Blog Hopping: 12 Tough Questions

It’s going around, but I grabbed it from One Bud Wiser. Illustrating with recent IG photos, because why not.

Q1: What hobbies do you have outside of riding?
IDK, making money to support the riding? In all seriousness: reading, writing, researching, working on the house, running a small business, and oh yeah I work a LOT. 

Q2: What is your boarding situation? Are you happy with it?
Full care board 10 minutes from my house. Look – no barn in the whole world is perfect, but mine is pretty darn close. The people are great, the facilities are great, the care is second to none, they genuinely like my horse (and mostly seem to like me?), and I’m happy there. There are things I wish were different but nothing that makes me want to leave.

Q3: What’s on your horsey-related wish list?
Sigh. I’m lusting after a truck and trailer. For no good reason at all. But if someone said to me “here’s $30k and you can’t spend it on anything practical OR put it into savings” I would be at a dealership tomorrow.

Q4: What is your most expensive horsey-related item?
My dressage saddle, bought used for $1200. But honestly I spend more than that in regular expenses some months. (sob)

Q5: What is the hardest horsey-related decision you’ve had to make lately?
Last fall, when Tristan had his worst colic ever (and he is prone to them, so I am familiar with the range of possibilities) I had the drive to the vet clinic to decide whether he was a surgical candidate, and I decided no. It was, to that point, the worst night of my life, but has since been eclipsed several times, so.

Q6: What’s something you feel you can’t live without in your routine?
Tea. But I’m not sure that’s what this question is looking for. I guess my current answer to this would be my Apple Watch, which I freaking adore. (I wrote that post dithering, and yes, I bought one! I’ll do a recap at some point.)

Q7: What’s on your horsey-related calendar for the rest of the summer?
Lameness vet out in September, lessons ongoing, not a whole lot in particular.

Q8: What’s one thing you would willingly change about your horse?
I wish he were more forward-minded and/or generally cooperative. The part where he spends the first 15 minutes of every ride telling me how much he hates me is a real self-esteem-killer some days.

Q9: What is something you most want to improve on with you and your horse?
Generally how forward he is and how fit I am.

Q10: What has been your [current] horses most severe injury?
LOLOL, this is like a smorgasbord of options. Ummmmmmm, most involved and expensive would be his broken coffin bone + surgery. Closest to dying would be one of his two bad colics (one in 2008, one this past fall). Weirdest would have to be his tail cancer.

Q11: What do you feel your biggest downfall is as a rider?
Laziness and lack of commitment. It’s sometimes too easy for me to just not go some nights. And then when I get there sometimes I have to force myself into working hard instead of just hacking out.

Q12: What feeds your motivation?
I just…I need to do it. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately and I don’t have a really good answer. I need it like I need breathing. Part of me would be empty and gone if I didn’t have Tris and/or horses. Being in the saddle is the only time in my entire life when my brain isn’t firing in all directions like a rabid weasel.