Thinking outside the box !

Ok ,super excited ! I went to ride today and the arena had strange things in it.?. A large blue tarp set up to look like water , cones placed at various lengths , Terry riding a bike inside, hum I say ...whats up? Come to find out Lydia , Jen , and a few others are preparing to go to a six mile competitive trail ride. ACTHA , sponsors the ride and you have different levels you can choose to ride. One level is called the buddy rider,!!!! basically its mine all mine , ride along and do the six obstacles but you are not judged. Terry said could go if I wanted ....and I WANT! Oh yeah super happy about this .

I think we will have a blast and the website was very informative and helpful.

http://www.actha.us

Wonder? what does a girl needs to do this sorta thang? Let's see. A super-star palomino , a sweet trail saddle , good people ( like Terry ) a ride (thanks terry) ...what else?

Oh yeah baby, pushing the envelope.

Sonny and I mastered the tarp un-mounted and then repeatedly mounted, we did the cones , keep a decent trot , and did our saddle all by ourselves !!( ok Terry did fix one stir-up)

Our walk trot transitions are getting so much better and the steering issues are improving daily ! Love, Ride, Love riding

Our little 1968 Star-craft motorboat is absolutely adorable, Jon put a fair number of hours into its restoration and it shows, Its authentic right down to its little SKI flag on the front!

Today we venture into Long Lake its was a gorgeous day and conditions were right for a boating adventure. i drove the first jaunt of the trip and we were wide open popping around . Long lake turns into Brandy Pond. We were about half way down and spotted a huge bald eagle. We pulled over to try and get a few good pics , but I do not think we succeeded. All the way down at the end of the pond was a board walk and lots of fun things to do. Sea plane rides , rentals of those huge water tricycles, water tramps and a big plastic ball called "the barf ball" looks interesting so we dock the boat ( public docking on the boardwalk) and go walking around like major tourists.

Surf shops cute clothing boutiques, restaurants galore . We stopped to inquire the price of the seaplane , and chatted with the pilot. Seaplane rides are not cheap but really its a once in a lifetime opportunity.After satisfying our curiosity we decided a ice cold beer was in order. We sat outside on the deck over looking everything . Peaceful and beautiful.

While we were having our beer my husband went to the shop where I had admired a leather purse, and he surprised me with it !!! Nice !

Awesome day. Now tomorrow is Hummer Day ...more to follow

REINS, SADDLES, and Bits oh my !

sh anyway I notice my saddles are complete polar opposites. I couldn't have gone any further the other way ! Its funny how you can love something so much and replace it with something you love as much in a New York minute! Oh my how we change. See how I am ?

I originally bought a Klimke dressage saddle when I first bought Sonny.

Pellam Saddlery sent me a few saddles that Alex had recommended one of which was the "Klimke" Alex had in fact owned one her-self and sold it for some reason or another. She totally regrets it !! I rode in them all but I fell in love with that black beauty . I have owned it almost four years and wouldn't sell it for anything. However........

I then met Terry MCclare . I sent my pony to her for some trailering issues and she ended up teaching me to ride? Who knew it was all me ? Shocking really ...sigh it a dose in reality . I used to think I was taller too ? SOooo , I loved her saddle , it was a Buck Branahan saddle with a ginormous horn and I love it , but its way to heavy for me . Well that was a shopping cue if I ever saw one. I was off like a shot , full tilt ahead into the western horse world. WOW talk about A whole world existing that you didn't even know about. You know what though, I LOVE IT !

Bought myself a John Lyons saddle and all the bells and whistles ! Fun and comfy !

I cant even think of parting with my old saddle so I guess i will keep them both :)

Phase 10...bad form I tell you , bad form :(.

For the last eighteen months our friends Charlie and Jenn have been engaging in a weekly obsession of sorts......phase 10, a card game that requires thought and strategy . Needless to say we have all become quite good and in a rather passive-agressive way ... fiercely competitive.

Tonight three consecutive games were in the cards ( no pun intended :0 ) Jenn kicked some major card ass tonight , and I ... quit the first game entirely. After twelve hands of negatives , I cried frigkin" Uncle" bitch and I admit I AM a bad sport BUT I never said that I was a good sport ! Ok, I did jump up right after quitting, busied myself cutting hot fresh brownies and lovingly proceeded to dolip each with a scoop of perfectly melted ice cream! Yummy delish!!! I may be a poor sport but I am not completely heart-less ^^

I think playing cards is therapeutic. When you are concentrating on your hand , and two other peoples hands it doesn't leave much time for idle thoughts. And we all know that idle thoughts do for me &*%^&(*@*& well you know its never good . Sometimes it is fun though....

Charlie said something that makes a lot of sense tonight " forgiveness is not a natural human response , Retaliation, retribution, and revenge those are human reactions , forgiveness is a "god-like"re-action .

Things that make you go HMMMMMMM !

I think it's so true , easier to try and forget than to forgive.

Monday Jon's day off , what will it hold? Gym early before he gets up, maybe the barn if I can get up that early :0 We will either spend the day in the car driving to York to look at a mobile home in Eliot to possibly buy and rent to Jonnie. Plan B would be to fuck around with the people I bought the Escape from and try to convince them to trade !!! Even- steven for a truck with a crew cab on it. I love the Escape but... need a new horse trailer because it has weight restrictions. After thinking long and hard I decided if traded the Escape for a truck I would just fix the trailer I already have !! Brilliant I tell you ! I can't stand not being able to drive Sonny down to Hollis and meeting Alex and Beau or MAYBE Alex and Grace !! Anyway guess which one I would rather be doing?

Come on guess ?

Well, the pups are sleeping contently right next to me , Journey is playing in the background and I think everybody should feel the contentment feel right now. It doesn't happen very often but when you feel really content even a few hours is ............decent :)

After a long tack cleaning session this morning I headed over to the barn to re-do sonmans feet and legs. To my surprise he was in his own little pen and it was dry in there. It will make it a lot easier and expedite his recovery as dry is 'GOOD' It's a hot day and I think the cold water feels really good to him . His eyes look sore and I applied cold compress to them as well. Really there is nothing else I can do for him :( Poor itchy pony )

Another day without a ride , hmmmm I think I will go to ride my friends Whendy horse Harry. Harry is a 16.2 warmblood and am in love with him I would buy him in a second but... I would defiantly have to divorce my husband. Something to think about ?

And the garden grows

My first garden ! So exciting , today I went over to weed and check the growth. We have had much rain and sunshine over the last few days and I knew that thangs were a growin! Strawberries just waiting to be picked , two med size zucchini ( i really like them much better smaller ) a large cuke, and parsley, basil , and rosemary all fragrant and perky. My cilantro on the other hand ... not so much it has grown little white flowers and does not look much like cilantro at all? I think the cutest things ever are the baby watermelons! They are about the size of a golf ball, but perfectly shaped ! I can not wait for those babies to get big and fat and juicy! After weeding and picking and chatting with my friend Whendy for a couple of hours the task was done for another couple of days. I think a garden is kind of like a present waiting to be opened every couple of days :)

I went over to Footloose Farm to ride my pony only to find his left rear hoof in rather bad shape. I had seen a few days ago that the bulb looked a bit raw and I cleaned it and put triple antibiotic cream on it, but today it was oozing white icky stuff and I knew trouble was a brewin. My friend Terry and the owner of the farm was on site and since she is a farrier I decided to ask her opinion. She it was a thrushy monster living between the bulb and suggested tomorrow paste and a good cleaning with benadine. So I decided to shave his lower legs and give him a good washing . My ride was not to be. Terry also informed me that the horses all pretty much had conjunctivus, so Son man really wasn't game for riding and he deserved a sick day. Many carrots and a long grooming session followed . Love that guy!!

Forward...

Honestly this is my second attempt to start a blog. I did another but it is floating around in the www!

I have decided to use this blog as a on line journal of sorts to have record of my adventures in life. All too often lately I find life spinning around me and it will be nice to be able to look back at experiences i have had .

I feel this part of my life is a second chance of sorts and I intend to try new things , meet new people and generally inhale life.