Saturday, April 19, 2014

Easter is upon us

I got a call from a company that one of my previous co-workers gave my name as referral, I had to take an assessment, one of those kind of tests that you have to problem solve. The tests are timed and I always get nervous, I don't know if I passed or not. Going through the interview process is getting harder and harder, I feel like I am really feeling intimidated because I am up against younger applicants. When you are laid-off of course your spirits can get pretty low and you feel like you are stuck in a deep rut.

I am still working on the fence, it is never fun putting up fence or easy either. Kylie road Aubrey yesterday and really for the first time in a long time enjoyed it. I finally found out about my college credits and I have 40 although not all of them will apply to this degree, I will have to take college algebra again, I am not looking forward to it.

Today Kylie worked and will be off tomorrow which is nice, the guy who owns the little store she works doesn't ask his employees to work holidays like Easter, his store will only be open a few hours and he will work them. I thought that was very nice, Kylie doesn't know how fortunate she is because most retail jobs demand you work holidays.

The weather is really nice and one morning I went on my farm sit and there was still snow in some places and by the end of the day the grass had burst into vibrant green. I wish I could say it made me feel better but I am kind of down because of the work situation and nothing is shaking it.

Kylie had a sleep over during the week and her friends family sent some Easter gifts and even a small ham home with her. I appreciated it very much because neither of us were much in the holiday mood. When Kylie was little I used to hide Easter eggs all over the house and in the yard, I bought her a stuffed bunny every year, she still has big bunny which was a huge stuffed bunny I got her when she was little. I have reflected on Christ and the real meaning of Easter the past few days. It is so easy with how commercial things are now to forget the meaning of the holiday and what we should celebrate.

Tomorrow I will do my farm sit and we will go to the flea market, we'll have a nice dinner and maybe see the horses. It will be a quiet day, I am not even sure that my brother will come down and visit. I have cleaned a couple of rooms this week, I need to vacuum upstairs and dust the rest of the house.

I will be grooming my dogs within the next few days so the house will stay cleaner longer, they are shedding and the ponies and horses are too. Soon it will be time to cut the grass, it will be a challenge this year because our mower is on it's last leg. I had intended to replace it this year but that isn't going to happen now.

I will move the pony fence around some to let the ponies mow the grass for me so maybe I'll just have to cut the front yard, that is plenty all by its self. I have been able to spend time with Kylie and I start school at the end of April but I am scared, I just don't know how much longer we can keep going without finding a job.

I pray and hope that God has a plan for us and that it will all be well. 

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

The horror

Beautiful warm weather and then this morning the first thing I see is snow on the ground, the horror. Of course it will be gone in a day but still after the winter we had it's hard to look at. Yesterday I picked up the last of the fence and will start installing it this week on a warm day.

I feel bad for the horses and other animals outside, it's going to be really cold tonight. Kylie rode Aubrey yesterday and there were three other horses in the arena, he did really well. Kylie was frustrated because she was almost saddled up when others showed up and sort of took over the arena, she wanted to work on some of Aubrey's issues under saddle but couldn't do it. They still had a good ride and like in all boarding barns there are always some people who don't respect others. We will work around it coming out earlier or at night to make sure we have some alone time to do more work with both Aubrey and Cody. Hopefully soon it will be hot enough to give the horses a bath.

The farm sitting is very therapeutic, the animals are really sweet and I am enjoying the trees and land too. I wish I had more farms to sit, it is a nice way to earn some money and at the same time allow people to go on vacation without having to worry.

Later today I have to pick up the check from the grooming I did and take Kylie to Home Depot, I plan on doing some housework since it's cold outside and gloomy. 

Sunday, April 13, 2014

End of a busy weekend

Litchfield sprung to life this weekend, the warm sunshine seemed to bring everyone outdoors. I have to admit I enjoyed it myself. I finished my job today with a Newfoundland that had been partially dried without his coat being blown out and with what was dried the hair was knotted from the dryer. I was thankful that he was a sweet gentle giant and I worked on him till I got him straitened out. A good bather is worth their weight in gold, it is more than just giving a dog a bath, it is using the right products, washing and working in the shampoo and most importantly dry the dog with skill while brushing out the coat.

I did not have the advantage of having a good bather and if I plugged in more than one dryer the breaker would shut off and I'd have to stop and flip it back on. It was a challenging day to say the least. I drove over to where Kylie works afterwards and bought her a late lunch and stayed with her for awhile. I came home and then we went to the farm sit and finally home for the evening.

Tomorrow I will start getting things cleaned up around here and get the posts in for the fence. I am hoping to spend some time with our horses too. I am also praying for a good job opportunity to come along since things are picking up. 

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Going from nothing to total chaos

I picked up fence on Monday and started grooming on Tuesday. The week went well, I started the farm sitting on Thursday. I like farm sitting the best, it's peaceful going to a farm and I see to seniors, a horse and a mule, some cats and two dogs. They are great animals and know their routine very well.

Kylie worked Friday evening, Saturday and she will work tomorrow. I am really proud of her, she gets ready for work on time and has integrity. I took her to a steel shop this week to look at metal sheets for her projects, she was really fascinated by it all.

The old truck sold at auction and did really well which is good news, we need the money this month to keep the lights on, food, board, and the lease payment. I did get some calls and emails from some of the jobs I submitted my resume to and that means are starting to pick up.

Our bunny Theodore went off of his food and had a flare up of snuffles, it's a bacterial issue that causes an upper respiratory infection that if not treated can be fatal. I picked up some antibiotics and started giving him spinach and cleaned his cage. Theodore is better now even without the antibiotics and I am relieved. I just couldn't go through another death right now, he is such a sweet bunny and we've had him for a few years.

Towards the end of the week the grooming didn't go so well. There is no bather and the dogs are big and have long full coats. I would bet that most of the dogs I have done have been roughed up by the previous groomer and that makes it tough. Today there were too many dogs booked and I had a bather for a couple of them but bathed the rest myself. One person wanted me to cut her elderly dogs nails till they bled to get them short enough and I refused. I was able to sand the down without hurting the dog and get the nails shorter.

To do a good job grooming and for the dog to feel relaxed there needs to be a bather and a groomer when there are more than three or four dogs in a day unless they are small and short haired. I doubt if the owners of the place will agree with me that is why I think the dogs were roughed up. When I see such fear in dogs that are groomed regularly something is not right.

I told the owner's of the place I wasn't comfortable and I will work tomorrow and that's it. I worked in a great grooming shop before and they did 8 or 10 dogs a day minimum but there were two bathers and one groomer. The dogs loved going there and they were washed dried and groomed to perfection. I am a much better groomer just from working at the other shop, I learned so much and it's a shame things aren't going to work out but I won't put dogs through it or myself.

I start school at the end of the month and if I don't pick up a good job this month will continue dog boarding here and pet sitting. I also have to finish putting up the fence and redoing the pony fence before the grass starts growing tall.

Tomorrow is going to be a tough day, I will be glad when it is over. I will take Kylie to work in the morning go to the farm sit and head to the shop and finish it up. I have to pack up my equipment and bring it home. I think I will be relieved really.

I am so grateful for the sunshine and the warmth, I realize that I felt very down and it may have been mostly the weather, of course getting some interest in my resume didn't hurt either. I try and thank God everyday and remind myself not to complain, it's not easy sometimes but I feel better when I drive the negative thoughts away and keep being thankful. 

Sunday, April 6, 2014

Sunny days and being busy

This weekend we were pretty busy and the weather turned out to be nice. Saturday Kylie went to work in the morning and I picked her up and took her with me to a farm sitting appointment, afterwards, I drove her to a friends house so she could go to a concert.

Today I interviewed for a part-time job grooming which went very well and I will be working there a few days a week for some extra cash. After I picked up Kylie from work this evening we met the equine dentist at the barn and Kylie paid to Aubrey's teeth done. He needed his wolf teeth taken out and he had some really sharp edges that were causing his cheeks to be irritated. The dentist let us feel the edges and they were very sharp. I think Aubrey will be feeling much better and be more comfortable from now on. The dentist said Cody's teeth were pretty good so nothing needed to be done for him right now.

I started putting fence posts in Saturday and the ground was so soft I could slide the T-Posts in almost all the way without having to pound them. I will be picking up the actual fence tomorrow and start putting it up on the posts. My sister sent me money to put up a dog fence which I am really happy about. My dogs will be safer and when I watch other's dogs they will be able to go out and play.

I will have to move the pony fence this week and keep them mostly on the round bale so the grass can get a chance to grow. Their electric fence will continue from the dog fence out into the field and they will have a nice big space once the grass grows in.

Kylie drove the car in the parking lot several times this week but freaked out a little because a car came down the side of the lot, it takes coordination to drive a stick shift so we will take it slow until she can do well enough to drive and be able to focus on the road instead of the clutch.

I miss having a truck, it is going to be tough to get some things done without it. I used the truck for so many things but we will get by for now. Surviving has to be the main focus for awhile. It isn't going to be easy to stay in this house and keep things going with a pieced together money situation. People who have never experienced this don't really understand, it's bad when you have to go without food to keep the lights on and you can't even buy a bag of socks when  you need to for example.

I know people all over have it much worse than we do right now, I try to remember that and also when we can help someone else we do because if we can we should. It just makes difficult times easier to bare when you can at least do something good for someone else or they try and help you along.

One big plus is the flea market is open now, I saw some dog crates today there and when I have a couple of dollars I'll buy one or two for keeping dogs here at home. I like to walk around and just look at things and sometimes I find something I can use that I would have to pay more for somewhere else. Mostly though it will be dog crates for now.

I hope to have the fence done in the next few days, hopefully the truck will sell on Thursday at auction and that will at least get us through this month and then we'll see.

Thursday, April 3, 2014

The truck goes to auction

Monday I started calling around for a tow for the truck. Big Yellow has a cracked frame and so it is time for her to be sold at a salvage auction. When I started calling around and explaining what I needed I ended up with guys who wanted to buy the truck for nothing and then sell it for a profit obviously. It took a few calls and lots of frustration until I got some help from one of the woman who is part of the auction company and got the truck over there. The trucks engine only has 42,000 miles on it and it is worth something. The money would certainly come in handy now.

We lost one of our little bunnies during the night on Tuesday, he died in his sleep. He didn't seem sick or anything, I just got up and noticed him and I knew right away he was gone. Big bunny is kind of quiet, I expect it is because he lost his little companion. We took him out today and held him and gave him carrots.

Kylie and I did get a chance to ride our horses this week which is good, the weather got warm fast and today it rained and is chilly. I feel some relief getting the truck to auction, it had been sitting at a friends house for a couple of months. I got a good look at the crack in the frame when it was put on the flatbed truck. Really it was broken straight through and separated about an inch, we could have been killed in the thing. It was sad to see it go because of the memories but it was over for the truck.

My sister sent me some money to buy the things I need to build a fence in the backyard, it is for when I board dogs, it is safer to have a fenced in yard. I will be happier with my dogs safe in the backyard too and still be able to run around.

I am still looking for work which I am not finding, I am fighting the blues because not having a job or a lead on a job is depressing. I feel kind of restless and unsure of things. At the same time I know I need to keep motivated and also use the time I have off to get things done and to spend time with Kylie and the animals.

Now if the truck will sell at the auction that will be helpful and maybe this month won't be so bad, right now I don't have enough money to pay everything. Kylie is practicing her driving skills in the school parking lot and getting better at shifting gears. Next, we'll have to try driving on the road.

I will be doing some pet sitting and farm sitting the next two weeks that will help pay some of the bills. I did buy some groceries today, we didn't have much and I went to Aldi's and got some food to get us through the weekend. I hope it dries up outside and we have a few more days with sunshine, I know that will make more motivated.