HEALTHY NAILS AND TEETH

As a therapist, my sister was taught to look at a patient's nails and teeth during their first consultation.  Healthy, well balanced folks generally have good oral health and clean, neat fingernails.  Self care IS a sign of good mental health.

Maisy looking quite healthy with the Happy Young Professional

Maisy's feet are well manicured and her shoes cost a mere $250 every 5-6 weeks.  Her dentist declared her teeth healthy, well cared for and in very good shape.  A chiropractor adjusts her working body and I love to groom her grey coat until it radiates a silvery shine.

Maisy is very healthy and well balanced from a Licensed Mental Health Provider's perspective.

If measured by the same criteria, I am not!

Oh, I score high in the oral health scale.  I thank genetics, regular brushing and fluoride treated water from my youth for that.  My nails?  Um, not so much!

 Did I mention I work in an office?

I was driving Ms Maisy (yes, I was) and happened to look down at my hands and... gasped.  My nail beds are cracked and dry and my nails are brittle and chipped.  I have become the dog/horse version of a Cat Lady.

What is it about us horse girls that focus so intently on the health of our partners and yet, can not seem to find the time to prioritize our health as critically?

Let's see how that really looks:

• Best shoes and regular manicures - Maisy 
• Anxiety reducing holistic supplements - Maisy
• Body work designed to improve performance and reduce stress - Maisy
•  Regular breaks from work to reduce stress - Maisy
• A varied work schedule to keep life interesting - Maisy
• Good dental care - Maisy and me

Hmmm, good dental care... that's it?  Ok, maybe I get better food choices.

Chandler won't take care of me...

Maybe I'm a little jealous that Maisy has a person dedicated to making sure that she receives the best care and provides the right atmosphere to help her feel good and perform at her best.  Maybe I am a little jealous...  Maybe I am.

And, sometimes when I look down on broken nails and dry cracked cuticles, I remember that Maisy's person is ME!   Maybe I should hire ME to take care of me just as well as I take care of Her Greyness....

HMMMMMM... what would that look like?

WHINY WEDNESDAY

I've given in to the WAAA, WAAAs and leapt deeply off of Sunshiney Mountain into the gray abyss of Whiny Wednesday...  Oh believe me, I refused to give in even as I dipped my toes into the pool of moroseness.  I wanna have a pity party and I wanna have it now.

Morning's grayness @ Plantation
Horse Trials

Maisy decided that her beloved neighbor was not as attentive as she felt a mare in fall heat deserves.  And, when he denied her longing she reared up and caught her left front in the electric fence and lacerated the inside of her cannon bone.  Rumor has it that her distraught neighbor ran about his paddock until the barn folk released her from bondage.

The deep thinking of a Hound

Even though the call from the barn owner brought back the memory of his call back in March, we all knew that this injury was not critical.  When I got to the barn after work, the leg was hot, sore and swollen twice its normal size.  Cue in worry, fret and whining.

You know?  It's probably a good thing that I am an Aunt and not a Mother.  I'm pretty sure I'd be that parent that does not offer comfort and hugs...  I'm the one that says,  "I am so mad!  You did this to yourself and now it's going to cost money for the vet to see you and how am I going to find the time to ice and wrap you three or more times a day.  I hope you're happy with yourself."  {{{Um, I actually was that mom to Maisy... oopsie!}}}

Yeah...  I'm not proud of that but, this is a confessional blog... sigh!

Maisy & her Happy Young Professional
Used with permission Spotted Vision
Photography

And, I'm not whining about the time or the money or even the possibility of scratching my first (and last for the season) event.  I'm whining because I HATE WRAPPING LEGS!  There I said it.  I hate to do it!  I hate the responsibility it carries to do it right or suffer the consequences.  I hate leaving the barn wondering if this is the night that she gets a bandage bow because I wrapped too tightly.  And, if I wrap to loosely, I'm afraid that they will fall down and tighten around the feet/leg cutting circulation and ruining the foot/leg.

The vet came and declared the leg sound, the laceration superficial and is treating the hematoma underneath the cut seriously and aggressively to prevent lymphangitis.  I get to walk under saddle for three days (15 minutes) and then ice, treat the wound and wrap.  She is clear that everything will be ok.

I need to stay with that...  She is going to be fine!  And, I need to stop lamenting our fate.  Everything will be ok. And, I need to be a better parent - love and comfort her...  Yeah, that sound doable!  Maisy is gonna be ok!

NON-JUDGEMENT DAY

Before (Photo used with permission
Martha Curran)

Another indoor collapsed this morning.  All the horses got out safely after, what must have been many hours of harrowing labor and much worry for all involved.  This was one of many here in New England - Massachusetts, in particular.  We lost our indoor last Sunday and are still reeling from the ramifications.

We've gotten almost 100" of snow in less than 30 days.  And, in those 30 days, we've experienced the second coldest month on record (coldest month was in 1875).  Do you have any idea what 100" of snow looks like?  Oh we're a hardy bunch, us New Englanders but this is too much...  Another roof collapse, another barn rescue and another "Fund Account" established.

After 16 People...
(Photo used with Permission Martha Curran)

One barn quoted these numbers - 16 people, two snow blowers, two plastic shoots and over 20 hours to remove the snow.  Another barn took two days with a team of 10.  And, if you drove by any of these barns, I'm not sure you could guess the depth of that snow.  It is just that mind boggling.

When we lost our indoor, it felt like someone had died.  We all moved around the barn in stunned "silence" each of us harboring our own secret concerns and still trying to be strong for the owners.  We could always move but, for them, this was their home, their business and their dream.  What of their dream? 

Roof top at Davis Farm, Bedford MA
Photo by Lisa Samoylenka

Will these barns survive?  Can they rebuild?  What of their dreams?  What of the people they inspire to have a dream?  What will happen to them?

So, I ask you... do not judge!  Do not second guess folks' decisions...  For one moment, imagine yourself in the same position, with the same limitations either money, manpower or time...  And in that one moment, find compassion, love and leave your judgment behind. 

And for you folks here in New England...  go out and hug your barn owner.  This has been a devastating year for them even if the barns/indoors are still standing. 

In a tiny miracle, my friend's brother bumped me ahead of his other clients and removed the snow off the roof of my house.  I waited too long because of the fear of how much it would cost...  He came, cleaned off TONS of snow and ice and charged me a reasonable fee.  I am one of the lucky ones. 

OF A VIRTUOUS NATURE

First a definition - From Webster's Dictionary:  "morally good, having or showing virtue, ethical behavior, good moral values"

Used with permission
www.flatlandsfoto.com

I do not smoke, drink and, with effort and consciousness, I try to be kind and gentle with others.  I donate time and money to organizations I love (USEA, American Cancer Society, youth programs and scholarships).  To the bane of my mother's existence and teachings, I do curse like a drunken sailor on leave.  The key thing is that I really try to be morally good.

Phew...  now here it comes...  the word that cancels out the above:

BUT, I am so sick and tired of hand walking my lil' pinto pony!  And, at a client meeting this week, a CFO kindly said that he would say a prayer for her healing.  I stopped him and thanked him profusely for his kindness.  And. then begged that he would pray, not for her healing (she will heal to 100%) but that I would stop this god forsaken whining! 




Enjoying photographing
the Hunts

Seriously, when a client... no, a C-Suite Client, sends a prayer to your horse, you have to acknowledge that your whining is out of control.  And, it's not just clients, it's coworkers, vendors, the girls at Dunkin Donuts, my neighbors and even the guy who mows the lawn at the church across the street from my house.  Yet, I believe that no one is more tired of hearing it than me! 

Sigh...  patience and acceptance is not one of the virtues I embrace.  Want to have?  YES!  Embrace? NO!

At least watching, I can
enjoy the beautiful colors of Fall

Clearly if not patience, what has this experience given me?  No, my house and tack are still not sparkling and the closets are still stuffed with things that need a bit of organization.  And I can assure you that I haven't solved world peace or found a cure for cancer. 

What it has given me is the clear understanding at how frustrating lay-ups are to owners/riders/persons.  Our on-injured-reserve-list-ponies are having a good time eating, drinking and being gently attended to with their every need met. 

Sug looking stressed with her boy toy!

Sugar has enjoyed the company of an older sophisticated UL dressage horse and a young boy toy who is just getting a career going.  She has a full belly, is groomed every evening and is hand walked during which she has moments of grazing to "stretch her neck and back muscles".  

Our on-injured-reserve-list-ponies are not suffering.  Their owners are...



Last show, jumping Novice again!
Lucky and grateful me!
used with permission
www.flatlandsfoto.com

And, here is a confession for you!  I never, ever, ever understood that!  So, I send out to all those that are suffering or once suffered a rehabbing horse my sincerest of all apologies.  I am sorry that I planned fun adventures as you hand walked your horse!  I am sorry that I may have pooh-poohed your angst and frustration at being trapped in a ring as the weather tickled your galloping bone.  I am sorry that I said (what I thought was kind encouragement) that you would soon be out and about again.  I am truly humbled and sorry for my lack of virtue in this regard.

The vet comes tomorrow for the next lameness exam, ultrasound and shock wave therapy.  I'll show up in riding attire acting as hopeful as my hound watching me eat - so eager, trying so hard not to let my anticipation erupt in sound.  Maybe tomorrow will be the day we will be set slightly free!  Maybe!

BABIES ON DA BRAIN!

Used with permission
www.yokinaphotos.com

I love that commercial where a group of friends are out having a good time laughing over some cocktails and dancing to some tunes.  The bar is dark and the fun is just coming through the TV screen.  The scene cuts to a parking lot and you see a girl trying to put her key into the car door and keeps missing.  She's drunk.  Then a hand reaches for the keys and a narrator says firmly, "Friends don't let friends drive drunk!" 

Cut to New England where we're coming to the very end of foaling season.  I'm seeing baby pics everywhere...  Fillies running in circles around bored mothers, colts leaping and bounding in the air and always, those few little ones sprawled out in the warm sun snoozing away the days activities.

Did you know I have a mare?  A beautiful, well bred, well put together, talented and registered warmblood mare?  Did I mention that Sugar is a mare...  an open mare?  A mare that cycles regularly and is not pregnant?  Yes, Sugar is, indeed, a mare.

Friends don't let friend drive drunk...  the mare version:

Me - Sugar was long lined today.  As I watched, I couldn't help getting into how beautiful and really well put together she is.  I can't stop thinking that I should breed her.

Used with permission
www.yokinaphotos.com

Bestest Eventing Buddy - NO SUGAR BABIES!

Me - RIGHT!  But just think about it... She would have awesome babies.

Bestest Eventing Buddy - Seriously?  That's like releasing little devils upon the world.  Gremlins are adorable too... until you feed them after midnight and then, all hell breaks loose!

Me - RIGHT!   Thanks for the visual... beautiful with a screw loose!  But still... maybe?

Bestest Eventing Buddy - Sugar is like a Hollywood Star.  She's gorgeous, but clueless as to how it is in the real world.   She's snorting coke, spouting random political and religious thoughts that make no sense but people believe her because she's gorgeous!  Trust me, if she were ugly, they'd lock her up. 

Me - Right, her entourage gets sucked into her beauty... only to be disappointed again and again.  But when she looks at you, all is forgiven and you rush to do her bidding.

Designed by Bestest Eventing Buddy

Bestest Eventing Buddy - Basically, she's the equine equivalent of Angelina Jolie.  Underneath all that social consciousness, she still has a vial blood around her neck and kissing her brother.

Me - RIGHT!  NO SUGAR BABIES EVAH!!!!

Bestest Eventing Buddy - Good!  Just remember if Sugar was human, she would be a Scientologist.

Me - Wait! Would it be ok if I won the lottery?

Bestest Eventing Buddy - NO!!!!  Eventually you're going to die and someone else will get the spawn or even, the spawn's spawn.  And, we can't release that on the world.  Always remember, I do love Sugar but I believe that she is unigue and is not to be DUPLICATED!

FRIENDS DO NOT LET FRIENDS BREED THEIR MARES!

THE MAKING OF AN EVENTER

We have a sport filled with tradition making it so very different from all others.  There is a sense of adventure, camaraderie with our fellows and above all, love for our partner horses.  Our horses may be fancy or not...  it doesn't matter since the work together balances it all out.  There is also bit of agelessness* that equalizes us all - we are one when we event.

Marching to their lessons....

I also believe that there might be a little bit of masochism thrown in to all that good cheer and fun.  Name a sport that demands grace and precision one day, speed and bravery on another and then, asking to finish with grace, boldness and athleticism.  Oh, yes there are sports that offer all of that but those sports do not require a partnership between human and animal.

And, we do this, not for the lavish prizes, money or even for the piece of polyester that marks an achievement, but for the challenge, the accomplishment and the true partnership between horse and rider all alone getting it done.

Are Eventers born or taught?  Hmmm, that is a question I've always wondered about and at the GMHA's Junior Horsmanship Clinic, I believe I saw true Eventers being born. 

These campers and their horses spend 10 days attending two mounted sessions and two unmounted horsemanship lectures each day while attending to their horses.  The focus is on eventing -
Dressage, Stadium Jumping and Cross Country lessons are provided to every participant - ditches, rolltops, trakenhers, "peasant" feeders, water crossings, up/down banks - ride-critique-ride dressage lessons...  everything all taylored to the level of the camper and horse.  It is the longest "event" ever.

B Roadside in a VT rainshower

The Instructors and Barn Managers were selected for their experience and, assigned groups based on that expertise.  There was a barn of young newbies that needed the strength and organization of someone who taught or worked in a riding school program.  I believe, as a Barn Manager (and Master/Old), I was assigned the 14-17 year olds because of my age... 

No one cared more for these campers than the Camp Staff.  Each day we talked about which kid/horse needed what and how to make the experience successful and educational.  Instructors talked to the Barn Managers about what happened and each offered suggestions for the next lesson or day.  We were a team really dedicated to pass on the tradition of eventing that we loved so much.

Neat and tidy stabling

I have a million stories, some will be told, others will fade and others, will remain anonymous.

Are Eventers born or taught? 

The evidence that, while some are born Eventers, the tradition can be taught came to light at the schooling horse trial.  It was the only day I got to see "my kids" ride. 

One girl had a talented but naughty pony.  She rode him well but as an opinionated pony can be, he kept running away after he landed a perfect stadium jump.  Having been taught to circle to slow him down and she got eliminated for doing too many circles in the wrong spots.  Her tears of disappointment ran down her face when she was told she could not go on to XC. 

5:30 am rides were heavenly!

An older girl came up to her, put her arm around her and said, "Welcome to the club, I got eliminated too."  And, another barnmate said, "Yup, me too!  I forgot a jump!"  And a third said, "Hey we should celebrate...  I fell off!  We rock!"  And, the tears turned to laughter and the desire to do it again (this time at a trot) superceded any thought of quitting.

That was my best day at camp.  There is nothing better than to talk to someone after XC, to listen to their story and to see the joy of the adventure - ribbon or not!

We are all alike, no matter what the age*...  Huge kudos for the staff at GMHA's Junior Horsemanship Camp for keeping our traditions alive and putting a new generation of eventers on the right path! 

*One wise young camper explained the "age gap" to me...  "Adults put too much emotion into it.  We care but more technically and not so emotionally."  I believe she might be right!

WINNING THE WHINING WAR...

Oh woe is me

It's a gray day.  The air is damp and the cold rain just adds to the bleakness.  The ground is sodden and the fields are a dull brown.  I have a cold, a sniffly, snorty, headachy cold.  And to add to the good cheer, I got the news yesterday that I lost a big sale.  Did I mention that its a gray, damp day?

It would be so easy to sink into the "Oh-woe-is-me's!"  'Cause it's so easy to drum up all that is wrong in my life and dump gasoline and then FIRE IT (the pity party) UP!  Oh yes I can...  It would be so easy... so, so easy! 

I won't!  It doesn't help!  It won't change anything AND it only brings more energy into the negative.  Did I mention that it won't change anything?

Sugar's visit to Tufts Veterinary Hospital was the right thing to do.  She is going to be fine and back to work in 2 weeks.  This GOOD news...  no, FABULOUS news.  I still have a jumping/eventing and dressage horse. She was thoroughly checked out from the tips of her nose to the end of her tail both neurologically and orthopedically. 

No gray day, no cold and no lost sale could replace the joy I have at that news...  unless, of course, I choose to...  just sayin'!

So what happened?  The vet believes that she must have had a "traumatic incident" that injured her neck (and possibly aggravated hind end issues) that caused inflammation of the branches of her spinal cord which caused the severe neurological symptoms.  My Vet's quick assessment and treatment, the subsequent rest resolved most of this problem.  There is no pinched nerve or compressed vertebrae that would cause future issues. 

Used with permission

The rest were "Sugar issues" which were most likely aggravated by the "traumatic incident".  The treatment of these issues will help her perform at her spookiest, strongest and most agile best.  So, we will either ace or fail all of our future events more dramatically and beautifully than we did in the past.

More good news...  Both Vets that treated her felt that her body tone/muscling was excellent - even and balanced and that her weight (1471) was good.  Her xrays were actually pretty good for a horse of her age and level of work.  (They did not xray her hocks.)  And, her feet were fine.

And, for the record, as "brave" and positive as I sounded through this process, I almost cried with relief when the Eventing Trainer showed up for the lameness evaluation.  And, ironically, the Bestest Eventing Buddy and Eventing Trainer were there having their horses evaluated/follow up when I arrived to pick her up.   What an awesome surprise!  Even better, we all took healthy horses home!

It is a gray day and I do have a cold...  So what?  I have a healthy, jumping horse, great friends and Da Boys who love me! 

DIRTY GIRL...

Used with permission
www.yokinasphoto.com

{{{{Hmmm, that title will boost readership...  I just wonder how many folks googling will be wicked disappointed.  Just sayin'...}}}}

"How do you get her so white?" 

There are times in my life that I believe that I'm low maintenance, just an easy-going-take-life-in-stride kind of gal.  You know the type, nothing bothers them, things come into their life and they toss their long blonde hair and with sparkling blue eyes they laugh with delight while hopping in their shiny immaculate blue dually. 

I am brown haired, brown eyed and really kind of not.... low maintenance.  And, Sugar is dirty...  yup, dirty.  Her bright white coat is blotched with manure stains and one very prominent dollop of urine.  Below her hocks, you can not detect the white in her tail. 

I groom.  I do not bathe for cleanliness, I groom.  Torn between two lovers (work and Sug).  I need to work today but those dirty bits call to me, they beg me to wisk them away.  Begging even more for the hard brush

And this morning, my dirty girl is still NQR and I have finally begun to feel the worry and fret of what is unknown.  She is better than she was that first night, yet she still appears to have neurological symptoms.  My vet, god bless her, agrees that its time for the big guns and that waiting for it to resolve may just prolong that very appointment.  So, she's scheduled for a neurological exam at Tufts Veterinary Hospital and, if appropriate nuclear scintigraphy (bone scan).

Oh, did I mention that Sugar is a dirty girl? 

Tonight, I left work late after finishing a presentation that will take me away for the next two days and I groomed my lil' pinto pony as Da Boys cleaned food bits off the stall floor.  She is white again  and I will sleep well tonight. 

"How do you get her so white?"

PARENTING JUST GOT REAL!

Observing the farm happenings in
solitary confinement!

This one is for you!  That's right, this post is for all you working mothers, single parents of both sexes and families with two working partners....  this one is all yours!

You see, I am one of those single-never-been-married-with-no-children kind of person.   If you asked the teenage me, I would have told you I was going to be a veterinarian with four kids and a husband living on a beautiful farm filled with horses.  Yup, that was my teenage self.  {{{Hmmm...  note the order... hmmm).

Life rolls out on a winding path and I end up being a really fantastic aunt (my blog, I write what I want to) and that suits me just fine.{{{My mom is shaking her head somewhere muttering, 'those horses and those dogs"  and "spinster"  She's not an animal person and had a husband and 8 kids.}}}

"Run away!  Run away!"

Working mothers, single parents and working parents, I salute you!  And, if you also are a rider/competitor, I bow in your honor!  I do not know how you do it!

Sugar is NQR.  She came up, well not really lame but, scary unsteady on her feet and wobbly walking.  Her step was that of a big time model walking down a Paris runway...  her front legs carefully and slowly crossing over each other...  very strange...  Her hind end was not "right" either and once when turned too tightly she almost fell over.  

"Neurological' stated the vet after her examination.  X-rays of her neck show "something" on the C6 vertebrae which could be arthritis or something more.  The nerve could be pinching...  All of the vagaries are due to the difficulty of getting a GREAT x-ray on  a very muscled horse.  She is being treated as if she had slip and fall in turnout which injured the neck causing the symptoms and possibly splayed her legs which may have caused a muscle strain or pull in her hind end.



Da Boys looking for love
in all the wrong places!

I'm running back and forth from vet to work and Da Boys are being short changed for attention.  When I come home, I want to crash but they want me to play...  "leave me alone"! 

And the DMSO bolus Sug rec'd as part of her treatment leaves me nauseous.  Every time she breathes in my direction, I can not help but to turn away and tell her that she stinks.  I abandoned my lil girl to the Barn Manager because I could not deal with the smell.   Really, what mother does that to an ailing child?  

Not a worry, it's all being taken
care of...

How do you do it?  I'm asking all of you working mothers/single parents?  How do you take care of your kids, get them to the doctors, manage their care and still take care of those kids still left at home?  Oh, and while doing all of that, how do you manage your career?  Are there any tips or tricks you can share? 

And, if these were my kids and not just my animals, would I need to prepay their therapy sessions to help them deal with the neglect?  {{{And what is with the word my - my kids, my animals...'sup wit dat?}}}

Note - Sugar is showing improvement after the first treatment of DMSO and Dexamethasone... Vet feels it really is an acute injury possibly a slip and fall in turnout injuring her neck and possibly splaying her front and/or hind legs in the slip.  If the tests for an organic cause come back negative and she continues to show improvement, then she may be back in work in a week.  (Didn't want to leave you hanging.)

FIRST WORLD

It's all First World Problems...  Everytime I feel like beating my chest and screaming...  "Oh, woe is me!", I remember...  these are luxury problems.   That's all!  Rich girl issues...

I just wish they could talk.  Wouldn't that be awesome if our horses could just tell us what is going on and then, make some intelligent decisions based on how they feel?  Wouldn't that just be fabulous?  It is the uncertainty that makes me whine and sigh...

Sugar is NQR... NOT QUITE RIGHT...  She feels like two separate horses...  the one in front - normal but, the one behind...  awful.  I wanted to say that she won't move laterally, but that isn't quite it.  She can't move laterally.  Yesterday she felt like she would fall over and today, she tried and hopped.  She tried... 

So, we scratched UNH Summer Horse Trials.   I was ready but Sugar was unable...

My Dressage Trainer said something that broke my heart...  just a little.  "Sugar is so stoic that, I think she probably functions more often than not in some level of pain and when she presents like this, it is her only way of saying...  STOP!  It really hurts!"

Then she added, "Maybe, one of the reasons she spooks is because she hurts."

She paused.  I looked at her and then we both said, "Nah!"

Taking a few moments to ponder everything - the vet exam on Monday, the cost, the money to treat all sorts of catastropic problems, the end of our career together, the poor house...  I thought back to what I learned from my Stressless Riding Intensive:

• These thoughts are just stories... what is real is that Sugar is NQR and I scratched UNH.  That's it...  nothing more, nothing less...

But I can still SIGH... can't I?  {{{{SIGH}}}}

ODE TO THE WINTER BARN WORKER



"Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire inside is delightful. And, since we've got no place to go... Let it snow, let it snow... LET IT SNOW!"

Nemo was a beautiful blizzard with it's light fluffy snow flakes and howling winds whipping through bare trees.  I was nestled comfortably between a sleeping hound and napping lab.  It was the perfect night to catch up on things...  personal things, like cooking and cleaning projects, doing taxes and maybe a nap or two. 

The state wide driving ban prevented a visit to the barn to be sure Ms Sug was warm and comfortable.  I knew she was in good hands but I still wondered and worried just a bit...

 Of course we appreciate them... sometimes with a holiday gift or two.  Yet, while I was cuddled up on the couch snugglying Mr Floppy...  The City Barn woke to drifts over 20 feet high, blocking barn doors.  And, with the blizzard still roaring, they used the school ponies to get to the barns to feed our lil princesses and princes.

If it were me, I might have cried myself back to sleep.   Instead, they worked and dug and worked and dug...  little by little what was once a mound of white was transformed into the barn we trust will keep our ponies safe... 

I dream of owning this barn... my plans are quite amazing if I do say so myself.  (I can really go on and on about what I'll do when I win the big, big lottery.) 

When I saw the Barn Owner tacking up his horse just 48 hours after the blizzard hit, I thanked him.  And then asked him to send me these pics on the day I win that big lottery... 

It is a real reminder that Barn Work and Ownership is a huge under taking and not as easy as the vision of my dreams...

 

Yes, City Barn Boarders and Friends, I saw your Facebook posts and I know we're grateful for the efforts this past weekend.  I wonder, sometimes, if an appropriate token of our gratitude could be one less text reminding the Barn Worker to put on the green sheet after taking off the blue blanket or perhaps, maybe... one less suggestion (complaint) about how to better do the stalls or manage the indoor. 

You see, I'm not sure I would have wanted to be the first person to walk down from the warm house or barn apartment and be greeted with the beautiful white fluffy snow "gently" blowing around the hill.  So, my penance for being tucked away, cozy and warm, is a ban on any thoughts, comments or suggestions on anything that looks like "improvements"...  cause after Finding Nemo, I am not worthy to "improve" upon anything!

City Barn Workers and Owners...  I humbly bow in your general direction and say...  YOU ROCK!  And THANKS!!!!

And for all of you who do this work so well...  Boarders and Friends thank you too... 

Note - All photos are courtesy of the Orchard Hill Equestrian Center Staff and Friends  (www.orchardhillequestriancenter.com)

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME!

Clean...  Fall Clean!

There is something warm and inviting about being in a barn while the snow falls heavily outside the door.  The wind blows hard and the plow scrapes by... you're safe and dry.  The world exists for no one but you and your lil' pinto pony...

Sugar is clean again!  Well, you could say I was obsessed and that might be true...  Or you might think that I am a bit anal retentive about the color of her coat and the gleaming contrast of the brown on white.  I guess you could say all of that... and some of it is true.  You see, I could not wait to get home from my Christmas vacation and groom - making her beautiful body radiate with good health.

Sugar is clean again!  It was heavenly to curry and brush... taking care that the most itchy spots were scratched well.  And her beautifully muscled body received a light massage... Tonight was a night to cozy up on the crossties and say, "I missed you."

The City Barn cared for her well.  Happily I can say that Sugar loves her other Person - the Red Headed Girl.  And that makes me happy too!

We're home!  Let the games begin!

NORMAN ROCKWELL LIVES!

6:30am Orchard Hill Equestrian Center...  All for me!

Handwalking a horse confined to stall rest can be a rewarding experience.  Your Beauty is thrilled for the attention and is immediately grateful for the release into the open world.  She nickers enthusiastically as you enter the barn and your loving pooches dance by your side.

It's 6:00 am, the air is cool and you can feel the Fall creeping in... the sun has barely risen above the hill and the dew lies thick and glistening on the ragweed flowers.  Life can not get better than this...  A cool family walk out on the cross country course of your favorite City Barn....   Ahhh.... the perfect family moment... captured completely and totally in my imagination.

My dad was an awesome guy.  If you ever asked me to summarize his persona, I would tell you he was a Yellow Lab...  Happy, exhuberant, thrilled when people came over - the more the merrier and a very hard worker.  He believed in dreams and in the ultimate perfect story.   He taught me well!

Autumn creeps in...

And one of his dreams was having the perfect, family moment - the Family Tradition.  God, how he tried to orchestrate the Norman Rockwell Christmas.  Remember that family sitting around the table, fresh faces and smiling, the turkey beautifully cooked and everyone was full of family bliss?  That was his dream...

Well, we were eight, rambunctious kids with parents who worked odd uncoordinated hours assuring that that one of them was home with us at all times.  So, shift work killed the "traditions".  For how could you wake up every Christmas to a wonderfully cooked breakfast when schedules would change and a parent went missing?  What actually became a tradition was the lack of tradition and the attempts to make magic happen

My morning's "Perfect Family Moment" was as messy as our "traditional" Christmas...  Da Boy's ran wild and Mr Floppy refused to come when called and Sugar was most ungrateful as she displayed amazing athleticism in her attempts to return to the barn.  The cover of my serenity was blown as I spoke harshly to the dancing white horse, yelled at the matching hound and expressed a bit of salty language towards the Convict thus preventing his attempt to eat a boarder's coveted treats.

My Pop

Then it occured to me... that  one of my Pop's gifts is my own search for Norman Rockwell... that perfect moment, the dream come true...  rainbows and unicorns...

The perfect moment is often unexpected but the search for that moment really does bring rainbows and unicorns...  And, this morning in all it's glorious beauty and messiness really was that perfect...  It brought the memory of my dad back to me and that is good. 

Ironically, the last Christmas we had together was the Norman Rockwell Christmas of his dreams... All of us kids and his grandchildren stopped by Christmas Eve and laughed and loved like no other orchestrated moment.   God is good...

DRUG RESISTANT!!!

Rocking and Rolling SBS 2010
Photo by www.dexterpix.com

Just say no!  Simple as that!  Drugs are for the weak...  for the sick...  and, in my family... you had to be really sick...  like, diagnostic tests proving that your chills, aches and pains were worthy of the ever so costly prescription drugs - kind of sick.  In a family of 8 kids, everything was a competition even who could endure the most pain or discomfort before succumbing to medication.


One day as I was hacking, coughing and sneezing, a wise woman tapped me on my shoulder and asked, "WHAT PART OF BEING MISERABLE DO YOU LIKE?"  After I wiped my nose, cleared my throat and caught my breath, I realized she was right!  What was holding me back from relief?  Was it some odd sense that I was stronger than those that knew the benefits of Advil Cold and Sinus medication?  And, I gave in...  My coworkers were most grateful...

Sugar has been on Depo for 7 weeks now and there is much rejoicing!  She is still my diva mare who, for example,  when disturbed by bugs will wreak havoc on her body as she tears up the paddock footing.  She still spooks at the same log she's walked by 100 times.  What's changed is the level of hysterical behavior surrounding the disturbance.  She seems "normal", no longer escalating from exuberance to chaos in 45 seconds.   And, that feels strangely odd...

And, her NON-hissy-fit-I-can't-take-it-anymore behavior is soothing, dare I say "Confidence Building"?  There is something about a horse that can walk into a familiar place (or a strange place) and just go to work that makes me say...  "Let's do this thing!"

Photo by www.dexterpix.com

"But Suzanne," you say, "If this Depo is so amazing, why didn't you do this way back when?"  Ahhh, we tried Regumate back in 2009 and it was a radical failure.  Instead of quieting her marishness, it threw her into full blown agitation...  You could not remove a horse from the barn without her going into a rather amazing display of loneliness, desire and absolute abandonment.  The vet said that it is a rare side affect of Regumate in that it enhances a mare's mothering instinct...  Well, that was an expensive experiment gone awry!

How confident do I feel?  Um, I am actually craving competition...  a horse trial ... an event!  I am looking for opportunities to jump.  And, when the Bestest Eventing Buddy said, during our Jump School Play Date, that I must jump the boxes.  I did,  with barely a whine....  And, we laughed liked hyenas at my inability to breath, ride and count strides...

Take that!  Drug resistant no more!

BEING THE BEST

Maybe it's the Olympics... maybe it's reveling in the achievements of others...  or, maybe, just maybe, it's my own pent-up-need-to-get-out-there-again urge to compete...  I am filled with inspiration and desire to be the Best!

The Family Stroll in the XC course
at the City Barn

Ok, so I'm moving up from my C-game to maybe being at, say...  my B-game... so to be the Best, I might not select Eventing at my venue just yet.  Sug's a spooky girl, so that leaves out a bunch of things...  And, really the idea of riding the trails for more than 2 hours makes me shudder so Endurance Riding is out... Foxhunting season is six weeks away... hmmmm....


I can and will be the BEST NEUROTIC BOARDER  (BNB) at the City Barn!  There are three barns full of Boarders and competition is going to be fierce!   I know I can win this...  And, if you too have the thirst for this title, here are some tips to really sharpen up your game:


ON NOTES:

1. When writing a note to the Barn Staff, be sure to use a light colored (grey or yellow) permanent marker.  The paper should be anything small so that the ink from the marker bleeds and the words are blotted and thick.  This level of detail in the materials selected will guarantee that the note will be carefully scrutinized as they struggle to read it.
2. Be sure to write your note in every place you think the Barn Staff might pause to wipe the sweat from their eyes assuring that it will be read.
3. Never assume that the Barn Staff will be able to read your note while pausing.  Use other communication media at YOUR disposal, such as but not limited to, texting, calling, facebooking and tweeting.  (And my personal... blogging).
4. Remember, if you don't succeed once - try, try and try again.

More detail please!

ON THE DETAILS

• Right, details!  You can not give enough detail.  The Barn Staff absolutely love to have every little thing written out.  So why ask for them give her her meds when you can tell them to give her her meds exactly 12 hours apart after carefully shaking the bottle 27 times and using the second dosing syringe on the left, just inside the pocket in the third locker to the right.
• And, while some requests may seem extraordinary, the Barn Staff revels in creativity and change.  
• I can not stress, that you can not communicate enough so, call and text those details to them also.

ON JUST BEING YOURSELF

• Interrupt the Barn Staff repeatedly.  They love the attention.
• Bring your dogs really early in the morning...  Barking at 6am is really just an extra wake up call and you know... no one wants to oversleep their alarm.  Or, leave them in your horse's stall while you ride...  a little noise early in the evening just helps everyone appreciate the quiet later.
• Being neurotic isn't easy, so practice often.  

Dream on...

They say achievement comes to those that want it, that work hard for it and to those that never take their eye off the game.    And, until Sugar and I complete Town Hill Horse Trials, the gauntlet has been thrown...  Are you game?

Let's do that thing!