In the Swim of Things
I went swimming both yesterday and today. The water was kind of cold, but once I got going it felt wonderful! It's also great for my neck. I did 12 full laps each day and then rode around the lazy river about three times. Today, I was a bit cold on the river when the breeze picked up. I think it's cooling off a bit, which would be great for the week as my classroom is so miserable in the heat.
I lunged Tucker and Chance again as my knees are still "iffy." This time, I used the trotting poles as they were and then moved them to set up a little gymnastic which could be either trotted or cantered. There was a pole, a stride a little one foot jump, a stride and a pole so we could take it in either direction. Then, on the outside, near the fence, I set up a single, 2'6" jump.
Tucker was a bit lazy again at his trot work before we did the poles, but when I widened the circle to include them, he headed for them completely on his own and kept the line as honestly as he has ever done. When I added the little jump complex, he decided he preferred to trot it and really elevated his stride to get over the raised obstacle in the middle. He also, interestingly enough, seemed to prefer trotting into the approach of the 2'6" jump as well. This, he jumped, but it does take a little more effort to jump from a trot than from a canter, so I found his choice curious. I did ask him to canter in at least twice on each rein which he also did just fine. He really is a nice jumper.
Chance was in a "I'd rather canter" mood again, so I let him move on for a while until settling him into his trot work. His first pass through the little grid was at the canter, but then he alternated between trotting the obstacles and cantering them. I didn' t bother in insisting on either gait but just let him choose.
He did decide to canter the larger jump. But on the right rein, he kept wanting to pick up the left lead which made the jump a little more awkward. The last couple times, though, he took the right lead and put in a much nicer effort. The left lead was fine. Chance is a little "left handed" so I wasn't too worried about it. Under saddle, he will generally take the lead I ask for with a few mistakes on the right rein, but nothing that's difficult to fix.
All in all it was a fun schooling session and I think the Boys enjoyed themselves.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Muscles On My Horses
I Was Noticing in the Pics...
How well defined the muscles seem to be on all my horses. In particular, Tucker's shoulder muscles are really defined. Considering that he is not at peak fitness according to my riding and exercise program, I find this very interesting.
I would have expected Thorougbred muscles to be more evident, but I see similar development on Chance. And, to my surprise some on Toby as well. When he was in peak competition form, he was quite an impressive fellow, but he hardly does any work now and I still see muscle.
Ok, is it the play schedule? The hill in the pasture? The turnout? The feed? Or do my guys just get fit quickly due to the kind of work I give them?
I do remember some years ago attending a jumping clinic with one of the Leone brothers. I was riding PJ in perhaps his first ever jumping lesson. Leone, was it Mark or Michael or Peter, was commenting on how most riders just didn't get their horses properly fit for the work they expected of them. Now, PJ was a big bodied boy, with a very round musculature, and so Leone walked over to him to prove his point about how "soft" the horses in the clinic were. He poked his finger into PJ's shoulder and almost broke it as he hit solid muscle. "Well, not this horse," he said, obviously surprised.
I had been trained years before by an Olympic event rider as to how to leg my horses up for three phase competitions. At that time I rode an average of five to six days a week, combining ringwork with hacking, longlining, and cross country work. It was and still is my belief that a horse needs to be fit for more than is expected of him.
An old master dressage trainer I worked with advocated galloping dressage horses for at least three minutes a day. He felt wind and stamina were just as important to a good dressage horse as the strength training the sport develops.
Right now, my horses are far from what I consider truly fit, but we'll get there. In the meantime, I do still believe in varying the kinds of exercise they do get. Obviously, from the pictures I took the other morning, they also believe in varying the style and amount of their own exercise as well. It seems to be working--at least a little.
I guess among the four of us, we are not doing a bad job of maintaining at least some basic fitness.
How well defined the muscles seem to be on all my horses. In particular, Tucker's shoulder muscles are really defined. Considering that he is not at peak fitness according to my riding and exercise program, I find this very interesting.
I would have expected Thorougbred muscles to be more evident, but I see similar development on Chance. And, to my surprise some on Toby as well. When he was in peak competition form, he was quite an impressive fellow, but he hardly does any work now and I still see muscle.
Ok, is it the play schedule? The hill in the pasture? The turnout? The feed? Or do my guys just get fit quickly due to the kind of work I give them?
I do remember some years ago attending a jumping clinic with one of the Leone brothers. I was riding PJ in perhaps his first ever jumping lesson. Leone, was it Mark or Michael or Peter, was commenting on how most riders just didn't get their horses properly fit for the work they expected of them. Now, PJ was a big bodied boy, with a very round musculature, and so Leone walked over to him to prove his point about how "soft" the horses in the clinic were. He poked his finger into PJ's shoulder and almost broke it as he hit solid muscle. "Well, not this horse," he said, obviously surprised.
I had been trained years before by an Olympic event rider as to how to leg my horses up for three phase competitions. At that time I rode an average of five to six days a week, combining ringwork with hacking, longlining, and cross country work. It was and still is my belief that a horse needs to be fit for more than is expected of him.
An old master dressage trainer I worked with advocated galloping dressage horses for at least three minutes a day. He felt wind and stamina were just as important to a good dressage horse as the strength training the sport develops.
Right now, my horses are far from what I consider truly fit, but we'll get there. In the meantime, I do still believe in varying the kinds of exercise they do get. Obviously, from the pictures I took the other morning, they also believe in varying the style and amount of their own exercise as well. It seems to be working--at least a little.
I guess among the four of us, we are not doing a bad job of maintaining at least some basic fitness.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Nothing to Report
All Quiet at Follywoods
I was Friday worn out and didn't do anything with the Boys.
They seem to be hanging out more and more in the barn, so I suspect the bugs are out. I haven't seen much fly action around, but it might be the mosquitoes. I did put some fly spray on them and I have fly sheets. Guess they will go on today.
I also have some industrial floor fans. I put one in front of each Boy's gated door in the barn aisle to blow some air through. Keeps flies out and keeps the horses a little cooler on hot days.
I use a feed through fly control--this year Simplifly--and fly predators, so I keep pretty good control of the stable flies. However, with 1200 acres of State forest behind me--the Pigeon SWAMP State Park--I have absolutely no control over mosquitoes, deer flies and all the other varieties that breed in the wet woodlands. I have fly traps around and a fogger to use if I really get frustrated.
And, I have a friend who works with the Mosquito Control Commission so if it gets really bad they will come over with the heliocopter to spray--presuming they have the funding to do their job this year.
For riding, if it gets bad, I have a full suit of Cashel bug armor for my horse. I picked up another suit on eBay last year for a song, so if anyone comes to visit, two horses can go out for a ride together. 
This is a picture of Tucker from last year in the Bug Armor. There is a belly piece too but I haven't quite figured out how to put it on. The stuff works great! I use it for schooling in the summer so he keeps his mind on me rather than the biting bugs. And it even keeps me safe when the big B52 bomber horse flies show up. Tucker bucked me off one when one of them attacked him and I now bail off when one shows up to be safe. But with the Bug Armor on, it's OK.
I saw some other riding fly sheets on eBay the other day. They have a cut out for the saddle and would, I guess, work too. The face piece is a separate purchase as the Bug Armor only covers his body. I bought one with ears so he doesn't shake his head.
I honestly can say this was one investment really worth the price. If your horses are bothered with biting bugs when you ride, I highly recommend it. If you are interested, do a web search for the best prices, and don't forget to check eBay.
Hope I get some swimming in today.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Out to Lunge and Lots of Pics
Rhodedendron in Bloom In Front of My House
This Time All Three Lunged
Here is the full rhododendron bush.
Here is the bank in front of the house I have to cut with the string trimmer.I don't mean to ignore Toby, but he doesn't usually seem to be at all interested in being ridden or worked. As a matter of fact, most of the time he makes a point of walking, or even running away. When he was in full training he behaved that way too, but I always caught him anyhow. Tonight, he saw me coming into the pasture and started what I call his "landing pattern." He walks away, then does a big half circle to come in to my side rather than front on. He knew I had treats and was perfectly willing to stand as I put on the halter and THEN gave him his treat.
The Boys. Look at the poor fence!I gave him a moderately short lungeing session, trotting him over the poles. He is so dead on honest about it too. Unlike Tucker, he never tries to run out of the line but just keeps a good steady trot into the poles, through and then back out. If there is one thing I can say about him--he is not a cheat and never has been. That's one of the reasons I always knew when something physical was bothering him. If he didn't work, it usually meant something was sore. As I moved into the upper levels--eventually Intermediare I--his hocks would get sore with the extra exertion of carrying himself on his hind end. He is built "level" in front, so elevating the front end took some work. I would treat him with adequan and he'd be fine for a while, but that's the reason I finally stopped competing him. I'd rather have a sound, older retired horse than an upper level sore dressage horse any day.
Which brings me to Tucker who has an entirely different perspective on life. He craves some kind of attention from me, especially if I have treats in my pocket. (I suspect he'd be a great candidate for clicker training) When Toby got his after work carrot, Tuck was in the barn and practically put the halter on himself so I could lunge him.
Tucker, looking handsome.Unlike Toby, I have to really keep after him and keep my eye on him. He takes off in a lazy trot that I have to constantly encourage to be forward with the whip and my voice. Over the line of poles, if I don't pay full attention, get him in straight and point the whip at his shoulder to keep him out on the circle where the poles are, he will take off in a canter and dive to the inside just to get out of going over the poles. He only got away with it once tonight, but I'm sure that quite pleased him. As I finished with the canter on the circle without the poles, despite my commands to "trot" or my chirps or my little snaps on the lunge line, he just kept on mindlessly cantering on until I pulled him into an eight meter circle right around me. He wasn't running, just cantering in a relaxed way, completely ignoring me.
Oh, by the way. Once, when he was supposed to take the right lead, going right, he took the left, counter lead instead. When I gave a little pull on the lunge line to the inside, he made a lovely flying change to the right lead. Aha! So do you think he wanted to show me he knows how to do them and what's wrong with me that I can't ride them on him? Huh? That'd be a Tucker thing for sure.
Chance is never a problem to catch. While he does need a little encouragement to move on when I am lungeing him, he is actually pretty honest, though lazier than Toby. He never tried to run out at the poles, but he did think, at least once, that cantering them would be easier. *lol* Actually, I think he prefers cantering to trotting. A good number of times, out on the trail, he has chosen to canter instead of trot when I have asked him to move out.
Chance overlooking his fence destructive hoofiwork.When I got home tonight, he and Toby were playing over the fences the same way he and Tucker were playing this morning.
That's Chance in the distance and Toby in front. As you can see, Chance spares no effort when he plays.
As you can see, the fences do need some work. I have now seen Chance very deliberately taking the slip boards out of the posts, so the fallen rails are no accident. The broken fence post is a result of lots of this kind of playing and some good body scratching. Fortunately the fence doesn't have to keep the horses in, so when it goes down it's just a nuisance. *sigh*
I wonder if this competition was the final, championship round of the games that started this morning. Maybe tomorrow morning I will see the trophy presentation?
My Knees Hurt
Nice Day Too
My knees are really aching. I think I am going to have to go back to my knee doctor for some more treatments.
Thought I might work a Boy or two, but just didn't make it.
This morning Tuck and Chance were romping back and forth along the fence between the paddock and the arena. Chance inside, Tuck outside. Occasionally I heard a wooden "clunk" as someone's hoof hit a fence rail. At least I know how the fence line gets knocked apart over there.
And, I am pleased to say that as he romped, Tucker was rounding himself up "on the bit"...without the bit, of course. What I like about that is that it is either an instinct or a result of training which allows the horse to be far more maneuverable. Some horses motorcyle around, always on the brink of being out of balance. When they go "on the bit" by themselves they can turn, stop, and change gaits much more efficiently, running circles around a less athletic horse.
Just an observation from one who did not ride again.
My knees are really aching. I think I am going to have to go back to my knee doctor for some more treatments.
Thought I might work a Boy or two, but just didn't make it.
This morning Tuck and Chance were romping back and forth along the fence between the paddock and the arena. Chance inside, Tuck outside. Occasionally I heard a wooden "clunk" as someone's hoof hit a fence rail. At least I know how the fence line gets knocked apart over there.
And, I am pleased to say that as he romped, Tucker was rounding himself up "on the bit"...without the bit, of course. What I like about that is that it is either an instinct or a result of training which allows the horse to be far more maneuverable. Some horses motorcyle around, always on the brink of being out of balance. When they go "on the bit" by themselves they can turn, stop, and change gaits much more efficiently, running circles around a less athletic horse.
Just an observation from one who did not ride again.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Drip, Drip, Drip
Perfect Timing
Nice and cool today but the rain came in just as I was leaving school. Off and on, not quite downpours, but enough to put me off.
I stripped Chance's stall and then bedded everyone with nice fresh shavings as the rain dribbled down. Chance had not eaten his alfalfa cubes from the morning--rather unusual--but he seemed quite pleased to find them as dessert for dinner.
Toby spooked, as he often does, from the shavings bag. It's a long story, but I have a feeling a rather unfriendly barn manager years ago discovered he was a bit worried about the rustling shavings bags and made a point of scaring him as much as possible with them. I think his original fear stemmed from a horrendous storm that ripped through one season and blew all the plastic off the windows, making them flap in the winds, inside the barn.
All just a theory, mind you, but Toby is definitely a spook about the bags even to this day. I am always careful around him and try to reassure him, but tonight he did snort pretty wildly and run out of his stall until I had finished bedding him down.
Since I was worn out to start off with after a day at school--with the final performance of my play--I limped back into the house after finishing the stalls and feeding. My knees are pretty sore too as a result of all the wheelbarrow pushing, so maybe resting them won't hurt as much as riding with them in the rain.
I'm listening for thunder now.
As for the play--my 9th grade classes as well as a few of my 10th graders came to see it along with a small group from a neighboring high school. My kids were really enthusiastic. They told me they loved it, and one girl told me it "gave her chills." I gave my 4th period class the worksheet and I must admit their answers were excellent. It clearly showed me they understoon the play and were really thinking about all its elements. I am more than pleased.
Next phase is to market it to the outside world. I just need to do a little research and send it off. A rather easy task this time, so I have good hopes for some success.
Nice and cool today but the rain came in just as I was leaving school. Off and on, not quite downpours, but enough to put me off.
I stripped Chance's stall and then bedded everyone with nice fresh shavings as the rain dribbled down. Chance had not eaten his alfalfa cubes from the morning--rather unusual--but he seemed quite pleased to find them as dessert for dinner.
Toby spooked, as he often does, from the shavings bag. It's a long story, but I have a feeling a rather unfriendly barn manager years ago discovered he was a bit worried about the rustling shavings bags and made a point of scaring him as much as possible with them. I think his original fear stemmed from a horrendous storm that ripped through one season and blew all the plastic off the windows, making them flap in the winds, inside the barn.
All just a theory, mind you, but Toby is definitely a spook about the bags even to this day. I am always careful around him and try to reassure him, but tonight he did snort pretty wildly and run out of his stall until I had finished bedding him down.
Since I was worn out to start off with after a day at school--with the final performance of my play--I limped back into the house after finishing the stalls and feeding. My knees are pretty sore too as a result of all the wheelbarrow pushing, so maybe resting them won't hurt as much as riding with them in the rain.
I'm listening for thunder now.
As for the play--my 9th grade classes as well as a few of my 10th graders came to see it along with a small group from a neighboring high school. My kids were really enthusiastic. They told me they loved it, and one girl told me it "gave her chills." I gave my 4th period class the worksheet and I must admit their answers were excellent. It clearly showed me they understoon the play and were really thinking about all its elements. I am more than pleased.
Next phase is to market it to the outside world. I just need to do a little research and send it off. A rather easy task this time, so I have good hopes for some success.
Monday, May 25, 2009
What in the World
Hotter Than Predicted
Fed the Boys in the morning and thought it was a little warmer out than I'd expected. I spent the morning in the house doing nothing really worthwhile, then went out to strip the stalls.
The Boys have been bedding their stalls with hay for the last month or so. While I do pick out, I don't strip out all the bedding regularly. I fear the hay had gotten a bit out of hand. As I said, it was a lot hotter out there than I expected. I managed to finish Tucker's stall and Toby's stall before I just ran out of steam or rather, ended up soaked in sweat and pretty overheated.
No wonder! When I checked the temperature on the garage thermometer--it is in the full sunshine--it was at about 100F. Not quite so bad in the shade, but not exactly moderate. No wonder the Boys were hanging out inside the barn. I thought about setting up their fans, but decided to wait to see what happens over the next week. It is supposed to cool off again.
I fed the Boys dinner and headed for the pool. More exercise. Just what I needed. I actually managed to swim 12 laps, 24 lengths of the pool today, so that is progress. Trouble is, the pool will not be open during the week, so I won't be able to build myself of that way until next Saturday. Ah well. This time, if the weather forecast is right, it should be only around 60F tomorrow, so I guess I won't miss the swimming too much.
I may go out later to work a horse or finish up Chance's stall. It all depends on how I feel in an hour or so when the sun eases off. At least my solar panels are getting a good dose of energy. I can't tell from the new meter on my house whether I am producing more energy than I am using, but the system is supposed to. Guess I will just have to wait until the next bill comes to see.
Fed the Boys in the morning and thought it was a little warmer out than I'd expected. I spent the morning in the house doing nothing really worthwhile, then went out to strip the stalls.
The Boys have been bedding their stalls with hay for the last month or so. While I do pick out, I don't strip out all the bedding regularly. I fear the hay had gotten a bit out of hand. As I said, it was a lot hotter out there than I expected. I managed to finish Tucker's stall and Toby's stall before I just ran out of steam or rather, ended up soaked in sweat and pretty overheated.
No wonder! When I checked the temperature on the garage thermometer--it is in the full sunshine--it was at about 100F. Not quite so bad in the shade, but not exactly moderate. No wonder the Boys were hanging out inside the barn. I thought about setting up their fans, but decided to wait to see what happens over the next week. It is supposed to cool off again.
I fed the Boys dinner and headed for the pool. More exercise. Just what I needed. I actually managed to swim 12 laps, 24 lengths of the pool today, so that is progress. Trouble is, the pool will not be open during the week, so I won't be able to build myself of that way until next Saturday. Ah well. This time, if the weather forecast is right, it should be only around 60F tomorrow, so I guess I won't miss the swimming too much.
I may go out later to work a horse or finish up Chance's stall. It all depends on how I feel in an hour or so when the sun eases off. At least my solar panels are getting a good dose of energy. I can't tell from the new meter on my house whether I am producing more energy than I am using, but the system is supposed to. Guess I will just have to wait until the next bill comes to see.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
And The Heat Is On
But Not For Long
Well, it was up into the 90's F today, and warm even early when I headed out for church. Too hot to ride.
Went to lunch, and got home to take a short nap, trying to decide how to spend the rest of the afternoon.
It was definitely hot enough to swim, so I fed the Boys and headed out to the pool. Now, mind you, this is the first weekend they have been open and the water has not heated up from the sun yet. I would not be able to estimate how cold it was, but let's just say, "chilly." However, as is often the case, once I got in and began to swim, it felt WONDERFUL!!
I suspect I will regret it tomorrow, but I did manage 10 full laps of the pool, up and back. I varied my strokes so I may not be too muscle sore. The biggest issue was the breathing. Even when I got into my relaxed rhythm, I was getting a little winded. I think the swimming really helps my breath control, so I suspect I am just out of shape and out of practice.
It was still warm when I came home but I decided the tall grass on the bank in front of the house needed to be trimmed. I pulled out my electric weed string trimmer only to discover it wouldn't work. The motor made a very sad sound and nothing happened. Don't know but it might have gotten some water in it over the winter or else it has just died a natural death.
Off I went to Home Depot to see what kind of trimmers they had. I found a new electric one at a pretty good price--heavy duty too--bought it and came back home. I struggled a little to get the string guard on it, but finally got it all together and began trimming.
The bank in front of the house is at least 150' long, perhaps longer and the grass was getting pretty tall. If I don't pay for the swimming, I am going to pay for the weed whacking instead.
It was starting to get dark when I finished and it was cooling off, but there was thunder in the west. The predicted storms were on the way. I closed off the pasture, gave the Boys some hay in their stalls and here I am, blogging away as the thunder just keeps rolling in.
I kind of figured I wasn't going to work the horses today anyhow. It was far too hot earlier and I knew the storms would come. I just lucked out in that they held off until I was able to get the bulk of the trimming done.
It is supposed to cool off tomorrow after some early rain. The rest of the week looks iffy with showers off and on but cooler temps. Good thing. My classroom is miserable in the heat. The longer it stays cool the better.
Might go for another even chillier swim tomorrow. I had forgotten how addicting it is. The pool is only open on weekends until almost the end of June so I might need to take advantage while I can.
We'll see.
Well, it was up into the 90's F today, and warm even early when I headed out for church. Too hot to ride.
Went to lunch, and got home to take a short nap, trying to decide how to spend the rest of the afternoon.
It was definitely hot enough to swim, so I fed the Boys and headed out to the pool. Now, mind you, this is the first weekend they have been open and the water has not heated up from the sun yet. I would not be able to estimate how cold it was, but let's just say, "chilly." However, as is often the case, once I got in and began to swim, it felt WONDERFUL!!
I suspect I will regret it tomorrow, but I did manage 10 full laps of the pool, up and back. I varied my strokes so I may not be too muscle sore. The biggest issue was the breathing. Even when I got into my relaxed rhythm, I was getting a little winded. I think the swimming really helps my breath control, so I suspect I am just out of shape and out of practice.
It was still warm when I came home but I decided the tall grass on the bank in front of the house needed to be trimmed. I pulled out my electric weed string trimmer only to discover it wouldn't work. The motor made a very sad sound and nothing happened. Don't know but it might have gotten some water in it over the winter or else it has just died a natural death.
Off I went to Home Depot to see what kind of trimmers they had. I found a new electric one at a pretty good price--heavy duty too--bought it and came back home. I struggled a little to get the string guard on it, but finally got it all together and began trimming.
The bank in front of the house is at least 150' long, perhaps longer and the grass was getting pretty tall. If I don't pay for the swimming, I am going to pay for the weed whacking instead.
It was starting to get dark when I finished and it was cooling off, but there was thunder in the west. The predicted storms were on the way. I closed off the pasture, gave the Boys some hay in their stalls and here I am, blogging away as the thunder just keeps rolling in.
I kind of figured I wasn't going to work the horses today anyhow. It was far too hot earlier and I knew the storms would come. I just lucked out in that they held off until I was able to get the bulk of the trimming done.
It is supposed to cool off tomorrow after some early rain. The rest of the week looks iffy with showers off and on but cooler temps. Good thing. My classroom is miserable in the heat. The longer it stays cool the better.
Might go for another even chillier swim tomorrow. I had forgotten how addicting it is. The pool is only open on weekends until almost the end of June so I might need to take advantage while I can.
We'll see.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Lovely Day!
Beeeautiful Weather!
It ended up in the upper 80's but there was a gorgeous breeze and low humidity so the day was just lovely. I spent too much time indoors, I suppose, but I got some washing done and a few other chores.
Then I went to the feed store to get alfalfa cubes. Stopped at the market on the way home for some hot dogs (weiners?) so I could have a little Memorial Day picnic kind of meal.
Came home and decided because it was so nice out that the Boys could go out and do some more lawn mowing for me. They were a bit silly again, and did a bit of romping, but by and large they trimmed a lot of the back lawn area for me.
For some reason, Tucker has been chasing Chance a lot lately. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that I am working both of them. Tucker does get jealous and might be trying to put Chance in his place. Chance doesn't seem to care too much but I hate to see him being tormented.
After the Boys grazed, I saddled up Tucker and gave him a good solid school in the arena. This was the first time since I started working him that I asked for some serious "on the bit" work at the trot and canter. Aside from one or two minor protests, he accepted the restriction quite well and gave me some good work.
I did accidentally get a flying change. I'm not sure why, especially since he changed from his right lead, going right on to his left lead. Interesting.
We had some nice half passes at the trot in each direction and good half passes at the canter in each direction as well. I finished up with a good number of times on each rein through the trotting poles, some very good reinback, and one walk pirouette on each rein.
I was rather worn out after that workout, so I went out to poo pick the arena as I'd neglected to do it before riding Tuck. Chance came out to "help" me and once the Big Boys saw that, they too came out to offer "assistance." Meaning that I had to wheel the barrow around them to get it to the manure pile.
After I finished, I caught Chance and gave him a lungeing session. He wanted to canter instead of trot at the start, so I simply let him, then did his trot work afterwards. I also sent him over the trotting poles a good number of times.
Once again, Toby wanted nothing to do with anything that vaguely resembled tack, so I just let him play "retired" horse. I will work him now and then to get him minimally fit, but he has worked hard enough in his life to just relax if he wants to.
I thought about going for a swim but it wasn't hot enough to inspire me beyond thinking about it.
It ended up in the upper 80's but there was a gorgeous breeze and low humidity so the day was just lovely. I spent too much time indoors, I suppose, but I got some washing done and a few other chores.
Then I went to the feed store to get alfalfa cubes. Stopped at the market on the way home for some hot dogs (weiners?) so I could have a little Memorial Day picnic kind of meal.
Came home and decided because it was so nice out that the Boys could go out and do some more lawn mowing for me. They were a bit silly again, and did a bit of romping, but by and large they trimmed a lot of the back lawn area for me.
For some reason, Tucker has been chasing Chance a lot lately. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that I am working both of them. Tucker does get jealous and might be trying to put Chance in his place. Chance doesn't seem to care too much but I hate to see him being tormented.
After the Boys grazed, I saddled up Tucker and gave him a good solid school in the arena. This was the first time since I started working him that I asked for some serious "on the bit" work at the trot and canter. Aside from one or two minor protests, he accepted the restriction quite well and gave me some good work.
I did accidentally get a flying change. I'm not sure why, especially since he changed from his right lead, going right on to his left lead. Interesting.
We had some nice half passes at the trot in each direction and good half passes at the canter in each direction as well. I finished up with a good number of times on each rein through the trotting poles, some very good reinback, and one walk pirouette on each rein.
I was rather worn out after that workout, so I went out to poo pick the arena as I'd neglected to do it before riding Tuck. Chance came out to "help" me and once the Big Boys saw that, they too came out to offer "assistance." Meaning that I had to wheel the barrow around them to get it to the manure pile.
After I finished, I caught Chance and gave him a lungeing session. He wanted to canter instead of trot at the start, so I simply let him, then did his trot work afterwards. I also sent him over the trotting poles a good number of times.
Once again, Toby wanted nothing to do with anything that vaguely resembled tack, so I just let him play "retired" horse. I will work him now and then to get him minimally fit, but he has worked hard enough in his life to just relax if he wants to.
I thought about going for a swim but it wasn't hot enough to inspire me beyond thinking about it.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Pics on a Friday Morning
Stayed Home 
"Hey, what'cha doin', Mom?"
"Hey, what'cha doin', Mom?"
Tucker takes a look as I take a picture.
Woke up with a migraine. Not so bad a headache but the tummy symptoms and a really bad neck issue. I decided to stay home from school. It promised to be a hot day and while I might have been able to tough it out on a cool day, the thought of fighting a headache in a hot classroom made me feel even worse.
After I fed the Boys I came back in and iced, heated, took a hot bath, tried everything to feel better. I had some marginal success. Fortutnately, I was able to get a chiropractor appointment quite early and after and adjustment felt a bit better.
But before I left, when I looked out and saw the Boys napping , I had to take some pictures.
Chance on the top. Toby below. Portraits of relaxation.
But then!!! Tucker saw Moby Chair on the lawn. He bolted and got the others up as would any responsible "watch stallion." Dangerous white thing outside the fence. Must keep and eye on it. Get ready to run!! 
Need I say I didn't ride? I had to go back to the chiropractor in the evening to get readjusted. I am feeling better now.
Long weekend ahead and the pool is open at the swim complex I belong to two roads over. I have a feeling the water will be icy cold, but if it's warm enough, I may dare a swim. Hopefully, I will be able to ride too.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
White Wash
And Tomorrow Is Another Day
And Moby Chair has had his day.
After cleaning out under the west run in roof--stuff accumulated from all winter long, including manure and old hay--I decided to long line Tucker. I am really trying to mix up the work I do to get him fit in a kind of "all round" way here. Lunging, riding for exercise, riding for dressage training, and long lining in a good upper level frame get his muscles working.
Moby Chair became an object of "gee, now I am going to be silly 'cause that stupid chair is out there and WHY NOT??" He was not scared of Moby but rather used it as an excuse to play around on the lines. Yep, that's a Thoroughbred for you. Full of creative invention.
Toby once spooked at a house on a hunter pace. A HOUSE! As we were approaching from hundreds of yards away, I could feel him starting to write a haunted house story with ghosts bobbing out of the windows. It really was quite a normal house and we never even got within a two hundred feet of it, but Toby had the story all finished as we passed and shied quite obviously all the way. Of course he also once spooked at a mouse on a log in the woods, so he is not particular about size.
But back to Tucker. A few time past and all was fine, but frankly the silliness is getting a bit old. He did give me some absolutely lovely work at the trot and canter, easily carrying himself in a good frame and, with lots of convincing, good impulsion. Actually, Moby Chair helped that along a bit because it did send him off at quite a clip a few times. In in all, I long lined him for about a half hour with two good breaks for some stretchy trot.
Then I sponged him off and went back out to take Moby Chair out of the woods. Well, that caused quite a ruckus as all three Boys spooked and bolted around the paddock when they saw the great white seat appear in the arena. And who was the first to trot over to put his nose on the plastic "monster?"
Tucker, of course. Not scared of it at all.
I put Moby in the yard. I may send him to recycling next week.
I let the mowermen out in the back yard again for about an hour. They unnerved me by running around a bit, but they finally settled down and trimmed my grass. They don't do the neatest job in the world, but it's a start. Guess I have to mow again this weekend.
So the memory of Moby has been washed away. The forest is green again. All is well.
Now all I have to worry about are the wild turkeys that keep showing up at the bird feeder.
And Moby Chair has had his day.
After cleaning out under the west run in roof--stuff accumulated from all winter long, including manure and old hay--I decided to long line Tucker. I am really trying to mix up the work I do to get him fit in a kind of "all round" way here. Lunging, riding for exercise, riding for dressage training, and long lining in a good upper level frame get his muscles working.
Moby Chair became an object of "gee, now I am going to be silly 'cause that stupid chair is out there and WHY NOT??" He was not scared of Moby but rather used it as an excuse to play around on the lines. Yep, that's a Thoroughbred for you. Full of creative invention.
Toby once spooked at a house on a hunter pace. A HOUSE! As we were approaching from hundreds of yards away, I could feel him starting to write a haunted house story with ghosts bobbing out of the windows. It really was quite a normal house and we never even got within a two hundred feet of it, but Toby had the story all finished as we passed and shied quite obviously all the way. Of course he also once spooked at a mouse on a log in the woods, so he is not particular about size.
But back to Tucker. A few time past and all was fine, but frankly the silliness is getting a bit old. He did give me some absolutely lovely work at the trot and canter, easily carrying himself in a good frame and, with lots of convincing, good impulsion. Actually, Moby Chair helped that along a bit because it did send him off at quite a clip a few times. In in all, I long lined him for about a half hour with two good breaks for some stretchy trot.
Then I sponged him off and went back out to take Moby Chair out of the woods. Well, that caused quite a ruckus as all three Boys spooked and bolted around the paddock when they saw the great white seat appear in the arena. And who was the first to trot over to put his nose on the plastic "monster?"
Tucker, of course. Not scared of it at all.
I put Moby in the yard. I may send him to recycling next week.
I let the mowermen out in the back yard again for about an hour. They unnerved me by running around a bit, but they finally settled down and trimmed my grass. They don't do the neatest job in the world, but it's a start. Guess I have to mow again this weekend.
So the memory of Moby has been washed away. The forest is green again. All is well.
Now all I have to worry about are the wild turkeys that keep showing up at the bird feeder.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Moby Chair
And the Great White Monster Rises from the Woods
Well, not to Chance. Chance noted the white chair and then happily went back to work when I rode him. He felt good from the start tonight, not uneven at all. Whatever that issue is with his hind leg, it comes and goes.
I did a good solid bit of trot work including going over the poles, still set from last night. His head is down and he is pushing into the bit, but he is far from steady. Every once in a while he has to use his head and neck to get his balance, but there is no doubt he is getting better and better.
Then, just to test a challenge, I walked for a while and then asked for canter. Well blow me down if my Chanceman didn't take about half a trot stride and then just canter off. Quite the fellow. I am not asking him to canter on the bit, nor to canter correctly, but just to canter off my aids from the walk. Once he understood he managed some fairly prompt departs on both reins. Now, mind you, he is not 100% about taking the correct lead but out of about six departs he took the cued lead four times at the least on each rein. Pretty impressive. The right canter is still a bit quick at times, and not as soft as the left, but he is not particularly difficult to get on the correct lead. What a good boy he is.
It was a bit warm so I kept the session on the short side and gave him a nice sponging after we finished---along with the carrot.
Then came Ahab and the great white whale of a plastic chair. Tucker has had free run of the arena ever since I put the chair in the woods days ago. He has been out there regularly. The other day I rode him in the arena with the chair outside. Last night I lunged him in the arena with the chair outside.
Today the chair once again became an object of obsession. From some 20 meters away, on the left rein only, he stopped, froze, stared at the chair and tried to spin away. I "Kennyed "him, back and forth, back and forth. He went past the chair, ignoring it. Then I trotted around the full arena and again, he balked and spooked at the evil, monstrous, attack chair in the woods.
Finally, in frustration, I dismounted, led him over to the area of the chair and lunged him on the end of the reins in a small circle, tapping him forward with the whip. Now this technique has a downside. If you hit the horse when he is near the object of his fear, he will associate it with being hit and become even more concerned about the object. So the idea is to establish "forward" with the whip before the horse is near the object so that he is in acceleration as he passes the object, getting the idea that going forward past it is the only right thing to do. A horse going forward does not tend to shy as much.
Once I got him going, I remounted and headed for the chair on the left rein, this time putting him in shoulder in position and really driving forward with my leg and voice. Two times past and the chair was virtually forgotten. However, to be safe about it, I still pushed him a bit into shoulder fore each time we were on that side of the arena.
I must admit, once I had established some good forward at the trot, his canter was nice and bouncy. It had a nice, elevated feel and I was able to keep him in a good frame the whole time.
I finished up with some trot/halt/reinback/trot transitions until he halted on his hind end and then did the reinback with no resistance. At that point, I had worked the both of us far harder than I had ever intended so I called it a night.
Moby Chair had lost its horror for the time being. But to quote another famous piece of literature...."Tomorrow is another day."
Well, not to Chance. Chance noted the white chair and then happily went back to work when I rode him. He felt good from the start tonight, not uneven at all. Whatever that issue is with his hind leg, it comes and goes.
I did a good solid bit of trot work including going over the poles, still set from last night. His head is down and he is pushing into the bit, but he is far from steady. Every once in a while he has to use his head and neck to get his balance, but there is no doubt he is getting better and better.
Then, just to test a challenge, I walked for a while and then asked for canter. Well blow me down if my Chanceman didn't take about half a trot stride and then just canter off. Quite the fellow. I am not asking him to canter on the bit, nor to canter correctly, but just to canter off my aids from the walk. Once he understood he managed some fairly prompt departs on both reins. Now, mind you, he is not 100% about taking the correct lead but out of about six departs he took the cued lead four times at the least on each rein. Pretty impressive. The right canter is still a bit quick at times, and not as soft as the left, but he is not particularly difficult to get on the correct lead. What a good boy he is.
It was a bit warm so I kept the session on the short side and gave him a nice sponging after we finished---along with the carrot.
Then came Ahab and the great white whale of a plastic chair. Tucker has had free run of the arena ever since I put the chair in the woods days ago. He has been out there regularly. The other day I rode him in the arena with the chair outside. Last night I lunged him in the arena with the chair outside.
Today the chair once again became an object of obsession. From some 20 meters away, on the left rein only, he stopped, froze, stared at the chair and tried to spin away. I "Kennyed "him, back and forth, back and forth. He went past the chair, ignoring it. Then I trotted around the full arena and again, he balked and spooked at the evil, monstrous, attack chair in the woods.
Finally, in frustration, I dismounted, led him over to the area of the chair and lunged him on the end of the reins in a small circle, tapping him forward with the whip. Now this technique has a downside. If you hit the horse when he is near the object of his fear, he will associate it with being hit and become even more concerned about the object. So the idea is to establish "forward" with the whip before the horse is near the object so that he is in acceleration as he passes the object, getting the idea that going forward past it is the only right thing to do. A horse going forward does not tend to shy as much.
Once I got him going, I remounted and headed for the chair on the left rein, this time putting him in shoulder in position and really driving forward with my leg and voice. Two times past and the chair was virtually forgotten. However, to be safe about it, I still pushed him a bit into shoulder fore each time we were on that side of the arena.
I must admit, once I had established some good forward at the trot, his canter was nice and bouncy. It had a nice, elevated feel and I was able to keep him in a good frame the whole time.
I finished up with some trot/halt/reinback/trot transitions until he halted on his hind end and then did the reinback with no resistance. At that point, I had worked the both of us far harder than I had ever intended so I called it a night.
Moby Chair had lost its horror for the time being. But to quote another famous piece of literature...."Tomorrow is another day."
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Lots of Lungeing
Good Reports and Good Ups and Downs
First, school. I now have about half of my students' reviews of the play and they are all raves. The kids really liked it. A few even said it was the best thing they'd ever seen. When I asked them if they were being honest, they insisted they were and we had a nice, short little discussion about it all. A few of them were not quite clear on all the stories, but either I or the other students were able to explain things to them and apparently that made them like the play even more.
So, what did they like? The acting impressed them for certain. They really felt the actors brought the characters to life. And they seemed to like the fact that everything was very current and with circumstances, characters, and events they could relate to. They felt the characters were real teenagers. While the play was sad and intense, they made some insightful comments about how insenstive the news reporter was and how important is was that she learned to care about people by the end of the story. They liked how the film was integrated into the live action and, as I've heard before, weren't quite sure whether our adult actor who appeared on film was actually an actor or a real person who had experienced the tragedy.
All, in all, from what I can tell, the play effectively relates to teenage audiences and was quite a success in getting them to think about safe driving practices and how precious life is.
One girl stayed after class to talk. She told me the play had turned out to be sadly ironic for her. Apparently a day after she saw it, one of her friends was killed in a car crash on the way home from a night of bowling. She said it made the play's message hit home to her. I felt so sad for her and gave her a hug. She had gone to the girl's wake over the weekend and could not get any of it out of her mind. The girl who was killed as a passenger and too young to drive yet...circumstances similar to one of the stories in the play. Kind of chilling when you think about it.
We also received an email from one of the teachers in another school about how powerful the play had been for her. She had lost several family members in auto accidents. She thanked us for carrying the message to the kids about how easily mistakes behind the wheel can have tragic consequences.
One more performance on May 26 and then "Stick River" goes to bed. I will be marketing it to some other play publishing companies soon. Now that I have worked out all the little issues in the script and know what works on stage, I think I have a very saleable product.
Since I went to the chiropractor after school. I opted out of riding. My lower back was out of alignment too, probably a partial result of trying to straighten myself on the horses. Either they, or I, or both are at fault for being crooked. At least for the moment, I am straight. With a day out of the saddle, maybe I will fix myself enough to be straight the next time I get on.
Instead, I lunged. I gave Tucker a good workout with quite a bit of trot and canter. Then, I set him at four trotting poles I'd set up. They were slightly elevated at one end which made him have to pick up his feet and flex his joints as he went over them. He looked quite nice the first few passes until he started to get silly. I tried to tell him cantering the poles just wouldn't work, but he tried anyhow. When that failed, he went back to trot and managed enough good passes to finish up.
Then, I set him at a jump of about 2'3". Just a single pole with wings on the side to both keep him in line and for me to slide the lunge line over so it didn't get caught. Let me tell you, Tucker is one nice jumper. As I've said before, he stays relaxed, judges the distance well on his own, and sets himself up for the effort whether from the trot or canter. He makes it tempting for me to want to do some more serious fence work with him, but I don't think my knees could take it and, I'm not sure I want to add the risk any more. Ah, well. Sometimes I do miss it.
I lunged Chance next. He has some issue with his right hind leg. I have had the vet look at him and he can't find anything wrong, so it's either something high up or a difficult to find muscle thing. For now, the solution is to leg him up. Sometimes he starts out fine, and on other days, like today, he starts off with quite and irregular stride. I have found that after he canters, the trot is often better, so I suspect something muscular.
I let him choose his gait for the first few times around and he cantered a bit on his own. Then, I brought him back to the trot and gave him a good work on either rein. I must say, his canter on both leads was very soft and relaxed. I do know it's lovely to ride and it has improved quite a bit to watch since I first started him.
Although he is a hand shorter than Tucker, I did not have to reset the trot poles for Chance. Granted, he had to stretch more to make the stride as opposed to Tucker's having to simply lift his legs more, but they were just fine for him. He too got a bit silly with at least one attempt to canter them...an escape from the work the trot demands....but overall he was much more honest about going over them without always being on the perfect line into them.
If Tucker is relaxed about jumping, Chance takes a nap. He uses the minimum energy necessary to get over cleanly and loses most of it on the landing side. He is brave and honest, and does not even seem to think about either stopping or running out. Again, it's such a pleasant picture he tempts me as well.
Now I know how my sweet Russell R. felt when he was too lame to jump anymore. Ah, to be young and sound again, so we could jump together....my horses and I.
First, school. I now have about half of my students' reviews of the play and they are all raves. The kids really liked it. A few even said it was the best thing they'd ever seen. When I asked them if they were being honest, they insisted they were and we had a nice, short little discussion about it all. A few of them were not quite clear on all the stories, but either I or the other students were able to explain things to them and apparently that made them like the play even more.
So, what did they like? The acting impressed them for certain. They really felt the actors brought the characters to life. And they seemed to like the fact that everything was very current and with circumstances, characters, and events they could relate to. They felt the characters were real teenagers. While the play was sad and intense, they made some insightful comments about how insenstive the news reporter was and how important is was that she learned to care about people by the end of the story. They liked how the film was integrated into the live action and, as I've heard before, weren't quite sure whether our adult actor who appeared on film was actually an actor or a real person who had experienced the tragedy.
All, in all, from what I can tell, the play effectively relates to teenage audiences and was quite a success in getting them to think about safe driving practices and how precious life is.
One girl stayed after class to talk. She told me the play had turned out to be sadly ironic for her. Apparently a day after she saw it, one of her friends was killed in a car crash on the way home from a night of bowling. She said it made the play's message hit home to her. I felt so sad for her and gave her a hug. She had gone to the girl's wake over the weekend and could not get any of it out of her mind. The girl who was killed as a passenger and too young to drive yet...circumstances similar to one of the stories in the play. Kind of chilling when you think about it.
We also received an email from one of the teachers in another school about how powerful the play had been for her. She had lost several family members in auto accidents. She thanked us for carrying the message to the kids about how easily mistakes behind the wheel can have tragic consequences.
One more performance on May 26 and then "Stick River" goes to bed. I will be marketing it to some other play publishing companies soon. Now that I have worked out all the little issues in the script and know what works on stage, I think I have a very saleable product.
Since I went to the chiropractor after school. I opted out of riding. My lower back was out of alignment too, probably a partial result of trying to straighten myself on the horses. Either they, or I, or both are at fault for being crooked. At least for the moment, I am straight. With a day out of the saddle, maybe I will fix myself enough to be straight the next time I get on.
Instead, I lunged. I gave Tucker a good workout with quite a bit of trot and canter. Then, I set him at four trotting poles I'd set up. They were slightly elevated at one end which made him have to pick up his feet and flex his joints as he went over them. He looked quite nice the first few passes until he started to get silly. I tried to tell him cantering the poles just wouldn't work, but he tried anyhow. When that failed, he went back to trot and managed enough good passes to finish up.
Then, I set him at a jump of about 2'3". Just a single pole with wings on the side to both keep him in line and for me to slide the lunge line over so it didn't get caught. Let me tell you, Tucker is one nice jumper. As I've said before, he stays relaxed, judges the distance well on his own, and sets himself up for the effort whether from the trot or canter. He makes it tempting for me to want to do some more serious fence work with him, but I don't think my knees could take it and, I'm not sure I want to add the risk any more. Ah, well. Sometimes I do miss it.
I lunged Chance next. He has some issue with his right hind leg. I have had the vet look at him and he can't find anything wrong, so it's either something high up or a difficult to find muscle thing. For now, the solution is to leg him up. Sometimes he starts out fine, and on other days, like today, he starts off with quite and irregular stride. I have found that after he canters, the trot is often better, so I suspect something muscular.
I let him choose his gait for the first few times around and he cantered a bit on his own. Then, I brought him back to the trot and gave him a good work on either rein. I must say, his canter on both leads was very soft and relaxed. I do know it's lovely to ride and it has improved quite a bit to watch since I first started him.
Although he is a hand shorter than Tucker, I did not have to reset the trot poles for Chance. Granted, he had to stretch more to make the stride as opposed to Tucker's having to simply lift his legs more, but they were just fine for him. He too got a bit silly with at least one attempt to canter them...an escape from the work the trot demands....but overall he was much more honest about going over them without always being on the perfect line into them.
If Tucker is relaxed about jumping, Chance takes a nap. He uses the minimum energy necessary to get over cleanly and loses most of it on the landing side. He is brave and honest, and does not even seem to think about either stopping or running out. Again, it's such a pleasant picture he tempts me as well.
Now I know how my sweet Russell R. felt when he was too lame to jump anymore. Ah, to be young and sound again, so we could jump together....my horses and I.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Riding, Riding Over the Bounding Sand
Double Trouble
I fed the Boys when I got home from school, came inside and made a casserole for dinner. Now I have something to take for lunch tomorrow too.
Then I went back outside, poo picked the arena, and headed out to the pasture to collect the first horse who came to me.
Guess who?
Chance. Once I gave him a bit of carrot, we were "assaulted" by the big Boys who insisted on their share. I gave them each a treat then had to fend them off by spinning the lead rope in their faces so I could safely lead Chance in. Otherwise they wanted to herd him away from me so they could get more attention. Typical. Don't come to me when I call, but then don't go away after they find out I have food.
Saddled Chance up and headed into the arena. I had forgotten about the evil white chair at the edge of the woods! Evil chair. Dangerous chair. This from a horse who had been turned out for two days in the arena where lurked the evil white chair. However, it's obvious the chair took on a new and far more sinister character when I was in the saddle as opposed to its simple lurking there during the day when Chance was free.
So we did the "Kenny technique" going back and forth along the side of the arena where lurked the chair until it suddenly lost all its terrifying power and we could simply ignore its presence.
Chance worked well, but I felt that little "hitch" he gets in his hind end. My vet was never able to find anything wrong and it does go away after he loosens up. We also suspect it will go away once he is legged up properly. I kept on riding, and, after I cantered, he felt much more even.
Chance does want me to sit off to the right, so I spent the bulk of the ride really concentrating on keeping my seat even by deliberately getting long on my left side every time I felt myself being pushed off to the right. Considering how few times Chance has been worked in the last two months, he was quite good and I feel he will catch on quickly to the good solid basic concept of on the bit within a few weeks of regular work.
Done with Chance, I rode Tucker next. My focus for him was making him supple. With his short back and neck, he is not "snakey" like Toby, but rather tends to not bend through his body if he can avoid it. I have an exercise where I do ten meter circles first to the right, then to the left, each time changing direction by pushing his hind end through to the new outside rein with a bit of a lateral step.
I did the same exercise at the walk and then the trot, also insisting that he not use the rein for balance in the change of direction or change of pace. Then, I worked a bit on the canter, again insisting on suppleness first. Tucker was very resistant to the right lead cue, threatening to kick out against my leg. I don't know if this was because he didn't like cantering with his right hind really under his body--a throwback to the sore hocks--or if he may be having a little ulcer problems. I planned on giving him a course of ulcer medication anyhow, so I may start tomorrow morning. Either way, he kind of settled into the exercise of repeated trot/canter/trot transitions on both rein without too much protest.
I finished up with some introductory half passes at the walk and trot. Again, because he hasn't worked a lot in the last few months, I didn't demand too much. But I was pleased that while he didn't give too much crossover, he moved relatively easily off my leg with the correct bend, so it was a good bit of remedial work to start off.
All in all, it was a good evening.
I fed the Boys when I got home from school, came inside and made a casserole for dinner. Now I have something to take for lunch tomorrow too.
Then I went back outside, poo picked the arena, and headed out to the pasture to collect the first horse who came to me.
Guess who?
Chance. Once I gave him a bit of carrot, we were "assaulted" by the big Boys who insisted on their share. I gave them each a treat then had to fend them off by spinning the lead rope in their faces so I could safely lead Chance in. Otherwise they wanted to herd him away from me so they could get more attention. Typical. Don't come to me when I call, but then don't go away after they find out I have food.
Saddled Chance up and headed into the arena. I had forgotten about the evil white chair at the edge of the woods! Evil chair. Dangerous chair. This from a horse who had been turned out for two days in the arena where lurked the evil white chair. However, it's obvious the chair took on a new and far more sinister character when I was in the saddle as opposed to its simple lurking there during the day when Chance was free.
So we did the "Kenny technique" going back and forth along the side of the arena where lurked the chair until it suddenly lost all its terrifying power and we could simply ignore its presence.
Chance worked well, but I felt that little "hitch" he gets in his hind end. My vet was never able to find anything wrong and it does go away after he loosens up. We also suspect it will go away once he is legged up properly. I kept on riding, and, after I cantered, he felt much more even.
Chance does want me to sit off to the right, so I spent the bulk of the ride really concentrating on keeping my seat even by deliberately getting long on my left side every time I felt myself being pushed off to the right. Considering how few times Chance has been worked in the last two months, he was quite good and I feel he will catch on quickly to the good solid basic concept of on the bit within a few weeks of regular work.
Done with Chance, I rode Tucker next. My focus for him was making him supple. With his short back and neck, he is not "snakey" like Toby, but rather tends to not bend through his body if he can avoid it. I have an exercise where I do ten meter circles first to the right, then to the left, each time changing direction by pushing his hind end through to the new outside rein with a bit of a lateral step.
I did the same exercise at the walk and then the trot, also insisting that he not use the rein for balance in the change of direction or change of pace. Then, I worked a bit on the canter, again insisting on suppleness first. Tucker was very resistant to the right lead cue, threatening to kick out against my leg. I don't know if this was because he didn't like cantering with his right hind really under his body--a throwback to the sore hocks--or if he may be having a little ulcer problems. I planned on giving him a course of ulcer medication anyhow, so I may start tomorrow morning. Either way, he kind of settled into the exercise of repeated trot/canter/trot transitions on both rein without too much protest.
I finished up with some introductory half passes at the walk and trot. Again, because he hasn't worked a lot in the last few months, I didn't demand too much. But I was pleased that while he didn't give too much crossover, he moved relatively easily off my leg with the correct bend, so it was a good bit of remedial work to start off.
All in all, it was a good evening.
Nothing To Report
Sunday Off
Intended to ride or something and ended up cleaning the house instead.
After church I went to lunch with my friends, came home and a wave of tiredness swept over me again.
Well, I did pluck some nice grass for the Boys. I considered turning them out on the lawn again, but decided I was too busy inside to watch them so I changed my mind.
This week is supposed to be pretty nice, so I have every intention of working them.
The road....paved with good intentions???
On a side note. It looks like my students did hardly any of the work I left them when the subs were covering my classes all last week. I am not kind about this. The work was handed out. Therefore it should have been done. Double grades for all work I leave when there is a sub. That means 10 zeroes for each student who did not complete anything.
This does not bode well.
I will not be handing out duplicate copies of the assignments either. If a student does not have what the sub handed out, then he/she will just have to get a copy from somewhere else. The only exception will be students who were absent. This time I carefully counted the number of copies of each assignment I made, so there are and will be no extras.
'T'will be interesting.
Intended to ride or something and ended up cleaning the house instead.
After church I went to lunch with my friends, came home and a wave of tiredness swept over me again.
Well, I did pluck some nice grass for the Boys. I considered turning them out on the lawn again, but decided I was too busy inside to watch them so I changed my mind.
This week is supposed to be pretty nice, so I have every intention of working them.
The road....paved with good intentions???
On a side note. It looks like my students did hardly any of the work I left them when the subs were covering my classes all last week. I am not kind about this. The work was handed out. Therefore it should have been done. Double grades for all work I leave when there is a sub. That means 10 zeroes for each student who did not complete anything.
This does not bode well.
I will not be handing out duplicate copies of the assignments either. If a student does not have what the sub handed out, then he/she will just have to get a copy from somewhere else. The only exception will be students who were absent. This time I carefully counted the number of copies of each assignment I made, so there are and will be no extras.
'T'will be interesting.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Tired
Or Just Plain Worn Out
I didn't quite realize how exhausted I was. I slept late, despite my cats' noble efforts to get me out of bed by 7 AM. Made it to almost 8 AM and went out to feed the Boys.
Not sure what had been going on before I went out, but Tuck and Chance were all sweaty. Tuck had already rolled in the dirt and Chance did so soon after, so both of them were pretty messy looking. They did look happy, though. But then Tuck chased Chance away from the barn so Chance had to clearly wait his turn to come in to eat.
Then I came back inside and did some cursory house cleaning. I need to get things in order before Monday when the appraiser is coming for my new potential refinance. (Taking advantage of the lower interest rates if possible.)
Then, I took a short nap. Lazy Saturday, I guess.
I went out near dinner time, to do a little horsework. This time, I lunged Tucker. He really looked wonderful on the line when he spooked at the famous white plastic chair I had moved in the woods outside the arena. Lovely arch to his neck, elevated strides and an elegant carriage. Now if I could only get that when I was schooling dressage he would make quite an impression. At least I know the potential is there.
Meantime, he has become extraordinarily obedient on the lunge. I am able to ask for and get some good quick canter/trot/canter transistions, which are really good for building strength and balance.
However, when I went to get Chance, somebody...not sure whether it was Tucker or Toby, led a mad gallop out to the pasture, leaving me in the dampish dust (rained last night). It was pretty clear that unless I intended to walk out to collect him lungeing was not in the cards. It's OK, considering that I am physically pretty tired too. My knees ache, and I am just worn out.
I cleaned out the water trough and fed. Here I am, back inside.
One horse worked, so that was good. I'll see what tomorrow brings.
Guess I'm just not as young as I used to be.
I didn't quite realize how exhausted I was. I slept late, despite my cats' noble efforts to get me out of bed by 7 AM. Made it to almost 8 AM and went out to feed the Boys.
Not sure what had been going on before I went out, but Tuck and Chance were all sweaty. Tuck had already rolled in the dirt and Chance did so soon after, so both of them were pretty messy looking. They did look happy, though. But then Tuck chased Chance away from the barn so Chance had to clearly wait his turn to come in to eat.
Then I came back inside and did some cursory house cleaning. I need to get things in order before Monday when the appraiser is coming for my new potential refinance. (Taking advantage of the lower interest rates if possible.)
Then, I took a short nap. Lazy Saturday, I guess.
I went out near dinner time, to do a little horsework. This time, I lunged Tucker. He really looked wonderful on the line when he spooked at the famous white plastic chair I had moved in the woods outside the arena. Lovely arch to his neck, elevated strides and an elegant carriage. Now if I could only get that when I was schooling dressage he would make quite an impression. At least I know the potential is there.
Meantime, he has become extraordinarily obedient on the lunge. I am able to ask for and get some good quick canter/trot/canter transistions, which are really good for building strength and balance.
However, when I went to get Chance, somebody...not sure whether it was Tucker or Toby, led a mad gallop out to the pasture, leaving me in the dampish dust (rained last night). It was pretty clear that unless I intended to walk out to collect him lungeing was not in the cards. It's OK, considering that I am physically pretty tired too. My knees ache, and I am just worn out.
I cleaned out the water trough and fed. Here I am, back inside.
One horse worked, so that was good. I'll see what tomorrow brings.
Guess I'm just not as young as I used to be.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Play OVer For Now
And My Internet Was Down
Lost TV, phone, and Internet to a Comcast issue sometime on Thursday. I called early Thursday afternoon, then again later in the evening. Some mix up did not report my earlier complaint, so they set up an appointment "between 3 and 5" on Friday. Because we'd put the play on in the afternoon, I was able to leave school and get home in time to meet the cable man in the driveway.
I'd told them my aunt's cable was out next door, and when I got home, the lady who takes care of the man in the next house over had gone out to intercept them, apparently to tell them his cable was out too. Then, I called the neighbor in the other direction to find out that indeed their cable was not working. That meant the trouble was south of my house. Still the cable guy had to climb my pole to determine that the problem was not there and I had to sign the work order. Then they told me the other people should have called too.
OK. Duh. Neighbor one is about in his late 70's and not well. My aunt is in her 80's and neighbor three is elderly as well. Calling the cable company requires the understanding of one of those complex, "Dial one for info, dial two for service, dial three for...." well, you get the picture. Thus, it falls to me to make one call for everyone. Of course, cable company does not ever get that right. The last time, they had me make separate work orders for me and my aunt, with separate appointment times even though we are clearly both on the same cable server. At any rate, once they sorted out the fact that it was indeed a problem down the road somewhere, the whole system was back up and running in less than two hours. So, one good deed done for the day.
The play has now had five successful performances. We canceled the Thursday night show when too few people showed up as an audience. During the day, though, we were seen by four good sized teen audiences. There were some rude remarks and not too polite responses, but the actors did fantastic jobs regardless. What was fun from that side was seeing these young performers grow in the roles and become more secure and better. As well, they adapted to whatever the audience reactions were. Their work was phenomenal.
I don't know how the one adult in the cast did overall, but I have to admit when I had a few titters in the audience during my time on stage, I made a point of letting my speech to the reporter character reach out to the kids sitting in the dark and I felt them suddenly come to attention. I am not a great actor by any means, but 38 years of teaching have given me some ability to take charge of a situation and turn it around to my advantage--especially when I'm dealing with kids.
Let me put it this way. If my play makes one kid think twice when he's/she's driving, and makes him/her avoid a bad decision then it did it's job. And if it saves even one kid's life, then it was worth every hour of time, work, and exhaustion I've spent on it.
We have one more performance for a student audience on Tuesday, May 26, and then The Other Sidef of Stick River Road goes to bed for...well, who knows how long? It'd been an interesting, tiring, and rewarding journey.
Tomorrow? I intend some kind of horse activity. We shall see what I can manage. At least the Boys seem to know who I am....or is that just because I fill the feed buckets? *G*
Lost TV, phone, and Internet to a Comcast issue sometime on Thursday. I called early Thursday afternoon, then again later in the evening. Some mix up did not report my earlier complaint, so they set up an appointment "between 3 and 5" on Friday. Because we'd put the play on in the afternoon, I was able to leave school and get home in time to meet the cable man in the driveway.
I'd told them my aunt's cable was out next door, and when I got home, the lady who takes care of the man in the next house over had gone out to intercept them, apparently to tell them his cable was out too. Then, I called the neighbor in the other direction to find out that indeed their cable was not working. That meant the trouble was south of my house. Still the cable guy had to climb my pole to determine that the problem was not there and I had to sign the work order. Then they told me the other people should have called too.
OK. Duh. Neighbor one is about in his late 70's and not well. My aunt is in her 80's and neighbor three is elderly as well. Calling the cable company requires the understanding of one of those complex, "Dial one for info, dial two for service, dial three for...." well, you get the picture. Thus, it falls to me to make one call for everyone. Of course, cable company does not ever get that right. The last time, they had me make separate work orders for me and my aunt, with separate appointment times even though we are clearly both on the same cable server. At any rate, once they sorted out the fact that it was indeed a problem down the road somewhere, the whole system was back up and running in less than two hours. So, one good deed done for the day.
The play has now had five successful performances. We canceled the Thursday night show when too few people showed up as an audience. During the day, though, we were seen by four good sized teen audiences. There were some rude remarks and not too polite responses, but the actors did fantastic jobs regardless. What was fun from that side was seeing these young performers grow in the roles and become more secure and better. As well, they adapted to whatever the audience reactions were. Their work was phenomenal.
I don't know how the one adult in the cast did overall, but I have to admit when I had a few titters in the audience during my time on stage, I made a point of letting my speech to the reporter character reach out to the kids sitting in the dark and I felt them suddenly come to attention. I am not a great actor by any means, but 38 years of teaching have given me some ability to take charge of a situation and turn it around to my advantage--especially when I'm dealing with kids.
Let me put it this way. If my play makes one kid think twice when he's/she's driving, and makes him/her avoid a bad decision then it did it's job. And if it saves even one kid's life, then it was worth every hour of time, work, and exhaustion I've spent on it.
We have one more performance for a student audience on Tuesday, May 26, and then The Other Sidef of Stick River Road goes to bed for...well, who knows how long? It'd been an interesting, tiring, and rewarding journey.
Tomorrow? I intend some kind of horse activity. We shall see what I can manage. At least the Boys seem to know who I am....or is that just because I fill the feed buckets? *G*
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Need I Say It
Another Tough Day
All day rehearsal, but I had to add to it--modfying and prepping the program for printing, making a short version of the program for the matinee, trying to get the PowerPoint made into a DVD, acting as hostess for Open House visitors who ended up at the theater, making up flyers to hand out, and just generally doing all kinds of little chores that need doing behind the scenes.
9AM to 9PM today.
It will be no easier either Thursday or Friday. We have three performances scheduled. One at 10AM, one at 1:30 PM, and one at 7 PM each day.
I will be totally done in by Saturday.
I am done in now.
All day rehearsal, but I had to add to it--modfying and prepping the program for printing, making a short version of the program for the matinee, trying to get the PowerPoint made into a DVD, acting as hostess for Open House visitors who ended up at the theater, making up flyers to hand out, and just generally doing all kinds of little chores that need doing behind the scenes.
9AM to 9PM today.
It will be no easier either Thursday or Friday. We have three performances scheduled. One at 10AM, one at 1:30 PM, and one at 7 PM each day.
I will be totally done in by Saturday.
I am done in now.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Ditto
Almost Clone Yesterday
Except I did have a substitute so I didn't have to be in my classroom.
Spent the entire day in the theater except for a few trips to my room to use the computer to make the slide show. I got some really cute pictures. Not all that I wanted, but enough to do a good job. Now all I have to do is time it so it takes up the proper amount of time--yet to be decided--and we'll be set. I think.
We did a couple run throughs of the play and eventually discovered that the new ending really did not quite work out well enough. It was a pretty easy fix. We cut out one page and I had to rewrite a few lines of dialogue. It does make my part in the play even more significant, but I suppose that's OK. At least I know the stakes and know what HAS to be said, so there isn't much chance of important lines being dropped.
As far as my acting goes, it's just a matter of righteous indignation as a tell off the TV reporter for being totally insensitive to the humanity of the story she is covering--and trying to turn into a sensational expose. On the way home to feed the Boys after school--before the start of the evening rehearsal--I came up with a great idea to actually cover the action I had to delete in order to fix the end. It was a simple way to get the reporter to vindicate herself in the end and show a new-found compassion.
One or two of the replacement actors still have to develop their characters a bit more, but overall the play is pretty solid as it stands right now. The tech stuff is nearly set and I am pretty sure that by Thursday we will have one darn good show to present.
The Boys are starting to look at me with just a little concern. I do cuddle them when I feed, but it's kind of rush in, give them their meals, and then rush back off. Hopefully the weekend will afford me a little more time to do something with them.
I was really happy to see the stray outdoor cat back in the morning and tonight, when I came home, he was nestled on the pillow in the little cat condo the carpentry teacher built for us. He looked so comfy in there. I'd bet he feels nice and safe inside.
And hey, it's one of those special foam pillows that molds to the contours of your body!
Little stray cat body. Happy on his own memory foam!
Except I did have a substitute so I didn't have to be in my classroom.
Spent the entire day in the theater except for a few trips to my room to use the computer to make the slide show. I got some really cute pictures. Not all that I wanted, but enough to do a good job. Now all I have to do is time it so it takes up the proper amount of time--yet to be decided--and we'll be set. I think.
We did a couple run throughs of the play and eventually discovered that the new ending really did not quite work out well enough. It was a pretty easy fix. We cut out one page and I had to rewrite a few lines of dialogue. It does make my part in the play even more significant, but I suppose that's OK. At least I know the stakes and know what HAS to be said, so there isn't much chance of important lines being dropped.
As far as my acting goes, it's just a matter of righteous indignation as a tell off the TV reporter for being totally insensitive to the humanity of the story she is covering--and trying to turn into a sensational expose. On the way home to feed the Boys after school--before the start of the evening rehearsal--I came up with a great idea to actually cover the action I had to delete in order to fix the end. It was a simple way to get the reporter to vindicate herself in the end and show a new-found compassion.
One or two of the replacement actors still have to develop their characters a bit more, but overall the play is pretty solid as it stands right now. The tech stuff is nearly set and I am pretty sure that by Thursday we will have one darn good show to present.
The Boys are starting to look at me with just a little concern. I do cuddle them when I feed, but it's kind of rush in, give them their meals, and then rush back off. Hopefully the weekend will afford me a little more time to do something with them.
I was really happy to see the stray outdoor cat back in the morning and tonight, when I came home, he was nestled on the pillow in the little cat condo the carpentry teacher built for us. He looked so comfy in there. I'd bet he feels nice and safe inside.
And hey, it's one of those special foam pillows that molds to the contours of your body!
Little stray cat body. Happy on his own memory foam!
What a Day!
Too Much To Do
I am immersed in getting the play up and running. That is going to require my being down in the auditorium/theater most of this week instead of in my classroom. It also means rehearsals after school every day, with the evening performances on Thursday and Friday.
But yesterday, I did not yet have a substitute teacher, so I also had to sort of conduct my classes. Three of them were supposed to be doing testing on the computers as were a lot of other classes which were coming into my classroom to test. That left me with no classroom because some kind of teacher training thing was using the classroom I was supposed to go into while this special testing was using the computers in my room.
To complicate all that, I had to design some kind of lesson plans and materials for my students to cover the week. That meant running off copies of things and setting up my room so a sub could actually teach--except on Thursday when there will be testing again and my classes will have to meet somewhere else. Got that? I'm not even sure I do. *sigh*
Then I went down to the theater on my duty period for a quick run-through where I discovered that some of the cast had the wrong script without the revisions, messing up the ending of the play completely. Mind you, my classroom is at the complete opposite end of a very loooooong school building. I had to go back to my room, run off a new copy of the revised script and then make copies for the cast. Took them back and within another half hour had to head back to my room to teach for the afternoon. Taught, back to the auditorium to check on things, then back for another class. then home to feed the Boys--who are looking fine, fat and shiny--then back to school.
I had a semi-brilliant idea for a slide show to be presented before the show. I figured we could show all the characters in the play as they were before all the accidents happened. Let the audience see them enjoying life and just being kids who thought they were going to live forever.
While the tech crew and their teacher set the lights, I took pictures of the cast all over the school in all kinds of fun poses. We got into the gym for a basketball pose, a classroom for a "sleeping on the desk" pose, and out on the lawn and parking lot for "car crazy" poses and "we're just friends" poses. These (back in my classroom again) I put into a PowerPoint slide show that I have to finish up today--I hope. I do need more pictures yet and then will need to put them in some kind of order.
I also made flyers/posters and hung some of them up in the school, but by then I was worn out and managed to get one of the actors to put some others up around the school for me.
By the time I got home, I just crashed.
This will be how the entire week goes. Except, I hope, I should have a substitute to cover my classes. "Should." One never knows.
I am immersed in getting the play up and running. That is going to require my being down in the auditorium/theater most of this week instead of in my classroom. It also means rehearsals after school every day, with the evening performances on Thursday and Friday.
But yesterday, I did not yet have a substitute teacher, so I also had to sort of conduct my classes. Three of them were supposed to be doing testing on the computers as were a lot of other classes which were coming into my classroom to test. That left me with no classroom because some kind of teacher training thing was using the classroom I was supposed to go into while this special testing was using the computers in my room.
To complicate all that, I had to design some kind of lesson plans and materials for my students to cover the week. That meant running off copies of things and setting up my room so a sub could actually teach--except on Thursday when there will be testing again and my classes will have to meet somewhere else. Got that? I'm not even sure I do. *sigh*
Then I went down to the theater on my duty period for a quick run-through where I discovered that some of the cast had the wrong script without the revisions, messing up the ending of the play completely. Mind you, my classroom is at the complete opposite end of a very loooooong school building. I had to go back to my room, run off a new copy of the revised script and then make copies for the cast. Took them back and within another half hour had to head back to my room to teach for the afternoon. Taught, back to the auditorium to check on things, then back for another class. then home to feed the Boys--who are looking fine, fat and shiny--then back to school.
I had a semi-brilliant idea for a slide show to be presented before the show. I figured we could show all the characters in the play as they were before all the accidents happened. Let the audience see them enjoying life and just being kids who thought they were going to live forever.
While the tech crew and their teacher set the lights, I took pictures of the cast all over the school in all kinds of fun poses. We got into the gym for a basketball pose, a classroom for a "sleeping on the desk" pose, and out on the lawn and parking lot for "car crazy" poses and "we're just friends" poses. These (back in my classroom again) I put into a PowerPoint slide show that I have to finish up today--I hope. I do need more pictures yet and then will need to put them in some kind of order.
I also made flyers/posters and hung some of them up in the school, but by then I was worn out and managed to get one of the actors to put some others up around the school for me.
By the time I got home, I just crashed.
This will be how the entire week goes. Except, I hope, I should have a substitute to cover my classes. "Should." One never knows.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
