Where's the song ~~ "Don't let your daughters grow up to marry a Cowboy" ?

​​​​​​​Life is tough! Requires hard physical work, long, long days of pain, dirt, and broken fingernails.​
​Days of frigid cold & scorching heat; through the dust & mud; daybreak into the darkness of nite~~​
​the heart & body becomes toughened & weathered replicating leather!​
​A forever constant factor for a real Cowboy's Wife is tons of sweat, oceans of tears and a constant 'drought' in the wallet!​
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​​​​​​​​​IF​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ she wants to spend anytime at all with her Cowboy, she must do as he does, you become partners!​
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​​​​​​Kick off your boots, grab a cup of coffee, sit back and envision yourself in my life!​
​... It really isn't that bad! There are many rewards to be had to make it a great lifestyle! ...​ ​​​​​​​


Saturday, April 16, 2011

I am the Absentee Owner..

of this blog....

...and I've been trying to find myself!
It's been a nasty two years, for sure! A few ups and wayyyy too many downs!
I'll fill in the gruesome realities briefly..
~
In April 09, we thought things were changing for the good.
The good turned out to be ONLY that I could have pizza any ol' time!
The man who owned the place basically used us! Our sweat and tears...and many dollars too!
He never came through with any of his promises, and then sold the place!
(his timing was good...for what was to come!)
And the job I took? Started out to be great!....went downhill too! (I will clarify later)
Each day seemed a step backwards.

~In Feb 2010, we did get to visit our son in Texas and see the San Antonio Stock show~that was an "Up" time.
~
Then in March 2010, the house we lived in, got broke into in the middle of the day.
They took all of our electronics from computer, camera, TV's etc. They rummaged through our belongings and took our 'safe box' which had titles, birth certificates etc.
Not only were our possessions taken, but so were our "identities". (and of course, we never bothered to get 'renters insurance!)
~
My post from Aug '09 sounded like it would be UP for sure...
but little did we know, we were on a fast track downhill there too!

Last July, we had to evict the gal and her two kids that we leased our home to.
She had given one too many excuses for not being able to pay and we'd already let her slide over 4 months, as we knew what it was like to have tough times.
So....when the power company called on a Friday to inquire on her status with our house because they were disconnecting her on Monday, we got curious smarter and Cowboy paid her a visit.
OMG! NOT PRETTY!!!!
Starving horses (13 to be exact!), 22+ cats inside and out! Burned out well pump! Which we had to fork out $3000 to replace! (it just happened the day before and could have been prevented, as with our pressure tank, we'd explained the pressurizing that was essential every 5-6 months based on usage!).
He could not see our driveway through all the grown up weeds (she had her car repo'd in March...I discovered in left behind paperwork).
~The end of July, we were able to visit our daughter, her husband and  our grandkids...
...that was our last Up time!
~
Aug 1, we retook possession. I pulled in here 30 minutes after she'd hightailed out of here, leaving a path of missed belonging in her wake. The stench was horrendous even as I drove the long driveway! I even had to call the sheriff out as she'd left 3 starving horses behind. Their hooves looked like skis and each and every bone was clearly visible!
To make this reallllllllly long story short..because it is still in the making~
it was an expensive venture we had gone on.
Replacing the well pump; the numerous trips to the dump, to the tune of 7,000# (yes 3.5 tons!) of garbage...raw  (she never had garbage service I learned), cat sh**, and more cat sh**, and more cat sh**, soda cans, you name it! All left in the garages and house! We rented an ionizer to hopefully help remove odors! Hired young guys to help with garbage hauling, tearing up ALL the flooring, cleaning, painting...the process is still going on and on!
We will be spending the next several years trying to put this place back to the way it was!
Inside and Out!
Yes...we are living here again, as we decided we could not do all that was required on weekends only.
The horses destroyed my yard, my gardens, all of the fencing.
The many cats she left are still showing up!
The humans (if you can call them that!) ruined the interior!
~~
...and more importantly, this journey we were on, took from us the one trait we took pride in....
TRUST!
~~
Then....last weekend, I was trying to put some order back into our lives....
.
 (The 6 months of our lives prior to this post, will be yet another post in itself,
as we were faced with a whole different set of emotional set backs.)
..
....I was able to unpack and clean out some things, and I came upon some of my most treasured gifts!
I got all weepy-eyed....

I am still amazed at just how blessed I am to have "met" the most amazing people in the world~
here in blogland!!
I've missed you and I love you all!

25 comments:

Linda said...

I'm glad to hear from you again at last. I thought of you often and wondered what was happening in your life. Sorry to hear it wasn't good. I'll be keeping you and yours in my prayers! KEEP IN TOUCH!!

Liz said...

So sorry you've had such a bad run Barb. Have a hug from New Zealand. Chin up girl stay strong. Be thinkin' of you and you're in our prayers here too.

Look after yourselves there
Love sent Liz

Shirley said...

Couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this post on my dashboard reader! So very happy you are back, and so very sorry to hear that things have been a wreck for you. I hope that things are better from here on, and I'll sure keep you in my prayers too. Keep on blogging. we are here to give you some love!

DesertHen said...

It is SO good to hear from you! I was thrilled to see the post in my reader! I have been thinking about you a lot lately and just had this "feeling" that something was up! I am SO SORRY to hear of all that you have been through these past many months! My heart goes out to you! I know what you mean about "Trust"...once it is broken, it makes us question everthing and everyone! Been there recently with that as well, but not on the same level as what you have experienced! Wish I was closer...I would arrive with a pizza or two and a bottle of the red stuff. =)

Sending BIG ((((HUGS))) your way! I've missed ya!!!

The Wife said...

Oh Sweetpea, I can't believe all the crap, literally, you've dealt with! Hugs to you!

Sherry Sikstrom said...

So sorry to read of all of the trials you have faces and to know that there is more. I have missed you nad think of you often. I was soo pleased to see you had posted . Love and hugs from me! Not much I know but...

dickiebo said...

God bless you, ol' pal! I know that when you're down, everything seems to kick you as well! We sure went through a time like that.
Stay strong and.............try to remember that we're all rooting for you.

wordmama said...

Oh Barb - I'm so conflicted right now. Thrilled to hear from you but so sad with how tough the year has been on you. I'm so sorry that she ruined your home and your trust. And those poor animals. I do hope that you reported her to the animal protection society. I would hate for her to repeat her reprehensible behaviour.

My wish for you is that the bad luck is behind you. That all that lies ahead for you is sunshine and happy pastures!

Missed you!

gtyyup said...

Hard to believe how much Wrong you've had to face. It's gotta be goin' downhill from here. Prayers that you can get everything back in order and live life again to it's fullest~

Emma Rose said...

Welcome back! We have missed you. What a mess you have found yourself in. I will never understand why anyone thinks it's okay to trash someone elses property. I will say a prayer for your peace, prosperity, and the good health to enjoy it all!


Kisses,
Emma Rose (and the Duchess)

Jiller said...

I am so sorry for everything you have been through! Sounds like things are going to be better now that you are home! I have truly missed you and and so happy to have you back blogging! This is one of the very first blogs I ever started following...Wishing you better luck in the years to come!
Hugs,
Jiller

terri said...

So sorry to hear all the turmoil you've been through. HUGS!

The W.O.W. factor! said...

Hey there Ladies..& Dickiebo..I've surely missed you all! Thx for not forgetting me! I'm not up to blogging full steam yet...but soon, I'll get back into this...

GeckoGirl said...

Oh My GOSH!!! I looked in my blogger board and there you were!! My heart is so happy to see you my friend!
I am saddened to hear about your trials and troubles; but I know that you will persevere and triumph to the fullest! So glad to have you back....((((HUGS)))) from Teresa

LL said...

You're crying over sugar again? Oh WOWie... I just don't know what to do with you... ;)

I've seen what you described too many times. I just don't understand what causes people to use up what others have spent their life creating. Just sad.

Amanda said...

Oh honey I am so sorry to hear of this. We had the shit year from Hell too and are now living in Arizona. You can put it back together. But damn.....

RURAL said...

Oh my, are you ever having to make lemonade. By the gallons....

So sorry, and wishing you only brighter days in the future.

And very glad to hear that you are still blogging, missed you.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Egghead said...

Barb I am so happy to see you here again and SO sorry for all the CRAP that life has handed you lately. Things have to get better now. I hope you can check in now and again. I miss that writing.

Hugs!!

ellie k said...

I have missed your posts welcome back. What happened to the other 10 horses?
We used to have a rental house and found people can be so nasty. one family took all our newly installed carpet when they left.

Lea and her Mustangs said...

Well I was really glad to see you back here. I live near Fairchild AFB. If it is closes enough to help you I would be glad to come and help. I can scrub, paint and be a gofer for sure. Prayers with you Barb.

Tatersmama said...

I'm so glad to see that you're back, darlin'! Tell you what... when I get home, I'll pack up the coffee pot and come for a "working visit"! We could get a hell of a lot done, drinking unleaded, yakkin' and workin', couldn't we? (And we'll even make our own pizza's!)

I've MISSED you, woman!! xoxo

Far Side of Fifty said...

Crap..what a mess..I hope you get stuff set to right again. It sounds like a long clean up process..I cannot even imagine how hard it must be for you.
Take good care of you:)

Anonymous said...

Oh good grief! Arrrgh...it's just not right. But you WILL get through it, you already have most of it behind you. I just wish you all hadn't had to deal with all this!! Praying for you. Really. Hang in there and know that you have been missed and welcome back!!

Kat said...

Hang in there!

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Sarah said...

Holy hell girl! I just surfed arount to see if I could get caught up on you. This is the first post I found. What a rotten bunch of months. I sooo hope you're able to get your home back in order after that lady trashed it. I hope things are looking up!