Wordless Wednesday: Winter
Author: Amanda
FOO Blog Hop: A Day in the Life
Thanks to Tracy from Fly On Over for what’s become a really fun little blog hop to read and think about. I thought I’d give it a try.
One of the good and bad things about my job is that it changes practically every single day, so there’s really no “typical” day. I’ll try to aim for an average day. We’ll also assume this is a riding day, and not a day where every 15 minutes from 1pm onward I check the temperatures and sulk.
So, here we go!
7:00 am – alarm goes off; I roll over as best I can around the dog, who has probably returned from her morning walk to settle between my legs with her head on my stomach. Check email, check work social media accounts.
7:20 am – shower
7:35 am – what the hell am I going to wear today? ugh.
7:45 am – breakfast and a cup of tea and a few minutes of reading
8:10 am – how on earth is the living room so cluttered and what will the puppy destroy today? Just to be safe, better tidy up everything, ever. Typical setup also includes locking the cat upstairs (they get along fine, but the puppy loooooooves the litter box), locking the trash in the bathroom, locking the bedroom door.
8:20 am – leave to walk to work
8:30 am – arrive at work, start sorting through more email, check to-do list for the day. On a perfect day, I’ve written it the night before.
11:30 am – lead a school tour
12:45 pm – lunch, maybe, if I’m lucky, while sorting through what’s happened while I was on a school tour. On a really good day, I read during lunch.
1:30 pm – cover the front desk
2:30 pm – put out fires
4:30 pm – leave work and walk home
4:45 pm – arrive home, let puppy out, walk her around the block. On a sunny day, take her down to the ball field to run like a lunatic for 30 minutes; on a day below zero, a quick trip around the backyard for her business
5:00 pm – change & leave for the barn
5:30 pm – arrive at the barn, tack up if I’m feeling really motivated
5:45 pm – ride! or longe, some nights.
6:45 pm – get off, toss on a cooler or straight to a blanket, tidy up his things; in winter, heat some water to add to his bucket
7:00 pm – head home, usually stopping somewhere on the way for a quick errand; figure out dinner on the way
7:45 pm – arrive home, change, start making dinner, tidy kitchen and clean up any dishes from breakfast or soaking dishes from the night before while it’s cooking
8:30 pm – sit down with fiance to eat dinner, usually while watching TV of some description
9:30 pm – take puppy out one last time
9:45 pm – in bed to read for another ~45 minutes, or as long as I can before passing out; some nights it’s until midnight
I admit, I’m envious of those of you who can get up early and get to the barn. I have tried many variations over the years, and find it nearly physically impossible to get up earlier than 6:30 am. I’d always rather eat dinner at 9 pm than wake up that early. Just. Can’t.
Farm Hunters: On Hiatus
Sort of. Kind of. I’m still scanning property listings, but alongside properties with horse potential we’ve been looking at just houses for less $$$ and within walking distance of a downtown.
On Sunday, we went back for a third viewing at a house that we’ve both fallen a little bit in love with. We’re still cautiously investigating all of our options, but this is feeling really good.
So that, for the first time, is the actual house we’re looking at.
The basics: 4 bed, 2 bath 1928 Dutch Colonial. 2700 square feet on 0.5 acres (double lot). City water, city septic. Primarily oil heat powering a steam radiator system, but confusingly also has baseboard electric and a gas stove (the heating kind) in one room. Attached 2 car garage.
The budget (1 being bottom, 5 being top): Let’s say a 2.5. The house by itself is a 2, but when we run the numbers on necessary renovations it moves to a 2.5.
The pros: Exceptionally well-maintained, large kitchen, tons of space, huge living room, office space for me, man-cave space for the fiance, sun-room (on the right), sleeping porch. Gorgeous exposed original custom maple throughout – including hardwood floors in perfect condition under the current carpet. Nice but not spectacular neighborhood with an excellent location for both commutes, and 8 minutes from the barn (not that I timed it…). School system is somewhat meh but that is not really a concern for me.
Overall, the biggest pro is how right it felt the first time we walked into it. Fiance and I haven’t agreed wholeheartedly on a house yet, and after 45 minutes in this space we were in love.
The cons: Taxes are the highest of any property we’ve looked at. The city it’s in is on a definite upswing but it’s too early to tell how far that will go: will it become a trendy young professional city, or will it level off as the half-industrial city it currently is? Will property values really rebound?
The size will make it expensive to heat through the winter, though it has a ton of room for energy audit improvements.
Biggest cons: it needs a not-inconsiderable amount of rewiring to remove old knob & tube, and two new bathrooms. They are livable, but not terribly functional. Both are 75% gut jobs. It needs a few thousand dollars in energy audit improvements as well, though I would probably do that on any house we buy.
The intangibles: It just feels right. I can’t explain it more than that.
Stay tuned, I guess!
Bread Delivery and Other Barters
Once or twice a week, I get a call on my cell phone. Usually it’s late morning. The number on my screen comes up as “Manghi’s Bread.”
Seeing that number on my cell phone almost always makes me smile. It’s a signal that the owner of the local bakery is calling me and asking me to make a delivery for her. The only time it makes me sad is when I’m out of town and won’t be back by 5pm.
On the days I can make the delivery, I leave work right on time, walk home, grab my car, and stop by the bakery. It always smells delicious, and everyone is cheerful. I take the slightly longer route to the barn and I pull over a few times at a small local hardware store, or coop, or country store.
It only adds 15-20 minutes to my evening, and it makes me happy to have my car smell of fresh-baked bread. Each time I make a delivery, I can order off the menu: I get one of anything I want. Usually, I opt for a loaf of whole wheat sandwich bread, but sometimes I’ll get a honey bran, or maple walnut, or oatmeal.
I honestly can’t remember the last time I bought a loaf of bread. I think it’s been over two years. Either a Manghi’s delivery run comes along at just the right time, or I bake some bread of my own. I love bread, and would happily eat a loaf every two or three days, so I try to limit myself to really high-quality bread with straightforward ingredients. It’s my own small version of portion control.
Delivering bread is also great because it adds in an ironclad guarantee that I’ll go to the barn. Especially in winter, it’s much too easy to look at the temperature, get discouraged, and not even go out to groom. The last stop on my typical bread run is just 5 minutes from the barn. On days when I know that it’s too cold to ride, I often grab Arya and bring her with me, and we work on some training at the barn. I tie her leash to Tristan’s stall and we work on a long wait while I fuss over him.
I’ve bartered for other things in my life, too, horsey and not. I work with my friend to trade either a bag of home-baked goodies or business/website work for Tristan’s massages. I’ve done many, many hours of chores to earn lesson credits. I’ve traded tack, or hauling. I’ve taken barters in return when I’ve provided help or services for another person. There’s something more personal and satisfying about it to me – and it helps me afford a lot of things I wouldn’t be able to do otherwise. I quite simply don’t have the $200 a month in my budget for regular lessons, but if I carve out enough time I can get quality advice.
Have you ever bartered for things in your horse life? What’s worked for you? Or do you prefer to keep business separate, and pay for everything you get?
Weekly Blog Roundup
Here are a few interesting posts from horse-blogging land!
January Sunshine from Pony Express
Lovely horses, lovely photos, and my second-favorite livestock: BABY LAMBS! Even if part of me did die inside a little when she talked about spring-like weather…
When Event Horses Defy the Odds from Eventing Nation
AMAZING rehab story. Wow.
The Ammy Manifesto from Sprinkler Bandit
PREACH IT.
I Was a NYC Carriage Driver from The Adventures of a Floppy Ammy
The world can’t have enough honest reporting about how well-treated NYC carriage horses are, and this is a really neat perspective!
Classic Equestrian Art from the Yale Center for British Art
My brain is mush today, and has been all week. Also, I walked to work in -15 this morning – with my Smartwool tights under my pants, so thankfully no more frostbite.
So here, have some gorgeous paintings from the Yale Center for British Art. (All are in public domain, and so ok to post, but click on the links back to Yale to show their online collections some love and to get loads of additional details.)
Henry Thomas Aiken, 1785-1851
John Wooten, 1682-1764
Thomas Spencer, 1700-1753
Anson Ambrose Martin, active 1830-1844
James Ward, 1769-1859
John Frederick Herring, Jr., 1815-1907
Vermont Achievement Unlocked: Mild Frostbite
So on Monday we had a bit of a snowstorm. Nothing too bad – quite a bit of snow, but the light & fluffy kind. We ended up with maybe 12″ overall.
Mondays are my day off, and so I was home with the dog, cleaning the apartment and watching home renovation shows.
I took her for a walk when I got up. Nothing really intense; just 30 minutes or so around the block, taking a couple of double-back routes to get us both some fresh air.
It was 0 or just below; cold, but not anything I hadn’t done before. I was wearing appropriate boots, hat, gloves, long coat, etc., and jeans.
I got back into the apartment, and jumped into the shower. I was quite cold, obviously, but again: nothing out of the ordinary.
The tops of my thighs started itching badly under the hot water of the shower. Then they started burning. I was a bit weirded out but didn’t get worried until I got out of the shower and noticed that the skin on my legs had swollen so badly I couldn’t see my kneecaps anymore, just dimpled wrinkles. The skin was an unbelievable lobster red.
So, um, whoops? I must’ve been walking into the wind the entire time, and out there just long enough, with not enough layers on the one part of my legs.
Needless to say, I promptly put on Smartwool tights underneath my jeans and didn’t leave the house for the rest of the day.
Two days later, they seem to be fine, with just some residual sensitivity. I have been carefully applying moisturizer to try and keep the skin healthy, and after the first day the random burning sensation stopped.
Still, that’s a first for me! Obviously I’m pretty good at layering up, and obviously I’ve worked outside in much colder temperatures, but it serves as a good reminder for how careful you have to be, even about the little things!
TOABH: Self-Actualization
Assuming that your horse has absolutely everything he needs (food, bedding, a warm stall, plenty of blankets, and a pasture mate he neither humps, maims nor gets abused by), what does your horse need to be the best version of himself?
Time off.
When the assistant trainer was riding Tristan last summer, I told her that he is a horse who needs processing time. He functions best and happiest when he has a day in between intense rides. He is not a horse who needs or wants work seven days a week.
AT remarked that she’d often heard people say that about their horses and had never found it true, and then a few days later she came back to me and said “Wow, it’s true!” Giving Tristan a day completely to himself in between training rides resulted in a totally different horse: more forward, more willing, and he had clearly digested the mental lessons and come out better for it.
Granted, my current once-every-ten-days schedule is not ideal either! But Tris would do very well on a solid, consistent, 4-5 day a week schedule with two, mayyyyybe three, of those days as a hard drill. The others would be non-brain work: trot sets, hacking out, you name it.
It works well for me, since I’m not in a position in life (or quite frankly, a desiring frame of mind) to have a horse that NEEEEEDS that 7 days of work a week.
Horses & Weddings
Okay, I know I promised I wouldn’t talk wedding planning here, but…well…
So in lieu of complaining!
The wedding date is set for September 2015. We have a venue, rental company (tables, chairs, tablecloths, tents, stage, silverware, glasses), caterer (SO EXCITE), photographer, florist (ugh hands down my least favorite vendor but oh well), theme, and a bunch of little touches. Like, everyone is very concerned that we have something catchy or clever or pretty to hold the cards on the gift table? Seriously? Anyway: my aunt is super-crafty and is making a large baskety thing out of found rope from the beach. Done and done.
When we announced the wedding, after “when is it?” the number one question was “oooooh, are you going to have your horse there?”
No. No, I am not. As my mother pointed out, there will only be three people at the wedding I would trust with him: my mother, Hannah, and me. And all of us will be busy. Also, I have no particular desire to haul him 5 hours to be there and then spend the rest of the time boarded somewhere strange and all of it would just add to both of our anxious qualities and also so far this wedding is not that horsey.
But obviously horses are crucially important to me. So I’d like to find some subtle, classy ways to integrate horsey stuff into the wedding itself. PLEASE HELP, INTERNETS!
For reference, if we have a general theme, it’s Art Deco. As in, here’s what our save the dates look like, sans identifying info, obviously.
So, with that in mind, to Pinterest!
NOPE.
Meh. I don’t strongly dislike it, but it’s much more barn/country than we’re aiming for.
NOOOOOPE.
I kind of like it, but that is waaaaaaay more effort and time than I am willing to put in for something we’ll just throw away right afterwards.
Ah, the good old-fashioned theme of “the groom should grovel before me.” Why, people. Why.
Now we’re getting warmer! With an Art Deco font, maybe?
I kind of like the style, but this is a garter. Eep.
Of the many (many, MANY) horseshoe-themed craft ideas, I like this one best so far.
So, help? Any ideas? I’m open to a subtle equestrian touch in nearly any area of the wedding. I’m not in love with the horseshoes…but they are so easy to craft with. Then again, I also don’t particularly want to craft. Or think hard about this at all. I am developing a particular aversion to wedding planning, actually.
So with those very helpful guidelines: any suggestions appreciated!
Weekly Blog Roundup
Here are a few good links from the horse blogging world.
7 Tips For Being a Better Competitor Among Friends from Zen and the Art of Baby Horse Management
I love this. I’m somewhat competitive, and I often ride among friends, but all these tips apply to anyone who’s showing – they’ll help you be a better competitor and person.
Thermal Imaging from The Adventures of a Floppy Ammy
I loved seeing the pre and post saddle reflocking images – such a great argument for reflocking regularly, even if your saddle fits on paper.
What to Consider Before Using Alternative Therapies on Your Horse from Racing to Ride
Thoughtful, clear, and transparent post about things to think about when you’re going beyond standard vet care. I myself use massage for Tristan regularly, and would consider chiropractic. It’s important to note here that by “alternative therapies” Jodi means more things like that and not, say, Chinese herbs or homeopathy.
A Hard Diagnosis to Take from Paradigm Farms
Again! Thoughtful, clear, and transparent writing about how sometimes the best thing you can do for your horse is absolutely nothing. I tend to be guilty of the “TRY EVERYTHING!” approach to Tristan; in the last few months I’ve made conscious decisions to let him resolve some problems on his own, both for my mental health and for my bank account.
Flying Changes from Forging Fiction
Truly outstanding lesson write-up with diagrams and thoughtful analysis and clearly described exercises.
beljoeor.com 