I live a life that allows me time to think. This is intentional. I created it. Some, I think, don’t think much about thinking. These individuals are cognitively brain dead. We have a lot of these types around here, as is evidenced by the fact that they let their dogs run loose, and let them run behind their vehicles.

If they took a moment and thought about it, they would realize that this sort of behavior (on their part) could have serious consequences. I am very proud of the fact that our horses pay these dogs no mind. I do wonder, though, if others come and ride with us, or if I give a lesson, what might happen.

Today, when three of a neighbor’s dogs raced towards the road, and the owner

The 557 steam locomotive being restored

stood watching on the porch, I squelched the impulse to yell out “fence your yard” because this would not change the situation. No one around here but us believe in fencing.

It’s a double-edged sword. I do my thinking when I ride. If I didn’t ride, most likely none of the above would have occurred to me.

These days, I have to ride. This is what’s keeping me sane right now. I rode this afternoon and this evening. In addition to thinking about the above, I also thought some about the day’s events. Indeed, I did go the dentist (brave me), and I did have a filling removed. And I did have a new crown put over the tooth.

It was a deep filling – I took note of this when I saw the x-ray on the screen in front of me. And this was reaffirmed when Dr. Gurr started drilling. He drilled for a bit, and then, as told, I raised my left hand because it hurt. He then gave me more “as he called it” numbing agent. That hurt too. It took just a short while to make the crown – putting this in place also hurt. I found myself thinking that perhaps an extraction would be less painful.

I am just hoping that this tooth doesn’t go bad. I do not want to have a root canal done or have to have it extracted.

In the time between the drilling and the crown placement, Pete and I went over to see if we might unload some railroad books. In the process we checked out the Alaska Railroad Steam engine project, called Engine 557 – housed in an old Alaska Railroad shop. Pat, an older fellow, obviously the one in charge, gave us a detailed tour. Before us, was the steam engine, nearly assembled, comprised of thousands of metal pieces, each one with a name and a purpose. The shop was huge, the engine was huge, the machinery used to make and modify the parts, huge.

The shop, also huge, was in very good order. Apparently, there are currently 22 guys working on the engine. It will be functional in just a few years. Pat is in his 70s or 80s, the question is, will he live to hear the train whistle? I hope so.

What I later thought was – this is another example of a very ambitious effort. And if a group of men can do this, perhaps I can do what I’ve set out to do.

Next: 123. 5/4/21: Storm(y) Watch