Virtual Brush Box

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. Taking the NYT to task again. NYT: The Grimmest Dilemma, The Biden administration is facing an old Cold War dilemma: Be weak or risk a world war, Leonhardt, March 21, 2022. We are not five-year olds on a playground. There is a middle ground between cravenly wetting oneself and maniacal chest thumping. It’s called diplomacy. People make careers out of it. While the article was more nuanced than the headline implies, I worry about the cumulative damage done by alarmist headlines. [Previous NYT Milton Manages Most of A Lesson]

Two days later. An article with a pearl clutching headline about a !Crime Wave! goes on to say, ” … still far below the levels of the 1970s, ’80s and early ’90s … ” NYT: Good Morning: A violent weekend highlights America’s continuing crime wave, Leonhardt, March 23. Emphasis mine.
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Rodney at Falcon Hill Farm. Note shorter mane. [Time]

He’s getting to be an old hand at ears photos.

Between weather & feet haven’t done much since last FHF. [Tires, Ears]

Jumping Diary

Walked tiny, tiny crossrail and vertical.

Trotted double ground poles.

As we approached the double groundpoles for the first time, Rodney spent half a stride thinking about jumping the whole mess. Decided not to. Hopped the first. Trotted out. Less hop the next time through. Third time, trotted like a 17-hand metronome. Good boy.

I kept eyeing the tiny, tiny vertical. It would be such a simple little jump to trot over. One tiny little hop. However, if he was still considering leaping into the air over groundpoles, best not ask for actual elevation. [Rodney’s Recent Jumps, Free Jumping]

There was enthusiasm being around that many jump standards, which is great. Still too much bravado. Confidence needs a sound base. [The Many Faces of Rodney Over Fences]

Onwards!
Katherine

Horsekeeping

Awareness of the outside world. AL.com: Meet the Alabamians who made a difference in 2021.
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It’s that time of the year again. Time to trim manes and tails. We trim manes to tone down the scruffy. We trim tails to keep them off the ground.

It’s that time of the year again. Time to taunt the Saddlebred barn. I make sure to send a picture of our hair clippings. Coach Courtney always takes it in the spirit it is intended. 🙂

[Mane Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow] 2021
[The Unbridgeable Abyss That Shall Eternally Divide Them] 2020

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. I favor a strict interpretation of the First Amendment, wherein the government shall not get after you. Even if you try to argue that you should be protected in general from the slings and arrows prompted by your outrageous comment, that reprehensible response is just as much protected free speech as your comment. Either way, the Gray Lady needs to pull her socks up.
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Milton went back to Stepping Stone Farm last weekend. [Hooves]

Lesson

Milton & husband Greg.

Did the entire walk-trot group lesson from start to finish.

Sat out the canter segment peacefully. Yeah, we were surprised. Thought it was trot-only. No matter. Milton was perfectly happy to stand in the middle. Did not stress that he might be next.

Thought the third trot was uncalled for, but chugged through, and trotted into line-up with the rest of the class. Actually, they got caught on the wrong part of the ring and had to trot alllll the way around to get into position.

Good Boy! Good Boys!

Après Lesson

One of the SSF families bought a Bemer blanket and has set up a side hustle for sessions. As before, Milton loved his. Moved marvelously the next day. [Beaming with Bemer Blanket]

Onwards!
Katherine

Horsekeeping

Awareness of the outside world. NASA: NASA’s Webb Reaches Alignment Milestone, Optics Working Successfully, March 16, 2022. JWST: Webb Orbit, Animation of Webb’s Orbit.

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Liked this idea so much, I gave it its own post.

The excellent swag at the Montgomery 5K included a towel. [Circling The Capitol, Walk Report]

I love this. I wish more races would do it. Universally useful. Lots of room for sponsor logos. I don’t know about your house, but we go through way more towels than shirts.

This one has been designated the sacrificial pine tar towel. The plan is to use this one and keep the rest of the barn towels in better shape. [Pine Tar Update and New Barn Rule]

It’s brightly colored. It’s easy to find. It’s not a color we have elsewhere in barn. As you can see, the right side of the towel already has an inaugural smudge from simply lying on top of the hoof care tote.

More towels please!

Onwards!
Katherine

Images

36 Days of Type
[Project Intro]
[36 Days of Type, A to G]

Note. Had planned to post Subway II today. Thunderstorms. Here’s a short I wrote on my phone.

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Go be human, they said.

It’ll be fun, they said.

Ha!

We had no idea how much work it takes to get through each day.

Eating, for example. I’m eating all the time. I barely finish one meal and this animated meat factory is starting to think about the next one.

Enough already. Can I get a break from the constant ingestion? And of course the equally constant demands that happen on the other end. That is no way to run a sentient being.

I will admit that ice cream is a nice bonus.

In other news, got a memo from HQ asking what I thought about bungee jumping.

Again, ha!

They have no idea how fragile human bodies are. I am not leaping off of or out of any objects in a creation with such an abmysmal level of self-repair. Human societies require entire buildings and a staff of trained experts to fix the slightest structural damage.

No, thank you.

Really, the hardest part is the lying. People do it all. the. time. They lie outright. The say polite fictions that the don’t believe. They say words that are absolutely true yet in the aggregate are misleading to the point of untruth. They have entire professions wherein they stand up in front each other, lie their heads off, and then get applause for how well they lie.

This is what happens when you can’t see emotions.

Took me so long to figure this out. I would feel happy/sad/frustrated and assume others would see the emanations. No. They would stand there looking at me until I physically said, ‘I am happy/sad/frustrated.’

How do people function under these conditions?

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Fit To Ride

Awareness of the outside world. “The funds raised at this event will allow the Heritage Hall to continue providing support for enlisted education programs and the development of museum-quality displays and exhibits that chronicle the contributions of enlisted men and women throughout aviation history.” Enlisted Heritage 5K.
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Enlisted Heritage 5K
with the Montgomery Half
Montgomery AL, USA
Saturday, March 12, 2022
IRL

Time – 55:06.02, official
Pace – 17:46
Place – full roster results not listed
Gender/Age Group – 10 out of 14
Results

Full name of the half marathon is The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama Montgomery Half Marathon presented by Montgomery Multisport and the Enlisted Heritage 5K. That’s some good sponsorship acquisition.

The definition of last to start. Those Montgomery folks were fast. I passed way fewer people than I was expecting. I guess Sunday Strollers don’t come out at 35o.

Not flat. Up a long, gently sloping hill to the Alabama State Capitol, around the building, & back down the main drag. So, 55 minutes is a good time, considering. More sore than usual the next day, probably from being tight in the cold.

For someone who grew up in Federalist DC, the Ye Olde Roman architecture on the government and State Association buildings looked familiar. Did you know that Roman columns were painted? This upsets some people.

Color in the Ancient World, Brandon Locke MSU 2017

The New Yorker: The Myth of Whiteness in Classical Sculpture 2018

Finished in Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium, home of the Montgomery Biscuits. Hence the seating in the background of the medal pic at top. The grass footing was glorious.

Lower left, brown jacket is me taking a photo of 15 seconds of fame on the jumbo screen,

Onwards!
Katherine