As the Rains Come Down
I did manage to get some good walks in, but the horses? Not a ride.
Wednesday was chiropractor day, so I do not, as a rule ride. Since I went shopping after my appointment, I did some "shop walking," which includes the trek in to the stores from the parking lot. I will sometimes park a good distance from the doors just to add to the exercise program.
Yesterday, Thursday, I did put in nearly two miles. I walked over to the sandpit to pay part of my hay bill and then headed back on a longer, circuitous route that led me along the shore of the lake--quite a lovely view--and back through the woods behind my house.
I got home just in time because about 20 minutes later, the skies opened in a downpour.
I was meeting a friend from school for an early dinner and the drive over was borderline hazardous. Let's put it this way--it's a good thing I know the roads as well as I do. Otherwise, with my windshield wipers going full tilt, I still might have run off the road since I could hardly see a thing. It was simply pouring.
We had a nice dinner of soup and salad at the Olive Garden--it's a great buy for a meal--and caught up on all the school gossip.
Home again, I fed the Boys and headed out for choir rehearsal.
Now I am pondering another walk, but it's threatening to rain any minute again, so I'm not too sure what to do. Showers are OK, but if there's a downpour like yesterday, I don't want to be out in it.
I need to mow the lawn again, but it is far too wet to do that. And, until it clears up, riding is not on the list either.
Ah, well, the sun will shine again, or at least the threatening clouds will roll away.
Until then, I guess I'll just have to play fetch with Patrick.
Friday, May 24, 2013
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Rain
Party Time!
I went to a graduation party for Milos Tosic, the clarinetest whose Masters recital I attended. This was after church. I know nearly all the people who attended and met a few new ones as well. Two young pianists had some fun playing several piano for four hands pieces, the Corgis entertained everyone, and the food was wonderful!
I ate, but kept it well under control, as I am still on my program to lose weight. I can eat anything I want, but I just watch the portions. And, I've been avoiding sugar as much as possible. In this case, I left the party before the cake was served--it was already nearing 7:30 PM, and I prefer not to do the over and hour drive home in the dark. I'd been there since 2:30, so I certainly didn't shortchange my stay.
It was a lovely afternoon and evening. But it was raining. That kind of put a damper on doing much with the horses.
Monday? I did quite a bit of housecleaning. There's still a ton more to do, but for now at least the front of the house is tidy. My good friend Shelley is coming to stay for a day or two, so it looks decent for her. My goal is a real purge and cleaning. I did throw away a lot of stuff cluttering up the area, but there is so much more to get rid of.
I've just decided to take it a little at a time, exactly the same way I am losing weight. My nutritionist likes her clients to lose a pound a week. I figure I can get rid of a pound of clutter along with the weight and by the end of summer, I will be slim and have a clean house!
So far today, I did some more touch up cleaning. But here's how it goes at Follywoods. (By the way, I did the barn chores in the morning and then took a 50 minute walk.) I vacuumed the living room and then went out and vacuumed the kitchen/dining area. All well and good. Then I headed down the hall, vacuumed there and vacuumed the two little rugs in the bathroom.
I was about to wind the vacuum cord up, when I looked back up the hall to the living room only to see dry cat food scattered all over the place. The vacuum's cord had snagged a cat food dish by the refrigerator and spilled dry food all over the floor area I had just vacuumed.
Typical. A chore once done is never truly done at Follywoods.
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Chance on a Hike
After I Walked
I took my walk in the woods earlier in the day, tracing one of the trails in the opposite direction from the one I usually go. This time I had downloaded a GPS app for my Iphone and used it to chart my distance and time.
The trail was about 1.7 miles or so. I was out for around 40 minutes, so my pace is certainly not what you would call "torrid." However, there were numerous branches and trees to navigate and both uphill and downhill stretches--does one ever really just go down or up but not both? And, at one point I got a little lost finding the proper "go around" where a large tree had fallen.
I took the same trail on Chance an hour or so later. We did it in a bit under 30 minutes with stops along the way for grazing. I'm not too fond of going that direction on horseback mostly because all the downhill slopes are steeper than the uphill ones. So unless the footing is really good--not wet--as it was yesterday, it's not quite as safe.
Now, mind you, these are very short little hills, perhaps 10-20 feet long at the most. We are not talking mountains. Just enough to challenge the balance a little. I suppose most people would say my area is "slopey" rather than "hilly" but is does make the terrain interesting for both walking and riding.
Friday, for some reason, my body needed a break. I ended up taking a LONG nap in the early afternoon. I didn't go out to walk until evening after a short shopping trip to get some more olive oil--ran out the other day.
I forgot to turn on the GPS even though I had it with me, but I figure we were out for about 30 minutes or so. I say "we" because Peppercorn the kitty came with me. I choose the middle length woods trail mostly to take a little break myself and also so as not to challenge my little furry friend too much--although he's probably fitter than I am!!
It was really fun having a companion on my journey except when he insisted in that catlike way of walking directly in front of my on the narrow part of the trail. His natural pace was just a bit slower than I wanted to go, so I was often in danger of tripping over him. Once I got in front, it was OK. Then he'd lag behind and suddenly gallop up alongside and pass me again to be in front. Eventually, he tired of that game and trailed along behind. I stopped now and then to let him catch up, but that was just kind of fun.
I do have to admire his navigation of the fallen trees. Once he figured out I was making a detour around that would end me back on the main trail, he'd just go under the trunks or over them.
Ah, to be as agile and athletic as a cat!!
I took my walk in the woods earlier in the day, tracing one of the trails in the opposite direction from the one I usually go. This time I had downloaded a GPS app for my Iphone and used it to chart my distance and time.
The trail was about 1.7 miles or so. I was out for around 40 minutes, so my pace is certainly not what you would call "torrid." However, there were numerous branches and trees to navigate and both uphill and downhill stretches--does one ever really just go down or up but not both? And, at one point I got a little lost finding the proper "go around" where a large tree had fallen.
I took the same trail on Chance an hour or so later. We did it in a bit under 30 minutes with stops along the way for grazing. I'm not too fond of going that direction on horseback mostly because all the downhill slopes are steeper than the uphill ones. So unless the footing is really good--not wet--as it was yesterday, it's not quite as safe.
Now, mind you, these are very short little hills, perhaps 10-20 feet long at the most. We are not talking mountains. Just enough to challenge the balance a little. I suppose most people would say my area is "slopey" rather than "hilly" but is does make the terrain interesting for both walking and riding.
Friday, for some reason, my body needed a break. I ended up taking a LONG nap in the early afternoon. I didn't go out to walk until evening after a short shopping trip to get some more olive oil--ran out the other day.
I forgot to turn on the GPS even though I had it with me, but I figure we were out for about 30 minutes or so. I say "we" because Peppercorn the kitty came with me. I choose the middle length woods trail mostly to take a little break myself and also so as not to challenge my little furry friend too much--although he's probably fitter than I am!!
It was really fun having a companion on my journey except when he insisted in that catlike way of walking directly in front of my on the narrow part of the trail. His natural pace was just a bit slower than I wanted to go, so I was often in danger of tripping over him. Once I got in front, it was OK. Then he'd lag behind and suddenly gallop up alongside and pass me again to be in front. Eventually, he tired of that game and trailed along behind. I stopped now and then to let him catch up, but that was just kind of fun.
I do have to admire his navigation of the fallen trees. Once he figured out I was making a detour around that would end me back on the main trail, he'd just go under the trunks or over them.
Ah, to be as agile and athletic as a cat!!
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Tucker on the Trail Again
He Was A Good Boy
I rode Tucker in the arena for at least 20 minutes. The goal is still mostly fitness. I have a feeling if I am going to get him back into a good dressage frame it's going to take some work. At this point I honestly don't know if it's worth it.
On the other hand, I do want to see if he can master the flying change, so that will require some elements of basic on the bit and collection. I really am not interested in competing, so however we go will be just fine. But I do know that the dressage and suppling will be physically good for him no matter what.
At any rate, after some nice schooling in which we did shoulder-in, leg yield and some pretty nice half-pass at the trot, and a good number of trot/canter/trot transitions, I decided to go out for the short trail ride.
Tucker was a good boy with minimal tension. The woods trail now requires a number of extra turns an detours where it was once a clear trail. What a blessing to have a big horse that steers really well. I hope to expand the trails we use as time goes on, but the bugs will dictate some of that. So far the flies/mosquitoes are not really biting, so the ride was just fine. I do have the bug armor for him to wear as the season progresses, so we'll just see if we can keep it up.
After I rode him, I collected Toby--who did not run away--and lunged him for all of perhaps two minutes. We did five circles on the right at the trot, five circles on the left, and then stopped.
What is wonderful to see is how sound and lovely Toby's trot is. I see no signs of any stiffness in his gait. He has always had a nice trot with good spring and overstride. His big problem in moving up the levels was that his neck is set level on his body instead more upright. So getting the balance to his hind end and getting him really off his forehand was a lot of work. And, all the half halts and balancing exercises put a strain on his hind end beyond what was natural for him. That's one of the reasons I retired him from competition. It just wasn't fair to push him. He did compete in Intermediare I, so that was good, but I could tell it was hard on him.
Now, he is 23 and looks to be very sound. I'm glad. I will ride him a bit this year, but he has earned a nice retirement.
I rode Tucker in the arena for at least 20 minutes. The goal is still mostly fitness. I have a feeling if I am going to get him back into a good dressage frame it's going to take some work. At this point I honestly don't know if it's worth it.
On the other hand, I do want to see if he can master the flying change, so that will require some elements of basic on the bit and collection. I really am not interested in competing, so however we go will be just fine. But I do know that the dressage and suppling will be physically good for him no matter what.
At any rate, after some nice schooling in which we did shoulder-in, leg yield and some pretty nice half-pass at the trot, and a good number of trot/canter/trot transitions, I decided to go out for the short trail ride.
Tucker was a good boy with minimal tension. The woods trail now requires a number of extra turns an detours where it was once a clear trail. What a blessing to have a big horse that steers really well. I hope to expand the trails we use as time goes on, but the bugs will dictate some of that. So far the flies/mosquitoes are not really biting, so the ride was just fine. I do have the bug armor for him to wear as the season progresses, so we'll just see if we can keep it up.
After I rode him, I collected Toby--who did not run away--and lunged him for all of perhaps two minutes. We did five circles on the right at the trot, five circles on the left, and then stopped.
What is wonderful to see is how sound and lovely Toby's trot is. I see no signs of any stiffness in his gait. He has always had a nice trot with good spring and overstride. His big problem in moving up the levels was that his neck is set level on his body instead more upright. So getting the balance to his hind end and getting him really off his forehand was a lot of work. And, all the half halts and balancing exercises put a strain on his hind end beyond what was natural for him. That's one of the reasons I retired him from competition. It just wasn't fair to push him. He did compete in Intermediare I, so that was good, but I could tell it was hard on him.
Now, he is 23 and looks to be very sound. I'm glad. I will ride him a bit this year, but he has earned a nice retirement.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Time Management
The Lungeing Queen
I did it again and did not allot enough time to ride a horse. This time, I walked for nearly an hour earlier in the afternoon. So when I got home I needed a breather.
Figured I'd go out to ride later, only to realize I'd made a dinner date with friends and really didn't have enough time to saddle up.
So, Chance got lunged. He was his usual good boy self.
But again, Toby came into the arena to pester us, so after I finished with Chance I decided I'd lunge Toby for five minutes or so.
He refused to be caught. Even a carrot bribe failed to work. As soon as he saw the rope nearing his neck, he took off again.
Enough, already. He's always been a bit tricky to catch, but bribes usually work. Since I do need to be able to catch my own horse when need be, I decided to persist.
His "running away" consists mostly of walking/trotting around within a set space. If the other horses are nearby, which they were, he uses them as blocks to hide behind so I can't get to him without moving one of them.
I played the game. He kept trotting around in about a 60 meter circular area of the front paddock, just out of reach. Since the area HE CHOSE was small, I essentially round penned him by simply walking towards him in my own circle over and over.
Finally, he stopped and let me put the rope on his neck to lead him in.
At this point, he'd already free lunged for at least five minutes so I didn't think it was fair to his older body to press him any more. Instead, I tied him and gave him a nice grooming with the shedding blade and brush, making sure I added lots of cuddles and a carrot reward.
I'd like to think not working him after capture would make him more likely to be willing to let me get him next time, but with Toby you can never tell. He has his own view of the world and it doesn't always make sense to me.
I've decided to catch him every day and do something with him--groom, treat, lunge, maybe even a very short ride--just to keep him somewhat civilized.
The last thing I need is a feral horse.
I did it again and did not allot enough time to ride a horse. This time, I walked for nearly an hour earlier in the afternoon. So when I got home I needed a breather.
Figured I'd go out to ride later, only to realize I'd made a dinner date with friends and really didn't have enough time to saddle up.
So, Chance got lunged. He was his usual good boy self.
But again, Toby came into the arena to pester us, so after I finished with Chance I decided I'd lunge Toby for five minutes or so.
He refused to be caught. Even a carrot bribe failed to work. As soon as he saw the rope nearing his neck, he took off again.
Enough, already. He's always been a bit tricky to catch, but bribes usually work. Since I do need to be able to catch my own horse when need be, I decided to persist.
His "running away" consists mostly of walking/trotting around within a set space. If the other horses are nearby, which they were, he uses them as blocks to hide behind so I can't get to him without moving one of them.
I played the game. He kept trotting around in about a 60 meter circular area of the front paddock, just out of reach. Since the area HE CHOSE was small, I essentially round penned him by simply walking towards him in my own circle over and over.
Finally, he stopped and let me put the rope on his neck to lead him in.
At this point, he'd already free lunged for at least five minutes so I didn't think it was fair to his older body to press him any more. Instead, I tied him and gave him a nice grooming with the shedding blade and brush, making sure I added lots of cuddles and a carrot reward.
I'd like to think not working him after capture would make him more likely to be willing to let me get him next time, but with Toby you can never tell. He has his own view of the world and it doesn't always make sense to me.
I've decided to catch him every day and do something with him--groom, treat, lunge, maybe even a very short ride--just to keep him somewhat civilized.
The last thing I need is a feral horse.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Swimming
On a Hot Day
I got a call in the early morning--6:30 AM--to go in to substitute on Friday. I hadn't slept really well, but that doesn't stop me. So I fed the Boys and headed off for school.
I left a little later than I wanted to, and, of course, ran into nearly every traffic issue I could find on the way. I got stuck behind a very slow truck on my road and then he had to stop for a landscaper's truck backing out of a driveway. Then, on the highway, I ran into a massive slowdown due to construction.
But I was still lucky. I was heading north. Had I been trying to go south, I might have been caught behind a huge group of bicyclists--there might have been 300--on the NJ Police Unity Tour. http://policeunitytour.com/chapter_1/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/2013-Information-Packet.pdf
The whole set of lanes on US 130 were blocked and behind the riders. As well, all the crossover roads were shut down while the bikers passed. I don't know of they were making any kind of stops to let the huge line of motor vehicles stuck behind them to pass at any point, but it didn't look to good from what I saw.
Got to school a little late, but well in time for homeroom and had a generally fun day. I was subbing for the English teacher I filled in for a couple years ago when she had her baby, so I was well adapted to both the subject and her schedule.
It was a hot day for May with temperatures up to at least 85F. Since the school is air conditioned, I was a bit surprised when I stepped out into the sunlight at the end of the day. As planned, I headed over to the gym and the indoor swimming pool. I did 12 laps all told with two of butterfly just to up the ante.
I took the back route home only to run into more traffic congestion. One of the traffic reports on the radio was noting congestion all over the place just due to traffic volume rather than any kind of obstructions. I guess it was not a good day to be out driving.
Home again, I fed the Boys, took a short walk out to the pasture to fix some fence rails and then collapsed in the house. While I considered working one of the horses, it was just too unexpectedly hot and I was surprisingly tired, so I opted out.
Today, Saturday, it's been raining off and on all day. I did take advantage of what I thought was a dry spell to take my walk. Ten minutes out and it started to shower. Nothing big and no thunder, so I pressed on and ended up walking for a good 40 minutes.
The arena is really wet and little storms keep cropping up--some with thunder--so I probably won't risk a ride.
I do have to admit it was kind of fun surprising Chance when I emerged from the woods at the back gate. I'd left through my front yard and circled all the way back. I could almost hear him saying, "Where the heck did you come from?"
He came over for a pat once he recognized me. Maybe tomorrow I'll take him out on nearly the same track I followed today. I suspect he'll take less than 40 minutes to do the trail.
Four legs can cover ground a lot faster than my two.
I got a call in the early morning--6:30 AM--to go in to substitute on Friday. I hadn't slept really well, but that doesn't stop me. So I fed the Boys and headed off for school.
I left a little later than I wanted to, and, of course, ran into nearly every traffic issue I could find on the way. I got stuck behind a very slow truck on my road and then he had to stop for a landscaper's truck backing out of a driveway. Then, on the highway, I ran into a massive slowdown due to construction.
But I was still lucky. I was heading north. Had I been trying to go south, I might have been caught behind a huge group of bicyclists--there might have been 300--on the NJ Police Unity Tour. http://policeunitytour.com/chapter_1/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/2013-Information-Packet.pdf
The whole set of lanes on US 130 were blocked and behind the riders. As well, all the crossover roads were shut down while the bikers passed. I don't know of they were making any kind of stops to let the huge line of motor vehicles stuck behind them to pass at any point, but it didn't look to good from what I saw.
Got to school a little late, but well in time for homeroom and had a generally fun day. I was subbing for the English teacher I filled in for a couple years ago when she had her baby, so I was well adapted to both the subject and her schedule.
It was a hot day for May with temperatures up to at least 85F. Since the school is air conditioned, I was a bit surprised when I stepped out into the sunlight at the end of the day. As planned, I headed over to the gym and the indoor swimming pool. I did 12 laps all told with two of butterfly just to up the ante.
I took the back route home only to run into more traffic congestion. One of the traffic reports on the radio was noting congestion all over the place just due to traffic volume rather than any kind of obstructions. I guess it was not a good day to be out driving.
Home again, I fed the Boys, took a short walk out to the pasture to fix some fence rails and then collapsed in the house. While I considered working one of the horses, it was just too unexpectedly hot and I was surprisingly tired, so I opted out.
Today, Saturday, it's been raining off and on all day. I did take advantage of what I thought was a dry spell to take my walk. Ten minutes out and it started to shower. Nothing big and no thunder, so I pressed on and ended up walking for a good 40 minutes.
The arena is really wet and little storms keep cropping up--some with thunder--so I probably won't risk a ride.
I do have to admit it was kind of fun surprising Chance when I emerged from the woods at the back gate. I'd left through my front yard and circled all the way back. I could almost hear him saying, "Where the heck did you come from?"
He came over for a pat once he recognized me. Maybe tomorrow I'll take him out on nearly the same track I followed today. I suspect he'll take less than 40 minutes to do the trail.
Four legs can cover ground a lot faster than my two.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Ooops!
I Nearly Forget Choir Rehearsal
I spent the early afternoon napping and woke up with all kinds of ideas of what to do with the rest of the day.
First on the agenda was a nice walk. I headed out to the tree farm and managed about 40 minutes or so at a rather good pace. The terrain is a bit hilly in several places. Nothing huge, but enough to make me feel the work going up.
Then I got home and fed the Boys figuring I'd manage a ride or workout with Tucker later. It had rained pretty heavily the day before, as predicted, so parts of the arena were really wet. I thought I'd take the time to long line him.
While the Boys were eating I headed to the supermarket to stock up on a few proteins for my breakfast. I wanted some good whole wheat bread, cottage cheese and some fruit to eat with it. By the time I got home it was going on 6:15 or so.
I was nearly out to the barn to long line when I suddenly realized it was Thursday--choir night.
Major change of plans. I grabbed the lunge line and the halter. A carrot bribed Tucker into my keeping and I led him out to the arena for a lungeing session. He was a very good boy, which was also very good as I really didn't have enough time to fuss with him if he needed any extra discipline.
My only problem was that Toby managed to sneak into the arena with us by knocking down a fence rail. Why? I'll never know. He doesn't seem to want to work himself, but he does feel the need to supervise the training of the other horses. By in large he stayed out of the way, but on Tucker's last few circles, he headed right into the path of travel. Fortunately, we avoided a collision and were able to finish up without further incident.
I wonder if Toby actually does want to be captured and worked a little? I was thinking I ought to ride him just a bit now and then. Maybe he's trying to tell me something.
It was off to choir shortly after. The season is nearly over so rehearsals are getting shorter.
Soon, I won't have to remember choir practice for the summer.
But not yet.
I spent the early afternoon napping and woke up with all kinds of ideas of what to do with the rest of the day.
First on the agenda was a nice walk. I headed out to the tree farm and managed about 40 minutes or so at a rather good pace. The terrain is a bit hilly in several places. Nothing huge, but enough to make me feel the work going up.
Then I got home and fed the Boys figuring I'd manage a ride or workout with Tucker later. It had rained pretty heavily the day before, as predicted, so parts of the arena were really wet. I thought I'd take the time to long line him.
While the Boys were eating I headed to the supermarket to stock up on a few proteins for my breakfast. I wanted some good whole wheat bread, cottage cheese and some fruit to eat with it. By the time I got home it was going on 6:15 or so.
I was nearly out to the barn to long line when I suddenly realized it was Thursday--choir night.
Major change of plans. I grabbed the lunge line and the halter. A carrot bribed Tucker into my keeping and I led him out to the arena for a lungeing session. He was a very good boy, which was also very good as I really didn't have enough time to fuss with him if he needed any extra discipline.
My only problem was that Toby managed to sneak into the arena with us by knocking down a fence rail. Why? I'll never know. He doesn't seem to want to work himself, but he does feel the need to supervise the training of the other horses. By in large he stayed out of the way, but on Tucker's last few circles, he headed right into the path of travel. Fortunately, we avoided a collision and were able to finish up without further incident.
I wonder if Toby actually does want to be captured and worked a little? I was thinking I ought to ride him just a bit now and then. Maybe he's trying to tell me something.
It was off to choir shortly after. The season is nearly over so rehearsals are getting shorter.
Soon, I won't have to remember choir practice for the summer.
But not yet.
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