The Weather and Miscellaneous Horse Crazy Chatter

I haven't even made it to the barn since Monday's lesson. The weather has been nothing but beautiful during working hours, then after work it's been all tornado and severe weather warnings. This working for a living is wearing a bit thin :) Call me crazy but I don't really feel safe tracking down a soggy pony in an 80 acre field with lightning and hail hitting the immediate area. That's not to say I haven't done exactly that a few times this summer- nothing messes with lesson day- but it's obviously not the safest thing to do.

It's frustrating to miss out on rides since the facilities and coaching at the barn are excellent. With a little over a month left here, I'm feeling the pressure to take full advantage of it all and to try to be in a really solid place before we leave for the coast and are mostly left to our own devices for a few months. On the plus side, the barn at home is super close and I'll be able to ride every day. I also seem to accumulate an extra horse or two to ride while I'm there - the barn owner always has some youngsters in need of miles and has previously paid clinic fees if I take them. It all hopefully makes me a better rider! I could just keep the horses at home, but in the muddy coast winters the horses are just in a gravel paddock anyway and I would miss the company I get by being so close to the club facilities.

I've been spending this week checking out riding clinics on YouTube and watching just about every episode of the various Horse and Country TV shows available online. I can be one of those people we all know that stand at the rail and parrot all their favorite trainers but have no practical experience at all. Or not! Mr G cracks me up because he went to a George Morris clinic with me once. Now he finds it amusing to announce out of the blue that I need "steeeaaaady haaaaands". Combine that with a NH guy he saw on TV saying "you can only ask what you are prepared to give" and he's ready for the big time! I'm not a grown up yet, because I still find it super funny when he comes up with these things and pretends to advise me or the horses seriously. Back on whatever topic I'm trying to be on (is there one?), I've also been 'studying' the Welsh shows online and trying to get a grasp of just what is expected. I am tentatively throwing around some small dressage shows next spring, followed by our Western Canadian welsh show, then a local agricultural fair type show, leading to a couple of events later in the season. Ginger is more than capable of doing just fine as it stands now, but only if we could be in a vacuum ;). The lack of miles in the real world are an issue. I'm hoping to get a head start on that this winter and get her into some schooling shows and clinics.

The trailering situation is giving me huge anxiety. I had quite a time finding someone who goes between here and there and is legit, but now that I'm trying to book the trip, my calls aren't being returned. Lets hope she's just busy- its only been a few days - but it still makes me hugely nervous either that she's going to leave me hanging, or do the job but be super hard to get a hold of. The barn at home uses her all the time without issue, so I probably am worried about nothing.. I'm also unsure whether Lainey is travelling or not - there are buyers interested in her but nothing confirmed. At some point I'll have to be the big meanie, because once I pay her shipping, she's coming back with me.
I wish I could just book them last minute WestJet seat sales!

Ginger says "Let me outta here! We've got work to do!" Or, more likely, pasture to mow and YouTube to watch.