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Jackass

Not trying to insult the guy or anything but I do believe his true breed is jackass. He was in a stall with a little burro. And I've seen donkeys and they look different. Regardless, he and his little buddy were a hoot.

No, the fun did not stop there. When Lisa and I got home, we changed our clothes and headed out with my little nephew (we say that because Lisa and I are practically like sisters), Andrew. We took him into town and spent about a half hour at a brisk walk. And brisk it was! It was quite chilly but we had Andrew all bundled up. Afterwards, we stopped off in a candy shop where Andrew

entertained the ladies. He was completely smitten by this lady. He smiled and cooed and just made quite a fuss. We got a huge kick out of it. We pressed on and ended up having tea nearby. My last stop was at Turkey Ridge, where I always find something cute and horsey to give to Lori. As expected, I did find a neat gift and can't wait to give it to her. Something every horse girl loves.

The rest of the weekend, we ate more, watched movies, ran errands and I slept like a log. On the way back, my flight got cancelled so I took the train home and although it was a longer ride, I do love the train (I took the Acela) and managed to sit next to a normal person, although the guy across from the aisle from me was sick and snorted the whole time and I'll put money on it I am getting what he has. On that note, I am off to take my Airborne!

Busy weekend. It was a long weekend and as usual, I tried to pack as much as I could into it. Saturday, Bob and I motored around doing house-related stuff in preparation for the next bathroom remodel (mine!). Will be glad when that is done but it won't be for a month or so because all of the materials need to come in.

Sunday, I took a little road trip to Mechanicsville (near Richmond) to visit Dani. She was judging a show that day and with her so close by, I thought it was time I made the trek her way. It was the first road trip I'd taken in my new car and I really enjoyed the drive. As always, she was the consummate professional and did a great job. She definitely had guts because this was NOT an indoor show. Great facility but she was sitting out in the wind. I hung out with her for a few hours and acted as glove warmer. I'd heat up one pair (by keeping my hands clamped between my legs -- I know that doesn't sound right but whatever) then, when I figured her hands were freezing, I'd switch gloves with her and warm up the next pair.

I left the show about 3:00. Down there, it was about 7 degrees warmer than the Dulles area. By the time I got back home, all of an hour and a half later, it was snowing like crazy here. There wasn't a stitch of snow in Mechanicsville. It was funny to come back to a completely different scenario.

The next day, I went to visit Sabrina. We went to breakfast together (my favorite sport aside from riding) at IHOP, ran a few errands, picked up feed for Justin and then I helped her do some stalls back at the barn. Wish I could have stayed longer because she's doing all the work herself.

After that, I made my way to Justin to drop off his feed and give him his Adequan. Such a bummer to not be able to ride him. Really looking forward to the snow going AWAY! Please, spring, come quick.

Oh, I am so over this cold weather. It is really cramping my riding style. This past weekend, on Saturday, Lori had a bunch of stuff going on and I just couldn't tear myself away from Bob so I didn't make it out there until Sunday. Lori and I both had more going on on Sunday so we didn't arrange to ride until later in the afternoon. I got to the barn around 2:15 and when I got there, Lori was nice enough to have Justin groomed so all I had to do was tack up. Justin was so cute when he saw me. He looked genuinely happy to see me and gave me kisses, which I just love. I just love that little face when he perks his ears up and says hello.

Anyway, we got tacked up and off we went. Poor Topper got diagnosed with ulcers so we were under strict instructions from the vet to take it easy. The ground was so hard, though, that we couldn't do anything past a walk anyway. The only places they could trot somewhat were up the grassiest of hills. Those are actually quite few. We did our usual ride, which I just love, and it actually started to feel quite cold. It was 39 degrees but my feet got cold. Usually, they are fine when the temps are around 40 but about 1/2 way thru the ride, my tootsies definitely felt cold and we were both zipping up our jackets. I must remember to bring my Toasty Toes to slip into my boots.

Poor Justin has shoulder rubs from his blankets. And because he always grazes with his right leg forward, he also has a pretty significant rub on this right forearm. I am so mad at myself for not remembering to leave his chest hairy when I clipped him this year. Next year, I will make sure to leave it and his forearms hairy. Absolutely no one clips like that but I really don't care. It worked out great last year. I think he needs a bigger blanket, though. He is significantly broader this year, now that we have him nice and fat and I think that has a lot to do with the rub on his forearm. He didn't have the forearm rub last year.

Augh! It is only MONDAY!!! I only have this weekend to ride and then I'm headed to NY (CT actually) to visit my girlfriend Lisa and my little nephew (because Lisa and I are basically blood), Andrew. I'm hoping I can also visit my girlfriend, Tami while I'm up there. We shall see.

I have absolutely nothing new to report except for the fact that here it is, February, and I've already got spring fever. Or maybe it is cabin fever. All I can say is, I'm done with winter.

We got a 3 in 1 scanner, fax, printer thing so I tried out the scanner part of it. The picture I scanned is below and from late summer, I think. Can't it go back to being warm really, really soon? Actually, that day below was a little chilly and windy, I remember. Justin was being such a kook and Alyssa took that picture once he'd finally started to settle down.

I'm really looking forward to the weather getting warmer and the days getting longer. I'd rather ride in the heat any day.

Well, there you have it, looks like the new scanner works just fine. If I get bored, I'll scan some more of Lori and I hunting.

WOW!!! I cannot believe I haven't posted here since November! I think that is blog blasphemy, actually. Well, as usual, I have been both busy and lazy.

Since it is a new year, I might as well take a moment to look back at 2006. 2006 was a very good year. It's the first year since college that I've gotten to solely dedicate to myself. Not like teaching was a bad thing for me. It was a very good thing for me and an equally good, if not better thing for those who benefited from the experience of their wins -- a result of our hard work together. But in 2006, I met so many new people and created and am nurturing so many new and important friendships and that is what I really love about this sport -- the community of it. Being such a competitive sport, it is very hard to meet what I call 'keepers'. I met so many keepers this year and I expect to enjoy those relationships for years to come.

Probably one of the most important relationships I developed this year is the one with Lori, my barn owner. Sounds crazy to actually call her that, since she now is my friend. In the past, we were acquaintances. I always admired Lori because I felt that she and I had a lot of the same philosophies and work ethic. We are both fairly meticulous about our horse care and barn management and care of our equipment. So when Lori gave me the opportunity to move Justin to her place, I jumped at it. The match has been perfect and I couldn't ask for better care for my horse. I certainly could never find better care for my horse at even the most expensive of barns in this area. Lori and I have had countless laughs and countless hours of fun riding together and my horse and I are fortunate to be at her barn.

Even though my free time was limited back in the teaching days, I did also manage to maintain relations with people I met along the way. It's just that in 2006, I actually got to spend more time with those people. And how refreshing it is to not have to squeeze them in or pass on invitations because of client-related commitments. But, this sport is all about commitment and you won't get anywhere at it without it. I like to think I am deeply committed to whatever I choose as my target. If I have a goal, it will either happen quickly, or it will happen down the road, but one thing is certain, it will happen. I have yet to set a goal I did not reach and it is reassuring to me to be able to count on that truth. When clients started with me, we set goals and I gave them my full commitment and we got exactly where I told them we would go and for that, I have absolutely no regrets but instead, intense pride.

I am pleased that 2006 brought Justin to me. He in no way will be able to carry me to my goals for the future but he will most definitely play an important part. Justin has taught me to have fun riding again. Not that I didn't love riding before, but in the past, I only rode to a show ring goal. I never pleasure rode. Now, all I can do is pleasure ride and it has been just that -- a pleasure. I am proud of the fact that I patched this little horse up, gotten him comfortable and serviceable and we are able to have tons of fun together. Years ago, I used to ride bareback, without a helmet for hours at a time, jumping fallen trees that topped over 3' and galloped at my mare's top speed -- definitely fast enough to handily beat the neighborhood kid on his mo-ped. Not the safest way to ride, but certainly, because of it, I've yet to find a horse that can surprise me and get me off it's back. I developed 'stick' in the tack and I'm glad for it. Today, Justin often throws a series of bucks as we gallop along Logmill Road or past neighboring farms. But before this year, Justin and I both had lost our nerve and weren't too keen on going out alone. With some basic safety precautions, nerve and repetition, Justin and I now attack the trails by ourselves like pros and we will gallop up and down hills without a thought.

Justin used to balk at ground that was even slightly boggy. And forget about crossing creeks. Although he was curious and bright on our rides, he was also very scared and often threw tantrums if Topper wasn't with him. He'd stop dead in his tracks if he heard Topper calling him. Once, I remember riding back from Compass Rose and he threw such a fit -- he would NOT stop bucking and squealing and he was doing his best to get me off his back, choosing moments when we were going down hill to do it! He could not WAIT to get back to the barn. Well, those days are gone and we now head out on the buckle, alone, and enjoy stopping off and saying hello to the other horses along the way. I often throw the reins at Justin and allow him to choose what gait he'd like to do or see where he'd like to go.

I did get to do quite a bit of jumping at Sabrina's place. Sabrina helped me get my nerve back over fences. Always generous with her time and her stock, Sabrina makes an excellent ground person and pays the closest of attention to the horse's way of going and the rider's position. Sabrina has to be one of the best kept secrets out there and it is a shame more people haven't had the opportunity to learn something from her. Those that have enjoyed great success in the show ring and are great riders. I look forward to getting back out her way when things warm up and the days run longer. Just before Sabrina and I had to part for the winter, I was just getting to the point where I was riding 'on'. It was just like the college days were every decision was on, timely, smooth and invisible and I made the tough horses look easy. I quit worrying about the jumps and the distances and it was all there again. It was nice to know I could actually still 'ride'. At least by my standards, which are pretty high. I quit being a competent passenger and went back to being a decisive driver.

So, while I did not get to the show ring this year over fences (although Lori was nice enough to let me flat Topper at several shows), I did accomplish quite a few things. I got to realize that I still have guts, that there are still some nice people out there in the horse world. That I still have optimism, I still set goals and I can still reach them. And let me take this moment to thank my parents for their genes and God for his grace for giving me the physicality and the good health to still do this sport now that I'm in my 40's. A big part of being competitive and capable in this sport is to be fit. I'm damn lucky I was the stick figure I was when I was a kid because keeping fit has been easy for me. Because of that, I feel getting where I'm going with my riding goals is still perfectly in reach. With my guts and determination and the friendship of my good friends and God's grace that I stay healthy, I am confident I will get there.