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Nettles News ~THE
TALE OF THE SPIDER AND THE COMPUTERS
You know, that computer and I have hauled down lots of roads together.
Besides our normal daily hours, it’s patiently allowed me to type
on it as I sat cross-legged in arenas and it’s been an active
player in my booth at every aged event since its birth. I have some
tender feelings for that thing so being told it wasn’t even backup
quality was kind of like being told my kid is the school dunce!
It hurt my
feelings, at least until I realized the game Spider still pops up on
it. If you haven’t played Spider, well… maybe you shouldn’t
because it is highly addicting.
There. I said it. I’m a Spider addict.
And while I’m being truthful, dig this: when you walk past
my booth at the upcoming Futurity and my head is buried in my laptop
- and I tell you I’m working on an article - I really could be
playing Spider. Well, they do say addicts fib just a little, you know.
Spider Addicts are quite ingenious. It dawned on me since
Spider pops up - and since Ronnie doesn’t recognized the
difference in one computer from another - I can appear to be heavily
involved in work and instead really be heavily involved in playing
Spider! He’ll never
know the difference, at least if you don’t tell him. When he
thinks I’m working, he does wonderful things, like bring me coffee
and take the trash out!
Ronnie doesn’t like computers, doesn’t want to learn how
to turn use them - well, except to play Spider. He can do that.
Anyway, since I’ve got this all figured out, I don’t think my
dunce computer is so bad after all!
The good news is that we’ve got a lot of smart computer
folks in the horse business. I
know that because I’ve been in a tailspin with computer problems
lately and so many have come to my rescue.
Of course, some of the things I’ve learned don’t say a
whole lot for my intellect…how could it have been so simple and I
couldn’t figure it out? I’ve
finally decided it’s a left brain/right brain thing - and computer
logic isn’t logged under creative writing.
The computer saga isn‘t over, however. The whole reason
I’ve needed my backup is because the #1 Mac laptop went kapunk and
had to be shipped to the computer doctor. It should have de-boarded
“Brown” in a foreign state - I’m not too sure, but I think it
was north of David Brown’s place on the
These days for working purposes I’m at the mercy of a
monstrous old computer that’s been sleeping in a corner in our
cutting horse office. Considering the way it’s treating me I
don’t think it liked being awakened.
Sure hope Brown brings Mac back soon. Then I can happily
write on my good laptop -or at least make people think so - while I
play Spider on the old one.
Ah, then life will be so good. There’s nothing like an animal to keep you sane. I think if our Congressmen were required to keep a dog at their side, they’d be happier campers and our country would run a whole lot smoother. At least it works that way for us. Rascal really does think he owns our manufacturing business, and sometimes, so do I. After all, at his command a half dozen times a day I obediently get up from my desk to let him out of the office, then open that door again when he demands re-entry. When that long-legged furry creature happily crawls his way into my lap, I rub him with one hand and type with another. And that’s not the end of his control. Work comes to a halt when he nudges me with paw uplifted to shake, those soulful eyes staring into mine. I see none of these things as interruptions, but rather soothing moments in a high-impact day. If Rascal could talk, I bet he’d be our best salesman and have you in the palm of his hand – make that the pad of his foot – just like he has me. And if Rascal couldn’t do it, we have others that probably could. You might say Nettles Stirrups has gone to the dogs since there are plenty around the workshop overseeing the progress. There’s Concho, our son Robby’s dog comes to work
with him every morning sitting regally on I know what you’re thinking: we’re well-trained suckers. Not true. Well, maybe… but we prefer to consider ourselves good animal lovers who have found that an animal’s companionship eases the stresses of a busy day. While these pets definitely do that, unfortunately, they haven’t made us excellent salesman. Our family is a creative bunch and that’s what everyone prefers to do – create, develop new ideas, then burn the midnight oil building and tweaking prototypes to guarantee the new idea works. Thank goodness the stirrups sell themselves; otherwise, since we’re a family business, we’d have to figure out how to get a sales person married into the clan! While the bad news is that we aren’t good at calling on
customers, the good news is that you can rest assured Nettles Stirrups
are the best built product on the market, designed to give you the
best ride and constructed by the best craftsman in the industry.
We have a talented group of guys surrounded by talented pets that
keep us all sane! |
Meet
Rascal, the boss of Nettles Stirrups. (And all the time you thought
Ronnie Nettles owned this place!)
the
console of the truck, head forward, ears perky as if helping to
drive. LuLu, our nephew Mark’s dog, prefers the floorboard
when she rides. That doesn’t mean she’s shy, though.
Should everyone leave the shop area at the same time, she’ll
tell you about. While they are both heelers like Rascal, we also
have Hoss Kitty, a baby kitten that somehow has managed to survive
any threat from other four-legged creatures to push her out.