The New Hobbit Hole

[HairOfTheDog]

And I am going to be a person of uncertain race and ancestry, wearing my cloak and leaf clasp, bright vest like Merry's I think, brown breaches and riding boots! Folk will not be completely certain what I am!

[Sam Cree]

It's true we don't have hills and stuff, and that most of our beautiful jungle has been paved over or made into farmland, but we do still have the Everglades, Biscayne Bay, Florida Bay and the Gulf Stream. Plus, both the Bahamas and the Florida Keys are both only 50 miles from Miami (one east, one south). And there's no doubt that South Florida skies are some of the clearest and most beautiful there are.

[HairOfTheDog]

I am also someone who needs hills and trees. Though we have few hardwoods here, we are the land of the Douglas fir and cedar. We have Oaks and Maples, but the Maples are not that common, and I think the Oaks were imported. Don't quote me on that, I only believe that because there are very specific pockets of them around here.

And I do like having four seasons, but I have to admit that now that I have horses, I don't look forward to snow. Here the snow comes in a day or two a year and is then usually followed by rain. It triples my work where the horses are concerned while the snow is here, and leads to mud and slop that I think will never dry out again when the rains come.

[RMDupree]

You're a Ranger!

[RMDupree]

That is very true, Sam.

It's so nice being able to drive less than an hour and find yourself on the beach!

And there is absolutely nothing on earth like watching the sun set in the Keys.

[RMDupree]

We used to have a real nice section here called Horse Country. It's still called that, but the small farms that used to be so prevalent are now boxed in with residential housing.

There are a few places left though. One that I love to drive by is the Guadalupe - they breed and raise the most beautiful Paso Finos there. Sometimes you can catch them practicing for competitions and that is a sight to see.

I've always wondered if that high leg trot ( the prancing ponies - lol) was natural or if the horses are taught to move like that. Do you know?

[RMDupree]

Pardon my funkle!

[RMDupree]

This is their website.

Hacienda Guadalupe

[RMDupree]

I've always wondered if that high leg trot ( the prancing ponies - lol) was natural or if the horses are taught to move like that. Do you know?

Since I'm taking liberties talking to myself. I answered my own question by trying a google search.

Yes, the gait is natural and the Paso Fino is NOT encouraged to trot. :)

[Corin Stormhands]

We have Oaks and Maples, but the Maples are not that common, and I think the Oaks were imported.

Freepmail me your street address. I have about a dozen Oaks in my yard that I'd be happy to ship to ya...

[HairOfTheDog]

The Paso Fino (and Peruvian Paso) gait is a natural gait, and is not only high stepping, but is a very specific gait other horses don't do. The pattern of footfalls that they do cannot be taught... but the high extension and action of it can be exaggerated through training, and of course, they have now been specifically bred for it.

As fast as it is, it is actually smooth to ride.

[2Jedismom]

Well, friends, I was wondering if you could say a prayer for a friend of mine? She's a homeschooling mom, 38 years old, with 4 children under the age of 12. She has cancer in her spine. Here is the update I just received:

Dear Ladies, Thank you for you continued prayers for Debbie and her precious family! Please have your Bible Studies, small groups, Sunday Schools and prayer chains continue to hold her up in prayer. They need a miracle!

I spoke to Ken yesterday about how to update all of you and neither of us could come up with clear words to print. The facts are that Debbie has stage 4 cancer. The doctors have given her pain medication and have said Chemo, radiation, surgery etc are not an option at this point. Fully relying on Jesus Christ is where they are.

There is no doubt that they are suffering and yet they are trusting in the faithfulness of God to see them through each day. They are expectant and waiting for the next move of God. They are honoring God in a way we do not often witness. You walk in their house and you know without a doubt this family knows and trusts in the One True God! Keep praying everyday and often for Debbie, Ken, Mari, Hannah, Tommy and Caleb. Hold them tightly in your prayers....
Thank you dear sisters,
Erin

[2Jedismom]

See above #43272

[HairOfTheDog]

I don't want Oaks! - I don't like the leaves! Falling leaves in a rainy climate means a wet brown slippery mat on my grass. I am surrounded by evergreens I thought... and in the fall I still get leaves in my yard. I have alders mixed in, and one Maple that I didn't even know was hiding back there until the first time the leaves appeared from nowhere and I looked for it! I prefer firs!

[Sam Cree]

Corin, thanks for the insights and history...these things are endlessly fascinating really, as well as spiritual and emotional. You clarified it for me quite a bit.

I sort of think that dancing and movies aren't in themselves evil, but they can be made that way, like all of the arts.

"I have about a dozen Oaks in my yard that I'd be happy to ship to ya..."

'Course that stuff makes great firewood...

[Corin Stormhands]

Prayers going up.

[Corin Stormhands]

I don't like the leaves!

That's why I want to get rid of 'em. I between the Oaks and the dog I have no grass in the back yard, and precious little in front. We've taken out 8 trees already. I told the Missus I wanted 'em all to go, but she doesn't like that idea. HOWEVER, she also don't rake the leaves...so I'm going for astroturf...

[John Farson]

I'm not a pacifist and I don't think those quotes argued a pacifist position.

Very often, members of the party in power support its wars -- and oppose war when the other party is in power. Remember Kosovo?

"Recently I drew up a table of atrocities during the period between 1918 and the present; there was never a year when atrocities were not occurring somewhere or other, and there was hardly a single case when the Left and the Right believed in the same stories simultaneously. And stranger yet, at any moment the situation can suddenly reverse itself and yesterday's proved-to-the-hilt atrocity story can become a ridiculous lie, merely because the political landscape has changed.
--George Orwell,
Homage to Catalonia (1938)

[Corin Stormhands]

I sort of think that dancing and movies aren't in themselves evil, but they can be made that way, like all of the arts.

There's an old joke...

Q: Why don't Baptists (or insert your favorite 'ist' group) make love standing up?

A: It might lead to dancing...

[ksen]

Praying......