What did you do today?

[Saltlick]

Thanks you guys!! And Dave, come on out there any time! I need all the help I can get. For starters, a 4WD truck

[Nanno]

I've had a rather harrowing last couple of days. My horse Skokie has been colicking since Friday morning. I took him to see the vet, took him for trailer rides, walked him up and down the driveway, made him trot, and mostly sat around feeling helpless for two days. Last night was a sleepless one. He got worse and worse all day Saturday, and sometime around midnight I was sure he wasn't going to pull through. I had called my neighbor earlier that evening to ask if he could come put Skokie down for me in the middle of the night if he started to suffer too much. Thank goodness I didn't have to make that call! Very, very slowly Skokie began to recover during the wee hours, and he spent most of today still sick but less distressed than before. This afternoon he started nibbling grass here and there and he spent more time just laying down instead of getting up and down. I let him lay down as long as he wanted--he desperately needed the rest. He spent a long time napping in the afternoon sun, and this evening he looked well enough that I left for a few hours to attend a Christmas concert. When I got home he was eating like a horse! I still put his blanket on him tonight and I'll certainly be checking on him right before bed and early in the morning, but I think he finally pulled through!

About that Christmas concert--Friday night and this evening Phil and I performed! I sang in front of people for the first time in my life. I dressed up all fancy with lots of make-up (fake eyelashes!) like a night club singer and sang "Santa Baby". Phil dressed as Santa Clause and sang back-up. Phil also played a Christmas medley on his viola. He was better than me, but he's had more practice.

Phil also launched his new game, Galcon 2, on Steam this weekend and my parents came to visit. Whew! It's been a very busy weekend!

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

wow great job Nanno! Colic sucks!

[Saltlick]

Glad to hear it Nanno!!! I lost my favorite horse to colic when I was 17 or 18, it was so so heartbreaking - a truly terrible thing - so glad your horse made it!

---

Well, here's my horse - he's great with the goats! In fact Putnik (the white, fat goat) tries to hog the horse's food! I named him Bodie.

[Nanno]

I went riding with my friend Wendy today, and Finn came with us! I put him on a leash until I got away from home and past my neighbor's goats, but I'm not sure I really even needed it. He's always so happy to get out there and do stuff with people, and he's not the least bit hesitant about following me on a horse. He baa-aa-ed a lot at first, but he settled down eventually. The first thing Wendy commented on was his lovely aroma. I hardly notice it these days.

After I got home, I played with Sputnik for a while. I stood my horse, Jet, next to one of our spools and used cookies to bribe Sputnik up onto the saddle. He went as far as putting his front feet up there, but never got quite bold enough to jump all the way up. I'll bet with a little more practice he might just ride that pony!

[Saltlick]

I have to see that!!! Funny how you have a Sputnik and I have a Putnik, and they mean the same thing in two different Slavic languages. Great goat names!

[Nanno]

So... what does Sputnik/Putnik mean? I don't even know!

I'm like one of those silly people who get some Asian character tattooed on their neck, and since they don't speak or read the language themselves, they're just taking the artist's word for it that it doesn't say "village idiot."

[Taffy]

Sputnik: from Russian, literally: fellow traveler, from s- with + put path + -nik suffix indicating agent.

I think that's a pretty good name for a goat!

[Nanno]

Phew! Sputnik is a good name then.

Today I worked on getting him to jump up in the tractor loader when I said "bucket". He didn't like it when I started moving it up and down, but I think he'll be ok with it if I just do it a few more times. I want to teach him to jump on stuff I tell him to jump on and stay there until I ask him to get down.

[Taffy]

Why do you want him to jump on things and stay until you ask him to get down?