Cob Jockey

I actually took this picture to illustrate the fact that my favorite airline has pulled some oooooooooooooooold planes out of storage due to the 737-MAX grounding.  Airworthy but ugly!

Pets that also miss me

With boots that didn't zip and a Dressage saddle pad because I forgot I don't have a Dressage saddle right now and a too-big shirt and black reins with a brown bridle and and and

I like how the hair I left on his heel bulbs looks like a giant moustache

To my best buddy, that is.

And his new buddy, who is, yes, a full two hands smaller than Connor is.

After another marathon business trip (in which the TSA exchanged my ID with someone else's...during the first leg of a three flight trip...yeah that was awesome), I finally got a chance to ride on Saturday evening.

Connor had been ridden twice by my trainer while I was gone, but I hadn't ridden in a very, very long time.  So all weekend, we walked, while I rediscovered what sitting on a horse feels like.  (Is this sounding familiar?)

Saturday

Sunday

That wasn't just walking in a circle though, it was leg yields and ToF and ToH and lots of other suppling things.   My trainer is on a vacation this week and then I have another (very) full week of travel the following week, so it'll be a while before I get a lesson again.

All's quiet here right now.  After three months of not getting out of my pajamas for work, suddenly I'm traveling 2 or 3 days a week for six weeks in a row.  Kansas City, Cleveland, Chicago, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Green Bay.  Two of those are personal trips, but it's still travel.

Me standing in front of my parents' old apartment just outside of Kansas City, MO on a business trip last week

This isn't translating into a whole lot of saddle time, of course.  I am SO grateful to have a good BM/trainer who stays on top of blanket changes and puts quality rides on him while I'm gone.  Couldn't do this job without someone like that in my corner.

"Don't mind me, just over here self-entertaining while you're flying around the country."

Even though Connor is staying in shape, I feel like I have to relearn how to ride every time I go out right now.  Try to remember what we were working on last time I rode (the blog definitely helps with that).  Try to remember WTF I do with all these body parts that I swear I knew how to use a couple weeks ago...!

Back on Track season has begun

I could get stressed about that, but instead I'm zen.  This job is still my dream job and it's always going to be unpredictably cyclical like this.  I'm lucky to travel on two weeks notice, most of the time it's more like a couple days notice.  The people that ask me to travel try their hardest not to make me travel if they can possibly avoid it, which is definitely appreciated.  Sometimes you just gotta get in a room with people though.

This is just that adult amateur life, knowing you'd make a ton of progress if you could ride 6 days a week and instead trading hour long rides for 20 minute trips out to snuggle him, pick his feet out, feed him cookies and go home! (The horse is not complaining, really!)

Thursday was my first chance to get out to the barn, and I had thought I would definitely ride that day - first day seeing my horse in almost two weeks.

BUT.

I'm not usually one to take photos from the air, but this thunderstorm/heavy rainstorm was super cool.

I was more jet lagged than I've ever been in my life.  I've done US to Europe and back a couple times, and I've done short trips to California before, but I've never gotten fully acclimated to Pacific time and then came back East.  Woof.  I actually took a nap over my lunch break because I felt like I couldn't go on #perksofworkingfromhome

This dog was pretty stoked about a midday nap.

So instead of trying to ride in that state, I went out to feed Connor cookies and got a bunch of stuff sorted at the barn that needed doing: cleaned out my tack locker, gave the horse a bath, brought out his SmartPaks, re-filled his fly spray, and performed some surgery on his grazing muzzle halter (more on that later).

Not the most flattering angle, but man he looks good right now.

It's good to be back!

Rocky agrees

California ladies!  I'm going to be staying in Palo Alto for work from June 10-20, and I have the entire weekend of the 16th-17th free.  I also have the afternoon of June 10th free after I land, and I shouldn't be nearly as jet lagged as when I got up at 2am Eastern to come out last time 😳

Since that is a reeeeally long time to be away from Connor, I would love to find something horsey to do on the 16th-17th weekend within a couple hour radius of SF  - a clinic to audit or a show to spectate at would be perfect, but I'm open to anything - and I would LOVE to see as many of you as I can too!  The only thing on my agenda right now is eating my weight in delicious Bay Area tacos and sushi. #priorities 

Shoot me an email at my spam account if you know of any shows/events/clinics/other activities going on that weekend: jalean one one at gmail dot com.

10 days is a long time for this little guy especially.

Normally Connor and I have a pretty quiet spring, but not this year!  Connor's going to think he lives on my trailer.

Er, um, what spring?  This was four days ago.

March 31: Off-site lessons with my regular trainer

April 3: KPG clinic

CAN'T WAIT

April 13-14: Heartland schooling show at the HHP (We're doing 2-1)

April 20-21: Found out NK is teaching a two day clinic at a barn an hour and a half north of me that I've never been to before, and signed us up.  She never teaches on weekends normally, so I was all over that.

May 12: IDS Schooling Show (Not sure what we're doing here yet)

Also, Bay area people!  I'm going to be in Palo Alto from June 10-20, which should include one whole weekend and one half weekend (and more than enough time to not be jetlagged this time!).  Would love to catch up with you guys while I'm out there!

Scotch tasting at 12:30 on a Sunday?  Don't mind if I do!

"I am totally not here because you were in the treat room, why do you ask?"

Paddington <3

"No seriously guys, I'm out of treats."

A wild Paddy stalks his prey, believing the red horse is getting more treats than he is.  This one should be captioned with Jaws music

Last week was nuts.  It started two Fridays ago when I flew out to Austin for my husband's company holiday party weekend + seeing JenJ, and continued all through last week as I flew straight from Austin to San Francisco for an intensive invite-only training at VMware HQ.

Rent the Runway: So I could shove this dress in a UPS drop box the next day instead of taking it with me to San Francisco.

Every other time I've stayed in Palo Alto I've met up with one or more of the Bay Area bloggers, but I knew going in that I wouldn't be able to swing that this time, unfortunately.

Just an average Silicon Valley cafeteria lunch.

For one, I had a coworker with me this time, and for another, they are not kidding about that class being intense - both the timeline and the material.  I'll make up for it on my next trip out there though (probably May or June).

There was this sushi place in a strip mall across from my hotel that was just insanely good.  Good thing I didn't discover it until our last night there or else I would have eaten nothing but sushi all week.

I have one more week of travel, but just day trips to Indy, then I can get back to seeing this fuzzy face on a regular basis!

Old pic, horse still looks the same.

Another one of those work swings snuck up on me.  I'm basically doing two jobs right now, and a whole lot of travel to Michigan, and neither of those things are good for blogging or riding.

"Where've ya been?"

Yo (northern) California people.  My work decided TODAY to send me to Palo Alto Sunday through Friday of next week.  Surprise!

I am booked pretty solid during the day, but have some free evenings, so let me know if you are interested in accompanying me through some tack stores or to some of those unreasonably delicious and somewhat shady looking California taco places that look like they're in a race to the top of the health code violations list.  Mmmmmm.

Also, expect very little blogging next week for reasons that should now be obvious.  I do hope to blog about this weekend's show, maybe from a plane.  Wish me luck.

Non-horse related photo of dog, housemate and husband having group Kindle time on the front porch.

Every year, my husband and I get together for New Years' Eve with our college friends - the guys all went to Rose Hulman, and Austen and I went to SMWC, Rose's sister school, so it's a big happy group.  This year, we held it in D.C.  My husband flew out a day ahead of me, and Austen threw a party his first night there.  I got these texts from my quite inebriated husband:

Husband: "I'm hanging out with a fan of your blog tonight."
Me: "Oh cool!  Who?"
H: "Umm..."
Me: I took a wild guess of someone out there who is friends with Austen. "Liz?"
H: "Maybe?"
H, a minute later: "She has an Arabian named Isabel."
Me: "EMMA!  Tell her I said hi!  I wish I was there to meet her!"
H: "You're riding with her tomorrow."
Me: "Oh awesome!!!"

That's how this happened:

I got to meet Emma and Isabel, and Brita and Wick!  We went on a trail ride at Austen's barn with Austen and Guinness.  I have to tell you, it is impossible not to like those two girls.  Emma and Brita were so much fun and so easy to talk to!  All of the bloggers I've met have been awesome, but sometimes there's this awkward "I feel like I know you, but I just realized I don't actually know you," feeling for the first few minutes.  It's not good or bad, just the nature of having Internet friends.  But that didn't happen with those two!

Austen's barn:
 is:


ridiculous:

I mean, I feel like I can sum this barn up with one picture.  There's a Nest thermostat in the indoor's viewing room:

'Nuff said.

Anyway, on to the trail ride itself!  We wound over hills and along treelines on gorgeous Maryland hunt land.  I was mounted on Teddy, a 23-year-old BN packer/former Pony Club horse who now serves as a Dressage mount for the former Pony Clubber's mom.

Photo by Emma

Teddy was a good boy, but I quickly figured out on our first canter that his XC bit in his past life was probably not the loose ring snaffle he now goes in as a Dressage horse.  We were in his full Dressage tack, and he flipped me the bird and took off at a gallop when I tried to get him to canter at a reasonable pace.  And of course, I'm a giant chicken on a horse I've never ridden before, owned by someone else, on terrain I'm not familiar with.

The third time we cantered, Austen came flying from behind the pack on Guinness, which upset Wick (totally understandably, I must add), and I needed to pull up from the "afterburner gallop" Teddy had gotten into, so when he ignored me, I gave him a good pulley rein...and he popped his opposite shoulder, propped twice, and I fell off for the first time in six years, since college!

It was a good ol' slow mo fall too: I had enough time to 1. Realize I was falling, 2. Say "Oh shit" out loud, and 3. Think "DON'T LET GO OF THE REINS!" and land standing on my feet facing Teddy, due to having visions of my borrowed, privately-owned horse galloping back alone to that super fancy barn.  It was funny rather than scary, but I was still done with galloping-without-the-ability-to-pull-up at that point.

Awesome, awesome trails at this barn.  Photo by Emma.

The rest of the ride was less eventful and lots of fun.  Those girls are great, and both Izzy and Wick were superstars.  Wick definitely earned the gold star award of the day, though, being a good boy in the field AND getting used to Austen's dogs running around after being initially unsure about them.

It was the most I've ridden a full-sized horse in forever, and in a wide-twist Dressage saddle, and man was I sore afterwards!  He's not massive, but I was still longing for my appropriately-sized pony:

Photo by Emma, I'm on the right in the borrowed Tipperary

It was so much fun, I'm hoping to get back out to see those girls for a longer period of time sometime.  I mean, with a $79 roundtrip nonstop Southwest Airlines ticket, why not?!




Also I bought a consignment EIS sun shirt for $20 in what must have been the world's fastest spontaneous tack store run ever!  THE END!

I'm back!

After two days of Rose/Woods homecoming:

I went straight to the barn when I arrived.  Ahhh, the many hours I spent cleaning these stalls.

Reining demo

and some baby pony time with Connor's niece and nephews on the way to the airport:

The Dr. Seuss baby, Castleberrys Echo, wants to be your next Dressage star!  Will mature horse-sized.

and a whole lot of "business casual":

HP rented out the Georgia Aquarium for a "networking event".

Not boots.

I should finally see Connor tomorrow!  He's been in good hands while I'm gone.

One of my update photos from Favorite Barn Rat while I was out.

Looking forward to catching up with everyone!

A scene from Nappanee, IN, where I spent the last two days.

Though it was hard passing all the horse trailers leaving the event I was supposed to have been at as my husband and I drove home from the funeral today, I absolutely made the right decision to scratch.  Nick's grandfather was the only other horse lover in the family, having grown up in Amish country and being well-respected by the Amish, and was one of my favorites of Nick's family.  He always handed me the Amish trader magazine to read through when I came to visit, to see what kinds of horses they were selling and for what price.

The first time I met him, when Nick and I were dating, he insisted that Nick's aunt drive the long way to his favorite Amish buffet so that we were driving through the heart of Amish farmland, so that he could point out all the Belgians and harness horses to me - and trust me, there are a lot of them in northern Indiana!  At his funeral, they described the things he liked and didn't like, and two of them were: "Computers, no, long rides being pulled by a team of Belgians, yes."  Rest in peace, Max, you were awesome!