October Update, Rodney

We continued our escorted morning walks [Autumn Plans].

Some days were good. Some days were bad. After good days, I am a joy and delight to be around. After bad days, I doubt everything. Do I understand the concept of taking things too seriously? No. Why do you ask?

The rate-limiting factor on morning walks may not be light or motivation. It may be temperature. On cold days, the motor oil thickens and Rodney seizes up. If he is tight anywhere in his body, he is tight in his brain.

Sigh.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy

Letter Art, AlphaBooks: W is for Wodehouse

Aunts Aren’t Gentleman
P.G. Wodehouse
Barrie & Jenkins 1974, Penquin 1987

Although horse racing is integral to the plot, horses do not appear in the story. Less a horse book; more an excuse to read Wodehouse.

Found in Horse Stories: An Annotated Bibliography of Books for All Ages by Terri A. Wear [Scarecrow 1987]. Bought from Powell’s Books.

W Authors on RS
Waldo My Next Reading Assignment
Walker Guest Post: Art Imitates Life by Jennifer Walker
Wofford Cross-Fertilization
~~~
This Year

[V is for von Tempski]
[U is for USDA]
[T is for Tewson]
[S is for Severin]
[R is for Rubin]
[Q is for Queen]
[P is for Pace]
[O is for O’Connor]
[N is for Newsum]
[M is for McKinley]
[L is for Lewis]
[K is for Krementz]
[J is for Journal]
[I is for Ipcar]
[H is for Hatch]
[G is for Gray]
[F is for Francis]
[E is for Endicott]
[D is for Doty]
[C is for Cooper]
[B is for Brown]
[A is for Anderson]

Past Years
[2016 Alphabet] [2015 Alphabet]

Project explanation [AlphaBooks 2017]. Open to recommendations for the remaining letters. Which books would you choose?

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy

Here I Am

Yes, I am at Nationals.
No, I don’t want to talk about it.

Partly, everything I could say, I’ve said in previous years. [2013, 2014, 2015, 2016]

Partly, I could post positive perkiness …

If you are on a horse, you’ve already won.
Courtesy of Tonya Johnston on Facebook [USDF Interview]

… but it wouldn’t be real. I’m still fretting, as I did all spring and summer. No closer to understanding the cause. Not closer to finding a solution.

Partly, in the past, yapping has not kept me from being a hot mess. I’m trying not yapping.

Logistics
As I understand the rules, my only cut-off was on Friday for both riding classes. Fourteen adults went down to 10. Then, those 10 ride Saturday & Sunday. If I were benevolent dictator, I’d go from 14->12, then 12->10. More drama, more entry fees. Or stick with all 14 through Sunday. Be more like the kids, who have to ride in 16-horse finals. (Post written before I left. Will try to include Friday results before this goes live.)

There are not usually enough drivers to require a cut-off. Classes Friday & Saturday. No driving final on Sunday.

In the past, there has been livestream on Sunday. Link here.

I may Tweet. I may not. In the event that I do, I have added Twitter to the sidebar for your convenience.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy

Foto Friday: Instagram October 2017

October Instagram from @rodneyssaga.

Previous September 2017

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy

Milton’s First Carriage Drive

Video version of Milton pulling the the four-wheel carriage for the first time [Show Report Driving & Lessons]. Posted here for entertainment and archival purposes. I like to imagine looking back at this when he’s going big time.

In hindsight, I think the spook (3:06) was at Greg’s jacket beside the cone. He gave it the hairy eyeball when we went past it later.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy

Show Report: SSF Fun Show 2017

Through sheer force of will, Coach Courtney pulled a horse show from the jaws of defeat.

Stepping Stone Farm Fun Show
Chelsea, AL USA
October 28, 2017

2 Driving with Snippy – canceled
3 Open Pleasure with Dottie – 3rd of 5
4 Equation Pattern with Dottie – 2nd of 4
5 Open Pleasure Championship with Dottie – 1st of 5
Costume Class with Alvin – unplaced of 8
Thank you to Alvis family, Courtney Huguley, and the Wamble family.

The annual, in-barn fun show is less a horse show and more a glorified group lesson with ribbons. So, when the forecast looked dismal, Miss Courtney insisted that The Show Would Go On. On Saturday, we woke up to wet. Standing in the aisle, watching the rain come down and the water run across the parking lot, I was utter convinced that the effort was hopeless. Yes, events and CDEs go on in bad weather. These were Saddlebreds. They don’t do adverse conditions. My suggestion was to roll dice for ribbons, pass out the barbecue, and go directly to the costume class.

It rained. We held the grooming classes in the covered ring. It misted. The driving class was canceled due to the amount of mud that would be flung on my person. It was time for the first riding class. It stopped raining.

Miss Courtney may have prevailed from a combination of optimism and denial, but Dottie was horrified. The entrance to the ring was blocked by a bottomless chasm of muddy water. The ring was sloppy. How did I expect her to work under these conditions?! When the announcer came over the little, portable loudspeaker. Dottie had a complete change of attitude. ‘Oh. This is a horse show? Well, in that case…”

These were my best rides with Dottie so far. I am learning the fine line between supporting her and pissing her off. This seems to be a mare thing. Bliss would routinely put Greg in time out. He’d get lost in cones. She’d come back to a walk for a stride or two, ‘When you’ve gotten yourself together back there, we’ll go on.’

I watched Dottie in the walk-trot classes and saw how much sparkle she has. You can’t feel that from the saddle. I can have an outstanding ride on Sam, only to have him project a sour, grumpy attitude that gets a ‘Meh’ from the judge. Sparkle is like charisma, or an affinity for the camera. It just is.

I also discovered that the only thing worse than having anxiety is having the faint ray of hope that you might not have to do the thing.

Previous Years
Show today: Stepping Stone Farm Fun Show & Show Report & Show Tweets: SSF Fun Show 2014
Show Report & Tweets: SSF Fall 2015
Short Show Report: SSF Home Show 2016 & Macho Dresses Up As Dr. Whooves

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

#bloglikecrazy