It's Snowing & That's the End of My Garden For This Year :(

The weatherman actually got it right for once!  The forecast called for snow starting around 6 p.m. & we got it!  It's kind of strange, because yesterday it was in the 80's.  What is sad is that I had to pull everything out of my garden todaybefore the snow ruined it.  Noah & I harvested about 40 really nice ears of corn, 2 cucumbers, one head of cauliflower and all the rest of the carrots, peas, yellow squash, & zucchini.  I also brought in all of the pumpkins, even though most of them were still green.  I've put them in the kitchen window, and I hope they'll turn orange...we'll just have to wait and see.  Sadest of all were the tomatoes...I got a bowlful of nice red ones, and I picked a bunch of green ones, but I left a LOT out on the vines, and I know they'll be ruined by tomorrow morning.  The only consolation is knowing they'll make good fertilizer for next year's crop when I plow them under.  I don't think I'm going to plant any more tomatoes--it's too hard trying to grow them up here.  We're at nearly 6,000 feet, and the weather just isn't hot enough to ripen all of  them before the snow hits every fall.  I'm also giving up on the watermelon & cataloupes--they just can't make it up here.  Ah well...it's still worth the work--I just need to keep learning about what can & can't grow in this area.  The snow's kind of cool for now because it's not sticking & we should have some nice weather again before winter finally gets here.  I don't think Waldo was too thrilled about the first snow, though.  He doesn't like to go outside when there's any form of precipitation coming down, so he just sat & stared out the window at the snowflakes until it got dark.  If we get any appreciable snow at all, I'll post some photos tomorrow.  We'll have to see what it looks like when I get up in the morning.  Have a good night & I'll talk to you soon.

Love,
Buckskin Lily

Buckskin & Noah's Shooting School!!

Even though I didn't win yesterday, I still had a great weekend full of shooting fun.  Today Noah & I had a great time hosting five of the Incheon 40 at our ranch for an afternoon of shooting.  After a quick safety briefing, we got right into gun handling with everyone shooting some .22 rifles off-hand.  Next, everyone took turns shooting their rifles from a rest & they did fantastically!  Either I'm a great teacher, or they were great students, because everyone was shooting bull's eyes all afternoon!  After the rifle shooting everyone bravely took turns firing my shotgun, Black Betty, & they were really good sports about it--'cause I know she kicks.  Next we did some pistol shooting at a steel cowboy target & everyone did a super job again.  They were hitting 5 out of 5 every time.  VERY impressive!  We finished off  by shooting the 6mm at a 200 yard dinger & several people hit the mark.  VERY, VERY impressive!!  These gals & guy are good! I think we need to sign them all up for some cowboy action shooting!!  Afterwards, we all went upstairs for some chicken enchiladas & hot fudge sundaes.  What a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon!!  Can't think of anything better--wonderful company, good food & fun with guns!!  Yee-hah!!

Last Shoot of the Season in Billings, MT

It was a sad day yesterday--the last shoot of the season for the Montana Territory Peacemakers of Billings, MT.  There was a sizable turn out & the weather was great--if you like sandstorms, that is.  Actually, the weather was really nice until the hurricane blew in around the middle of Stage 3.  But anyhow, my shoot was going really nicely as well until Stage 3 when I had to shoot my shotgun from the hip.  Last time I had to do that, I went through about 20 shells & had to leave the targets standing anyway because I ran out of ammo.  So I had myself so psyched out that it took me 20 seconds to knock the dang targets over & that was it for me winning the match.  But not to be deterred, I decided to shoot the best I possibly could despite my match-blowing inability to shoot from the  hip..  And I was shooting really well--fast on my pistols & rifle with NO misses...until...you guessed it!  The last stage!  I misssed my last pistol shot.  DOH!!!  I don't know what it is, but I ALWAYS do something to screw things up.  I just can't keep it together for an entire shoot.  It's SOOO aggravating!  The mental aspects of the game are proving to be the toughest for me to master.  But I know I can do better if I just put my mind to it.  I sure wish we didn't have to take time off for winter--can't wait for next spring...

Buckskin Lily Turns 50!!

It actually happened two days ago, but I haven't had the time or inclination to get around to posting the details since then.  50 doesn't feel so bad.  I don't exactly know what I was expecting--maybe trumpets and heavenly choirs--not too sure?  But it's OK.  I had a nice quiet day--a really nice walk in the morning--it was a BEAUTIFUL day...sunny, warm, no wind...just perfect.  Did a little work, ran in to the office for a short meeting & then came home for my birthday feast:  a mountain of crab legs, a little filet mignon and a nice hot fudge sundae with cherry ice cream for dessert.  All my favorites--and NO cholesterol in any of it! Opened my present...took a few calls & emails.  A nice, low-key event just the way I like it.  I was so worried I'd get a horrid surprise party with black balloons & armbands--now THAT's depressing.  Luckily, I was spared--everyone heeded my warnings & for that I'm TRULY grateful.  Thank you all...Gotta get to bed, got to get up early tomorrow to go to Billings, MT for their last shoot of the season.  Boo-Hoo!  Hope I do OK...I'll take some photos & tell you all about it soon.  We're also having a shooting party here at the ranch on Sunday.  Some of the Korean teachers are coming over to try their hand at some cowboy guns--I'll fill you in on all of that as well--as soon as I possibly can.  Have a great weekend & I'll talk to everyone soon. 

Love,
Buckskin

What is it?

How a Cowgirl Stays in Shape

How's a cowgirl to stay in shape, especially when there aren't any shoots going on?  One great way is to take her cowboy (and her dogs) on a nice Sunday morning walk.  (And now that I'm not teaching anymore, I can actually ENJOY my weekends--no more lesson plans to write or piles and piles of papers & essays to grade!  Yahoo!  Is this how the other half lives?  I'm loving it!)  Anyway, you can't beat a wonderful hike on a beautiful Sunday morning, and we're so very lucky...it isn't everyone who can walk out their front door into some of the most beautiful scenery in the world!!  They brag about their big sky in Montana--but look at our Wyoming sky--it looks pretty big to me! We saw a nice big antelope buck and doe on our walk--but they ran off before I could get a picture of them (yeah--sure!)  And as usual, Suzy finished up her walk with a dip in the canal to cool off her feet.  Noah's cooking up some venison tacos for lunch, so I'd better get going--hiking always gives me a big appetitie--and those tacos are sure smelling good.  Talk to you in a few.  Enjoy the rest of your Sunday! 

Love,

Buckskin Lily

No Shoot Today--What We Did Instead...

Well...it's Saturday, but there aren't any shoots today & it's really too bad.  The weather is absolutely gorgeous.  This is my 3rd fall in Wyoming, and I'm beginning to think it's my favorite season here.  Anyhow...since there was no shoot today, Noah had a little extra time to take care of some chores around the ranch--like putting up winter hay for the horses.  We've got three, and they need 10 tons of hay to make it through the winter.  Noah and his friend Ken from California put up 5 tons by hand about a month ago, then our new shooting pard, Cherokee Joe, just sold us another 5 tons a few days ago.  Luckily, Cherokee Joe has a Bobcat with a loader which he graciously used to load and unload the hay for us.  (I really don't think Noah could have handled it all by himself!!)  So today we were out covering it with tarps.  We don't have a hay barn yet.  We were planning on building one this summer, but we never quite got around to it.  I'll be happy when we do get it up, though, because tying down tarps is a real pain in the you-know-where.  Espcially when the wind is blowing--and when isn't it blowing around here.  I also spent some time messing around in my garden.  It's getting into September, but the garden's still going strong.  Last night we had a wonderful chicken pot pie with garden peas and carrots, for lunch today I made my favorite summer squash casserole, and for dinner we're going to have a pepper & kale pasta with feta cheese.  Ah!  The wonderfulness of fresh garden veggies.  You can't beat 'em!

What I'm Up to Now that I'm NOT Teaching Anymore...

In my blog of September 11, 2009, I was reflecting on the passing of another summer and the coming of fall.  I also shared the fact that for the first time in almost my ENTIRE life, I didn't head back to school this fall & that I'd share a little about what I AM doing instead.  Well, on June 1st, I started a new job with Glacier Bay Training (we don't have much of a website at the moment, but we will soon...more about that when the time comes).  Anyway, my new job with Glacier Bay is a little hard to describe.  My title is Director of Project Development...and as such, I'm putting together English-language training programs.  We currently have a group of 40 Korean school teachers here studying English for 1 year, but our company is quickly expanding, and we will soon have several more groups studying with us.  However, our small team does a little bit of everything as our company is new and growing--from acting as tour guides, counselors, shuttle drivers, party planners, caterers, you name it...our job descriptions go on and on.  I think the best descriptor though, of what I do, is have fun.  This job is vast, varied, unpredictable & intellectually challenging--something I haven't experienced in a job since my early days of teaching way back in the late 80's.  So that's it...I promised I'd give a few more details, and that I did.  Here are a few pics of me & some of the "Incheon 40" teachers who are here studying with us right now.  Talk to you soon!!!

Love,

Buckskin

Happy Birthday, Noah Regrets!!!

Those who know me also know my husband, Noah Regrets.  Well, today was Noah's birthday!!!  I'm not going to tell you his age, because that's fairly irrelevant.   However, I will tell you that I think he had a really great time today.  We took our mule (not the 4-legged kind) & our dogs down the canal road a little way & parked up on a little hill overlooking the Buffalo Bill Reservoir where we enjoyed a picnic lunch.   I'd made some yummy Dijon potato salad (with potatoes from our garden), some fried/baked Parmesan chicken & Noah's favorite--fudgy brownies with a ton of walnuts (in lieu of a birthday cake).  The weather couldn't have been more perfect & even the bugs stayed away.  As we were sitting there eating, I saw the UPS truck driving up the road in the distance & when we got back home, Noah's birthday package was waiting there for him to open.  Perfect timing!  A special day!!!  Enjoy the pics.

I LOST!!! WAAAH!!

Well...the scores came out for yesterday's shoot & I LOST!!!  Bummer!!!  By 7 lousy seconds.  It was that 10-second P that did it to me.  I hate that.  I shot great otherwise, didn't drop a shot, but I still lost, because you can't make a single mistake.  If you let your concentration slip for even a second, that's it.  AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!  Well, live & learn.  That's all you can do.  But this one really stings.  Oh, well...there's always next season. 

Here are the scores (total time for the match is in bold):

High Lonesome Drifters

August 2009
MATCH FINAL OVERALL STANDINGS
Shoot Date: 9/12/2009
1 Six Gun Annie LS 28.46/33.09/30.08/31.85/34.41/22.07 179.96
2 Buckskin Lily LW 31.18/41.77/28.92/31.91/32.53/21.39 187.70
3 Yellowstone Bill GF 30.67/30.77/41.73/37.15/40.49/25.90 206.71
4 Noah Regrets D 36.61/3.31/40.35/38.62/41.00/29.10 228.99
5 Joe Cross S 42.39/34.47/29.65/48.14 /6.03/29.77 240.45
6 Shad Hill D 47.58/41.67/64.54/60.01/53.63/34.98 302.41
7 Katy Hill L49 62.29/62.40/44.95/50.80/56.20/50.81 327.45
8 Cheyenne Joe D 70.93/63.59/59.44/54.26/54.69/34.43 337.34
9 Cheapshot ES 59.30/58.85/60.11/69.69/77.91/47.27 373.13
10 Doc Weed S 60.79/93.17/67.91/89.60/85.75/49.39 446.61
11 Shane C 49.92/42.15/50.65/80.16/150.0/130.00 502.88

Last Shoot of the Summer for High Lonesome Drifters, Cody, WY

Just finished up the last CAS (Cowboy Action Shooting) shoot of the summer for the High Lonesome Drifters at the Cody Shooting Complex in Cody, Wyoming.  You know, we only shoot during the warm months up here--March or so through September or October (it varies by club).  The weather was fine (started out just a tad nippy with a bit of a breeze, but it soon warmed up to a near-perfect temperature somewhere in the low 70's).  Anyway, we had a great turn-out (by Wyoming standards, anyway--11 shooters!)  Don't know if it was the fact that this was the last shoot of the season for this club, or the great weather, or some combination of both, but there was a good crowd for this year's finale.  We had Noah Regrets & me (Buckskin Lily), Joe Cross, Sixgun Annie & Yellowstone Bill, Shad and Katie Hill, Cherokee Joe, Doc Weed (all the way from Billings, MT), Cheapshot, and a new feller who's calling himself Shane for the time being--until he picks himself up a good alias.

I was shooting pretty well today.  We shot 6 stages and I was clean with a P (prodcedural).  I shot one stage out of sequence & got a 10-second penalty for that.  I wasn't happy about it, either...but that's how it goes somedays.  I need to listen to the stage procedure when it's read--CAREFULLY!!!  It's one of those live and learn things--I hate those!  Don't you?  I'm still thinking I may have won the match, anyhow--though it's going to be close.  I'm waiting for the scores to be posted.  I already checked once, but they're not up yet.  You can check them out at the club's website:  http://www.highlonesomedrifters.com/.

Guess there's not much more to say about it for now--until the official results are in.  I'm plumb tuckered out.  Think I'll grab some grub & watch a DVD.  Talk to you all soon--my next shoot's not until the 26th up in Billings, Montana.  Their last one of the season.  I've been doing pretty well up there this summer--I came in first overall last month(beat all the guys and everything!)  You can check out those scores at http://www.montanaterritorypeacemakers.org/. 

So...YEE-HAH!!!  Talk to y'all later.

LOVE,
Buckskin Lily

Autumn--and It's NOT back-to-school time for me!!!

Well...I know it's still officially summer, but autumn is definitely on its way.  The sun is mellowing--it doesn't have quite the intensity of summer anymore.  I love this time of year, but in a bittersweet kind of way.  I love summer...the hot weather, shorts & sandals, sun on my skin, being outdoors in the garden, walking in the hills, playing with the dogs and the horses...all the joys and delights of the season.  But I also love fall...going back to school & all the excitement and possibilities that brings--new things to learn and experience, he subtle change in the weather, harvesting my garden and enjoying its produce, browsing catalogs for new warmer clothes.  But it's still a happy time and a sad time all at once--I've got to leave one season behind to make room for the next & it's tough, because I love them both.

I must comment, however, on my change of status this year.  For the first time since I was FOUR years old, I'm NOT going back to school!!!  I've been either a student or a teacher my entire life, but this year I took a new job, so right now it feels like the whole world is going back to school without me.  It feels VERY, VERY strange, but not strange in a bad way--it's strange in a really GOOD way.  I LIKE it!!!