first steps

Many's the time it's been pointed out to me that reading about it and doing it are two entirely different things. Now that I'm in the final weeks of preparation, I am finding this to be so true.

The packs look simple in the photos. But going to tie them on, the holes for strings are different from my day packs, which means a different knot, which I have yet to learn, so I attach them with my lamest excuse for tying and hope they stay. Then attaching the big poofy sleeping bag, I have to smush it down to stretch the ties over it; Butch is unaccustomed to the pressure and his hips give way momentarily, throws me off balance, I fall on my butt and, flustered, he steps on my foot. Ow.

So, he's finally tacked up. I go to climb on... How do I swing my leg over that !#*@! sleeping bag?!? I manage it, only to find... Butch's headstall has slipped down his neck because I trimmed his mane, and I can barely reach over the front packs to push it back up.

My endlessly patient mule. I could hear him sigh.

I did make a magical discovery. Butch is either the world's smartest, sanest mule, or he was hobble-trained in his raw youth to not just front hobbles, but 3-legged hobbles also! After today's ride I turned him out in the round pen with his grain, attached the 3-ways, sat back and waited for the kicking to commence. And waited. And waited. Butch finished his grain, felt the pull, shuffled a few inches and stood calmly, staring at me. After a while he reached out in my direction with his nose. No fuss. No impatience. No moving. Then he got bored, picked up the empty pan with his teeth and started playing with it.

What a good, good, good mule. How lucky am I!