Friday, August 7, 2015

As the world turns

Wow, am I ever glad it's Friday again.  *sigh*  I'm tired.  My brain doesn't want to function and a really, long nap sounds heavenly.  Our grandson has spent the last 2 weeks with us. I am sooo not used to teenagers being around 24/7...dear God, how do people do it?  Guess you just adapt.  Like everything else.  However, I will say that our grandson, Dave is a unique individual.  His mom is bi-polar, manic-depressive and Dave shows those tendencies already.  He's been behaviorally challenged for years and years.  He takes all sorts of meds and without them is beyond difficult.  He's diagnosed ADHT, or whatever that is...hyperactive, short attention-span, whatever.  The only two areas that I can relate to Dave is with the horses, and animals in general; and taking pictures.  He really shows promise in the area of photography.  But when he's with the horses, they calm him and bring him peace.  Anyone out there relate to this?  :)  What is it about horses?  There definitely is something special about horses that grounds us, levels our emotions and gives us a feeling of relaxation, joy, and just being alright with what is.  I can't explain it, but I know it's true, certainly couldn't have survived my childhood without them.  Well, that's probably a bit dramatic, but it wouldn't have been so manageable for sure.  Horses have always been my rock.  Still are...my faith and my horses.  Life without these wouldn't be worth living, for me.  

My Annie

Harley wearing his "horses in black", cool shades
 
My girl with her "precious"...the only toy she'd play with.  Ever.
Since I got my new phone, I've been realizing it's much quicker and handier to use that for pictures.  My problem is, I don't know how to get the pics uploaded here.  I've sent them to my email, downloaded them onto Picassa, but simply cannot move them here, and I even have trouble finding them once I know they are there.  Grrrrr...so irritating!  Is there some way to transfer pics directly from the phone to blogger?  

Anyway, moving on.  I'm canning peaches tonight.  We love freshly canned peaces and some frozen ones for cooking in the winter.  It's like a little bit of summer sunshine in a jar.  But honestly, canning is the last thing in the world that I want to be doing this evening.  I'd really like to get outa dodge and just go relax and rejuvenate.  Do something fun.  If we get that job done quickly, maybe we can do just that.  

I'd really like to take Eagle somewhere and go for a little ride.  I'm anxious and a little worried at the same time about this.  I don't want to get all nervous and worried, and make him feel insecure. That would not be good.  But, I've just gotta get our first trail ride under our belts.  The little rides I took at Rachel's don't really count; they were pretty short...but, once out and on our way, I did start relaxing fairly quickly.  I'm hopeful that's what will happen again. Our riding club has a scheduled camp-out this weekend, but we're just not ready for that. The way I'm feeling right now, truly?  I'd love to head to the beach.  Sleep in, breathe deeply of the fresh, ocean air and walk with my dog.  Take a nap with the cool breeze blowing in the window...read a little and have a nap.  I don't want to be social.  I don't want to work.  I just want to veg...

We're expected to get a little rain this Sunday.  That would be so refreshing, and we could really use it.  You sure don't hear me saying that very often!  :)  Surprise even myself sometimes.  We haven't had any measurable rainfall since the very beginning of June, in fact the day we took Eagle to Rachel's.  That impressive storm, where it dumped and then moved on.  This sure has been an unusual year, actually starting back to last October when it was so unusually warm and it dumped so much rain, so early, that everything started molding and it felt tropical.  That was followed by a much warmer and drier winter - the year of no winter, followed by an early spring, and our summer starting very much earlier (and hotter) than usual.  The times are sure a-changin' - no doubt!  I'm not complaining, and I certainly don't worry about the weather.  Just taking note, that's all.  It is, what it is.  
My rides on Eags have been going overall, pretty well.  We have our ups and our downs, but I'm getting more comfortable and more competent in my requests of him.  His unusually low headset is still a bit disconcerting to me, feels at times like I have no horse in front of me.  But, when I don't fixate on it, continue to ask for more forward with a nice momentum, with lots of transitions, stops and goes...it really does get better. Someone on a FB horsemanship site that I follow, likened it to that game many of us played as children.  Red light, Green light.  Keep your horse mentally and physically at the ready, which promotes balance and readiness from both of us.  It would work even better if I had a good groundsman calling out the orders.  We include, walk and trot, with lots of stops, upward and downward transitions, some backing and lots of variance in distances between changes.  It's proving to be a great exercise.  Keeps Eagle guessing, and doesn't allow his attention to go wandering on our rides.  I have to admit.  It's challenging for me too, because I've just been a lollygagging trail rider for many years now...we both need work.  :)  But we're having fun and trail riding is what I truly love, so he doesn't have to be trained to the nines!  All I truly hope for is a calm, soft and responsive and confident trail horse.  That would be perfect.  I just love Eagle.  Oh, and so does David.  He is absolutely and infinitely ga-ga over Eags...go figure.  I can't explain it, but every single person who meets my boy, loves my boy.  He should have been named Don Juan, or Valentino, or some other legendary lover who ensnared people with his wiles and charms!  
Color me blessed...for he is mine, and I am his!!!  **happy dance**  :)

Oh, an update on my on-going issue of weight loss.  I'm down another 8-10 lbs. since last winter.  However, it's only about 4 lbs lighter than I was last summer.  I tend to gain in the winter and lose in the summer.  10 more pounds to go and I'll be back to my pre-clinic days of 16 years ago, come August 16(which isn't yet my goal, but still)...wow.  Slow going though!  I enjoy my food, just like my dog.  *sigh*  Oh well, whatever!  

I'll try once again to upload my pics that I've got on my phone, and if I do manage it - we'll celebrate, but if not - memories of my beautiful (and oh, so missed) Annie will suffice for now.  Have a wonderful weekend my friends!!

Lorie
It's been hot!


Patch

10 comments:

aurora said...

Two weeks is a long time with any age visiting kid. What a nice grandmother you are!! It's great that Dave related to your horses so well. Sounds like it would be ideal for him to spend more time with horses, especially in a program that specializes with teenagers. Congrats on the weight loss! Wish I could say the same. What a treat to see new (to me) pics of Annie. Silly girl only played with one special toy!! Glad rides are going well with Eagle & I get the need to get the "firsts" out of the way.

As far as uploading phone photos, are you trying to post them via the Blogger mobile app? When you are on a desktop computer, there is an option to upload from your phone - but it looks like you have to have a Google+ account. Go figure. Without asking a ton of Q's, my best suggestion (which you likely have tried) would be googling the question "how to upload photos from phone to Blogger" or relevant variations will pull up different answers. You could also try Blogger Mobile help. Not sure the path you are trying to use. It's time consuming & frustrating :/

C-ingspots said...

There's an app for that!? :) Kidding...thanks for helping me with tips Aurora. I'll give those ideas a try!! I'm not very good at techy stuff...sigh

Anonymous said...

Horses can be very special - especially for people who are emotionally overwhelmed or just plain having trouble coping. Those four hooves are grounded, for sure, and can take people right with them.

Great to hear your update - lots going on. Your Eagle is indeed a special horse - but, then, you know that already!

Grey Horse Matters said...

Sounds like you and Eagle are doing just fine. I know what you mean about feeling there's nothing in front of you because of low head set. Dusty is like that.it was so different from riding my Erik. What I've learned to do is not focus on her head, I just sit up and look straight ahead ( like I should be doing anyway) and it's not distracting at all anymore. Once you get your first trail ride out of the way you'll relax and have more fun I think.

Just had my two grandsons here for a week. They are 7 and 4 and love the horses too. I think everyone who meets horses relates to them in some way. I've always thought the reason they help some cope with life better is because they aren't judgmental and they don't ask anything of you but to be kind. I could be wrong. I'm sure there's different opinions from many.

Have a great weekend!

Gail said...

I can attest to the healing, centering, loving qualities of a horse. I still miss mine and wonder, should I seek another? I think not, we are getting older and it's more difficult to fix fences and feed in winter. They will always be my babies in my heart.

I look forward to your first trail ride too. I shall live with horses through you.

Thank you.

aurora said...

Ha ha Lorie! Yep, there most certainly is an app for everything. You can even get a specific degree to be an app developer, which I considered...until I worked on implementing a newly created app for a large organization. What a PITA!! I don't ever feel the need to do that again!

Last time I looked, Blogger mobile had really bad reviews. I don't use it, altho I'm sure improvements have been made. Hopefully someone will chime in that does use it. If the problem is sending phone photos to desktop computer, and googling Q's doesn't help, I would take the phone back/call the service provider & ask a knowledgeable person for help. They'll definitely know how the phone operates. Wish I could help more. Can you tell, I like figuring that stuff out!!! *^*

Carolynn Anctil said...

Patch looks remarkably like our Luna! Amazing. And, I LOVE the shower you created so your horses could cool off. That's awesome. The brain is a strange and mysterious thing. I'm glad to hear you have a good relationship with your grandson. I've no doubt it means a great deal to him, as well. Blessings. Carolynn

Denise at Autumn Sky said...

It sounds like you have a lot on your mental plate right now and a trip to the coast for some R&R could help soothe your soul. I've never been to the Oregon coast but I've seen lots of photos and it's beautiful. It's not easy to stay calm when you're caring for someone with such challenges as your grandson. My stepchildren had/have disorders that were difficult to parent and it is wearing, no matter how much you love them.
Good Luck with your horse and getting him out on the trail!

Linda said...

I'm like you, all I want is a good trail horse. Sounds like Eags is the one to do that for you. Don Juan or Valentino--LOL--you've got a lover boy. Do you have someone to ride with on the trails that has a solid horse?

I've never wanted rain so much either. These wildfires and drought...I'm sick of it. I hope you get your rain this week.

Mrs Shoes said...

That has got to be the neato-est flymask I have ever seen!