Yesterday I washed Gailey's boots, saddle pads, and polo wraps. I carried them out to my little barn and opened the tack room door. I gazed around the small room, looking for a place to store them because Gailey won't be needing them anymore, neither will I. At least not for the foreseeable future.
I thought I was okay with it. I really did, but a dull pain filled me as I looked at all the tack, different items I'd used over that past thirteen years of owning Gailey, and past twenty-eight years of having a riding horse in my life. An emptiness consumed me, the kind of which I hadn't felt since my divorce.
A week ago the vet checked Gailey yet again because of her on-going lameness. His pronouncement didn't suprise me. Her suspensories have finally "given out" and while she appears comfortable and still leaps and bucks in the paddock, she's not rideable. And won't be. Ever.
If I took her home, he said I could probably take her on short, leisurely trail rides at a walk. For now, she remains at the barn to see if she can have a baby. If she takes, she'll stay there through next year. If not, she'll come home. The vet didn't feel the pregnancy would be a big issue for her legs, just put in extra long bar shoes behind.
At first, I was relieved. Finally, I had my answer. Not having a horse to ride every day freed me up to work on my writing, finish several more books, and publish them. I devised a schedule for the various books I wanted to complete, believing in a year I might be able to earn enough money for an nice horse. The first book in my Seattle Lumberjacks Football Series, Fourth and Goal was released a week ago, my first Jami Davenport release in two years. I drowned myself in promo for the book and writing the sequel.
And I was okay with it, really I was. After all, I'd still be riding once a week in lessons, only on someone else's horse.
I brought home my equipment from the boarding stable--stuff I wouldn't be needing--and began the process of cleaning it and putting it away.
Yesterday as I washed and stored Gailey's boots, it hit me. No longer would I be putting these boots on her legs. I felt this enormous loss similar to when I divorced, this empty hole only a horse can fill. An entire after-work routine which I'd followed the past twenty-plus years was gone. No longer would I be going to the barn to saddle up my mare, put on her boots, ride around the arena talking to the other boarders, practicing dressage movements, while dodging other riders. Oh, I could still go to the barn, but it wasn't the same. I don't fit in. I'm not one of them. I don't have the same experiences as the other boarders do. I'm not readying myself for the next show.
Sure, I still have a horse. I can still visit her, let her graze at the end of the lead rope, brush her, and breathe in the wonderful, unique smell of horses. I just can't go through the routine of preparing to ride, riding, and cooling out. Not with my own horse.
To me it's a grieving process, and I'll survive because someday there will be another horse. I've had doubts I'd replace Gailey. Yet as I placed her boots in a plastic container and stored them in my tack room, I knew I would replace her eventually. Not having a horse to ride was not an option.
For now, I'll have to be content to ride school horses and visit my own horse after work.
But someday...
Showing posts with label Gailey;The Gift Horse; writing;Jami Davenport. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gailey;The Gift Horse; writing;Jami Davenport. Show all posts
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
I’m a Recovering Hay Bale Critic
As I struggle with my place on the horse world, aka what I want to do with horses when I finally grow up, I thought about writing a piece exploring whether or not you can move up the levels in dressage without showing. While that’s definitely a worthy subject, it reminded me of a conversation I had with a friend last summer.
Rebecca had just returned from a show. She hung out with a mutual acquaintance of ours, Sheila, in the evening at the show and had a somewhat disturbing experience. You see, Sheila wins everything. If she doesn’t score in the mid-sixties or higher, she has a fit. Blaming everyone from the show management, judges, footing, and the horse, even when she’s won the class. Now her lack of humility might be another topic for a future post, but it’s not where I’m going either. Sheila wanted to spend the evening going through the show program and criticizing every rider in it. Rebecca didn’t want any part of it, yet couldn’t find a way to discourage Sheila from her mission.
Now back in my showing days, I’d seen Sheila and her cronies sitting near the arena as I rode in at A and thanked God I never knew what they were saying about me. Yes, I, too, been near them in the stands and heard their remarks and exclamations over certain riders. I knew the types of things they were saying.
Ah, yes, the hay bale critics. We all know them, whether you show dressage or some other horse sport. Often, they don’t compete themselves, or they tried it a time or two and gave it up because the judges didn’t award them a “fair” score. Or maybe they never showed at all. Showing was beneath them. They’d seen the light, and showing was the root of all that ails the horse industry, bringing about all sorts of horse abuse. Or perhaps, like Sheila, they’ve had enough success they feel tasked with detailing others’ faults. Actually, this particular quality of the hay bale critic doesn’t require success just a sense of self-righteousness.
You see, I know of what I speak, as I am a recovering hay bale critic. Yes, I admit it. I was one of those women, superior in my knowledge of dressage, certain others were ruining their horses with their jiggling hands and bouncing seats, convinced the judges just didn’t get it. Add to that, my extensive reading on the subject of classical dressage, and I became even more unbearable in my righteousness. Not that reading classical dressage books is bad, but I’d gotten in with a group of catty women in my younger years who were essentially armchair dressage riders. We endlessly pursued the perfect circle, feeling superior in our quest. We turned our noses up at those poor souls who just didn’t get the deeper artistic meaning of dressage, certain we were better or more enlightened than they were.
We attended shows, now to show, but to watch and criticize. Our leader, Martha, had been kicked out of every dressage barn in the area because of her troublemaking and talent for spreading discontent. She's one of those disciples of classical "artistic" dressage who give classical dressage a bad name. I’m not a mean person or a catty person, but I was easily misled by Martha and sucked into her catty little world for the next few years. I even followed her around to a few barns in the area. Yes, but this was in my younger days, much younger days.
When I purchased Gailey and started showing her, it was a humbling experience and marked the ends of my hay bale critique days. My mare had talent, but I never did her justice. I became that fumbling, bumbling rider that previously Martha and I would have gasped at in abject horror. I was the one struggling so hard to do it right, to not embarass myself, or cause discomfort to my horse. And now, I was the one Martha criticized, her nose up in the air and disgusted expression on her face as she whispered to her cohorts.
After a particularly bad show, I expressed my frustration regarding my lack of dressage success to a close friend. I mentioned Gailey deserved a better rider than me. She laughed and said: “The horse doesn’t care what color the ribbons are. She adores you. You love her. Enjoy the journey. Don’t worry about the bling. It doesn’t mean anything.”
And neither do Martha or Sheila’s catty remarks, made by insecure people attempting to tear others down in order to build themselves up. I thought about this for a while. She was right. Gailey didn’t care about the ribbons. They were of no use to her. In fact, they weren’t of much use to me either. If I felt good about my test, that was what mattered. Not the opinions of a group of people who shouldn’t have an credence in my life.
Now when I go to shows, I hang out with positive people. We still discuss people’s rides, but we do it with kindness and empathy and as an educational tool among ourselves, not to impress others with our superior knowledge. Always, I have sympathy for the horse and rider. If you haven’t put your foot in that stirrup and mounted that particular horse on that particular day, you have no idea what’s going on during that ride.
I’ve been there, done that from both sides of the rail. Whenever I’m tempted to let the catty evil twin side of my personality slip out, I remember my days showing Gailey, and how much guts it took to put myself out there, and I zip my mouth shut.
I bet you all know a few Marthas. :)
Rebecca had just returned from a show. She hung out with a mutual acquaintance of ours, Sheila, in the evening at the show and had a somewhat disturbing experience. You see, Sheila wins everything. If she doesn’t score in the mid-sixties or higher, she has a fit. Blaming everyone from the show management, judges, footing, and the horse, even when she’s won the class. Now her lack of humility might be another topic for a future post, but it’s not where I’m going either. Sheila wanted to spend the evening going through the show program and criticizing every rider in it. Rebecca didn’t want any part of it, yet couldn’t find a way to discourage Sheila from her mission.
Now back in my showing days, I’d seen Sheila and her cronies sitting near the arena as I rode in at A and thanked God I never knew what they were saying about me. Yes, I, too, been near them in the stands and heard their remarks and exclamations over certain riders. I knew the types of things they were saying.
Ah, yes, the hay bale critics. We all know them, whether you show dressage or some other horse sport. Often, they don’t compete themselves, or they tried it a time or two and gave it up because the judges didn’t award them a “fair” score. Or maybe they never showed at all. Showing was beneath them. They’d seen the light, and showing was the root of all that ails the horse industry, bringing about all sorts of horse abuse. Or perhaps, like Sheila, they’ve had enough success they feel tasked with detailing others’ faults. Actually, this particular quality of the hay bale critic doesn’t require success just a sense of self-righteousness.
You see, I know of what I speak, as I am a recovering hay bale critic. Yes, I admit it. I was one of those women, superior in my knowledge of dressage, certain others were ruining their horses with their jiggling hands and bouncing seats, convinced the judges just didn’t get it. Add to that, my extensive reading on the subject of classical dressage, and I became even more unbearable in my righteousness. Not that reading classical dressage books is bad, but I’d gotten in with a group of catty women in my younger years who were essentially armchair dressage riders. We endlessly pursued the perfect circle, feeling superior in our quest. We turned our noses up at those poor souls who just didn’t get the deeper artistic meaning of dressage, certain we were better or more enlightened than they were.
We attended shows, now to show, but to watch and criticize. Our leader, Martha, had been kicked out of every dressage barn in the area because of her troublemaking and talent for spreading discontent. She's one of those disciples of classical "artistic" dressage who give classical dressage a bad name. I’m not a mean person or a catty person, but I was easily misled by Martha and sucked into her catty little world for the next few years. I even followed her around to a few barns in the area. Yes, but this was in my younger days, much younger days.
When I purchased Gailey and started showing her, it was a humbling experience and marked the ends of my hay bale critique days. My mare had talent, but I never did her justice. I became that fumbling, bumbling rider that previously Martha and I would have gasped at in abject horror. I was the one struggling so hard to do it right, to not embarass myself, or cause discomfort to my horse. And now, I was the one Martha criticized, her nose up in the air and disgusted expression on her face as she whispered to her cohorts.
After a particularly bad show, I expressed my frustration regarding my lack of dressage success to a close friend. I mentioned Gailey deserved a better rider than me. She laughed and said: “The horse doesn’t care what color the ribbons are. She adores you. You love her. Enjoy the journey. Don’t worry about the bling. It doesn’t mean anything.”
And neither do Martha or Sheila’s catty remarks, made by insecure people attempting to tear others down in order to build themselves up. I thought about this for a while. She was right. Gailey didn’t care about the ribbons. They were of no use to her. In fact, they weren’t of much use to me either. If I felt good about my test, that was what mattered. Not the opinions of a group of people who shouldn’t have an credence in my life.
Now when I go to shows, I hang out with positive people. We still discuss people’s rides, but we do it with kindness and empathy and as an educational tool among ourselves, not to impress others with our superior knowledge. Always, I have sympathy for the horse and rider. If you haven’t put your foot in that stirrup and mounted that particular horse on that particular day, you have no idea what’s going on during that ride.
I’ve been there, done that from both sides of the rail. Whenever I’m tempted to let the catty evil twin side of my personality slip out, I remember my days showing Gailey, and how much guts it took to put myself out there, and I zip my mouth shut.
I bet you all know a few Marthas. :)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
My On-Going Saga
My decision to bring Larry (an Oldenburg I tried out the week before) home two weeks ago was probably a knee-jerk reaction to wanting a horse to show. I made a hasty decision to lease him for 45 days to see if he would work out for me. No harm, no foul.
Sometimes life conspires in ways we can’t predict and for the short-term wouldn’t agree with. But in the long term, we’re glad things worked out the way they did. Things have a way of twisting and turning and trying to balance themselves despite our most misinformed directions.
So two weeks ago, Larry came to my barn. My trainer was to ride him a couple days a week to evaluate him as was I. Well, the Monday after he arrived, I lunged him, and he was an idiot. He finally calmed down on the lunge line, but it became obvious to me that this was a horse that hadn’t been too many places and wasn’t used to adjusting quickly to strange situations. I’d thought he’d be more bomb-proof than that.
Considering I’d broken my collarbone and two ribs years ago on a horse that was represented to be dead broke, I met Larry’s crazy antics on the lunge and the ground with fear and trepidation. He, too, was to be dead-broke, a school horse at a hunter barn. Well, Larry was an insecure soul, and perhaps, not quite what I was ready for. You see, I’d been through the ringer with my current mare, Gailey. Over the years, we’d built a definite bond and learned to deal with each other’s idiosyncrasies. And no, she wasn’t the horse who broke my bones. That was her predecessor.
Yet, I’d had to do so much with Gailey that I was looking forward to an uncomplicated, dead-broke horse. Larry was not quite that. He could be with some time and effort, but I wasn’t sure I was the person to put in the time or effort. I’d expended all my energy on Gailey.
Anyway, after my trainer rode Larry the first time, she was not impressed, but she felt he needed to have another week or so before she could determine what she had.
A week later, I had a lesson on Larry and was surprised how green he was. He was also so underweight, I felt like I was riding on a board and very unstable, nothing like my couch of a mare. I was certain if he shied one step to either side, I’d be on my butt in the dirt.
In the meantime, Larry was starting to win over my trainer. He tried hard, had an excellent attitude under saddle, and was moving better every day. He had a few physical issues which concerned her, so she suggested I have him vetted before I spent any more money on board and lessons.
The vet came out on Friday. After a short exam, he suggested I pass on Larry. He flexed lame on the front leg which had the previous injury. Also he felt he had an odd motion in his left hock. The evaluation was the horse wouldn’t hold up as an upper-level dressage horse. As a result, Larry went back to his owner. I felt bad, but I was happy that another person was waiting in the wings who knew and loved Larry from his previous barn. She wanted him for a trail horse.
In the meantime, my mare seems to be relatively sound on her arthritis medicine. My trainer is going to attempt to breed her. I’ll continue to ride her, and we’ll split the board. Once I can no longer ride her, she’ll cover all her expenses. Up until then, we’ll split them.
Remember the mare I tried out? Well, she’s now in my trainer’s barn, too. She’s taking her on as a broodmare and continuing to ride her to see if she really has soundness issues.
I’m still horse hunting, but I’ll probably wait until next year when I’ll be able to save a little more money. For what I’m looking for, I’m only having about half the money I need.
So even though I don’t have a new horse to show, things are probably working out for the best.
Sometimes life conspires in ways we can’t predict and for the short-term wouldn’t agree with. But in the long term, we’re glad things worked out the way they did. Things have a way of twisting and turning and trying to balance themselves despite our most misinformed directions.
So two weeks ago, Larry came to my barn. My trainer was to ride him a couple days a week to evaluate him as was I. Well, the Monday after he arrived, I lunged him, and he was an idiot. He finally calmed down on the lunge line, but it became obvious to me that this was a horse that hadn’t been too many places and wasn’t used to adjusting quickly to strange situations. I’d thought he’d be more bomb-proof than that.
Considering I’d broken my collarbone and two ribs years ago on a horse that was represented to be dead broke, I met Larry’s crazy antics on the lunge and the ground with fear and trepidation. He, too, was to be dead-broke, a school horse at a hunter barn. Well, Larry was an insecure soul, and perhaps, not quite what I was ready for. You see, I’d been through the ringer with my current mare, Gailey. Over the years, we’d built a definite bond and learned to deal with each other’s idiosyncrasies. And no, she wasn’t the horse who broke my bones. That was her predecessor.
Yet, I’d had to do so much with Gailey that I was looking forward to an uncomplicated, dead-broke horse. Larry was not quite that. He could be with some time and effort, but I wasn’t sure I was the person to put in the time or effort. I’d expended all my energy on Gailey.
Anyway, after my trainer rode Larry the first time, she was not impressed, but she felt he needed to have another week or so before she could determine what she had.
A week later, I had a lesson on Larry and was surprised how green he was. He was also so underweight, I felt like I was riding on a board and very unstable, nothing like my couch of a mare. I was certain if he shied one step to either side, I’d be on my butt in the dirt.
In the meantime, Larry was starting to win over my trainer. He tried hard, had an excellent attitude under saddle, and was moving better every day. He had a few physical issues which concerned her, so she suggested I have him vetted before I spent any more money on board and lessons.
The vet came out on Friday. After a short exam, he suggested I pass on Larry. He flexed lame on the front leg which had the previous injury. Also he felt he had an odd motion in his left hock. The evaluation was the horse wouldn’t hold up as an upper-level dressage horse. As a result, Larry went back to his owner. I felt bad, but I was happy that another person was waiting in the wings who knew and loved Larry from his previous barn. She wanted him for a trail horse.
In the meantime, my mare seems to be relatively sound on her arthritis medicine. My trainer is going to attempt to breed her. I’ll continue to ride her, and we’ll split the board. Once I can no longer ride her, she’ll cover all her expenses. Up until then, we’ll split them.
Remember the mare I tried out? Well, she’s now in my trainer’s barn, too. She’s taking her on as a broodmare and continuing to ride her to see if she really has soundness issues.
I’m still horse hunting, but I’ll probably wait until next year when I’ll be able to save a little more money. For what I’m looking for, I’m only having about half the money I need.
So even though I don’t have a new horse to show, things are probably working out for the best.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
The Realizations of a Life-Time Dressage Rider
About three weeks ago, I was having my weekly dressage lesson. A few days prior, another boarder had sent out a message on our barn loop about a very nice little Arab gelding for sale on Craig's List. I mentioned to Kari, my instructor, that I'd toyed with the idea of looking at this horse.
Those innocent words launched me into a week of realizations and answered the question I've been struggling with for the past couple of years. Anyway, back to the story.
Kari mentions, "I didn't know you were looking for another horse."
"I'm not. I was just toying with the idea of having a horse I could actually show," I added as I ride around on my not-quite sound 16-year-old mare.
"Did you realize Sandy is getting a divorce and having a fire sale?"
Now I hadn't realized Sandy (name changed) was divorcing. I'm way out of the barn loop when it comes to gossip. Gailey's been unsound so much that I don't spend a lot of time at the barn anymore. Now Sandy is a student of Kari's and breeds a few horses a year. She also boards, trains, and gives lessons at her little place. Her husband managed the barn operations and did a lot of the work at the barn (which is a subject for another blog altogether. As in, how much can we really expect from horse husbands?).
"She has a really nice 6-year-old chestnut mare going 2nd Level she's selling for cheap if the horse goes to someone at the barn. You should look at her." Kari continues to gush about the virtues of said mare, but I already knew a little about her because I'd been riding in the arena last fall when another student, Leslie, tried the horse out during a lesson. I'd liked her quite a bit, but not for the former asking price of $35,000. Anyway, Leslie chose not to buy the horse because she didn't flex sound and because of some issues on her x-rays (anyway, that's also the subject of another blog).
I went home that night and checked out the online videos of the mare and fell in love, not necessarily with the mare, but with the idea of showing again, of having a horse I could actually compete on, one that was less-complicated to ride and manage than my current horse. I contact Sandy and made arrangements to try the mare in a week, while my imagination made arrangements to show again. My excitement level went higher and higher as the days ticked off. This was the opportunity of a lifetime to own a lovely mare for a fraction of her value, assuming she vetted sound.
After two days of fantasizing over showing again, the dressage bug had bitten me once more .
A few days later, I received an email from Sandy that the horse was sold. Now, normally, I'd have shrugged it off and moved on. It wasn't meant to be and all that stuff. Instead this news set off a chain reaction of events.
I contacted several friends looking for another deal like the mare. They all told me "good dressage horses in that price range either have physical issues or behavioral issues." Devastated that I'd missed out on the "opportunity of a lifetime," I made my final decision. My mare needed to be retired from intensive dressage work. It was time to come to terms with that. I didn't have the money for a nice horse. I was done. It was time. Financially, I couldn't afford the type of horse Gailey had been. I did NOT want to go back to square one with an unbroke horse, and I didn't want a horse of much lesser quality.
I decided to quit dressage, gave notice at the barn, and made arrangements to bring Gailey home. Instead of my decision being a relief and for reasons I still can't explain, I had a melt-down. Something I never do. Not since I lost my mother at 25 have I come apart like this. I was inconsolable. The tears came, and they wouldn't stop. Some remote part of me watched in wonder and couldn't believe I was so upset about this.
Yet, I was suffering from grief at the loss of a dream I'd never fulfilled. I'd never gotten to Grand Prix, never won my medals, never gotten to do all the things I'd set out to do when I'd started riding dressage as an 19-year-old college sophomore. A huge part of my life was on the verge of being gone, not just the riding but the social aspect and the exercise aspect. Almost all of my good friends I've made through horses. I've put on 30 pounds in the past two years since I haven't been able to ride regularly because of Gailey's soundness issues.
The next morning I started crying again and had little crying sprees throughout the day. Then it dawned on me, actually hit me over the head. I realized if I was so upset about my decision, I wasn't ready to quit yet. If I'd been ready to give it all up, this decision should have been much easier to make. Somehow, someway, I'd find another horse or lease one or something and keep going.
The events of the last few weeks will take several posts to explain, including another shot at buying the chestnut mare, horse shopping, the trial and tribulations of flexing, and riding unfamiliar horses, which I'll go over in future posts.
To make this long story short, I'd like to introduce all of you to Polaris aka Larry. I picked him up yesterday on a 30-day trial.
And so continues the saga...
Stay tuned for more details...
Those innocent words launched me into a week of realizations and answered the question I've been struggling with for the past couple of years. Anyway, back to the story.
Kari mentions, "I didn't know you were looking for another horse."
"I'm not. I was just toying with the idea of having a horse I could actually show," I added as I ride around on my not-quite sound 16-year-old mare.
"Did you realize Sandy is getting a divorce and having a fire sale?"
Now I hadn't realized Sandy (name changed) was divorcing. I'm way out of the barn loop when it comes to gossip. Gailey's been unsound so much that I don't spend a lot of time at the barn anymore. Now Sandy is a student of Kari's and breeds a few horses a year. She also boards, trains, and gives lessons at her little place. Her husband managed the barn operations and did a lot of the work at the barn (which is a subject for another blog altogether. As in, how much can we really expect from horse husbands?).
"She has a really nice 6-year-old chestnut mare going 2nd Level she's selling for cheap if the horse goes to someone at the barn. You should look at her." Kari continues to gush about the virtues of said mare, but I already knew a little about her because I'd been riding in the arena last fall when another student, Leslie, tried the horse out during a lesson. I'd liked her quite a bit, but not for the former asking price of $35,000. Anyway, Leslie chose not to buy the horse because she didn't flex sound and because of some issues on her x-rays (anyway, that's also the subject of another blog).
I went home that night and checked out the online videos of the mare and fell in love, not necessarily with the mare, but with the idea of showing again, of having a horse I could actually compete on, one that was less-complicated to ride and manage than my current horse. I contact Sandy and made arrangements to try the mare in a week, while my imagination made arrangements to show again. My excitement level went higher and higher as the days ticked off. This was the opportunity of a lifetime to own a lovely mare for a fraction of her value, assuming she vetted sound.
After two days of fantasizing over showing again, the dressage bug had bitten me once more .
A few days later, I received an email from Sandy that the horse was sold. Now, normally, I'd have shrugged it off and moved on. It wasn't meant to be and all that stuff. Instead this news set off a chain reaction of events.
I contacted several friends looking for another deal like the mare. They all told me "good dressage horses in that price range either have physical issues or behavioral issues." Devastated that I'd missed out on the "opportunity of a lifetime," I made my final decision. My mare needed to be retired from intensive dressage work. It was time to come to terms with that. I didn't have the money for a nice horse. I was done. It was time. Financially, I couldn't afford the type of horse Gailey had been. I did NOT want to go back to square one with an unbroke horse, and I didn't want a horse of much lesser quality.
I decided to quit dressage, gave notice at the barn, and made arrangements to bring Gailey home. Instead of my decision being a relief and for reasons I still can't explain, I had a melt-down. Something I never do. Not since I lost my mother at 25 have I come apart like this. I was inconsolable. The tears came, and they wouldn't stop. Some remote part of me watched in wonder and couldn't believe I was so upset about this.
Yet, I was suffering from grief at the loss of a dream I'd never fulfilled. I'd never gotten to Grand Prix, never won my medals, never gotten to do all the things I'd set out to do when I'd started riding dressage as an 19-year-old college sophomore. A huge part of my life was on the verge of being gone, not just the riding but the social aspect and the exercise aspect. Almost all of my good friends I've made through horses. I've put on 30 pounds in the past two years since I haven't been able to ride regularly because of Gailey's soundness issues.
The next morning I started crying again and had little crying sprees throughout the day. Then it dawned on me, actually hit me over the head. I realized if I was so upset about my decision, I wasn't ready to quit yet. If I'd been ready to give it all up, this decision should have been much easier to make. Somehow, someway, I'd find another horse or lease one or something and keep going.
To make this long story short, I'd like to introduce all of you to Polaris aka Larry. I picked him up yesterday on a 30-day trial.
And so continues the saga...
Stay tuned for more details...
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Talking to Animals
I have tons of news that I'm going to save for my next post. In a nutshell, I'm horseshopping, looking for a horse I can show. As most of you know I've struggled with whether or not to continue to ride dressage. Anyway, I'll let you know how I came to this decision next time.
Yesterday, I attended a class on animal communication at a local community college. Here's the blurb from this 4-hour class: Animals want to talk to us.We just have to tune in and listen. Learn to intuitively communicate with them in this fun interactive class. You will be sending and receiving messages by the end of the workshop. Whether you wish to enhance your relationship with your own pets or go on to work in this field, this class will provide you with the basics.
When I found out about this class, I had to go. For one, I've always been fascinated by intuitive communication with animals. Also, my heroine in my current book is an animal communcator. This couldn't have come at a better time.
The class was taught by Lisa Holm, a local psychic, clairvoyant intuitive counselor, Reiki master & animal communicator. In the class we were given hands-on practice communicating with animals via pictures and live animals. It was fascinating, to say the least, and anyone can do it if you believe you can.
I'm going to present you with the facts from my class. It's up to you whether or not you believe such a thing is possible.
First of all, you need to get in a quiet place to communicate and the following needs to be true:
When we opened our eyes, we shared our experiences. The animal who came to me was the doe that eats our roses. She wondered why we had roses if she wasn't supposed to eat them.
Next Lisa handed out a picture of Nala, a dog she was familiar with, and gave us a technique for communicating with Nala.
Once we got a sense of her, we wrote down 5 questions to ask her.
The messages I received from Nala were a small gray stuffed toy and creaky hips. Later I found she'd had a serious injury to her hip in which she'd almost had to be put down. She also loves to play with stuffed animals.
I found my mind would wander, and Lisa said that's OK. Just bring it back. Staying focused takes practice. Work on breathing deeply, in through your nose, out through your mouth. Suspend your disbelief. Don't focus on pain and negativity because that's what you'll get in return.
If you'd like to find out where an animal might be hurting physically, picture a scanner of light running across the animal's body from head to tail. Wherever the scanner pauses or shows a different type of light or even a pinpoint of light is the problem area. You may also feel it in your own body.
We also communicated with two pets who were in the classroom and a horse via a picture brought in by the owner.
Regarding the horse, the owner asked us to find out why the horse stands for hours and stares. She wants to know what she's staring at. One of us said a ghost, and I had the words "something you can't see" enter my mind. Come to find out, the area the mare stared at was the area where her father was buried near the woods.
I thoroughly enjoyed this class, and the four hours went quickly. Yet by the time it was done, I was tired. Lisa pointed out such work was exhausting. Also, she did give some tips for altering behavior, but the animal needed to be open to it.
I hope you've enjoyed my recount of my class, and it's given you some food for thought.
Yesterday, I attended a class on animal communication at a local community college. Here's the blurb from this 4-hour class: Animals want to talk to us.We just have to tune in and listen. Learn to intuitively communicate with them in this fun interactive class. You will be sending and receiving messages by the end of the workshop. Whether you wish to enhance your relationship with your own pets or go on to work in this field, this class will provide you with the basics.
When I found out about this class, I had to go. For one, I've always been fascinated by intuitive communication with animals. Also, my heroine in my current book is an animal communcator. This couldn't have come at a better time.
The class was taught by Lisa Holm, a local psychic, clairvoyant intuitive counselor, Reiki master & animal communicator. In the class we were given hands-on practice communicating with animals via pictures and live animals. It was fascinating, to say the least, and anyone can do it if you believe you can.
I'm going to present you with the facts from my class. It's up to you whether or not you believe such a thing is possible.
First of all, you need to get in a quiet place to communicate and the following needs to be true:
- You need to believe telepathic communication exists.
- You need to believe it exists for you and be in a calm place inwardly and outwardly.
- You need to practice.
- You need to trust what you hear and the impression you get. Go with your first impressions. Go from your heart.
When we opened our eyes, we shared our experiences. The animal who came to me was the doe that eats our roses. She wondered why we had roses if she wasn't supposed to eat them.
Next Lisa handed out a picture of Nala, a dog she was familiar with, and gave us a technique for communicating with Nala.
- Get quiet.
- Look at a picture of the animal (or the real animal).
- Close your eyes and focus on the animal.
- Picture a warm, glowing light in your heart.
- Picture the animal with same light in his heart.
- Send a beam of light and love to the animal's heart.
- Feel the light expand until it surrounds both of you.
- Feel the animal's presence, even if you don't feel the animal, go with it anyway.
- Ask the animal if he has anything to say to you?
- You may see pictures in your mind, hear words, smell something, hear a song, or feel something in your body. Your first impression is probably the accurate one. Don't over think it.
Once we got a sense of her, we wrote down 5 questions to ask her.
The messages I received from Nala were a small gray stuffed toy and creaky hips. Later I found she'd had a serious injury to her hip in which she'd almost had to be put down. She also loves to play with stuffed animals.
I found my mind would wander, and Lisa said that's OK. Just bring it back. Staying focused takes practice. Work on breathing deeply, in through your nose, out through your mouth. Suspend your disbelief. Don't focus on pain and negativity because that's what you'll get in return.
If you'd like to find out where an animal might be hurting physically, picture a scanner of light running across the animal's body from head to tail. Wherever the scanner pauses or shows a different type of light or even a pinpoint of light is the problem area. You may also feel it in your own body.
We also communicated with two pets who were in the classroom and a horse via a picture brought in by the owner.
Regarding the horse, the owner asked us to find out why the horse stands for hours and stares. She wants to know what she's staring at. One of us said a ghost, and I had the words "something you can't see" enter my mind. Come to find out, the area the mare stared at was the area where her father was buried near the woods.
I thoroughly enjoyed this class, and the four hours went quickly. Yet by the time it was done, I was tired. Lisa pointed out such work was exhausting. Also, she did give some tips for altering behavior, but the animal needed to be open to it.
I hope you've enjoyed my recount of my class, and it's given you some food for thought.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
The New Horse Bug
Earlier this week, a fellow rider posted an ad for a horse for sale on our barn Yahoo loop. For the heck of it, I clicked on the Craig's List link. That was my first mistake. Now, I'm not really an Arabian person, but this handsome fellow looked like a small warmblood with a quality head, nice big body, and was about 16 hands. He'd had some professional dressage training (very little, but some). He'd been shown at Arabian regionals in various classes and done well. Even better, he was only $3000. A major bargain for the bucks. But then, in this economy, there are most likely tons of bargains.
I fell in love. In fact, I fantasized over having a sound horse again. For the first time in 13 years, I got the new horse bug. I mentioned my by now future horse to a co-worker of mine, who is constantly trolling Dream Horse and Craig's List for horses. She knew exactly the horse I mentioned then proceeded to burst my new horse bubble. Unintentionally, of course. It seems I overlooked one very large fact. He's ten years old.
Maybe that doesn't sold too old for many people, but for me, it was the deal breaker, not that I'd even seen the horse to make a deal on him. Especially considering he'd really not been trained in dressage so he was probably 4-5 years behind the curve for his age. Nope, not going to work for me.
A few days later, I had a lesson on Gailey. She was stiff and felt a little off. Not enough to quit riding her, but enough to know she isn't ever going to recover enough to do upper level dressage, even at home. I talked to my trainer (who is also a long-time friend) and mentioned I'd actually considering the Arabian posted by one of her students earlier in the week.
We talked at length, since the lesson after mine had cancelled. We discussed what I'd do with Gailey if I bought another horse. I have options. One is to bring her home, but then I'd need an additional animal to keep her company, and I really don't want to take care of two horses. Another was offer her as a lease to someone who might be interested in breeding her. Even my trainer said she might toy with the idea herself as Gailey is such a nice mare.
Then she told me about a fellow student of hers who is having a "fire sale" because of a divorce. She has a well-broke five year old going 2nd level I might be able to get for cheap or at least on payments. I immediately went to the student's website and looked at a video and fell in love again (I know, I'm fickle). Here, I made another mistake. Instead of calling on the horse, I emailed about it. A few days later, I received an email back stating two others were already looking at the mare, and she'd let me know if it didn't work out.
I'm pretty sure I lost out on the chance. :(
I can't decide if it's a message from a higher being to forget the new horse for now or if I should keep plugging along. It's really bad timing for my hubbie and I. He has recently found out that he may possibly have a debilitating disease. We'll know more next month when he goes to Seattle for 2 days of tests. Our kids have asked for our help in buying a house for their growing family, so any cash we have will be tied up in that, which we're more than happy to do. Is it really the time for me to be horse hunting?
I've avoided looking at Craig's List or Dream Horse or the local horse magazine, Flying Changes. I fear if I do, I'll be obsessed with purchasing a new horse even though I have no money to buy one.
I'm trying to convince myself I'd be better off buying some Arthri-Eze to help Gailey with her arthritis and ride the horse I have. Such is my life right now.
Yet, for a brief moment in time, I got excited about riding again, about showing, about giving all of this another shot. If nothing else comes out of my brief foray into purchasing a new horse, at least, I now realize the horse bug is still alive and well inside me. I'll just have to live through Francesa for now as she hunts for a her next dream horse.
I fell in love. In fact, I fantasized over having a sound horse again. For the first time in 13 years, I got the new horse bug. I mentioned my by now future horse to a co-worker of mine, who is constantly trolling Dream Horse and Craig's List for horses. She knew exactly the horse I mentioned then proceeded to burst my new horse bubble. Unintentionally, of course. It seems I overlooked one very large fact. He's ten years old.
Maybe that doesn't sold too old for many people, but for me, it was the deal breaker, not that I'd even seen the horse to make a deal on him. Especially considering he'd really not been trained in dressage so he was probably 4-5 years behind the curve for his age. Nope, not going to work for me.
A few days later, I had a lesson on Gailey. She was stiff and felt a little off. Not enough to quit riding her, but enough to know she isn't ever going to recover enough to do upper level dressage, even at home. I talked to my trainer (who is also a long-time friend) and mentioned I'd actually considering the Arabian posted by one of her students earlier in the week.
We talked at length, since the lesson after mine had cancelled. We discussed what I'd do with Gailey if I bought another horse. I have options. One is to bring her home, but then I'd need an additional animal to keep her company, and I really don't want to take care of two horses. Another was offer her as a lease to someone who might be interested in breeding her. Even my trainer said she might toy with the idea herself as Gailey is such a nice mare.
Then she told me about a fellow student of hers who is having a "fire sale" because of a divorce. She has a well-broke five year old going 2nd level I might be able to get for cheap or at least on payments. I immediately went to the student's website and looked at a video and fell in love again (I know, I'm fickle). Here, I made another mistake. Instead of calling on the horse, I emailed about it. A few days later, I received an email back stating two others were already looking at the mare, and she'd let me know if it didn't work out.
I'm pretty sure I lost out on the chance. :(
I can't decide if it's a message from a higher being to forget the new horse for now or if I should keep plugging along. It's really bad timing for my hubbie and I. He has recently found out that he may possibly have a debilitating disease. We'll know more next month when he goes to Seattle for 2 days of tests. Our kids have asked for our help in buying a house for their growing family, so any cash we have will be tied up in that, which we're more than happy to do. Is it really the time for me to be horse hunting?
I've avoided looking at Craig's List or Dream Horse or the local horse magazine, Flying Changes. I fear if I do, I'll be obsessed with purchasing a new horse even though I have no money to buy one.
I'm trying to convince myself I'd be better off buying some Arthri-Eze to help Gailey with her arthritis and ride the horse I have. Such is my life right now.
Yet, for a brief moment in time, I got excited about riding again, about showing, about giving all of this another shot. If nothing else comes out of my brief foray into purchasing a new horse, at least, I now realize the horse bug is still alive and well inside me. I'll just have to live through Francesa for now as she hunts for a her next dream horse.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Planning for the New Year
Equestrian Ink's first post was on 2/22/08. Since then we've grown in leaps and bounds thanks to our loyal readers.
The regular contributors to Equestrian Ink belong to a loop so we can communicate with each other. In the past few days, we've been organizing our new year, dicussing ideas, and working on a new schedule so we don't go more than a few days without a post.
As a result, I'd like to ask our readers to participate in our direction for 2011. Please take a moment to comment and offer your suggestions to make this blog better.
The regular contributors to Equestrian Ink belong to a loop so we can communicate with each other. In the past few days, we've been organizing our new year, dicussing ideas, and working on a new schedule so we don't go more than a few days without a post.
As a result, I'd like to ask our readers to participate in our direction for 2011. Please take a moment to comment and offer your suggestions to make this blog better.
- Are there particular topics you'd like to see covered or covered in more detail? Such as:
- More or less about writing equestrian fiction, how to get published, what publishers publish equestrian fiction.
- More riding-related topics.
- More horse-care related topics.
- More personal accounts of our horses or our horse experiences.
- Do you have any ideas for guest bloggers? If you'd like to guest blog, contact one of our members, and they'll help you out.
- Do you have any suggestions for items to be added to our sidebar? Such as:
- Links to other blogs.
- Useful links to websites.
- Links to interesting horse videos.
- Anything other suggestions you might have.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Of Writing and Ridng--Regaining My Passion
With the coming of the New Year, I’m attempting to recommit to my riding and my writing. Over the past couple years, I’ve struggled with finding time for my riding and my writing.
Even though I completed and submitted two books before the end of 2010, it took almost two years to finish the one book and the other was only 25,000 words. There was a time when I could write a 100,000 words in a month. I’d write like I was on fire, so full of ideas they just raced onto the page. I haven’t been able to re-capture the passion of writing in the past couple years.
It seems I come home from my day job and am too exhausted to do something which requires mental energy. In fact, once I finish dinner and deal with other demands on my time, I find myself sitting on the couch reading or watching TV. Even when I try to write, most of what I write is forced. This is not like me.
In order to regain my passion for writing, I actually chose a topic which doesn’t sell well but is a definite interest of mine: football. My next romance novel features a football hero. While I did fall in love with the hero and heroine, the writing still didn’t come easily. Currently, I’m writing the sequel and struggling to find the words to put on paper. I even added a cat character and a few horses, hoping they’d give me incentive. So far, it’s not working.
When I write, I like to crawl into the characters’ heads and lose myself. I become the characters and get lost in the zone. I’ll be constantly imagining scenes in my head while commuting to work or merely sitting around watching TV. So far, that’s not happening. Not like I want it to happen.
Which brings me to riding as I believe the two are related. My passion for riding has waned along with my passion for writing. I’ve barely ridden in the past two years. I might ride a few times a week when Gailey is sound. I can count on one hand the times I’ve managed to ride 4 days a week in the past couple years. As a result, I have put in about 10 pounds per year. Riding has always been my preferred workout method. Without it, I’ve packed on the pounds. I’m appalled when I see pictures of myself.
I’m constantly feeling guilty because I’ll stop by the barn but not ride. It’s quite easy anymore for me to talk myself out of riding:
It’s too hot. It’s too cold. I’m too tired. There’re too many people in the arena. There’s no one in the arena.
Last month Gailey came up lame in her front leg this time. I’m to start bringing her back slowly. Slow is not a problem. Bringing her back is a problem. So far, I haven’t put a saddle on her or taken her out of her stall.
Somehow, I need to find the ambition and energy to regain my passion for riding and writing. I’m always better under pressure. I’m hoping I can find a way to put pressure on myself to increase my consistency.
For one, my new publisher won’t put my series name on my first book unless they have the 2nd book in the series in hand. This makes perfect sense as many publishers get burned by authors submitting book 1 of a series and no subsequent books. The publication date for Fourth and Goal is May. I would most likely need to have book 2 submitted by April 1 or sooner. Now that’s pressure. Whether it’s enough. I haven’t a clue.
On to the riding part of the equation. I’m not showing anymore, which was the incentive I used to ride in the past. I need to lose weight, yet so far that incentive hasn’t worked for me. In fact, I cringe every time I ride by the arena mirrors and glance at my fat body bouncing around on the back of my mare. I used to be one of the thinnest people at the barn, now I’m the opposite.
I’m at a loss as to how to motivate myself for riding. Possible weight loss isn’t doing it. Showing is pretty much out of the question based on Gailey’s soundness issues, but also not an option financially.
I want my passion back. I want to look forward to going to the barn every day. I want to think about how much fun it will be to get on the back of my horse and learn something new. I want to feel those feelings again. I haven’t been making riding a priority, as it once was in my life. Everything else takes priority, even watching TV.
I don’t know how to get my passion back? Can you force passion? Can a person force themselves into a writing and riding routine, create a habit of doing both, and in the process re-create the passion? Or will it make me resent the time away from other things? Quitting is not an option; and believe me, I’ve considered it. Books and horses have been a part of my life since I was old enough to walk. I cannot picture a life without them, yet I seem to be at a loss as to how to fit them into my current life. I’m too busy, and most likely too stressed with day-to-day obligations and chores. By the time I get off work at night, I just want to crash.
Maybe I need to look into supplements or vitamins and approach my lack of ambition from a physical point of view.
I know we all struggle with priorities and finding time in our busy lives. What’s worked for some of you? How do you juggle your day job, your family obligations, and still leave room for your passions, your hobbies, yourself? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Even though I completed and submitted two books before the end of 2010, it took almost two years to finish the one book and the other was only 25,000 words. There was a time when I could write a 100,000 words in a month. I’d write like I was on fire, so full of ideas they just raced onto the page. I haven’t been able to re-capture the passion of writing in the past couple years.
It seems I come home from my day job and am too exhausted to do something which requires mental energy. In fact, once I finish dinner and deal with other demands on my time, I find myself sitting on the couch reading or watching TV. Even when I try to write, most of what I write is forced. This is not like me.
In order to regain my passion for writing, I actually chose a topic which doesn’t sell well but is a definite interest of mine: football. My next romance novel features a football hero. While I did fall in love with the hero and heroine, the writing still didn’t come easily. Currently, I’m writing the sequel and struggling to find the words to put on paper. I even added a cat character and a few horses, hoping they’d give me incentive. So far, it’s not working.
When I write, I like to crawl into the characters’ heads and lose myself. I become the characters and get lost in the zone. I’ll be constantly imagining scenes in my head while commuting to work or merely sitting around watching TV. So far, that’s not happening. Not like I want it to happen.
Which brings me to riding as I believe the two are related. My passion for riding has waned along with my passion for writing. I’ve barely ridden in the past two years. I might ride a few times a week when Gailey is sound. I can count on one hand the times I’ve managed to ride 4 days a week in the past couple years. As a result, I have put in about 10 pounds per year. Riding has always been my preferred workout method. Without it, I’ve packed on the pounds. I’m appalled when I see pictures of myself.
I’m constantly feeling guilty because I’ll stop by the barn but not ride. It’s quite easy anymore for me to talk myself out of riding:
It’s too hot. It’s too cold. I’m too tired. There’re too many people in the arena. There’s no one in the arena.
Last month Gailey came up lame in her front leg this time. I’m to start bringing her back slowly. Slow is not a problem. Bringing her back is a problem. So far, I haven’t put a saddle on her or taken her out of her stall.
Somehow, I need to find the ambition and energy to regain my passion for riding and writing. I’m always better under pressure. I’m hoping I can find a way to put pressure on myself to increase my consistency.
For one, my new publisher won’t put my series name on my first book unless they have the 2nd book in the series in hand. This makes perfect sense as many publishers get burned by authors submitting book 1 of a series and no subsequent books. The publication date for Fourth and Goal is May. I would most likely need to have book 2 submitted by April 1 or sooner. Now that’s pressure. Whether it’s enough. I haven’t a clue.
On to the riding part of the equation. I’m not showing anymore, which was the incentive I used to ride in the past. I need to lose weight, yet so far that incentive hasn’t worked for me. In fact, I cringe every time I ride by the arena mirrors and glance at my fat body bouncing around on the back of my mare. I used to be one of the thinnest people at the barn, now I’m the opposite.
I’m at a loss as to how to motivate myself for riding. Possible weight loss isn’t doing it. Showing is pretty much out of the question based on Gailey’s soundness issues, but also not an option financially.
I want my passion back. I want to look forward to going to the barn every day. I want to think about how much fun it will be to get on the back of my horse and learn something new. I want to feel those feelings again. I haven’t been making riding a priority, as it once was in my life. Everything else takes priority, even watching TV.
I don’t know how to get my passion back? Can you force passion? Can a person force themselves into a writing and riding routine, create a habit of doing both, and in the process re-create the passion? Or will it make me resent the time away from other things? Quitting is not an option; and believe me, I’ve considered it. Books and horses have been a part of my life since I was old enough to walk. I cannot picture a life without them, yet I seem to be at a loss as to how to fit them into my current life. I’m too busy, and most likely too stressed with day-to-day obligations and chores. By the time I get off work at night, I just want to crash.
Maybe I need to look into supplements or vitamins and approach my lack of ambition from a physical point of view.
I know we all struggle with priorities and finding time in our busy lives. What’s worked for some of you? How do you juggle your day job, your family obligations, and still leave room for your passions, your hobbies, yourself? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Happy Holidays from Friday Harbor
I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Holidays and best wishes for the new year. My husband and I decided to spend Christmas in the San Juan Islands this year. If you've ever read any of my books, you'll remember two of them are set in the San Juans on Orcas Island. My 5th book will be set on San Juan Island in the Friday Harbor area.
An update on Gailey. She is now lame in a front leg. The vet injected her a week ago, and she's been on bute. I'll start bringing her back tomorrow. It's been an up and down year for her, and I hope 2011 gives me more opportunities to ride her, instead of less.
Since I haven't had time to compose a post for this Sunday, I thought I'd share some of my pictures with you from our trip. I hope you enjoy them. Blogger would only let me load these pictures, so I posted some more on my Jami Davenport blog. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in the islands. I'd love to do this again. Last year we spent Thanksgiving here. By the way, I noticed a lot of horses on this island and even horse trails at American Camp.
Here's wishing you a wonderful New Year and may all your rides be safe and fun!!!!!
An update on Gailey. She is now lame in a front leg. The vet injected her a week ago, and she's been on bute. I'll start bringing her back tomorrow. It's been an up and down year for her, and I hope 2011 gives me more opportunities to ride her, instead of less.
Since I haven't had time to compose a post for this Sunday, I thought I'd share some of my pictures with you from our trip. I hope you enjoy them. Blogger would only let me load these pictures, so I posted some more on my Jami Davenport blog. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in the islands. I'd love to do this again. Last year we spent Thanksgiving here. By the way, I noticed a lot of horses on this island and even horse trails at American Camp.
Here's wishing you a wonderful New Year and may all your rides be safe and fun!!!!!
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| We had a rough crossing. |
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| Roche Harbor's Hotel De Haro |
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| A Sunny Friday Harbor on Christmas day taken from our room overlooking the ferry landing |
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| American Camp--Occupied by American troops in the 1860s-1870s when the British and Americans claimed these islands. |
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| A view of the Islands and Cattle Passage from American Camp |
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Warmbloods or Quarter Horses?
Every time I walk into the barn, I marvel that this beautiful creature blinking her big, soft brown eyes at me is my horse.
From the time I was old enough to say the word horse, I’ve loved horses. In college I wanted to learn to ride “English” and fell into lessons from a dressage instructor. A few years later, I saw my first warmblood, a Trakehner/Quarter Horse cross. I fell in love with the big, powerful creatures bred in Europe for their movement and temperaments.
My dream horse became a 17-hand warmblood. Over the years, I fantasized about owning such an animal. Now I marvel at the fact that I do own the very horse of my fantasies. So I’m trying to enjoy every minute of it as I doubt I’ll get another warmblood. If I do, there’s no way it could ever match Gailey in my mind.
As I read and studied about warmbloods, I was fascinated with the warmblood breeding programs. Warmbloods aren’t purebreds, they’re types of horses named for areas in which they are bred or breeding programs. The various programs often add horses of other breeds into the mix to refine/improve the breed. Also, most of the warmblood registries require some kind of testing in order for a horse to be approved for breeding, regardless of whether or not it’s already registered with the society, especially stallions. This also fascinated me. In America with our American breeds, you can buy an Arabian, Quarter Horse, Appaloosa, etc., and breed it to your heart’s content and register all the offspring. No testing required. Anyone can have a backyard breeding program. In fact, you don’t even need a purebred registered horse.
Breeding anything to anything just isn’t done in Europe. Many of their breeding programs are run by the government or were originally run by the government. Does this result in a superior horse? I would suspect your average warmblood off the street is superior to your average American breed, depending on your criteria. On the other hand, I would also match the best of our horses against the best of their horses any day. If that’s even possible because it would be like comparing apples to oranges. Quarter Horses were bred for a completely different set of qualifications than warmbloods. They were working cow horses with inbred cow sense. My warmblood mare wouldn’t have a clue what to do with a cow.
Warmbloods were war horses at one time. Now they’re bred as sport horses, mainly for jumping, dressage, and eventing. Yet, if I was in the market for a nice, low maintenance trail horse, you can’t go wrong with a good Quarter Horse. Around here, an average warmblood goes for about $10,000, while a nice trail-horse-type Quarter Horse is around $2500. Then add the costs of feed and maintenance. Usually warmbloods are more expensive to feed, as they’re larger. Also my warmblood certainly has more health issues than my Morgan/QH ever had.
I love riding my warmblood. I’ve never ridden a more comfortable animal. I also love just looking at her. She’s a beautiful, noble creature. Yet, despite my admiration of warmbloods, I’m guessing my last horse will most likely be a Quarter Horse, as I slowly transition from competitive riding to trail riding. I can’t justify the expense of a warmblood unless I’m showing it. Plus, I could probably keep two Quarter Horses easily on my property, as opposed to one warmblood.
So as Gailey struggles with soundness, I’m trying to live in the present, but I’m also considering the future. I’m guessing my future horse is a Quarter Horse.
I want to wish everyone a Happy Holidays and a very Merry Christmas. I hope you have a good one.
From the time I was old enough to say the word horse, I’ve loved horses. In college I wanted to learn to ride “English” and fell into lessons from a dressage instructor. A few years later, I saw my first warmblood, a Trakehner/Quarter Horse cross. I fell in love with the big, powerful creatures bred in Europe for their movement and temperaments.
My dream horse became a 17-hand warmblood. Over the years, I fantasized about owning such an animal. Now I marvel at the fact that I do own the very horse of my fantasies. So I’m trying to enjoy every minute of it as I doubt I’ll get another warmblood. If I do, there’s no way it could ever match Gailey in my mind.
As I read and studied about warmbloods, I was fascinated with the warmblood breeding programs. Warmbloods aren’t purebreds, they’re types of horses named for areas in which they are bred or breeding programs. The various programs often add horses of other breeds into the mix to refine/improve the breed. Also, most of the warmblood registries require some kind of testing in order for a horse to be approved for breeding, regardless of whether or not it’s already registered with the society, especially stallions. This also fascinated me. In America with our American breeds, you can buy an Arabian, Quarter Horse, Appaloosa, etc., and breed it to your heart’s content and register all the offspring. No testing required. Anyone can have a backyard breeding program. In fact, you don’t even need a purebred registered horse.
Breeding anything to anything just isn’t done in Europe. Many of their breeding programs are run by the government or were originally run by the government. Does this result in a superior horse? I would suspect your average warmblood off the street is superior to your average American breed, depending on your criteria. On the other hand, I would also match the best of our horses against the best of their horses any day. If that’s even possible because it would be like comparing apples to oranges. Quarter Horses were bred for a completely different set of qualifications than warmbloods. They were working cow horses with inbred cow sense. My warmblood mare wouldn’t have a clue what to do with a cow.
Warmbloods were war horses at one time. Now they’re bred as sport horses, mainly for jumping, dressage, and eventing. Yet, if I was in the market for a nice, low maintenance trail horse, you can’t go wrong with a good Quarter Horse. Around here, an average warmblood goes for about $10,000, while a nice trail-horse-type Quarter Horse is around $2500. Then add the costs of feed and maintenance. Usually warmbloods are more expensive to feed, as they’re larger. Also my warmblood certainly has more health issues than my Morgan/QH ever had.
I love riding my warmblood. I’ve never ridden a more comfortable animal. I also love just looking at her. She’s a beautiful, noble creature. Yet, despite my admiration of warmbloods, I’m guessing my last horse will most likely be a Quarter Horse, as I slowly transition from competitive riding to trail riding. I can’t justify the expense of a warmblood unless I’m showing it. Plus, I could probably keep two Quarter Horses easily on my property, as opposed to one warmblood.
So as Gailey struggles with soundness, I’m trying to live in the present, but I’m also considering the future. I’m guessing my future horse is a Quarter Horse.
I want to wish everyone a Happy Holidays and a very Merry Christmas. I hope you have a good one.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Reducing Holiday Stress
When I can't think of a thing to post. I go back and read my fellow IE bloggers' posts to find inspiration. The last two posts by Alison and Laura and Francesca's posts regarding Kwintus, all hit close to my heart, especially this time of year.
Gailey is lame again, oddly enough, it's the front leg this time. I'm waiting for the vet to x-ray her. He flexed her on Thursday, and she trotted away quite lame. Sigh... I'm frustrated with how seldom I've been able to ride lately because of her on/off lameness.
In the meantime, another friend of mine who has two very nice dressage horses had to rush one horse to the local trauma care center. Her gelding has a very serious issue. The chances of him making it longer than the next two months are about one percent. This friend, I'll call her Sandy, is already trying to figure out how to purchase another horse. Since she works full-time and doesn't have the support of her family in her riding/showing, I question her buying yet another show horse. She questions me only having one "show" horse.
Over the years I've worked hard to reduce the stress in my life. Riding one dressage horse on a regular basis is all I can handle with writing and a full-time job, not just financially but emotionally. I don't like spreading my life so thin that I'm run ragged all the time. Yet, I can certainly see her point. I've been out of the saddle more than I've been in it these past several months. Yet, I can't justify having another horse as a "backup" in case something happens to the current one. I don't have those kinds of resources. Even if I did, I probably wouldn't do it. Especially if my family was dead set against it, and it caused tension and unrest.
Yet, I also see my friend's point of view. Horses are her priority, her life, the thing she lives for. For her, the added stress is worth it. For me, I need more balance in my life. I need time for other interests, time for family, and I don't want to tie up all my expendable income in horses. As a result, facing Gailey's eventual retirement doesn't leave the gaping empty hole it might in others. Oh, there'll be a hole, but it'll be quickly filled with all the other things I love to do.
When Gailey is no longer rideable, she'll retire at my home. Whether or not I'll get another horse is up in the air. That's a commitment I've made to her. I imagine that's how most of us come to have "unusable" horses.
Horses fill our lives in different and varied levels. What works for one of us, won't work for another. Always having two horses fulfills a need of Sandy's. Only having one riding horse fills my needs. We're all different, and our solutions to problems are different. Some of us invite stress, some of us avoid it. I've learned to avoid stress the older I get. Which is probably why I'll eventually fill my horse fix with a nice little trail horse, and why she'll continue to ride and show two horses, despite the extra stress it puts on her, the extra money she spends, the problems it causes within her family, etc. The last several times I've spoken to her she's burst into tears. Believe me, she is not the crying type. I question if it's all worth it for the return she gets?
So as the holidays approach, along with the stress that comes with them, do yourself a favor. Give yourself a present. Find ways to reduce the stress in your lives. I, for one, didn't decorate for Christmas this year. We won't be home for Christmas, and the decorating has lost its appeal to me. I found a 1-foot tree and plugged it in. I cut back on present buying. I donated money to charities rather buying gifts to exchange at parties. I'm simplifying my life. The truth is no one cares that I didn't decorate or that I didn't spend tons of money on gifts.
So to all of you, have a Merry Christmas, enjoy your family and friends, and remember the true reason for the season. Simplify your life and go back to basics on what's really important to you.
Gailey is lame again, oddly enough, it's the front leg this time. I'm waiting for the vet to x-ray her. He flexed her on Thursday, and she trotted away quite lame. Sigh... I'm frustrated with how seldom I've been able to ride lately because of her on/off lameness.
In the meantime, another friend of mine who has two very nice dressage horses had to rush one horse to the local trauma care center. Her gelding has a very serious issue. The chances of him making it longer than the next two months are about one percent. This friend, I'll call her Sandy, is already trying to figure out how to purchase another horse. Since she works full-time and doesn't have the support of her family in her riding/showing, I question her buying yet another show horse. She questions me only having one "show" horse.
Over the years I've worked hard to reduce the stress in my life. Riding one dressage horse on a regular basis is all I can handle with writing and a full-time job, not just financially but emotionally. I don't like spreading my life so thin that I'm run ragged all the time. Yet, I can certainly see her point. I've been out of the saddle more than I've been in it these past several months. Yet, I can't justify having another horse as a "backup" in case something happens to the current one. I don't have those kinds of resources. Even if I did, I probably wouldn't do it. Especially if my family was dead set against it, and it caused tension and unrest.
Yet, I also see my friend's point of view. Horses are her priority, her life, the thing she lives for. For her, the added stress is worth it. For me, I need more balance in my life. I need time for other interests, time for family, and I don't want to tie up all my expendable income in horses. As a result, facing Gailey's eventual retirement doesn't leave the gaping empty hole it might in others. Oh, there'll be a hole, but it'll be quickly filled with all the other things I love to do.
When Gailey is no longer rideable, she'll retire at my home. Whether or not I'll get another horse is up in the air. That's a commitment I've made to her. I imagine that's how most of us come to have "unusable" horses.
Horses fill our lives in different and varied levels. What works for one of us, won't work for another. Always having two horses fulfills a need of Sandy's. Only having one riding horse fills my needs. We're all different, and our solutions to problems are different. Some of us invite stress, some of us avoid it. I've learned to avoid stress the older I get. Which is probably why I'll eventually fill my horse fix with a nice little trail horse, and why she'll continue to ride and show two horses, despite the extra stress it puts on her, the extra money she spends, the problems it causes within her family, etc. The last several times I've spoken to her she's burst into tears. Believe me, she is not the crying type. I question if it's all worth it for the return she gets?
So as the holidays approach, along with the stress that comes with them, do yourself a favor. Give yourself a present. Find ways to reduce the stress in your lives. I, for one, didn't decorate for Christmas this year. We won't be home for Christmas, and the decorating has lost its appeal to me. I found a 1-foot tree and plugged it in. I cut back on present buying. I donated money to charities rather buying gifts to exchange at parties. I'm simplifying my life. The truth is no one cares that I didn't decorate or that I didn't spend tons of money on gifts.
So to all of you, have a Merry Christmas, enjoy your family and friends, and remember the true reason for the season. Simplify your life and go back to basics on what's really important to you.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Read before You Ride?
About a weekend ago, I received an email from a reader who’d read an old blog post of mine in which I recommended certain dressage books. I hadn’t listed the authors of the book, and she couldn’t locate them by the titles. The reader mentioned she wanted to read about how to do the movements before she tried to do them. I completely understand what she’s saying.
I’m a reader. I always have been. My collection of dressage books rivals anything you can find on my riding friends’ bookshelves. I know a lot of dressage riders haven’t read even one book on dressage. In fact, I’d say that’s the norm in my barn as opposed to the exception.
From the beginning the cerebral aspects of dressage fascinated me, as did the “mystical” aspects. Over the years, I’ve voraciously read books on both aspects. I credit my dressage reading with giving me a very good basic understanding of the aids and how to properly ride the movements before I put one foot in the stirrup. Now did my body have a clue how to do a shoulder-in or a half-pass from reading it in a book? No, not at all. But I could visualize riding a half-pass and using my body to curve the horse’s body around my leg while moving him sideways.
My instructors over the years haven’t had to spend countless hours explaining to me the aids and riding of the movements because I had that clear picture from hours of pouring over dressage books. In fact, I find American instructors are often remiss in explaining the how and why of riding dressage movements in any way but the most rudimentary ways. I know there are exceptions, and my very first dressage instructor was certainly one of those.
Another huge contributor to my dressage education can be accredited to a long-defunct magazine titled Dressage and CT. If you haven’t had the privilege of reading this magazine, you might attempt to dredge one up. I still have my copies for the years I subscribed and might be willing to part with a few. Email me if you’re interested.
Dressage and CT wasn’t for everyone, only one or two of my friends enjoyed reading it at much as I did. It was the magazine, I’d haunt the mailbox for every month. The articles in D&CT were detailed, insightful, and often thought-provoking. Charles DeKunffy and Dominic Barbier were frequent contributors along with others who chose to tread off the beaten path. Some of the articles would take a movement and diagnose every minute detail. Heavy on theory and willing to debate different methods to the nth degree, D&CT did an incredibly good job educating aspiring dressage riders.
The publisher of D&CT didn’t shy away from controversial subjects. In fact, he encouraged them to the point where I waited each month to see what controversy would be addressed next. In fact, one of my favorite features to read happened to be Letters to the Editor. The magazine’s willingness to tackle controversial issues was most likely its undoing in the end. It’s been a long while, but I believe it was sold to another publisher, renamed and watered down. I think one of the current American dressage magazines is actually its descendant. I’d have to go back through my oldest magazines to unearth that bit of history.
D&CT embraced alternate forms of dressage and became an advocate for the lighter methods (non-Germanic). Regardless of whether or not I agreed with the articles or methods, I did enjoy the exposure to other ways of thinking. D&CT taught me more regarding theory than I ever learned in all the books I read.
The current dressage magazines rarely cause controversy, choosing to walk a politically correct fine line. Perhaps, that’s the only way to survive in the tough magazine market.
In the meantime, here are those dressage books I’ve read over and over again, including their authors:
Guide to Dressage—Louise Mills Wilde
The Beginning Dressage Book--Kathryn Denby-Wrightson and Joan Fry
That Winning Feeling—Jane Savioe
Riding Logic—Wilhelm Museler
The Dressage Formula--Erik Herbermann
Practical Dressage Manual--Bengt Ljunguist
Dressage Questions Answered. --Charles De Kunffy
If you’re a rider and a reader, I highly recommend the books listed above.
Hope you and yours had a memorable Thanksgiving.
I’m a reader. I always have been. My collection of dressage books rivals anything you can find on my riding friends’ bookshelves. I know a lot of dressage riders haven’t read even one book on dressage. In fact, I’d say that’s the norm in my barn as opposed to the exception.
From the beginning the cerebral aspects of dressage fascinated me, as did the “mystical” aspects. Over the years, I’ve voraciously read books on both aspects. I credit my dressage reading with giving me a very good basic understanding of the aids and how to properly ride the movements before I put one foot in the stirrup. Now did my body have a clue how to do a shoulder-in or a half-pass from reading it in a book? No, not at all. But I could visualize riding a half-pass and using my body to curve the horse’s body around my leg while moving him sideways.
My instructors over the years haven’t had to spend countless hours explaining to me the aids and riding of the movements because I had that clear picture from hours of pouring over dressage books. In fact, I find American instructors are often remiss in explaining the how and why of riding dressage movements in any way but the most rudimentary ways. I know there are exceptions, and my very first dressage instructor was certainly one of those.
Another huge contributor to my dressage education can be accredited to a long-defunct magazine titled Dressage and CT. If you haven’t had the privilege of reading this magazine, you might attempt to dredge one up. I still have my copies for the years I subscribed and might be willing to part with a few. Email me if you’re interested.
Dressage and CT wasn’t for everyone, only one or two of my friends enjoyed reading it at much as I did. It was the magazine, I’d haunt the mailbox for every month. The articles in D&CT were detailed, insightful, and often thought-provoking. Charles DeKunffy and Dominic Barbier were frequent contributors along with others who chose to tread off the beaten path. Some of the articles would take a movement and diagnose every minute detail. Heavy on theory and willing to debate different methods to the nth degree, D&CT did an incredibly good job educating aspiring dressage riders.
The publisher of D&CT didn’t shy away from controversial subjects. In fact, he encouraged them to the point where I waited each month to see what controversy would be addressed next. In fact, one of my favorite features to read happened to be Letters to the Editor. The magazine’s willingness to tackle controversial issues was most likely its undoing in the end. It’s been a long while, but I believe it was sold to another publisher, renamed and watered down. I think one of the current American dressage magazines is actually its descendant. I’d have to go back through my oldest magazines to unearth that bit of history.
D&CT embraced alternate forms of dressage and became an advocate for the lighter methods (non-Germanic). Regardless of whether or not I agreed with the articles or methods, I did enjoy the exposure to other ways of thinking. D&CT taught me more regarding theory than I ever learned in all the books I read.
The current dressage magazines rarely cause controversy, choosing to walk a politically correct fine line. Perhaps, that’s the only way to survive in the tough magazine market.
In the meantime, here are those dressage books I’ve read over and over again, including their authors:
Guide to Dressage—Louise Mills Wilde
The Beginning Dressage Book--Kathryn Denby-Wrightson and Joan Fry
That Winning Feeling—Jane Savioe
Riding Logic—Wilhelm Museler
The Dressage Formula--Erik Herbermann
Practical Dressage Manual--Bengt Ljunguist
Dressage Questions Answered. --Charles De Kunffy
If you’re a rider and a reader, I highly recommend the books listed above.
Hope you and yours had a memorable Thanksgiving.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
A Gift to be Cherished
For those of you who weren't around last October, my Hanoverian mare had a bout of cellulitis last October (2009). Her leg swelled up to at least twice its size. She was in extreme pain, and I worried I might lose her. A week later another horse at the barn had the same affliction had to be put down within 24 hours. Gailey survived but not without permanent issues. Her leg is still about 3 to 4 inches in circumference bigger than her other hind leg. I've come to terms with the fact that her leg is never going to get any smaller.
Over a year later, she's off and on sound. She has bouts of stiffness in her big leg and is sometimes off enough, we go back to the stall without doing much work at all.
I haven't been as ambitious about riding as I should be, possibly because I'm coming to terms with the future of my horse and my riding. We're taking things one day at a time. On her good days, she's incredibly fun to ride.
Take yesterday for instance, it was a crisp, cold day in the Northwest. I hadn't ridden her in about a week. The barn help was readying the barn for a freestyle clinic this weekend. The small viewing area at one end of the barn had been cleared of chairs so it could be swept. The chairs were stacked on the track, surely looking like green demons. Now add to that scene a shop vac, a broom, some poles, every one of them not where they were last time she was in the arena.
I both love and dread riding her when she's like this. I love it because she's hotter, in front of my leg, sitting on her butt, mega responsive, and eager to go. I dread it because it's like sitting on a ticking time bomb. Once false move, and it'll blow to pieces. She's never actually blown, such over-exertion is not in her nature. Even in her more energetic moments, she's into efficiency of movement (which is a nice way to say usually somewhat lazy).
On days like yesterday where the stars align just right, the arena looks different, and a lot is going on, she gives the impression she might actually put a little more effort into being naughty. She didn't even want to stand still at the mounting block. Once I settled in the saddle, she strode out at a brisk walk, snorting and blowing and keeping one eye trained on the demons at the far end of the arena. In the meantime, I prayed Mandy wouldn't turn on the shop vac at the exact moment I passed by.
After several minutes of walk, I barely touched her sides with my legs and off we went into a forward, uphill trot. (So this is how it's supposed to feel all the time!) On slight shift of my legs and she softly launches into a lovely canter. I sit up straighter and breathe back to a walk, just like that. Hmmm. A person could get used to this. Oops. Then she bulges out to one side in an attempt to avoid the end demons and attempts to shy, her one bad habit under saddle.
So I keep her at the opposite end of the arena. I know, chicken that I am, but it was less drama, and I wasn't into drama yesterday. I practice my pilates, trying to stay straight in the saddle, equal weight on my seat, and use my weight and breathing to signal down transitions. Everything works like it should because she's tuned in and eager to work. Well, tuned in as long as the demons stay on their end of the arena, and she gets to stay on hers.
Even though a very small part of me is aware of the bomb I'm riding, most of me concentrates on being as light and careful as possible. Considering Gailey's physical limitations, every great ride on her is a gift to be cherished and a reminder as to why I continue to do this.
Over a year later, she's off and on sound. She has bouts of stiffness in her big leg and is sometimes off enough, we go back to the stall without doing much work at all.
I haven't been as ambitious about riding as I should be, possibly because I'm coming to terms with the future of my horse and my riding. We're taking things one day at a time. On her good days, she's incredibly fun to ride.
Take yesterday for instance, it was a crisp, cold day in the Northwest. I hadn't ridden her in about a week. The barn help was readying the barn for a freestyle clinic this weekend. The small viewing area at one end of the barn had been cleared of chairs so it could be swept. The chairs were stacked on the track, surely looking like green demons. Now add to that scene a shop vac, a broom, some poles, every one of them not where they were last time she was in the arena.
I both love and dread riding her when she's like this. I love it because she's hotter, in front of my leg, sitting on her butt, mega responsive, and eager to go. I dread it because it's like sitting on a ticking time bomb. Once false move, and it'll blow to pieces. She's never actually blown, such over-exertion is not in her nature. Even in her more energetic moments, she's into efficiency of movement (which is a nice way to say usually somewhat lazy).
On days like yesterday where the stars align just right, the arena looks different, and a lot is going on, she gives the impression she might actually put a little more effort into being naughty. She didn't even want to stand still at the mounting block. Once I settled in the saddle, she strode out at a brisk walk, snorting and blowing and keeping one eye trained on the demons at the far end of the arena. In the meantime, I prayed Mandy wouldn't turn on the shop vac at the exact moment I passed by.
After several minutes of walk, I barely touched her sides with my legs and off we went into a forward, uphill trot. (So this is how it's supposed to feel all the time!) On slight shift of my legs and she softly launches into a lovely canter. I sit up straighter and breathe back to a walk, just like that. Hmmm. A person could get used to this. Oops. Then she bulges out to one side in an attempt to avoid the end demons and attempts to shy, her one bad habit under saddle.
So I keep her at the opposite end of the arena. I know, chicken that I am, but it was less drama, and I wasn't into drama yesterday. I practice my pilates, trying to stay straight in the saddle, equal weight on my seat, and use my weight and breathing to signal down transitions. Everything works like it should because she's tuned in and eager to work. Well, tuned in as long as the demons stay on their end of the arena, and she gets to stay on hers.
Even though a very small part of me is aware of the bomb I'm riding, most of me concentrates on being as light and careful as possible. Considering Gailey's physical limitations, every great ride on her is a gift to be cherished and a reminder as to why I continue to do this.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Rider Pilates
Last weekend was a busy one for me. First of all, I attended a Football 101 workshop at Seattle Seahawks headquarters sponsored by The Seahawks Women's Association to benefit breast cancer. I love football and my current book series features football heroes. Attending this workshop qualified as book research and a heck of a lot of fun. I'll post pictures on my Facebook later.
On Friday night, I attended the riderless portion of a pilates seminar and the riding portion on Sunday. Anne, who rides at my barn, arranged it with a local pilates instructor, Beth Glosten. Beth is a USDF bronze, silver, and gold medalist. Her first career was as an anesthesiologist, now her second is as a pilates instructor. She became interested in pilates while rehabbing from back surgery and to combat her constant back problems. She calls her version of pilates, RiderPilates.
I'd never done anything like this before, though I'd read some magazine articles and have a few Pilates exercise DVDs.
Beth started the seminar discussing what makes a good rider and her rider training scale (Mental Focus, Posture and Support, Body Control, Understand).
Mental Focus is important because the rider is a benevolent alpha, a term I really liked, and the horse depends on the rider to function as such. A rider must be the thinking member of the horse/rider team.
Good posture places your body in neutral spine alignment supported by abdominal and back muscles. Many riders use their legs and thighs to support themselves on a horse, which was well-demonstrated when we did exercises on the pilates ball. We bounced on the ball, staying balanced with equal weight on both seatbones while staying in rhythm to a metronome. They we did various exercises with our arms as we were bouncing in rhythm. For a uncoordinated person like me, it really drove home how much I depend on legs and hands to stay on the horse.
Beth went into details on the different gaits of the horse and how to sit each one, including very helpful videos of good and bad examples. The exercise portion included ball and mat work.
On Sunday amidst crazy Northwest fall weather, I hauled Gailey to Anne's barn about 10 minutes away. She hadn't been away from her barn in over a year, so I was a little nervous about the entire experience. She loaded and unloaded just fine despite the hail storm and wind. Once in the arena, she settled down and went right to work. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures so the one above is from Beth's website.
The riding portion was extremely beneficial for me. I knew I sat crookedly on the horse, and Beth really helped me straighten out my position by using certain muscles to push my outside hip down into the saddle. I'm also too loose in my mid-section so I firmed my core to restrict my over movement. I pulled my thighs away from the saddle to stop my gripping legs. She related these corrections back to exercises we did on the pilates ball.
Once I was seated in the correct position it became obvious through the horse's change in movement, even though it felt "wrong" to my body which was used to being crooked. When I was aligned correctly and not gripping with my legs, the horse came up underneath me instead of lugging around on her forehand. Of course, she was easier to ride. In fact, very easy. There was such a marked change I could use the horse as my barometer. If I was crooked she sped up and dumped on the forehand. If I was correct, she collected and listened for signals as subtle as a change in breathing for down transitions.
We're hoping to schedule another riding session with Beth in the future. I'm really looking forward to it. I encourage all of you to take advantage of an opportunity like this if you get the chance. It was actually quite inexpensive and well worth it.
On Friday night, I attended the riderless portion of a pilates seminar and the riding portion on Sunday. Anne, who rides at my barn, arranged it with a local pilates instructor, Beth Glosten. Beth is a USDF bronze, silver, and gold medalist. Her first career was as an anesthesiologist, now her second is as a pilates instructor. She became interested in pilates while rehabbing from back surgery and to combat her constant back problems. She calls her version of pilates, RiderPilates.
I'd never done anything like this before, though I'd read some magazine articles and have a few Pilates exercise DVDs.
Beth started the seminar discussing what makes a good rider and her rider training scale (Mental Focus, Posture and Support, Body Control, Understand).
Mental Focus is important because the rider is a benevolent alpha, a term I really liked, and the horse depends on the rider to function as such. A rider must be the thinking member of the horse/rider team.
Good posture places your body in neutral spine alignment supported by abdominal and back muscles. Many riders use their legs and thighs to support themselves on a horse, which was well-demonstrated when we did exercises on the pilates ball. We bounced on the ball, staying balanced with equal weight on both seatbones while staying in rhythm to a metronome. They we did various exercises with our arms as we were bouncing in rhythm. For a uncoordinated person like me, it really drove home how much I depend on legs and hands to stay on the horse.
Beth went into details on the different gaits of the horse and how to sit each one, including very helpful videos of good and bad examples. The exercise portion included ball and mat work.
The riding portion was extremely beneficial for me. I knew I sat crookedly on the horse, and Beth really helped me straighten out my position by using certain muscles to push my outside hip down into the saddle. I'm also too loose in my mid-section so I firmed my core to restrict my over movement. I pulled my thighs away from the saddle to stop my gripping legs. She related these corrections back to exercises we did on the pilates ball.
Once I was seated in the correct position it became obvious through the horse's change in movement, even though it felt "wrong" to my body which was used to being crooked. When I was aligned correctly and not gripping with my legs, the horse came up underneath me instead of lugging around on her forehand. Of course, she was easier to ride. In fact, very easy. There was such a marked change I could use the horse as my barometer. If I was crooked she sped up and dumped on the forehand. If I was correct, she collected and listened for signals as subtle as a change in breathing for down transitions.
We're hoping to schedule another riding session with Beth in the future. I'm really looking forward to it. I encourage all of you to take advantage of an opportunity like this if you get the chance. It was actually quite inexpensive and well worth it.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
What do you want from a Writing Career?
Last week a wonderful writer friend of mine came to town and spoke to my writers' group. She talked about writing careers and options availble to writers. Here are some of her thoughts and mine on writing in the current economy and the future of ebooks.
Most writers aspire to see their books in a bookstore and published by a big New York publishing house like Simon and Schuster or Harper-Collins. With the increased proliferaiton of small presses who focus on epublishing, there are more options than ever before. Unfortunately, there is also a snobbery toward these small presses and a prevailing attitude that if you aren't published with big house, you're not really published. Add to that a lot of confusion between being self-published and being published by a small press.
Over the past few years, I've watched fellow writers get a NY contract only to be dropped after their first couple books because they didn't make enough money for their publisher. Most of these authors were unintentionally "setup" by their publishers for failure. They were given small print runs, next to no marketing dollars, and very poor distribution. Once the publisher drops them, other big presses are reluctant to give them a chance.
If you're considering a writing career, especially writing equestrian fiction, don't discount the small press option. It's extremely difficult for debut authors to make it with bigger publishers in this economy. Also, if you're thinking of writing as a good way to quit your day job, don't quit yet. Advances are getting smaller and smaller as are print runs for debut authors. I've heard the average NY advance in romance fiction is in the $2000 to $6000 range right now. The earn out can be as little a $6000 a book, and you'll wait upwards of a year or two to get your royalty check.
It's not my intention to discourage aspiring writers, I just want you to be realistic about your goals. Most of us write because we have to give life to the stories in our heads. We can't NOT write. It's as necessary as breathing. If you're one of those people, you need to ask yourself some serious questions.
What are your writing goals?
All in all, when you're considering publishing don't discount small presses. Check them out carefully and make sure they're legitimate. They shouldn't ask for any money from you to publish your book. If they do, they're essentially "self-publishers." They should provide editing, cover art, and distribution free of charge to their authors. I have a a really good series on my Jami Davenport blog on writing for small presses that you might want to check out.
Whatever you decide to do, remember to hang in there and keep trying, Perserverance wins in publishing.
Next weekend, I'm participating in a equestrain pilates clinic. It should be interesting. I'll try to remember to take pictures and notes for my next post.
Most writers aspire to see their books in a bookstore and published by a big New York publishing house like Simon and Schuster or Harper-Collins. With the increased proliferaiton of small presses who focus on epublishing, there are more options than ever before. Unfortunately, there is also a snobbery toward these small presses and a prevailing attitude that if you aren't published with big house, you're not really published. Add to that a lot of confusion between being self-published and being published by a small press.
Over the past few years, I've watched fellow writers get a NY contract only to be dropped after their first couple books because they didn't make enough money for their publisher. Most of these authors were unintentionally "setup" by their publishers for failure. They were given small print runs, next to no marketing dollars, and very poor distribution. Once the publisher drops them, other big presses are reluctant to give them a chance.
If you're considering a writing career, especially writing equestrian fiction, don't discount the small press option. It's extremely difficult for debut authors to make it with bigger publishers in this economy. Also, if you're thinking of writing as a good way to quit your day job, don't quit yet. Advances are getting smaller and smaller as are print runs for debut authors. I've heard the average NY advance in romance fiction is in the $2000 to $6000 range right now. The earn out can be as little a $6000 a book, and you'll wait upwards of a year or two to get your royalty check.
It's not my intention to discourage aspiring writers, I just want you to be realistic about your goals. Most of us write because we have to give life to the stories in our heads. We can't NOT write. It's as necessary as breathing. If you're one of those people, you need to ask yourself some serious questions.
What are your writing goals?
- Do you want to make money and write full-time? This is possible but you'll need to be prolific. Most writers are midlist and the only way to make a living as a midlist author is to publish 2-4 books a year. They say it takes about ten books to build a name and a following.
- Are your readers more important than the money? Do you write because you love sharing your stories with others and the money is secondary? Are you trying to reach a niche of readers who like to read what you write?
- Do you write to convey a message or emotions to your readers? Do you write about overcoming obstacles and bettering your life? Do your characters struggle but keep their hope and eventually triumph? Do your books contain a lesson? Such as good conquers evil? Is it this lesson you wish to share with your readers and inspire them?
All in all, when you're considering publishing don't discount small presses. Check them out carefully and make sure they're legitimate. They shouldn't ask for any money from you to publish your book. If they do, they're essentially "self-publishers." They should provide editing, cover art, and distribution free of charge to their authors. I have a a really good series on my Jami Davenport blog on writing for small presses that you might want to check out.
Whatever you decide to do, remember to hang in there and keep trying, Perserverance wins in publishing.
Next weekend, I'm participating in a equestrain pilates clinic. It should be interesting. I'll try to remember to take pictures and notes for my next post.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
My No-Labor Day Weekend
I'm spending the weekend on Puget Sound, Gig Harbor, specifically, without horses. Once in a while, my husband and I go out on a friend's boat for the weekend. So this is our weekend away from everything.
Horses and boats have a lot of similarities. They both make you forget your worries and just "be." All week, I run around like a crazy person, multi-tasking to the max, and fitting everything in my tight schedule, so I can work, ride, write, and spend quality time with hubby and friends. On top of all that, we have a small farm we work hard to maintain. Since I don't keep horses at home right now, I have blackberry vines taking over my horse pasture, weeds growing in my horse arena, and a barn I seldom go into. So when I'm home, I'm working on the place. Being away, gives me an opportunity to do nothing.
If you've never had the opportunity to be on Puget Sound in a boat, you don't know what you're missing. Puget Sound is one of the most unique waterways in the world. Its protected waters and countless coves, inlets, passages, islands, and harbors are a boater's dream. Even if you're not a boater, you'd enjoy a day on the water almost as much as you'd enjoy a day on the back of a horse.
It's hard to say what's more expensive: boats or horses? I've had both, and I can say they're equal in cost and enjoyment. For me, I'd take horses over boats anyday, even though I enjoy the weekends out on a boat. There's still something about a horse, and having a bond with an animal which has no equal.
I hope you enjoy my pictures of Gig Harbor and Puget Sound. Next post, I want to report on safety vest for riders that have air bags which deploy.
Have a great Labor Day weekend. I hope you enjoy it.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Summer Riding and Mastering the Little Things
I hope everyone’s summer has been full of good rides, be it in the arena, field, or trails. I’ve been riding about four days a week and working on my changes, among other things. Gailey, despite the permanent big leg issue and stretching suspensories, is going better than ever.
On to shoulder-in and haunches-in, I’m actually able to do a shoulder-in and haunches-in in both directions without tightening my butt, allowing her to move forward freely. Same with half-pass. I’m sitting up and enjoying the ride. Everytime I try too hard, I stiffen and then she stiffens. I’m working on staying relaxed and deep in that saddle.
Canter has always been my nemesis with this horse. Now I’d rather canter than trot. I’m also able to turn her in a small circles around my inside leg, outside rein, the precursor to a canter pirouette.
It’s possible you’re surprised I haven’t mastered all of this sooner. I can certainly understand, but I’ll take what I can get. I’m not the most physically coordinated person in the world, so none of this comes easy for me. At the beginning of the summer, I decided to take it one day at a time with her, not knowing how long she’d stay sound and healthy.
Gailey seems happy, cooperative, and content. She shows no signs of giving up. She’s trying hard. I’m having a great time, too. I hope your summer has been as productive and enjoyable.
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| Gailey in her summer fly armour. Notice the big left hind leg. |
I’ve finally mastered a three-loop serpentine without a change of lead and in balance. This may not seem like a difficult thing to do, yet with this particular horse, it was. The arena I ride in is about the size of a small dressage arena. My big mare has a hard time doing the counter canter loop. She’d rather change leads. Add to that my uncoordinated efforts to keep her from changing. Somtime during the past few months a light clicked on. I quit twisting my body and trying to pull Gailey around with the reins alone. Instead, I sat up straighter and quieter, concentrated on not changing the weight in my seatbones, and keeping her round and together. Once all those things came together, the serpentine was incredibly easy.
In addition, I’m able to plug my seat into the saddle in canter and use it to bring her back to a school canter then urge her into a forward canter. Forward. Back. Forward. Back. Forward, Back. Over and over we go in endless circles, practicing my half-halts and her obedience. My legs are staying on her sides. My butt is staying in the saddle. I’m sitting up straighter.On to shoulder-in and haunches-in, I’m actually able to do a shoulder-in and haunches-in in both directions without tightening my butt, allowing her to move forward freely. Same with half-pass. I’m sitting up and enjoying the ride. Everytime I try too hard, I stiffen and then she stiffens. I’m working on staying relaxed and deep in that saddle.
Canter has always been my nemesis with this horse. Now I’d rather canter than trot. I’m also able to turn her in a small circles around my inside leg, outside rein, the precursor to a canter pirouette.
It’s possible you’re surprised I haven’t mastered all of this sooner. I can certainly understand, but I’ll take what I can get. I’m not the most physically coordinated person in the world, so none of this comes easy for me. At the beginning of the summer, I decided to take it one day at a time with her, not knowing how long she’d stay sound and healthy.
Gailey seems happy, cooperative, and content. She shows no signs of giving up. She’s trying hard. I’m having a great time, too. I hope your summer has been as productive and enjoyable.
Monday, July 26, 2010
One Step Forward, Five Steps Back
I apologize for missing my post on Sunday. It’s the first regular post day I’ve missed since they blog started. I was busy all weekend and just ran out of steam by the time I arrived home last night.
Gailey had a small cut on her leg on Saturday. It just so happened the vet was coming out to see another horse, so I snagged him to look at my mare, too. This was a different vet from the one who’s been treating her for cellulites, but he has treated her various lamenesses over the years since she was three years old.
He just shook his head at the big leg and told me it was what it was. He agreed with the other vet that it probably would never get any smaller. Too much damage was done to the lymphatic system. I told him my worries regarding her getting cellulites again and my fears I might lose her. He is a pretty straightforward guy and tells it like it is. He nodded his head in agreement and said I most likely would have to put her down.
Even more concerning to him was how much her fetlocks have dropped in the past year. Gailey has these long pasterns which make her very comfortable to ride. The downside is her suspensories are stretching to the point where the fetlock on the big leg is almost hitting the ground when she moves. Here’s how the conversation went:
“Should I keep doing dressage with her, or would it prolong her life by taking her home and just trail riding her?” I asked, staring at my big mare who means the world to me.
“It doesn’t really matter at this stage of the game. You might as well use her as long as she’s comfortable.” He heaves a big sigh and just stares at those hind legs of hers.
“Any guesses how much longer that might be?” I don’t really want to hear this answer.
“Oh, maybe another year or so. When she lies down and can’t get back up, you’ll know it’s time. Right now, she’s unusually sound considering the problems she’s got going on in those back legs.”
At this point, my heart drops to my feet, and I feel sick to my stomach. Even the rejection I received from a publisher when I got home didn’t make a blip on my radar as I pondered my current situation. Somehow, publisher rejections lose their power when contemplating the mortality of a dear friend and partner who has been a huge part of that person’s life for the past 12 years.
I can’t imagine life without my big red-headed mare.
I can’t imagine life without horses. I’ve had horses since I graduated from college with the exception of one or two years back in my twenties. Yet, buying a new horse is not in the cards for me anytime in the future. We just put a big addition onto our house so our money is tied up in that, not in a new horse. Not only could I never replace Gailey in personality, but I surely couldn’t afford to replace her right now with a comparable horse. I’m not sure I want to ride dressage if I can’t ride a horse that moves as well as she does. I’ve done dressage on horses not built for dressage. It was a constant struggle for me and them. I’m not sure I want to go there again. Gailey has never been the easiest horse to ride, but she’s been the most comfortable. I think you’ve all heard the quote from a doctor friend of mine: “If you would have sold me your horse, I could have ridden right up until the day I went into labor.” That’s how comfortable she is. The price you pay for comfort is in those stretched suspensories and sinking fetlocks.
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| Gailey in 2004 |
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| Gailey, taken today |
I know I’m worrying about something that has yet to happen. So I guess I need to concentrate on enjoying the good times we have left while she’s happy, healthy, and sound. I’m even contemplating a trip to the ocean with the group at the barn.
That beach ride will make for an interesting subject for another blog post.
Happy Trails, Jami
Sunday, July 11, 2010
The Continuing Saga of the Big Leg
I haven't updated everyone for a while on Gailey's progress. She's been getting massage therapy on her big leg for about a month now. I've been riding her regularly. I even rode in a lesson on Thursday in the 95-degree heat. We both held up better than I thought we would.
I've been working with Wendy of The Well-Kneaded Horse. At first, I saw an inch difference in the size of her leg. Lately, it's remained consistently the same size, though my trainer believes she's much more comfortable. She says she looks more sound than she has in a few years. I understand these things take time. I just have no clue how much time.
Wendy is using massage and cold-stone therapy treatments. She's done lymphatic massage on people, but never horses before so we're both interested in seeing how this goes. Her lymph nodes are sore, which I guess might mean that they're not working properly. Also, with horses you're working against gravity. They can't put their feet up like people can with swelling issues.
Unfortunately, in this heat wave we've had this week, her leg has gotten bigger, which is no surprise. Heat doesn't help swelling, I guess. I've been hosing it, but it's not making much of a dent.
Gailey definitely enjoys her weekly massages (I could be so lucky). The things we do for our horses!
I've also toyed with trying acupuncture. My vet is skeptical, while others I've spoken to have raved about it. I'm always open to new options, but there's only so much money. Has anyone here had any experience with alternative therapies for horses?
Gailey definitely enjoys her weekly massages (I could be so lucky). The things we do for our horses!
I've also toyed with trying acupuncture. My vet is skeptical, while others I've spoken to have raved about it. I'm always open to new options, but there's only so much money. Has anyone here had any experience with alternative therapies for horses?
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Why Bad Weather Makes me Ride
The Pacific Northwest is gray and rainy about eight to nine months out of the year. It’s pretty dreary weather, the type that makes you want to hole up inside a warm house in front of a fire and vegetate. This last winter and spring were particularly brutal. Just this week we had our first day over 75 degrees in 277 days. Ugh. It feels like I could count on one hand the sunny days we’re had since last fall.
Most of us just slog onward and deal with it.
Whenever I consider a life free of horses, I often think of two things: the above mentioned weather and my non-horsey friends.
You might wonder what the weather has to do with not owning horses. First of all, if I was a trail rider, this weather might be conducive to saving money by getting out of a hobby I can do only a few months out of the year (assuming I’m a fair weather trail rider). But my particular equine hobby is done in an arena and the weather doesn’t really play into it so why is the weather one of the reasons I keep paying out cash for the privilege of owning a four-legged money pit?
It’s as simple as this: First, dressage requires the horse and rider to be in shape. You really need to ride 4 to 5 times a week to do the sport and your horse justice. Second, when you’re shelling out all this money, you’re more likely to ride the horse, at least I am. So that brings me in a roundabout way to my point: If I didn’t have a dressage horse, I’d never venture outside nine-plus months of the year. I’d become a couch potato, put on even more weight, and live in a controlled inside environment. Even though it can be miserable and nasty, I’d never experience firsthand the changes in the weather, never learn to appreciate the winter, fall, and spring days.
And here’s where I come to the “non-horsey friends” part. I have lots of non-horsey friends. They stay inside during bad weather unless it’s to run from the parking lot to a store. They often don’t leave their couch. They get caught up in American Idol or The Bachelor or some other TV show that I rarely have the time to watch or even case to watch. They don’t get the perks of communing with nature or getting exercise. I actually feel sorry for them. They don’t know what they’re missing. Many of the women I know who ride regularly are in their 40s and 50s, yet not one of them looks that old. I’d like to think horses have a way of keeping us young with a little help from the elements and the physical exercise.
So every time I consider getting out of horses, I consider the obvious, which is I love horses. They’ve been a part of my life in some form since I was three years old. But above and beyond my love for the animals, I consider how sad it would be to rarely get outside, rarely brave the elements while bundled up and ready to ride. When I think of what I’d lose, I get out my checkbook and write another month’s check for board because the alternative would make me old before my time.
Most of us just slog onward and deal with it.
Whenever I consider a life free of horses, I often think of two things: the above mentioned weather and my non-horsey friends.
You might wonder what the weather has to do with not owning horses. First of all, if I was a trail rider, this weather might be conducive to saving money by getting out of a hobby I can do only a few months out of the year (assuming I’m a fair weather trail rider). But my particular equine hobby is done in an arena and the weather doesn’t really play into it so why is the weather one of the reasons I keep paying out cash for the privilege of owning a four-legged money pit?
It’s as simple as this: First, dressage requires the horse and rider to be in shape. You really need to ride 4 to 5 times a week to do the sport and your horse justice. Second, when you’re shelling out all this money, you’re more likely to ride the horse, at least I am. So that brings me in a roundabout way to my point: If I didn’t have a dressage horse, I’d never venture outside nine-plus months of the year. I’d become a couch potato, put on even more weight, and live in a controlled inside environment. Even though it can be miserable and nasty, I’d never experience firsthand the changes in the weather, never learn to appreciate the winter, fall, and spring days.
And here’s where I come to the “non-horsey friends” part. I have lots of non-horsey friends. They stay inside during bad weather unless it’s to run from the parking lot to a store. They often don’t leave their couch. They get caught up in American Idol or The Bachelor or some other TV show that I rarely have the time to watch or even case to watch. They don’t get the perks of communing with nature or getting exercise. I actually feel sorry for them. They don’t know what they’re missing. Many of the women I know who ride regularly are in their 40s and 50s, yet not one of them looks that old. I’d like to think horses have a way of keeping us young with a little help from the elements and the physical exercise.
So every time I consider getting out of horses, I consider the obvious, which is I love horses. They’ve been a part of my life in some form since I was three years old. But above and beyond my love for the animals, I consider how sad it would be to rarely get outside, rarely brave the elements while bundled up and ready to ride. When I think of what I’d lose, I get out my checkbook and write another month’s check for board because the alternative would make me old before my time.
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