Cob Jockey

A few things have come together lately to make me feel like we are about to go through a blogging renaissance. And I have decided I'm going to say that out loud so that I can will it into existence.

I mean, first of all, Google finally fixed the "Insert Photos from Google Photos" UI, which, to be honest, I thought would never happen. I thought they'd let Blogger die on the vine like so many Google products before it, and they would leave it almost unusably broken forever until they killed off Blogger. But no! It's fixed! And it's not only fixed, but improved! Better than ever!

For those that don't use Google Photos, if you allow it to back up your photos from your phone, any photo taken on your phone shows up here within seconds. Extremely handy for blogging.

 

It loads in a second or two, and it now integrates Google Photo's incredibly powerful search right into it. So you can type "saddle" and it will pull up all your recent photos of saddles. "Brown dog" and it won't show you your photos of white dogs. "July 20, 2024" and it will pull up your photos from just that day.

On July 20, 2024 there were lots of Eva photos

I didn't realize how much it was affecting my desire to blog when it was so difficult to add photos these past couple of (seriously) years, but it turns out, it was. A lot. And now that it's not only fixed, but better than ever? Watch out!

Real glad it got fixed just in time for me to document every breathe Eva takes

Next up, I have at least one report that commenting is working again. For the record, this was a global problem that had more to do with browsers preventing sites from tracking you (good) which Google apparently didn't like because they want to track your every move and advertise to you (bad). 

If you're still having issues commenting, turn off your preferred browser's version of Enhanced Tracking Protection for each affected site. In Firefox, that's the little shield in the toolbar:

And finally, I am seeing more people blog again in general, including at least one new blog that I know of, and that's my right hand woman/barnmate's blog, Pinto Party. Please give her a warm welcome and a follow!

To those who have kept blogging and commenting, you guys are awesome and I commend you. For those who are waiting on a sign to start, or re-start, this is your sign!

After having the same header and layout since roughly 2013, I finally have new ones!


This actually started because I thought my very, very, VERY old layout might be causing my photos to show up somewhat blurry in my RSS reader, but I've since ruled that out.  It appears to be a Blogger thing that I haven't quite figured out yet.  Oh well, it was time for a new layout anyway.  You'll just have to click through to see non-blurry pictures I guess.

Thank you Karen for taking my new header photo!

 Take a look around and let me know what you think, and most importantly, if you find anything that's not working correctly for you, please shoot me an email at my spam address, jalean one one at gmail dot com.

Well that was fun!

How about something a little lighter?

I had Cathryn at That Red Mare for my Secret Santa, and from the moment I saw mini-sized anything on her list, I knew that's what I had to buy her.  Shopping for mini tack sounded exciting!

Before I packed her gifts, I had a little fun with one of them (sorry Cathryn!)  I tried to take some photos to show the rest of you the scale of these mini splint boots because they are SO TINY! I had to share.

In no particular order, a 35lb dog:

No dog hair was left on the splint boots in the making of this photo.  I'm pretty sure.

A parrot:

A handle of Tito's:

(And for historical comparison and proof that I am nothing if not consistent, here's Connor's open fronts in...basically the exact same scale photo from September):


Finally, miniature horse split boots are the exact right size to double as a beer/soda/cider coozie, so if you ever find yourself lacking a coozie at a horse show or around the barn Cathryn, now you know my Secret Santa gifts can pull double duty for you.


I hope you and Spud get lots of use out of your new boots, and I hope you don't mind my photo shoot!  Enjoy!

One of my favorite parts of blogging is this community we've cultivated, and Secret Santa is an awesome example of that.  Thanks to Tracy for putting in the work to make it happen year after year!

I always give several "hints" in my request to Tracy so that my Secret Santa can pick and choose the things they like best.  (It's a strategy I've had to employ in my personal Amazon list as well...my Grandma on my dad's side has a habit of looking at my list and deciding nothing "feels right" (What, trailer organization doesn't feel right?))

But this year my Secret Santa got everything I put on there and then some!  Thank you to Amber at Thoroughbred Adventure!


A stiff brush with a nice rubberized grippy back:


A softer brush with a padded and jeweled strap:


Three pairs of winter boot socks:


A Mrs. Pasture's stocking that I'm sure Connor will devour:


Two candy canes, and, most unexpectedly, a jar of Higher Standards!  I didn't ask for that, but it's a great gift, since my original jar is pretty old and the sponge melted into my Viva Carlos Sweet Lemon jar, so...it's kind of hard to use.

I've never tried this scent before, but I really liked it!

Thanks so much, Amber!  You went above and beyond for sure!

It's only been a couple of weeks with the Pixio in my life, but I can already tell it's changing the way I blog.  There's just something more intimate about telling you guys the way something went, and then backing it up with actual footage (well GIFs, but still).

(It's also weird to realize things like the fact that I wore the same outfit to my lesson two weeks in a row.  I really don't care and will continue to do that, but the Pixio definitely lends itself to a less curated blog presence in general.)


It's going to allow you to see a lot more of me and my mistakes, and that's okay with me.  I'm not a perfect rider, I'm not a naturally talented rider, and I'm not one for avoiding criticism.  There's always something more to learn, and there are a lot of accomplished people who read this blog that have gone further in the horse world than I have.  Why wouldn't I want to source info from you guys?


(That said, I am NOT going to post GIFs of my trainer riding him - just blurry screenshots.  Gotta protect the innocent.)

You're going to get to know us better.  You're going to be able to draw your own conclusions and not just read the conclusions I come to for you.  You'll see good moments and bad moments and moments that I thought were good but you're going to think "What is she smoking?  That was terrible."

As always, be respectful, but feel free to be honest too.  It's going to be an interesting period of time getting used to this new way of blogging!

One contest ends and another begins.  Congratulations to Blaire, who has a private blog, on winning the Noble Outfitters Giveaway!

In a lesson the week of December 14 in which Connor skittered sideways for no good reason approaching a tiny crossrail, my trainer suddenly asked, "How old is he now?"

"He'll be ten in May."  We both laughed, and she said something to the effect of, "He's just taking the slow track."

On the one hand, it's been a while.  I've owned him for four years.  We've been with my trainer and at this barn the entire time.

On the other hand, we've come a long way.

Before I owned him, our first show together, 2011.

May of 2015

I started this blog before I even had Connor, and also before I met my trainer, if you can believe it.  I started it at the only period in my life that has been 100% horse free: the few months between getting married/moving to a new city/being unemployed for six weeks and beginning lessons with my trainer, whom I have been with five years in January.


So now, 1,000 posts and five years in, it's now a chronicle of my entire "Part II" of my riding career.  It takes me from being so afraid to jump, I never thought I would jump again.  I came to my trainer as "probably a Dressage rider".  The blog chronicles the process my trainer took me through when I first came to her, which was to completely rebuild my riding as if I was a beginner.

Lesson on Mac in 2011.  Man I look small on a full-sized horse.

It takes me from learning to jump again on the saintly old Dillon, without whom I would definitely still be a Dressage-only rider.  It takes me from first laying eyes on Connor, his breeder offering him to me, and agonizing over whether to take him or not.

January 2012

It takes me from going XC for the first time, jumping a show jump course for the first time, doing a rated show for the first time, learning to ride a ditch, learning shoulder in, riding a Dressage test for the first time, bodyclipping for the first time, moving up a level for the first time, winning an event for the first time...in short, it takes me through everything that has made me the rider, and Connor the horse, that we are today.

April 2012

Blogging is an interesting journey sometimes.   The community is amazing, the people I met through it are the greatest.  JenJ and I are like long lost twins or soulmates that never would have met if it wasn't for blogging (seriously, we share a name, one of us owns a real Haflinger and one of us owns a wannabe Haflinger, both own mutant Malamute mixes, and both work in tech.  Twins).  The blogger meetup last year was AMAZING.  And I've bought/sold/won/been given/gave away so many things through blogging, so while it doesn't actively make me money, it has definitely been financially worthwhile too.

Simon selfie with Genny!

All that is to say, I have no intention of stopping despite slowing down a bit in 2015 for the house.  Here's to another 1,000 posts and five more years.  Maybe Connor will have stopped overjumping ditches by then...maybe.

Um, we're just, playing it safe.  Really, really safe.  Penny Oaks, 2014.

To celebrate having written 1,000 posts over five years and two months, I'm giving away a $50 gift certificate to blogland's favorite equestrian retailer, Riding Warehouse.  Enter by leaving a comment and then entering the Rafflecopter giveaway (and sorry if my Rafflecopters seem awkward, Rafflecopter has made almost every feature paid-for since I did my last contest).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I didn't give my Secret Santa a whole lot to go on this year, besides that my horse has recently discovered Mrs. Pastures Cookies and turned into an insufferable treat whore lately.


Seriously, I don't think a day has gone by in four years that I haven't given him a treat, but it was always the peppermint ones from Rural King.  Now I started giving him Mrs. Pastures, and they may as well be pony cocaine!

Anyway, I was so excited when I saw what my Secret Santa had waiting for us!


A C4 belt in my XC colors with a chrome buckle, a Mrs. Pastures stocking for Connor, and a super cute family Christmas card (may have to steal this idea next year!)

My Secret Santa was...JumpPretty!  Thank you so much!

I partially opened Connor's stocking and gave it to him in his stall - occupying the 'Curious George' Welsh Cob brain and all.  It took him a few tries, he would push it around, get bored when no cookies came out, and come to my pockets for cookies that required less work!  But he had fun I think, and I gave him more cookies than he usually gets, cause, merry Christmas!



As for my half...


It's going to make a great replacement for the ribbon belt I thrifted in high school!

Such a cute pattern!

Shiny shiny.

Thank you so much, JumpPretty, and to Tracy for hosting!  Every year it has been fun both to give and to get!

I want to share one of my favorite blogs tonight, Paradigm Farms Horse Retirement.

Every post the farm owners put up just bring a smile to my face.  The owners treat every horse with individualized care and the utmost dignity, and they always end every blog post with pictures of all the retirees doing retiree things that day - playing, eating, sleeping, grooming each other, running through big fields of grass.  Can you imagine being one of those horses' owners and seeing that?  I would love it.

Retirees doing retiree things - thankfully, since that would be hard to clean up for a show!

One of my favorite things is the way they immortalize the horses that have passed on.  With photos, they retell the horse's life story, and the story of the people who loved them.  While a horse passing can't be made any easier for those that loved him, especially if you're several states away, this beautiful time capsule certainly has to mean a lot.

Today they sadly had to post about Noble's passing, an OTTB who did H/J with his owner, who had him for 14 years before retiring him to spend what would be his last 4 years at Paradigm.

Noble and his owner

Since I know a lot of you guys, and myself, have a soft spot for both OTTBs and retirees, I wanted to share this post.  Go take a look at Noble's beautiful memorial post, and start following Paradigm if you aren't already.  I guarantee that photos of sleek, happy retirees playing bingo and shuffleboard playing halter tag and grazing in formation will bring a smile to your face every time they post a new post.


Every old man should be allowed to live out his days in such an awesome place!