A Cowgirl Moves...

...A Bookshelf...Make That A Pile of Boards and Some Horseshoes...

My famous last words today: "I think I can move it."

I just wanted to move my cookbooks, and the shelf that they were on, over to the bunkhouse. By the time I got all the cookbooks off the shelf, I could tell it was shoddily constructed, just three heavy boards nailed/screwed to some horseshoes that had been welded together. In fact, I lifted it and the top shelf came loose on one end.

The shelf used to sit under the "bar" counter top in our kitchen, thereby making the bar obsolete and unusable, but making a fantastic and convenient storage spot for my cookbook collection. I really wanted this continuity during our temporary residence at the bunkhouse: to have my cookbooks in the exact same order and configuration. I'm used to it. It makes sense to me. It's comfortable.

So I reattached the top shelf, and drug the whole thing over to the front door. Since I am all alone on the ranch today, I knew that I would need something to assist me in hauling this monstrosity the 20 feet or so over to the bunkhouse. The boys' red wagon is already being used, so my thoughts fell next to the four wheeler. Of course.

I moved the van so I could pull the four wheeler right up to the front door. I drug the shelves out the front door, and balanced them precariously on the front end. They are about 87" long, so they were sticking out obscenely on either side of the four wheeler. I backed up a bit, determined that yes, I would miss the grill on my right. However, I was definitely going to snag the forlorn pile of Christmas lights on the table on my left.

I'm not sure exactly how what happened next happened at all. I was holding on to the shelves with my left hand, and had my right hand on the throttle. (is that what it's called, that little lever that you push with your thumb, that makes it go?) I was going to hop off and move the Christmas lights, when all of a sudden, my hip (my hip? some part of my body, I was driving while standing, after all) hit the throttle. The four wheeler lurched backward, making the shelves lurch forward, and I, still hanging on to the shelves and saying "Whoa!" also lurched forward, which in turn pushed the throttle even further and the four wheeler went backwards even faster.

The four wheeler came to a stop on top of a folding step stool AND our garbage can, climbing up the side of the house, I swear it was on just one front wheel, tipping precariously as I hopped off. The shelving, boards and horseshoes, was in a pile in the mud, not one piece attached to another.

The garbage can is fine, but the step stool doesn't fold or stand, and I had to extricate it from the four wheeler's undercarriage. I cannot find a screw or horseshoe nail that formerly held the shelving together. Well, I take that back, I found ONE horseshoe nail sticking in my shoe.

I can't help but laugh at the stupid chain of events. I briefly thought of putting the whole thing back together, but decided against it. I will simply sacrifice some pantry space in order to have my books in the kitchen. Number One wasn't excited about putting that darn bookshelf in the short hallway over there anyway.

I think/hope the four wheeler is okay. Please don't tell CG...