Thursday's Threads: Uhhh-huh uhhh-huh; Hehheh, yeah edition

 

First, I just want to thank you all for your kind and understanding words about my frustrations with Al. I don't really have anyone to talk to about it, so it really helps to be heard by people who truly understand. 

Anyway... In light of all the emotions in yesterday's post, today is a light hearted and silly outfit. I chose Eros to model today, because Shiny would not approve of this type of humor and Al is too young for it. Plus, I think Eros actually HAS this sense of humor about him. Our outfit theme today is Beavis and Butthead in honor of new episodes being released recently. Here's what Eros had on:

You can really see absolutely nothing from this angle and distance.... But appreciate how lovely he's looking this year! Not bad for a teenager! Let's look closer.

Bridle: Joseph Sterling

Bonnet: WoofWear 

Browband: home made

I felt like this one really needed a close up. You may be wondering what would possess me to build a Beavis and Butthead outfit. Well, I'm glad you are wondering! Cause you know I love a good story. When I was in middle school, I had a riding friend who was just a little bit older than me. She was super classy from a very famous family, but they were also very down to earth and silly and fun. And she introduced me to Beavis and Butthead. When you're in 8th grade, this humor is like the funniest ever. (Honestly, I still giggle at stupid humor like this.) So anyway, Beavis and Butthead make me nostalgic for the old days with my old friend. And so here we are. Oh and also, she did a great Butthead impression. I did a decent Beavis. We were fun! And maybe a little weird. 

Saddle Pad: Ogilvy embellished by me
Half Pad: Stubben

Saddle: Butet

It's still hard to see here, sorry about that! The ribbon on the pad is the same as the browband above. I kind of like that from a distance you can't tell that this is basically potty humor. But up close? That's where the fun is!

Polos: Centaur 

I couldn't find fabric that would fit on these velcro strips and also faced the right way. So they're sideways. But whatever, good enough!

That's what Eros wore for Beavis and Butthead day, and here's what I had on:

Hehheh... Yeah. This outfit rules.

Helmet: Samshield

I just went with the black helmet for this outfit. The black rhinestones give it a rock and roll edge I think. (For those who don't know, Beavis and Butthead used to watch and commentate on music videos. So the outfit needed a rock edge.)

T-shirt: Amazon

How great is this shirt?! The front side has their front side, and the back side is of their backs! Haha! Kills me!

Belt: Buckle Down

Um... so my Beavis impression was always of him being the Great Cornholio, so I HAD to get this particular print on my belt. And yes, there were several options for Beavis and Butthead belts. Unfortunately though, I couldn't find this print on a belt, so this is actually a dog collar for an incredibly large dog. 

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

Black was really the only breech option here. Sadly, my pleather ones with the studs are too big. So I went with these.

Boots: TuffRider Regal

I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for these Faux-lanti boots (as my friend Margot calls them). I had zero guilt about defacing them with studs, and they're still SO COMFY! Also, I think the studs look badass on them. No regrets here!

That's it for this week! What did you think of the Beavis and Butthead outfit?

What's Up Wednesday

Despite my best intentions to have a good hard working week with the horses, we were once again a bit inconsistent. Al worked every day, but Eros and Shiny both had an extra day off on Friday. The farrier came mid day (just as I was finishing tacking up Shiny) and by the time I finished cleaning up from that it was pretty late. 

Farriers are messy. But I got everything cleaned up by the end of the day. 

Eros has been so great lately. I jumped him around today a little bit, and there were no zoomies! He did attack the teeny tiny bounce a little bit... but otherwise he just clocked around like a pleasant little metronome. I haven't yet attempted a line... but I think we may be almost ready for that! I did string together a mini course today though, and he really was lovely. 

I've been feeling extra appreciative of him lately. He's just a solid boy. 

Shiny's been good too, but I can tell she's ready for her hocks to get done. That happens Friday though, so we're almost there! I haven't jumped her in forever because her kiddo has been doing all the jumps with her this summer. I popped her around a little bit today. She was sticky to start, but once she got moving she was great.

I kept everything at or below 2' for today's jump schools with both of them. I think they're both more than fine to jump a hole bigger but I was feeling like I could use a confidence building day. So small jumps were exactly what I needed! 

Then there's Al.... Things are not good with Al. He's back to being terrified of the one long side of the ring, and occasionally other parts as well. Any progress I thought I was making this summer is pretty much all gone. He gets a rescope on Friday, and if there aren't any ulcers in there then I really don't know what's actually wrong with this horse. A few days this week I could only get him to work on the lunge line, and even that was a challenge. 

I tried a new approach with him today. Normally I let him walk the ring on a fairly loose rein and see everything before we start working. But today I put him together right away (just at the walk) and asked him to get right to a working walk. We made figures and focused on bend and going forward. Well. I focused on that. Al focused on the trees he finds so terrifying. I was hoping if I could get his mind on me from the start maybe we would have a more successful ride. It didn't actually help. Mostly because I never really got his full attention. I honestly don't think I know how to. I tried to dig deep and be really brave and just do the things I had planned on doing despite what Al's feelings were. And I did manage to pop over the little oxer on the safe side of the ring and also the little itty bitty bounce I have set up.

But I'm here to be honest with you all and so I have to admit, that I was only able to pick up canter just before the turn to either of the obstacles. I can't get to that far outside of the ring without him panicking. I've tried just doing part of the side and then circling to the safe side so we get in and we get out, and he'll do it half the time, but he's snorting and panicking the entire time I'm near the fence over there. I've tried doing ground work over there. I've tried just hanging out with him over there. I've tried lunging him over there. (And I imagine it goes without saying that I've tried riding him over there at every gait.) I've done lots of figure eights to just try and get some work done without dealing with the scary side, but even when we're not going over there he panics just being asked to go toward it. My ring is not very big, so I really need to be able to use the whole thing to get any sort of work done. 

There's a big part of me that just thinks I'm not brave enough to ride this horse. Like maybe I just need to let him do what he's going to do and work around it. But I do worry about getting tossed. And I don't know how to turn off that worry. I do have extra angst about the bad knee not holding up when he spins, but I don't know if that's really a reason for my being intimidated or if it's just an excuse. 

I do think it's about time I make a hard decision though. I'm not sure how long I can keep trying and failing before I finally just wave the white flag and find him a more appropriate home. It feels like a huge failure to give up. I haven't ridden a horse that makes me feel so brave to the big jumps in a really, really long time. And who knows if I'll find that again? But the reality is, I can't get him to canter around the ring, let alone point him at a big jump these days. 

All I really know for sure is that what I'm doing isn't working. And I don't know what else I can do that might work. Yes putting him in a training barn might help, but there's just not really any options close enough to me for it to be feasible. I haven't had any luck finding another trainer to come out to my place to help me. And while yes, it might be helpful to ship in some place, it doesn't fix the problem that I can't ride him in my ring at home. He's generally pretty good in new places for the first few rides. Probably he would thrive in a show home where he gets to go to new places all the time. But I don't have the budget for that. So I guess it might be time to consider selling him. But man. It breaks my heart. 

Truthful Tuesday

 

Soooo.... I was thinking today about how I need to clean tack. And I realized that I cannot remember the last time I performed said task. Like for real, I cannot recall when I did that last. I have planned to use a rainy day for this, but it doesn't rain here anymore. Like ever. We got a teeny bit about a week and a half ago, but it happened when I was done riding for the day. Which is good timing of course, but not when you're waiting for a rain day to clean tack. Also though, I don't really see the point in cleaning my tack when it's just going to get a fresh dust coating every single time I ride right now. Or at least, that's what I tell myself as an excuse to still not clean the tack. 

So that's today's confession. My tack is dirty and needs conditioning. And there's dust everywhere. 

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit day! We kept it classy this week, but maybe we'll do something fun next week. We are overdue! Al was our model this week and he looked pretty handsome if you ask me. 

Cute, but psycho

Honestly, he's so handsome, and so capable. If only I could get his brain to function properly! Guess you can't have everything though. 

Bridle: Pinnacle
Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

I'm still really pleased with these inexpensive bridles. They're holding up nicely, and I actually think they get nicer with age. 

Saddle: Butet
Saddle Pad: Ogilvy
Half Pad: Mattes

Nothing new or exciting here, but this is my go-to favorite set up. 

Boots: Eskadron

I love these boots! I'm hoping someday they'll make this style in a nice dark green too. Sadly on Tuesday my washing machine ate one of my favorite green Anky boots which aren't available anymore. It's still functional, just the edge was damaged, but it's VERY damaged. I really want to replace this washer with a top loader sometimes in the not too distant future. It's very low on the need to do list, but it's on there!

Anyway, that's what Al wore this week, and here's what I had on:

It's giving Autumn. Which I'm already sad about. But I will enjoy the pumpkin flavored everything at least. 

Helmet: One K

I really gotta wear some of the other helmets I have laying around here one of these days. I have Charles Owen glossy one I don't think I've worn on here yet that I got last year. And I can't remember the last time I wore the green glitter one. Probably because it doesn't fit that well. But still I should wear it before it expires. But anyway, I wore this one this week. 

Shirt: FitEq

I like these shirts a lot. It's a bummer she's not in business anymore, I was hoping more colors would happen.

Belt: Zazzle

I'm still waiting for Zazzle to have these belts in stock again. I just love them! Not sure what else I would put on one, but I'm sure I can think of something if they ever come back in stock.

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

Speaking of things going out of stock... Tailored Sportsman has discontinued my favorite fabric. And I'm too poor to stock up on them. Which is tremendously disappointing. But oh well. Hopefully I will love their new tech fabric just as much. And it is a little less expensive so that's nice.

Boots: Horka

I love wearing these boots. They're so soft and comfy it's like wearing slippers. My only dislike is that the sole is a lot thinner than the ones on Celeris boots, so my stirrups always feel a little long with these on. But not long enough to shorten my stirrups. 

That's it for this week! Anything you've been waiting for me to pull out of the shed? Color scheme you've been hoping for? Something else? Have any fun ideas for an outfit day? Let me have them in the comments!

What's Up Wednesday

 

I don't have a ton to recap from the last couple weeks. The horses all got ridden but it was an easy couple of weeks for them. An interesting side effect of having a horse like Al and my increasing old age is that I'm now very aware of needing to be smart when I have other commitments. And by that I mean, maybe I shouldn't be jumping him when I have to be in one piece to braid a million horses. So we just flatted. And things were mostly just fine. He's had a few weird days here and there. He's still an extra challenge on windy days, but I guess that's just who he is. Some of the trees are already starting to change color and he definitely has some feelings about that. Part of me thinks that makes him extra odd, like, do most horses even notice that? But also, I have some feelings about summer ending so I can't really blame him. Perhaps he's just reacting to my own disappointment. 

Sunday stuff

They all had Friday, Sunday, and Monday off this past week, and while Eros and Shiny figured they'd retired and were quite content with that, Al was for sure BORED. In all caps. Poor buddy. I thought about lunging him before I got on Tuesday, but I was like meh.... he hasn't needed that all summer. But obviously, since I'm talking about it, I was wrong. I will give him credit though. He tried VERY hard to be a good boy while I was on him, and he also very politely told me he was struggling. All of that without coming completely unhinged. Which is a pretty big step in the right direction for him. So I finally listened to him, hopped off, and tossed him on the lunge. And did he need it! He did a butt tuck and scoot. And THEN he did a big BUCK! He rarely bucks. And when he does they're usually pretty sad little ones. (Thank goodness for that, can you imagine if he was a spinner AND a bucker?? no thanks to that.) Anyway, he let out a big one and managed to break one of the top boards of the ring. Crazy kid. Thankfully the wild was short lived and by the time we went the second direction he was all tuckered out. We had a short ride afterwards and he was still a little spooky but was good enough. I had hoped to jump him around today, but he was exhausted from his shenanigans. So we did a couple little things and called it a day. Maybe tomorrow we'll try again. 

I did jump Eros a little last week because I trust him more. Yeah I said it! Haha! Anyway, he was perfect. I noticed he's torpedoing significantly less since he's had his injections. I also think I've already mentioned that. But I'm still noticing it, so it's still a valid statement! 

I let Shiny's kiddo jump him a little today because it was her last day riding for the summer today. She's headed back to Florida for the school year. We'll miss her so much! But obviously we had to do some extra fun things for the last day. So one of them was jumping Eros a little. I don't usually share photos of her here, but I'm gonna today because they were so cute.

Doesn't she look cute on him?? He was so good. It was fun to watch them. 

I've only ridden Shiny a handful of times the last few weeks because her kiddo has been doing most of her rides. For their super fun last day today we put one of the jumps up to 2'6". I don't think Shiny's jumped that high in like three years. The first time kiddo had a mild panic and they kind of three legged it. But I was actually kind of glad that happened because she realized Shiny can absolutely still handle a mistake at 2'6" and so there's no need to be worried. The next time they found it better, and then the last time it was nearly perfect! I was so proud of them both!

Okay, maybe it was a little tight. But whatever, it was adorable, and they were so brave! 

Now that we're all caught up on horses... I have braiding stories! The first weekend went fine, nothing crazy happened. Horses were all good, and customers almost all paid nearly on time. Just still waiting on one... So that's annoying. But whatever. Uneventful. Photos from weekend 1:

Week two is where things went a little.... weird. So initially I was told there would be 10 manes night one, nothing night two, and then nine for the last night. I then double checked if they wanted tails and they did, but that it would be 9 the first night, a few tails night two, and then down to 5 for the last night. I had turned down another of my regulars because I didn't think I could do 14 in one night if they were not in the same location. I still don't think I could do that. Anyway, I turned down the second customer for night one, but did say I could do the other nights. And I gave them a name of someone who could probably help for the first night. And they said they'd let me know if they needed me the other nights. Which they never did, but I just annoying checked in each night. They were all set. I hope I didn't lose that account for the future. But it is what it is. Phew. Okay, follow all that? Yeah me neither, but anyway, let's move along. 

So night one arrives and I get my list. Turns out, three of those nine have their manes roached so I only need to do their forelocks. So that was annoying because I could have done the other account. But I nicely asked trainer of the roached manes if next time she could count those separately because I passed on some other work that I might have had time for. She was very apologetic and said I could charge for full manes anyway, but I said I wouldn't do that. Even if I wanted to, that's just not right. And I still had six manes to do anyway plus a few tails. Plenty of work. So I start braiding around I think 10 pm. Maybe 9:30. Who can remember. First horse gets done easily. Was a little annoying because it was a cribber but I found a spot to tie her where she had nothing to crib on and it was fine. 

The second horse though... Man. I don't know if it had sleep deprivation, if it was narcoleptic, or what. But the thing kept like knee buckling. And I'm thinking wow, this seems really dangerous for me... A few times I had to jump off the ladder because I thought it was going to fall on me. So I'm almost done with it. When I braid, I do all the little braids down the neck and then tie them up the other direction so I finish up at the poll. So I'm literally tying the last braid, and the thing starts to fall again. I went to jump off the ladder, but I wasn't fast enough, and the horse kind of fell into me. Which might have been fine if I was a normal person, but do recall, that at this show roughly three years ago now, I had a ladder accident and ruptured my ACL. So if I twist the wrong way, my leg kind of folds up and down I go. So there was a very loud pop and I find myself laying on the floor of the stall in excruciating pain, and all I could think was wow, how could this possibly be happening again at this same show?! Seriously. HOW? And also, what might I have torn this time because there's no ACL left to tear. Anyway, these thoughts happened pretty quickly and I just as quickly dragged myself to my feet. Well foot. That poor sweet horse, was very concerned, which I appreciated. He didn't mean for it to happen. He probably didn't even realize what happened since he wasn't awake for it. (And no he didn't fall all the way down, nor did he fall ON me, just kind of into me then he caught himself.) So here I am, at something like 11:30 at night semi in tears wondering how I'm going to get all my work done. I think I dropped the f bomb several times in a row. Initially I couldn't weight bear at all on that leg. It just wouldn't do it, kind of just folded up if I tried. So I was like okay, well maybe I can just tie the horses in such a way that the wall can help me up and down the ladder. But I had time to figure that out. This horse wasn't very tall so I figured I'd get that last braid tied from the ground and then I had to braid the tail which I could also do from the ground and I could just stand on the one leg for all that. I figured by the time I finished that maybe I'd be more stable on the hurt leg. 

Thankfully that theory held up. But being the old woman I am, there was much grunting each time I had to climb up or down the ladder. I really hope the other braiders around had headphones in and couldn't hear me. Ha! I've never been happier to be done braiding as I was that morning. Well that's a lie. The other time I busted my knee at this show I think I felt the same way. 

And thankfully the braids all came out pretty well all things considered! I didn't take photos of the forelock only horses, but here's the rest of my work from that night:

Anyway, I finished up just before 6 and went right to sleep! After all that, I was actually relieved I didn't have to do nine manes! These things tend to work out in the end don't they? That all happened Thursday night/Friday morning, so I was very relieved to not have to do barn chores. I don't think I could have gotten the manure tubs into the dumpster with my busted knee. I also had planned for the horses to have the day off Friday which I stuck to as well. Best to rest the leg for a day or two. I forget what I wound up doing all day though. I slept 4 hours and then fed lunch. But honestly I don't remember what else I did that day. Maybe laundry or something. Who knows. I had an easy night's work too which was well received by me. Just one tail! I had hired a nice girl I know from the winter barn to do my chores for me this weekend which turned out to be such a good decision. I didn't really need her for Saturday since I didn't have a late night that night, but given my unsoundness I think it was a good call. She's going to horse and dog sit for me next month when I go to a wedding so it was also good for her to get used to the routine here before she's here by herself. I came out and helped her with some of the chores, but did keep it to light duty so as not to anger the knee too much. And then Shiny's kid came over and we rode the horses which wasn't terrible, but my leg felt super wobbly. I did bust out the old knee brace which helped a lot. Saturday night was also lighter than planned, but still a decent amount of work. Four manes and three tails. It was much easier to get up and down the ladder that night, and thankfully the tippy horse wasn't on my list! (Thank goodness!) This last night went smoothly and I even half braided one while it was snoozing:

These horses were all really sweet. And while initially I was irritated with the disorganization of their trainer and the confusion with the numbers... She actually reached out to me Sunday and apologized and said this was the most horses she'd ever had at a show at one time and it was a big learning weekend for her. She also tipped me $400. So no hard feelings here! It was nice of her to follow up though because the whole weekend I was thinking that she wasn't this disorganized the last time I braided for them and I was convinced I'd just forgotten about it maybe? But no, I think she was just overwhelmed this time. I didn't tell her about the mishap with the tippy horse. I think she'd have felt terrible and honestly it wasn't like it was anyone's fault. 

Nights 2 and 3

I got home Sunday morning around 5 and since I had help that day I slept for a solid 5 hours. It was lovely. And then I popped out to the barn to make hay bags and check in with my temporary helper. She had things under control so I treated myself to a few hours at our town fair that was happening this weekend. The games haven't gotten outrageously expensive (five dollars per dart to pop balloons?!) so I skipped that section which was a bummer because I love a good carnival game. But I did treat myself to a baked potato, ice cream, a smoothie, and some kettle corn. 

Watched the horse pulls which was only three pairs this year so not all that exciting. But the horses were beautiful and clearly well cared for. And the horsemen were REAL horsemen. For the last round when the weight was really high, one pair excused themselves because they knew it was too much for their horses. And then one of the other pairs called it right away when the horses struggled, and didn't try to push them too hard. It was really nice to see. You could tell the horses enjoyed the job, and they wanted to get it done! So it was nice that their humans knew their limits. Very nice to see. 

I also of course checked out the bunnies (my favorites!!) and the birds were in the same building. This year there were pigeons which I don't remember seeing before. Did you know that some pigeons are plumed? I did not know that. 

Fancy pigeons!

So anyway. It's been a wild couple of weeks! I'm very much looking forward to getting back into my normal routine. I'm debating whether or not I want to get the knee looked at again. I'm sure they'll just say I really need to get it fixed now so I'm not sure I want to hear that... It's not feeling too bad right now, but from past experience I know that might not mean it's not actually bad. I dunno. I'm gonna ponder on it for a bit. Have any of you had a knee repaired? If it was your right knee, how long until you could ride? Or drive? I'm hearing minimum of three months to ride. Not sure about driving. Ugh. Science needs to figure how to fix things with less recovery time.