Americano Blue's musher/mushing chat thread

[RezChamp]

I was happy to see that.

Ya eh. So cool. U bin following the race too then I gather.

 

[Americano Blue]

Ya eh. So cool. U bin following the race too then I gather.

Yes, sir.

 

[RezChamp]

Howdy y'all I am feeling a tad

philosophical today.

I tell my kids, "Don't waste your time going to the school. If you're gona go to the school, go to school. There are only a few ways I know of to make a decent living. 1 is go to school and get a higher income bracket job or career. 2 is back breaking, hand busting, muscle aching hard labor and 3 is prostitution. The choice is yours. Big thing to remember is, whether good or not so great, every thing has consequences." I guess I could've included the drug dealer thing where for as long as I live they would be disallowed any access to their siblings and mom or even coming around the home they grew up in.
"In the world that surrounds you formal education is the perceived rule. Whether or not you or I or anyone likes or dislikes, hates or loves, believes or disbelieves it we make the choice to accept that thusly we are living in that, thusly we are subject to that. Utilize that to your advantage. Face it, the world is very caught up in that "Degree" "Diploma", "Doctorate" thing".
They dislike hearing the same words over and again but it has had a positive effect on them.

play with me here y'all, Perhaps one day you will be powerful enough to make positive changes in the world's thinking.
Who knows....maybe one day it will be you to inform the world's population the Earth is no longer an environmental catastrophe..... keep playing with me here.....because of all your studies and informative workshops/presentations due to your good doctorate degree hanging on your wall.

If you go on Iditarod's page and look at "Musher Profile" for each musher you will see that many of the female mushers have a degree in this or that and some even have doctorates in whatever. A couple of them are even vets. That means that if you step right out of grade 12 grad into university that's only 7 years.
Some of the mushers I personally know are Social Workers. Some are musicians, jockeys, heavy equipment operators, lawyers, Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology, school teachers, trappers, loggers, fishermen/women, tour guides, Natural Resources officers, pilots, mechanics......... Mushing is kinda like booze and/or drugs in that it doesn't care where you live, what your education is, your marital status, your language, how tall or short, fat or skinny, it just takes you as you are and does it's work on you.

Even though I have a few post-secondary certificates/diplomas, I chose a less traveled route per say. I hitch-hiked(less traveled???(hahahahahahaha)) around North America for 20 years. I've been a gardener, Alcohol,Drug and Substance Abuse Councillor, dishwashing, home renos, construction, grounds keeper, firefighter, to make a long story short, to fly a plane or helicopter is about all I haven't done. I had 1 goal in mind. I have studied under some of the best teachers between Churchill, Manitoba to Phoenix, Arizona to St. Vincents, Newfoundland to Spokane, Washington and many, many places in between. Now, even though I am essentially retired and work partime at the landfill, I teach Aboriginal Culture to the North American Red Indian. I get compensated quite decently for it.
The road I took was long, sometimes literally life threatening, sometimes very cushy, sometimes I was well fed, sometimes on the brink of starvation. Although it was arduous it was also beautiful.
It was however very long. It took almost 30 years before I am earning enough for me to keep my fam and my dogs healthy.

my point in all of this..... You have time. You have a shortcut available to you. Use that to your advantage.
There again opens another question....

What is "to my advantage?".....Material gain??? Saving the Earth for my children and grandchildren? Saving enough $$$ to hire a spaceship for an excursion to outerspace? Saving the Earth

for my children and grandchildren. Investing in the oil industry??? Saving the Earth for my children

and grandchildren

?

A little joke thingy to lighten it now....
So... On

Sunday morning the hen

holding a full basket says to the rooster

,"Cmon Honey. It's time to hide the kids

again."

 

[RezChamp]

Wow. It was +10*C & windy on Sunday and since has cooled off a bit to where there's a few of the highest drifts leaving a few remnants of themselves on the Earth. I have been fighting grass fires for 3 days due to the weather conditions. I just about got some of my dogs roasted. Stupid neighbors sparked up by their barn and didn't stand by. After I made sure my dogs were safe I tended to protecting my pigeon coops since the grassland swings around some shrubbery and borders the bird area of my yard. I feel kind of guilty about feeling like "Darn good enough for you" when I saw their deceased dad's abandoned homestead garage burn down. Wow! that thing took only about 8or10 mins to go. Practically exploded.
Today

it's -10*C, breezy, and a blanket of snow covers the entire surrounding area. Not good enough for mushing due to all the standing spring run-off but still...blindingly white...with the sun shining between intermittent high, white poofy clouds....OMGoddness it be gorgeous. Life is so beautiful.
The bad? I was going work on new

doghouses but the lumber I left strewn about ready for assembly is covered with snow
so now I am just

waiting for everything to melt and/or dry.

 

[theuglyduckling]

Wow. It was +10*C & windy on Sunday and since has cooled off a bit to where there's a few of the highest drifts leaving a few remnants of themselves on the Earth. I have been fighting grass fires for 3 days due to the weather conditions. I just about got some of my dogs roasted. Stupid neighbors sparked up by their barn and didn't stand by. After I made sure my dogs were safe I tended to protecting my pigeon coops since the grassland swings around some shrubbery and borders the bird area of my yard. I feel kind of guilty about feeling like "Darn good enough for you" when I saw their deceased dad's abandoned homestead garage burn down. Wow! that thing took only about 8or10 mins to go. Practically exploded.
Today

it's -10*C, breezy, and a blanket of snow covers the entire surrounding area. Not good enough for mushing due to all the standing spring run-off but still...blindingly white...with the sun shining between intermittent high, white poofy clouds....OMGoddness it be gorgeous. Life is so beautiful.
The bad? I was going work on new

doghouses but the lumber I left strewn about ready for assembly is covered with snow
so now I am just

waiting for everything to melt and/or dry.

hmm you should make a blog. sometimes i come on here because i enjoy reading the posts.

 

[RezChamp]

hmm you should make a blog. sometimes i come on here because i enjoy reading the posts.

I don't know what blog is. It sounds to me like a slough I might find in a large grove of Black Spruce.

 

[RezChamp]

Yes, sir.

Hi Blue. How's things? Still have Meringue? Still training?

We still had really wintery weather here till 4 days ago. Kinda. I thought Spring had arrived but "April Fool"! It wasn't real cold. Bout -5 to -10*C during the day and occasionally as low as -18 to -20 at night. Cold enough to freeze the ponds and drainage ditches. So I took the sled out of the shed 1 more time and took Sparticus, Oreo, Angel & Keyno on a 3 mile. Aw, Angels 'Sibe' coat gave him plenty reason to pant pretty good but the other 3 were good. Actually Sparticus & Oreo looked like they were ready to go another 3... Or 5... Or 10??? So I figure Sparticus has 3, maybe 4 years of hard goin left in him& Oreo about 6 or 7. Keyno is 2 as is Angel so they got plenty of vinegar left in them. Has there been any development in regards to you taking these 4?
If it helps we might be able to meet you north of Plentywood & south of Regina at the confluence of the North Dakota, Montana, Saskatchewan borders. I figure by the pix you're somewhere in them mountains that side(west) so I might be able to get them(K9's) closer. Please keep in mind I say "might". I
f that happens though we won't be able to take the houses. Just the dogs. Oh ya, their collars, chains too. Also keep in mind that I would need lots of 'heads-up' time. Like 2 or 3 weeks anyways.
LMK ASAP. Thanks

 

[charnic44]

How's everyone doing? Haven't been on in a while, BUT I have some pretty awesome news!

Cinna (the pup I got as a 4-5 month old, now about 1.5 years) had 5 big, healthy pups! 4 males & 1 female. They are doing great so far; they were born April 11th. Though this wasn't a planned breeding, I luckily know who the father is. I now have a kennel of 18, including the 5 pups (I will try to introduce everyone later). Man they are gonna be some beautiful pups. They're gonna have their momma's white markings and some will turn out more silver and some with more brown. One male will have more solid black than the other though. Anyways, that's what's been happening around here.

Hi Blue. How's things? Still have Meringue? Still training?

We still had really wintery weather here till 4 days ago. Kinda. I thought Spring had arrived but "April Fool"! It wasn't real cold. Bout -5 to -10*C during the day and occasionally as low as -18 to -20 at night. Cold enough to freeze the ponds and drainage ditches. So I took the sled out of the shed 1 more time and took Sparticus, Oreo, Angel & Keyno on a 3 mile. Aw, Angels 'Sibe' coat gave him plenty reason to pant pretty good but the other 3 were good. Actually Sparticus & Oreo looked like they were ready to go another 3... Or 5... Or 10??? So I figure Sparticus has 3, maybe 4 years of hard goin left in him& Oreo about 6 or 7. Keyno is 2 as is Angel so they got plenty of vinegar left in them. Has there been any development in regards to you taking these 4?
If it helps we might be able to meet you north of Plentywood & south of Regina at the confluence of the North Dakota, Montana, Saskatchewan borders. I figure by the pix you're somewhere in them mountains that side(west) so I might be able to get them(K9's) closer. Please keep in mind I say "might". I
f that happens though we won't be able to take the houses. Just the dogs. Oh ya, their collars, chains too. Also keep in mind that I would need lots of 'heads-up' time. Like 2 or 3 weeks anyways.
LMK ASAP. Thanks

On that note, Blue: if you decide to get the dogs, my mom might be able to help transport them. She is headed to Vermont and back to Montana with a horse trailer, leaving here the 20th of April. She might be able to get them a little closer to where you are on her way back, as long as you could help out with gas costs. Just a thought.

I can't believe you have snow! It's been up into the 60s-70s here! It rained for a few days & now it's gonna be hot again (at least the grass will grow). Spring has definetly arrived around here, the horses are shedding their winter hair, we are expecting 3 foals within the next month, and like I said, it's getting hot.

 

[RezChamp]

How's everyone doing? Haven't been on in a while, BUT I have some pretty awesome news!



Cinna (the pup I got as a 4-5 month old, now about 1.5 years) had 5 big, healthy pups! 4 males & 1 female. They are doing great so far; they were born April 11th. Though this wasn't a planned breeding, I luckily know who the father is. I now have a kennel of 18, including the 5 pups (I will try to introduce everyone later). Man they are gonna be some beautiful pups. They're gonna have their momma's white markings and some will turn out more silver and some with more brown. One male will have more solid black than the other though. Anyways, that's what's been happening around here.
On that note, Blue: if you decide to get the dogs, my mom might be able to help transport them. She is headed to Vermont and back to Montana with a horse trailer, leaving here the 20th of April. She might be able to get them a little closer to where you are on her way back, as long as you could help out with gas costs. Just a thought.

I can't believe you have snow! It's been up into the 60s-70s here! It rained for a few days & now it's gonna be hot again (at least the grass will grow). Spring has definetly arrived around here, the horses are shedding their winter hair, we are expecting 3 foals within the next month, and like I said, it's getting hot.

Hi charnic. nice to hear from you.
Cinna turned out nice eh.

Black on her pads is good. I wish I could get that back into mine(K9's).
18. You're catching up to me aint you.

I don't know to feel

or

for you. Tis a labor of love. sometimes lots and lots of work. But there is the beautiful kind of lover only a dog can repay your hardwork with.
I can hardly contain myself to see more pix of the pups. It's always so nice to see pups develop.
20th aint gona work for me. Got an event on the 23rd. There's a lot of prep work goin on. It (20th) would've been perfect though eh. You are a very thoughtful friend.

(I couldn't find a bouquet)
Ya. still wintery. But that was last week. Weird...I just took off my longjohns on Thursday and stood them in the corner

to wait till next season. Then we even got snow and sleet again on Friday. It was horrible tryna travel. Lots of vehicles in the ditch....again. had to "de-retire" my longjohns for a cpl more days. Now today I was doing some yard work with just a T-shirt on. and of course rubberboots because it's so muddy.

Aw....my poor dogs. Their yard is gross. Never been this dirty before. No use moving them either. It's the same every where. Weird. I don't remember seeing this kind of weather in my life. I suppose I could take the entire pack to the gravel pit reject pile. They would be definitely high and dry but it would very difficult to drive the pegs into a humongous pile of boulders and rocks.
I just had a revelation.....Clear cutting.... I live down slope of what usta be a beautiful wooded ridge with all kinds of fruit and nut shrubs, berries of all kinds and deciduous and coniferous trees. OOOO there were some dandy old Sillver Spruce in there, All gone now.

The farmers pushed down the bush and burned the piles. Now it's flooding because all the snow melted at once.(Trees usta provide shade for a slow melt). It'd cost about $8G to haul in screened gravel and I can't afford that. Besides, I don't like to put a bunch of gravel in that fertile meadow. Never know, I could die tonight and my wife will get rid of the dogs...so may as well leave the meadow with it's fertile black soil instead of gravel. Gravel don't grow delicious greens and deer don't eat gravel. .....so I guess my poor dogs are just gona hafta tuff-it-out for a few days.

 

[RezChamp]

When the weather is good and the dog area looks a bit better I wanna take some pix of my Birthaday Brood(namesakes of my 'BYC mushing daughters')and then post them.
Gee they are gorgeous.