Over The Back Fence Archives

We are in the middle of redesigning the website, and with that we have been going through the site archives. We've been putting "Over The Back Fence" online for several years. They are above in the menu bar.

It's been fun looking at the pictures in these, especially the ones of the girls! We will continue posting them here so you can see what Sue is up to!

May 2014

<-- The grand opening of the Bland Post Office (finally!)

Well, it’s springtime in Missouri, complete with a risk of tornado, and wild thunderstorms. Spencer, the little ‘fufu’ dog that pretty well runs my life, spent a very restless night last night as numerous thunderstorms came through our area. He usually sleeps in a little pile of fur at the end of the bed, but last night was different. With each lightning strike he moved a little further toward me, by morning he had spent time under the blanket, standing on my back, under my pillow and off and on the bed several times. Needless to say I didn’t sleep well…I may have to have a nap this afternoon. 
We had over two inches of rain last night and more predicted for today and tonight. This, along with the prediction of 70 degrees, should make the grass grow, and help fill up the ponds. Yesterday afternoon we watched the mules in the south pasture run circles around the pasture; I predicted then the weather would change. Watching the birds, mules and other creatures can give some indication of what the weather is going to do. A lot of the Farmer’s Almanac gives you this information, and much of it is truer than what we watch on our TV’s and computers.
I celebrated another birthday last weekend; thanks to my family and many friends for all the thoughtful things they did to make this a Happy Birthday. I received a big stack of birthday greeting cards, many of them with a mule or donkey theme, and my Facebook friends came thru with a number of birthday wishes. I also got to go to an acro meet in St. Louis and watch Camri, along with her trio, tie for first place in competition. She has a few more meets, and I hope to attend them all.
Camri will be celebrating her 9th birthday April 13. Her wish list includes western chaps, a purple and green saddle pad, her own bands for Hoosier’s tail, and clothes, clothes and more clothes.  She and Hoosier should be well dressed for the show season if her gift choices are filled. Of course, she and Ali are looking forward to summer vacation. Ali is still missing some front teeth, and both girls are excited about Cori and Davy’s upcoming wedding September 20.
I have a little trip planned this month to the Down Stream Casino in Oklahoma with a friend; I’m really looking forward to this as I checked the facility out on-line and it looks like a beautiful place. Several of us have also been trying to schedule a trip to the Amish community of Clark, but it’s hard to get everyone together, or the weather doesn’t cooperate. Other than that I don’t have much on my calendar, other than doctor appointments that automatically go along with birthdays when you get to be 74.
By now you should have some plans scheduled for trail rides, after reading your April trail ride issue. This month’s issue has some really nice ads highlighting some of the good mules that will be heading to Jake Clark Mule Days in June. And of course, many of you are getting your animals ready for Bishop Mule Days; these are a couple of events every mule and/or donkey enthusiast should have the opportunity to attend at least once in their lifetime. Check out the calendar of events, it has a good listing of things to do as a spectator or exhibitor. We hope to meet up with many of you during the summer and fall events.

April 2014

What a beautiful day…at last the sun is shining, it is 70 degrees, and the ice, sleet, and snow is melting from the sidewalk on the north side of the house. Predictions on the radio are for two nice days, today and tomorrow, and then the possibility of rain and snow. As we talk to subscribers all across the country we hear the same comments about how everyone is so ready for spring.

The mules are all stretched out in the pasture soaking up the sunshine and I noticed the grass is beginning to catch the faint touch of green, and a few trees are beginning to bud out. The lilies are beginning to peak out also.

We were able to visit with several mule people at the Boone County Mule Sale in Columbia, MO last month. Cori went on Friday and set up the booth and worked. Because of the prediction for more snow I hitched a ride up with Loren on Saturday. There were a large number of mules, and it seemed like half of the mule owners from Iowa were there; along with looking for mules I think they were looking for warmer weather. It’s always nice to have the opportunity to visit with so many people at the sale.

Our wildlife entertainment has completely stopped. Loren and the hog hunting crew have been busy and haven’t had the chance to go hunting. The foxes, eagles and hawks, along with the help from Suey, my dog, have cleaned up the hogs. Suey even brought the hide to the house and there was a hawk pecking on it here by the house. Hopefully the guys will get to go on a hunt soon.

Camri and Alison missed a couple days of school recently, but hopefully the bad weather is over and things can get back to normal for them. Yesterday Camri had acro competition and once again came away with a first place medal with her trio. She has progressed a lot since last year, and really enjoys competing with this trio.

On a sad note, one of my long time friends, Edna Mae (Cantriel) Schaffner passed away recently.
When I was in high school my mom owned a ladies dress shop here in town and Edna and I worked there; later when my folks bought Cross Country Trail Ride she was the lady who took the lunch out on the trail to riders, and worked in the trail ride office. Actually she was a very dear friend to my mom also, and we spent many hours together over the years. I will miss visiting with her. She had been a resident in a nearby nursing home for several months, but we still had some good visits, mostly reminiscing about our trail ride years.

The calendar of event is filling up, so get out your red pen and mark your calendars; there are a lot of good mule things to do.

March 2014

The main topic of conversation at the coffee shop is the bone-chilling temperatures we have been experiencing here in the mid-west; this morning when I headed out to feed my mule it was a minus two. When I was listening to the news the evening before I heard the normal for this time of year, during the day, is supposed to be 40. I think it was up to eight when I returned from the post office. At least we don’t have but a couple inches of snow on the ground; east, west and north of us communities received a lot more snow and some even were battling ice prior to the snow. I am so ready for warmer weather! 

Last month I wrote a little about the eagles eating on the scraps in the pasture. Well, since then Loren and Cole brought over a couple of wild hogs they killed during one of their weekend hunting trips. Then Larry brought a trail camera and mounted it on a tree where it would focus on the hogs. In one week we got over 1,900 pictures, a lot of them of Suey, the Catahoula and pictures of mules. The pictures I’ve enjoyed the most is the ones of a pair of red foxes, most of the time they are by themselves, but there are several of them with the mules. One mule in particular seems to be more inquisitive, and gives you the feeling she really would like to run the foxes out of the pasture, but from the penned back ears, they are standing their ground. I am hoping the picture of the juvenile eagle flying in on the hog reproduces well; it is an extremely impressive photo.

Camri and Alison have missed several days of school since the first of the year due to bad country roads, and the extreme cold. Of course, it’s nice to have them show up at the office, and I’m sure they have enjoyed their extra time with grandparents.

Cori is sporting some new “bling” on her left hand. She and Davey have set a wedding date for September. This will be a busy summer for Cori, with the help of two excited little girls, there is always a lot going on in their lives. 

By the time you receive this issue we should be headed toward warmer weather and looking forward to planning and attending some mule events. Your April issue will be geared toward trail riding.

February 2014

 Christmas 2013 is history, 2014 has arrived, and winter weather has entered Missouri with a vengeance. Earlier we had a few inches of snow, and below 32 degree temperatures; I thought that was terrible. Sunday night’s storm dumped 10-12” of snow here, then the temperatures have dropped to well below zero for the past couple of nights. Actually the lowest I’ve seen here was -9, but my oldest son called this morning and said he had -19 (that was disputed rather heatedly at the coffee shop), but Larry does live on the river and I imagine it is colder down in that river bottom. Anyhow, I believe him.

The Christmas holidays were very enjoyable. Our family got together on Christmas Eve at Larry and Becky’s for good food, lots of conversation and gift exchange (he fixed the brisket recipe from the January 2014 issue; it was absolutely delicious. We’ve also had several good comments about the Sugar Cinnamon Almond recipe in the December 2013 issue).

Santa brought Alison new western boots and Camri received a new black felt hat to show in this next season. Loren and Lenice had ordered it while they were at the Rodeo Finals in Las Vegas, and it arrived Christmas Eve day. That’s cutting it pretty close. I received a very unique, one of a kind, bracelet with donkey photos. Christmas Day I enjoyed the day with Lenice’s family.

This cold weather keeps me busy filling bird feeders and seeing that the dogs are turned out and in. My 13-year-old Catahoula has made the garage her home for the winter. She even lets me cover her with a blanket when she comes in from her last trip outside each night. I know she is comfortable on her pile of pillows and rugs as you can hear her snoring when the house is quiet at night. My 10-year-old Lhasa Apso thinks he wants to go outside, but never ventures far from the front step. The snow really sticks to all that hair on his feet and legs.

 My 38-year-old mule, Star is confined to the lot and her barn stall right now so the five mules Loren has here can get to the automatic waterer. Star seems to be content as long as she gets her Equine Senior daily and her manger is full of good hay.

Davey brought me some scraps and put in the pasture, and I have been enjoying watching a pair of immature Eagles feed off of the scraps. Right now everything is covered in snow, so they haven’t been around, but I’m hoping they return when things thaw out.

By the time you get this we should be headed to the Boone County Mule Sale at Columbia, Mo., be sure and stop by the booth for a visit. I hope to be there on Friday and Saturday. 

Best wishes to all of you in the New Year….and Think Spring!

January 2014

 Just told Cori I guess I had better write something for Over the Back Fence, and that after 24 years you sort of run out of anything to write about. She replied that helps when you actually go somewhere. I do miss going, and right now I’m looking forward to heading back to Columbia, MO to the mule sale held in February. In the meantime, guess I’ll find some other projects to fill my time.

Actually, tomorrow some of my coffee shop friends and I have a trip planned. We will meet Ron and Virginia Bertz of Higginsville in Columbia, then head north to the small Amish community of Clark. We have been making this trip to buy Christmas goodies for a number of years now, and of course we spend a long, leisurely lunch visiting before parting ways. Our weather here in Missouri has taken a turn for the worse; yesterday it was a beautiful 65 degree day, it was 24 when I got up this morning, and tomorrow as we head north the high is supposed to be 22. It seems I dislike winter weather more each year.

Our morning conversations at the coffee shop seem to center around health care, and the lack of approval of some treatments for seniors. I mention on page 49 that I received back issues from Mike McGinleyand I’ve reprinted a letter that was in the August 1980 issue. After reading this it sounds like a lot of the same issues were taking place back then as we are undergoing today, only today our government has added other problems as well.

The new copies of the second addition of The Natural Superiority of Mules should be arriving in our office any day now. Several phone conversations with the author John Hauer of Moab, Utah has us anxiously awaiting the arrival of the new book. I’ve seen a photo of the front cover and that is very impressive. John says this new book contains 32 pages more than the first edition, with more than 32 pages of new material added, as some pages from the previous edition were deleted.

 As you read this we will be working on the 23rd annual Jack Issue. As I’ve said many times, this is one of my favorite issues; I love donkeys, and enjoy working with the owners of the donkeys that market their animals in Mules and More in this special issue.

  Thanksgiving holidays were busy around here. On Wednesday night I attended a surprise house warming for Cori, Davy, Camri and Alison, their kitchen was bursting at the seams with family and friends. On Saturday evening before that I enjoyed a non-traditional holiday supper with my family at Larry and Becky’s; the enchiladas were delicious, along with other Mexican dishes, and of course Lenice brought one of her delicious home-made pies. Thanksgiving day I enjoyed a traditional meal with Lenice’s family at Loren and Lenice’s. Turkey with all the trimmings was topped off with five different kinds of pie.

  Now by the time you read this I probably will have eaten my way through the Christmas holidays. I’m looking forward to spending time with Alison, 6 and Camri, 8, and the rest of the family, but Christmas is really special for these two little girls.

Here’s wishing all of you a very Happy New Year; we’ll keep working on things at the morning coffee breaks hoping to make 2014 better for all of us.

Camri and Alison with Santa, December 2013