Happy (belated) New Year!

By Gayle Carline
Horse Woman and Resolution Maker

I inserted "belated" into my title because I was supposed to post this on Saturday and didn't. You kids are probably too young to understand this, but as you grow older, you get Toddler Syndrome. I prefer this to Old Timer's Disease. 

I'm not forgetful. I just get distracted by shiny toys.

A new year means a lot to me. New possibilities, fresh hope, optimism at its peak. Of course, there are resolutions made, to be healthier, more organized, etc. Hopefully, you have some kind of resolution to have more fun, maybe be kinder to yourself, as well as others.

I've read lots of articles that talk about making resolutions for your horses. Personally, I think horses should make their own resolutions. All kidding aside, I think it's hard to make resolutions when it comes to my horses. When Snoopy was 4, I resolved to get him qualified to go to the AQHA World Invitational Show. Then he broke his leg.

My resolution was tossed aside and replaced with prayers for his recovery. One fused joint, one metal plate, six screws, and three years later, he finally did.

For the past few months, I've been dealing with Snoopy being off with his bionic leg. Not what you'd call lame, but just short-striding on the foot. The vet thought he had tweaked the deep flexor tendon, so we went through some medications and physical therapy. The tendon healed, but then the weather got cold and seemed to affect the leg.

He's coming along, slowly, and his attitude is still sassy. But what kind of goals can I set, apart from the goal of enjoying him every day, no matter what?

Do any of you have resolutions, horsey or non-horsey? I'd be interested in knowing what they are!

2009--A New Year

First of all, I haven't ridden in 2 weeks. The snow and cold weather have really put a damper on everything. I haven't lost weight but haven't gained either. Now writing, that I've done. In fact, I've written over 16,000 words since Christmas Eve.

By the way, if you'd like to be a guest blogger next year for us, please contact one of us. We'd love to have you. You don't have to be an equestrian fiction writer, you can blog about other equine interests, too. Just send us a short proposal.

I thought this would be a good time to reflect back on 2008 and predict what 2009 might bring. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the new year, too.

2008 Reflections

I accepted an offer for publication on New Year's Day of 2008 then sold my 2nd book a few months later. To date I've sold two more books.

In February of 2008, I contacted several authors of equestrian fiction to see if they'd like to start a blog with me for the purposes of promoting our books and writing about all things to do with horses. Since then, we've all become friends, made a lot of friends on line, and done our part to increase the visibility of equestrian fiction (hopefully).

On a personal note, I've come to terms with the fact that my mare may not be sound enough to show. In some ways, it's a relief to know that I may not be spending money on horse shows anymore. My husband has a new job that he loves, and we are doing well. Compared to the rest of the nation, we're in good shape.

What About 2009?

In 2009, my first true equestrian fiction book will be published, The Gift Horse. I'm really excited about this book, and I hope that you'll take the time to check it out. I'm planning to run a contest on Equestrian Ink for release day.

I'd like to explore other horse activities this year, in addition to dressage. Do some more trail-riding and maybe some clinics. I'd even like to try team penning. (Can't you just see my behemoth 17-1 hand warmblood mare doing cow work? It'd be a hoot.)

As far as EI goes, I'd like to see us offer more guest bloggers (hint, hint). We'd also be interested in picking up one or two more regular contributors, so if you're published in equestrian fiction or non-fiction (or are going to be), please consider joining us. You'll need to commit to one post every two weeks (or every week) if you prefer.

So what about those pesky resolutions?

• Okay, for me, there's still the weight loss thing. I need to drop a minimum of twenty pounds. If I do end up showing, nothing fits, and I'm not buying new show clothes.
• I will ride more regularly, back to my 4 days a week pledge.
• I want to complete a minimum of two more books. This is in addition to the two I've completed rough drafts for.
• I'd like to increase readership in EI and increase our posts (another hint).

How about all of you? What does 2009 bring for you? What are you hoping for? What are your horse-related hopes and dreams?

What would you like to see from us next year?

I'm putting it on the line

Okay, I'm not losing weight. In fact, when I started this, I weighed two pounds less. So I added a gadget at the top of of this blog where I'll mark my progress. I would never tell anyone what I weigh now, but I'm telling you guys. I'm embarrassed that nothing fits any more.

I also only rode two days this week. I am just so darn busy. Maybe after the holidays, I'll get back to something resembling normalcy.

I did have a lesson this week. My mare feels off. It's nothing obvious. You can't really see it from the ground, but I know her really well. She feels funny behind especially to the right. We're going to monitor it to see if it gets worse or better. I did have a great lesson, though. I'm really working hard on not pulling. I have no clue what my riding goals are for 2009. I don't see showing in my future. I've had too many demoralizing years of attempting to show and finishing in the lower end of the pack. You can only do that so long before you're not having much fun at all.

Now's a good time to be thinking of New Year's resolutions. Let's all take the next few weeks and think of what we'd like to change for the New Year. We can do a New Year's post and add our resolutons here as comments.