Creative Person from the Valley of the Dirt People

MyKey's First Show 07-29-2006

2006-08-17T22:54:00.000-07:00

We took MyKey to his first show in July when he was 7 weeks old and he won his class under both judges. He was a very good boy. Hauled him and his mom in, showed and tucked him back into his stall. All within 2 hours time. He wasn't nervous and his mom was quite happy munching on her goodies in her bucket while her "son" made his debut in the show ring.

We Have Water

2006-08-17T22:31:00.000-07:00

Yes oh yes we finally have water. The pool has officially opened. The project is almost done. The landscaper is still working on the plants and sod which should be done by next week. For now I will show some pictures of the pool.

Mama is Proud

2006-07-05T21:41:00.000-07:00

MyKey and Cooper are the two minature colts that were born this year. MyKey is the dark one that is registered as "DeBruces Buck to a T" and Cooper is the red colt that I wrote about earlier. Both are wonderful colts. Cooper is older-he was born in April. I had him body shaved last week due to his heavy, thick coat. The heat was making him very uncomfortable. Now his fur is shaved and he is feeling alot better.

MyKey was born June 7th so he is just coming up on a month old this Friday. Both colts are now halter broke. Today we took Cooper and his mother Windy to the front pasture where they had a blast running around. Cooper was very good and just walked on the halter like he's been doing it all along. Both colts are the only two that are halter broke on the ranch right now. Mama's so proud!!

I will post some recent pictures of both colts this week.

We Have Boulders!

2006-07-05T09:59:00.000-07:00

Yes, we have rocks. It's taken a couple of weeks to gunite and create the boulders. The crew is still here fine tuning things and then they will come in and color coat the boulders. The color will be close to what is natural in the surrounding area. Today the crew is getting the forms set for the decking and placing the free standing boulders around the yard.

There was some misunderstanding regarding the sunken BBQ but it is straightened out now. Lynell is sitting on the bar stools in the bar. The stools still have to have boulders built around them.

Buck to a T

2006-06-11T21:17:00.000-07:00

I've decided to name the new black colt "DeBruces Buck to a T". His grandsire is Buck and his dad is My Key T. Jeanne put Miss Daisy and Buckee out in the little pasture today to have a good run. Boy, is Buckee independent. He hardly followed his mother to and from the pasture from the stall. Tomorrow we are going to start halter breaking him. No more free runs!

Inspection and Gunite around the corner

2006-06-09T23:16:00.000-07:00

Monday is the city inspection of the rebar and then the gunite will be applied, probably by the end of the week. That will be exciting as we can begin to see the formation of the boulders. They finished forming the rebar and putting the wire and sacks on the formations. It is beginning to take shape!

Baby Red Colt

2006-06-09T23:07:00.000-07:00

Here are some new pictures of the little red colt I've been working with and previously wrote about. He is quite a character and very friendly. He has his own agenda and needs to be reminded who is in charge. Sometimes when I restrain him he trys to lie down to get away. His legs just bend and down he goes. Then he jumps back and expects to be released. Nope, it doesn't work that way. I don't let him go until I am ready. He is beginning to understand that the "lie down then jump up" manuver isn't working. It's fun working with him and see how fast he is learning. I've been halter breaking him as well and that is going smoothly. He is very willing to learn most things. He follows me around the pen and wants constant attention. He is getting kind of fat. His mom gives him lots of milk and he is eating more solid food. He sure hasn't missed any meals lately!!

Miss Daisy had her Baby June 7, 2006

2006-06-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

On June 7th, 2006 Miss Daisy had her baby. The colt was born at 10:00pm. Miss Daisy went into labor and the baby had it's front leg wrapped around it's head. Daisy could not push the baby out. Danny and Jeanne DeBruce were with her and Danny had to push the baby back inside and get the leg straightened out. Danny is our hero. Had he not been there, the baby would not had lived and Daisy's life would have been in danger. Jeanne stayed with the colt for several hours making sure he nursed and the mare didn't accidently step on the baby.

The mare and baby are doing great now. We go visit them everyday. I've decided to name the colt "DeBruces Buck to a Tee". The grandsire is Buck and the sire is My Key T, so we combined the names and used Danny and Jeanne's name in the front. I guess we will call him Bucky for short.

The Port-a-potty has arrived

2006-06-06T21:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, the port-a-potty arrived today. A complete surprise on my end. I guess the guys on the jobsite need somewhere to go. Today Boulderscape continued building the grotto areas on the backside of the pool. They placed wire mesh inside the structure to help form the rocks. The planking will be used to walk on while they sculpt the rocks and smaller waterfalls.

Boulderscape has arrived

2006-06-03T21:51:00.000-07:00

The company that is going to do the rock sculpting, decking, BBQ, firepit and other masonery work on the pool is Boulderscape. They started yesterday with putting the footings in place and setting some of the rebar for the waterfalls and grotto. I think this process is supposed to take a couple of weeks to complete. The orange paint on the inside of the pool is where the underwater boulders will be placed.

New Horse Trailer

2006-06-03T21:38:00.000-07:00

I sold my 3 horse trailer with a dressing room and my 5th wheel travel trailer and bought this 4 horse trailer with living quarters. Now we can go to horse shows with one rig and one truck. Much more fun! The first stall will have a stud divider for Max but the part hasn't come in yet. It should get installed next week. I had a generater installed on the hay rack on top of the trailer so we can have air conditioning at the horse shows when dryland camping. The dogs will be in heaven! I am going to look into getting a camera installed on the inside where the horses ride so we can see what is happening in the trailer as we are going down the road.

What's Coming Up

2006-06-01T16:14:00.000-07:00

Now that the plumbers have finished, we are waiting for the city inspection for the work completed thus far. Then the following will occur:

Gunite-applies concrete to the pool structure
Electrical-run wire in conduits from the main electrical panel to the pool equipment and from the pool equipment to the pool/spa lights as well as any other areas in the yard
Decking-will be done by Boulderscape (a separate company from the pool company)
Preplaster inspection-fencing must meet city requirements before the plaster can be done
Plaster
Start Up-filling of the pool and test plugs removed, valves adjusted, pumps primed and other equipment activiated.
SWIMMING-can't come soon enough!!

In between the above steps, Boulderscape will come in and sculpt the boulders, lay the decking, excavate the sunken BBQ, put in the underwater bar stools, build the firepit and do the masonery for the planters.

Bye Bye Annie

2006-06-01T16:08:00.000-07:00

Annie left today for Palmdale. She is going to be bred to a warmblood and have a baby of her own. I wasn't able to get her to cycle on the same timeframe as Smarty so she couldn't be a receipient mare for me this year.

Bull Pen Update

2006-06-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

The bull pen is moving right along. Rocky finished the final preparation yesterday and today Randy started to dig the concrete footings. The holes are at least 5 feet deep and are below the natural dirt line. So the footings that are placed on the built up side are very deep. Don't want the roof to fly in the high winds!

Pool-Plumbing almost done

2006-05-30T21:55:00.000-07:00

The plumbers came back today (Tuesday) and finished most of their work. The electricians should be coming sometime this week.

Daisy is closer....

2006-05-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

Miss Daisy got her last bath today before the big event. It was a very warm day and she enjoyed the attention. Her coat looks great. The baby looks like it was off to the right side today. Her little bag is getting bigger. Shouldn't be too long now. She is estimated to foal around June 1st.

Pool-Plumbing

2006-05-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

The plumbers showed up today and began to lay the pipe around the pool. They installed some of the pool equipment as well. The job supervisor, Jeff, stopped by and said they would finish by Tuesday and then the electricians would begin. So far everything has happened in a very timely fashion. It's wonderful. The City will need to do a pre-gunite inspection and then the boulderwork will begin.

Miss Daisy is Getting Bigger

2006-05-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

Here are today's pictures. Daisy is feeling good.

Mini Colt

2006-05-25T21:38:00.000-07:00

I am still visiting this mini colt each day and working with him. These are today's pictures. He doesn't have a name yet.

Covered Lounging Pen

2006-05-25T21:24:00.000-07:00

I guess just building a pool isn't enough activity so now the site for the covered 40' diameter lounging pen is being prepared. Since it is covered, it requires engineering to withstand the 90+ mile an hour winds that can occur in Norco. There will be 6 cement footings installed below ground to bolt the cover to. Today Rocky (dirt dude) came and began the site prep. It is almost done but Rocky ran out of D.G. so he will have to finish on Saturday. The structure is being fabricated and is scheduled to be installed beginning June 16th.

Jazzy (aka Molly)

2006-05-24T22:39:00.000-07:00

This is Jazzy, formerly known as "Molly". When I got her I found out her personality was pretty spunky and Molly just didn't fit. She is a pistol. Especially with the other dogs. Pugsy has the hardest time. Jazzy pulls Puggy around by her ears or back legs. Poor Puggy doesn't fight back. So for right now we keep them separated. Jazzy is getting calmer but definately has a high energy level. Training is going slow but steady. She still sleeps in her crate at night and is very happy. She loves to play in water. I have recently put in a large tub of water in the dog run and she has her own personal pool. She dunks her stuffed toys in the water!!

Miss Daisy's Baby is Coming Soon

2006-05-24T22:26:00.000-07:00

We now visit Miss Daisy everyday at the ranch where she is going to have her baby. Lynell takes Daisy for a walk each day. Her bag is filling up and we are hoping for the arrival by the first of June. This is Daisy's third baby.

I also visit the little colt and have started to halter break him. I think Jeanne also works with him so he is getting plenty of attention. I thought his mother's name was "Mindy" but I found out it is "Windy".

Pool-Day 8

2006-05-24T22:12:00.000-07:00

After some out-of-season rain in May, work on the pool has resumed. Yesterday someone came and pumped out the standing water at the bottom of the dirt hole and today the rebar was laid. The guys showed up at 5:30am and worked the entire day. The plumbers came to look over the job site and should start either tomorrow or Friday.

There is a separate company who is forming the rocks and waterfalls. The rocks will be formed by rebar above the ground and then the entire pool and rocks will be sprayed with gunite.

Mini Babies

2006-05-19T22:41:00.000-07:00

I have been playing with the cutest little colt that was born about 6 weeks ago. I go just about everyday to work with him, getting him to accept being handled and restrained. He has a great personality and follows me around the pen. His mom, Mindy, is very sweet and doesn't mind the interaction. Today I picked him up and he just hung there, very relaxed. Miss Daisy is due in about 2 weeks now and she will start to be observed under camera this weekend.

Pool-Day 2

2006-05-19T22:30:00.000-07:00

The excavation is going very smooth. We were afraid of hitting large granite rocks but none were found. There is alittle cleanup left and then we move onto the rebar.

The steel will be put into the bottom and sides of the pool and then it will be used to "sculpt" the rock waterfalls and boulders. The steel work will start next week and probably take about 2 weeks to complete. The plumbers will come in after that to set up all the water pipes.

The Pool has Begun

2006-05-18T16:43:00.000-07:00

After a long 9 weeks of paperwork, the work on the pool has begun. The preconstruction meeting was held this morning and then in came the equipment. The pool is partially dug and the existing concrete patio and BBQ have been demolished.

The project will be a sport pool for playing games and just lounging around on the hot summer days of Norco. It is 20' wide by 40' long and will be 3 1/2 feet at each end tapering down to 6 feet deep in the middle. There will be 3 waterfalls, spa and firepit along with a sucken BBQ with a swim up bar. There will be 4 underwater bar stools.

The pool company said it generally takes about 3 months; however, this project is alittle more extensive so it may take a little longer. I will post more pictures as the pool moves along in the process.

Miss Molly

2005-12-20T21:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I added a new family member. Meet Miss Molly. She is a 6 week old Boston terrier. I got her from someone in Rainbow California. I met her mom and dad who were both very friendly. Dad got fixed so she and her sister were the last to be born.

I put her out in the yard today to play in the sun and grass. I guess she got pretty tired because she couldn't seem to stay awake tonight when I had her in my lap. I just put her down for the night in her crate. A crate is like a den. It makes the puppy feel warm and safe. She doesn't make a sound all night, just curls up in her bed. She is such a good girl.

Happy Fall

2005-10-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd share a picture of what I set up in my front yard for this autumn. It was kinda tough finding a full bale of straw. I went to 3 feed stores before I actually found it. I originally went to Michael's to buy one and a tiny bale cost $10. I thought no way.

When I actually found the bale of straw at the feed store it only cost $5.00. I could have made 35 small bales out of the large bale. Guess it pays to know what stuff costs.

Retirement!!!!!!!!

2005-09-30T22:14:00.000-07:00

Yes, I finally did it. I retired after 27 years with the Bank of America. It is so nice to get up in the morning and relax. Well, not exactly. There is still alot going on with the new home. Last week I had the new arena lighting installed. It is just in time for the time change ahead. I have already used it a couple of times and it is wonderful. Especially with the hot, hot weather lately.

The picture above is of my new mare, Maggie. She seems to have alot of natural talent. I hope to show her next year if everything goes well. So far, so good.

The 4 corrals and bath rack are installed. I put Max out in the corral each day to wander around and enjoy life. He is very happy. I usually take him on a trail ride in the evening around the neighborhood. He enjoys the slow pace of trail riding compared to reining which he has done for the past 9 years. Max and I are both retired. Yeah!!!

Very Busy Time

2005-07-16T21:44:00.000-07:00

Escrow finally closed on my new home. Now the work begins. Moving in next weekend and this coming week I have many appointments for work at the new place.

Yesterday Lynell and I had a pre purchase exam on 2 mares and both passed so Lynell and I purchased "Whoa Now Miss Larkin". Lynell says she owns the front half and I own the back half, where the babies come from. I also purchased "A Major Affair", a 5 year old that seems to be pretty talented. Both mares will be bred to my stallion, Whirl Whiz, next year for 2007 babies.

Lynell and I went to Salem Oregon last week and toured a miniature horse farm. It was beautiful. A total of 47 acres and about 100 horses. We sat in the pasture and the babies came up to play. They are like big dogs. Lynell ended up purchasing a mare that is in foal. I paid half for the mare so I will get the foal, due in June 2006. The picture above is Lynell driving a stud that had 2 months cart training. I also drove him and it was so much fun. The mare that Lynell purchased is getting 2 months cart training before she is shipped down to us so she will have the basic training she needs. Lynell plans on driving her mini around Norco, along with her pug in the shotgun position!

New Home

2005-06-27T21:56:00.000-07:00

Well, after 1 year in Chino, I have decided to move to Norco, the horse capital of the southwest. It is a one acre property that has plenty of room for my horses, animals, pool, horse trailer and 5th wheel trailer. All of the toys. Escrow is due to close by July 7th and we will move by July 23. It's a very busy time!!

I will put in a couple of turnout pens as well as 4 corrals. Two for the foals (to come in 2007) and 2 for minature horses (yet to be purchased). We are on the way to Portland, Oregon on July 13 to take a look at some mini's. Lynell will be driving her mini in no time.

Been AWhile

2005-03-01T19:35:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's been awhile since I posted anything. Been busy with a sick friend, sick dog and sick myself. All are on the mend now. Weather has finally cleared up. I haven't been able to ride Max for about a month now. I'm looking forward to getting back into the saddle again. I've got some horse shows coming up this year and need to get in some riding.

More on Plastination

2005-01-06T22:12:00.000-08:00

Thought I would add alittle technical information about the plastination process. The plastination technique replaces bodily fluids and fat with reactive polymers, such as silicone rubber, epoxy resins, or polyester: in a first phase solvent gradually replaces bodily fluids in a cold solvent bath (freeze substitution). After dehydration the specimen is put in a solvent bath at room temperature for defatting. The dehydrated and defatted specimen is then placed into a polymer solution. The solvent is then brought to a boil in a vacuum and continuously extracted from the specimen; the evaporating solvent creates a volume deficit within the specimen drawing the polymer gradually into the tissue. After the process of forced impregnation the specimen is cured with gas, light, or heat, depending on the type of polymer used.

2005-01-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

Now this is something very real. It is a human body that has been "plastinated" Plastination is a method of preserving human remains for future study. We went to the exhibit at the LA Science Center in January 2005. It was amazing.

2005-01-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of me showing my horse, Max, at Del Mar National Horse Show in California. We have been the Adult Amatuer Reining Horse Show Champions for the last 2 years. He is a wonderful reiner!

2005-01-05T16:43:00.000-08:00

Here are Sharon (on the left) and My Thai at a Christmas 2003 party at my home. We get together every Christmas. We baked and iced cookies at this party. 2004 we played a game called "Catch Phrase" in which Sharon and Lynell beat My Thai and I; however, it was a very close match. My and I will beat them next time! There definitely will be a rematch.

2005-01-05T16:17:00.000-08:00

And here would be a llama in need of a good dentist. Know anyone??

2005-01-05T16:16:00.001-08:00

Here's a vulture that just had a meal. He took flight as I approched.

2005-01-05T16:16:00.000-08:00

Here are some interesting critters we have noticed while driving around Chino. Thought I would share some.

Here I come

2005-01-05T15:20:00.000-08:00

I have finally arrived into "blog" world. My best friend, Lynell, has been a blogger for awhile now and she has insisted that I join her. So here I am.

We recently moved the the "Valley of the Dirt People". You know, anyone in the 909-951 area code. This was the best move I have ever made. Basically traded my 30 year old home in Orange County for a 2 year old home that is twice as large with 1/2 acre for all of my critters to enjoy.

It has been very rainy here the last few days. The mountains are beautiful and dusted with snow down to the 2,000 foot level. Once the clouds lift I will try to get some pictures.