2011-12-10

Episode 1: Lillith Sings















hey mister better tell me what you're gonna do
about that pitbull you’re kickin’ and then letting run loose.
it’s not right. it’s our right – and that's plain abuse.

hey neighbour, i wonder if you beat your wife
but it’s not me waitin’ on sirens after a call
or my son who is listening, bouncing b-ball
chorus:
good man can you hear me? i’m ready to lean
yet stand steady beside you, come see what i mean
i carry porch songs in my pocket. 'n you in my heart
seeds are ripe now, to sow a fresh start...
i’d rather make music than money it’s true
but the family i dream of needs both. and you too.
hey officer, trust me 
your mount thinks that the mat
is a ditch on the midway by the carny laid flat

hey pony, leap forward, 
instead of step down,
to make it over where you’re needed across town

chorus
*
It's all about the rhythm with the ponies, Jill overhead Roomie say to her musician friends, while working in her room.  Her mentor had posted on someone else's facebook wall about a web-inar, but Jill wanted to attend the education session about appropriate use of social networking anyway!  She'd been wondering if her activity was helping or hurting her life and professional progression... 

The phrase, social networking, was supposed to indicate on-line activity but in this case it brought to Jill's mind the behaviour of one of Jill's "rivals".  The senior coach had been drunk in the afternoon, at a sunny suburban festival in the small town.  She was wearing pink biker chaps and her red, red lipstick was smeared, as she fawned over the less than interested bass player from the very mediocre hard rock band that was set to play.  She was actually friendly to Jill for a change, and seemed sincerely glad to see her.  In fact she even seemed a bit put off when Jill wanted to move on and look around at the rest of the event.  As Jill walked, she doubted that  the other equine professional would even remember running into her.

Probably, what bugged Jill the most was the biker chaps. Did she want some? If she thought about it, Jill had dated lots of guys with motorcycles.  But, one time when a bunch of Harley's were coming up the hill in the former mining town for the matinee music, Jill said to her friend "Maybe my next boyfriend will have a motorcycle" to which her friend instantly replied "do you want a boyfriend, or do you need a motorcycle?"  Maybe if she was horse-riding more she wouldn't think of riding bikes. 

On her on-line wall,  "I'm not very good at taking a hint." her friend had advised, "Next time be more direct."  Jill agreed, she had a knack for not being direct.  But only when it really mattered, as in, to her true heart.  She was glad for his reminder about speaking out about her real wishes.  She was learning to speak up in real life more often recently, to great success, about her personal needs, and even secret wants.

Despite her best media-biz ticket cost write off intentions, after the Sarah Mclachlin concert Jill wrote a song instead of a review.  Would the ticket write off still work? She'd not been a huge fan beforehand, but she knew and liked the well-known music well enough.  She'd even been compared vocally to the Canadian icon.  Plus, Jill was making friends across quite an age gap and when new Roomie suggested it, Jill was keen to hang out. She was to meet Roomie and her new lady pal/coworker from India at the show.   It was bad weatherish and Jill was to leave from home with garbage bags to sit on and rain jackets to spare, while they would be holding good spots on the soggy lawn, heading to the venue directly together from work. 

Afterwards she was all churning up with a love hate thing about the concert in general.  So much of the show was sickeningly contrived and yet so many of the songs were so breath takingly beautiful, with spectacular presentation.  And, what about that guitar player, ha.  Also, harmonium! Yum!  Jill also enjoyed the ideal of the musician's family life - married to the drummer, baby on the road with them... A bohemian, harmonious, happy, successful lifestyle was enviably beautiful and the music was grand to say the least.  And there was an inspirational thing that happened en route!

Rushing through the nearly deserted midway, Jill noticed a couple of officers on horseback.   Just a couple of days before that she had patted one of them on her way to a Harbourfront Shift, and not washed her hand all day for the horse smell.  She was paying attention to the mounted teams for a chance to say hello horsie again.

But they looked like they were busy and intent on something serious and for sure the horses were agitated and as one of them cantered by her, she stepped aside off the sidewalk for the next one following behind. You never see them cantering around, Jill was curious.  The second horse suddenly stopped and shied from the middle of the path, refusing to follow his fellow horse. 

As the spinning frightened equine was coming a little too close towards her,  Jill said standing calmly "I thought they looked uptight."

The stern cop just gave Jill a tough look and bustled past on the snorting horse and Jill realized this man was in an episode requiring a tiny bit more horsemanship than he had, even though they are actually, usually quite good riders. She understood now what was going on.

She could see how he needed to keep authority in public and so wouldn't acknowledge that fact that his horse was giving him trouble, to hippie chick standing by.

Indeed by now a crowd was noticing, and folks were murmuring, wondering why the horse was so wound up and refusing to go home to their stable just at the other end of the path.  Jill could offer more help, but it seemed he wasn't interested so she calmly shrugged and started walking away with a gesture at the black matt on the ground over some power cables.   "He thinks that's a ditch."

And the cop urged his horse two steps towards Jill asking, "He what?"

Jill turned around to face them. "When I had to teach a horse to jump a ditch where there wasn't one, I used a matt like that. He's refusing at a ditch.  That's why you are stuck." The cop was listening, so Jill came closer and patting the horses shoulder, added "Do you want me to to pick it up to see if the horse will step over the power cables instead?" The matt went as far as you could see, to the left and to the right.  Jill wondered how she could even do that, as the cop shook his head no.   So, Jill took charge of the situation and said  "Well you are gonna have to send him over this then."   And, she stood back from the horse at the edge of the imaginary cliff, and just started giving instructions. 

"Put your leg on.  Ride forwards to it, and yeeeeesss, let him stretch his neck like that.  He's looking at it, but you look ahead.  Urge him on. No, don't the pull the reins at all. Sit up! Leg.  Look up! And more leg, come on, leg, leg, leg..." The mounted officer was listening to her and taking the appropriate action, with rather good timing, and yet the horse wouldn't go.  He was like just quivering and stepping in place.  To Jill that was unfair, ha.  The rider was doing well and the horse wouldn't do it!  The big gelding was almost ready to jump and but just wouldn't quite go.  

"The longer he's allowed to refuse the harder it becomes to get him to go."  His lead horse was still on the other side but now more and more people were gathering around, and started offering their two cents and Jill thought the situation was going from bad to worse.

Surprising even herself she said "We do not have time for this,"  and she took a step forward to grab the horse's bridle, saying as she did "C'mon on dumb*ss!  Let's go!"  (Later she couldn't believe she'd said dumb*ss in front of an officer! And, a crowd!)

And then the horse, instead of jumping across it like they'd been asking, realized with her step on it, that it was solid ground and accepted the rider's urging finally.  The giant gelding stepped on the mat with one big plodding hoof too, and moved forward into canter.  As they clattered off down the laneway picking up some speed, all the people clapped.  Such good will and joy all round!

When Jill found the ladies on the lawn, handing out the rain gear she said "The greatest thing happened on my way here. I just rescued the police!"   And the lights dimmed and the concert started...

2011-12-09

A Holiday Smile

"So what, there's no one in Texas for Tronas?"  Jill realized with her date's comeback, she should concentrate on listing her projected start up costs for her potential sponsors, as some kind of Dear Santa letter, instead of dwelling in and even sharing out loud fantasies about further chatting with barely met celebrity cowboys, that prevented her progress in real life relationships...

car, insurance, mileage expense plus CAA,
properly fitted helmet,
some kind of cutting edge protective vest?
boots, and more boots if possible,
gloves,
half chaps,
breeches and long johns to fit under them...

Jill was making a mental checklist when she should have been falling in love.  Meanwhile, the conference and gala organizers she'd spoken to earlier wanted her to bring a media partner/date to the event, and she couldn't rustle up either.  They also wanted to provide her a stable pass, which she felt unable to accept!! E-gads.

Later, after refusing the offer, Roomie fretted aloud about the pimps in the penthouse of the condo where some of her aging family members in the big city lived, because wasn't that "a sure sign of guns and drugs in the area?"  Jill said she worried too much.  And, complimented her amazing way with difficult people as a way of reassuring a pal.  Meanwhile, their new house mate seemed unbearably controlling, volatile, selfish and miserable to Jill, while Roomie insisted on forging more constructive relations.  While they chatted, the CBC radio broadcast talk about an interactive seal robot that dementia patients in Denmark loved.

*

The old man's feet were already improving with his turn out on the dry ground. And, Jill was already acting like they were in a backyard property, picking out his hooves while he was loose in the paddock. With the little guy complicating her life by coming over too...

That bay was a little tender on his tootsies too, probably the blessed dry ground was a little harder, though she did also find a pebble lodged in his front right foot after their ride. Then she wished she'd dismounted and checked instead of keeping their ride on the short and slow side.  She should get a saddle bag and ride out with a hoofpick included in the contents some day.

The bitless was closest so they had used it. And wearing that, he walked the logs the slowest ever. He was actually kind of dead in the heat, not his spooky or scooty self at all, and she felt perfectly safe riding around that back field in it. They went right up close to the traffic side this time, and just stood there for a while.

Back in the sand ring, she could expand and his collect his canter in it too. And, she liked not having any metal in his mouth! But, also, she would miss dressage, if she had to give it up for her new found knowledge of the cruely of the roll kur... She had learned in her media work that the frame they have to carry themsevles in for proper dressage is considered abuse by some people!

She wanted to get the blue mat out and school it as a riding obstacle. And, next time she would build a little jump to build into some flat work, before mounting as well.

2011-12-08

Learning New Ground

The new black chalkboard paint they'd used on a kitchen wall was awesome!  As was the new recipe for curried red lentil soup that Jill had concocted for their lunch and dinner that day.  She also enjoyed Roomie's promise to prepare curried chickpea and spinach soup in trade for the next day...

Jill had never understood why people would pay to go to a gym, and pay other people to do their physical labour on the farm, so they could have the time to do so. But, she had to admit, Roomie's cowboy had nice arms. If only there were some like that wrapped around her, instead of stuck in her head!

The old guy had a decently messy stall, so phew! Jill could take comfort that he wasn't colic-y at all.  He was also feeling well enough to run the fence line as she rode his little buddy in the ring next door.

Also, if it hadn't been for him acting interested in the hay cubes on the other side of the gate, she could have never caught the bratty little guy. That little pain only came to see what Jill had because of the old man's interest.  Jill thought it was nice to see him moving pretty nicely, loosely, and easily on soft ground. in a much bigger space than he was used to. She also was sure he'd been fine with the fenceline, imperfectly rebuilt in places as it was...  the little buddy/brat was good that way too. At one time he'd been turned out in a paddock with a gate that didn't quite stay up straight and he never cared, or escaped or got caught in it.


Riding in the rain-sodden grass ring, the footing was pretty lumpy from previous use.  Jill worried about making it worse for the future, by walking on it at the moment. Plus he seemed long in the toes, and so quite trippy, and she didn't want to hurt him!

He was very well behaved on the lunge in the small indoor - all she could think of to was ask for a lot of transitions and he was obedient. She hated the way he leaned in though, and the shape of the circle was not good. Jill knew how the radio really blared from the other side of the barn, every time he passed that open door. She thought even that was good training for him too.

After she'd mounted he was a good boy about the puddles on the driveway! He was not so keen on the asphalt driveway through the pond and freshly cut logs (with some kinds of industrial racket in the background that you had to get closer to), however. it was great how the driveway had a hill. she asked for one canter transition each lead up the grade, trotting just as they'd reach the flapping flag.

She couldn't wait to have his feet done!  With shoes to protect him, who knew where they'd travel!

2011-12-07

Brat-a-Tap-Tap

Jill would have to make a note to herself to go looking for the little guy's halter.  In the moment she was too busy taking comfort in the old guy's muddy coat, and delighting that it was actually warm enough for their blankets to be off during the day. She trusted that the water bucket was about to be filled and left well enough alone this time... they didn't seem at all dehydrated.

The little pocket pony was such a brat about the puddles. Jill thought she should start riding out with a whip, and she'd rustled one up to keep in her trunk for just this purpose... he sure would have gotten smacked with it if she'd had one that day.  He'd actually reared! 


She'd finally figured out that she wasn't keeping enough contact on the left rein, as he turned his head so far right and just kept traveling down the driveway toward the barn, instead of the road as she was asking him. 


But when Jill fixed that, then he invented an escalating diversion to that. Scrambling back down the driveway toward the barn against Jill's direction, argh.


BRAT!

By the end of the 50 minute walk and trot ride up and down the driveway, he would trot through, both ways. And, one time when she'd been dismounted with him, he'd actually pawed in both sets of muddy puddle. 


Jill was keen to this as progress.


*
"The cowboys boots are not comfortable. for riding or walking! They need to be oiled, maybe. And, i need to see if my chaps fit over them," Jill reported, showing off the pinch marks on her calves.

2011-12-06

Hike on Horseback

"She just bucked" Jill told the rider in front of her. "But luckily it was small and rather comfortable" and the horse's owner thus, did not slow down.

Up hills, down hills, between trees, over trees and standing chatting in the creek while the horses splashed and pawed and drank. What a delight!

And, it was nice to share experiences and laughs and honest stories as they rode. Jill knew this was just the start of a meaningful new friendship!!


When she heard about the heart attack Jill protested.  "But she's a woman. UNDER fifty."  Fit, strong, and health-conscious women that young do not have heart attacks....


Jill couldn't help herself from giving away unwanted, useless hugs. but, she was on the verge of tears herself....

Instead of taking her handsome out to play that day, Jill took the chesnut pony out for a practice ride. She practiced saying ter-rot in her best teacher voice, putting her leg on him and, if he didn't spring into trot, then whacking him with the crop, ha.
*
Finally, a cutie asked for Jill's number! yes it was in Tim Horton's and yes SHE (the asker) was about 5, but you know what, after the sweetie popped the question Jill invited her to come out and pat some ponies, and actually wrote her number down on a napkin for the kid (and the embarassed parent), ha.

Fear and Life Lessons

"So, when you are you gonna jog a horse?" he'd asked Roomie.  Was that before or after they made the date for the Faith Hill and Tim McGraw concert?  The night they hung around listening to the Lyle Lovett concert DVD, he'd said "Women are a complete mystery. But, sometimes you want to turn every page" He said he wasn't really even let off the farm til he was 19, lol.
*
Jill was impressed to learn her riding instructor was into yoga. "its the yoga breathing for me" she'd enthused.  In class the teacher had her time her exhalations within the downwards transition to trot. Genius. totally revolutionsary for horse and rider.


Jill said the lesson was great, because even though it was spritzy, "We rode outside. we jumped the castle and the skinny canadian flag planks and the triple and the in and out and the gate and brush box and the oxer coop and whatever else, many times!)!

In these exercizes Jill got to see how rio her mount would get stronger and stronger, as the courses got longer.  Jill had been joking around in the barn after class "I am fine to wait til NEXT summer to do any cross country, believe me."  Apparently, her arms ached while she explained how fun the lesson was.  Jill had also been complaining that it took her three or four weeks of being back at that barn to get a good out of their teacher during a riding lesson. The others scoffed and laughed along, saying it took them three or four YEARS.

The teacher had prepared her, "Well, this horse just basically goes 450m a minute. Of course he will adjust his stride according the obstacle.  As long as you don't mess with him too much."  Jill must have had a nervous or frightened look on her face because the coach added,  "Don't be terrified. He will take care of you."
What a blast.  The lessons she taught that day were a bit scary also.  Unfortunately, the kid who took two tumbles in the two weeks Jill was off, took another one while JIll was teaching.   But, she wasn't hurt and she seemed to understand that the littliest pony in the barn is just one of those easily startled personalities.  He doesn't mean her any harm...   They practiced "going with his motion" for a while before she dismounted officially.

It stuck in Jill's mind how the whites of the pony's eyes showed as the rain came teeming down on the arena ceiling.  It was loud and scary and he was far away from the instructor standing in the middle of the ring... it was just enough comfort to the pony for Jill to maintain eye contact with him, chatting away. 

2011-12-05

Views of Nature

Roomie didn't know how much she would miss the beaucolic backdrop of a breeding farm.

And she clearly remembered when her date said "growing up on a farm like this becomes part of you. I don't think I ever considered anything else."

On show day, Jill was glad that she didn't follow the show property's Senior Coaches instructions to announce the lost walkie talkies over the show p/a as she was instructed.  She had nodded and decided to wait a beat.  

And, rightly so too, because HER boss piped up a minute later shouting, "Found It!!" - right where she'd said it was, incidentally.

Jill jonesed for the High Performance Training Days. The first time she'd tried some dressage movements was when she was trotting around a Florida grass field.   She'd had the epiphany that the horse knew way more than she did.  She'd said to her hack buddy of the moment Jim, "Hey, of course Nellie knows half-pass," and she gave the text book aids for half-pass that she'd read in the Walter Zetl book and the mare executed, in perfect space and rhthym and consistensy and ooooooh la la.  Was she in heaven?

The episode was stuck in her mind because of Roomies advice on the travel challenges and such.  "Just Ask!"

2011-12-04

In Other News

Jill watched in awe as the woman used the HORSE to discipline her 4 yr old to put down the lunge whip.  She told the horse to step forward toward the child, who was flinging it around a fair bit actually, and the giant gelding did. step. nudge. step. nudge. long reins, head down. nudge.

The child dropped it on feeling the horse's nose and went and sat on the fence rail as his mother had been telling him to do.

The rider and Jill were talking about the news in the harness racing scene, "if some guy was using electric shock in the warm up, that IS disgusting." Jill said.
*
When she got home, Roomie had news. He's hitting on you!" Jill exclaimed, rereading the email. "Well, if he is, he can take a number" Roomie replied, glad of the smile, ha.

Jill said her student did the reverse all wrong and then explained herself, "When you drew it in the sand it looked like a triangle"

And she blathered on about how the Olympian asked her, after 10 seconds of observing her riding, have you had a horse that took off on you? Yikes.  Did she ride that defensively?

Jill said the lunch date was nice, "I liked the sandwiches we made at his house and I like the tea and I liked the apples, but he doesn't make me laugh."

2011-12-02

Magic and Monsters and Moving On

Jill's friends had been telling her she needed to eat more to do the kind of work she had taken on, just looking at her photos.

That day, she and Nellie went on the path through the woods towards the imaginary creek where an alligator (apparently) often lives, and turned around and came back out into the big field, where they walked in the sun. Then they walked thru the woods on the other side of the driveway where Jim was with the tractor and they didn’t really spook too much at all that there… it was beautiful Florida winter weather. No one even needed their light rugs on. 

The new chesnut was awesome also. He was even willing to round up in our walk round and round. Everyone seemed in good cheer. One grey show jumper lost a shoe which had a little bit of hoof stuck to it and Jill thought it was gross but the blacksmith Mike said it was “mild.” 


He brought a two for one coupon for coldstone the ice cream place where they mix it up for you right in front of you. The boss was 45 minutes late for his tacked up horse, but Jill didn’t mind because that was her chance to take him out walking. Her butt was sore already and she would yetl get to take the grey out in the afternoon. 

The boss wanted to take a picture of Jim and she on our their matching hack horses together, "to send home to her ex." Wha? Why? She guessed Jim must be jealous of something... and gloating because he will share the horseness with her???
*
Jill was reprimanded for being too hasty in taking the saddle pad for washing.  She got yelled at because the dog got caught stealing carrots, so she suggested they needed a lid for the bucket. 

The boss's partner took a sleep in. The first time in yeeeeeeeeeeeears apparently and yesterday the paying more than working student said they told her not to get up right away they would feed for her. The five new horses do not appear to have been fed and the next door show jumping boarder trailer  had pulled out, leaving their groom (aka gifted exercise rider) behind like Cinderella to clean all the stalls. Then will he drive to West Palm Beach? Or, is it Wellington?  About 5 hours Jill thought.

There were two jokes at lunch she believed: To get a gator to release you poke him in the eye. And that it snowed in Naples the other day, shocker etc. 

Jim was suggesting that they will hang out in his apartment at the big house more when the working student/bunkhouse roomie arrives. That's how she learned she was getting an unexpected roommate. ACK. 


She had already had a rotten day since they were out of shavings and then the hay delivery came. And to boot, she took messages from celebrities wanting lessons with her boss...

2011-12-01

Describe the Day to Day Duties

The next day, Jill was told that her boss would be riding all the horses. 

And then he surprised her by offering her a chance to school her girl Nellie, after taking her on a little hack. So they went out past the quarter horse farm stallion and all along their fence line. The chestnut one with the big head ran a little and about 5 dogs came out barking, and she waved at one working Mexican. 


They went all the way through the woods on the path she'd just recently learned about and then came out near the scary pile. They trotted around half the big field and then trotted through the woods and came out the grassy area near all the jumps for a 15 minute dressage practice. The boss had told her to walk and trot with circles and bending and transitions. Jill imagined her melting into walk. 

She also got instruction to whack Buddy "anywhere convenient" if he was nipping at her, which he was doing on the way in. She mostly successfully blocked, and she made him turn back to the gate and she made him whoa once on the way in, since he wasn’t dragging her around for once. He liked her attention and seemed like he wanted to behave, a little bit anyway.

When taking the two out at a time, the boss's partner said to let Nellie go first, because then if the other one spins to kick her, "she will just kick his *ss," but Jill didn't think he really knows the way that little nasty horse goes. And, she did not want to be caught in the kicking cross fire! Her preference was to let go of the pushy, pig idiot horse first, in the hopes he would be LESS likely to rush to the hay, since he would not be in competition for it. It still meant that you were standing behind him as he was released, not ideal, to be sure. They'd all heard the maybe better if it had been fatal turn out story right???

Jill reported that was certainly down on the eating all day every day routine. Between tack and cleaning boots, she was sure the friggin’ shavings would come just when she had her hands full and she knew she would spend the afternoon they’d promised her for writing time bedding in a couple of loads per stall. 

She was worried about the laser treatment and what it might be doing to her eyes. But she just had to trust her boss’s boss that if she needed homeopathic shades for her eyes to go with the new age, cutting age treatment for her pony, she would have provided them. They seemed to have discontinued all the other homeopathic medical treatments he was getting, and Jill had to say, she was releived for the reduced workload, whether client approved or not.

2011-11-30

Brakes of Gait

Roomie had taken one of her cute and nice luthier co-workers to see Lyle Lovett in Toronto, when she got the expensive tickets gifted to her from her luthier boss. It was a good time. Somehow they gobbled vegan fast food outside and made it to their seats just in time. Roomie was fall down dead jealous when L dedicated a song to the woman in the balcony with the beautiful voice and when Sarah Slean's twitter status the next day was how she had such a crush on him, ha.

His facebook status showed that the horse was really good, but that they'd had a couple breaks of gate, for too many penalty points to make the finals.

He means g a i t, right? She almost commented: Drag. Brakes of Gait. ha, sp. etc.

Meanwhile, she really wanted to hear more about the sport.

Maybe even try it???



Progress and Mistakes

Buddy was actually a perfect gentleman in from the paddock. And, he had put his head down low so Jill could get his halter on easily. As they travelled toward the barn for breakfast, he flipped his head like a clearly frisky fella, but he stayed poliely in walk all the way in. No biting or bolting or nonsense. 

After the stalls were done, and all that was left to do before breakfast was blowout the aisle and the 10 minute laser treatment for the bay.  The boss said to get a pair ready for 8, so clearly they'd be not breakfast... Jill's tummy was rumbling when she became thankful the boss was late.  The extra seven minutes gave Jill time to remember/guess that new one is probably supposed to start wearing a breastplate when in the jumping saddle, since they'd used one last time.  She took a run to the trailer to get it and put it on. 


Unfortunately, she did not find time to double check that she had done the noseband up correctly.


Jim adjusted it and made it straight as he led the newest Chesnut up to the boss, but, a rein was done into it, in the bridle incorrectly. ACK. Jill was mortified.  Of course it was a foolish error, but worse because this was AFTER a recent noseband lesson. Where the boss was sickeningly condescending in a big lecture about perfection in nosebands.


Jill felt it was the ridiculous rush and super criticism and fear of the boss that caused the mistakes. 


Jill felt further betrayed that Jim started making cold medicine excuses on her behalf.  Because that wasn't the problem, and she didn't need him speaking up for her. She knew should have been grateful for his defence and caring, but he was wrong about the issues. He wasn't speaking the truth.


She thought the boss was way wrong though, way out of line.  Meanwhile it was obvious the boss's partner was trying to undermine her all the time, and she wanted to run away and hide.

2011-11-29

Wish, Wish Again

Jill kept thinking how the 11-11-11 date seemed so magical, and she was wishing that more would come of the events of the day.  


Jill also couldn't let go of the memory of how it was nice to walk in to her best mentor's barn and be greeted so warmly...

Jill longed for a pony project of her own to keep there.  She wouldn't ask for anything with a freelease pony at all, she just needed the ride there and the pony! 


She'd always wanted to take a pony training level to some horse trials.
*It was cool to see the driving exercizes with such a beautiful pony!
*Some of her students wanted a lesson plan that was a game, but that would also include jumping. She thought setting up two jumps and trying hunter pairs was the way to go.

Unhappy Holidays in the Life of a Groom

The boss's partner’s note in the calendar for the prior day really bugged her “Jill's day off again.” They'd agreed in advance on six days a week for her assignment not seven so she could persue her artistic aspirations. Why this passive aggressive recording keeping?

On the upside, every day she had a happy hour with the accidental boyfriend, where they would drink a beer at the end of the barn, all their work finished, and watch the sun set together. The grasshoppers and lizards and frogs were good company too.

He commented that when Buddy behaved well they'd say oh he’s growing up. when he behaved badly they said Jill wasn't doing well with his training.  She'd noticed too.
*
"The boss is going to tack up his own horse later? The boss's partner is taking a day off? What is going on around here? It is NOT like other years." The blacksmith was obviously a long standing colleague/service provider, and was surprised at some new techniques on the farm. 



In between telling Jill lots of backstory and his own education and background, he asked Jill if she got to fly home for the holidays. She changed the subject to how she was grateful when the big spooky grey was so brave he actually WANTED to go in the forest.  She could sense it, he wanted to go, for the very first time, and so they went...

And she chatted with the farrier while they worked about how she was proud that Buddy listened to her verbal commands. When he was so good in the afternoon, halting on her command, she became annoyed with herself that she forgot to tell him whoa as he burst into his stall, dragging her, first thing that morning. Perhaps if she had spoken it would have worked out better.

It was a hard day.

After he got the beating, she'd wept all the way out to the far paddock leading the two other biggest chesnuts and she'd wept while she did stalls. The boss's partner had yelled at her “You are driving me crazy with stupid-ass questions!” when she'd been asking after the value of their practices and alternatives.  She knew that she could be challenging and threatening to the insecure, or out of line etc.  Knowing the boss felt flustered, maybe frightened, and thus lashed out, didn't take the sting out of it. But she tried to hold a clear vision and hold course to some kind of high road.

In just a matter of days, the boss had lost the financial sponsorship she'd understood was part of the deal, as well as the spot on the team and her respect.  She liked Jim a lot, but she was suffocating under the pressure of the accidental boyfriend's attentions.  And, she was homesick. She was getting word from her family about the holidays being her father's last, while she was stranded in a different country, unable to cross the border to get back home until her replacement id came by courier.



As she walked, head bent with tears, the accidental boyfriend had taken her picture. One that she would later use as a facebook profile pic.

2011-11-27

Partners

"I can’t remember her maiden name but she is rich, rich, rich." The boss's partner described the woman coming to see one of Jill's horse pals, that was for sale.  Her heart felt heavy.

Jim joked about her having more heavy stuff to carry.  Jill joked right back, "I am sick of fit.”
*

When she told the boss's partner about the potential boarder who shown up with stories about "breaking" difficult horses with the cruelty of impossible weight in their carriage loads he simply said “Maybe there are some interesting training practices coming our way.”  They proceeded to rent the stalls to the visitor, and Jill proceeded to witness some distressing horse handling. In hindsight, Jill knew she should have driven off the property that very day.

She could see that the boss was dismounted and Jill was afraid she had left a noseband crooked or some other sin that he had to get off to fix, and that she would be shamed and corrected meanly when the boss returned to the barn. The boss's partner, who came back to the barn first,  tried to comfort her with an explanation that this time the boss had dismounted to beat Buddy.  The horse wasn't behaving well...
*
As she rode away from the barn, determined not to participate in such things, she said “I have often thought of asking for a lunge lesson for my position, using Buddy as the school horse.”   
“Well, that’s brave.” said the boss's partner.
“Well, maybe between us, we could teach him something – it would be two against one.” 

Jill thought her thoughts interested the beautiful boarder from the barn next door. She came and joined the groom's walk around the field, while her staff/exercize rider helped Jill to work on her french. The girls talked about riding bareback in their youth and all the fun they'd had with horses their whole life!

Jill thought the woman was lovely, and often still had thoughts about being their groom or nanny or something. They seem so down to earth and kind and fun. She thought of the nanny she'd met at the Royal Winter Fair, who has been with the family for years and works with the horses too and has had a few equine articles published and seems quite content in her life....

2011-11-25

Barelegs in Blundstones


*


Jill was babbling to a new friend how she loved the cover of the blundstone boot catalogue.  And about how her aunt called it garbage soup, while she preferred to call it "All The Vegetables In The Fridge Soup" as if it weren't a delicious, long-handed down recipe.  Everyone she fed it to, seemed to enjoy sharing it with her...

"Just so she could set poles for me, you know." was how the fellow rider described her recent attendance at the Olympian's jumping clinic. Jill realized she would never be able to coach at that level, or feel she didn't need a coach at that level. She admired both the woman's riding level and confidence, but did wonder if it was totally justified.

In the documentary film they attended together, the horse displayed a viscousness Jill was not aware they could exhibit, even in her experience with stallions. It was horrible how the horse so suddenly attacked the man, biting down so ferousiouly to split his scalp. She could only guess it was because he'd lived in a herd with 18 other stallions, in addition to the other challenging environments he'd endured... but, meanwhile she was afraid she might be afraid of horses, having now seen such a thing. Jill avoided horror movies! Yet, she was glad the documentary filmmakers had left the ugliness in, and she was also impressed that the clinician spoke out to the woman horse owner about her lack of responsibility for animal welfare in letting such a creature get to that state.

"There's a guy around the corner in Hillsburgh that uses flags alot. I've enjoyed watching him work. He trained with that Ray Hunt." Jill sneakily said to her date, mid-movie, only to regret it. He proceeded to talk throughout the rest of the film! What a babbler. As a result Jill never mentioned how disappointed she was to see the supposedly kind horse whisper/documentary feature horse person engage in the cruel looking sport of calf-roping. Was it something she should look into?

Roomie announced that furthermore, she'd never liked how the Quarterhorse world was so focused on appearance. What about heart, talent and accomplishment instead of hair extensions?
*

(C)the crepe myrtle is (G)orange and red,
(C)there’s sticky balls (G)the sweet gum shed
between (Am) cypress,
cherry and (E7) palm
verseC I G
i’m leaping from tree to tree
i’m leaping without limbs
like a snake in the everglades
so lonely without him

chorus with accidental extra line(C) the live oaks have (G)their spanish moss
(C) and holly leaves (G)love hickory
could (Am)he, be
missing (E7) me?

chord study C/G/Am/F/C/G/F/C/
verseC I G
where you are there’s christmas snow
above me there’s mistletoe
if i reached out would he come here?
like orchids we could live on air

chorus(C)i’m stranded here (G)in a southern state
(C) and wondering if (G)he might wait
for (Am)me
to (E7) love

repeat chord study C/G/Am/F/C/G/F/C/
chorus
(C) sugar maple meets (G)long leaf pine
(C)you tell me (G)that he is mine
christmas (Am) time
is (E7)here again/not as good as hillside…


The next day Jill changed her facebook profile picture back to one where she knew was crying, but it was taken from the back, as she was leading two large obviously challenging, high performance chesnut horses near the show jumper barn next door, to their overnight paddock and past what she would realize in hindsight was Chester Weber's car.  Right after telling off her boss for expecting her participate in the unsafe turnout practices he was insisting on, but losing the argument to him in that photographic moment.

She remembered how earlier that day she had said "F*ck water buckets," sloshing one around and outlining some of her longer term life goals to Jim. "And, you need a sales horse" he had said authoritatively, surprising her.  He said he recognized her gift with animals.  It was obvious.  And reminded her how moments before the boss had said "You're with me now" tugging on the lead rope attached to the BIG new horse's bridle, because he was following Jill, who going the other way without a lead rope, by mistake.  "He's obviously the kind of horse who responds better to being asked than being bullied," Jill had flatly stated,  before guesstimating he stood more 18 hands.  She was trying to make a point, without actually saying anything, as she was cheerily changing the subject.

"My falling off 17 times story involves a horse that was 17.2" she smiled, wearing the same chaps her parents had purchased for her as a grade 8 graduation gift... No one seemed interested in her, or her past or in sharing her good cheer...


2011-11-24

New Territory

The rolling grey hunk of garbage spinning out from the car in front of her turned out to be a raccoon, that she didn't hit but she was horrified, and remembered how she had once before hit a bunny.

She cried for a long time on 1-75 after seeing an SUV in front of her smush a black lab puppy that had basically run out into the wheels of the vehicle. The vehicle stopped, but Jill wondered just what they would be able to do for the animal. How tragic! 


Upon arriving in her location, she told them about it on the farm.  After she described the drive, they told her about all the feral dogs in that area and how they had started to refer to that stretch of highway as Dead Dog Road...  with a bit of a laugh. 
*
When Jill crossed the border into the United States, she had a letter in her pocket from a Canadian stable that read:

Jill Wentworth is a USEF, CEF and OEF Member in good standing, and is training and competing in the US this winter to prepare for events/competitions later in the season. Due to climate restrictions in Canada, athletes are required to spend a considerable time in the Southern United States in order to prepare for competition.

No international equestrian competitor can be successful without a highly-capable person training their horses. Jill Wentworth has a sixth sense about horses that allows her to calmly work with even the most difficult horses. Her training programs are painstakingly constructed to maximize a horse’s ability through proper exercise, training, diet and rest. She works tirelessly to produce horses that in the best shape on the circuit, as well as being well versed in longeing and ground training techniques necessary to improve their flexibility, stregnth and way of going. She also has basic knowledge of how to treat injuries, with a diverse ability to diagnose and treat most ailments.
I have found horses trained by her to be invariably maintained in truly outstanding condition, enabling her to compete and manage several others at a time when most riders consider themselves lucky to have a single horse under their care. I am delighted to have Jill as a member of the Equestrian Team training under my instruction and supervision. All her medical insurance, accommodation. food, travel and training fees have been paid in advance.   We expect the course of the student internship to run five months.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

*
Jill said she'd almost wept with joy the first time she'd entertained the the IDEA of her fella tacking up a horse for her. "Does that make me easy, or hard to please???"

And then, it happened. Jim said for her to rest in the sun on the picnic table and he'd get the bays ready to ride.