LJ isn't letting me post comments, for some reason. But I've been reading, and sending love to all of you.
***
June was a pretty craptastic month, around here. I spent all of five days at home without company. The entire rest of the month was a chaotic blur: Grandpa's funeral, Trinity's injury, a wedding, a family reunion, a birthday party, babysitting my difficult niece, another family reunion, friends from Switzerland, a family meeting...
I am exhausted. And my sister is now having a personal crisis, so we've decided to head to Colorado for a few days in the middle of July to... I don't know. Offer distraction? We're planning to fold the family visit into a wider vacation - maybe turning it into an epic road trip, if we can manage - but what I really want to do is help a friend finish a 50 mile endurance ride with her horse, lay about in the sunshine for a few days, and just... breathe the smells of horse sweat and leather. :S But she's my sister, and apparently this is my year for family obligations, so. (shrugs)
***
I... never thought I'd say it, but I'm kind of ready for winter already. As much as I hate cold weather, I'm ready to hibernate for a month or two.
***
Still! It hasn't been all bad... when I'm stressed, I can't sleep. And when I can't sleep, I read. Like, a lot. And after bouncing off a stack of books back in the spring, I've sort of hit a roll where I've loved almost everything I've picked up. (Which, upon reflection, may say more about my own headspace than it does about the actual quality of the books I've read, but still.)
Here are some of my favorites:
THE MEMORY GARDEN by Mary Rickert - similar in texture to Alice Hoffman or Sarah Addison Allen. It carries a darker subtext and thicker shadows than Allen's sugared charm, but brighter clarity than some of Hoffman's more ambiguous works. It's about life and living, death and dying, magic and memory - and about the ways in which the bonds of friendship hold us together. I loved it. From the back: "Bay Singer has bigger secrets than most." And when a trio of women visit unexpectedly, those secrets come to light. There's a shoe garden and a flower feast and ghosts and it's delightful. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
THE GIRLS AT THE KINGFISHER CLUB by Genevieve Valentine - my new favorite book. This is MARVELOUS. It's "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" framed in the speakeasies of 1920s Manhattan. I adored the way Valentine uses narrative distance to illustrate the position of the girls, and the way she slowly breaks the barriers as the girls seize chances to define themselves. Don't be fooled into thinking this is just another fairy tale retold in a modern version - Valentine has brilliantly re-imagined the entire thing and woven a perfect blend of history, romance, and sisterhood. (I had one tiny, tiny quibble involving the father, but it's a spoiler so I'll keep quiet. Really, this book is wonderful.) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. From the flap: "The Hamilton sisters weren't supposed to exist. Joseph Hamilton wanted a male heir, and his wife did her best. But in the end, he was disappointed, left with no son, no wife, and twelve girls..."
HARVEST by Jim Crace - best suited to rainy autumn evenings, I think, but lovely any time of year. It's a slow exploration of the inevitability of change and the price of progress set against a gorgeous backdrop of a small farming village. A whisper of intrigue, of magic, breathes through the lyrical prose and makes the quiet story utterly compelling. It's slightly... not sad, not exactly, but sort of nostalgic. Filled with soft regret and guilty shadows, but not without hope. From the back: "On the morning after harvest, a trio of outsiders arrives in a remote village and sets up camp, announcing themselves in smoke. That same night, however, the local manor house also catches ablaze." These two fires chart the course of the story...
BOLETO by Alyson Hagy - about a Wyoming cowboy and the fancy filly he intends to train as a polo pony. About class and expectation, family obligations, and horses. Always horses. Beautifully written and totally authentic - I swear, I met these characters at the ranches in Wyoming - and a pleasure to read, even though it isn't exactly a happy story. (The main horse doesn't die, but oh, there are a million ways for a horse to break your heart.) Bleak and beautiful, all at the same time.
CALIFORNIA BONES by Greg Van Eekhout - ack! Loved this book - and also hated it, and probably can't read the sequel because it gave me nightmares for three nights in a row. :P This is about an alternate Los Angeles, a place where blood-and-bone magic shapes the world and the stakes involve more than just survival. It's unlike anything else I've ever read - the premise is fascinating and well-imagined, the characters are mostly likeable, and the suspense will keep you turning pages. But, oh, I just... Well, here's the flap and you can see for yourself: "When Daniel Blackland was six, he ingested his first bone fragment, a bit of kraken spine plucked out of the sand during a visit with his demanding, brilliant, and powerful magician father, Sebastian." In the years that follow, Daniel is carefully fed bones to augment his own powers, ingesting attributes of the creatures he consumes. Which is... a cool idea, but terrifying. And since it involves cannibalism, I just... ick. But the ick is no reflection on the book or Van Eekhout's skill! Just... be warned. :P
THE MUSEUM OF EXTRAORDINARY THINGS by Alice Hoffman - not one of my favorite Hoffman works, I'll be honest. Set in 1911 New York, in a museum of "wonders" at Coney Island where a young girl confronts the truth about her father and herself and manages to find real love in a world of illusion. But it reads, too often, as a history lesson and some of the descriptive passages are repeated from one section to another. Still, it's an interesting premise and probably worth a read, if you're interested in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, Coney Island, and the growth of photography. Also, I loved the descriptions of swimming in the river.
THE STOCKHOLM OCTAVO by Karen Engelmann - another one of my new favorite books. This is GORGEOUS. Set against late-eighteenth-century Stockholm, this is historical fiction/fantasy at its best. Bright with the glitter of a gilded age and shadowed by the turbulence of the French Revolution, Engelmann has woven a complex story of love and loyalty, intrigue and the occult. The story revolves around a customs official trying to keep his job by finding a wife - he consults Mrs. Sparrow with her cards and insights and visions, and embarks upon a journey that will change him even as the course of his country changes. This book makes me covet - covet, I tell you - a lace fan. :) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
THE LOST SISTERHOOD by Anne Fortier - this involves a secret sisterhood of Amazon women, a society that has persisted even unto modern times to right the wrongs done against other women. Diana Morgan, an Oxford lecturer facing ridicule and professional censure for her obsession with the Amazons of antiquity, is drawn into a mystery when her eccentric grandmother vanishes, leaving her a notebook of symbols and their translations. Her grandmother claimed to be an Amazon, and when Diana is engaged to translate symbols found in a temple she discovers that her grandmother's ravings might have been more than just stories. It's a fun read, though ultimately disappointing for me because the history of the Amazons felt so simplistic and elementary. Of course, I've been pretty much immersed in Bronze Age history for... ahem... quite a while, so I've become intimately familiar with the stories she used as inspiration and wanted... more, I guess. Still, it's a good story for distraction - a quick, easy read and highly entertaining, if it lacks substance. And I did like some of the ways she shifted the Homeric traditions.
Also, reading the cheap/free stuff on kindle is HILARIOUS. Probably unintentionally so, more often than not, but when you need some entertainment, lo! There is a wide world out there... :P (Erm, no disrespect intended to anyone who self publishes on kindle, either. I've read some good stuff, too.)
Okay... that's probably enough for now. :)
***
June was a pretty craptastic month, around here. I spent all of five days at home without company. The entire rest of the month was a chaotic blur: Grandpa's funeral, Trinity's injury, a wedding, a family reunion, a birthday party, babysitting my difficult niece, another family reunion, friends from Switzerland, a family meeting...
I am exhausted. And my sister is now having a personal crisis, so we've decided to head to Colorado for a few days in the middle of July to... I don't know. Offer distraction? We're planning to fold the family visit into a wider vacation - maybe turning it into an epic road trip, if we can manage - but what I really want to do is help a friend finish a 50 mile endurance ride with her horse, lay about in the sunshine for a few days, and just... breathe the smells of horse sweat and leather. :S But she's my sister, and apparently this is my year for family obligations, so. (shrugs)
***
I... never thought I'd say it, but I'm kind of ready for winter already. As much as I hate cold weather, I'm ready to hibernate for a month or two.
***
Still! It hasn't been all bad... when I'm stressed, I can't sleep. And when I can't sleep, I read. Like, a lot. And after bouncing off a stack of books back in the spring, I've sort of hit a roll where I've loved almost everything I've picked up. (Which, upon reflection, may say more about my own headspace than it does about the actual quality of the books I've read, but still.)
Here are some of my favorites:
THE MEMORY GARDEN by Mary Rickert - similar in texture to Alice Hoffman or Sarah Addison Allen. It carries a darker subtext and thicker shadows than Allen's sugared charm, but brighter clarity than some of Hoffman's more ambiguous works. It's about life and living, death and dying, magic and memory - and about the ways in which the bonds of friendship hold us together. I loved it. From the back: "Bay Singer has bigger secrets than most." And when a trio of women visit unexpectedly, those secrets come to light. There's a shoe garden and a flower feast and ghosts and it's delightful. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
THE GIRLS AT THE KINGFISHER CLUB by Genevieve Valentine - my new favorite book. This is MARVELOUS. It's "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" framed in the speakeasies of 1920s Manhattan. I adored the way Valentine uses narrative distance to illustrate the position of the girls, and the way she slowly breaks the barriers as the girls seize chances to define themselves. Don't be fooled into thinking this is just another fairy tale retold in a modern version - Valentine has brilliantly re-imagined the entire thing and woven a perfect blend of history, romance, and sisterhood. (I had one tiny, tiny quibble involving the father, but it's a spoiler so I'll keep quiet. Really, this book is wonderful.) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. From the flap: "The Hamilton sisters weren't supposed to exist. Joseph Hamilton wanted a male heir, and his wife did her best. But in the end, he was disappointed, left with no son, no wife, and twelve girls..."
HARVEST by Jim Crace - best suited to rainy autumn evenings, I think, but lovely any time of year. It's a slow exploration of the inevitability of change and the price of progress set against a gorgeous backdrop of a small farming village. A whisper of intrigue, of magic, breathes through the lyrical prose and makes the quiet story utterly compelling. It's slightly... not sad, not exactly, but sort of nostalgic. Filled with soft regret and guilty shadows, but not without hope. From the back: "On the morning after harvest, a trio of outsiders arrives in a remote village and sets up camp, announcing themselves in smoke. That same night, however, the local manor house also catches ablaze." These two fires chart the course of the story...
BOLETO by Alyson Hagy - about a Wyoming cowboy and the fancy filly he intends to train as a polo pony. About class and expectation, family obligations, and horses. Always horses. Beautifully written and totally authentic - I swear, I met these characters at the ranches in Wyoming - and a pleasure to read, even though it isn't exactly a happy story. (The main horse doesn't die, but oh, there are a million ways for a horse to break your heart.) Bleak and beautiful, all at the same time.
CALIFORNIA BONES by Greg Van Eekhout - ack! Loved this book - and also hated it, and probably can't read the sequel because it gave me nightmares for three nights in a row. :P This is about an alternate Los Angeles, a place where blood-and-bone magic shapes the world and the stakes involve more than just survival. It's unlike anything else I've ever read - the premise is fascinating and well-imagined, the characters are mostly likeable, and the suspense will keep you turning pages. But, oh, I just... Well, here's the flap and you can see for yourself: "When Daniel Blackland was six, he ingested his first bone fragment, a bit of kraken spine plucked out of the sand during a visit with his demanding, brilliant, and powerful magician father, Sebastian." In the years that follow, Daniel is carefully fed bones to augment his own powers, ingesting attributes of the creatures he consumes. Which is... a cool idea, but terrifying. And since it involves cannibalism, I just... ick. But the ick is no reflection on the book or Van Eekhout's skill! Just... be warned. :P
THE MUSEUM OF EXTRAORDINARY THINGS by Alice Hoffman - not one of my favorite Hoffman works, I'll be honest. Set in 1911 New York, in a museum of "wonders" at Coney Island where a young girl confronts the truth about her father and herself and manages to find real love in a world of illusion. But it reads, too often, as a history lesson and some of the descriptive passages are repeated from one section to another. Still, it's an interesting premise and probably worth a read, if you're interested in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, Coney Island, and the growth of photography. Also, I loved the descriptions of swimming in the river.
THE STOCKHOLM OCTAVO by Karen Engelmann - another one of my new favorite books. This is GORGEOUS. Set against late-eighteenth-century Stockholm, this is historical fiction/fantasy at its best. Bright with the glitter of a gilded age and shadowed by the turbulence of the French Revolution, Engelmann has woven a complex story of love and loyalty, intrigue and the occult. The story revolves around a customs official trying to keep his job by finding a wife - he consults Mrs. Sparrow with her cards and insights and visions, and embarks upon a journey that will change him even as the course of his country changes. This book makes me covet - covet, I tell you - a lace fan. :) HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
THE LOST SISTERHOOD by Anne Fortier - this involves a secret sisterhood of Amazon women, a society that has persisted even unto modern times to right the wrongs done against other women. Diana Morgan, an Oxford lecturer facing ridicule and professional censure for her obsession with the Amazons of antiquity, is drawn into a mystery when her eccentric grandmother vanishes, leaving her a notebook of symbols and their translations. Her grandmother claimed to be an Amazon, and when Diana is engaged to translate symbols found in a temple she discovers that her grandmother's ravings might have been more than just stories. It's a fun read, though ultimately disappointing for me because the history of the Amazons felt so simplistic and elementary. Of course, I've been pretty much immersed in Bronze Age history for... ahem... quite a while, so I've become intimately familiar with the stories she used as inspiration and wanted... more, I guess. Still, it's a good story for distraction - a quick, easy read and highly entertaining, if it lacks substance. And I did like some of the ways she shifted the Homeric traditions.
Also, reading the cheap/free stuff on kindle is HILARIOUS. Probably unintentionally so, more often than not, but when you need some entertainment, lo! There is a wide world out there... :P (Erm, no disrespect intended to anyone who self publishes on kindle, either. I've read some good stuff, too.)
Okay... that's probably enough for now. :)
So, a week ago Trinity came to the gate with a huge, gaping wound just above her forearm, where her leg meets her chest. She had a smaller laceration on her leg and a scrape along her cannon bone. The only thing I could figure was that she must have impaled herself on a steel T-post, and based on the shape of the main wound, the vet concurs.
OF COURSE it happened in the late afternoon/early evening, so I had to call the emergency vet out. And the next day I had my regular vet out because Teeny did not handle the pain well at. all. She ended up with stitches, antibiotics, bute, and 48 hours worth of mild sedation. (It was like she couldn't understand what had happened... like she thought she could run away from the pain, or fight it. That first day was HORRIBLE. Luckily, she did settle down, but yikes.)
Unfortunately, even though she's been good about not gnawing at the stitches, the wound has started to gape open again and it's oozing pus. Had to call the vet back, and he confirmed that the pus is just normal drainage and is a result of the location/severity of the injury. The stitches aren't holding, so we have to treat it as an open wound. Which means more antibiotics, cold hosing 6 times a day, and spraying with Vetericyn 4 times a day.
I've been worried sick about it, and guilty because OF COURSE she would find the small section of fence that isn't capped. I didn't think the T-posts would be a problem, because the smooth wire goes right to the top of the post, and I walked her around the entire fence several days before turning her out. She was out there for 2 months with no problems... I have no idea what happened. The vet was nice, though, and pointed out that if she was going to land on the fence, a capped post might just have broken her leg rather than puncturing it. As horrible as the wound is, at least it's treatable and should heal with only a scar to prove it happened. A broken leg... well, that would be something else entirely. He told me not to worry about it, that horses can find ways to hurt themselves, but... ack. I still feel awful. :(
But Teeny is a love. In the last week she has learned to a) take applesauce from a syringe, b) accept cold hosing on the legs while standing (mostly) still, c) accept weird smelling sprays on her legs (mostly), d) take crushed pills on feed, e) let strange men poke at her legs, listen to her heart, and check her gums, f) pick up her feet when I tap her fetlocks. She follows me around like a dog, and when I scrubbed out her stock tanks this afternoon she had her face right there with me, sniffing and blowing and trying to figure out what I was doing. :D She *is* pushy, but responds well to gentle reminders. She's a neat mix of spice and sass and sweetness, and I adore her.
I just hope I don't screw her up.
(Oh, and also? I've been a little worried about her not gaining weight and asked my vet what he thought. He pointed out that what I thought were visible rib lines are actually just brindle markings on her coat. Heh. You can _feel_ her ribs, but they aren't as visible as I assumed, when you realize her coat is striped. :P *facepalm* I mean, I could see shading in her coat, but somehow I didn't make the connection. D'oh! :P I've still got her on some feed supplements, but he was very complimentary and called her condition "near ideal." So, whew!)
OF COURSE it happened in the late afternoon/early evening, so I had to call the emergency vet out. And the next day I had my regular vet out because Teeny did not handle the pain well at. all. She ended up with stitches, antibiotics, bute, and 48 hours worth of mild sedation. (It was like she couldn't understand what had happened... like she thought she could run away from the pain, or fight it. That first day was HORRIBLE. Luckily, she did settle down, but yikes.)
Unfortunately, even though she's been good about not gnawing at the stitches, the wound has started to gape open again and it's oozing pus. Had to call the vet back, and he confirmed that the pus is just normal drainage and is a result of the location/severity of the injury. The stitches aren't holding, so we have to treat it as an open wound. Which means more antibiotics, cold hosing 6 times a day, and spraying with Vetericyn 4 times a day.
I've been worried sick about it, and guilty because OF COURSE she would find the small section of fence that isn't capped. I didn't think the T-posts would be a problem, because the smooth wire goes right to the top of the post, and I walked her around the entire fence several days before turning her out. She was out there for 2 months with no problems... I have no idea what happened. The vet was nice, though, and pointed out that if she was going to land on the fence, a capped post might just have broken her leg rather than puncturing it. As horrible as the wound is, at least it's treatable and should heal with only a scar to prove it happened. A broken leg... well, that would be something else entirely. He told me not to worry about it, that horses can find ways to hurt themselves, but... ack. I still feel awful. :(
But Teeny is a love. In the last week she has learned to a) take applesauce from a syringe, b) accept cold hosing on the legs while standing (mostly) still, c) accept weird smelling sprays on her legs (mostly), d) take crushed pills on feed, e) let strange men poke at her legs, listen to her heart, and check her gums, f) pick up her feet when I tap her fetlocks. She follows me around like a dog, and when I scrubbed out her stock tanks this afternoon she had her face right there with me, sniffing and blowing and trying to figure out what I was doing. :D She *is* pushy, but responds well to gentle reminders. She's a neat mix of spice and sass and sweetness, and I adore her.
I just hope I don't screw her up.
(Oh, and also? I've been a little worried about her not gaining weight and asked my vet what he thought. He pointed out that what I thought were visible rib lines are actually just brindle markings on her coat. Heh. You can _feel_ her ribs, but they aren't as visible as I assumed, when you realize her coat is striped. :P *facepalm* I mean, I could see shading in her coat, but somehow I didn't make the connection. D'oh! :P I've still got her on some feed supplements, but he was very complimentary and called her condition "near ideal." So, whew!)
1. The three black lines on her upper lip that earned her name have largely faded. I am ever-so-slightly disappointed; they were a striking mark and I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss them. But the mask around her eyes has darkened, making her blaze stand out more. I've never had a blaze-face horse before, and it makes me happy every time I see that white stripe hanging over the gate. :)
2. I still don't know what color she is, and no one else seems able to tell, either. When she lost her long winter guard hairs she looked grulla, and then she shed _that_ coat out, too, and now she looks sort of dun. Her coat now is a perfect blend of buttercream-and-charcoal hairs - when you look close, there are _dozens_ of shaded colors all mixed together. She still has a dorsal stripe, and I *think* I see zebra stripes behind her knees and hocks, though right now her legs are a bit muddy so it's hard to tell for certain. Her mane and tail are still dark, but there are light colored hairs at the base - along with a few random white hairs. I thought the white hairs indicated that she was going to go gray, but my vet says gray horses keep dark manes until their coats fade. Is that right? She thinks Teeny is dun and said the fading black stripes on her nose are just part of her growing up. But who knows? I guess we'll just wait and see. I've always wanted a buckskin or dun, but the more I think about a gray, the more I like the idea. In any case, I've never picked a horse for color before so it hardly matters now.
3. Three days of rain and hail and thunder set my training plan back - I should know better than to announce plans, because that's just asking the universe to screw with me - but I did fit a few sessions in. I asked my husband to help, actually - he likes horses but has never been all that involved with the mustangs, since Gypsy and the crew always reacted as if he might be a bear. Luckily, Teeny is not afraid of him (more on that later) so I thought she'd be a good one for him to play with. And, I'll admit, I was nervous that if she started pulling back in halter or trying to yank free, I wouldn't be strong enough to hold her. That is the *last* thing I wanted to teach her. So, since I'm 110 pounds of mostly bone and my husband is 250 pounds of mostly muscle, I figured he'd be a good hand to have around. :) Turns out I needn't have worried - for as stubborn as she can be, she learns *super* fast and the foundation I've been laying all winter proved its worth. We clipped the lead on, he took off, and she followed as if she'd been leading her entire life. She only locked up twice, and both times a few kisses and a gentle tug on the lead were sufficient to unfreeze her. I took her in hand and taught her to yield her hindquarters and back up on the second cue, so that pleased me. Of course, in my experience horses perform well the first couple of times they get a new skill, and then on the third or fourth time they act out, so I am prepared for a temper tantrum in the next few days. But my husband is having fun with her, and I like that she's getting used to being worked by both of us..
4. And here's the thing about her - she is not afraid of people AT ALL. I mean, to the point of being a nuisance because if you don't watch her, she'll run you over. I've never had a horse with so little regard for people standing in the way. Like I said before, she's *almost* pushy. We are working very conscientiously on enforcing boundaries and demanding respect, but she's two and she's testing things. I'm glad my husband is helping me, because I really think it's going to take both of us to keep her behaving politely - at least for the next little while. She has a very kind nature and is very friendly, so I'm not worried about aggression. But I will not tolerate a pushy, unmannerly, spoiled horse and Teeny has the sort of bold self-confidence that could turn into trouble if we don't address it now.
5. That said, I have to tell you how much I love her personality. :D She is so, so forward - and is only becoming more so with the start of proper lessons. She *loves* being challenged, loves to have something to do. She learns so quickly and takes things in stride. She loves to go, loves to see things. And she doesn't seem to exhibit stress the way the other mustangs do, so I think she might have a good head for the chaos and demands of endurance. It's a long way off, I know, and I don't want to jinx it, but she is SO different from any other horse I've ever had. I have a feeling the same elements that are forcing me to shift the way I handle her on the ground are the things that will make her a joy on the trail. I hope. :) And she's so friendly - she's the only horse I've ever had who will walk away from a feed bucket for scritches behind the ears and a pat on the shoulder. :D
Anyway, I'm having a blast with her and it makes me so happy to share this experience with my husband. :)
2. I still don't know what color she is, and no one else seems able to tell, either. When she lost her long winter guard hairs she looked grulla, and then she shed _that_ coat out, too, and now she looks sort of dun. Her coat now is a perfect blend of buttercream-and-charcoal hairs - when you look close, there are _dozens_ of shaded colors all mixed together. She still has a dorsal stripe, and I *think* I see zebra stripes behind her knees and hocks, though right now her legs are a bit muddy so it's hard to tell for certain. Her mane and tail are still dark, but there are light colored hairs at the base - along with a few random white hairs. I thought the white hairs indicated that she was going to go gray, but my vet says gray horses keep dark manes until their coats fade. Is that right? She thinks Teeny is dun and said the fading black stripes on her nose are just part of her growing up. But who knows? I guess we'll just wait and see. I've always wanted a buckskin or dun, but the more I think about a gray, the more I like the idea. In any case, I've never picked a horse for color before so it hardly matters now.
3. Three days of rain and hail and thunder set my training plan back - I should know better than to announce plans, because that's just asking the universe to screw with me - but I did fit a few sessions in. I asked my husband to help, actually - he likes horses but has never been all that involved with the mustangs, since Gypsy and the crew always reacted as if he might be a bear. Luckily, Teeny is not afraid of him (more on that later) so I thought she'd be a good one for him to play with. And, I'll admit, I was nervous that if she started pulling back in halter or trying to yank free, I wouldn't be strong enough to hold her. That is the *last* thing I wanted to teach her. So, since I'm 110 pounds of mostly bone and my husband is 250 pounds of mostly muscle, I figured he'd be a good hand to have around. :) Turns out I needn't have worried - for as stubborn as she can be, she learns *super* fast and the foundation I've been laying all winter proved its worth. We clipped the lead on, he took off, and she followed as if she'd been leading her entire life. She only locked up twice, and both times a few kisses and a gentle tug on the lead were sufficient to unfreeze her. I took her in hand and taught her to yield her hindquarters and back up on the second cue, so that pleased me. Of course, in my experience horses perform well the first couple of times they get a new skill, and then on the third or fourth time they act out, so I am prepared for a temper tantrum in the next few days. But my husband is having fun with her, and I like that she's getting used to being worked by both of us..
4. And here's the thing about her - she is not afraid of people AT ALL. I mean, to the point of being a nuisance because if you don't watch her, she'll run you over. I've never had a horse with so little regard for people standing in the way. Like I said before, she's *almost* pushy. We are working very conscientiously on enforcing boundaries and demanding respect, but she's two and she's testing things. I'm glad my husband is helping me, because I really think it's going to take both of us to keep her behaving politely - at least for the next little while. She has a very kind nature and is very friendly, so I'm not worried about aggression. But I will not tolerate a pushy, unmannerly, spoiled horse and Teeny has the sort of bold self-confidence that could turn into trouble if we don't address it now.
5. That said, I have to tell you how much I love her personality. :D She is so, so forward - and is only becoming more so with the start of proper lessons. She *loves* being challenged, loves to have something to do. She learns so quickly and takes things in stride. She loves to go, loves to see things. And she doesn't seem to exhibit stress the way the other mustangs do, so I think she might have a good head for the chaos and demands of endurance. It's a long way off, I know, and I don't want to jinx it, but she is SO different from any other horse I've ever had. I have a feeling the same elements that are forcing me to shift the way I handle her on the ground are the things that will make her a joy on the trail. I hope. :) And she's so friendly - she's the only horse I've ever had who will walk away from a feed bucket for scritches behind the ears and a pat on the shoulder. :D
Anyway, I'm having a blast with her and it makes me so happy to share this experience with my husband. :)
My scarcity this go-round has, for once, nothing to do with connectivity issues. (We think - at last, again - we have most of them solved. Other than the fact that bad weather will still wreak havoc with our satellite signal, but that can't be helped.) No, this time it's because I've spent the last five-six weeks in miserable mouth pain.
( cut for boring personal detailsCollapse )
So, moral of the story: just because the general consensus tells you something is necessary or good for you doesn't mean it is for you as an individual. Also, if it burns, it's probably not good for you. ;)
And now I'm off to look for fluoride-free toothpaste. Is there even such a thing? :S
( cut for boring personal detailsCollapse )
So, moral of the story: just because the general consensus tells you something is necessary or good for you doesn't mean it is for you as an individual. Also, if it burns, it's probably not good for you. ;)
And now I'm off to look for fluoride-free toothpaste. Is there even such a thing? :S
We are in the process of switching to a new cellphone service provider - FINALLY. The problem is, the closest store is an hour away and carries no phones in stock - it's just a little rural outpost, really, so we had to order everything and are STILL waiting for the phones to come in. And then, we've been told, it might take "a while" to get them activated and switch the contacts, and no one is sure the contacts on my old phone will even transfer because the thing is SO OLD and obsolete. But that's okay, because I will finally have a smart phone with internet access! (The simplest and cheapest smart phone they offer, but STILL.)
In the meantime, I am copying my contact list by hand, just in case.
...
A couple of friends - my eye doctor, for one - have insisted for years that I read the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. I resisted because, generally, I dislike time travel stories. Which is, maybe, a weak reason for automatically discounting a wildly popular series as a whole, but there you go. I was pretty sure these books were just not my thing.
And then the first one came up as a kindle deal and I bought it. I figured I'd get around to reading it this summer, maybe, or if I couldn't sleep, or something...
But I was waiting for the kids to get out of track practice and I was stressed out and miserable and I've been up to the eyeballs in grant applications and research for the next writing project and I just... needed something. So I read the first chapter, really intending just to dip in and then set it aside for later.
I was hooked. Completely. Read while I fixed a quick supper, read while I waited for the pasture stock tanks to fill, read while I walked the dogs, read in the bath, read in bed... and came up for air at 2am with three chapters left and a panicked realization that I really didn't want the book to end.
It's not perfect - and there are scenes in here that would make me roll my eyes SO HARD if I encountered them in any other book, by any other writer, at any other time or in any other mood. But, somehow... they didn't bother me. Some combination of charisma, confidence, and competency just makes the story work, I guess. And there are other scenes that are so true to married life as I experience it, to motherhood and sisterhood and the challenge of making a home in the midst of someone else's history... it's so eerily spot-on, sometimes. The writing is mostly smooth and unobtrusive with moments of brilliance, and I can't count the number of times I've been weepy and giggly at the same time. This is escapist romance at its best, for me, and I've already used birthday book money to order the series in paperback, because a digital copy isn't going to cut it for me this time.
I've read that the series kind of lags around the fifth and sixth books, and that the seventh has a terrible ending. But there's another one coming out soonish and the first one is good enough that I'm willing to take the chance on the rest. So, if you like Susanna Kearsley and/or Mary Stewart and/or historical romance with a wry sense of humor and a fantastic set of characters, then give this series a chance. I'm so glad I finally did!
(The good thing about resisting for so long is that now I get to read them without waiting so long between books. :D)
In the meantime, I am copying my contact list by hand, just in case.
...
A couple of friends - my eye doctor, for one - have insisted for years that I read the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. I resisted because, generally, I dislike time travel stories. Which is, maybe, a weak reason for automatically discounting a wildly popular series as a whole, but there you go. I was pretty sure these books were just not my thing.
And then the first one came up as a kindle deal and I bought it. I figured I'd get around to reading it this summer, maybe, or if I couldn't sleep, or something...
But I was waiting for the kids to get out of track practice and I was stressed out and miserable and I've been up to the eyeballs in grant applications and research for the next writing project and I just... needed something. So I read the first chapter, really intending just to dip in and then set it aside for later.
I was hooked. Completely. Read while I fixed a quick supper, read while I waited for the pasture stock tanks to fill, read while I walked the dogs, read in the bath, read in bed... and came up for air at 2am with three chapters left and a panicked realization that I really didn't want the book to end.
It's not perfect - and there are scenes in here that would make me roll my eyes SO HARD if I encountered them in any other book, by any other writer, at any other time or in any other mood. But, somehow... they didn't bother me. Some combination of charisma, confidence, and competency just makes the story work, I guess. And there are other scenes that are so true to married life as I experience it, to motherhood and sisterhood and the challenge of making a home in the midst of someone else's history... it's so eerily spot-on, sometimes. The writing is mostly smooth and unobtrusive with moments of brilliance, and I can't count the number of times I've been weepy and giggly at the same time. This is escapist romance at its best, for me, and I've already used birthday book money to order the series in paperback, because a digital copy isn't going to cut it for me this time.
I've read that the series kind of lags around the fifth and sixth books, and that the seventh has a terrible ending. But there's another one coming out soonish and the first one is good enough that I'm willing to take the chance on the rest. So, if you like Susanna Kearsley and/or Mary Stewart and/or historical romance with a wry sense of humor and a fantastic set of characters, then give this series a chance. I'm so glad I finally did!
(The good thing about resisting for so long is that now I get to read them without waiting so long between books. :D)
Some time ago I read a fictionalized biography of a woman who'd always sort of distantly fascinated me - and it was *terrible.* I was disappointed - not only had it been written by someone who used to be an automatic buy for me, but I'd had such high hopes for a really great story and the end result was bland and uneven. On a whim, I went searching for other books related to the person/subject and even though I did read some interesting things, nothing *quite* satisfied me. I was craving a specific type of story and just wasn't finding it.
It occurred to me, in one of those splashy moments of inspiration that come in the shower just as you start rinsing out shampoo suds, that maybe *I* should write the story I so wanted to read.
Only, it seemed impossibly daunting. (Um, still does.) It requires research on a variety of subjects with which I have only the most vague, passing familiarity. I tried to ignore the idea, but it wouldn't let me go. So I decided, while I finish the ballet book, to start poking around with a little more focus and intention.
And, in the last few months, I have read A LOT about this era/event and started noticing patterns.
The fiction I read treated certain elements as historical fact - or as mythological canon, depending on your perspective - but when I peeled back the layers and started looking for origin and point source corroboration, I discovered that one or two early authors - and I mean, from centuries ago - added certain artistic flourishes to the material, and later authors assumed these creative flairs were as reliable as the rest of the material. So they, um, borrowed? these elements, and incorporated them into their own works, and later authors came along and borrowed the same elements, and now there's this whole body of work built around someone else's construct.
Which is probably, I think, natural given the nature of the subject and the long period of time we're talking about, here, but...
...well, I'm the kind of person who likes to dig to the bottom of things. Skimming wikipedia is not enough for me, nor is reading a blurb in one textbook or absorbing the popularly accepted version already established in fiction. I want to _know_ where ideas start, who first plants them.
And I was mentioning this to someone who is also interested in writing a story related to this period of time, and she glibly said, "Oh, I don't care about all that. If other authors use [these elements], then everyone believes them anyway, so what's the difference?" So I said something about research and she said, "Oh, I research too! I've read [all these fiction books] and taken notes."
Which... okay, great. You've just researched the market, the material, the current thinking. But that isn't, to my mind, really the same thing as *research.* It's not the same as tracing the first source, comparing translations, reading archaeological articles and ethnographic studies, dipping into art history and religious iconography and climatological/geographic analysis of the region and time...
And, yes, I know I get carried away. I'll always be a historian at heart and I know that 99% of what I read isn't going to matter to my story - assuming I write it - at all. But before I can play around with history/myth, I want to know that what I say has a basis in study. I want my story to have a feeling of genuine credibility, even if I play around with the facts and turn them to fantasy.
It's gotten to where I can read something and identify exactly which books the author has referenced based on how they treat certain... ideas. And the ones who've obviously taken their own direction after going back to the sources, those are golden and I adore them.
So, I'm just curious - if you were going to write historical fiction, how much research would do? And if your topic straddles the border between history and myth anyway, how far would you deviate from the versions people assume to be "true?" Also, do you like it when an author writes a note explaining the basis for their story and pointing out the areas they invented apart from historical evidence?
ETA: The person mentioned is no one here on LJ, I swear. (Just to be perfectly clear.)
It occurred to me, in one of those splashy moments of inspiration that come in the shower just as you start rinsing out shampoo suds, that maybe *I* should write the story I so wanted to read.
Only, it seemed impossibly daunting. (Um, still does.) It requires research on a variety of subjects with which I have only the most vague, passing familiarity. I tried to ignore the idea, but it wouldn't let me go. So I decided, while I finish the ballet book, to start poking around with a little more focus and intention.
And, in the last few months, I have read A LOT about this era/event and started noticing patterns.
The fiction I read treated certain elements as historical fact - or as mythological canon, depending on your perspective - but when I peeled back the layers and started looking for origin and point source corroboration, I discovered that one or two early authors - and I mean, from centuries ago - added certain artistic flourishes to the material, and later authors assumed these creative flairs were as reliable as the rest of the material. So they, um, borrowed? these elements, and incorporated them into their own works, and later authors came along and borrowed the same elements, and now there's this whole body of work built around someone else's construct.
Which is probably, I think, natural given the nature of the subject and the long period of time we're talking about, here, but...
...well, I'm the kind of person who likes to dig to the bottom of things. Skimming wikipedia is not enough for me, nor is reading a blurb in one textbook or absorbing the popularly accepted version already established in fiction. I want to _know_ where ideas start, who first plants them.
And I was mentioning this to someone who is also interested in writing a story related to this period of time, and she glibly said, "Oh, I don't care about all that. If other authors use [these elements], then everyone believes them anyway, so what's the difference?" So I said something about research and she said, "Oh, I research too! I've read [all these fiction books] and taken notes."
Which... okay, great. You've just researched the market, the material, the current thinking. But that isn't, to my mind, really the same thing as *research.* It's not the same as tracing the first source, comparing translations, reading archaeological articles and ethnographic studies, dipping into art history and religious iconography and climatological/geographic analysis of the region and time...
And, yes, I know I get carried away. I'll always be a historian at heart and I know that 99% of what I read isn't going to matter to my story - assuming I write it - at all. But before I can play around with history/myth, I want to know that what I say has a basis in study. I want my story to have a feeling of genuine credibility, even if I play around with the facts and turn them to fantasy.
It's gotten to where I can read something and identify exactly which books the author has referenced based on how they treat certain... ideas. And the ones who've obviously taken their own direction after going back to the sources, those are golden and I adore them.
So, I'm just curious - if you were going to write historical fiction, how much research would do? And if your topic straddles the border between history and myth anyway, how far would you deviate from the versions people assume to be "true?" Also, do you like it when an author writes a note explaining the basis for their story and pointing out the areas they invented apart from historical evidence?
ETA: The person mentioned is no one here on LJ, I swear. (Just to be perfectly clear.)
Back from Vegas. Had a blast, though I have to say we'll probably never go back. The locals told us it was a slow week, but SO MANY PEOPLE EVERYWHERE ZOMG. I mean, I *knew* it would be busy and crowded, but I hadn't anticipated quite how maddening it would be. And it's fascinating to see all the casinos and shops and whatnot, but... I am not, generally, a fan of superficial excess. Which is pretty much the definition of Vegas, as far as I can tell.
Still, it was totally worth the trip just to see the Bellagio fountains (amazing) and Cirque du Soleil (INCREDIBLE). We had tickets to Zumanity and Mystere, and the only thing that could drag us back to Vegas would be tickets to Ka, which was dark until the 28th. They aren't so much _shows_ as they are immersive experiences, which is really, really cool. We also snagged VIP tickets to David Copperfield, which was... kind of disappointing, actually, but still really fun.
Our favorite part of the trip was a day tour to the Grand Canyon, which turned out to be a private tour. Our guide was HILARIOUS and he was training another guy who ended up feeling like a friend by the end of the day. We enjoyed getting to know them, and seeing the Canyon from the West Rim (on Hualipai reservation land, so we could get RIGHT UP TO THE EDGE) was just amazing. Terrifying, but amazing. And then he took us on a bonus side trip to the Hoover Dam at no extra charge, so we appreciated that. It felt a lot more... real... than anything in Vegas and was more our kind of thing. Also, seeing how low the Colorado River and Lake Mead are just... astonishes me. I wonder how many tourists fully recognize the fragile balance between desert and city out there?
But it was a fantastic adventure and we came home with loads of stories, so I'm glad we went. (And sitting around in short sleeves for a week while temperatures at home plummeted below zero was just the thing we needed. :D)
Now we're off to Chicago for a conference so things will continue quiet around here for a while, but I hope y'all are staying warm and safe.
Still, it was totally worth the trip just to see the Bellagio fountains (amazing) and Cirque du Soleil (INCREDIBLE). We had tickets to Zumanity and Mystere, and the only thing that could drag us back to Vegas would be tickets to Ka, which was dark until the 28th. They aren't so much _shows_ as they are immersive experiences, which is really, really cool. We also snagged VIP tickets to David Copperfield, which was... kind of disappointing, actually, but still really fun.
Our favorite part of the trip was a day tour to the Grand Canyon, which turned out to be a private tour. Our guide was HILARIOUS and he was training another guy who ended up feeling like a friend by the end of the day. We enjoyed getting to know them, and seeing the Canyon from the West Rim (on Hualipai reservation land, so we could get RIGHT UP TO THE EDGE) was just amazing. Terrifying, but amazing. And then he took us on a bonus side trip to the Hoover Dam at no extra charge, so we appreciated that. It felt a lot more... real... than anything in Vegas and was more our kind of thing. Also, seeing how low the Colorado River and Lake Mead are just... astonishes me. I wonder how many tourists fully recognize the fragile balance between desert and city out there?
But it was a fantastic adventure and we came home with loads of stories, so I'm glad we went. (And sitting around in short sleeves for a week while temperatures at home plummeted below zero was just the thing we needed. :D)
Now we're off to Chicago for a conference so things will continue quiet around here for a while, but I hope y'all are staying warm and safe.
Last post of the day, I swear. (This is what happens when my FIL decides to mow the bridle path...)
I miss the days when half my f-list was posting about things they'd read, because I can honestly say that well over a third of my current personal library comes from recommendations I found on LJ. And I get why the conversations have shifted offline - many of those people are now published or seeking publication, and there's such a twitchy transition from being Reader to being Author, and no one (myself included!) wants to accidentally step on toes. We're all busier, now, than we used to be and it's harder to find time to write book reports or critiques, too.
But, still.
One of my resolutions for 2014 is to write more consistently about what I'm reading, so I figured I'd give myself December as practice.
Here are some of my recent favorites, in brief:
THE PRINCESS CURSE by Merrie Haskill
First of all, I would NEVER have bothered to pick this up if a good friend hadn't insisted I give it a try. It looks like a cute and charming princess fairy tale story - perfect fluff for a 12-year-old, but nothing I've been in the mood for in quite some time. I WAS SO WRONG and I would have missed out on a really great book. This is a fascinating blend of Romanian history, fairy tale, and myth; elements of the Twelve Dancing Princesses and Beauty and the Beast are layered with overtones of Hades and Persephone, but the result is something beautifully fresh. Reveka, the main character, is a young herbalist's apprentice determined to break the curse that threatens the kingdom's political security even as it wreaks havoc with the twelve princesses. Her determination and wry humor carry the story convincingly, but the depth of her character gives it texture and deeper significance. This is not the superficial candy-fluff sort of fairy tale at all - it is darker than I'd expected, shadows and starlight and secrets. (MG)
BELLMAN AND BLACK by Diane Setterfield
I am, frankly, surprised by the number of negative reviews online because I LOVED this book. It is gorgeously written, brilliantly executed, and deeply symbolic. It's the sort of story you can twist and turn in your mind to find different interpretations, and yet the theme - what the story really is - never changes. It's about thought and memory, life and death. And... okay, I can see why people say it's dark and grim and brooding - but for me? It's a lesson in hope and living in the moment - in loving while letting go. It reminds me, vividly, of Dickens' A Christmas Carol even though it isn't really a holiday story at all.
The story begins with William Bellman impulsively striking a crow with a stone from his slingshot from an improbable distance. Though he forgets the incident for some years, it comes back to haunt him in his adulthood. As a driven, fastidious, precisely-controlled businessman, he can never quite escape the shadow of his regrets and fears.
I don't think it will spoil anything if I warn you that there is no happily-ever-after. Bellman is not a Scrooge to wake up on Christmas morning with a second chance - there are no second chances, no escapes, no erased consequences here. And yet there is still hope, and the story is still darkly beautiful - even if that beauty is cloaked in tragic shadows.
I read this book weeks and weeks ago, and yet it has stuck with me. I keep seeing symbols and motifs I didn't consciously notice while I was reading, and recognizing foreshadowing I barely saw at the time. This is a wonderful book, but maybe you have to be in the right mood for it. (Adult)
THE HOUSE OF SILK by Anthony Horowitz
As a young reader and again as a teen, I had a passionate love for all things Sherlock. When I spotted this on a bargain table, I grabbed it despite my general reluctance to read someone else's contributions to an original body of work. And I have to say that I genuinely enjoyed this. Horowitz does an admirable job of maintaining a tone of authenticity and his version of Watson and Holmes is credible. The mystery itself, however, was much grimmer than I'd expected and I felt that the resolution lacked... I don't know what, precisely... Maybe it felt rushed, to me? Or too convenient? In the originals, even though Sherlock solves the cases through what feels like a twist of convenience or some improbable leap of intuition, he's always able to point back to the specific clues that led him to his conclusions. In this case, however, I couldn't quite believe that logic had contributed as much as luck. Still, a fun read if you like this sort of thing. (Adult)
I CAPTURE THE CASTLE by Dodie Smith
Bought this as a daily deal for my kindle and I am so glad I did. I ADORED this book. It is utterly charming and surprisingly hard to put down. Cassandra and her family live in a ramshackle castle on a long-term lease, though they haven't paid rent since their landlord died. The father is - was, once - a famous author with one incredible success to his name, but he hasn't written a word in twelve years. Cassandra and her sister fear he never will again, and his increasingly eccentric seclusion weighs heavily on them. Their stepmother, an artist's model prone to flightiness and yet with startling moments of earthy practicality, has a talent for holding things together despite their poverty and lack of prospects. But Rose, Cassandra's older sister, is desperate for a chance at a new life - even if it means wishing on a gargoyle, praying to the devil, and marrying a man she dislikes.
Cassandra documents their lives in a series of journals; her wry and witty observations lend humor and charm to what could be a sordid and depressing tale of woe. The wisp of romance provides beauty and poignancy - but it is her own growing maturity and self-awareness that made me love the book so deeply. (Adult / YA)
I miss the days when half my f-list was posting about things they'd read, because I can honestly say that well over a third of my current personal library comes from recommendations I found on LJ. And I get why the conversations have shifted offline - many of those people are now published or seeking publication, and there's such a twitchy transition from being Reader to being Author, and no one (myself included!) wants to accidentally step on toes. We're all busier, now, than we used to be and it's harder to find time to write book reports or critiques, too.
But, still.
One of my resolutions for 2014 is to write more consistently about what I'm reading, so I figured I'd give myself December as practice.
Here are some of my recent favorites, in brief:
THE PRINCESS CURSE by Merrie Haskill
First of all, I would NEVER have bothered to pick this up if a good friend hadn't insisted I give it a try. It looks like a cute and charming princess fairy tale story - perfect fluff for a 12-year-old, but nothing I've been in the mood for in quite some time. I WAS SO WRONG and I would have missed out on a really great book. This is a fascinating blend of Romanian history, fairy tale, and myth; elements of the Twelve Dancing Princesses and Beauty and the Beast are layered with overtones of Hades and Persephone, but the result is something beautifully fresh. Reveka, the main character, is a young herbalist's apprentice determined to break the curse that threatens the kingdom's political security even as it wreaks havoc with the twelve princesses. Her determination and wry humor carry the story convincingly, but the depth of her character gives it texture and deeper significance. This is not the superficial candy-fluff sort of fairy tale at all - it is darker than I'd expected, shadows and starlight and secrets. (MG)
BELLMAN AND BLACK by Diane Setterfield
I am, frankly, surprised by the number of negative reviews online because I LOVED this book. It is gorgeously written, brilliantly executed, and deeply symbolic. It's the sort of story you can twist and turn in your mind to find different interpretations, and yet the theme - what the story really is - never changes. It's about thought and memory, life and death. And... okay, I can see why people say it's dark and grim and brooding - but for me? It's a lesson in hope and living in the moment - in loving while letting go. It reminds me, vividly, of Dickens' A Christmas Carol even though it isn't really a holiday story at all.
The story begins with William Bellman impulsively striking a crow with a stone from his slingshot from an improbable distance. Though he forgets the incident for some years, it comes back to haunt him in his adulthood. As a driven, fastidious, precisely-controlled businessman, he can never quite escape the shadow of his regrets and fears.
I don't think it will spoil anything if I warn you that there is no happily-ever-after. Bellman is not a Scrooge to wake up on Christmas morning with a second chance - there are no second chances, no escapes, no erased consequences here. And yet there is still hope, and the story is still darkly beautiful - even if that beauty is cloaked in tragic shadows.
I read this book weeks and weeks ago, and yet it has stuck with me. I keep seeing symbols and motifs I didn't consciously notice while I was reading, and recognizing foreshadowing I barely saw at the time. This is a wonderful book, but maybe you have to be in the right mood for it. (Adult)
THE HOUSE OF SILK by Anthony Horowitz
As a young reader and again as a teen, I had a passionate love for all things Sherlock. When I spotted this on a bargain table, I grabbed it despite my general reluctance to read someone else's contributions to an original body of work. And I have to say that I genuinely enjoyed this. Horowitz does an admirable job of maintaining a tone of authenticity and his version of Watson and Holmes is credible. The mystery itself, however, was much grimmer than I'd expected and I felt that the resolution lacked... I don't know what, precisely... Maybe it felt rushed, to me? Or too convenient? In the originals, even though Sherlock solves the cases through what feels like a twist of convenience or some improbable leap of intuition, he's always able to point back to the specific clues that led him to his conclusions. In this case, however, I couldn't quite believe that logic had contributed as much as luck. Still, a fun read if you like this sort of thing. (Adult)
I CAPTURE THE CASTLE by Dodie Smith
Bought this as a daily deal for my kindle and I am so glad I did. I ADORED this book. It is utterly charming and surprisingly hard to put down. Cassandra and her family live in a ramshackle castle on a long-term lease, though they haven't paid rent since their landlord died. The father is - was, once - a famous author with one incredible success to his name, but he hasn't written a word in twelve years. Cassandra and her sister fear he never will again, and his increasingly eccentric seclusion weighs heavily on them. Their stepmother, an artist's model prone to flightiness and yet with startling moments of earthy practicality, has a talent for holding things together despite their poverty and lack of prospects. But Rose, Cassandra's older sister, is desperate for a chance at a new life - even if it means wishing on a gargoyle, praying to the devil, and marrying a man she dislikes.
Cassandra documents their lives in a series of journals; her wry and witty observations lend humor and charm to what could be a sordid and depressing tale of woe. The wisp of romance provides beauty and poignancy - but it is her own growing maturity and self-awareness that made me love the book so deeply. (Adult / YA)
Our internet provider called and said they weren't going to do any repairs after all, and our service contract (prepaid!) was cancelled, effective immediately. Cue much gnashing of teeth...
There aren't a lot of options for internet access in a rural area, and our farm situation makes our service requirements more challenging than just signing a package deal with the phone company. (Short version: we rely on computers for precision agriculture practices which maximize efficiency and minimize environmental impact. In order to do this, we have a complex farm network comprised of two private servers, four routers, and I won't even tell you how many computers that allow us to monitor everything from tractor hours to spray rates to harvest data to grain drying output from computer centers in the farm office, the grain mill, my house, and my in-laws' house. We need fast, high-data capability that can be shared across the network, and buying internet access through a phone company or television provider doesn't meet the demands. Farming is more technically advanced and dependent than most people would ever dream...) Anyway. The best option for us ended up being a satellite company, and the dish was installed this past weekend. YAY internet!
In the meantime, I have read a stack of books and spent much time with the horses. Trinity looks to be developing a mild case of rainscald - damn the cold, drizzly, damp fall we've had! - but I'm hoping I caught it early enough to avoid complications. Problem is, it's too cold to bathe her and clipping/blanketing is not an option right now. (She's good, and she's coming along brilliantly, but she's not THAT settled yet). I'm going with the vigorous-brushing-and-MTG method and hoping for the best, right now.
The dogs are also doing well, but deer season means our long forest rambles have been curtailed until Christmas. Blargh. (Although I did have to laugh - Sadie and the hellhounds chased away two guys who wanted to ask permission to hunt. I... should probably not find this amusing, but I do. They're friendly dogs, all three, but when they all get to barking and running around they can look pretty fearsome. Given the rash of petty theft around here, I'm not going to discourage their bluffing, either.)
Oh, and also. Saw CATCHING FIRE this weekend and loved, loved, loved it. :)
Will try catching up with everyone this evening. :)
There aren't a lot of options for internet access in a rural area, and our farm situation makes our service requirements more challenging than just signing a package deal with the phone company. (Short version: we rely on computers for precision agriculture practices which maximize efficiency and minimize environmental impact. In order to do this, we have a complex farm network comprised of two private servers, four routers, and I won't even tell you how many computers that allow us to monitor everything from tractor hours to spray rates to harvest data to grain drying output from computer centers in the farm office, the grain mill, my house, and my in-laws' house. We need fast, high-data capability that can be shared across the network, and buying internet access through a phone company or television provider doesn't meet the demands. Farming is more technically advanced and dependent than most people would ever dream...) Anyway. The best option for us ended up being a satellite company, and the dish was installed this past weekend. YAY internet!
In the meantime, I have read a stack of books and spent much time with the horses. Trinity looks to be developing a mild case of rainscald - damn the cold, drizzly, damp fall we've had! - but I'm hoping I caught it early enough to avoid complications. Problem is, it's too cold to bathe her and clipping/blanketing is not an option right now. (She's good, and she's coming along brilliantly, but she's not THAT settled yet). I'm going with the vigorous-brushing-and-MTG method and hoping for the best, right now.
The dogs are also doing well, but deer season means our long forest rambles have been curtailed until Christmas. Blargh. (Although I did have to laugh - Sadie and the hellhounds chased away two guys who wanted to ask permission to hunt. I... should probably not find this amusing, but I do. They're friendly dogs, all three, but when they all get to barking and running around they can look pretty fearsome. Given the rash of petty theft around here, I'm not going to discourage their bluffing, either.)
Oh, and also. Saw CATCHING FIRE this weekend and loved, loved, loved it. :)
Will try catching up with everyone this evening. :)
If week one was all about connection, week two was all about communication. (This is, obviously, a huge oversimplification because the process is recursive, but I'm a linear thinker and it helps me to choose a theme for each week.) We worked on establishing boundaries, introducing cues, finding a rhythm. Got a little messy there, for a day, but we worked out the tangles fairly well and I know things will only get better as we spend more time together.
She's just *so* different from my other mustangs. And she's different from the domestics I've started, too. I mean, every horse is unique! But she doesn't fit any of the general tendencies I've noticed with my past horse experiences, so in some ways I feel like I'm learning from the beginning.
And I love that. It's such a fascinating place to be - I have, behind me, years of experience and tricks and observations and it's nice to approach this project knowing I am not a rank beginner. At the same time, I've never had a horse like her before so she's forcing me to think faster, act quicker, stay lighter on my feet. Not that she's pushy or rude or aggressive or a problem at all - it's just that she's _such_ a baby and she's learning SO FAST and I have to stay a step ahead or she'll pick up habits I do not want to deal with down the road.
So I've gone back to reading through my shelf of training books - just brushing up on theory and technique - and I'm exploring some ideas I never tried with my others, and I'm just excited to see where Trinity and I end up.
The more time I spend with her, the more I love her. From what I've observed so far, she has the mindset and attitude I would want in an endurance horse - she is SO forward, and so eager and curious and bold. She is more thinky than spooky and that is such a relief after Ranger, I can't even tell you. He is the definition of a backward horse - he sucks back and shuts down EVERY time he gets a little nervous, but Trinity is all about moving forward to figure things out. Love, love, love that about her. Brisa has never been spooky, which is pleasant and relaxing and comfortable, but she's never been all that forward, either. She's happy to stand still for the LONGEST time. Standing ground tied has never been a challenge for her. LOL And Gypsy can be forward, but only when there are no other people around. She trusts me completely, but I can feel her trembling under the saddle sometimes.
Trinity is just so fun. I am simultaneously terrified of and excited by the prospect of starting her under saddle. She has so much energy - if I can keep it directed, we could go far. :) (That's still a long way off, though. I won't back her until next summer, and then only briefly.)
Anyway, week three will be about exposure. We will continue working on cues, leading, and picking up feet, but we'll also play with grooming tools, tarp, obstacles, and a flappy saddle pad. Should be fun. :D
She's just *so* different from my other mustangs. And she's different from the domestics I've started, too. I mean, every horse is unique! But she doesn't fit any of the general tendencies I've noticed with my past horse experiences, so in some ways I feel like I'm learning from the beginning.
And I love that. It's such a fascinating place to be - I have, behind me, years of experience and tricks and observations and it's nice to approach this project knowing I am not a rank beginner. At the same time, I've never had a horse like her before so she's forcing me to think faster, act quicker, stay lighter on my feet. Not that she's pushy or rude or aggressive or a problem at all - it's just that she's _such_ a baby and she's learning SO FAST and I have to stay a step ahead or she'll pick up habits I do not want to deal with down the road.
So I've gone back to reading through my shelf of training books - just brushing up on theory and technique - and I'm exploring some ideas I never tried with my others, and I'm just excited to see where Trinity and I end up.
The more time I spend with her, the more I love her. From what I've observed so far, she has the mindset and attitude I would want in an endurance horse - she is SO forward, and so eager and curious and bold. She is more thinky than spooky and that is such a relief after Ranger, I can't even tell you. He is the definition of a backward horse - he sucks back and shuts down EVERY time he gets a little nervous, but Trinity is all about moving forward to figure things out. Love, love, love that about her. Brisa has never been spooky, which is pleasant and relaxing and comfortable, but she's never been all that forward, either. She's happy to stand still for the LONGEST time. Standing ground tied has never been a challenge for her. LOL And Gypsy can be forward, but only when there are no other people around. She trusts me completely, but I can feel her trembling under the saddle sometimes.
Trinity is just so fun. I am simultaneously terrified of and excited by the prospect of starting her under saddle. She has so much energy - if I can keep it directed, we could go far. :) (That's still a long way off, though. I won't back her until next summer, and then only briefly.)
Anyway, week three will be about exposure. We will continue working on cues, leading, and picking up feet, but we'll also play with grooming tools, tarp, obstacles, and a flappy saddle pad. Should be fun. :D
Profile
wldhrsjen3- wldhrsjen3
Syndicate
