On The Road

 

With apologies to Mr. Kerouac, I've been on the road lately, driving across the Texan country to visit the sick, tend the flock and take care of business.

And mess with tractors. That aside, the road took me to an old friend, Colonel E, who was languishing on the sickbed. Except that he wasn't. Full recovery, please. We prayed.

It was a good visit and full of memories. Many, many ride outs from his place to Lake Waco and plenty of racing to boot. 200 yard gallop? On! And beyond, to the trail by the little regional airport where you could really pick up steam and go flat out. Fast and flat. Big fun.

But that was then. Yesterday was communion from the reserved sacrament and with that, the true light which enlightens every man coming into the world entered my friend's home and soul.

The people, you understand, that sat in darkness saw a great light. Praise God for that.

Ride On,

LSP

Bless The Ranch

 

"Can you bless the ranch?" What a good question, and I was glad to. It was good to be around horses again and some of them got blessed too. But not all, because the 50 strong herd was "out and about."

So were the chickens, living it up in the barn. Mission accomplished, I headed back to the Compound via semi-flooded dirt and gravel roads, glad of a truck but mindful of an upgrade to 4x4.

All in good time, but first things first, grill up some burgers because the climate had changed, again. And that's the story of that. I file this exciting tale under "Country Life in Texas."

God bless,

LSP

Ride

A churchman asked me to bless his small herd of horses this evening, 6 Arabians, a Warmblood and a Mustang. So off I went and so did a lot of people from one of the missions, perhaps they were wondering if their padre could ride.

Shala. Note Well Put Together Barn

Good question! Fortunately I could and rode out on Shala alongside two outstanding competitive horsewomen who've forgotten more than I'll ever know about the sport.

You Ride Better Than What I Do

Still, I held my own and the congregation watching from the sidelines got a kick out of the thing. Great fun.

My Friend's Tack Room

Ride over, I blessed the herd and we all fell back to the ranch house for a delicious meal. What a lot of fun and it reminded me of several things.

One I Took Earlier

Firstly, ride more, a lot more, it's important. Secondly, bring the congregation together for fun, fellowship and worship outside of the usual Sunday morning slot. It builds the communion which is established at the Altar. 

Common sense I know, but perhaps it needs stating, especially in a mission setting. With that in mind, sermon over.

Ride On,

LSP

Gone Fishing

"I know," I thought cleverly to myself, "I'll go fishing." And that was the plan for Monday morning, but it nearly got derailed because of a church PO Box and taking care of business.

Load up your rig with beer and tacos and head for glory.

Still, got to the lake and cast off with worms and a couple of lures, but the fishing was slow. Sure, a couple of bites here and there but nothing much. I blame that on the malfeasant, demonic static unleashed by Fienstein and her cohort of satanists on the world. It confuses the fish.

Look what the FBI caught!

The hideous Golem representative from California and her puppet aside, I managed to catch a decent Bluegill and had a couple of strikes with topwater. Some kind of Rapala lure, I think.

Then it was time to head home, happily tired out by clambering around the rocks of Soldier's Bluff in search of fish. Next step?

Blue SCOTUS

GUNS, and horses. This is important.

Your Pal,

LSP

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day! And I hope you're all having a great time with family and friends on your various compounds.

But I nearly forgot. If someone tells you that gender's a construct, attack them with phosphorous, or whatever, there's no rule.

God bless,

LSP

Country Life In Texas

Country life in Texas is usually, for me, all about shooting, riding, fishing and a bit of hunting but this summer's been different.

It's been about getting a young 'un enrolled in High School, into the football team and its preseason workouts, getting his vaccinations up to date, finding employment for the fellow, you can't be hanging around here all day in bed and if you do you've got another think coming type of thing.

And generally readjusting to being a full-time parent again after many years. To say nothing of recovering from a rib injury, which puts a damper on the sporting life. 

So there's not been much getting out in the field, apart from walking Blue Aggressor through packs of stray dogs to the local pick 'n steal, but that's not to say the operation has ground to a halt, far from it. Also, one of the Missions was dealt a bad blow in the sudden loss of its Senior Warden, a fine Christian lady. May she rest in peace. 

And there you have it, a fascinating snapshot into the vagaries of LSPland and I tell you this. I'd rather be wrangling with all of it in the country than in one of our dismally failed, social experiment urban hellholes.

I file this exciting report under Country Life In Texas. 

God bless you and God bless Texas,

LSP

Elk Hunt Bear Wrangler

I was talking to a friend, I ride out at his ranch, and he started telling stories about being a guide on elk hunts in the Rockies.

They'd go in on horseback, set up camp in the mountains and then hunt for elk. My friend's job was to make sure the horses were all online. He liked it well enough because he loved horses and the wilderness, but sometimes they didn't just get elk, they got bears.

Millionaire Socialist Taken by a Bear

A bear would attack out of the forest and have to be shot, either you or the bear. When that happened, they'd clean the bear and put the skin on a pack horse. No easy thing, because the horses didn't like having a bearskin on them. The trick of it, apparently, was to get them used to the smell of the bear. And so they rode out, bear, elk and whatever else, through the mountains.

"I didn't know you were a bear wrangler, old chap," I remarked over a beaker of vintage port at the club. "Well I was," said my friend, sipping an ice tea because of his Baptist nature, "Yes indeed. Some of these boys that'd come out to shoot elk were from Dallas and not too fit. In fact they were pretty fat, which comes from sitting behind a desk all day and no exercise. And they'd get up there and have a heart attack. Honest to God, every year it's a deal, elk hunters getting a heart attack."

Chastened by reference to lack of exercise, I arranged for a ride next week and, to be honest, I'd like little better than a week or so's go at it in the Rockies. Bear and all.

Your Old Buddy,

LSP

Country Life in Texas, Part Something or Other

Things started off well. Get up with the dawn, walk the dog, drink some coffee, say Morning Prayer and then go for a ride. That meant driving out to my friend's ranch near Aquilla and meeting up with him and two youngsters. I met them riding down the ranch road and told them I'd catch up, and that's what happened. Tack up and gallop.

As always, it was beautiful to ride out in the morning sun and I enjoyed myself weaving in and around the mesquites and going through the gaits. The kids had fun too, though at a more sedate pace. Thanks a lot, RP, for the riding hospitality.

Ride over, I stopped to get some coffee on the way home and learned that a churchperson was very sick in hospital. So I made a swift turnaround and drove to Waco, but not before taking a picture of my neighbor's peacock. It's one of several and likes to roost in the trees when not shrieking with a high and crazed insanity.

The day finished appropriately, with Stations of the Cross, and that's just the way it is.

God bless,

LSP

Texas Country

In a bold attempt to escape the intense political drama that is daily life in modern America, I drove out to visit the flock. That took me to a ranch, with trees. Those of you who understand the reality of Texas' bucolic Mesquite groves will know how pleasant that is.

I shot at a pig there once, from a moving Gator, and missed.

Heart of Oak,

LSP

Take a Bath, Hippie

At least that's what the horses say, and who can blame them? I rode out on Tres this morning after a week's break, caused by torrential rains and the horses being let loose to pasture in Texas' idyllic Mesquite Groves.

There was a little bit of rodeo (bucking) but nothing too radical. That was worked out by galloping up and down a hill and making our way through trails in the woods.

It was beautiful to ride in the clean, crisp, air and I went back to HQ refreshed and uplifted. Blue Destroyer, in the meanwhile, had chewed up an issue of American Rifleman. And some butter.

I wasn't too happy about that.

LSP

Snap Back to Reality

Some people, from England, feel that I've lived in Texas for too long and have lost touch with reality.

some kind of hat

That's absurd. You can't live too long in Texas.

put the guns in the truck, LSP

It has trucks.

defend that laptop!

It has guns.

just taking it easy in the arena

It has horses.

Sounds pretty real to me.

In nanny state England you can't even own a pistol.

Just sayin',

LSP

Horse & Mud

Posh as you like Walmart boots

Finally, after about a month of rib-agony, I felt up for a ride. The weather was terrible, sleetish rain, biting wind and no lack of mud. Not dissimilar, I suppose, to Wales, or the Somme, or basic training at some training ground deemed suitably 'character building.' But the horses didn't mind, they had great fun bucking about in the mud...

Trip & BeBop playing in the mud

And I had a good, though short ride. JB was pretty skittish and I wasn't about to tempt fate and grievous bodily harm, so we walked about in an arena practicing turns and circles. Felt good to be back in the saddle, even at a slow pace and perhaps that's wise - doesn't hurt to walk before you run, or something like that.

Stay on the horse and well away from liturgical dance.

Cheers,

LSP

New Horse

A very kind person donated a horse to the cause today, a nine year old thoroughbred mare called Genie who was trained for the track but never raced. We worked her out a little on the lunge line and she did well, then rode her about after being told she hadn't been ridden in seven years and, you never know, I geared myself up all kinds of trouble. It never came, though there'll have to be some work on forward movement and she had a tendency to toss her head about...

My feeling is that she'll go fast, which is fine, and people who know about such things say she could work well at dressage.

So we'll see; I'm looking forward to getting to know a new horse.

Cheers,

LSP

Day in the Country

Got to the Stables early and the barn cats galloped for their food; you' think they were starving, which they aren't. Regardless, it was neat to watch them race across the grass and better still to approximate to the same thing on horseback.

galloping cat

Later in the day, towards dusk, the air filled with birds - a cacophony of the things, fiercely strutting about and pecking for food. There must have been hundreds of them around the parsonage; incredibly noisy but interesting to watch.

After watching them carry on for a time I drove off to say Mass and was a little worried to see several pews full of silent, reverent people when I arrived at the church. Was I late?! No, they were just keen and intent on saying their prayers. I love that.

You'll forgive me for not commenting on the unfolding Warmist scandal, yet more attacks by Muslim 'martyrs', Episcopal priests praying to Aztec 'saints' (and Muslim martyrs) and a strange old woman in the diocese of D.C. who celebrated a neo-pagan 'Croning' liturgy in the National Cathedral. More of that anon.

Keep pulling the trigger.

LSP

Bad Laterals, Worse Science Czar

For some strange reason the Texas flag was missing at the Stables but that didn't put me off riding too much. Cantered about for a bit and worked, mostly unsuccessfully, at Laterals. As you'd expect, this is when you get the horse to go forward at an angle, or in my case get it to go in circles, annoyingly. Shot quite well though, which is always satisfying.

Interesting to note that 'Climategate' or 'Warmaquiddick' is picking up steam, not least with "Lift up a rock and another snake comes slithering out" John Holdren's involvement. Holdren's our 'Science Czar'; he's a Soylent Greener eugenicist in favor of forced abortions and sterilization. Just how many of these wicked Sangerites are in power here?

Terrifying.

Shoot straight.

LSP

Riding Logic

Hugely enjoyable morning's ride practicing "flying changes", which is when a horse changes leads at the canter or gallop without transitioning down to a trot. All very equestrian and, for me, a lot of fun, helped in part by Wilhelm Museler's book, Riding Logic. There's an awful lot to take in but Museler's Teutonic precision is softened by his occasional romanticism. Here's an example, in which the author warns us not to jump horses too young:

"...their legs are tired and they just do not want to jump. These are truly sad creatures, the ones who are victims in their adolescence to man's unthinking vanity and selfishness!"

Again:

"...it must be treated with tolerance or one will turn it into something worse than a dead machine."

So, treat the horses right.

Cheers,

LSP

Riding Around

Got up early to go for a ride in the comparative cool of the morning; the neighbour's birds had escaped their backyard prison to find freedom in the church car park. They were pecking about, pleased with themselves.

Horses were in good form too, intrigued by the addition of several donkeys to the field, which they found strangely fascinating. Enjoyed the ride; practiced sitting and posting trot, two point, serpentines, spirals and cantered about for a bit. Hugely uplifting - then the heat began to rise...

So 'Be-Bop' went back to his stall and I headed off to shoot targets at the stock tank and talk church. Very relaxing after charging about the pasture and a great way, I think, to spend the morning - of course my equine objective is to go extremely fast for long distances while jumping over obstacles, preferably in pursuit of something. But all in good time.

Arrived home to discover the birds had retreated to their gaol where they'd found food - doubtless a metaphor for something if you care to make it.

God bless,

LSP