Saddlebreds In My Mailbox

Awareness of the outside world. USDF: Where Your Dollars Go. This seems to be a new feature that folks are adding to their pages. [Signed Up, intro]

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The United States Dressage Federation (USDF) offers year-end awards for different breeds that compete in dressage.

This year, the American Saddlebred Horse and Breeders Association, Training Level Open & First Level Open were won by Paddyngton’s Gold Glory. Intermediate I Open was won by Rockin In Vegas. There were no other competitors. USDF Connection March/April p156, Your Dressage: Chosen By a Saddlebred

This means the door is wide open for someone with a jumping Saddlebred to win the year-end title in Training Level: Adult Amateur. Ahem. [Finding A Horse To Match The Hat]

In addition, this was when I learned that the American Saddlebred Horse Association (ASHA) is now the American Saddlebred Horse and Breeders Association (ASHBA), and has been for three years. Oops. ASHBA: Straight from the Horse’s Mouth: The Urge to Merge

There’s no hope for me. I still think of them as the USCTA & the AHSA rather than as the USEA & the USEF. Those changed in 2001 and 2002, respectively. USEA: About Us, Equisearch: AHSA Changes Name to USA Equestrian, Jaffer, 2002

Maybe I would be better with the alphabet soup if I showed at higher levels more often … or at all … or … stop, that way lies the drama llama.

Onwards!
Katherine

Signed Up, Virtual Tevis 2024

Awareness of the outside world. The Tevis Cup: Where Does All the Money Go?

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We have registered for the Virtual Tevis Cup 2024, 100 Miles in 100 Days. This will be our fifth year.

As last year, the bulk of our mileage will be one mile of hand-walking each morning. Since this is our daily activity, we would do close to 100 miles in that time period anyway (crosses fingers).

However, doing one mile each day for 100 days does not leave any buffer for life to happen, either for good or for ill. Therefore, we plan to do a second mile each Saturday and Sunday, perhaps even under saddle.

Until the start on 10 April, we will be working to get Rodney alongside the idea that a quiet stroll in his own pasture is in his retirement contract. [Saddles!]

Archives [The Western States Trail Ride, aka The Tevis Cup, Virtual & Otherwise]

Onwards!
Katherine

Seven Weeks!

Awareness of the outside world. The Atlantic: DNA Tests Are Uncovering the True Prevalence of Incest, Zhang, March 18, 2024. Did not read. Required sign in. I was struck by the headline. I’d heard about paternity issues but hadn’t thought of this. I wonder if, in 50 years, people will be living with a level of information detail that we cannot imagine & will have adapted in ways that we cannot currently comprehend. To paraphrase Pohl, predicting the future is not predicting the car. It is predicting the traffic jam. But I digress.

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Horses went 7 weeks between shoeings! Well, 7 weeks minus one day per blacksmith schedule. Rodney was ready but he might could have gone 8 weeks if he’d had to, as last time. [What Goes In The Mouth Effects The Feet]

In the past, the horses have been done around 5 weeks. Six at a stretch. Sometimes as short as 4 weeks in the summer. Milton could go longer, but he gets done when the team gets done.

I suspect that the period will shorten as we get into mud season and then stomping season. Perhaps they can go 5 or 6 weeks in the summer instead of 4 or 5 weeks.

Since I know at least one reader who is not up on the minutia of horse shoes (waves hi!), here is why this is exciting news.

Going longer between shoeings gives the horses time to grow more foot.

The change is a sign that their feet are stronger.

An accumulation of additional weeks means having to pay for one less shoeing at some point in the future.

All good.

What is not good is how hard it is for me to write about horse shows shoes. I make that typo every. single. freaking. time.

Onwards!
Katherine

Booted Back To The 20th Century, Non-Fiction

Awareness of the outside world. British Library: Keitai shousetsu: the first mobile phone fictions. Horne 2018. BTW, drupelets is the correct term. I should not have doubted the BL.

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It was horrible!

I had no cell phone! For over! a! week!

Phone store: Fabulous Offer! Sign here!
Us: This isn’t the same offer? It’s 6 times as expensive? Plus an extra line?
Phone store: We’ll adjust it later! Sign here!
Us: Noooooooooo.

Sure, we still have a land line (gasp) but make a phone call and sit on one place?! Like an animal?!

Is it going to rain? Do I have time to pick up hay?

Hey, what was the name of ….? You mean I have to walk aaaaall the way into my office to look up random factoids on a desktop? Next thing you’ll tell me to use an encyclopedia!

If I saw a cuteness I could not take a picture! The horror!

I’ll text the chef to see what he wants me to pick up at the grocery store. No, I won’t.

I had to ask an actual human being for directions to the nearest post office. How antiquarian!

Two-step authentication. With a phone currently impersonating a brick.

But, but, the points are all weird on the online version compared with the app!

This is temporary? Right? The new part will be in any day now? Right?

No timer to remind me to feed!

Phone store: Come back, please. We’ll be good.
Us, dubious: Okay.

Onwards!
Katherine

OOTD, Selfie Photography

Awareness of the outside world. The Guardian: Historical selfies – Buzz Aldrin, Stanley Kubrick and the Russian princess, Rose 2014. Collect Space: Buzz Aldrin debuts ‘First Selfie in Space’ t-shirt for Gemini 12 50th anniversary.

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Since I so seldom wear a coordinated outfit, I used the banquet as a chance to do an Outfit of the Day post. [Celebrating The Series]

Shirt by Arista from the American Saddlebred Museum. I went here looking for a Saddlebred-specific design. This isn’t. Shirt sold many places. Since the banquet was an ASB event, might as well give my shopping dollars to ASB folks. This is actually a riding shirt, note vented arms & sides, so I can use it for something other than a banquet.

Pants. From my closet. Seriously. These black pants have been my funeral & festival apparel since forever. I have no idea where they came from, no memory of buying them, nor for what occasion. Label says Ann Taylor. Shrug. My limited wardrobe is not a philosophical statement. If I had more fancy fêtes in my life, I’d have more fancy clothes. [Winter Tournament Banquet photographic proof that I have been wearing these pants since at least 2014]

Shoes by Keds. Sox by Laurel Burch.

Necklace. Pendant from Riskto Stitch, chain custom designed & created by KalmiaArt. [Artists Are Awesome, Jewelry Edition]

Bracelet from ASB Museum. Hopped into cart while buying the shirt.

Belt from Freedman’s. Went to ogle store back in 2018. Wanted to bring something home. Was the only thing I could afford. [The Road Leads to Lexington]

Technical Details

Phone camera.

This was hard. First, getting the entire outfit in one photo. Since I don’t own a full-length mirror, I was counting on the bathroom at the banquet. Not a good idea. There was no full-length in the bathroom and, even if there had been, it would have would looked like a bathroom. Duh. So I did it in halves.

Then, getting all the pieces. I forgot the bracelet. Took photo on the way home. Completely forgot the belt. Took photo two days later.

Finally, getting the colors, which I assume is important to fashion photography? The shirt is a nice, reddish brown. Redder and livelier than in the photos, but not as bright as the online sales photos. As always, the small, shiny things gave me trouble. The pendant is marred by a reflection and the silver bracelet kept coming out black.

And that is my fashion statement until my next fancy dress occasion, which will probably be the next banquet.

Onwards!
Katherine