May Day

"I am keen to ask your mom about her amazing citrus smelling squash recipe." Jill wanted to say to her evil new housemate, gesturing to the the grey haired smiling matron elf in the kitchen, because of the almost empty jar from the fridge.

After smelling it and recognizing the orange liquid and its jar, she'd basically accused the evil house-mate of stealing her very hard earned and hand made homemade organic carrot/orange soup. She had not been shy to challenge the thief in front of friends, directly "Do you know when my soup was taken out of the freezer?"

Jill was still mad at herself after forgetting to take it in the cooler to survive on for her recent drive down to Ocala, Florida. She'd made it because it would be good cold or warm, for lunch or dinner, en route or through out. Most of the jars were frozen.... and she'd forgot them! The evil housemate had said the day before "I brought it back from my parents. Its squash soup my mom made. Oops was it on your side of the fridge?"  He was convincing, but Jill was certain he was a liar. That thawed soup was her own handiwork, not his mom's, but she decided not to make a scene, for the sake of the old folks, and maybe even Roomie, who would be upset when the liar/theif was revealed.

*

Roomie was oblivious to the complications her new love interest was creating at home, and was jabbering about wanting to follow Lyle Lovett's shows at the North Charleston Performing Arts Centre, Savannah Georgia and then Fort Pierce, Clearwater, St, Augustine and Pensacola, Florida. "Lord keep us stead fast in thy word" isn't that a Martin Luther King speech set to tune 1543 Erhalt Uns Herr? She was also, apparently, looking for the hymn's sheet music...
*
Jill knew she should not keep pouring so much energy into worrying about her sister and parents, let alone the minor injustices around her homestead, and she decided to put some more of her life energy into loving the little bay mare she'd recently gotten access to...

This new equine favourite was, of course, out in the paddock as they drove in. Standing near the white shelter, beside the sick gelding who's head was hanging down, the 2 yr old's stance looked to Jill like some herd instinct of a filly protective of her sick brother. He did not look good.

As Jill stepped in the barn trying to decide what to do, the filly came to the indoor, head over the half door, smiling and asking for attention. The stable staffer said she was bringing the sick one in, to try and get a urine sample. but first "do you want to get this one out of the way?" That's when Jill realizes how anxious the young filly was for her attention, proof she enjoyed the challenges and exercises Jill had been bringing her way.

During this particular bi-weekly (instead of a dress shop shift), the little mare went perfectly into canter the very first time Jill asked her, and then came back into Ter-rot, the very first time Jill called out this new vocal command was a joy.

Talking about it with her mom after the lunging session,  "That young one? She is really keen to please me. And, she is smart.  I am really just acting on my intuition too, you know, but it works.  Often the first time.  We are communicating!  Its amazing!  She's amazing!!"

*

Jill had the expression of one of her mentors stuck in mind. he'd been talking to a vet, on the phone about one of the owner's horses, "but, when it is the horses that have to suffer for it, that's when I get irritated"

Surprise!

"The horses were amazing on the weekend. That little Fjord horse knows EVERYthing I know how to do. EVERYTHING. shoulder in, shoulder out, half pass left, half pass right... backwards, forwards, whichway do you want it lady? He's amazing. I guess the only thing left is to hitch him to his cart and let him teach me to drive..."

Jill was enthused, her co-workers were busy.  And, she was really just thinking out loud how she needed another part time job...

"And the two year old, she lunged for her first time, and she understood."  Anyone could tell Jill was horse crazy and had found some new equine-love-of-her-life magic.... but, were they in love with her too?

Her companion had noticed how much better the young one was visit over visit. 

And the lovely assistant also noticed how, Jill, upon switching roles with the barn hand in the effort of getting the stubborn about the driveshed beast, to actually walk through the outer building and into the barn, by simply tickling with the whip where she wished she could place a leg aid and how he went forward so correctly after being asked with this finesse instead of pulled or chased.

W o w.

Open House Goals?

"The sanest one, the calmest, safest, most trainable of the the herd reared up in the cross ties and broke free and went running loose down the barn hall.  You know that expression about closing the barn door AFTER the horse? I got very lucky." Roomie said to her coworkers, reporting on her weekend.  From now on we close that door, even when its warm enough to have it open.

"And as for the mr. premature and bottlefed? I find him to be very different from every other horse I have ever worked with. He's so mouthy and far too in my space and rude. He's a lot more like a 2 year old than an 8 year old. He's had a lot of pasture living but he still seems like he has a hard time reading the herd and honoring social cues...  I find him somewhat frustrating to work with. It's almost like I'm trying to speak a language to him that he's not all that fluent in." she was mostly talking to herself.  The guys at the music shop weren't really into horses.  She was on-line researching his issues on the chat forums.  About 65% of folks seems to think euthanizing a horse made more sense than bottle feeding it, because of the problems it left the animal with for life.  About 30% of participants had made peace with the animals as untrainable lawn ornaments.  And very occasionally there was a story of a bottle fed horse that became a useful riding horse.

Next time, she thought she would bring in the bottle fed chesnut character first and let him hang around in his stall while she groomed and worked with some of the others.  She was hoping he would turn out to be smart, and learn quickly, even if he responded to training differently...

Apparently, he'd had some professional training that amounted to nothing since the trainer couldn't deal with him. At home, Jill agreed that if you have patience, you could get through to him. They discussed how even when he is not overly pushy, the reminders to not be so have to be constant.  He is different, just different mentally. Very self confident, almost oblvious to danger and unware we are not his physical playmate. "The horse seems to want to identify with people, more than with horses. He doesn't quite 'get' that he is a horse. He doesn't seem to care if he's with the herd or not, he is so overly very interested in people.  It seems sometimes he's thinking he's a human with four legs or that we are horses with two legs."

When she'd been out in the paddock picking up rocks, he'd come right over and she'd thought he'd might hurt his teeth with his assumption every thing was mouthable.  And then he was in her space the whole time she walked to the edge of the paddock to place the big potato sized stones.  In hindsight, Roomie was pondering the crazy idea to try and teach him to move the rocks on his own!  He'd love the attention.

Jill agreed and added that he seems to have a sense of humor too to be the kind of horse that steals ball caps and brings them back. And hoped they could find him a new owner that would be the kind that would like it if that the silly horse would try to play games, like stealing his hat and, turning his head, hang it on the horn.

Out of The Box Thinking

Jill liked the name Action for a horse, because it was used in film, and guitar land, as well as equestrian worlds. The first time she had seen the horse, a huge celebrity was show jump schooling her… "I took a 100 pictures of that horse's @ss" she said, explaining her $100 Wal-mart purchase her last time in Florida, to her then tour guide past the frisky chestnut. With the foal that had to canter everywhere to keep up with her and never even trotted one single step.

Why don't we eat more rabbits. Jill was aspiring as a vegan but thought about the waste of euthanizing so many of them while people starved. She hated the rabbbit rescue PSA she had to air during her programs lately.  And also, sometimes she thought her own mind was kind of dark.

Jill was bringing Roomie up to speed on the radio show outing the day before "Yesterday I mounted on the "wrong" side, because you can do that with icelandics, and I wanted to try it. And then, I tolted. shreiking with the fun of it before dismounting also on the incorrect side....

These people clean their saddles with a STONE you know. Its just all about the get up and go!"

Magic Bounce Back

The fuel efficient used vehicle Jill had just purchased was totalled. She'd paid $10,000 and the insurance company only gave her $6,000 for it a few short weeks after the transaction. She had nothing to show for a new $4,000 debt, and was afraid it meant losing horses too, so she couldn't begin to tally the actual loss.

After the shocking, devastating loss of transportation Jill was thrilled to go meet the owner of a small herd of 9 or so horses, three generations of Hanoverians, at varying levels of training, and in need of more riding. Her friend, a brave but basic rider was keen to be drive out to the private farm just 10 km from downtown. Was there a chance they would pull it off?

Jill was also over the moon to be on an actual date with a drummer. She started telling him about the special needs student and her musical mom, and how the only way the lazy pony would keep trotting was when the mom played a trot rhythm on guitar from the sidelines. "That's how I know I horses love music."

Jill said she had only written one song on horseback. It was about bailing out on the boss and riding off together on Monday, and really seemed to solve the matter when she had to hack Nellie past the alligator pond or the g i a n t burn pile, to soothe both their nervousness daily, ha!

She believed that music affected both her and the horse's physiology. She sang it slow then to slow their heartbeats and the breathing rates, as well as to bring down blood pressure... she called it "Campain."

And, didn't tell her current flame how it had been so weird to run into that very boss-partner the day after telling someone how bad she'd felt about actually running off once. "You really broke his heart" she was told, in passing, just case she hadn't felt bad enough about the accidental boyfriend already...

Her then and there romantic lead piped up, and said "well that's all very interesting discussion but there is no way I am ever getting around any of that first hand, because of my SEVERE allergy to horses." Thud.

*

Meanwhile, Roomie had had marvellous follow up dates with a two year long very slow moving out of town crush.  He'd even finally laughed a couple times, and she wanted to sit closer to him.  She loved the crinkles around his eyes!  She was pleased to report they had a nice plan to get together again on Saturday! Would he like horses?