G's first bath

Well, it wasn't actually G's first bath, but it was his first in several years.  It was my actual first horse bath.  All in all, it wasn't too big of a deal.  Like everything I do that's horse related, I thoroughly researched it on google first.

I read a ton of sites.  Most of them agreed on the big picture.  Get everything ready first, hose from the bottom, shampoo with a sponge and bucket, rinse thoroughly, scrape with a sweat scraper, and BAM you have a clean horse.  That pretty much was it.

The thing is, BAM you have a clean horse is not the same as BAM, you have a dry horse.  I walked him, brushed him, walked him, brushed him, for about an hour.

I even cleaned his sheath.  It was not such a big deal, and really not gross or anything.

Of course once he was clean and dry I knew he would roll.  I decided to turn him out in the arena where at least he would roll in dry sand.  He did.  I brushed the sand off and put him back in his stall in the end.  I wonder what he'll look like on Sunday.

My First Butterfly Gymkhana

Today is going to be my first attempt at gymkhana and I have some serious butterflies.

I don't know what to expect as far as tacking up and warming up when there's an event.  How will Geronimo react to having so many horses and people crowded around.  He takes a long time to warm up, and how will I keep him warmed up?  Will I suddenly forget how to saddle him when there are so many experienced people around?

I know it's going to be fine.  I'll figure it out and people will help me if I need it.  Still, it's a butterfly circus in my belly.

Red Queen and modern society

I think a lot about the Red Queen, my lifestyle, and society as a whole.  Why do we keep chasing rather than enjoying?  We don't need most of what we have, and we spend so much of our time and energy supporting all that stuff.

The problem is, how do you get off the ride without slamming into a wall or creating casualties.  Some of the stuff I work to support is stuff my family either needs or thinks it needs.  And getting off the ride sounds good on my laptop, in my comfy chair, in my four bedroom, five bath house.  How do you get off, once you've gotten on?

Why do humans strive for more? 

Barrels

New saddle pad in hand, I went to the ranch ready for a miracle.  I knew a new pad would only do so much, but still I was excited.  At first I couldn't get the fit quite right.  The new pad is stiff so it didn't sit right.  At first I had it too far back, but with Michelle's help I got it right.  It really made a difference in the saddle's fit.  Instead of riding on his withers, the saddle was lifted to the correct position.

Whether it was the pad or just his physical and mental improvement, we had the best ride ever.  We rode the barrel pattern over and over.  At first we just did it at a slow trot, but by the end we were loping between the second and third barrels and loping "home".  G seems to enjoy it as much as I do.

It's $5 per event and $30 for the day (which I think is 6 events so no saving) for the gymkhana.  I'll do the barrels for sure and maybe a couple other events.  Next Thursday I'll go, even though it's not my day, and run through the events with the other riders as a practice.  That's when I'll decide which other events to do.  I think three or four events would be plenty.

I had so much fun today!  I would have ridden longer, but it was getting very dark.  The lights in the arena are great, but the tacking area was really dark.  I couldn't clean his feet or do much grooming before I put him up for the night.  He didn't mind; his hay was waiting for him.

Don't throw stones

If I complain about your complaining, am I just as bad?

If I'm against your negativity, what then?

Lunch with coworkers always devolves into ranting against students, their parents, and the administration.  I want to be social, and part of the team, but can't we be positive?  Especially in public?!  We are not victims.

I just need to keep changing the subject I guess.

gymkhana redeux

The rained out gymkhana was rescheduled for yesterday.  The weather was perfect, a little cool with no wind.  It was fun to see so many different kinds of horses and riders.  There were huge draft horses and a Fjord pony along with the usual quarter horses and warm bloods.  Very few of the riders had competitive speeds.  In fact, in the peewee division some horses were led by parents.

The next one is in two weeks.  Apparently the ranch runs them once a month.  Since it happens so often and many riders just trot through, there is no pressure to be great.  I think I'll try G in the barrels at the next one.

After the event was over and everyone went home, I took G to the arena and rode for a long time.  The barrels were still set up, so we rode the pattern.  Most of the time we walked and trotted it.  A few times we loped back after the last barrel.  He seems to have had experience with it, because he knew to go around the barrels with tight turns.  I wish he would keep his head up when he lopes, it feels like he's going to somersault!  Maybe the new saddle pad will help by getting the saddle off of his withers. His new saddle pad is in Chino now.  It should arrive before I ride again on Wednesday.  I'm very excited.

He has more energy than before.  He looks more alert, too.  It will be a month or more before any weight gain will show.

Windy Wednesday

The weather reports have been threatening historical winds to start yesterday evening and blow for many days.  I left school as soon as I could to ride before the wind hit.  It was gusty, but not more than the usual Santa Anas we get in the fall.  I rode a little before the gusts started making me too nervous.  I don't want a branch falling or rubbish blowing to spook G.  It was just breezy during the night.  I hope it is calm on Friday so I can ride more.

Good news, his teeth were floated in the last few days.  Horses' molars wear unevenly so they should be filed every year or so.  If their teeth are too uneven, they can't grind up their food enough.  Then when the fibrous hay hits their stomach, the nutrients aren't processed.  This may be one reason G is so thin even though he gets fed a normal amount.  He was wormed a few weeks ago, too.  Hopefully he'll start putting on some weight.

Other good news, I ordered a new saddle pad for him.  He has high withers and a bit of a sway to his back, so this pad will help get the saddle off his withers.  It was cheap to order and shipping was cheap, too.  Of course that means a long wait for it to arrive.

Today I need to pay for my December lease.  I'm beginning to think I should start a list of the costs of leasing in order to have an idea of what owning will cost.

So far:
lease $150 for Nov.
halter $25
saddle pad $26
reins $20ish
horse cookies $21
grooming tools $0 (gift)
floating teeth $0 (done by ranch)
worming $0 (done by ranch)