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HoofPrints Newsletter
July 10, 2012
Rob shoeing Rocky
ABOUT THE COMPANY AND THIS NEWSLETTER
Farriers Greeting Cards was started by Gina Keesling in 1986 (in a very small way) to provide helpful promotional materials for farrier husband Rob. Along the way we became HoofPrints.com, too, adding a selection of fun horse and dog products geared toward women of a certain age. This newsletter is emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and more.

Revisiting the bad day.
Last time, I whined about the fact that the expensive new software update that I had installed was giving me trouble. That's one of those things about owning your own business that the folks who think "it must be nice to work for yourself..." don't consider. At most "regular jobs" when your computer system acts up, you report it to the appropriate channels and it gets taken care of by someone who knows how to do these things. Here at HoofPrints, that would be me -  and I must admit I am often NOT up to the task. Most times it's slow going, and we always seem to have a dilemma that even puzzles tech support.  
Broken domelight
Second, my son accidentally broke a rare dome light lens for the 1951 Ford truck that he is restoring. One of the finishing touches that goes on the interior - now in smithereens. He found one on ebay easily enough (at the above link) but it ended up selling for $122. - so he let it pass, hoping for another to come along. Both he and my dad have been known to buy entire vehicles in order to get a few coveted parts such as this. Stay tuned for news on how this turns out.

The pokeweed plant that was broken in the storm was not going to revive, so we cut it the rest of the way off and disposed of it. I suppose I could have made an enormous Poke Salad, but the preparation instructions in the recipe were just a little too scary to me; "When preparing poke weed for consumption the first time, allow an experienced person to teach you what parts are safe to use and how to prepare it. If the wrong parts are eaten and pokeweed is not prepared properly, it can be poisonous to consume! It is important to use only the thick, succulent new growth (3 to 4 inches at the growing tips). The rest of the plant contains so much Vitamin A that it may be poisonous unless it is boiled in water 3 times (the water must be discarded 3 times to leech out the excess Vitamin A."


F250 with tow strap I had sent Jordan to run an errand (to take his mind off the broken dome light lens). When he got out of the truck, the strong wind jerked the door out of his hand and bent it backwards. The door is still functional and hasn't been repaired (yet) as the truck was having a very bad week - the transmission went out a few days later. It's sitting here forlornly in the driveway with the tow strap still hooked to the front bumper. I am thankful that it decided to croak close to home instead of another state - with Jordan off on an excursion buying, oh, another old '50's truck just to get the dome light lens.

 Swallow mamaThe one thing that's left us with more questions than answers is the mystery deaths of the baby swallows in the nest on the porch. They were about half grown and appeared healthy. We don't know how they got out of the nest...We found a dead adult swallow in the yard a few days later - thought that might be one of the parents? But now, there's another mama swallow sitting on the nest. Is this the same mother that the other babies belonged to? or an opportunist who capitalized on a nest already constructed? Wikipedia says they raise two broods a year, but doesn't give much insight on situations like this.

Pink Breyer Horse
After all the troubles we were having, I was thinking we were about the unluckiest bunch ever, but the comments and gift messages that came through with the orders for
the now discontinued Breyer Breast Cancer Awareness Model Horse quickly made me realize just how fortunate we are to only have the troubles we do:

 

"Sending you a reminder of the healing power of the horse. May you have a speedy recovery." 

 

"How timely....I hope there is a horse left for me...I was just diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer and this horse needs to sit by my side during my battle." 

 

"You are going to win this battle!!! I love you, Mom." 

 

We have less than a dozen of the Breyer Horses left - once they're gone we can't get any more. To order click here

Blacksmith Calendar Feb example Update on Blacksmith Calendar  Reserve your copy today! This has been a challenging and fun project that I've enjoyed sharing the progress with you all on. I started with no real plan, other than the fact that it would be the same size as previous year's calendars and it would be in COLOR as opposed to the previous black and white. I have a small stash of images, and helpful newsletter subscribers have been sending some of theirs, too. It seems each page has an evolving theme, with this one being that of shoeing difficult horses - an apparently timeless problem. I found lots of images of horses behaving badly, along with the efforts of the smithy to do their job and get them shod.

To facilitate this task, there were all manner of devices to assist. The Geo. Barcus Company of Wabash, Indiana was a manufacturer of shoeing stocks in the early 1900's. We've included a couple clippings of their advertisements on the calendar page shown here. The advertising copy is fascinating - it paints a clear picture of life as a shoer in those days."Barcus Stocks Are the Best. They are the best because they are the only ones absolutely guaranteed to hold any horse perfectly without danger to either horse or man."

A testimonial letter: "Dear Sirs; I received the stocks in good shape, put them up and shod three bad ones in them. They are the slickest rig on earth, and the only stocks I ever saw that worked satisfactorily. It takes a perfect stock to hold these Western horses, for they can turn any shape, like a cat, but this one beats them out."

Barcus stocks One Kick ad Another ad appeals to the blacksmith's sense of safety and well being: "ONE KICK MIGHT COST a hundred dollar doctor bill and keep you out of the shop for months - in fact nearly ruin your business. Why take the chance? Make sure such a disaster can't happen to you by simply using Barcus Safety Horse Stocks."

There are six other small images on this calendar month depicting various aspects of the unruly horse dilemma, along with the large "star" color  image Passion and Patience by John Sargent Noble. This has long been one of my favorites - with it's great beauty and attention to detail. We sell it as a large print here.

The 2013 Blacksmith Calendars are now available for pre-order. We've LOWERED THE PRICE to $14.95. To sweeten the deal even more, I'll send you a 2012 Calendar for FREE if you order now. This is a limited time offer, so don't wait. At this time I do NOT have a scheduled delivery date. It's coming along nicely - and will progress even better/faster if you all continue to offer the encouragement and submission of images for consideration. (hint, hint)
To reserve your copy(s) click here.


Horses and Hope July "I think I have a superior brain and an Inferior stature if you really want to get brutal about it."
-quote by Paul Simon featured on this month's page of the Horses & Hope Calendar, appropriately, along with 9 lovely color photos of PONIES!

We are excited to announce a couple things involving this project. First, if you're new and don't know about the Horses and Hope Calendar, it's a collaborative effort between award winning photographer Sarah K. Andrew and HoofPrints. Sarah donates her time photographing horses in need, mostly at Camelot Auction in New Jersey, but also at surrounding rescues. The horses are networked via a facebook group here, orchestrated by an incredibly dedicated and professional group of volunteers. Each brings to the table their own set of special skills, and through this effort thousands of horses have been saved. 100% of the profits from the sales of the calendars goes to help horses in need - with sales this fall exceeding our wildest dreams - nearly $40,000. was raised for the chosen recipient charity.

Working on this project has shown me that someone's always willing to step up and help, and this week was no exception. I received an email from a longtime HoofPrints customer, a gal who'd in the past thanked us for taking on the calendar project. She told me she would have a booth at the Warren County Farmers' Fair in NJ, and was planning to work to educate fair attendees about the unwanted horse problem and why slaughter is not a viable or humane solution.

She will have Horses and Hope Calendars on hand for sale at a reduced price - included with these at NO EXTRA CHARGE will be a plethora of horsey goodies! We are still in the planning stages, so stay tuned for more particulars. If you're local to New Jersey - the Warren County Farmers' Fair runs from July 28 - August 4th. There's something for the whole family there, including Equestrian Events. Details about the fair here.

If you're not able to attend the fair in NJ, we've got the calendars marked down to $10 each here. Still a great deal for over 100 stunning color photos. 100% of the proceeds goes to One Horse At A Time. You can read about my assessment of their efforts to help horses here

Big Little Life book Something for Dog Lovers

NEW BOOK: A Big Little Life

In a profound, funny, and beautifully rendered portrait of a beloved companion, bestselling novelist Dean Koontz remembers the golden retriever who changed his life. A retired service dog, Trixie was three when Dean and his wife, Gerda, welcomed her into their home. She was superbly trained, but her greatest gifts couldn't be taught: her keen intelligence, her innate joy, and an uncanny knack for living in the moment. Whether chasing a tennis ball or protecting those she loved, Trixie gave all she had to everything she did, inspiring Dean and Gerda to trust their instincts and recapture a sense of wonder that will remain with them always. Trixie lived fewer than twelve years; in this wide world, she was a little thing. But in every way that mattered, she lived a big life. To order click here

Gina's note:
This memoir is a brilliantly written story of a couple's life with their Golden Retriever. Mostly it's a series of fairly ordinary human-dog interactions that will make you smile and warm your heart, but it's also layered with a lot of deep, spiritual observations. Consider this excerpt:

"Too many of us die without knowing transcendent joy, in part because we pursue one form or another of materialism. We seek meaning in possessions, in pursuit of cosmic justice for earthly grievances, in the acquisition of power over others. But one day Death reveals that life is wasted in these cold passions, because zealotry of any kind precludes love except of the thing that is idolized. 
 
On the other hand, dogs eat with gusto, play with exuberance, work happily when given the opportunity, surrender themselves to the wonder and the mystery of their world, and love extravagantly. Envy infects the human heart; if we envy, next we covet, and what we covet becomes the object of our all-consuming avarice. If we live without envy, with the humility and the joyful gratitude of dogs - nachos! ball! cuddle time! - we will be ready even for Death when he comes for us, content that we have made good use of the gift of life." 

Paw Print Tissue ON SALE: Paw Print Tissue paper We were doing some cleaning and found a stash of this cool Paw Print Tissue paper - on sale for just $1.49 a pack here. We've phased out our other gift wrap items, so this doesn't fit with anything else we sell. It does, however, match the Paw Print Gift Bags here
Found Print
RECAP -  From the last newsletter: Here's what we talked about last time:
Found - Collie & Lamb print here
New cards added to online directory here
Horse & Buggy Days
on closeout here
Essential Principles of Horseshoeing here
Horse Sense Coaster Set here
A Dog's Journey new book here
A Farrier's Prayer framed verse here

PAST NEWSLETTERS - See what you missed! Catch up on the news here
In This Issue
Revisiting the bad day
Update on Blacksmith Calendar
Horses & Hope at NJ Fair
New Dog Book
RECAP from last newsletter
Underwater Dogs Calendar
WHAT'S ON SALE?
Horse & Buggy Days
Horse & Buggy Days framed print
Framed Blacksmith print by Paul Detlefsen here
WHAT'S NEW?
Horse Coaster Set
Faith Coaster with easel
Wood Framed Ceramic Horse Sense Coasters here
WHAT'S NEW?
Hold Your Horses T
Hold Your Horses T
See our T-shirt selection here
WHAT'S NEW?
A Dog's Journey
Dogs Journey Cover
Sequel to best-seller
A Dog's Purpose here
WHAT'S NEW?
Spiritual Book
Desiderata cover
Desiderata for Horse Lovers makes a great gift! order here
WHAT'S NEW?
The Faraway Horses by Buck Brannaman
Faraway Horses book cover
Read more about the life of best-selling DVD star here
WHAT'S NEW?
Farrier Book
Essential Principles of Horseshoeing
Order Essential Principles of Horseshoeing here  
WHAT'S NEW?
~ Christian Book ~
Invisible Woman Book
The Invisible Woman - When
Only God Sees here
CHECK IT OUT!
SALE on Spring T's
3 horsey t-shirts
BIG sale on Springy Horsey T-shirts less than $10 each here
WHAT'S NEW?
~ for Horsewomen ~
Long Tall List of Things To Do
Horsewoman's Long Tall List of Things to Do here
WHAT'S NEW!
Underwater Dogs
Underwater dogs calendar
Order your 2013 calendar here
FREE with every order
Inspirational Bookmark
Moates Bookmark
Features inspirational verses & photo of author Tom Moates. See it here
Message

We LOVE hearing from our customers. You can contact HoofPrints owner
Gina Keesling via email at [email protected]
 
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Be sure to LIKE our facebook page - it's where we announce special sales, breaking news and everything else we find interesting. To see it go here
 
Our Current Catalog
2012 spring catalog cover
Request your copy of
HoofPrints Spring Catalog
by clicking here
 
Quick Links
Share our emails
Viral marketing... it sounds bad, doesn't it?
You can ask my husband - a frequent topic around here is that of forwarded emails - and the psychology behind them - just WHAT prompts people to decide; "I am going to send this to everyone I know!".


We receive a lot of them. Some are pretty good, and others are dumb. Dumb in a myriad of ways...  Alarmist email rumors that have been around forever - that folks keep sending "just in case it's true" Pictures of someone's butt (or worse) - don't even get me started about the firecracker butt - but at least that one was timely when it showed up around July 4. Christian messages that are uplifting - until you get to the end and you're threatened "if you're not ashamed that you love Jesus, forward this - if you are, then delete." Pictures of cute puppies and kittens (awww)

I enjoy writing these newsletters - and sharing all this stuff with you all. But the fact is, it's also a way to help us stay connected with customers and sell products during the time between catalog mailings (which is only once a year) So I really, really like it when someone new stumbles upon the newsletter and is excited to "discover" our company and the products we offer.

In all my efforts to make the newsletter interesting and forward-worthy - it never occurred to me to JUST ASK you all to send it! Duh. Sometimes the obvious is elusive, I guess. So here goes - my request to ask you to forward our email newsletter to your horsey friends.  All we ask is that you please be judicious and only send to folks who might be interested. Otherwise we are no better than the "firecracker butt". Click to get started. (please note - using this form does NOT subscribe anyone to our list - it is a one-time only forward)