Merry Christmas!!! -K

Merry Christmas!!!
-K

NEWS BULLETIN

FYI: This is the best cream ever! For people, horses, and, as the name implies, cows. Very hydrating!
-K

Guilty!

So I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed lately. It all started when I came back from vacation several weeks ago. I've just not been able to get my bearings since then. It's not so hard to see how I got this way. I haven't been riding enough and that always leaves me feeling scatter brained. I've also been trying to play catch up at work and that's never fun or easy. Home chores have definitely been ignored and they will continue to get ignored until.....well... until they aren't ignored anymore. On Tuesday I was home by 7 and could have had a good long ride. I had plenty of time and the weather was decent. What did I do? I joined the Chronicle of the Horse forums and spent what seemed like hours posting until my status went from "Greenie" to "Training Level". When I finally looked outside I realized I had to step away from the computer if I was going to ride for even a second. Fortunately I had the strength to tear away as the computer mouse tried to wrap itself around my hand, and the power cable started grabbing my ankle. Later on I looked back and asked myself why I didn't get away sooner. The answer is that I feel guilty even when I do ride. Why is that?

I pulled Holly out of the paddock and quickly tacked her up. Aside from the horse flies hungrily hovering all over her she was actually very good for this part. She used to walk all over when I let her graze while I brushed her or tacker her up, or, god forbid, gave her a bath. As soon as she'd see me coming with something she'd start casually looking for a greener spot of grass. I guess she's finally learned that I'm a better treat dispenser if she stays put. Anyway, I was happy that I finally got to try out the big mounting block we just built. It's nice and sturdy and works a whole lot better than the buckets, coolers, and turned over water troughs I've been using. After mounting we went out to the big field. We walked around for a while as I tried to remember what I was supposed to be doing with my legs. Remember, the last time I rode was before I went up North and I had been running and exercising very regularly. Now....not so easy. It's amazing how quickly our bodies return to flaccidity. Anyway, Holly wasn't exactly thrilled about the whole "rush job" and was especially annoyed that the horse flies are impervious to any fly treatment I may have been able to provide. Our ride was, er, swift. Were not talking all out rocket jet but it was energetic to be sure. I really didn't care that much about her speed and I kept her a little more forward than usual as we trotted around. The whole ride was maybe fifteen to twenty minutes. It was not terribly fulfilling but at least made me feel a little bit better.

When I finished I realized that I felt guilty about having ridden. I felt that I should have been making dinner or doing chores around the house, or finishing up something for work. It's a strange conundrum. Either I do work, or chores and feel guilty about not riding or I ride and feel guilty about not doing chores and work. It's enough to drive a person completely batty! Well I guess I'll just have to kick myself in the rear and get caught up with work and (some) chores so I won't feel guilty about riding this weekend. I AM riding this weekend. I just can't stand it any longer. Clearly, not riding has put me into a tail spin and the only way to get out of it is to ride more. Right?

Long time no write...

I regret that I have been lax in reciting the latest adventures in my equine endeavors. I truly enjoy recounting for all, the trials of attempting to become a better rider or at the very least attempting to ride. I have to admit that when I started this journal I believed it would inspire me to ride more often. I probably have ridden more than I would if I did not anticipate writing about it but still my horses go for weeks unridden. They are starting to give me dirty looks. I swear the gray mare is deliberately getting as filthy as possible just so that I will take the time to groom her. Sigh.

The last time I rode The Lady Holly was just before I went on vacation to the lake up north. I recall that it was a lovely ride! You see I had been doing very well for myself by running nearly everyday and doing some exercises for my middle. I hadn't ridden for weeks before but had the benefit of being in better physical shape! I got on and tried my best to hold my legs into the position Kathy had wrenched them into the last time I saw her. I found it was a little less torturous than the first time I tried it. We began to trot (the true test of leg position) and I was so surprised at how little effort it actually was to keep myself from lurching forward and flopping backward as I normally do after not riding for so long! It was actually quite pleasant. Miss Holly seemed to be pleased with me as well for she was relaxed and trotting so smoothly without taking off like the demons were chasing her. What a shame I had gotten on so late that we could only ride for a few minutes.

The next day I went up to Buckland to ride my dear friend's horse. My poor friend had injured her knee a week or so before and I had been there when it happened. She had been riding yet another friend's horse as I was pulling into the drive. I saw the mare rear straight up. My friend is no ninny and was able to hang on although she was unseated. She needed a split second to get herself properly in the saddle but the mare decided to jump and spin. The two parted ways and the mare charged around the ring while my friend sat on the ground. I quickly parked and hurried to secure the mare, mindful of my flip flopped feet. My friend later learned she'd torn her ACL. To spare her knee she offered to give me a lesson on her horse. Fortunately she has lovely horses and I was happy to oblige. The gelding I rode is a plucky little chestnut thoroughbred who was fairly recently retired from racing. Crafty is a cute little horse and seems very content to observe other horses work whilst he is standing in the middle of the ring. He reminds me very much of Kathy's dear Peanut. We had a good easy ride and I was very happy to have ridden two days in a row. Of course then I went on vacation and haven't sat on a horse since. Actually I haven't picked anything back up since my return from northern lands. No riding, no running, no exercises, nothing but work. Now my gelding is sore footed and my mare lost a shoe so I couldn't ride if I wanted to. Well, chock it up to another rideless week I guess. The farrier will be out on Saturday so I better get to running if I want to be in any shape to ride come Sunday!

Mojo Madness

Well I have only ridden once since my adventures in FL. I feel so guilty and neglectful, but it is not completely my fault. Holly has had a string of issues that are now resolved. Of course I could have ridden Henry but then there have also been all these freak thunderstorms. Of course, we haven't been having any freak thunderstorms on the weekends, but we have been busy trying to catch up with all the maintenance and projects on the farm. I know, I know...excuses excuses! It's shameful! Well I do have some good news. I have been working with Mojo the pony quite a bit lately. It started with trying to teach him that the fly spray is not going to kill him. Today he actually let me spray his chest and left side without moving. He finally got it and figured out that when he stopped moving around I stopped spraying him very quickly! He's pretty smart! Earlier this week, or was it last week? Who knows, anyway, I came home from work and it was still pretty early but not early enough to groom one of my disgusting horses and ride, so I decided to groom Mojo instead. I think it was the first time he seemed to really enjoy being groomed. Today I decided to go a little further and start getting him into the idea of stuff being on his back and around his belly. I put a blanket surcingle on him first with a I rigged up little "breast plate" made of elastic leg straps and baling twine (to keep the surcingle in place). I let him walk around with that on for a few minutes and he didn't seem to care. Next I got a saddle pad and let him sniff it. Then I rubbed his whole body with it like a towel. I put the saddle pad on and reattached the surcingle. I didn't want him to roll so instead of turning him loose we just walked around the pasture together. He did fine with that so I went and got my saddle. I showed it to him and let him sniff it and he looked at me like "Yeah, ok and...?" He did move away a few steps when I lifted it up to his back level but I kinda rubbed him with it as best I could without making it scary and then he was fine. I put it on his back on top of the saddle pad, then took it off, put it back on, moved it all around up his neck and down off his butt. He stood still for it all and didn't mind a bit. Finally I put the girth on and tightened it very slowly, one hole at a time over the course of several minutes until it was barely snug. I wiggled the saddle a little bit so he could get used to it and feel everything before putting it up one more hole so that it was just snug enough to keep the saddle in place. I let him stand there for a minute before taking him back out to walk around. He was completely fine with everything! We walked around for a while and I turned him in circles both ways so he could feel how the saddle felt. I need to teach him how to lunge so I can get him to move with the saddle on. He may feel differently about it when he's trotting and cantering. Here is a picture of him standing after we walked around with the saddle on.














I took the stirrups off first thing before I ever put it on him. I didn't want them to accidentally come down and scare him. I'll work up to having the stirrups loose and dangling when he is lunged. He was such a good boy so I untacked him right after I took the picture, brushed him off, gave him some treats (which he was also getting throughout the entire process) and then turned him out. So even though I haven't been riding I feel like I have been doing something productive.

Where I'm From

On my way home this dark and dreary evening I was listening to the radio to keep myself company as I usually do. Working far from home has advantages and disadvantages and sometimes, they are one in the same. I really enjoy taking the hour plus drive to relax in the car and decompress. I am an over thinker and driving by myself as much as I do allows me to indulge in that pastime. Most of the time I think about what's going on in my life at present, what my goals are for the future, how my relationships are going, and very occasionally what I am going to cook for dinner. The disadvantage of being such an over thinker is that my thoughts sometimes turn down a sad and uncomfy path and I have a whole lot of time to dwell in those prickly thoughts. This evening was almost one of those occasions.

A song came on the radio that I often listen to and maybe you've heard it too. It's that country song "Where I'm From". He is telling a man on a plane about where he's from and paints the picture of a small country town. Well anyway if you don't know what I am talking about it doesn't really matter. The point is, it got me thinking about where I am from. I've never really felt like I was FROM anywhere. I don't have a home town that I know and remember and love. My years growing up were spent a few years here and a few years there. Military kids know what I'm talking about. My friends all either grew up here or grew up in another state and they go "home" for holidays. Well I sure didn't grow up here, but my parent's house is not really home either. My friends can't wait to visit with their friends and family "back home". I don't have a "back home" and sometimes it get a little depressing. But tonight I realized something. I am from somewhere. It's a place I know so well I could describe it to a blind man. I know the smells, the sounds, and everyone's name.

I am from a dusty old barn with red and white paint.
Where the horses are fed precisely at 8,
and where stalls are mucked every morning.
Where barn aisles are swept, and buckets are scrubbed.
Tack is clean and greys like the mud.
Where horse show moms are your biggest fans,
and losing your horse is like losing your hand
It may sound silly to some, but that is where I am from.

It may sound silly but that really IS where I am from. My horses are my dearest friends. We scratch each others backs, give each other hugs, and get on each others nerves. They depend on me, but I desperately depend on them to keep my sanity. Ok this may really be silly but when I am watching a movie where someone is riding a horse, and they do it in slow motion, and it's all dramatic, I feel homesick and sometimes will find myself tearing up. I can't ever remember feeling homesick in a barn. The smell of a barn or horses makes me feel safe and happy, even if I am thinking about how atrocious the stalls may be. I know you may be thinking "is she serious?...a barn???", but yes, I am. The closest thing to a hometown I know is a barn. For me, home is where the barn is.

Debriefing

For those of you who don't know already, we are back safe and sound from Florida. The main thing here is that we are SAFE and sound! The car is ok, we are ok, everything is OK. Now that's out of the way we can talk about how much fun we had! Poor Kathy...she felt so bad that we had such a hard time getting down there and that it rained every time we stepped foot outside of anything with a roof. I think maybe she thought we were not having a good time. Well we really went down there to see her, and secondly to ride, so the trip was a success. We did ride only twice but really I think we could have ridden everyday for a week straight and it would not have helped me at all. I cannot even begin to explain how horribly I rode! My leg was all over the place but most certainly not where it was supposed to be. My upper body was decidedly top heavy and chose to allow gravity to do it's job much too easily! I seriously don't know how I stayed on at all! Kathy gavae me the name of an equitation trainer up here, Matt Collins. She said he may be able to help me get it together but I think he might tell me I'm a lost cause. I'll give it a try anyway, but I'm not holding my breath. Anyway...all in all I'm glad we decided to keep trudging on after we had the accident. It was good to see Kathy and Sam and Peanut, and Abby, and Sassy of course. Next time I'm taking a train and will ride with Matt or someone else everyday for a month before I go down if I have to!

Day 6 of Adventure in Florida

Learning that in just five months we have successfully undone everything that Kathy taught us about riding...Priceless!

Days 3, 4, & 5 of Adventure in Florida

Why YES! There is a rain cloud hovering over our heads. We need a vacation from the vacation!

Day 2 of Adventure

Woke up at the crack of dawn this morning only to realize that no, it was NOT all a bad dream! Anyway, I'll just give you the highlights again...


Dragged my butt out of the comfy hotel bed and hoofed it over the the repair shop. Ugh!

Got the car fixed for $15.00. MAJOR BONUS!!!

Drove under 50 mph for 5 hours straight in torrential downpours. Are we there yet?

FINALLY, arrived in one piece at Kathy's!!! OH THANK YOU JESUS!!

Found out the dogs have fleas. Nooooooooo!


Oh BOY! So far this is the BEST vacation ever!!! I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. If you don't hear from me for a few days start making funeral arrangements.

Day 1 of Adventure

So, wish I could say that the trip to FL went off without a hitch. Apparently one hitch just wasn't enough. I currently sit in a nice little motel sipping Chateau Perico out of a little plastic cup after what could only be described as an eventful evening. The highlights of the trip thus far are:

Late departure due to my traveling companion locking her keys in her car. Dealable.

Great coffee and a free donut from an amicable Dunkin Donut dealer. Maybe our luck has changed.

Friendly waitress and cute mechanical pony at a North Carolina Texas Steakhouse. Yum, and yay all in one!

Torrential downpours intermixed with conversations of windshield wipers. Still having a good time.

Hydroplaning and at least three, count em, three full 360's off 95 into the mud puddle of life. Not so fun.

Water slowly rising in the cabin. Uh oh.

Startling knock on the window out of the darkness. Um...help?

Going broke getting the car out of the ditch and a place to sleep. Wait, how are we getting HOME?


Stay tuned for tomorrow's adventures! Who knows what's next! Shocking twist at the end of the episode to be sure!

Mom, make the mud go away.

Water water everywhere and not a place to ride!

This is part of the field I ride in. Lovely isn't it? Guess I won't be riding for a while. Damn! And just when I was getting into a routine! Wish I could say there was somewhere else for me to ride, but this is the highest field on our property. Actually half of it isn't underwater like this, but it's still too wet to allow any horse hooves on it. This just reinforces my plan to finish working on my truck this weekend. The cross country schooling farm Win Green is only seven or eight minutes from me (less than 6 miles). Even though I don't do cross country I can school in their ring for a small fee. I can trailer over there in less time than it takes me to tack up. I can't wait!

AND THEY'RE OFF!

I wish I could say that Saturday was better than Friday, but that would be a fairy tale, and this is the real world. I rode Henry first before the farrier was due to arrive. It was fairly uneventful....well...I guess that's not entirely true. In the first five minutes of walking he tripped and almost fell on his face. Poor guy, it had only been five weeks but his toes had grown so much his feet were starting to look like Donald Duck's. Kathy would have been so proud of me though! My HEELS WERE DOWN and so I did not fall off!!!!! YAY for me!

The rest of the ride really was uneventful. We did more trotting than on Tuesday and later I thought that might have been poor judgment. His stifles are weak and it is easy to overexert him, plus, as mentioned, his toes were long. I did not work on myself as much and instead concentrated on him. In his attempts to escape actually using his muscles Henry does the giraffe neck, inverts his back like a rope bridge and bulges to the inside when going around turns. Quite like those sour old lesson horses we all learned to ride on! He's actually quite talented in contorting his body to avoid using his hind end and back. I attribute it to his stubbornness, his weak stifles, and being out of shape. I say stubbornness first because he does bend around certain turns, like the ones going in the direction of the barn. A plus for me though, I actually USED my leg and was able to push him over to my opened outside rein. Granted, we had to do this over and over and over before he started to kind of accept it. I think once he did volunteer the bend and of course I made it seem like he had just won us a gold medal. No matter how small the effort it must be rewarded tenfold. Honestly I can't complain about the ride. It is always an effort to get him to bend in areas but he didn't get upset or frustrated, and neither did I. He made an effort and I didn't ask too much of him.

Unfortunately, Holly's ride left much to be desired. Although she stood rock still after I mounted (a big change from the mare who's motto is "You've got one foot in now it's time to go!") she was not very relaxed when we trotted. She walked around laid back as ever, but trotting? Not so much. I think she may have been achy because I rode her on Friday. It was a short ride but she has been out of work for a couple months. I probably should have given her another day to recuperate, or at least just gone for a walk. But no, apparently my poor judgment was pervasive throughout the day on Saturday. Or MAYBE, she was giving me her best impression of the horse that won the Kentucky Derby. How I wish I hadn't missed the race! Anyway, whatever the reason, she was quite swift. I was constantly half halting her. She did slow down when she thought I was going to ask her to walk, and I tried to get her to hold that speed but only managed several strides before we were off. Sigh, it's something we'll have to work on. Still, I am so glad I rode them both on Saturday. As they say, "A bad day riding is better than a good day at the office." Not only that, but I actually enjoy that I am a little sore from riding. It really makes me feel like I accomplished something.

FRIDAY!!!!

I am very proud of myself so far! I rode Henry and Holly twice each last week! Holly was very good and it was her first time in the larger paddock. Before I rode we walked around the field first so she could get a look at it. She seemed relaxed, and annoyed that I wasn't stopping to let her graze the grass which is up to my knees in places. I have to work on her ground manners.

Once mounted we walked around the field and she was fine. Very relaxed and laid back. It's hard for me not to compare Henry to her. Henry does not have a long graceful stride (unless he running around the paddock like an idiot and showing off how athletic he is, then his trot is gorgeous), but Holly is a different story. Where I feel like I'm sitting in a rock hard Stubben on Henry, I feel like I'm sitting on a soft springy mattress on Holly. I use the same saddle and sheepskin half pad on both. I wouldn't trade Henry for the world, but I can't help feeling guilty that I like riding Holly better. A plus for Henry though, he hold his speed better than Holly does. She is like an accelerating freight train much of the time, but he pretty much holds his jackhammer trot at the same breakneck or Sammy the Snail speed.

The first ride on Holly was great. She actually stayed pretty slow, and I managed not to be too much like a sack of potatoes on her back. I even managed to keep my heels down for the most part and keep my shoulders back. However, I was not pleased that anytime she changed speed or took a slight misstep I took on spud-like qualities and was either careening over backwards, or in danger of kissing her ears! I will have to work on that. Sinking my weight into my heel instead of just pushing my heels down works much better, and will not get me in trouble when I go down to FL!

First Ride

Well I didn't ride on Monday after all. After work I came home and the weather was beautiful! I decided to let the horses have an hour or so on the grass before it got dark. Once I turned them out I went for a run with the dogs. That was a lot of fun and the horses looked happy so I decided it wasn't a total loss if I didn't ride.

Yesterday I was determined to ride at least one horse! I did most of my work and then rushed home, put the horses out on the grass and then took care of a few things. Brought Henry out and tacked him up. Once on, we walked around the big paddock which has a nice hill. It is a gentle slope on one side and a medium slope on the other side. Perfect for his weakling stifles, flabby butt, and hay belly!

Normally Henry is not excited about going back to work. He tosses his head, ignores my leg, and does his best impression of a giraffe. And that's just at a walk! Yesterday was different. He walked around very relaxed and I was able to work on my balance and position. I am SO not ready for Florida! First off, getting into stand position to improve my heel was an exercise in itself. My leg kept slipping backwards and I kept hunching my shoulders. I had to hold onto mane to keep myself up there and still had to keep standing straight up and slwoly lower into stand over and over! Nonetheless, I worked at it, trying not to hunch, sink into the heel, chest UP!, head up, leg under me, shoulders BACK.....GEEZ! This used to be EASY!!! After wrestling with my body for what seemed like an eternity I finally felt like I was in a good stand so I stayed like that until my back started to ache. Mentally preparing to respond to take off I asked Henry to trot a few steps. Again I was pleasantly surprised by Henry's attitude. He didn't toss his head as I asked for it and then lurch into a sewing machine trot with the giraffe neck! Granted, we wouldn't win any pleasure classes with the departure but at least I didn't get whiplash and immediately have to sit and WHOA. My stand went to hell though and so I had to walk to recoup. Once I put myself back together we trotted some more. It was great! We were able to manage a somewhat steady pace for a minute or two at a time. I was able to stay in stand without toppling onto his neck or falling backwards. He managed not to trip or speed like a demon out of hell. All in all, it was a success! I'm sure it wasn't very pretty but right now I'm just looking for the basics! After trotting in the stnd position I actually managed posting trot without feeling like I was all over the place. I was hoping that the 15 minutes of straight stand position would help me keep my weight in my heel and I was right! I do have to be conscious not to grip with my knees, to keep my leg under me, and to get my shoulders back, but I am confident it will all come back with a few weeks of regular riding.

I am so pleased with Henry! He could not have been better considering how he behaved in the past after not being ridden regularly. The only complaint I have was that he did not want to yield to my leg, which is usual for him. I expected that and he wasn't as bad as he has been in the past. I am really looking forward to riding in the next couple of days. Of course the weather is not cooperating! It went from 90 to 60 and now it's COLD! If the ground isn't too soggy I plan to ride on Friday when it warms up a bit. Until then.

The pasture is looking great! I can't wait to ride in it later today. The small hill will do wonders for Henry's stifles and Holly's butt.
-K

Time to Ride!

So, the 2009 show season has started and I haven't even started prepping my horses!! Well what could I do? Our towing vehicle is still in the shop and our farm is a bog. No place to ride means...no riding! Ugh!!! Well all is not lost. It's been dry and hot in VA for several days now. If I can just get my work done super early I can come home in time to ride Henry and Holly. We are all out of shape from having the winter off and a slow spring start. But we've got to get ready because this is one year we are not going to sit out the show season! Well I've got to get going if I'm going to ride today.

-Kelana