Time in the Saddle

Look...

2012-01-27T12:45:00.000-08:00

... what the mailman dropped off today!

Happy days, I think this is a sign to procrastinate any form of studying and just read horsie magazines all day, right?

Dreams & Memories of Summertime

2012-01-23T18:58:00.000-08:00

So, sometimes when i'm really struggling with things I have this tendency to revert back to summer, and dream about camp, and the ease and flow that just occurs out there. I'm struggling with the barn I work at, I don't think it's a very good place for me, and that's really disappointing and I don't know what to do about it. I worry that if I leave I wont be able to find somewhere that I can work but also get lessons, and that the owner of the barn i'm at now will basically black-list me... we'll see, I have a lot to think about.

Anyways, since I'm in a very weird emotional place with my current horse situation I, of course, am dreaming about summer. I grabbed my journal (which has 2 entries in it - haha) from this summer, and re-read my "most memorable moments" entry and thought I should share them here. Then maybe I can look back to them every once and awhile and remember why I love horses so much, and why this is the path I do want to take in life. Sometimes it's hard to keep that mindset in this big, bad world.

Typed straight from the journal...

Heading out to bring in the string!

1) Being out here chasing horses. It continually amazes me how silent and still the bands of horses can be. it also stuns me the things a horse will do for you when you ask of it - running down hills, galloping through trees, turning an entire herd, etc.

Meg taking shelter in the shed during a summer-storm.

2) The aura of the red barn and the shed; A moment that made me smile this year was after a ride-struggle with Jingle, Sandy told me, "a horse that comes out of the red barn comes out a riding leader horse, a horse from the shed comes out a dude string horse", apparently that was Jingle's problem! ... I doubt it, but it made me laugh.

How is it possible to miss something as much as I've miss you since our last ride this summer my boy? I love you, I will forever.

3) Jingle, the horse who deserves his own journal. there is something about him, how he can seem wild and unruly but also soft that makes me love him so much. I hope to one day look back on this and have the satisfaction to know he became a well trained, exceptional, horse.

Fizz, on the right, with her old-timer beet pulp buddy - Tad.

4) The moment Fizz colic'd and I thought we were going to lose her. After pulling through and monitoring her diet I love how her ribs have dissappeared from her sides and how her entire face is coated with Beet Pulp 3 times a day.

This isn't Box Canyon, no pictures unfortunately, but just look at that view! Makes you wanna go, "ahhhhhhhhh..." hey?

5) I rode with Steve week one and asked him, "take me somewhere i've never been", he took us to Box Canyon (through an old barbed wire fence that we maaaay have cut down) which is a slight death climb but worth it when you reach the meadow look-out, so beautiful.

A couple of my kids enjoying the view...

6) A camper memory; A not confident rider's first lope = "omg i'm dying, this is so fun, stop!, i love this, slow down, faster!, AHHHHHHHHHH". That was what she screamed at me as we loped for about 15 seconds at the end of Slashfoot's field.

Do we look "western" enough for you?

7) Quad rides! "This might get a little western" & "You don't seem like the timid type"

Saying goodbye to the herd after another summer...

8) "Scamp" the horse (Scram) and the endless laughter that ensued from one particular little rider

Can't give it up.

9) "Slashfoot does not drive a semi-truck", scary stories in the dorm vs. Jon singing the legends

How could you ever give something like that up?

10) all the amazing nights on the deck - the "starry night" sky and the northern lights.

.. Yes, that is me kissing a buffalo head.

11) Wednesday's at the saloon!

Sis!

12) The horses that carried me through, my favourite - the amazing, incorrigible Jed. The insanely fast Mel. The mareish, silly Siss. Big, beautiful & rough Navy and my boy, always, Jingle.

This was my first "baby"; this picture does him no justice.

13) When Coltan high-centered himself on the fence and his big brown eyes kept looking at me like, "why?" and the resulting calm he had as he laid his head on my chest and Richard put his first set of shoes on after the entire incident.

Quick shot of said bridle.

14) When Tiffany gave me my bridle, everything that meant to me.

leaving for CP!

15) The craziness of CP - the caves, the dancing, the war wounds my legs succumbed too, the river, heart creek, everything. So amazing.

& then... after typing all of these out I came to the last paragraph I wrote 5 months ago...

"Coming out of [summer] I was a bit panicky - no horse prospects to ride, no real job, but I just have this sense things are going to work out."... and they will.

I am so heart-sick to go home. sigh.

Okay, Okay.. Snap Outta It!

2012-01-17T21:54:00.000-08:00

So, as stated in my previous post, I've been mopin' about for the past 3-4 days. However, I was laying on my couch, attempting to do some readings and a particular Ian Tyson song came on. I love Ian Tyson, I have, I think, almost all of his albums on iTunes and i've seen him live. My grandmother, who I was exceptionally close with, passed away when I was in grade 6, also loved him. It's unfortunate that we never really got to experience him together.

My mom and I, for the past little while, have been trying to remember her favourite song of his, and it continued to allude us. Then, tonight, as I was being annoyed with my life, I decided to put on some Ian Tyson as I read. A song i've heard probably a hundred time in the last 3 months came on, "50 years ago", but all of a sudden her voice was in my head. "& the sighing of the pines up here near the timber line makes me wish i'd done things different. Oh, but wishin' don't make it so. Oh the time has passed so quick, the years all run together now..." It's funny how at that very moment I could hear her so clearly "up here near the timber line", it was like she was right beside me. It was a nice moment, so often as time goes on you lose what seemed like small insignificant moments at the time of a person who has passed away, it's special when they come back to you. It was also a refreshing cuff upside the head (as she would have called it) to kick my butt out of this little slump, you want to make every moment count, not let the years all run together.

Here it is - for you, Nanny.

& then, as a final little uplifting moment, a favourite quote from Lee Ann Rust, who, at the age of 53 with one horse, Harley, won the WPRA Rookie of the Year...

"Success is having the courage, determination and will to become the person you believe you were meant to be."

Slumpsville, Canada.

2012-01-17T19:27:00.000-08:00

From Flickr, By Charlotte Geary

I'm in a slump, not just in my equine-life, but in life in general. Ugh.

It's so cold here that going outside is near impossible (I am not kidding - even 5 minutes outside with exposed skin can cause hypothermia/frost bite in -30 WITHOUT wind chill), my truck is (once again) broken down, I'm being mopey and lonely, and I just want to curl up under my blankets and sleep this winter away.

I'm in one of those, "i'm in a shitty whiney baby mood, and I couldn't care less" moods.

Somebody un-slump me, this is tiring.

Riding Diary: 5

2012-01-14T15:40:00.000-08:00

Horse: Betty
- owned by the barn

Bit: Snaffle with Copper Inlay

Time: 1 hr

Ride: This was a bit of a scatter brained lesson, it started with my trainers high-strung, but usually well behaved, horse attempting to buck and run the entire length of the arena instead of being sane. He was a little concerned, she was clearly exhibiting some red flags that she wasn't feeling 100% and so, eventually, he jumped off and had her back checked, looked like something was out of place. It's always a good reminder to listen to your house, you know their typical behaviors and something that doesn't seem right can often be a pain response.

So, after all of that was resolved I worked on circles, escalating from small to large, stops, and rollbacks. I was having a hard time with my rollbacks, they just weren't as sharp and neat as I wanted them. Betty felt like she was really just turning quickly, not actually working off of her hind end. My trainer thought that perhaps her lack of sharpness might be in part to the fact that I wasn't wearing spurs, her regular rider wears spurs on her so he told me that next lesson I can bring spurs and we'll see how it goes.

Other than that now that school is back I have to do a lesson after a full day of classes and I definitely noticed that I was having a hard time being as sharp and responsive. Looks like Betty and I have something in common hey?

I was getting frustrated with her as well because every time she even got a glimpse of the flag (which we were not using) she started acting like a complete idiot and lost all the focus I felt she had before. So I had to work a lot on keeping her focus when we were doing anything near the flag.

Next Time: Rollbacks - sharper, neater, tighter, more engaged.

Side Note - Freckles has been sold, she was in a past life a rope horse and a well known roper came and tested her out, she was super quiet with him and did really well. He's going to take her home, work her on the heel-o-matic and probably sell her for quite a nice sum of money as a finished rope horse. I was definitely sad to see her go, and truth be told I don't really click with Betty, so hopefully a new horse finds it's home at my barn that I can call mine for a little while.

Riding Diary: 4

2012-01-05T22:23:00.000-08:00

Horse: Freckles!

Bit: Basic Snaffle, then Chain Mouth Bit

Time: 1.5 hr

Ride: You guuuyysss I am sleepy, so this is going to be a bit on the short side. (Who am I kidding? I have a severe long-winded problem) I rode frecklyfreckles tonight, as you may remember I love this little mare's disposition. So I was quite happy to ride her, and also Trouble, my go-to horse, has gone back home to be with her real owners, so it looks like my riding-horse supply is dwindling. Anyways, today we worked on "proper" collection, Freckles has a tendency to hold her head very high naturally, but is also a pro at false collection, my trainer calls it "pushing peanuts". When their nose is so low to the ground they could.. well, push peanuts around the arena. So, I needed to focus on keeping contact but also driving her forward with my legs so that she's engaging her entire body, and not faking it.

Then we worked on circles and my hands .. of course, anyone who has read this blog knows about my issues with my goddamn hands. I feel like i'm improving though! If that counts.

Then I got to work Freckles on the flag, at first it was a bit of a disaster, she was not stopping so we switched out bits. Then my trainer had my work on just stopping her completely with my seat, even though she leaks when she stops. Then we transitioned into seat with slight hands and with the combination of me being a little better with my stops, and her bitted up more she was stopping and better at the flag.

Next time: I'd like to do more flag work, hold her from drifting and generally work on my position/stops while working the flag. and of course, hands, hands, hands.

Side note - my trainer needs to get down the number of horses he owns because he's bringing up horses from Texas. This means that Freckles is on the chopping block. I could buy her, (well.. I don't have the full amount, but i'm sure we could work something out), and a big part of me wants too, but another part of me is so unsure, I need to give this one some serious thought. I will be very sad to see her go.

New Year, New You, Yada Yada

2012-01-04T10:20:00.000-08:00

Okay guys, get ready, here comes a stereotypical New Years resolutions post.
=)
prepared?
Alright... let's do this.

So, I am one of those people who tries to do New Years resolutions, sometimes they go from very pinpoint stereotypical (Drink more water) to very airy and holistic (become a better friend). However, I see no shame in attempting to set goals and follow them through, even if they are re-named resolutions at this time of year. Due to the fact this is my horsie blog I thought I should probably share with you some horse-related resolutions.

For the sake of not being too cheesy, I'm calling them goals from here on out. Horse-related goals are near and dear to my heart, in a moment of total desperation and, "I'm never, ever going to be a good enough rider to please myself or others", on a cold and shitty night on a ranch in Nanton, in a small cramped room, I pulled out a journal and compiled a list of short and concise goals that I wished to have completed by September 2012. They were...

1. Find a barn to work at where I can trade hours for lessons.- check, I've accomplished that this year already.

2. Have a saddle by Summer 2012- I've decided to scrap this goal. There was a time when people told me that it was so important for me to have my own tack, but I've now firmly rooted myself on the side of fitting a saddle to a horse, not a horse to a saddle. Unforuntately where I work in the summer this mindset is not always reasonable or doable, but I can't imagine throwing a ton of money at a saddle now and then it not fitting a horse I perhaps regularly ride, or purchase down the road. It doesn't make sense to me, plus the many woes, aches and pains I witness in horses that have been caused by ill-fitting and improper saddle fit are just not worth it because the rider is attached to a material object.3. Compete at some level by September 2012- working on it, slowly but surely.
So, as you can see, goals are a good thing, especially when they were emotionally driven. I made those particular goals at a time where I felt like I had two options, 1. change for the better or 2. curl up in a ball, turn off all the lights, and forget my passion for horses. It was one of those milestone moments where from an outsider looking in it might have seemed like an insignificant day, or time, but for me, it meant the world.

I had someone recently comment on the fact that without her, I would have never been introduced with my trainer, and been able to obtain lessons/volunteer at my barn. I also always hear the old, "well, so and so's family is in the (insert discipline) world so that's why they have so much success", I'm even prone to that one. I always try to remember that, although someone's path may have been wider for them, no road you take is easy, and dwelling on things like "well, it was pure luck", will get you no where. There is no such thing as luck, there is such a thing as drive, determination, and willing to seek out assistance and putting yourself in places that may be out of your comfort zone but will eventually open doors for you.

So, looking toward a new year, hopefully completely overflowing with horse-everything, my new goals are as follows...

1. (Old Goal, but valid none the less) Compete at some level by September 2012
2. Build and stick to a 5 day a week exercise routine- It's interesting, my trainer's famous line is, "You wont need a gym membership after working here!", however, barn chores - similar to repetitive workouts with horses - overdevelop certain muscles, while under developing others. Also, lower abdominal muscles are key in riding, and are very hard muscles to target, pilates is a type of exercise that is effective in enhancing this muscle group. So, i'd like to build a routine that focuses on the muscle groups I need as a rider, but also on over-all health and fitness. So, there you go, the standard "get fit in the new year" resolution.

3. Continue to be at a facility not only where I can take lessons, but also learn, and be happy- seems pretty "well, duh" but these three factors, lessons, learning and happiness are key in the combination to my personal growth and development, and are, pretty much, what this blog is all about and why I started it. The minute I lose one, the other two generally follow, so continuing to satisfy these three demands will only further develop my growth in the horse world.Well. that was a pretty heavy post on introspection and meditation, wasn't it? I promise I'll go back to posting gangster-dressage video's soon! Hopefully anyone reading this is having a lovely start to the new year. If you're in Alberta we're experiencing an absolutely dream-like winter, so that is something to be happy about. I'm hoping 2012 is filled with as much fulfillment and growth for myself as 2011 did, and also, happiness... of course. Wishing the same for you!

Riding Diary: 3

2011-12-22T17:23:00.000-08:00

Horse: Trouble
- boarder's horse

Bit: Eggbut snaffle w/ Copper Inlay

Time: 1.5 hr

Ride: Trouble was all sorts of fire-y when I first got on her to warm her up, then of course my trainer came in and it was "her head is going everywhere", "more contact", "watch your hands", "get her to focus". Thus, today was another day of lots of work at a trot.

Exercise 1: Collection, Collection & More Collection
- I am still really struggling with my contact, I can count numerous times in my life with horses where someone has prided me in having loose reins, little contact with a horses mouth, etc. etc. Ya, well, now we're in a snaffle bit, and we're in an arena and shit is getting real (contact-wise)! haha I just need to remember that having "contact" does not mean "cruelty". So poor Trouble and I, we learnt together today, me with my contact, her with her collection. It's hard with her because she doesn't really understand it yet, she isn't one of those horses that has to be checked every once and awhile, with her, she needs to be constantly aided in her collection, or else her head is swinging one way and her rib cage the other and my body is seemingly mimicking this, and her and I probably end up looking like one big shit-show.

Exercise 2: Barrels
- We started off with 2 barrels, trot up to one, turn (with proper contact, leg and hand placement - easier said than done), release, trot to second barrel making sure she is collected, turn barrel, exit. Then, once I kind of sort of figured out what I was doing with my legs my trainer up'd it to a turn, counter bend while trotting to second barrel, turn, counter bend past 1st barrel. Trouble drifts through her turns and then I tend to lose full control/contact with her after the second barrel thus not being able to effectively counter-bend so we worked a lot on that.

Exercise 3: Counter-Bending
- want to know something super fun? Trouble doesn't know how to disengage her body, and I apparently have one very weak leg (my left) and one dominant leg that can actually do what I want it to (my right). Here we go! In the end, after I was sweating buckets and having "LOUISA, QUIT GOING OVER THE MIDLINE" screamed at me over and over, we got it together and she was moving pretty nicely.

Then my trainer jumped on her and attempted to work on rollbacks with her, but again, she's just one of those horses that was never properly or professionally trained, she was quiet enough to be given to a kid who did 4-H and in the end she ended up too much for the kid and injured. So she just needs a lot of work, and a lot of time I suppose. She was having a hard time moving off her front end, and my trainer commented that he thinks she has issues with her left hock and that she will probably end up needing Cortisone shots because of it. Which is really sad.

Exercise 4: Barrel Pattern
- Issues we have: drifting, my hands/legs, her rib cage/collection... these issues culminate into ... a bit of a gross barrel pattern, baby steps, baby steps, baby steps..

For Next Time: Same as always, hand and leg placement. god.damn.it.

Honestly, this Riding Diary may seem negative but I'm really happy with how the lesson went, I have clear issues that as a rider I obviously need to work through, but atleast I know what those issues are now, you know? Before I had no one telling me how to work through my issues, now I have someone, standing in the middle of the arena, screaming "YOUR HANDS. YOUR GODDAMN HANDS" and as scary as that sounds, I totally need it.

Also, my trainer commented on how much I kiss to horses, and it's true, it's just one of those things that is so ingrained in my behaviour. He pointed out that I kiss to put on halters, to talk to them, to get them to speed up, to get them to turn. So that's another little thing - NO MORE KISSING. :) (Unless you have a hot cowboy for me hahaha)

Riding Diary: 2

2011-12-15T19:44:00.000-08:00

Horse: Betty & Freckles
- Owned by the barn I work at

Bit: Snaffle
- one was a weaver D Ring with copper roller, the other I'm not sure

Time: 1.5 each horse

Ride: So this was my actual, real life, first lesson at my barn! Exciting! Both Freckles & Betty are 6, both are pretty well broke, and both were started on the flag a couple days ago, so it's interesting to see how each one progresses/changes since they are so similar in age/how much they know. They both have really different backgrounds though, Betty was trained at/by Olds College, and her owner thinks that is the reason she's really good with all her cues, like lead changes and what not. Freckles was a roping horse that was pretty much given up on by her previous owner. She had a tendency to pull back, due to pain in her poll, and because of it she was pretty much given to my trainer for free because her previous owner hated her so much. Pretty sad story, especially because she is the nicest little mare, she's so forgiving and in your pocket cute. Today I stood with her and we just straight up cuddled for about 20 minutes. She's really captured my heart, plus, she's gorgeous, she has a bit of a short neck/big head going on, but otherwise she has a dark chestnut coat and a flaxen mane and tail, both really long, and then a big white blaze with chestnut freckles.. hence the name. Betty sort of looks like a buffalo haha, she's this short stocky fuzzy sorrel, but what she lacks in flash she's a really nice ride.

I started out on Betty, she used to have issues with her stop but apparently she's over that. My trainer commented that I have a really good seat/hands with my stop, so that's good. Then we worked her on the flag, I've only ever worked a horse on a flag twice, and it was a finished cutting horse so obviously he knew what he was doing and where he needed to be. Betty kept drifting away from the flag on me and I struggled to keep her square and at that perfect distance. Then my trainer jumped on when some english riding clients came and showed them how the flag worked, they seemed pretty amazed by the whole thing. It's funny because my barn is so english and western but you often forget about how different the two worlds really are sometimes.

Then I rode Freckles, my trainer commented that I really need to work on leg and hand placement, especially around turns and recommended I do a lot of saddle time at a trot working on figure 8's and turns. I really struggle with hand contact, I've always ridden horses, on trails, in curb bits, and so I'm use to neck reining and really loose, long reins. So the minute I'm "on" a horses face I feel like i'm ruining their mouths, so then I drop my reins and it goes to shit. I just need to remember to keep a small amount of contact and to not lose focus on the rest of my body while I do it. He's right, lots of time in the saddle, working at the slow stuff and one day i'll be a pro at the fast stuff.

I'm also finding that the horses just don't seem as responsive to my leg as they do to his, obviously he's a way higher level rider than I am but I also have to wonder about his spurs. Clearly I'm not ready for spurs, but obviously spurs are going to slightly desensitize a horses side, it's not like he rakes or anything, he's very gentle with them, but all the horses at my barn are ridden with spurs and it just seems that my leg, no matter how hard I'm pressing, doesn't seem to get the message across. Is that my issue? or are they just not as sensitive to my heel? Hm.. things to think about.

For Next Time: Lots of slow walk and trot stuff, collection, and working on my hand and leg placement in turns and circles. :)

Want: Jak Wonderly Prints

2011-12-12T23:47:00.000-08:00

I reaaaally want to order these prints for my room, if I had to choose it would be the first, and the fourth. I think they are so beautiful. I'm re-decorating my room over the holidays (if I find the time - how is it the holidays can be busy?! Is that a contradiction.. I think so.. ugh) so perhaps these can fit into the budget come January :) I have theee perfect place for them - I'll post photos if it happens!

What's in the Colour? Overo Paints

2011-12-12T21:47:00.000-08:00

So I was over at Western Horse Review and saw the Paint Horse World Championship Results. What struck me was how often Overo Paint's end up in the lead. Now, I'm not saying judges are giving extra points for colour, (although in some classes they are certainly adding flashy colour as a factor), but clearly paint horse breeders and showers are looking towards the flashy Overo's over Tobiano's and Tovero's.

Just to clarify the different colour variations, these descriptions were taken from the APHA website...

G Its Showtime defending his championship in Tobiano 3 year old & older geldings

Tobiano - the dark colour usually covers one or both flanks. Generally, all four legs are white, at least below the hocks and knees. Generally, the spots are regular and distinct as ovals or round patterns that extend down over the neck and chest, giving the appearance of a shield. Head markings are like those of a solid colored horse - solid, or with a blaze, strip, star or snip. A tobiano may be either predominantly dark or white and the tail is often two colors.

Roses And Chocolate, sorrel overo, who took home All-around open horse, Super Gelding & High-Point English Horse at the World show this year.
Overo - the white usually will not cross the back of the horse between its withers and its tail. Generally, at least one and often all four legs are dark. Generally, the white is irregular and is rather scattered or splashy. Head markings are distinctive, often bald-faced, apron-faced or bonnet-faced. An overo may be either predominantly dark or white. The tail is usually one colour.

Tovero - Dark pigmentation around the ears, which may expand to cover the forehead and/or eyes. One or both blue eyes. Dark pigmentation around the mouth, which may extend up the sides of the face and form spots. Chest spot(s) in varying sizes which may also extend up the neck. Flank spot(s) ranging in size. These are often accompanied by smaller spots that extend forward across the barrel, and up over the loin. Spots, varying in size, at the base of the tail.

This whole blog post got started when I realized that Overo's completely dominated World's this year. At the World Championships I counted 4 Sorrel Overo, 3 Chestnut Overo, 1 Bay Overo, 1 Brown Overo and One Red Roan Overo that were all champions. There was a measly 1 Tobiano and 1 Tovero to round out the winners in all the different classes. Clearly you can tell where the trend in paint horse breeding is at the moment.
It's not like this is a new thing in the horse world, if you're buying a buckskin you can tack on probably around $500-$1000 more for the colour alone, possibly more depending on what discipline you are going into. However, I'm always amused at how many "plain-as-jane" sorrel's and chestnut's end up being championship cutting horses. There isn't any shame in loving certain colours either, I personally adore Tobiano's that are predominantly dark in colour, and as for Quarter Horses, of course I think palomino's and buckskin's are just "sooooooo prettyyyyy". It's just interesting to me the different colour trends that come and go in breeding throughout the years, and in what disciplines colour is an important factor, and which it doesn't matter much at all.

Be Relentless.

2011-12-07T19:18:00.000-08:00

This video is amazing,

the quote is definitely some words to live by.

Riding Diary: 1

2011-12-05T15:27:00.000-08:00

I am the worst poster ever, Finals are here, out of nowhere, and I feel very, very behind... but yet, all I do is lurk around the internet? duuur, worst student of the year award.

Anyways, I've been meaning to do a sort of riding-diary in here, so here goes, first one!

Horse: Trouble
- Boarders Horse

Bit: Snaffle

Time: 1 Hr

Ride: Went well, I rode her last week after she'd already been worked on the treadmill earlier in the day and she seemed very tired, and worked up a sweat really quickly. She's a fun little horse that I quite enjoy. We worked on a lot of slow stuff in the walk and trot because she's always so eager to lope and I wanted to just work from a slow to fast trot for a lot of things.

I wasn't aiming for much because I worked all day and was pretty lethargic at this point and I had to turn her out after in freezing weather so I didn't want her soaked, so I just played around with some stuff. She has a great stop and I fooled around a bit with spins, she turns well but slowly, and I'm wondering if anyone else that rides her rides with spurs, because she didn't seem very alert to me bumping her without spurs on. She's younger, 4-5 and carries her head really nicely and will drop it, but needs to be reminded to keep herself in a frame. Other than the slow stuff we loped a bit, I find her lope a little rocky and hard to sit, and she kept drifting inwards so I just worked on big, large circles in the arena and she finally slowed down into a nice slow lope so that was good.

Finally I cooled her down and just to see what she'd do I dropped the reins and attempted to get her to back without rein, she seemed a bit confused but by the 4th time was backing 4 or 5 steps really nicely. I'm wondering if in a past life she had some reining training, or at least was trained by someone who was a reiner, she seems to know all those basic cues. I know that she was a 4-H horse but was a little hot for the kid riding her.

For Next Time: I'd like to work a bit more with controlled speed and see how she does. :)

Anyways - that's all for today, hope you all are staying warm! From a maniac wind storm last week and driving in blizzards for what seems like two weeks straight, i'd like to curl up and hide under my covers.

Hip Hop meets Dressage

2011-11-21T16:33:00.000-08:00

I'm in love with this video, so funny.

Too bad this isn't real life - gangstaa dressage.

So many equestrian problems...

2011-11-20T20:29:00.000-08:00

Images taken from the brilliant "equestrian problems" tumblr.

http://equestrianproblemss.tumblr.com/

These are all spot on, I love it. She has a ton more, every one makes me laugh.

My profile pictures on facebook are overloaded with horses,

my glove-tan line this summer was atrocious and it took a month of sucking it up and forgoing the deer skin gloves for it to disappear,

lately any day with horses means brutally early mornings for me,

I certainly agree that the company of horses is often much better than the company of humans

and ... hahaha, that last one, what's a boyfriend? You can't really go on a date when you don't leave the barn until 7:30 pm and you are soaked, smell like sweat, horse crap and various other "heavenly" scents for us horse crazy girls. Unless of course, you get that perfect boy.

Lately I've had a couple more serious equestrian problems

- balancing horse-time with work-time, school-time, friend-time and just general me-time.

lately it's been in that order and I really wish I could be one of those people that just balanced life better, more effortlessly you know?

- proving myself

grumble grumble gr gr grrrr, just when you think you're a step ahead of the game, you get knocked down 7 spaces, I hate it.

- being good enough

the barn i'm volunteering at is the by far the nicest barn i've ever even stepped foot in. Embarrassing confession time; i've been horse-raised on ranches and backwoods, I had never even cleaned stalls that had shavings in them... Now i'm cleaning 15+ a day, while balancing rehabbing and conditioning horses, talking to clients and attempting to not come off as a total idea, and attempting to please the owner... not working. uuuuuugh.

However, today I banged out a seriously good polo-wrap; (I am still really getting the hang of these damn things), so that's one equestrian problem that isn't nagging at me so much anymore!

Also, way less serious equestrian problem that I just thought of...
- being clean. haha
whenever I get home from a long day at the barn the last thing on my mind is, you know, showering, or generally not smelling awful. I'd way rather just sit and stare blankly at my computer/tv.

Dreams about you

2011-11-17T20:48:00.000-08:00

I dreamt last night that we were reunited, and it was summer again. I dreamt that you were in a large, open field with the rest of the herd, and you came right up to me and I wrapped my arms around you and laid my face in your mane and you rested your chin on my back like we've done so many times together. I remember looking at S and saying, "See! I told you he'd remember me" and laughing so happily as the three of us walked back to the barn together, you never missing a step, following us the whole way there. I continued dreaming, and throughout the dream I was reluctant to ride you, I was nervous, I was panicking because I had forgotten your bridle, I felt like I was disappointing people and in the end something happened, I can't quite remember what, but people were trying to take you away from me. I woke up with my heart completely aching for you, for your smell, for everything that comes with you. I couldn't shake you all day, you were just there, with me. If that makes sense.

I love you, and I often think to myself that we were thrown together, and that another rider would suit you much better. I think this dream has a lot to do with my insecurities lately, and the fact that another rider could have taught you so much more this summer. I often wonder what horse you would be if I wasn't the one you were stuck with, if I wasn't the one fumbling around on you, ... if i knew what i was doing. I sometimes lose myself in dreaming about spending time, just you and I, no rush, no one watching us, just... figuring stuff out. Just me, you, an arena and a snaffle bit. No stress, no time restrictions, nothing but you and I.

But, you know what? I love you. There is just something between us, that when I'm with you, when I'm spending that extra 20 minutes grooming you when I should realistically be doing something else, when I'm working you in the round pen, when we click, and everything falls into place, that's just perfect. "He just follows her around like a goddamn puppy, you can tell he loves her when he looks at her." I hope one day, even with all my big lofty horse aspirations, I can still call you mine. You don't have to be a performance horse, or a perfect horse, but i'd like for you to be my horse.

I'm such a lame horse girl, but after my dream last night I've been thinking about my baby paint boy, Jingle, all day, and I just can't shake it. I think it also has a lot to do with how stressed I am with school right now (hence the lack of blog posts) and how much I'd like to saddle up and just .. get away from all the stress of life right now. Anyways, I had to write it out, so that I could get it off my chest. So, there ya go, a letter from a girl to her horse.

Hickstead

2011-11-07T20:47:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning, the sun was shining into the barn, I was talking with a boarder, leaning on my pitchfork and feeling a little less-frazzled than usual when she said, "Oh my god, I have news, I heard last night from a friend in Europe that Hickstead died in Italy." The first thing that went through my mind was, .. well, not Eric's Hickstead. Then, How is that possible?. She continued that he had jumped a clear run, and after the course he seized, fell and died... most likely of a heart attack. Everyone in attendance agreed that it was an absolute tragedy to the horse industry, and then we went back to what we were doing.

But for some reason I couldn't shake it, Hickstead was dead. Impossible. You see, Hickstead is the horse that every little girl that loves ponies dreams are made of. He was cute and compact, but powerful and awe-inspiring. He was that out of the blue, nobody saw it coming (not even Eric Lamaze in the beginning), who woulda thought, kinda horse.

When I was a little girl, dreaming of ponies, my grandparents would take me to Spruce Meadows, and I would wander the grounds for hours, happily petting the noses of the massive jumpers in their beautiful stalls. I could have spent days just sitting there, watching those animals literally leap into the sky. So, although western is my heart and soul, a piece of me has always loved the "Spruce" atmosphere, English saddles, jumps so high that you couldn't climb them if you wished and those horses... that fly. It always seemed so magical.

Magic was definitely in the air this year when I went with a good friend to the CN International, Eric and Hickstead jumped both rounds clear, and the crowd roared for them. You could tell the second Hickstead walked onto the course who the crowd favourite was. Everyone stopped speaking and the world seemed to stand still as he took those jumps, and by the time he had cleared the last one the crowd was in hysterics. Eric and Hickstead, Canada's dream team.

So, although I never personally met Hickstead, and have never met Eric Lamaze, and realistically have no true connection to the Show Jumping world, I felt that sting of losing a hero, losing something that meant so much to so many people. The little stallion that could. May he rest in peace.

Mug from Mama

2011-11-05T14:37:00.000-07:00

My mom came home from the store with this the other day, such a cute little surprise.

It's definitely helping me as I power through death-midterm studying.

One day my entire house will have mugs like this... tacky? absolutely not!

Mug from Cypress Home

First Snow Fall of the Year

2011-11-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

So, most of southern Alberta experienced the first official snowfall today. You know, I'm one to complain about snow.. I truly am, winter isn't my thing and I'm a big cry baby. I enjoy the beauty of winter, I love Christmastime, and I can appreciate the season - I can look like a fool on skates, and, as of last year, I have decided I quite enjoy snowshoeing. I don't mind snowboarding - as long as it involves beer afterwards, and there is something pretty amazing about riding in a crystalline paradise of white.

However; there is nothing fun about getting stuck in a snow drift up to your horses shoulder, there is nothing fun about your car spinning out and refusing to stop (this happened to me quite a few times in a 5 minute drive this morning) and there is just nothing fun about having to prepare 15 layers of clothing before you leave your house.

But, I won't complain too much yet, today turned out to be semi-decent and most of the snow has already disappeared or retreated onto grass only. When one of those big 6 day snowdumps occurs though, Oh yeah.. i'll be whinin'.

Here's a couple pictures of me on a -30 day in Alberta two winter's ago; tending to some horses. You gotta be crazy in love with a creature to haul hay out to them 2 times a day in -30... no wonder my friends don't get this whole "horse thing" of mine.

The herd, snowy fur included.

I'll have you know on this particular day in Alberta I was wearing a sports bra, a tank top, a t-shirt, a long sleeve, what looks like two sweaters, a shell of a snowboarding jacket, and a puffy vest. Leggings, Jeans, snow pants, two pairs of gloves (the snowboarding gloves were off for this photo), and i'm assuming at the time i was wearing three pairs of socks in rubber boots. Aswell as a bandanna, followed by a toque and a facewarmer. ... Lovely; things to look forward too.

Snow, and snow, and snow for miles.

Bridleless - Clinton Anderson & Phil Rapp

2011-11-03T21:55:00.000-07:00

Phil Rapp on "Dont Look Twice" aka Lipstick, cutting bridleless

(I am obsessed with this mare, absolutely obsessed with her)

Clinton Anderson on Diez, doing a bridleless reining pattern

Pretty cool stuff, also amazing how horse & rider make it look like absolutely nothing at all.

Of course, you are watching Clinton Anderson & Phil Rapp, two of the biggest names in the industry right now. So cool.

At the Barn; Diapers & Polo Wraps

2011-10-30T19:43:00.000-07:00

Spent another weekend at the barn doing chores! There is so much to learn there, the barn I'm volunteering at is not only a boarding facility, but also does conditioning and rehabilitation of horses. So, not only am I getting to experience the boarding side of the barn world, but I get to see some really cool machinery and therapy in action! It's amazing. I'm loving it.

Between a salt water spa, and a deep water treadmill for the horses, I pretty much felt like dying the first .. oh, I don't know, 18 million times, I had to work them. You can't help the thoughts that keep running through your head when you're dealing with stuff like that, "these are super expensive, the horses are super expensive, and generally, everything is worth so much, emotionally and monetarily, and your going to ruin it, and your going to get murdered/cry in a ball on the floor." Thankfully, as far as I know, I didn't ruin anything, and it all went pretty smoothly.

Today I was all by myself all morning - also kind of intimidating, but it's also nice to be able to get into my own rhythm of things without worrying if that rhythm doesn't sync with others/is too slow for people/isn't how they want things done. I'm definitely one of those people that needs to figure things out by myself (obviously with the machinery I need direction), I always feel better once I can get a mental map of the land and am able to go about things without asking 100,000 questions per minute due to my nerves. Being alone helps to silence the questions, because who are you going to ask? (Realistically, I totally and completely talk to the horses throughout the day, so they get rhetorical questions thrown at them as they stare at me through their feed doors)

Anyways, since this is my first time working at a commercial barn of this magnitude I thought that I should chronicle my experiences there, and things that I've learnt along the way. So! First time ever!

Things I learnt this weekend

I've never had to wrap a horse before, so this weekend I learnt how to wrap a leg! We used a quilt first, then a polo wrap. Thankfully the girl who is training me is very patient and kind, because the first.. oh 3 times I did it, I was a bit of a wrinkled mess. However, I got the idea behind it and today I did it all by myself. I'm a big girl now! Don't laugh yet, you can laugh afterwards when you discover that I completely forgot the way to wrap the polo and kept ending up in the wrong spot for the velcro and couldn't figure out why. 3 polo wraps later I realized that I hadn't rolled them wrong originally, I was simply going the wrong direction. Sigh. Learning.
How to use a Salt Water Spa & Treadmill - really cool, i'm totally fascinated by these machines. I also get the inclination to always jump into the Spa with the horse whose enjoying their treatment. The water always smells so nice and, well, spa like... haha. Luckily for my job, I refrain from enjoying a spa treatment with my equine friends.
How to diaper a horse... this is perhaps the most humorous, for sanitation and cleanliness purposes, the horses obviously can't poo in the machines, thus, they get diapers! It's so silly because I still giggle to myself and picture horses with big white diapers hooked onto their bums, but realistically, the diapers are a synthetic material that are placed under their tails, velcro'd, and then attached harness style to a neck collar. But, really, how funny would it be if I had to put equine pampers on a horse?! come on, your laughing at the thought, I know you are.

So, that was my weekend - Diapers, Polo Wraps & Spa days with the ponies. Wouldn't have it any other way.

**also, ugh, I know, no pictures, just me blabbing for hours on end. However, I'm attempting to keep a degree of anonymity about this blog. I'm fine to share some personal information, and information about my interactions with horses & day to day life; but I also need to respect other's wishes, so it's best to just keep names - of places, people and horses, out of it. =)

Summer Gypsy-isms

2011-10-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

Snow is coming, a windstorm shook the life out of all the trees and their fall beauty last night,

and now we're slipping slowly into winter, bare trees, cold winds, bleak and dark skies..

ugh.

Winter isn't all that bad, but when it doesn't hold a candle to summertime,

I always feel like a roving cowgirl gypsy in the summer,

I feel like I could go anywhere, see anything, be anyone

however I choose to take up settlement at my camp, see the red and the grease rivers and be myself

but there's that... knowledge, that you're free and it's summer.

Winter doesn't have any of that.

Where'd my roving cowgirl gypsy life go?

Want: Horsehair Jewellery

2011-10-25T17:12:00.000-07:00

A random twitter account started following me and I pretty much ignored it, until in a fit of boredom I happened onto this person, and then the website listed in their bio. It turned out to be a rep for Nanna Salmi Horsehair Jewellery, I've heard of horsehair jewellery before and I absolutely love the idea, but this is perhaps the most beautiful stuff I've ever found - however, it definitely reflects that in it's price.

From their website, "Nannasalmi™collection is a horsehair jewelry collection created from horsehair, precious metals and diamonds. Each nannasalmi™collection is a horsehair jewelry collection created from horsehair, precious metals and diamonds. Each piece is completely hand-fashioned from your own horse's hair. Jewelry can also be made from the stock hair. is completely hand-fashioned from your own horse's hair. Jewelry can also be made from the stock hair."

Because I am in love, and am hoping someone who loves me sees this blog post and decides to drop an exorbitant amount of money on me I'll post a few of my favourite pieces from their collection, taken from the USA-Canada Facebook page.

"Cassiopeia"

- Gold - $3,540 USD; White Gold - $3,900 USD

I looooove this ring, and you could almost stomach the price if you decided to use it as your wedding band - that would be super cute if the couple were "horse people" together. Right?!

"Clapton"

- Silver - $260 USD; Gold - $990 USD; White Gold - $1,265 USD

"Saudia"

- Silver - $335 USD; Gold - $1,480 USD; White Gold - $1,920

- both could be options for the groom! I'm thinking here! Rationalizing!

Also, this was commissioned specifically for HRH Prince Abdullah Bin Miteb Abdullah Al-saud, from the Saudi show jumping team, it was named after a prized stallion of his.

"Cedric"

- Silver - $540 USD; Gold - $2460 USD; White Gold - $2950 USD

Cufflinks

these were specially made for someone, but they are coming out with cufflinks soon in different colours/variations

"Mistral"

- Silver - $320 USD; Gold - $980 USD; White Gold - $1,160

this is one of my absolute favourites, it's gorgeous, I am dying over it.

"Scirocco"

- Silver - $540 USD; Gold - $2,460 USD; White Gold - $2,950

absolutely, dying, over, this, bracelet

"Shoe-Shoe"

(in silver with arrowhead pattern)

- Silver - $320 USD; Gold - $865 USD; White Gold - $1,070

pretty, pretty, pretty, la la la la

So, all in all I am completely in love. Although, I highly doubt the day will ever come I could comfortably buy any of these pieces I still can't help but pretend that the one day I'll be prancing around to events with the "Shoe-Shoe", "Mistral" and "Scirocco" all on my wrist, and the "Cassiopeia" on my ring finger. (...because they'd totally look amazing together, right?)

After I discovered the prices I checked online for other horsehair jewellery and couldn't find anything I liked and found as just totally classic and beautiful as this collection. Have you guys found anything comparable?

Fall

2011-10-24T20:12:00.000-07:00

There is just something about fall, you know?

The way the tree's turn from green to shades of red and yellow,

the way the leaves seem to rain down for a month on end,

the way nature seems so in-tune as she gets ready for the winter cold,

how all the colours seem to blend and meld together

that cold crisp but somehow refreshing fall air

I'm a summer girl, but I can appreciate the sentiment behind fall,

it is pretty beautiful.

Another thing I enjoy about fall is (obviously) riding amongst the leaves. Some friends and I went out to a dude ranch to grab a trail ride before the snow flies and we had a great time. We managed to get in some really perfect laughs, get a little lost, we rode some horses that weren't your stereotypical "trail ponies" and we even managed to have some beers at our favourite local Saloon! .. Saloon's still exist you know, if you've never been to one, I suggest you go, immediately. They are, realistically, just bars with a western-name, but there is something so cool about saying, "I'm just heading to the Saloon"; love it!

All in all it was one of those, "I love my friends, life is so good" kinda days

Playing Make Believe

2011-10-23T21:57:00.000-07:00

This last week I got a chance to house-sit for a couple with a beautiful home, horses and barn. The house is so cute, everywhere you look there's paintings of horses, cowboy artwork, bridles hanging on the walls as works of art themselves, horseshoe accents, etc. The barn is a 6 stall, and has the smell of the sweetest hay. Lucy, a quarter horse, always runs up to me when she see's me in the mornings. At first it was a little intimidating, as she full on gallops at you, and then comes to a stop and waits for you to cuddle her. Guess she hasn't given up being a reining horse yet.

On the porch you can see horses everywhere, little acreages with massive houses and beautiful horses and barns. At night you can see the twinkling city lights, and in the morning the sunrise bursts throughout the entire house. I think this place is definitely paradise.

So, I've definitely been playing make believe, pretending this is my own little horse-palace. One day I sure hope I can wake up to candy coloured sunrises, horses nickering in the morning fog, and being able to curl up with the latest issue of Western Horse Review next to a fire, with a beer in my hand. Life would be so sweet.