Horses & Other Interests
The struggle is real.
A (generally) ironic saying often used in place of the saying, “first world problems”. Has slightly more urban undertones than “first world problems”. Denotes a situation where the user wishes to express that they are encountering some sort of undesirable difficulty, but dealing with it. With irony, it has a comical effect of dramatizing a non-critical, yet undesirable situation.
Urban Dictionary: The struggle is real
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
a
Doing more biking. Still on my pitiful, proof-of-concept, 5.5 mile training ride [Nowhere, Winner]. It’s coming more easily. I’m able to lever my own ass off the couch during the week and not rely solely on joint rides over the weekend.
Whenever I am heading into the wind (or flapping through one more lap in the pool), I think of Gran Moff Tarkin’s words to Vader on the Death Star after the Millennium Falcon has “escaped”:
This had better work.
All this effort had better show up in my riding. A bolder jump cross-country, fewer seconds in a jump-off, a more sparkling pass in saddle seat. I want results and I want them yesterday!
Note to self: do NOT watch Criminal Minds reruns before a solo bike ride. Every harmless passing car becomes a haven for a skanky unsub who will run me off the road, inject me with exotic drugs, and perform weird and ritualistic violence on my person. My imagination does not need the help.
Note to everyone else: Follow a Criminal Minds episode with the recap on Castle Vardulon. Plot holes, factual errors, and continuity problems served up with generous doses of snark.
How is your exercise resolution going?
~~~
Gratuitous Skyline: Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Greg had to attend a fancy business dinner. I got to stay home, confer with horses instead of people, and still enjoy the view. Win!
Taken at The Club.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
English needs separate words for “want.”
Meaning 1) I think it’s a good idea in theory.
Meaning 2) I am willing to put in the necessary time, effort, spiritual energy to make it happen.
I have lots of the first type of want, less of the second.
I have ideas for lettering. Fantastic ideas. Artistic ideas. Clever ideas. Some are all three. Time, effort, and spiritual energy? Not so much.
Plus, the ideas never look as good on paper or on the screen as they do in my head. Somewhere there is an elegant quote that explains this. ‘We start a new skill, artistic endeavor, what-have-you, because we are excited by the brilliant examples we have seen. As beginners, our technical skills cannot yet create what we envision. This is natural. This is difficult. Keep trying.’ Google has let me down, so you will have to take my word for it.
Which is an elaborate way of saying that I didn’t get to my lettering this week.
Better luck next week.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Update: Found it! Advice for Beginners by Ira Glass.
Here it is an illustrated version:
Zen Pencils: Advice for Beginners by Ira Glass
The assist goes to to Horse Tender Studio for clueing me in to Zen Pencils:
Horse Tender Studio: Make Good Art
The sky is blue.
The clouds are white.
The grass is green.
The air is warm.
The doors are wide.
The air flows in.
My shirt has short sleeves.
The horse sheds on the barn floor.
The dog and I walk the edge of the field.
The dog runs.
I mull.
~~~
Dedication: To Sunflower, for the encouragement.
~~~
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Photo project from my Instagram feed, @rodneyssaga. [Previous, January 2016]
Specific: March was hat month.
General: Started Instagram as a blog tie-in [Rodney’s Instagram]. Did this instead. A single object each day. Nothing to do with the blog. Occasionally to do with horses. Published here for archival purposes.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Both sides.
Stem to stern.
Back to belly.
Close-up showing the extensive trowel work.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
a
I had a plan. It was a good plan.
The plan was to show less than last year. This year was to be for learning, for letting my budget recover, and for bonding with the home team. [To Show or Not To Show]
The plan did not survive the first horse show.
A long way of saying I am at a show today. To the surprise of no one but me. [ibid]
So, new plan. Last year, ten big shows; this year, five. One more show this month, skip two in April, one in May. Then two in the fall. Plus the summer fun shows. Really, it’s hardly a compromise at all.
We’ll see what happens the first time the trailer heads down the driveway without me.
