Truthful Tuesday: Eros' confession

 

Hey guys, Eros here. Mom said I had to come on here to tell you about what I did. But really it's all HER fault for ABANDONING me for a whole week. A WHOLE WEEK! She just... didn't come here. Can you believe that? Just forgot all about us kids. What I should have done is call the authorities. But I didn't. Instead, I did the next best thing. I pulled my shoe off. And a little bit of my foot. Not enough to cause damage. Just enough to make sure mom noticed something was amiss when she picked my feet. It was especially funny because no one told her, but they did get my farrier out asap so it was back on when she got home. 

So picture this guys. Mom noticed something looked off when she picked my feet in my stall. Then she stared at my feet while we walked to the crossties. THEN she stared at them some more. Then barn owner lady was like "oh didn't anyone tell you he lost a shoe?" And I was laughing! Like, not on the outside where she could see, but inside, I was CRYING laughing. Mom was all, "Ohhhhh, that explains this odd looking foot." 

So yeah. That's what I did. I took my shoe off. I mean, I had to do something. No one had paid any attention to me at all for SEVEN DAYS! I mean, I was fed, watered, and turned out. And wrapped in the evening. But like. That was it. And I mean, I know I keep saying I'm retired. But even a retired horse wants to be groomed. And told how handsome I am. It was truly awful. Desperate times call for desperate measures, right? 

Thursday's Threads: Vacation Edition

 

Thanks to Starlink, I have internet down here in the Exumas. Woohoo! But also, since I'm down here living the island life for a few days, I don't have a horsey outfit to share. Instead, I have a super comfy vacation outfit. And we don't wear shoes on the boat, so it's a very short edition of Thursday's Threads. Just three items! Let's go!

Here's what I wore before and after we did things that required swimwear. (And there's pretty much a zero percent chance I'll be sharing photos of me wearing a swimsuit. No one wants to see that. Trust me. Anyway, here's what I had on for much of the day:

I did a little mini wardrobe refresh before my trip at TJ Maxx and Marshalls because I really didn't have any summer type clothing that wasn't either at least six years old or riding clothes. This outfit is mostly new, and it felt very refreshing to put on something new today.

Shirt: Cable & Gauge

I am very excited to see this dusty pink color is still popular. This top is flowy and soft and SO comfy!

Belt: EqueTech

I got this in a subscription box awhile back. It's nearly the same dusty pink shade as the top, just ever so slightly lighter. But close enough!

Jeans: Kenzie

I am a big fan of Kenzie jeans. They just fit really well, and are generally soft and comfy. They also aren't insanely expensive, especially if you find them at TJ's or Marshalls where I think I paid 16.99 for them. 

And that's it. Short and sweet today. We'll be back to our regular schedule next week though, fear not!

What's Up Wednesday

 

I'm thoroughly off schedule this week and have no idea what day it is anymore. I mean, I know this will post after midnight and it will be Wednesday when you read it... But still. I'm a little out of sorts. Not in a bad way, just in a my schedule has been disrupted sort of way. Anyway. Let's talk about horses!

I managed to sneak in a few more rides than I thought I could this week with my traveling. We left late enough on Sunday that I was able to get up at 0 dark thirty and ride all three horses before we departed for VT. And then we returned home in time Tuesday to get to the barn for late afternoon/evening rides. They'll have the rest of the week and weekend off from riding though. I think. Shiny might get ridden. Her kid is visiting from Florida for a few days while I'm gone and I told her she could ride whenever she wants while I'm away so long as barn owner allows it. She may just require that kiddo rides in lessons, which is fine with me. We pay a service fee each month that we can use for lessons or training rides or rigs or whatever, so I will have some credits that need using anyway. 

Shiny has been great this week. I mean, she still wants to kick out when we pick up canter, but other than that she's feeling quite good. I'm hoping that behavior is related to needing the chiro and will hopefully resolve when her body worker gets back from Florida. Fingers crossed anyway. She was exceptionally good in her lessons this past week though. She's really jumping well! She's finally jumping across the fences and has plenty of impulsion off the ground which we've been missing for the last year or so. I really wasn't sure the EPM meds were doing anything from her, but I've since decided they are helping a lot. Just not with the kicking out part. We'll keep investigating that. Regardless, I'm just really happy with how she feels at the fences. 

It was weirdly beautiful and warm here when I got back from VT so I got to ride Shiny outside. She loves it out there! I have a real appreciation for what a good steady pony she is when I head outdoors. She's exactly the same out there as she is inside (though slightly less grumpy about going to work). People who don't have extended winters and/or don't ride indoors exclusively for a length of time might not fully grasp how INSANE some horses can be when you transition back outside. I've generally had the horses who go a little cuckoo for cocoa puffs when they first get out there. Shiny doesn't do that, and I'm so grateful for her! Eros is normally also fine, but not always. You have to see with him. So he hasn't been out just yet. Al is better outside than in, but the first few rides can be a bit exciting. I'll likely lunge him out there before I ride the first few times. But ultimately, he's not as worried out there as he is indoors. 

Eros is doing great! I've held him up at six full trotting minutes and 24 minutes of walking for our rides. He could have progressed to 10 minutes this week, but I figured with me going away and him having time off, we should probably wait for the increase. I'll likely do half a week still at the six minutes when I get back, and then start building. I'm not in any hurry with him, so better to take our time. 

Al has been a tale of two horses lately. It seems for most of my flat rides lately he's a complete basket case. But when we lesson, he's all business. As long as his buddies stay in front of him. He followed our lesson mate all the way around the entire ring Saturday even though there were sunspots all over and the wind was howling outside. AND it was effing cold out. (Like 34 F. Gross,) He just got behind that buddy of his (who happens to be a half brother, they share the same dad. And they're both spooky idiots, just about different things) and followed him right around. He almost gets trance-like when he follows another horse. It feels like he stops thinking entirely and just does what he's told. It's pretty pleasant really. Except that he has a really big step when he relaxes like that and we have to slow down to keep our buddy in front. Similarly, once we got to jumping little courses, as long as his buddy stood at the scary end, Al went right around so nicely! No buddy down there? The wheels come off. This horse is a weird one guys. We have a lot of work to do. Now that he's coming around enough to let me put some pressure back on him, it's time we start trying to work through some of his anxieties. I don't think it will be fast, but I think we can get better. At least a horse shows there are usually horses all over the place to keep him feeling safe!

So that's the update on the equine. In other news, after getting up at 5 to ride all three horses before 9 (which I accomplished thank you very much!) I headed north with my family to visit my little brother. His farm was right in the path of totality for the eclipse, so it was a really fun trip. We headed that way Sunday night. Stopped at the farm for a visit and early dinner. 

Hilde, Hugo, and baby Toby

The rooster's name is Red and he's a pretty cool dude. Very friendly.

It was a lovely day up there and it was great to see my brother. Then we headed to our Air B&B which was an interesting place... but did the job. Had plenty of room for all of us and was clean and warm. (There were too many of us to crash with little bro- my dad and stepmom, me, my older brother, my sis-in-law, and the two nieces.) We headed back to the farm mid morning on Monday. We saddled up the horses for a little wander around the property. All the non riders hiked instead. Riding is way more fun though. 

Do you see this attire my brother rides in? I bought him a helmet but clearly he's not using it.

Yes.Those are crocs. CROCS. Geeze.

Around 2pm we all got comfy on the patio to watch the eclipse. I gotta tell you guys, I thought I knew what we were in for. I was present and witness to the eclipse in 2017 which was about 92% I think where I was. It was interesting and all, but not THAT exciting. But Totality? It's amazing. If you ever have the chance to witness it, definitely take that chance. It was pretty incredible. My older brother had a ton of different cameras set up with all different settings (including a drone he sent up just before Totality) and got some really impressive footage. You can see it on his Facebook page, look him up (Lon Seidman). I don't think he's private, but FB won't let me share his eclipse videos for some reason. These photos below I snapped with my iphone so they are zero percent impressive. 

Anyway, when Totality occured, it got VERY dark, muck darker than I anticipated. Not quite dark as full night, but close. When the moon completely covers the sun and you can remove the glasses, it just looks incredible. It got very cold too. Really was a sight. The animals didn't seem particularly bothered by any of it, but the mare Hilde was pretty convinced it was dinner time. Apparently so were the men folk because once totality had passed the grill got lit and we ate again. So I guess Hilde wasn't wrong. We headed back to our home away from home around 7 and just relaxed for awhile before bed. 

My brother makes maple syrup on his farm (look him up and place an order, you won't regret it! www.ruggedridgeforest.com). Season is winding down, but the sap was still flowing, and he had a boil planned for Sunday. Obviously we stopped by for that before heading home on Tuesday. 

It was really neat to see the boiler firing. We got to taste the product as it was in process too, which was delicious. We didn't linger too long though since we had to prep for part two of vacation when we got home. Plus I wanted to ride. So that catches us all up! We're off to do some island hopping on the boat for the next few days. I will try to post a Thursday's Threads, but I'm not sure I'll have internet. So if that doesn't happen, I apologize! I hope you all got to see at least part of the eclipse if not all of it! 

Truthful Tuesday

 

This is a good one. So I got home today from VT around 3:30 (SO MUCH TRAFFIC!) and figured I had plenty of time to go ride the horses. My phone battery was pretty low, so I threw it on the charger while I got changed and organized. And you know what I did? DO YOU?! 

Yep. 

I left the phone at home. Which is probably not the biggest deal. I did learn some things about me though, whilst phoneless all afternoon. First, I am somewhat addicted to my phone. Not in the sense that I check it constantly, or have to be on it all the time, but in the sense that I felt very anxious that something might happen while I didn't have it. This stems from that other time I left it home when I was in college. I ran over to the barn quick to do night check and forgot it. And of course, that's the one time my car breaks down. Fortunately, I was next to campus and security was able to get me sorted out. 

Second, I apparently check the weather A LOT. Because I kept trying to do that only to realize I couldn't. Over and over. All afternoon. Maybe I'm just addicted to the weather app. 

Meanwhile, my concerns were not unfounded because one of my fellow adult pony owner friends started having an allergic reaction while she was riding in the outdoor and she called me for help. Only I didn't get the call, because I didn't have my phone. Fortunately, there were plenty of other people around and she got patched up without my help. But still. I felt so bad! She's doing fine now thank goodness! 

I'm guessing it will be another 22 years before I leave my phone home again.

Thursday's Threads: Peeps Edition

 

I don't celebrate Easter, but I do think that holiday has the best candy. And while I don't think Peeps are anywhere near the best candy, I do think they're the CUTEST candy. So it was a no brainer to dress the horses up in a peeps outfit. Since it was a holiday, everyone participated so we have lots of photos this week. But I only managed one mounted photo, so here is a singular representation of what we wore this week:

I mean... pastel everything right?? 

I'm going first this week. Here's what I wore:

I always think these boots and breeches match better than they actually do. But really, does it even matter?

Helmet: One K

I almost forgot I had this helmet! One thing I miss about having the horses home is easy access to my ridiculous helmets and boots. 

Sweatshirt: Target

There is a surprising shortage of peeps clothes out in the wild. Well. There are some t-shirts. But it's rarely t-shirt weather around here for Easter. But I think this hoodie is pretty cute, and certainly did the job!

Belt: C4

I asked my mom for this for my birthday last year. Some of these silly outfits take awhile to put together!

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

I got these second hand last year or the year before maybe? I had hoped they were the same color as my boots, but they aren't quite. Close enough though. 

Socks: Dreamers and Schemers

I couldn't resist the peeps socks. I might have also invested in the Good Egg socks too which have little eggs all over that look like Cadbury eggs. I told you, Easter has the best candy! (And socks, apparently.) 

Boots: Celeris UK

I think these have finally stopped bleeding color out onto my saddle! Yay! Maybe now I'll finish breaking them in. 

So that's what I had on for Easter, and here is what the horses wore:

Don't worry, you'll see better below.

Headbands: Peeps
Bridles: Joseph Sterling
Brow bands: Home Made by me! (Beads from Etsy)

Bonnets: Woof Wear, Embellished by me (Patches from Etsy)

I don't want to brag... But I think this set up is the cutest ever. Definitely a win. 

Shiny's Saddle: Custom Saddlery
Shiny's Pad: I can't remember the brand on this one... it's OLD! Embellished by me

Eros' and Al's saddles: Butet
Eros' and Al's Half Pad: Le Mieux
Eros' and Al's baby pad: Ogilvy, embellished by me

It was harder than I expected to find Peeps ribbon. But I found it! Thanks to Etsy.

Boots: Premier Equine, embellished by me

These interchangeable boots have really come in handy for ridiculous outfit days. I was unsuccessful sourcing Peeps fabric, but I DID find Peeps pet bandanas. They worked just fine for these straps!

So... what do you think?? Peak ridiculousness? How do you feel about Peeps? Gross, but adorable? Tasty AND adorable? Do you prefer the bunnies or the chicks? I prefer the chicks. I think the sugar to marshmallow ratio is spot on with the chicks. 

What's Up Wednesday

 

Well, I'm happy to report that none of the horses are any worse for the wear after their weekend off. I wasn't too concerned about the older two but you just never know with Al... Though honestly, he is different every day of the week, so time off doesn't really change that. I suppose that's a win? Hard to say really...  

Eros is plugging right along. We've increased our trot time from three two minute bursts to six continuous minutes. Seems to be going fine. I can't say he feels like the soundest horse I've ridden, but I do think we're back to Eros' baseline. He's 15 now, so expecting him to feel perfect is pretty unreasonable. And he gets better the longer he goes, so I'm feeling optimistic that we're on the right track. Doc said to add five minutes each week and we can canter once we've been at 15 for a full week. But I'm taking that a little extra slow because I will be away all next week and he'll have some more time off. I figure better to go slow than fast. We're not on any kind of timeline here. 

Shiny is feeling good lately! She's still ornery about canter transitions and also about getting back to work after a break. But our chiro hasn't been here since February and I honestly think Shiny is just really missing her adjustment. Hopefully we can get that done soon now that circuit is over. But our lessons have been super fun! She has plenty of step all of a sudden and is really starting to jump across the fences instead of just kind of straight up and down. That's something we've always struggled with, and I can't help but think that the EPM meds might be responsible for this change. She's starting to feel... sturdier? I guess? I don't know what adjective I really want, but I am feeling like she's more solid under me lately. She still trips some, and we still have the kicking out, so I can't say epm was responsible for all of her behaviors. But I do think it was festering in the background anyway. 

And then there's Al. Ah Al. He's been really, really good some days and not very good at all other days. But that's kind of who Al is. Especially this time of year. Fortunately, he has been showing up for our lessons this past week. (He was really good today though, so that doesn't bode well for tomorrow's lesson.) With a little help from our lesson buddies, we're using almost the entire ring for our courses. We get one of our buddies to stand in front of the scary doors, and that seems to appease Al. Often, when we're attempting our courses which are usually modified from what everyone else is doing, whenever we get to the scary end of the ring, it's all I can do to keep Al cantering. But Saturday? Saturday he just coursed right around like a champ! He even came forward to the fences, and I remembered what it's like to have a real canter and be able to find the jumps out of stride. It's lovely. I doubt we'll get that tomorrow because it's going to be like 34 degrees when our lesson starts and raining. But at least we had the one lesson where that happened. I'm feeling optimistic that we'll have another good summer. We just have to keep pushing on while we wait for it to arrive. I'm not really one to say I want to jump bigger, but we've been popping around over 2'- 2'3" and honestly, I'm feeling like it would be nice to have a rideable horse so we could jump something a little more substantial. All in good time though. No need to do anything we're not ready for.

We'll get all of our lessons in this week, and then Sunday I'm heading north to visit my little brother. His farm is right in the path of totality for the eclipse, so my dad rented a house for us to all stay in while we experience that. Should be fun! We'll be up there until Tuesday, head back home for a night, and then fly out to the Bahamas for a few days since the nieces are having their April break. I don't normally join them for the April trip, but figure I should take advantage of having the horses boarded and a free vacation while I have the opportunity. I am starting to feel a little anxious about getting things ready at home for the horses to come back. So it's maybe not the BEST time to leave. But things will work out. They always do. And I don't really have to leave the boarding barn until June when my stepmom's horses return, so if I'm not ready on April 30th it's not the end of the world. 

Are you in a good path for eclipse viewing? Get your glasses already? I saved mine from the last one because I knew this one was coming. Surprisingly, I didn't lose them! This is especially surprising because I had them in a my desk at work, so anything could have happened when they packed up my stuff and sent it back to me. But the glasses made it all in tact!

Truthful Tuesday

 

Okay... Well. It seems... that maybe someone who lives in my house and rides my horses has a wee something embarrassing to show you guys. (It's me, I'm the one who lives here and rides my horses.) 

Top to bottom: Romfh in Maple, TS in Saddle, TS in Canyon, Dover Wellesley in Sepia

I like nearly all variations of tan breeches (not you though Rust). So much so that I have this many pairs! My favorite is the second from the bottom though, the TS Canyon. So yeah. If anyone sees or hears me say anything about buying tan breeches that are not show pants, please stop me. Also, I don't need show tan either. Honestly, I don't need any breeches. DON'T LET ME BUY ANY BREECHES!