be considered safe. So that's the next thing there.

There was some pipe to be laid, as the water pipe supplying the barn had burst. I rented a small trencher, only to have the thing never manage to run right and get nothing done. In the end, I ended up trenching by hand with my pick, then laying and gluing the pipe. It worked out, although I still have to fiddle with the hose bib I put in by the barn which doesn't seem to want to work. The other hose bibs do work, and water is restored, thankfully.

In the midst of all this I've been continuing with Demon's competition season. We had a good ride at Fire Mountain, followed by a couple good days at Laurel Mountain. The next ride is the Twenty Mule Team 100. 

This one is getting in my head.

In 2013, Hoss finished the Twenty Mule Team 100. It was his first and only 100 mile completion. While he continued to do well in 50s and even the occasional 75, he was pulled in his remaining 100 mile attempts. And it couldn't even be put down to distance. One was the result of me having to shoe him midway through the ride, and he lost one, the other over time into an early vet check, which was down to me believing the dreaded heart rate monitor.

In 2019, Demon completed the Twenty Mule Team 100 mile course as the National Championship 100. He was in fine fettle all day and night. We returned 4 months later, only to pull at the first vet check. And again a year later. And again at the 2021 National Championship ride.

So it's not terribly surprising that I'm a bit psych'd out by this whole thing. I've so far completed 2 100 miles, one on each of my horses. And now it's in the back of my head that that is all I will be allowed, one, 100 mile 1 day ride per horse.

The gremlins have sunk their claws in me.

After Laurel Mountain, I gave Demon a break, then addressed his shoeing again. I decided the studs in his front shoes were not a good solution, so I replaced his front shoes without studs. I also added Equi-Pak CS to help add a little cushion.

I was really glad I'd pulled his shoes. I found an awful lot of dirt crammed up under the toe of the shoes, especially that right front Mike Peralez was staring at so hard. Seems like the debris guard on these composite shoes isn't all that great at keeping out debris. At least the Equi-Pak will keep dirt out of his shoes.

After reshoeing Demon's front feet, we loaded up and had a little ride to check them out. He felt really good and forward, even with a long trot up the East Mesa Fire Road. On the way back down, though, I suddenly had a major cramp in my hamstring. It was bad enough I had to get off, which caused the other one to join in the fun. I ended up sitting on the ground, stretching my legs up against Demon's shoulder, trying to relieve the cramps. I tried to walk it off, only to have the cramping get worse with every step I took. Eventually, I got back on, which turned out to be much better than walking.

By the time we got back to the trailer, the cramps had subsided, but I can't help but wonder if I've gotten the horse sorted only to have something go sideways with the rider.

Algorithms

A few years ago, I crossed paths with an orthopedic spine surgeon who came to be known as "Dr Algorithm." This guy. The images showed major bony changes, nerve impingement, and various misalignments in the spine of the subject. Packaged with a precipitating injury over a decade old, and multiple rounds of steroid injections and physical therapy already attempted over the intervening years, one might imagine he would have some other answer. Alas, he is, as his well-earned nickname implies, married to The Algorithm. He asserted steroid injections and physical therapy were the miracle cure for 90% of "his" patients, and he would not go to surgery until all those options has been exhausted under his supervision. Somehow he had the magic technique, and no previous attempts at injections and PT could possibly have lived up to his particular and special skill.

I only met this man once. It was enough times. Suffice to say the so afflicted patient has since had surgery. With a different surgeon.

Which brings us to today.

 I had a follow-up appointment with the civilian doctor (well, technically seeing the PA) I got referred to about my knee pain. On my first visit, he declared my knee pain must be the result of muscle imbalance. I suggested the level and type of activity I engage in made this conclusion seem unlikely. But, the x-rays were clean, and there was no changing his mind. He wanted me to do PT.

Now that I've had a few sessions of PT, the knee pain is not better. If anything, it's worse. And I had to go around with the physical therapist about some of those exercises, too. At least he was a nice guy and seemed to recognize there's something more to it than inner thigh muscles being weaker than outer thigh muscles or the other way around.

Anyway. I got in to see the PA. He walked in and his first question was about blood work he'd ordered. I told him I hadn't done it, because I realized all the arthritis I have ever had is secondary to other injuries and I don't have any of the conditions he wanted the test for. He got a little snippy and said he "didn't know that." I told him well, now you do.

Have I ever mentioned I'm not an easy patient?

Next he asked "how many PT sessions we have had."

To which I responded, well, *we* haven't had any, but *I* have done 6.

Yes, I really am that petty.

So after all of that, and not making any friends, he's ordering MRIs. Which should have been done 2 months ago. But of course it was not. Because, although he's not as open about it, this place is just as slave to The Algorithm as the surgeon I detailed above. X-rays are clean, the pain must be due to this other, evidently relatively common muscle imbalance. Don't listen to what the patient does. Don't test strength. Don't contemplate there may be more under the surface. Not until The Algorithm has been satisfied. 

But this post isn't ultimately about knees or spines or the surgeons who treat them. It's not even about the medical algorithms we all encounter.

This is really about that other algorithm we're all subjected to, on the daily basis. The algorithm which oversees social media.

Recently, Facebook has been increasingly unhappy with me. Mostly it is unhappy with me because I have a cat named Ugly and they think I'm bullying him. I have to carefully word any post including Ugly, because Facebook will legit remove it for "bullying or hate speech" if I get it wrong.

This would be amusing if I weren't seeing others posting perfectly innocent content and having it removed. An author I follow, Jim Wright, recently had a picture removed for "violation of community standards; it was a picture of a bee, captioned "a bee." Shadow-banning has been a thing, wherein a poster's content reaches very few people, as it's being hidden. I've demonstrated this on my own page, by having someone else post exactly what I did, words and images, in the same group, and they get responses, while mine is not seen.

Particularly after hearing things like this RadioLab episode I've been increasingly disenchanted by the whole Facebook experience. The algorithm has serious problems.

And y'know what? I'm kinda tired of it. I'm tired of how Facebook and most of social media works. I'm tired of bumping up against the algorithm because of pictures of a happy orange tabby cat. I like to get a little deeper into things. Facebook demands pithy and short content. The pressure to make posts amusing or otherwise entertaining is more than I'm willing to put up with.

So, while I'm not leaving social media, I'm going to spend more effort and energy on blogging. I like this format. I can write out long and (at least to me) interesting pieces. If I end up talking to myself, well, that's fine. More often than not, I seem to be talking to myself on Facebook, too. At least here I find myself more entertaining.

Priorities

 There's a lot to do around here.

The morning broke crisp and clear, and downright cold. With the dogs' insistence upon an open door at all times, the house gets cold, too. The central heating in this place isn't very good under ideal circumstances, let alone with the front door hanging open. 

So, the priority is getting a sliding glass door installed in place of the double French doors, and putting a dog door insert in it. No big deal, really, in the overall scheme of things. Not exactly an arduous process. Won't take more than a day to do the install.

Except....

I have horses up to their ankles in mud. It's so bad, there's standing water. Those pens need a good tearing down and resurfacing. But there's nowhere else to put those horses. Hoss and Nova need to be close to the house. Sere, being open (not pregnant), is a bully to her sisters, and there isn't another pen in the lower turnouts for her.

Upper Pen Pond

I moved Hoss and Nova to the arena, and Sere to a small pen, so they'd all have somewhere decently dry to stand and lay down. I could hear Nova ramming around the arena as I went about getting their breakfast together. Later in the day, I saw Sere taking a nap in the sun. I know Hoss laid down, based on the dirt on him. Nova seems more relaxed in the drier space.

Hoss and Nova

The only solution for this problem is another pen. The only way to make another pen is to buy more corral panels and haul them home. Oh, and clear out the space where we plan to put the pen. Then, once that pen is built, tear down the big pen and use many of those panels to create a 6th pen in the lower turnouts, so Sere can have her own room.

Sere, happy to be sorta dry

Not complicated. Fairly straightforward. Lots of work.

The list of things that need done seems to grow faster than I can tackle it. In order to get a new sliding glass door home, I need to get the truck rack built and on my truck. I'm still waiting on the roofer to give me an estimate on what that's gonna cost me. We need a new refrigerator. A new range would be great. New dishwasher wouldn't be bad. We figured out there's an outlet behind a cabinet in the kitchen, and we'd really like to be able to use it. Certainly would make more sense to have the microwave in the kitchen than in the random little alcove. 

Then, the neighbor let me know the dogs were barking at him and his parents. I'm not clear if they're just standing on their side of the property line and barking, or if they're actually approaching people. Either way, that can't be allowed to stand. I had hoped I'd be able to plow some money into getting the property fenced, but with the roof being in a state of critical disrepair, that has to come first. Some time ago I bought an underground fence system, which I haven't installed, for the very simple reason that I wasn't going to install it only to have to dig it out if we ended up forced to move. Now that we're for sure staying, I'll have to put it in, as well as put up some panels between our property and the immediate neighbor's to break up the energy if the dogs do decide to bark at or charge people. The ultimate goal will, of course, be a fence around the property. 

So much to do. So few hours in the day.

Traveling up Middle Peak

So I went for a ride. Demon and I have an endurance ride (the 3 day Fire Mountain Pioneer) coming up in a couple of weeks. I need to get him out and ride him and make sure we're doing well. I had a mind to go up past Ramona to ride to Eagle Rock. Got as far as the turn to go through Julian and discovered everyone was going to Julian. So I turned back and we rode up Middle Peak instead. It wasn't a long ride, but the smart trot on the ranch road back to the trailer was refreshing. On the way back down, when we passed the turn onto Middle Peak, Demon pointed his nose that way, and I gently turned him back to the trailer. Several times, as we approached the gate, he made efforts to turn back. He'd rather be out there. So would I, really. Keeping the priorities straight is challenging enough.

Above the snow line

Ready to head out

Escrow Is A Bitch

 

Chalice Ranch has been in its current location for 6 years now. A lot happens in 6 years. Mostly accumulating stuff and things happens in 6 years. Also animals. In our case, mostly horses. There's 9 of them now.

A couple of years ago, the owners of the property we've been renting let us know they would soon be looking to sell. At that time, we knew we were not in a position to buy. So we waited. This year, just last month, they let us know it was time for them to sell.

Now, between the time they first mentioned this and now, my mother passed away. The result is, I have some inheritance. Enough to make the difference between buying and renting. It certainly makes little sense for me to do anything other than put the majority of that money into purchasing a home. So I was already in a position where I was going to have to tell them, once my mother's home is sold, that I either had to buy the place we are, or we were going to have to start looking for property.

It's a happy coincidence that both things essentially happened at once.

Not so happy that I ended up managing 2 escrows at the same time, one sell side, the other buy side, but basically handling the sell side too. At least with my mother's house my sister and I are co-executors, so we both managed the details, and we had a real estate agent. For the purchase, it was basically me, except that I could bitch to Beth and Mike about the whole thing. There was no agent directly involved in the purchase, except for a dear friend who provided me with advise and referred me to the vendors I needed to pull this off.

When we were first informed of the plan to sell, there was still legal wrangling happening with Mom's house, and we weren't sure how long it would be until the sale was done. Can't very well commit to buying until I have the cash in hand, after all. I was really hoping I would be able to conclude the sale on Mom's house, then open escrow on the purchase.

Yeah, not so much.

The property owner texted me while I was at Virgin Outlaw, asking if we had a pre-approval letter. Uh, what? First I heard of this. Then I was informed there were "other offers" and they needed us to commit right away.

Okay, then. Fine. 

Got the pre-approval handled. And the owner wanted escrow to start right away.

Well, in for a penny in for a pound, I guess. Worst thing that happens is we fall out of escrow and have to move.

Or I just die of the stress. One or the other.

But, the fact that you're reading this means we did not fall out of escrow, and Chalice Ranch is here to stay. 

There was *a lot* of ridiculous nonsense involved in this transaction.

We opened escrow by essentially taking a leap into the unknown, going on my estimate of what I'd net from the sale of Mom's house to determine what I could put down, and what would have to be financed from there. That, happily, turned out to be a good estimate and never was a source of trouble.

No, the trouble all resulted from less than up-to-standard work.

Specifically, the several decks attached to the house were not up to code. They were so not up to code the appraiser would not sign off on them.

My mom referred to one of the decks as the "suicide deck." She wasn't wrong.

How it started

What followed was a bizarre back-and-forth between myself and the seller. The 16 foot by 14 foot deck attached to the front of the house being the major point of contention. 

All along, it struck me as extremely weird for the seller to insist this deck, not up to code, lacking guard rails and hand rails, suffering from dry rot and age, was somehow the primary selling point of the house. I'm still mystified as to why it's very existence was so important.

Especially since it no longer exists, and somehow the sale went through.

How it's going

But more on that in a future post.

For now, the purchase is complete. Not a single box needs to be packed, nor pen broken down, nor horse loaded to move. We are, at last, here.

Let the work begin.