Monday, January 16, 2012

What to do without a horse

I guess we all have times in our lives when we can't have a horse in our life. I have decided I am not going to run from who I really am this time. Or as Story put it "deliberately suppressed the horse crazy girl." I am not going to do that this time.

So what is a horse crazy girl to do?

Well youtube is wonderful! I wish I had this as a kid!

I LOVE this video of a mini barrel racing!


This one makes my heart ache, but I love it anyway:


I visit one of my favorite message boards: Ultimate Dressage
Very knowledgeable people from all levels of dressage. From the lowly backyard rider to the FEI level riders. People from all over the world. And we talk about everything from how to get your horse to walk nicely on a loose rein to why they are lame. From what we ate for breakfast to how to handle the most complex problems. Great group of intelligent people.

I am able to start reading blogs again. Some of my favorite are listed ... well ... here ----->

Watching horse movies is always fun. Found this one on Hulu the other day: Shergar

I listed Corrie on Craig's List again. I listed her cart too. *sigh*

But I am still a horse crazy girl. Link

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Life without horses ... I don't think so?


My bag that I take to work everyday has this motto on it. I take that bag and put it in a locker everyday while I go and do I job that I admit I love to death. Then I goes bac into my car. I bet it is has been so long that it doesn't even have any horse hair left on it.

That bag along with a fleece pad that is now used as a dog bed, and a few other objects are just remnants of a life I used to have.

"Your the only girl I know who has hay in her car." Mike said that to me the other day, and a little spark lit in my heart for just a beat. I remember getting hay and stuffing it into my trunk. That was then.

I have been thinking about this blog often and all the friends I met doing it. I miss blogging and I miss reading everyone else's blog. You guys really helped me to grow.
Link
My heart is so conflicted when it comes to the horses now. It is an ache that hurts so much when I think of them and often I just don't. For a long time I would watch youtube videos and get a far away look. "Watching horse videos again huh?" Mike would say. If he looked closely he would have seen a few tears escaping too. It took several months but I have put up some of my horse art around the place and even brought a picture of Hope and of Rocky. Just now he walked out from the bedroom and ask if I was okay. This is really hard to write.

Corrie is for sale. I don't know what else to do with her and it breaks my heart. I wish I could find affordable board around here, but honestly I am not even sure how much I could see her. "Affordable" board is around $400 a month. If I got to see her every weekend that would be $100 a ride. I could take lessons for less than that and not have to worry about the rest of the care. It is not the same though. Not like having my own horse.

I don't see her now. I have not seen her in months. Not since last September. I trust my trainer and I call to see how she is doing. Everytime I drive to Wisconsin I see my mother. We have next to no time together and then I have a 2 hour ride back to Chicago. Now my car is getting so bad I am not sure I want to risk taking it on an extra 4 hour drive.

I did have someone come to look at her. A therapeutic riding place. The shook maracas around her, and crumpled papers, and played with balls. She was awesome I am told. They loved her gaits and her manners. But in the end they didn't even want to try her for 30 days because she walked too slow when lead. In hindsight I should have had Sensei work with her between their visits to have him get her to lead the way they wanted her to, but I didn't.

I love Mike with all my heart. He is the sweetest guy I have ever met and he seems kind of taken with me too. I am happy here in Chicago with him. I am very sad to be without a horse. It is like a part of me is dying. Some how I want to find a way to take lessons or at least be able to visit a barn.

My weight is still an issue and gives me pause about going to ride at a stable. Money is also always an issue. I guess I will have to see what the new year brings. Life without horses? I really hope not.