I have waited; and waited; and waited for this photo to get here.
And it FINALLY arrived! Here it is:
Working Through Things
15 Apr posted by
If I could post the entire chapter of the book I’m reading here, I would.
I’m reading Believe, A Horseman’s Journey by Buck Brannaman (is the horseman who the Robert Redford movie, the Horse Whisperer was based on) and William Reynolds. Now some of you might be tuning out right now since you’re thinking “how does a horse book apply to me?”, but this man not only can read a horse, he can read things from the human perspective as well; and he’s damn good at it.
I found The first part of Chapter 4 very relevant to my life right now, so I’m going to share it:
Have you ever been with a couple- whether they’re married or just dating, it makes no difference- that didn’t appear to have much of a relationship? A couple where one or the other, or maybe both at the same time, will nag to the point where the other completely shuts down? Maybe they don’t talk at all, or just sort of act like they’re not there with their partner- they’re not together, in the mental and emotional sense. When you see that, you realize that they’ve been acting this way for so long, they don’t even know what they’re doing anymore. If they could watch themselves, they’d be ashamed and embarrassed. But living like this can become a habit. What I’ve found interesting is that when someone is nagging you- trying to impose his or her will in a way that is so relentless, there is never an opportunity for you to accept or reject it- you begin to feel trapped. The pressure is always on, and the options that you might otherwise have offered are not only not even recognized to be right or wrong, they’re not even acknowledged in any way. That relentless sort of attack can be a way of life for some people.
I think, at this point in my life this is completely relevant, as it does a lot to explain how I ended up in my current situation. There was no release from the pressure I was feeling everyday. I felt I couldn’t do enough; be enough; work hard enough; and I was just worn out. Every suggestion for compromise I made was either dismissed or not heard, at least from my perspective, and my perception is my reality, right?
I didn’t write this, because I think that certain people will read it, and I didn’t write this as a way to communicate with that *particular* individual. I wrote it as a therapy for myself, and because I am sure I’m not the only person that has ever felt this way.
How this relates to horses is simple: a horse moves away from pressure. They’re like water, if you will. Typically they will choose the path of least resistance. This is true when you watch them in a herd. The alpha (lead) horse will typically walk toward another horse and that horse gets out of their way. A horse that is nagged and *forced* and *made* to do things, will often sull-up, rear, buck, or otherwise be ugly when there is constant pressure placed on them, as there is no *release* for them either. It’s their way of saying, release me.
Horse Slaughter Humor…
12 Apr posted by
I got this in an email but it’s funny and true in some cases…
Dear Anita Getaclue,
Thank you for your fervent support of the recent laws that were passed in Illinois and Texas that effectively ended the closely regulated slaughter of horses in the United States . Thank you for pushing the practice past our borders and out of control of the USDA’s standards for humane treatment of food animals. We also
appreciate your lobbying to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act currently in Congress, which will end the transport of unwanted horses to foreign slaughterhouses and keep each and every one of them within the borders of our beautiful nationalive and well!
You’ll be pleased to learn that the “alive and well” part is where you come in! A new organization has been created through the cooperative effort of the numerous horse industry organizations and the USDA, called “Save Horses In Trouble; Help End Abandonment & Death,” or SHITHEAD for short. In accordance with the guidelines of
this new program, and to alleviate the pressure on existing rescue facilities to take in the thousands of unwanted horses, we have decided to place one unwanted horse under the personal care of each and every person that supported banning horse slaughter in the United
States .
As you may know, since the slaughter facilities have closed, not only have rescue facilities and shelters been inundated to the point that they have to close their doors to new arrivals, but many horses have also been neglected, starved to death, or abandoned because of the record high hay prices. Therefore, your participation in this program is mandatory.
We understand that it is your feeling that horses are pets, not livestock, and since most people in the United States do not choose to eat them, therefore no one should, and all horses should live out their lives in an idyllic pastoral setting. We also understand that while your relatively large 40′ X 40′ suburban backyard isn’t exactly
Yellowstone , it will just have to do. We are certain you will make the necessary adjustments.
Your unwanted horse is of unknown origin, but is roughly 6 years old (although we can’t get close enough to him to tell for sure), weighs approximately 1500 pounds and has a mean streak a mile wide, and has been known to randomly bite, strike, or kick, especially at small children, elderly people, and house pets. We have decided to call
him “Satan.”
While Satan is capable of physical aggression, unfortunately he is not able to be ridden because of his crooked front legs. He is capable, however, of reproducing, as he is a stallion. This is of special import to you, as your neighbors and fellow members of the “Horses Are Humans With Hooves” group will also be provided with horses through our program, some of which might be mares.
For your information, the $20 you donate annually to the Humane Society of the United States can instead buy you approximately two bales of high-quality hay at the current market rate. Assuming that the bales weigh 100 pounds, and you feed 20 pounds to said beast per day, this will be enough to feed him for ten days. You will be happy to know that the lifespan of a horse averages about 25 years, and therefore Satan can bring you approximately 9,125 days of enjoyment. That is, of course, only if you provide him with the best care possible, which we are absolutely certain that you will. To ensure that Satan is receiving proper care, an inspector will visit your
home on a weekly basis.
At your request, we can provide you with contact information for veterinarians, farriers, trainers, equine dental practitioners, whisperers, and tranquilizer gun dealers in your area, as well as the necessary contacts you will need for euthanasia and disposal of Satan’s earthly vessel when he crosses over. We foresee that Satan’s
death will be especially traumatic for you, being the enlightened individual that you are, and counselors are already available at 1-900-NO-SENSE. ($3.99 for the first minute, $1.99 for each additional minute).
Unfortunately, there is no government financial assistance for care and maintenance costs of SHITHEAD horses, as all of the funds allocated for such things are dedicated to the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse program.
Sincerely,
Gene E. Us
Program Director
It’s Not Linear
1 Apr posted by
I made an observation yesterday. Ok. Wait. I have to get this out there first.
I realize I don’t have kids/family to blog about- unless it’s my sister and brother and my parents (who, sorry mom and dad, are not the most exciting people out there), so my life revolves mainly around my horses and what I do with them. And I’m sorry if you all are ever bored.
So I’m feeding the horses yesterday and I realize as they’re out grazing, that while Zero is the head horse in charge, I’m not entirely sure who’s second in command. I used to think it was Shuttle, but since Nora (aka, The Dragon) has been pregnant (let me know if you wanna come over to see the baby when *SHE* is born!), she’s been pretty much hormonal and ugly to everyone. Flash we knew was the low man on the totem pole, and now I’ve added Elvis into the mix so here’s what I observed.
Elvis can just walk towards Nora and she’s got her ears back and is telling him she hates him, yet she moves away. Elvis looks at Shuttle and Shuttle tells him where to stick it, with both back feet. Nora backs her ears at Shuttle and Shuttle says, “yes ma’am. I’m out of YOUR way.” And poor Flash has to get out of everyone’s way.
I have no idea what this means, except that they all have different personalities and what I thought would be an alpha/beta situation, really isn’t.
Tired and NOT Rested
28 Mar posted by
I had one of those nights. You know the kind where you are so tired about 10pm, but you don’t go to sleep until 11:30 and then you can’t sleep and you’re up until 3am?
That was what happened to me last night.
And I’m paying for it this morning. I don’t like it. I have 6 head of horses to ride today, it’s nasty outside, I have a lesson to give this morning, two stalls to clean and all I really want to do is sleep. I’ll HAVE to take a nap this afternoon.
BTW-
Thanks for the support on the use of the word fuck. It’s probably something I say way more than I should. But it’s a lovely word that can be used to describe lots of things. I might, in fact, devote an entire post to it.
I am Rambling…
27 Mar posted by
because I wanna write, but I got nothing specific to write about.
I mean, business is picking up on the training end, and yet I go and raise my lesson prices as I had no choice. They’ve been the same for over 2 years now, and the thing is, fuel prices have more than doubled in that two years. And now with all this stupid Ethanol fuel, hay fields are being converted to corn, and corn is being sold to fuel makers instead of to the local feed mills so that it can be made into horse feed; so I’m getting higher costs all the way around. Paying more for diesel, which if you’ve not been paying attention to this blog is a by-product of gasoline production; and then I have to pay more for hay as there is less of it, and it’s got to be trucked in with out of control diesel prices, and horse feed is up, as there is a shortage on corn.
Days like this, when I think about it, really make me wanna choke some fucking congressmen. Yes. I used the F-bomb. It’s the best laid plans of mice and men that often have repercussions beyond the scope of their political glasses or those of their stupid lobbyists.
The memo for higher lesson prices was just sent last night; so we’ll see how many students, if any, I lose. Granted I do have a waiting list of kids dying to get in for lessons, so it might not be so bad.
I thought I had *nothing* to write about. Apparently, I had a lot on my mind. I still do, but it can wait.
In the Interest of Fairness
26 Mar posted by
The colt that has been giving me trouble has really only been handled a couple dozen times. He’s not like getting in a colt that someone has played with since birth; or that they’ve kept up in a barn and patted on and rubbed daily since they were a yearling or what have you. So yes, he’s sweet, and loveable, and hug-able and kissable, and all those things, and we will come to an understanding that we are both in favor of. In the meantime, lots more hugs and kisses will be needed, as well as ponying, playing, hauling etc for that understanding to come to fruition.
I Need…
25 Mar posted by
A facial, so bad.
My skin is once again unhappy with me, and I never did get one this winter, and it’s about to be all hot and sticky out again, and well, sweat and irritated pores, they don’t really mix. So I need another couple weeks to catch up from being slow, and just spend the money and do it- not just talk about it.
Speaking of being slow- I am getting busier. I have only one empty stall right now, and I think it won’t be long before it is filled too- though I do have a horse going home this week. I like having a barn-full of horses to ride every day!
This post turned in to a complete rabbit trail. My apologies.
My Pretty Sorrel Mare
23 Mar posted by
She just keeps getting better! She tries hard and that makes her even more fun!
