It was late Saturday evening when J.D. and I pulled up in front of the barns at the Lazy K. We didn’t waste any time getting the horses unloaded. After walking them around to limber up their tired legs, we put them in adjoining stalls with plenty of water and feed.
“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” I commented to my grandfather, standing at Indian Summer’s stall.
“They’re both beautiful.” J.D. responded, putting his arm around me. “I’d say you made two good decisions today.”
“You’re gonna do all right expanding our operations.” He added. “You’ve got a good eye for horses.”
After grabbing a quick shower and opening a cold beer, I sat in my grandfather’s office going through my emails. J.D. had already gone to bed, leaving me to tend to business.
“Want me to unhook the trailer?” Cody inquired, stepping through the French doors from the patio.
“No. Leave it hooked up.” I replied, pulling my robe around me. “I may need it tomorrow.”
“Saw you bought two horses.” Cody remarked, sitting down across from the desk. “How many more are you planning on buying?”
“Enough to fill both barns and keep them full.” I replied. “Depends on how well the horse market performs.”
“With the economy improving, I expect people will be doing a lot more buying than selling.” I added.
“Speaking of performing, how about you and me headin’ down to my place for the night?” Cody suggested with a grin.
“I thought I made myself perfectly clear about that yesterday.” I declared. “Evidently, you didn’t listen.”
“I didn’t take it seriously.” He asserted. “I figured you were just ticked off at me.”
“Do yourself a favor. Take it seriously.” I declared. “My advice to you is get yourself another girlfriend.....or get yourself another job.”
Cody realized I wasn’t kidding. My icy cold stare and stern look emphasized the words I’d spoken. He stepped out of the office, making his way hurriedly back to his trailer.
“What a jerk!” I thought. “You’d think he’d take what I said seriously.”
It was well after midnight before I finally shut down the computer and went to bed. I slept through the night into the late morning hours. It was approaching 10am when I finally woke up. Slipping a light robe around myself, I sauntered out to the kitchen, still half asleep.
“Thought I’d let you sleep in this morning.” My grandfather remarked, pouring me a cup of coffee. “Hope you didn’t have anything planned.”
“Not really.” I responded, looking out the kitchen window toward the barns. “Thought I’d do a little shopping over the internet. See if I can find us some more good horses.”
“Michelle, why don’t you take the day off?” J.D. suggested. “Or, work on your book. You haven’t taken any time for yourself since you got here.”
“I know. I know.” I replied. “I prefer to write of an evening, not on the weekends.”
“There’s a big sale down in Amarillo, Texas next weekend.” My grandfather stated. “Three days actually. Starts on Friday.”
“Really! Let’s go!” I exclaimed excitedly.
J.D. informed me about the sale which was to take place at the fairgrounds in Amarillo. Along with afternoon and evening auction events there were several barns set up for direct selling and expo halls with vendor and manufacturer displays. It all sounded very interesting.
“I’ll book us a couple of rooms.” I suggested. “Maybe we can get something close to the fairgrounds.”
“Hah!” J.D. laughed. “You’ll be lucky to get a hotel room close to Amarillo! This horse sale draws people from all over the U.S.”
Logging onto the internet, I found out just how true my grandfather’s statement was. It took over an hour of searching through hotel bookings before I finally received confirmation on two adjoining rooms at the Sheridan Inn on the west side of Amarillo.
With the trip being only three-hundred and sixty miles for us, my grandfather and I decided to leave early Thursday morning. J.D. suggested we take the four-horse gooseneck trailer instead of the one I’d gotten used to. Pulling it with the Ford flatbed truck would also be another new experience I’d have to endure.
Monday morning, right after breakfast, I started prepping for the trip. Contacting the auction company and setting up an account was my first accomplishment. Getting the Ford extended cab truck serviced in Canon City was my second.
Tuesday, I spent the better part of the day getting the four-horse trailer prepared for the trip. After putting fresh straw and sawdust down for bedding, I stacked several bales of hay in the tack room. Filling the onboard water tank and making a comprehensive check of the trailer completed the task.
Wednesday, I did laundry and packed clothes for the trip. My grandfather insisted on my wearing dress clothes for the events instead of casual clothing. It was easier to comply with his wishes rather than argue with him.
“This ain’t no local horse show!” He declared. “This is the big time! Lots of buyers and sellers are gonna be there for this event. I want you lookin’ like a ranch manager, not a stablegirl.”
By Wednesday afternoon, we were ready for our trip. Even with all the work I’d had to get done for our trip, I’d still managed to find time each evening to work on my book. With my grandfather relaxing in his favorite recliner, watching one of his many favorite westerns, we were falling into a comfortable routine.
Shortly after 9am Thursday morning, we drove through the entrance to the ranch on our way to Amarillo. The Ford truck, with its diesel engine, handled the large trailer effortlessly. It took awhile for me to get used to pulling the lengthy trailer. I kept an eye on the rearview mirrors for several miles before finally relaxing.
Traveling through northern New Mexico gave me a chance to see a part of this beautiful country I’d never seen before. Cruising along at seventy-five miles an hour, my eyes took in the picturesque scenery and small towns that dotted the interstate. By early afternoon, J.D. had dozed off after reclining his seat back. At least he wasn’t distracting me with his constant pointing out of minute details about the landscape.
The trip went smoothly with us making our arrival in Amarillo around 4pm in the afternoon. The skyline of the city reminded me a lot of Chicago, except on a much smaller scale. Getting the horse trailer parked amongst the others in the hotel parking lot was a little nerve-racking. Thankfully, my grandfather slept through the entire ordeal!
Our adjoining rooms were on the fourth floor of the Sheridan with a view of the interstate and every fast-food restaurant known to man. After getting situated in our rooms, we decided on dinner in the hotel’s restaurant. The excitement of being in Amarillo and attending the horse expo and sale was quite evident in J.D.’s demeanor. I felt the trip was as beneficial to his health and well-being as his medication.
Early Friday morning, after a good night’s sleep and a light breakfast, J.D. and I headed over to the fairgrounds. The traffic was heavy but flowing smoothly. After being directed to one of the numerous parking areas, we donned our western hats and proceeded to the main exposition hall.
