Virtual Brush Box

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. Newspaper motto. Democracy Dies In Darkness, The Washington Post

~~~

Rodney is in the horse house, the equine version of being in the dog house. Although the dogs in this house have it pretty good. But I digress.

Good ride on the flat.

Ended session by trotting over a little cavalletti.

Right before the pole, he felt a touch quick. I figured 50/50 that he’d trot over it or give it a little jump, perhaps land cantering. He kinda hop-trotted it.

Then he blew a fuse.

Head down. Shoulders up. Crow-hopping back and forth across the ring. Some of the hops had serious loft. Fortunately he chose to go forward in a straight line. Turns were wide. So it was a matter of staying balanced over the top.

There were moments when I thought I might not stick it, or might not be able to stop it. I did and I did. Never underestimate the power of being pissed off. Eventually landed the aircraft. The display was sufficiently energetic that I could be proud of myself for riding it out.

After, I trotted to make a point. Then, got off and had our groundwork expert long-line him. Rodney hopped once more, getting four off the floor. Then, he calmly cantered a higher cavalletti doing his impression of the World’s Greatest Hunter.

I have no idea what brought this on, not even in hindsight.

He is getting the best of care.

He was warm. Temperature was high at the time. He was kept warm the night before.

He is sound. Blacksmith says his feet look better than they ever have.

He’s on UlcerGard AND an inflammation reduction supplement.

It was a good ride.

He improved in his exercises.

We had a nice conversation about staying relaxed.

Everything went well, until he had his diva fit.

It is never the horse’s fault, but I’m running out of reasons to explain his behavior.

Onwards!
Katherine

Horsekeeping

Awareness of the outside world. Newspaper motto. All The News That’s Fit To Print, New York Times.

~~~

I’m cold, so you need a blanket.

Actually, it’s the other way around with Rodney and me.

In my head, I was making fun if Rodney while I was putting his blanket on. Then I realized I was wearing my heavy winter coat.

Similarly, if I’m putting on his fleece, I’m usually wearing sweatshirt or vest.

Yes, my horse wears a sweatshirt at 75 degrees. So do I.

Guess, I gotta stop laughing at him.

Does he need it? No. Does he enjoy it? Yes. Are we around to monitor the ever-changing temperature/blanket equation? Also yes. So, why not.

“Rodney has decreed that any temps under 70, possibly 80, degrees is chilly and he will be covered, thank you very much, that is all.” [Changing the Blanketing Protocol, In Which Rodney Plays The Old Man Card]

“Rodney and I are firmly on Team Sweatshirt.” [New Equipment, Horse Sweatshirt]

Onwards!
Katherine

Images

Awareness of the outside world. “Cachet. Any textual or graphic design which has been applied to a cover usually, but not always, on the left side of the envelope. A cachet may be produced by any means— printed, rubberstamped, handdrawn, etc. A first day cachet should be related specifically to the stamp on the cover.” American First Day Cover Society: FDC Terminology.

So The Graceful Envelopes would be non-first day cachets? Any stamp folks care to enlighten me?
~~~

My entry for the Graceful Envelope Contest run by the The Washington Calligraphers Guild. The 2022 theme was Greetings and Salutations.

Process Notes

In my defense, the envelope looked better in person. While a mere sketch compared to the winners, it amoosed me.

Plus, I got a blog post out of it.

Contest

TWCG: 2022 Graceful Envelope Contest Winners, VIEW THE WINNING ENVELOPES on IMGUR

Next year. TWCG: 2023 Graceful Envelope Contest Call for Entries. The theme is fan mail.

“In 1999 my envelope was a winner.” Kath Harney: The Graceful Envelope Contest

Carol DuBosch Calligraphy: Envelopes

Writealetter.org: The Graceful Envelope Contest Winners 2015

Writealetter.org: 25 Years of Graceful Envelopes, 2019

Envelopes

Smithsonian: Pushing the Envelope | History| Smithsonian Magazine, Kernan 1997

Smithsonian: The Graceful Envelope. Archived Exhibition, no photos

Stamp

“The stamps were designed by Zack Bryant using photographs by acclaimed heritage breeds photographer Aliza Eliazarov. Greg Breeding served as art director.” USPS: New Heritage Breeds Forever Stamps Honor Genetic Diversity in Farm Animals, May 2021

“The difficulty in finding this once popular breed was the inspiration for the creation of the first North American livestock conservation organization, which has become The Livestock Conservancy.” The Livestock Conservancy: MILKING DEVON CATTLE.

Onwards!
Katherine

Words

Awareness of the outside world. Bulwer-Lytton 2022 winners.

~~~

I get mistaken for a guy. Have done all my life, from as early as childhood to as recently as this month.

My kindergarten school picture shows a smiling child with long brown hair. The very obvious girl is wearing a red velvet dress with a lace collar. A year later, in first grade photo, the same child has a glum expression, a school uniform, and a side-parted, short haircut. This was many years before Dorothy Hamill convinced us that short hair could be cute. It was a boy’s haircut.

The story goes that my father took me to get my hair trimmed. He plopped me down in the seat and went over to the chairs to wait. When he looked up from whatever he was reading, most of the hair had been lopped off one side of my head.

Father: What are you doing to my daughter’s hair?
Barber: Your daughter? I thought it was your son.

I kept my hair long until senior year in college.

Getting misgendered bothers me. A little. Not enough to do anything about it, nor spend time figuring out why it bothers me. They call me sir. I open my mouth. They hear my voice. They look startled and/or apologetic. Before gay marriage, I was able to quip, ‘It’s okay, my husband can tell the difference.’ The implication being that if I had a husband, I must therefore be a wife. That’s a one-liner I’m happy to lose.

Part of the reason for the onlooker confusion is clothing. When I am seen as male, it is often in the winter. I have oddly wide shoulders for the rest of my frame. Add a hat and a bulky winter jacket, et voilà, a dude.

The second reason is a lack of female signifiers. I don’t wear make up. I don’t wear dresses, red velvet or otherwise. This is particularly noticeable in the southern US, where such feminine behaviors are still widely practiced. More so than in, say, New England. At one point, I was sitting in an Alabama movie theater wherein the audience was largely female. I realized I was both the youngest one there and the only one with gray hair.

The third factor is attitude. I was meeting two friends in a local park. When Friend A and I arrived, Friend B was being chatted up by a homeless gentleman. She was clearly uncomfortable but was both too Southern to walk off and encumbered with a baby in a stroller. Friend A and I have both lived in less polite parts of the country. We had no trouble whisking her away from her admirer. Friend A walked next to Friend B on the way back to her car. I hung back by several feet, my feathers fluffed up, my head swiveling from side to side, projecting a don’t mess with us attitude. It wasn’t a dangerous situation, but it was time to leave.

On the drive home, I was still agitated. I decided a batch of cookies was the answer. I stopped at a small, independent bakery. The counter person ask sir what sir would like. This was odd. I’d been there many times before. Plus, the bakery was casual and left-leaning. Not big on formality or gender roles. Afterwards, I decided that I was still emitting an aggressive, protective energy. Things society generally associates with men.

The most recent occasion was at the Native American Festival in Moundville. At one of the food tents, the gentleman taking the orders called me sir when he asked what I wanted. I saw him later walking around the park. We nodded. He stopped to tell me that he thought I was a person he knew, Chief X in the Y.

Chief?

I’m good with that.

Update. “While wearing new coat got called sir again two days later. At this point, I think it upsets them more than it upsets me.” [Farm vs Outdoor Nov 2022]

Onwards!
Katherine

Fit To Ride

Awareness of the outside world. Virtual 5K benefited Open Hand Atlanta.

~~~

My 5K for September. Took a while for the medal to arrive, wagging its ribbon behind it.

Dragon Con Hustle: Jubilee, RunSignup
All virtual, part of Dragon Con
Orr Park, Montevallo, AL
Sunday 18 September 2022
3.3 miles in 1 hr 13 minutes

Another view of the medal, from RunSignup page. The shininess defeated my photographic abilities.

The Park

First responders doing a practice exercise. Baptisms in the creek. Families grilling. Sports. Young couples sitting together at the waterside. People giving life to a park.

Been here several times. Managed to not know about the loop in the back until now.

One benefit of a busy park – food trucks.

ExploreSouthernHistory.com – Orr Park and the Faces in the Trees, Alabama

Little bit of a hill in this one.

Dragon Walks of Yore

[Flying Low, Walk Report, DragonCon Virtual 5K] 2021

[Strolling Around The Lake, Walk Report, The Dragon Within DIY 5K, September 2020]

Previous Orr Park

[Greenway Stroll, Part II, Baltimore Running Festival Virtual 5K, October 2020]

[Rubber Ducky Day 2020]

Onwards!
Katherine

Driving

Awareness of the outside world. NPR: Which Indigenous lands are you on? This map will show you, Treisman, October 10, 2022.

~~~

Milton wearing britching and going for a stroll outside the ring at Stepping Stone Farm.

He’s done both of these before, but not for a while. We’ve gone back to first principles and are slowly moving forward.

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. Alabama Charity Horse Show had a cute fundraiser for St. Jude. Pay $5 before the class. If you win, they play your chosen song during your victory pass. I would have so done this. The show itself benefited Special Equestrians.

~~~

No ASB lesson last week. Barn at show, see above. Same place as in the spring. For the last time. Facility is closing. Hartselle Enquirer: No more horsing around: Celebration Arena in Priceville has been sold, Fleischauer, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. 😦

Speaking of the Spring show. Back in May, one of the barn moms took our pictures while I was waiting to ride. [Switching Gears, Show Report, Mid-South Spring Premiere 2022]

Photos by Pam Cofield.

Not the worst photos ever taken of us.

Onwards!
Katherine