Random Five Friday

1. We've had very weird weather this week. Monday night and Tuesday morning we had snow. Wednesday and Thursday were cloudy and comfortable. This evening when I drove up the driveway, I noticed piles of white on the roof of the house; three distinct piles. I put my foot on the brake, stopped, and stared. Tuesday, the snow had turned to rain mid-morning. It rained all day and there was no trace of snow left by evening. It was 44F when I got home; not cold enough for snow. I looked at the ground and noticed piles of white pebbles. Mystery solved. As I walked to the house with a bag of groceries, I called to Brett who was mucking Flash's stall, "When did it hail?" He called back, "just a few minutes ago." Tomorrow should be clear and cool; Sunday they are saying we will be in the 70s. April is unsettled here in the Sierras.

2. Yesterday, Winston had an appointment with a therapist; a cross between physical therapy and a massage. She said that he was sore but that the soreness was recent and superficial, consistent with being in work. He was very interested in her pockets. I suspected cookies. I was wrong. She had small vials of oil infused with different scents. He liked the lavender one but his favorite was one labeled "trauma." She unscrewed the cap and waved the bottle under his nose. He followed it all the way back to her pocket. She had five or six "flavors" but he only liked the two; and he liked them a lot. He was very entertaining while she worked on him; alternating between sleepy eyed relaxation and yawning to release tension.

3. The therapist also checked pressure points -- similar to acupuncture but using pressure instead of needles. When she pressed on the points that connect to the stomach, he flinched and yanked his foot away from her. All compass points seem to be pointing to ulcers.

4. Today after work, I took Winston for a walk around the barn property. We started on the wide path that leads from the barn out to the dressage courts. The wide areas of grass on either side where I had been hand grazing Winston, had been mowed and the smell of fresh cut grass mingled with the smell of rain. We walked past the dressage courts onto a muddy lane that ran along side the back paddocks. At the end of the last paddock, a trail led to the top of a levy. We followed the levy down to a fence and then scampered back down to the other side of the paddocks taking a single track trail back to the dressage courts. The grass was knee high so we slowed to a crawl while Winston greedily ripped at the grass and the dandelions.

5. Tonight for dinner we had a working woman weeknight dinner staple: stir fried vegetables over rice. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product -- we were hungry and dove right in. Bok choy, kale and a variety of mushrooms; a little garlic and ginger, salt and pepper. Simple. Fast. Tasty.