Friday, February 12, 2021 (36 days until First Day of Spring)

Spring, please, get here early!

All day yesterday snow slowly fell in little-bitty flakes, not the big fluffy kind that draws us to windows to witness nature’s beauty. Yesterday’s all-day fall compared to past snowstorms didn’t much accumulate nor become too bothersome. At least, not at Eight Pines Ranch. Yet, in trips to and from the barn, my cleated boots did do some wading-through and kicking-up. Today, we’re likely to be hit again. Several predicted follow-on snowstorms supposedly could fall for days and spike the challenges of navigating on foot or in a vehicle.

My horses spent much time standing in a shed that sheltered them, but on spotting me hurrying downhill toward the barn, they ignored falling snow and accumulated beside the gate. Soon, I’d be coming toward them and pulling a hay-filled sled. It’s a feeding ritual that happens several times daily. Horses always are hungry.

The horses’ bodies are warm and yet sport unmelted snow. Not a worry, because by plunging my fingers deeply into a horse’s coat, its bodily warmth is revealed. As a matter of practice, when my fingers feel stiff and frozen, I slip the gloves and warm my bare hands against an equine body.

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My fantasy is that we’ve seen all the snow that’ll fall.

Meanwhile, my heat pump is failing. The inside temperature is about 50 degrees, it’s freezing in here! Luckily, I noticed the thermostat dropping and sensed failure, for my heat pump usually maintains a steady temperature. Luckily yesterday, I could reach the furnace folks and arrange for help this morning. Meanwhile, my pellet stove will warm the area.

Usually, system failures occur at the most awful times, like major holidays or on Sundays. This one could have been a huge problem in cold, snowy weather, and fortunately, the conditions outside aren’t bad enough to tie up repair crews.

Dear Friends: Stay warm and have a wonderful day. Diana

Thursday, February 11, 2021 (38 days until First Day of Spring)

Yeah, oh yeah, here in Central Oregon starting around noon, we can anticipate a massive snowfall that’ll continue a couple of days. Also, a spell of very cold weather that’ll keep snow on the ground for days. We’ve had a heads-up long enough to prepare, and as usual, in moments just prior I’ll leap into action.

First this morning, a couple of outings. I must pick up my Jeep from the repair shop and then go to receive a first Covid injection. Returning home, I’ll gas up and start the snow-blowers, they’re critical in combating snowy terrains. My house on a hill, has me needing blown paths to and from the barn, and a blown driveway that’s long and curvy.

The horses will stay home where they have shelter. Aside from periodic tosses of hay, and unless downfall requires snow-blowing, I’ll be inside with the dogs, birds, and Max the cat. An inside free afternoon will let me experiment with ideas for designing a webpage for the Eight Pines Ranch.

A focused webpage is a huge commitment requiring one or more clear themes, objectives, and goals. To focus and develop my hopeful ideas, I’ll apply practical methods used to create viable business plans. There will be more to come.

Meanwhile, if you find yourself in a snow zone, bundle up. Put to good use all inside time.

Dear Friends: A dedication to continuous learning would be a webpage backbone. Diana

Wednesday, January 10, 2021 (39 days until the First Day of Spring)

It’ll happen, that on Thursday this area will be walloped by a major snowstorm. Today, I’ll practice starting my big snow-blower to be ready for battling harsh elements. I also have new snowshoes in the correct size and poles for navigating. I’ve dreamed of taking pictures while out walking on snowshoes, a great fantasy but unlikely, as snowshoeing itself is very hard work. Especially for one as out of shape as me.

In yesterday’s late afternoon, while going to retrieve the horses from pasture, I carried my camera. The day before, as I was leading horses out from the pasture, an owl surprised me by swooping down and landing about 50 feet away. Maybe it was watching for a rodent, sat a couple of minutes before flying away.

I so wanted a camera! Not that it would have done much good as my hands were full of lead ropes. The horses and I were leaving the pasture when again that owl landed, not far away, and paused momentarily before taking off. With me completely helpless to capture that owl.

I timed the next day’s trip to the pasture to be in late afternoon and with a camera. That time of day birds are active, hunting late or settling in with an eye on their territories. I took pictures and most turned out colorless in that late light. There’s a camera setting to offset drab lighting, but it’s yet to be explored.

Of course no owl appeared, but a nanosecond before lowering my camera and attending to waiting horses, another area resident flew overhead–the Red Tailed Hawk!, a bird I’ve looked for as well as its mate. Swooping high and landing atop a tall tree, the hawk stayed put, but distant enough to require the camera’s entire zoom capacity. The image is an interesting profile, and powerful, but lacking enough definition to suit me.

I’d been toying with Adobe Photoshop to understand its capabilities and wondered if that program’s assets might strengthen the original capture. Here’s the thing, I like the original but for the blog wanted feathers and sky.

This has pushed me into Photoshop World. Not easy, for one ought to understand how to work with nearly colorless photos. In the end though, my efforts did better define the image’s key elements.

Dear Friends: Anything that interests us enough can push us on forward. Diana

Tuesday, February 09, 2021 (40 days until First Day of Spring)

My new toys are up and running, after having received and installed various auxiliary parts. Today’s header photo is of a flicker high in a treetop. It’s from my 70sx zoom camera, with me about fifty yards away. The eye viewer helps to stabilize shots, yet there’s a little camera shake. I tried three times to capture the entire bird, finally successful in an instant before it flew.

From a distance, here are “the girls” grazing in a neighbor’s pasture.

I continued to check capture possibilities over distances. Here, the camera is zeroed-in to capture individualities. As usual, Pimmy’s whole cute self is irresistible.

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I love bluebirds–beautiful, quick and fun. This season. many are hanging by my barn.

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Like, whole flocks of them.

Finally, because this is so cool, a tree-scape.

An apparatus arrived that should enable better camera stabilization during high zooming. Stabilizing is the challenge, for even a slight push of the capture button adds a little shake. A new controller that I’ll try out today adds a separate handheld device which helps with focus and remotely captures images.

Dear Friends: A step forward will be, on snowshoes, out tramping with camera. Diana

Monday, February 08, 2021 (42 days until First Day of Spring)

While stumbling around on the internet I happened across what makes today special. February 8 is “Opera Day”. That strikes a old cord within me from years ago when I was a huge opera fan. Many Saturdays, I reserved time to listen to the Met’s live broadcasts, and in those days I owned bunches of live opera recordings on LPs. In Kansas City where I lived, tickets for good seats at concerts back then were cheap. I attended performances by classical artists and learned the joy of experiencing in real time the capabilities of the human voice.

I’m still an opera fan although now out of date. I too rarely take time to concentrate on lovely song stories told by great artists. Anyway, this morning, fiddling around on the topic of opera, I pulled up some of my favorite artists in great performances. For awhile, I was lost in music.

So, this is a good day for sharing opera. Maybe something universal appealing and beautifully performed but not too lengthy. I discovered everything wished for captured in this video, a recording session with wonderful musicians performing famous music. From the opera, Lakmé, by the French composer Delibes, this song is entitled, Duo des fleurs (Flower Duet). The singers are soprano, Sabine Devieilhe, and mezzo soprano, Marianne Crebassaof.

Enjoy four minutes of sheer deliciousness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1ZL5AxmK_A

Dear Friends: Today is about waking-up, taking time to listen and feel the sublime. Diana

Sunday, February 07, 2021

Sorry to say, I’m not yet set up to transfer photos from my new camera to the computer. Believe me, I’ve fiddled with ways to make a transfer all this morning, but am forced now to toss in the towel as this is a at-work day at Costco.

What’s most irritating is that yesterday the photos did transfer, maybe today I’m too anxious and that’s the problem. Anyway, this will be settled tomorrow because there’s a transfer cable on its way to me. The cable allows a direct connection between two hardware elements, enabling data exchanges. No more will I be scrambling to download photos using bluetooth and wifi! Nevermore, I can hope…but as usual, must nod to a caveat.

A forced partial-learning occurs while attempting to do new things, even in failing. This business of transferring by using new ways begins another “new to me” that in the near future I’ll have to know “how to do”. That’s ahead and not so worrisome because recently I learned to use a complex computer system, and did all right. Chalking-up a yea for having faced a challenge.

I could spin off into the mysteries and joys of learning, but haven’t time this morning. You know and I know that it’s a major topic with me and will pop up another day.

Dear Friends: Have a wonderful day by making it a point to learn something new. Diana

Saturday, February 06, 2021 (

Today I’m writing on a new computer and feeling slightly awkward because of improved technology over my several years with another computer. This new machine has a more responsive and intelligent keyboard, it has larger keys spaced slightly more apart. My fingers keep slipping and sliding.

There’s more that’s new. Yesterday my zoom camera arrived. I took it outside to practice shooting and think we’ll become good friends. Today’s header photo from that camera is a quickie, snapped from faraway of standing snow. It was intended as a toss-away, but something about the image is attractive, somehow reminding me of shallow water. I didn’t adjust or alter it, so there, a work of art capture.

While busy with the new computer and camera, I totally neglected my phone. This morning its battery is dead, and too bad, It holds more pictures from yesterday that I hoped to share, but can’t until the phone again is up and running.

Dear Friends: Just a quickie while working through a transition, have a great day. Diana

Friday, February 05, 2021 (43 days before the first day of spring)

Recently, I reduced my at-work days to two weekly. This requires a reorientation to freedom in daytimes. That seems easy, but after six months of absence from routine household and property work, returning things to order means catching up to points past.

I’m wrapping my head around what needs attention, am astonished by all the “ignored messy”, while dashing into or out of the house. My key focus has been caring for animals, leaving most everything else untouched. The exceptions are in key spots, like cleaning the kitchen counter where food is prepared, and organizing the master bathroom so as to hasten myself off to the job.

Working nearly full time was a grand experiment, an way to escape frequent solitude. My working team, re-beginning after months of being laid off, required me to work five days weekly. After months of self-isolating, I looked forward to the workplace.

Starting again was fun, sometimes stressful. The problems were that horses need hay and someone keeping a watch over then, and dogs need to be inside during rain and extreme cold, or outside in improved weather. Wanting to be in two places at once began overcoming the fun of working and got me rethinking my commitment.

So, today’s my second of being home, free from the job another few days. Yesterday, like a kid in hardly recognizable surroundings, I organized some but mostly loafed around. Ahead, I’ll take my dogs out for runs, walk the streets with Peaches on my shoulder, and lead my dwarf goats on strolls through the neighborhood. The horses, meanwhile, will graze at a neighbor’s place, until it’s warm and time to get them into condition for summer’s riding and driving.

Dear Friends: Freedom and planning encourage eagerness for spring’s arrival. Diana

Thursday, February 04, 2021 (in 45 days, spring will arrive)

My computer has neared the ending of its rope. It’s taken its processor this entire early morning to settle enough to allow me onto my blog site. Meanwhile, I used my cell phone to order a new computer which will arrive sometime tomorrow.

In tomorrow’s early morning, I’ll attempt with my now-computer to send a hello, at least.

So, here’s today’s “at-least-hello”. Am glad finally, to be getting something going.

Thanks for hanging-in with me. It’ll be fun working on a new computer with faster, more accurate processing.

Dear Friends: Coming two (forced) new items: a camera and a laptop; and, wow! Diana

Wednesday, February 03, 2021 (In 46 days, the first day of spring)

This computer is a bear today, won’t open nor run properly. This happens when an update continues to process, but more likely, now is about time to replace this unit, beginning its third year of service. Experience teaches that a processor on the road to “slow and undependable” might have a failing hard drive.

Getting started today has gobbled too much time and I must go to work. So here are photos from the other day during practice with my 40sx zoom camera.

The header photo is one of the local plentiful mountain bluebirds. These are pretty little birds that I love, but aren’t particularly bright. Sometimes they nest in my barn and are dedicated parents, fun to see working hard to help their babies grow and fly.

Here’s a terrific bird shot. This robin landed very briefly in one of my pines and I almost missed it.

These days, pine trees aren’t where this Robin and its buddies mostly hang out. Instead, they’re flocking to junipers, loaded now with ripe berries, and happily becoming drunkards.

Dwarf goats are cute and irresistible. Here’s Poppy, in a goat trance, while happily rubbing her butt against a log.

And Poppy’s twin sister, Breeze, pretty and sweet.

These goat twins are entering their eleventh year. They’re affectionate and smart, and would enjoy pulling a little wagon. It’s a dream I’ve not given up on.

Finally, these are my last surviving hens also entering their eleventh year and hanging-in pretty well. Chickens need buddies, and so finally, after one of these gals goes, the other will spend her last days as my inside-house hen.

These are good captures by my 40sx, but many shots failed. This camera lacks an eye-viewer to help brace it, which makes handling too shaky to control focus. Otherwise, it’s a fine camera, useful in many situations. I’ll keep practicing.

Dear Friends: It’s fun out around the barn, and usually, includes new learning. Diana