Virtual Brush Box

Horses of the outside world. “The former stallion has been part of the barn for two years now, ponying horses to the track for morning workouts and serving as the stable’s mascot.” Twin Spires: After the Racetrack: Zivo and Cherie DeVaux, Kelly 2022 & 2023. According to a recent Insta post, Zivo is still working as a pony horse, @americansbestracing and @reredevaux, 16 October 2026. You may be able to open it without an account or signing in.

~~~

Shadow Cart
Driving lesson with Boogie
Stepping Stone Farm
16 October 2026

If hands are important in riding, they must be ultra important in driving, right? It’s your main aid by a wide margin. Maybe a lack of friendly contact was a reason Rocky had ignored me last time? [Change Partners]

I resolved to work on this.

Me: Presents extended dissertation on my theory of hand usage.
Couch Courtney: Elbows.
Me. Elbows? Elbows?! That’s a whole new body part to keep track of!

Of course she was right.

Soft hands come from a take & give with the elbows. Even more so with driving, perhaps. There is just too much rein for subtle finger movements to get from me all the way up to the horse.

Halfway through the lesson, Boogie said, ‘Okay, let’s hit it.’ We started sailing around the ring in fine style, dirt flying in my face. That has remained a driving metric since my wonderful classes with Alvin, lo these many years ago. “If dirt wasn’t hitting me in the face, we weren’t going fast enough.” [Team Awesome]

Boogie decided to motivate because he decided I knew what I was doing? He had confidence in the driver? Horses are herd animals. They have to know they can rely on other members of the herd. If that is basic to their nature, it has to color how they relate to their world. I would think.

As for the other body parts on the checklist, I ended up using my upper body as well. Moving your elbows freely means having a strong, steady upper body. [Goldy Sparkles]

Couch Courtney said it improved my overall look as well.

I also tried, once again, to use my weight once or twice. At least that is harmless, if uneffective. [After Afterthoughts]

At one point in my lesson, I thought to self, I can do this. I can drive well. I recognized the feeling. I recognized that I have driven well in the past. The problem is that I don’t know why it happens, so I can’t be consistent.

Does everything I do have to have a theory? Yes. Next question.

Text to Coach Deana after driving lesson. “TIL. Good hands in riding translate to good hands in driving. Imagine that.” [Meeting The Goldy Standard]

Onwards!
Katherine

Horses of the outside world. Washington is this week. They were kind enough to put their venue history in one place. Note, the US Air Arena used to be the Capital Centre. Of the three big indoor shows, the National Horse Show has the lead for most peripatetic. Penn National abides at Harrisburg. [Goldy Sparkles, intro]

1958-1974. National Guard Armory, Washington, DC,
1975-1999. US Air Arena, Landover, MD (Capital Centre when I rode there.)
2000-2019. Capital One Arena, Washington, DC
2020-2021. Tryon International Equestrian Center, Mill Spring NC
2022 -> The Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro MD
WIHS: About

~~~

Goldy
Walking up to the front ring
Rosewood Stables
14 October 2026

General. Hot. It was hot. I was hot. Goldy was hot. This colored everything. He was also wearing a belly band to protect a ding on his side. That meant extra leg in order to be heard through the stretchy fabric. This also effected everything. [New Equipment photo]

Trot. Carrying on from last week, I worked hard – really hard – to keep my weight centered to the right. Lo and behold, Goldy was lovely. Straight, round, all the adjectives. Would have been perfect if he hadn’t been going the speed of a western jog. [Goldy Sparkles]

At the same time, I worked on keeping my heels deep and my shoulders up and square. Coach Deana even complimented me on my rein length. That may be a first. Usually she – and every other instructor – is telling me to shorten my reins.

Get everything else right and the hands take care of themselves? Maybe?

Canter. Still working on keeping a soft, speaking contact without having Goldy interpret it as a request to slow down. It may have been a lost cause on that particular day.

Jump. Workmanlike. No big errors. No brilliant moves. But – and this is good – we were workmanlike over sliiiightly bigger fences. Verticals. Low verticals, even ridiculously low verticals, but not crossrails!

Reminder to self. Goldy is practical. He does not work from vibes. I was digging up his official name and found this from an earlier post. “I was committed, but I had not conveyed that to the horse … Warmbloods do not operate on vibes. Goldy was not interested in my energy. He wanted my eyes up and my leg on. Thoroughbreds speak vibes. As do Saddlebreds. As, not coincidentally, do I.” [The Ride]

I must a) convince him that I am ready and able and serious, & b) do so by riding correctly. Waving my pompons does not help.

In other news.

Goldy is not looking at the rider in the ring, as I first thought. He is staring at the small collection of mugs at the base of one of the fence posts, indicated with black circle.

He just about refused to walk past them.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Waiting on a part for our washing machine. Went to laundromat. First load was $12. When did that happen? You might ask why we didn’t take our clothes elsewhere. Laundromat had an attendant who carried the baskets in (!), pointed out which machines to use (!!), added the detergent (!!!), and helped me buy the mandatory card to operate the machines (!!!!). By the time I found out the price, it was too late. Next time, I’m using the horse trough.

~~~

{Backstory. Each morning, people & horses go on team walk: one-mile, unmounted, & off-lead. Route is back and forth five times along one side of the pasture.}

Short Version

Status quo ante.

Long Version

The previous week Milton had worked up to three laps by Monday. [Milton’s Not So Interesting Laps]

Tuesday 13, Four laps. As before, Other Barn Minion took both horses back to barn to end the walk.

Wednesday 14. Five laps. Walking with a nice, free, swingy walk.

Thursday 15 & onwards. We resume regular programming.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. The Dartmouth: Rep. Ro Khanna rallies against ‘culture of elite impunity’ at Dartmouth, Olds, October 13, 2026. The Dartmouth: DSG and SPCSA call for Dartmouth to rename the Black Family Visual Arts Center, WeaverBell, April 8, 2026. Sure. I’m all for addressing problematic building names. Also problematic statues, problematic flags, and so on. I feel that I ought to have a stronger opinion in this case, but the building didn’t exist when I was there.

~~~

Short Version

All better!

Long Version

Monday the 5th, Milton had an unspecified injury in his right hindquarter. Over the week, we watched the fluid progress down his leg. Continued to have no pain, no heat. [Milton’s Interesting Leg]

Monday 12. Below hock. On cannon & pastern (some). Overall a bit less mass?

Tuesday 13. Leg felt okay. Still slightly swollen in comparison to other leg. In pastern & fetlock. He walked okay but was flexing is strangely, as one would expect with all that padding wrapped around the joint

Wednesday 14. All better. Leg down. Walking well.

Cause. At the time, we suspected shenanigans. We still do. Now we wonder if there was a bit more. He was muddy when he came in. I had wondered if he got up awkwardly from a nap. Other Barn Minion says that thinking about it in retrospect, Milton was muddier than usual. Now with think there were were shenanigans. He slipped. He went splat. Sorry Milton. Glad I didn’t see it.

Whatever the cause, he appears – cross fingers – to be over it with a minimum of fuss and disruption.

Onwards!
Katherine

Art of the outside world. Jones Archaeological Museum, Moundville: Past: Learning From the Ancestors: Historical Influences on Contemporary Native Art, Online record of the 2025 exhibition.

~~~

Not mine!

Macrame Figures
Tammy Davis
Bebo Bear
Moundville Native American Festival
Moundville Archeological Park
October 2026

Love the technique. Brought these home as models. Plan to investigate further. Want to credit where I got the idea.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. “Until further notice, the north half of the park is closed to the public. We are working with FEMA and our Tribal partners to fix erosional issues caused by the increased intensity of rain events.” Moundville: Hours, Location, Admission. This includes the marquee Mound B, “the site’s largest mound” The Historical marker Database: Mound B. For intro & photos, HMdb: Moundville.

~~~

Where is my Moundville?

I love the Moundville Archeological Park. If we lived closer, I would visit more often, perhaps volunteer. What I don’t feel is any degree of spiritual connection. I don’t imagine that I am stepping on the ground my ancestors trod. I suspect my ancestral tree is boringly western European & British. I have no problem admitting to being an American mutt. I could have all manner of trace elements in there. But the bulk is white bread Western Civ.

The only time I’ve been hit by a feeling of familiarity and connection was with an illuminated manuscript in a museum in Italy. If I had a past life, I was a monk in a monastery, assigned to work as a scribe.

Numerically, the options are wide open. Moundville was at its peak in the 1200s. Internet tells me 800+ years is 30 generations ago. Math tells me 30 generations works out to over a billion ancestors (2^30 = 1,073,741,824). World population was in the millions at the time. Therefore, first, it is not distinct individuals all the way up the tree. Second, with that many options, my Moundville era ancestors could have been anyone from anywhere.

How we can know anything about anywhere?

By the time European arrived with their record books, Moundville was abandoned. We don’t even know what the city called itself.

Rome has been continuously inhabited for over two and a half millennia. We have written records from the folks who lived thousands of years ago. Yet recall how surprised we were to find out that Roman statuary was painted.

Aside, did you know that applies to churches also? History Facts: Medieval cathedrals were painted in vibrant colors — not gray stone, Lovejoy, January 8, 2026.

Did they think of themselves as modern?

Did they look at the high mounds and strong walls and fancy trade goods from far off places and think that they were the epitome of progress? Or is linear history a Western idea?

Did they stand on the river bank and wonder wonder what lay downstream?

Did they dream about leaving town and following to river to find out? Back then the path away from home had way more bears and far fewer grocery stores.

Links

Moundville: Step Into the Past: A Day in the Life of the Mississippian People at Moundville, Timothy, 2025.

“Chert and Obsidian: Often used for tools and weaponry, these materials originated far from the Mississippian heartland and reveal the expansive nature of their exchange network.” Moundville: Trade and Connectivity in the Mississippian World: A Network of Exchange, Timothy, 2025.

The wording in this article consistently reminds us how much of the story is guesswork. “The most responsible reconstruction therefore combines clear evidence for rank and kin organization with honesty about what archaeology cannot specify.” Daily Life History: Daily life in Moundville during the 13th century.

Note on context. In an Alabama summer, the difference between shade and not shade is startling. I could see working in a courtyard under an overhang. Fieldwork is hard anywhere. Winters are cold, but feasible with clothing, windbreaks, and fire. While I’m not shutting off our central heating, Alabama is not Alaska.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. American Indian Magazine (Smithsonian): Food Sovereignty, McClellan, 2018. Dated, but I can’t imagine the issues have gone away.

~~~

Fry Bread
Choctaw Kitchen
Moundville Native American Festival
Moundville Archeological Park
October 2026

Topped with honey & powered sugar. A member of the fried dough pantheon: zeppoli, donuts, beignets, and so on.

I heard about fry bread in Stabenow’s Kate Sugak books. “Each signed first edition hardcover sold by the Poisoned Pen will include a recipe card for fry bread, kindly shared by master fry bread maker Joyce White.” Stabenow: Drum roll, please!. This person, perhaps? A Taste of History with Joyce White, although no fry bread recipes turned up in the search box.

A tangential find, also no fry bread, but fascinating. Dana Stabenow: All the links to “The History of Kate Shugak in 22 Objects” 2023, thru book 22.

Another member of the family (waves Hi!) heard of fry bread in Tony Hillerman novels, The Tony Hillerman Portal: fry bread.

What can I say, we are a book family.

IRL fry bread can be a cultural and political symbol, Smithsonian: Frybread, This seemingly simple food is a complicated symbol in Navajo culture, Miller 2008.

Fry Bread, A Native American Family Story, written by Kevin Noble Maillard, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal (Macmillan 2019). Publisher’s website for the book. Author’s website, Kevin Maillard. Illustrator’s website, Juana Martinez-Neal. About the book, Cynsations: Native Voices: Kevin Noble Maillard on Writing Fry Bread.

Onwards!
Katherine