Contest Won!

That's right, I won a contest! Very excited to see this prize come in my PO box as you can never have enough note-pads especially very cute horse themed ones!



This one comes from a really great blog: The Pleasure Horse Blog. Very fun to read, informative and great contests! Check them out.



p.s. I WILL have updates from my summer, school is just killer and organic chemistry sucks, so that is my excuse from not compiling pictures and posts. :D

Congress!

Sorry to all for the lack of posts and updates - I'm going to have to go through my summer stuff and tell all the great stories. It was an awesome summer, but busy! Which means no time for the internet! The picture above is from one of our shows this summer - he looks great, me not so much. (Someone also needs to have their hat shaped!)

Congress is upon us so that means that in between my classes and any breaks that I have from Organic Chemistry (yuck!) I will be watching and learning from the live feed!

Click Here!

Also, take a look at the patterns - some difficult some awesome and some just plain interesting!

Patterns

Dancing the Night ... Away?

Alright, I know that I left you all waiting for pictures of my Bogey, but I haven't gotten a hold of my sister yet to put those up on Photobucket - so you'll just have to wait a little longer. In the meantime, I have quite a funny story to tell. You may not think it that funny - but oh my friends and I did.

One of my roommates is in a dance class for her gym credit here at school. With this dance class she had to go to the local dance club The Tapestry Folkdance Center to learn an "ethnic dance". Well the Tapestry does all sorts of interesting dances and since I opted to go with her so she didn't have to go along, we chose the English Contra-Dance, thinking that it would not be that far out of our comfort zone. I think the real reason we chose it was because there were pictures of that dance class on the website and there weren't that many people involved and most of them there were girls so we thought we would be safe. Oh, were we wrong!


(Photograph courtesy of the Tapestry Website)

We expected to see about twenty to thirty people there maximum. There were about sixty to seventy people there. We thought girls would be in the majority - they were but only by two extra girls. My roommate and I went with another friend we coursed into going, and since our friend Roz didn't want to dance with a guy and I didn't want to dance with a guy - we decided to be partners for the first part and I would dance the guy part. That was all fine and dandy, and actually for the best since all I had to do was dance with old ladies and most of them were very funny. Roz on the other hand had to dance with creepy old men. Yep, I said it - they were a little creepy.

There was one man there who was about forty and he had the complete "fu manchu" mustache.


(Photo courtesy of Sports Illustrated CNN.com)

Now, Michael Phelps can wear a fu manchu anytime - this guy, could not. The man's was also fuller, and he didn't wear shoes. That's what really got us, he just didn't wear them - no shoes or socks. Can we say athlete's foot?

There were many other character's at the dance, like a cowboy in wranglers. Now, all for the boots and wranglers, but this is Minneapolis, Minnesota not Houston, Texas. I got the John Travolta "Urban Cowboy" feel, just a little too much.


(Photo Courtesy of Hot Movie Sale. com)

Once we all warmed up to our creepy men, we decided to have some fun with it for our last dance. Now, I was asked by a gentleman older than myself - I'd say he was late fifty's early sixty's. He did not give off the fun grandfatherly vibe, it was pure I'm dancing with a nineteen-year-old creeper vibe. He kept complementing me the entire time.

"You're pirouette half turns in a four beat are wonderful. If you can do those, you are good." It was beginning to be obnoxious, but he was my creeper and - I liked him. He was an extremely good dancer and had been going to the Tapestry for many years, so I finally got to dance the girl part - he could twirl me around and we danced the night away.

Thankfully, I will never see him again in my lifetime, or at least I hope not.

Coming Soon!

Life has been busy, so I have not been able to come on here and post. But, I have been on and reading all of your posts, faithfully, so that's good.

The coming soon is a post about Bogey! I did get to spend a whole day with him over my Easter break and I have pictures and more to share about him. (I just need my sister to email me the pictures as I forgot them at home, and I'm now back at school.)

Makeover - or Under!

Ok, Punchy over at Lucchese to Louis Vuitton had a fun little 5 second makeover gadget. Well, I'm sorry gals - but I do have youth on my side (so no wrinkles really to hide), but I could stand to lose some weight. So when the final project was in, and in all reality this makeover turned into a MAKE UNDER!

Here is my before shot:


Pretty decent - don't you think.



And here is the final product. I had everything done to me, from head on up - I had it done! All to the extreme. haha :D



I think I look like Michael Jackson!

If you want to try these fun gadgets out here is a link: New Beauty

Encouragement

I have a really awesome friend who just emailed me, and all of your comments of encouragement just make my day! Bogey and I will get it together, sometime. I just can't have any expectations with him, and I think I'm pushing the issues a little too much. We're going to start out with a blank slate and go from there. Back to square one!

The goal for this summer is pretty much just the trailer issues. I need him to load into a trailer like the one pictured below.



The dividers can be taken out or left in, which I think we might take them since I'll be hauling only him most of the time. We can put them back when I need to take the pony places.

Once the trailer issues is ok, we are hauling places. He needs to see things, so to the shows we'll go to watch and learn. Thankfully there are awesome open shows that are only 5 miles from my house! These open shows have people that are successful at AQHA shows but just can't afford the fees. If you could win in my open show district you could win regional AQHA. They are just that good. So Bogey and I will grace them with our presence and we may just do some showmanship since that is working out with him.

So minimal goals and lots of trailering miles are ahead of me! Summer here I come!

Bogey --- Just about

Well, long time no post. I fell a muse coming on so I thought I should update. To all the bloggers on my page, I read your pages faithfully but sometimes I feel that what I write - is just ramblings on and the despair picture comes to mind.



This Despair photo is exactly what I feel like on most days. Thus, the lack of posting of late. But, now with my change of heart - I am writing this blog to accurately remember my journey with my horse Bogey. I never really meant for this to be extremely public - it just became that way for ease of use and I like Blogger's applications. So my journal will begin again.

I was home for spring break all last week and I did get to spend some quality time with Bogey. It was nice. I didn't get to spend much time because of the long jaunt it takes to get to the boarding stable and the lack of a vehicle but I did get to spend some time with him.

Bogey was just that - Bogey. Since owning him we haven't gotten to know each other that well and our acquaintance with each other is interesting at times. Like I've mentioned in previous posts Bogey is a very typical aloof Quarter Horse personality. When people he likes are around, it's great - when he has his alone time that's great as well.

Now, you all know that I've been working showmanship on him since that is my favorite event, and I believe that all horses should know how to do the maneuvers if only for basic safety precautions. Bogey is too smart at times. We've done probably five good training sessions on showmanship and he's picked it up so quickly that he is now bored with it. BORED! With my favorite event! He pivots correctly and plants the right hind about 95% of the time, holds a set up, trots off on cue, backs quickly where I want him to back, walks on cue, rates his pace to my own, and sets up in a reasonable amount of time. The only other things we could do with this is work on quickening up his set ups and creating ques to place each foot exactly where I want it, and a pull turn. The pull turn is not necessary for the local open shows that I attend in the summer but we'll have that down shortly.

With Bogey's recent boredom of the event he's started to do some bad behaviors to show his displeasure. Such as opening his mouth and pretending to bite the chain or my arm. I DO NOT tolerate this and if I catch it in ample time he'll get a quick smack on his neck and will have to do another "harder" maneuver correctly and then do the same maneuver he rebelled against once again. If I don't catch it we'll just increase intensity and leave out the light smack.

From not knowing much about his past prior to the past year, I've found a few things that I really REALLY don't like. Bogey at one time or another had a halter on for a long period of time, had one on that was too small, or had an accident with one on because he has scar tissue and displaced white hairs along the bridge of his nose where the halter noseband rests. Also, if you raise your hand up quickly or even just raise them up at times, Bogey will shy away. I believe that someone hit him, waled on him, and just plain abused him enough to leave a mark but not fully destroy his spirit. This is very apparent when trying to get him to do something he does not want to do, such as enter a new horse trailer. He hates it. The ONLY way you can get him to enter one is bribery, which I hate to do. All of my previous horses and my current pony Nancy load into a trailer by themselves. I point at it, and throw the rope over their necks and they load themselves safely. I then can enter and tie them up and no one gets hurt in the loading process. Bogey on the other hand will not load.

We had a larger two horse straight load trailer that used and he would not load into it. We thought he was just too big, because he was honestly. So we now have a 3 horse slant that can convert to a stock trailer, which has ample room for him. Once again, he would not load. I had him hauled here by a local trainer who used a 3 horse gooseneck trailer and he would load only with grain. I just don't know what to do with this boy.

When trying to get him to load I first walked him around outside and around the trailer so he could get a look at everything. We then just walked up to it thinking this might be better. No such luck. He readily backed away from the trailer. I then did the whole bribery trick with his treats, with some sweet feed. Still no luck. Finally, I did some lunging around the outside of the trailer to get his feet to move and make the inside of it looks so much better. Still no luck. Now I really don't know what I'm going to do.

Bogey did have his breakfast about 3-4 hours before trying to load so he wasn't too interested in the food, so that may be an option just to get him inside. I've learned that he doesn't like new things at all, but once you get him to try them - it's not a big deal and he'll do it again. It is just that initial start.

I can also see some issues where he might have been abused in his issues with new things. He will just shut down or become beligerent and fight it. For a while at the trailer he shut down, then when I pressed the issue he fought it a little with some bucks and lunging. Not at me, oh there would be hell to pay for that one, but as he went into a trot or lope while lunging. Also, if you try to physically force the trailer issue, with pulling, lunge line, lunge whip, ect., he shuts down even more.

I don't know what to do with him and the trailer issue. We're just going to have to work at it, so time will tell. The worst part of the story is that I'm back as school now and won't be home for another two weeks so Bogey wins again.

You're a saint if you read all this and if anyone has any tricks or tips for working on his slight abuse issues, gaining trust, and working with trailering, I would love any and all help.

I also promise I'll be more faithful about the posts, even though they may just be about boring college right now. ;D

Till next time,
Amy

Witticism Wednesday

So everyone has there "it thing". Some people have pictures they take and all that jazz. Well I've found a really really sarcastic funny site that is just my humor.

I got this from my College Chemistry teacher who is a very funny man. Thank you Dr. Rohly.

So without much ado welcome to Despair.

A Bad day turning into a GREAT one!

Title says it all. Today - started off horribly!

Once again, we were hosting last night - let me tell you at a Christian private school - hosting is truly HELL! I can't stand it. Well, with the gal that we had last night, don't get me wrong - she was very sweet, but she just didn't really fit in with my roommates and I. First of all, she didn't really want to be there with us. She had a bunch of other friends that came with her that were hanging out in a different dorm. Recipe for disaster because you can't make someone have a good time when they really don't want to be there. My roommate would have let her go over there, but it was a guys dorm and the halls would close within ten minutes of her getting there. Then the issue of getting her back in - our doors lock. It was just a big mess.

Then to top it all off - she slept for seven hours on the way here. She was wide awake and ready to "party" in her own words, at 11:30. My roommates and I are ready for bed if not already asleep at 10:30. I know we do not get out much - we just have a 7:40 AM class the next days so we go to bed early. Our guest had other things in mind. Also, she likes movies and video games - we don't have a tv or video games in our room so we had to impose on a friend of ours. It was a HUGE mess! I hated it.

Thankfully, I had to go to Math Lab to get my homework checked and could "run" away for a time, as well as having a quiz to study for the next day. So I did just that, and took one of my sleep aids, my ipod and fell asleep. My roommate couldn't, she had to stay up with our guest.

When I saw my roommate this morning she said that our guest was the worst one she has ever had and she might not do this again. SCORE! :D I really hate hosting so that would be totally awesome! ;D Thus, the beginning of the great day.

I B.S.'d my Biology quiz and did fairly well on the ones I guessed at, another plus. And the cherry on top was that I have a whole post dedicated to my showmanship questions over at Paula's Showmanship blog. You can check them out ---------> and
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The post is entitled Amy's Question. Very cool blog and she has a wealth of showmanship knowledge, which just happens to be my favorite event. So, I hope Paula's prepared for more questions. :D

I'm making a point to get a ton of stuff done today - wish me luck!

Oh, and Aerobics was awesome yet again! ;D

Hosting... again.

Yep, we're hosting again. Thankfully it is a campus visit weekend so the hosting is being done by quite a few people. Also, I have gotten quite a bit done, homework wise, this weekend so I don't have to panic about any of that nonsense.

I don't like hosting - but I bear through it for my roommate's sake - it will be ok!

I'm just going to do my thing and all that jazz. I also have a quiz tomorrow in one of my classes, so I have to study.

My weekend was nice and slow. I got things done and got to watch my favorite television shows. I love getting LOST! Watch it if you can - all the episodes are online on abc.com. It is a really great show. The past three episodes have been super exciting and I've been on the edge of my seat the whole time! Give them a chance if you have time! They are very addicting. Soon you'll be "getting LOST" just like I am.

I also watched a 20/20 special by Diane Sawyer - very interesting! It was about the children of Eastern Kentucky. Did you know that a prescription drug dealer could make more in a weekend in the Appalachian towns of Kentucky then they would a MONTH on the streets of New York City! Isn't that outrageous! They also have many areas that have more people in poverty than many places in India a third world country! That is even crazier, and in the U.S. no less! The show blew my mind away - you can also watch it online at my favorite abc.com!

After that, I watched an episode of Bones. It was pretty good - the sad thing was I could identify with the annoying guy who knows random facts on everything. Very Sad! My friends all say I should write a bathroom reader - because that's so me. If we're talking about something, I'll interject with a random fact pertaining to the topic. I hope I'm not as annoying as the guy on the show. :D Oh well, I like knowing things and like sharing my tidbits of knowledge - so I guess you all are stuck with me and my facts.

Oh, I got to go to Math Lab to get my math homework checked out and then I'm going to study my biology for a quiz tomorrow. Wish me luck!

No Time!

I'm so sorry to all my fellow bloggers - I haven't had time to post, but rest assured I do read ALL of your blogs faithfully every day. I can make time for that, it's just that so much has been going on in terms of busyness that I haven't had time to blog.

This week has been particularly crazy. I had a Chemistry test yesterday. Now the thing with this test is that since I have Thursdays completely off I felt that I could do all of my studying then. This was going well until a gal on my floor came into my room and asked.

"Amy, did you get #21 on the Biology question set?"

I quickly replied, "No, isn't it not due until the test, next week?"

She then pulled out her syllabus and there is was - Question Set due Friday! I had a minor panic - it was 7:30 and I was going to cram in the Chemistry right then and there, but I couldn't I had the question set. Now, mind you that the Question Set isn't just a couple of questions - it is about 60+ questions that will help you study for the upcoming test. I thought that I heard him say that they were not due until the test date, but since she had hard evidence and I only had my believed thoughts I followed her lead. I finished that problem set in less than 3 hours. It was about 10:30 then and I really needed to go to bed. My Chemistry test was at 7:40 in the morning and I need a full 8 hours to function so off I went to bed - praying that I would do ok on the test, even though I hadn't read one of the chapters.

The next day - the test went ok. I didn't bomb it nor did I do as well as I could have, oh well such is life, and it is only the first test of the semester so it will be ok! Well, I went to Biology with my problem set in hand and guess what!?!?!

The problem set wasn't due until the TEST! I was so mad, not at the gal - she apologized profusely and I repeatedly stated "it's not your fault". - But I was mad at myself for trusting her against my better judgement and beliefs. Note to Amy - do your own thing! (And write stuff down!)

The good thing that came out of this mess is that well now - I have the problem set done! hahaha - not really that funny in my opinion.

Oh well!

On lighter note - let me just say that I LOVE my roommates! They are the greatest gals I will ever meet and they just make me feel happy. (They don't read this so I am not brown nosing!) I hung out with the one that goes home usually most weekends and it was just nice to have the two of us and our time together. We're both introverts at heart and have the ability to leave each other alone and know when enough is enough! It's just great that you can take someone at face value and not have to question. Am I reading her right? She is sad? Mad? Happy? We're just open with each other and it is awesome! I love it.

On horse note - Bogey got his hooves done, oh 2 weeks ago already. My mom and sisters went and saw if there were any issues with them that I should know about. They said that they looked fine but the right one looked a little off. (Now, mind you these are not horse people, just extremely descriptive individuals who have come along for the ride with my love of horses. They are the best and are so good to me! (Next post will be about them and their awesomeness! (No they do not read this either!) :D ) Well, here are the non-horseperson pictures they took for me with a video camera and converted it to .jpg (one of my sisters is so tec savvy it's unreal! More than I was at her age and I was addicted to the computer!)



They said that the right looked a little off, but it may just be the way he was standing. The feet looked nice they said. My mom also moved him around, backed him up and they seem to be traveling well. This trim was WAY overdo so anything is better than what it was.

Why the trim was so late is that I got him and he needed to be trimmed when he got here. I pull all my horse's shoes in the winter to just let there feet grow and to be real horses. That's just what I've always been told to do - so I do it. (If anyone has any other suggestions on it! Let me know! I would love to hear more about trims, shoes and the overall hoof). Well, I only had about a week with him so I let them go so I could ride and do things with him, because I knew he would be sore. Also, I wanted to wait to see if my farrier could do it since he was in MN and is in TX most of the year.

One thing led to another and Bogey's feet didn't get done, my farrier went to Texas early and so I had to find a new one. I HATE looking for farriers - I'm always afraid they will mess up so I kind of let the hooves slide a little (which is a bad bad! thing to do I know!) So, on went the search for a new one. I called one - he was on vacation, and the other one hurt his back. Finally, I got a guy who does a couple other horses in the barn but he couldn't come until after a week.

It was kind of a mess, but now they are done so I'm thankful. I really want to see Bo's hooves and see for myself it I like this guy or not. Who knows!

Well, that's all that has been going on - this end. I did buy a new show halter. (I'll leave that for a later post! This one is LONG enough!) See you all later! -Amy

Kickboxing

At my school for a "sports and physical fitness" class that is required I chose to take Aerobics. Because, hey, if I have to do something why not go for the gusto and become fit, lose a little extra weight, and get an easy grade!

I have absolutely loved it and have decided that I must enroll in a class like this throughout my whole life! It is the best workout ladies, not too intense on the joints, and you can still have fun music and fun with friends!

Well, yesterday we started the Kickboxing segment of the class. It was also AMAZING! I haven't been posting lately because this week school has been insanely hectic and I was stressing for a General Chemistry Test (thankfully has been moved back a couple days!). Well with this stress over my weekend and week and no Aerobics I had been getting this stress tension built up in my right shoulder. It was pretty much in the whole shoulder area. I was not looking forward to Aerobics, but I couldn't remember any instance where I could have hurt it (pulled a muscle or a rotary cuff issue) so I felt I could just power through and work it out of my system.

Oh my word! Did it ever work! I was so into the punches and letting out all of my stress and excess anger and my hate the world mentality, that now - my shoulder could never be better! It is a Godsend, Aerobics and Kickboxing! If you haven't tried it at least once, please do - you will enjoy it and you will feel better and have fun!

One last thing - I can't wait for MY Aerobics class tomorrow! :D

Valentine's Festivities

I have so much to do for Valentine's day! NOT! For those of you like me, without a significant other to call your own. I've created a perfect solution.

Find a bunch of gal pals and watch a couple chick flicks - some day you'll find your man. Tonight we've watched "27 Dresses" so far and will watch "Definitely Maybe" later on.

This was a cute movie about a gal that just can't find a man and become the perfect bride, but helps create perfect weddings for all of her friends. Very cute romantic comedy movie with a fun ending.

Also, be sure to have chocolate on hand. We all need some on Valentine's day and you can give yourself some too - not just for guys to give.

Here's the kicker. I know later on tonight I will be spending my valentines day with one of the greatest! Grab a bunch of your favorite Horsey magazines and plan for the summer show seasons! My personal favorite is Horse & Rider.



I am kind of a junkie where it comes to horse and rider magazines. Currently I subscribe to of course Horse & Rider (the Bible for all things pleasure stock horse show related!), Performance Horse (for the reining, cutting horse, and roping events), Horse Illustrated (for the fluff! I'm sorry, but it is fun to read about breeds of horses sometimes and the english is fun but this in no means compares to Horse & Rider) and a local magazine Horse Power (for all the pictures and local showing needs).

Those are my Valentine's dates tonight gals! I'm sure going to make this a great one! Summer here I come!

It's Friday!

Woot! It is Friday today. Friday the 13th to be exact. I didn't have any bad luck today though. Today was an awesome day!

I turned in quite a few asignments, labs and such and now am on to the next ones. There's always something going on here. So, that is what I will be doing for Valentines day - homework! I know, I know! I should find me a good cowboy or any boy, but there are slim pickings at my school. 2 boys for every 3 girls and most of them have girlfriends from back home. Also, I'm the girl in the class that is smart, but is smart enough to know that looks don't matter - so I don't really take care of myself as I should. Today was the first time I had worn make-up in 2 weeks! I know I know! I need to just get up and look good! I can look cute. I have awesome hair that I love - that will do whatever I want it to, I always just throw it up in a pony tail.

So in leu of Valentine's Day and Amy's new plan to take better care of herself. I shall place a picture of me here. I haven't done a big one like this yet, because well I'm not that photogenic and a heavier gal so pictures are hit and miss. My roomie did my eye make-up she should be a professional she's awesome at it. So here we go. A dolled up Amy in her favorite Roper down vest! Bring a little country to the big city!



I took it with my computer. I need to get myself a better digital camera that really works so hopefully there will be more pics up here. I know that there will be when I go home to spend time with Bogey because my mother just bought a great one that I can use.

Also, I don't think I've ever explained the title of this blog. Well my horse's register name is "A Chip Off The Tee" so his barn name is Bogey "Bo" for short and well I'm riding over par! I'd also like to be riding over par in my school work as well so it's a duel pun.

Another aside. I love that I now have a little following, you guys are great people and awesome bloggers! An inspiration to all! Thanks for checking on me - a little ole' college student trying her hand at this! You guys rock!

Thursdays

Thursdays are beginning to be my favorite day of the week. Because I don't have class - at all. Hopefully I accomplish a lot as well as a nice blog post.

I need to find out how Bogey's farrier appointment went. The barn manager was going to take care of that for me and I just had to write out a check. It's amazing how the bills pile up right in front of you, even when your horse is not in front of you.

One really cool thing, is that a friend of mine here at school has leased horses at a barn 15 minutes north of my school and hopefully sometime I can visit and see if it could be an option for Bogey during the school year next year, or when I have a car. It looks like a really nice place and he would get the same care as he is now with more turnout time for only about $25-50 more. Which is amazing in my opinion because he would be here with me. The thing is that I can afford him to stay at the place he is, my student job covers that. What it couldn't probably cover is the added money, I would probably be going backwards. And where he is at, they take such wonderful care of him and are true horsewomen that are so awesome. I just would rather not move him. I think I would worry more about him right under my nose than 2 hours away.

Oh the choices. We'll see how tomorrow goes, hopefully I get a ton done!

Followings!

I was a little lacking on the writing this past weekend but now I think I have my second wind! Thanks go to Punchy over at Lucchese to Louis Vuitton for my first comment and my first following! If you haven't read her blog you should! It will make you laugh, cry, and share a piece of the good life! She is one cool cowgirl! Just the kind of role model a young blogger needs! haha! :D

I should talk a bit about my weekend. It was interesting to say the least, not eventful but interesting...

One of my roommates hosts perspective students for overnights, we had one on Friday. Let me say this she was the best visitor we had, but I just don't like people invading my space! I'm truly an introvert at heart. When we host, she obtains payment - I obtain an evening and morning of awkward situations. I also feel obligated to play games and entertain the visitor and I really do not like that.

After playing games, watching movies, and trying to entertain we go to bed. This ensues more awkwardness in the fact that since there are three of us in the room - we have one loft and two bunk-beds. I'm on the bottom bunk, so when we have a visitor the person sleeps right next to me. Isn't that the best! *insert sarcasm* I really hate it like none other. I then end up shoving the mattress pad as far away from me as I can. This is not a good situation.

Another thing I hate, is how the visitors always seem to put their stuff right in front of my closet. I just don't get it, why my closet? I'm not even getting paid for you to stay here! As you can see this is a difficulty for me, but I really love my roommate so very much so I can't say anything to her about it.

I guess I shall endure this suffering. And here's the cherry on top - we are hosting for the next THREE WEEKS! Yippy! NOT!

On lighter, happier note. This weekend I did get a ton of homework done, it was nice. Though today I had two quizes and I bombed one and got all the points and extra credit on the second one, if only they would even out! I could only wish...

Just Another Day

Just another school day. Not doing much here. I have two roommates and one of them is painting right now. She says it's just scribbling but it looks pretty cool. Maybe she will paint me something. :D I can only hope, she's pretty good.

Today was another busy day. I have the second in my General Chemistry series at 7:40 in the morning that is an ungodly time of day for a college science class! *Funny thing is I'm at a Christian school!* Then I go straight from there to my Biodiversity and Ecology class. The lectures are really boring, but it is interesting topics we cover so maybe that may make up for some of it. Then we have chapel time at my school. I have to admit, I don't really go to chapel all that often - just because my classes are so morning heavy that that is my only break from 7:40 to Noon! So I usually stay in the room and catch up on my email, or homework if necessary. Right after Chapel time I have precalculus. I have to say that it is the most boring class in my life. I took AP Calculus in High School my Junior year. My Senior year then I didn't have a math class so I thought that I forgot a lot. Which I did! But now that we are in class, I'm regretting it oh so much. It is so very boring, and it's even worse that there is a smart a** that sits behind me that must have some form of ADHD or ADD because he's aways jittering! It's horrible. That's how my day goes. After math I usually work in the library for 2 hours come back to my dorm and then go to my aerobics class. It's really fun and the professor is amazing. Hopefully by the end of class I'll have killer legs! hahaha!

That's my school day in a nutshell on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. On Tuesdays I have labs for my two science courses and on Thursday I don't have ANYTHING! That's right - not a class! It will be a nice day tomorrow. I should get a lot done, and should make a list right now.

Thursdays Tasks (I'm so clever!):
Laundry
Reading Assignments and Catch up on them
Math Homework
Lab Homework!
Journals for Biodiversity
Do some form of exercise

And that should be it. Hopefully I'm productive tomorrow!

Summer Plans?

So, with the weather being cold and me being semi-horseless. I've been starting to make some plans for the summer. Hopefully these will all work out.

- Spend as much time possible with Bogey
- Attend quite a few local shows for exposure
- Compete in the 4H horse show one last time (and do well)
- And Nanny for two little babies that are so very awesome!

I don't have a "real job" lined up, but that last one would be great because it would be flexible hours, hanging out in an awesome air-conditioned house, and with two awesome kids that are from people I think oh so highly of. Two great cowgirls and horsewomen that can teach me so much just by osmosis!

I'm really excited by these plans, so we'll see what the summer turns out to be.

4 months and counting!

Spring Semester

I just finished my first day of the spring semester of my freshman year! It's nice to hit that milestone. My classes shouldn't be too bad, but I'm taking some extra precautions aka study time just in case. I'm also not doing orchestra this semester, which is a bummer because I love the director - I'm just not that into my cello anymore. Which is really sad because my mom just put $500 in repairs on the thing. Oh well!

I better tell about the weekend I had with Bogey. On Friday I spent the whole day with him. First, I took him out and put his prof. choice SMB's on the fonts with bell boots and then polo wraps on the back and let him out in the indoor arena with just a little free lunge time. He was really good. Before I got him he had never worn boots before and he walked really silly around with them. I just like them because he does toe out a little and reach farther than others so when he's out playing he has nicked himself and I really couldn't afford a lame horse right now.

He bucked around and played for a little. Then I put him on the lunge line and he was so very well behaved. After all that I tried on our english gear and worked him with it on. He hasn't ever been ridden english before but he was a charm! He was perfect with it and pushed out at the trot as well. With the most soft and perfect trot to canter transitions. The greatest thing was that everything fit him, except the reins I need an extra long instead.

I worked on some showmanship with him and he's catching on to everything but the back is sometimes hit and miss. If it's a good day he'll be super fast and straight but some days it just doesn't happen right - so I have to work on that.

On Saturday I got to spend some time with him. I just wormed him with the Quest Moxidixin (sp?) and need to get him on a regular schedule. I also gave the boarding owner some supplements. I'm putting him on Farnam's Hoof Builder because his hooves since coming here have not been growing as great as they were so I just want to play safe. As well as the hoof builder he's on Sho-Glo which I thought would be a nice all around supplement to get his immune boosted and a nice coat. :D He's been having a runny nose the past couple days so we'll have to watch that - I might need to put him on Red Cell but that might be difficult since it's a liquid and not pellets like the others. Hopefully the nose is just from the dusty attached arena that's right by his stall.

That was my weekend with the Bo. I probably won't get to see him until March so you'll have to be satisfied with just college stories for now.

YAY! Visitors!

Alright, alright! I know it's not that exciting, but it is for me!

I have a counter at the bottom of this page and it is slowly - but steadily gaining numbers each day. I always thought it was just me checking in every now and then. Well I looked into the counter and it has the ability to tell me where the people who look at my page are coming from. I thought it would just be all me - St. Paul, MN but it isn't!

I'm so very excited. I know I just posted - but I had to put another post up here because that is just great!

Thanks for stopping by! I thought that this would just be a little journal all to myself, but people are coming around!

Feel free to leave a comment too! ;D

Thanks again! -Amy

Ride the Right Horse

Right the Right Horse by Yvonne Barteau is a wonderful book to any horseman's collection. I just wanted to put this in here because this is the second time I have borrowed the book from my local libraries and I need to go out and purchase one of my own. I thought this book would be a good one to read only once, boy was I ever wrong. This is a wonderful book to deal with horse personalities and your own riding styles based upon your personality and your horse's.

My previous horse Tater Tot, was a Social/Challenging Mix. With this personality type he loved to talk with all those around him and did not like leaving his buddies. The challenging portion of him allowed him to tune out and disregard some cues and "do his own thing" many times. He never pushed the limits, but he did go right up to them.

Bogey on the other hand is a Aloof/Challenging Mix. He shows the Challenging portion when he pins his ears back at meal times and likes to "test" you to see how much he can get away with during the day. The Aloof portion of him brings in a component of not caring about the world around him. When we moved him to the boarding barn in Winnebago he called out once to the other horses and that was it. No other expressions. I haven't heard him make any noise at all, now that I think of it, except for that one time upon his new arrival.

This will be an interesting personality type to work with because of the disassociation from me as well as the testing. I love having a puppy dog type horse, which was Tater Tot, but who knows how this one will go. It is probably best that he is an aloof type because I am gone at school most of the year.

***I need to tell about how my week with him went, I only got to see him about 3 times, which was a bummer.

Second semester starts tomorrow and I'm not looking forward to it. I'm a homebody and really would like to be home right now, but I have to be at school. One good thing though, a friend of mine has the pre-calculus book I need and she'll let me borrow it - for FREE! That's a $40 I don't have to spend.

I think I'm going to wind down and have a quiet evening alone with a couple books. This coming semester will be tough so I better study more. Who am I kidding, I better just study!

Journey Part 2

I decided to name "Lester" ---> Bogey because of his registered name, A Chip Off the Tee. And golf is cute. So Bogey's his new name. When he came home on the day after Christmas we didn't have a lot of time to get to know each other. Here's the journey of how we are getting close and growing together:

During my Christmas break, I did get a few things taught and worked out with Bo. First of all, we're pulling his shoes, he has had all four for quite some time and I feel that he needs a couple months to just let them grow. They are really nice right now, so I have to be careful finding a new farrier, since mine lives in Texas now. If anyone knows of any really great farriers in south-central, MN just let me know.

Secondly, we have to work on his "buttons" and cues. He had a slight spur stop started on him and I don't ride with one, so we are having some stalling periods with cues and my assertiveness.

He does have some awesome points that I don't need to fix or do anything with:
- He w/t/c on a lunge line very well, nice and slow and respectful
- He leads really well
- Ties/Clips awesomely (I did his bridle-path and rubbed his ears with the clippers without a flinch!
- He does everything so awesomely on the ground (so what do I have to complain about!)

The things we need to work on are:
- Undersaddle, we are still working on cues and well sometimes he becomes stubborn and I don't understand so, that should work out with time. He's very gentle, but oh so big! We just need to grow together.

What I am working on with him when I go home is showmanship work. I love showmanship, it's my favorite event because you do not need a 10 grand horse to win it, you just need time and your own precision. Bogey and I are working on this. We are getting the trot offs and gaging the speed down pat, but the set ups are a little slow and pivots are just started. He's such a big horse that moving that whole body around takes a little effort, which he does not like.

He's a really awesome horse, and tomorrow I get to see him and work with him!



Here's a picture of him trying on his new to him show p-j's. I had to see if my old geldings slinkies would fit.

Start of a Journey Part 1

This is a start of something new. Oh, those old cliche' lines! I decided to start this blog to journal about my trials as a college student that lives 2 1/2 hours away from her brand new horse. Also, I wanted to log our training journeys together. This will just be a journal for myself, to get my thoughts on paper, and if people read it, why not? Now, onto the beginning.

It all started with an ad for a horse.

Well it probably started earlier than that, and I'll have to do some back-tracking later to tell my story completely, but my journey with my NEW horse started with that ad.

I just noticed it one day and he just struck me as something special. He was out of my price range at the time, (the price dropped $2000 in 2 months of watching the ad) but I just couldn't stop going back and looking at it. Another reason why it kept pulling me in is because I know a horse that is by the same sire, same color and everything that I just "clicked" with this past summer. After watching the ad and emailing the owner, I kind of felt like this one was the "one".

I called the owner multiple times and after the price drops I decided to make an offer.

Now, you all must realize that I am probably one of the world's worst horse buyers (or maybe the best from my perspective). I am the person that emails multiple times (not the same questions, but a TON of questions). Calls multiple times asking different questions, calls the trainers multiple times, and searches the internet for every scrap of information I can find on the trainers, owners, and the horse itself. I want to know EVERYTHING about the animal I'm purchasing before I even begin to think of an offer. I collect this information on folders on my computer as well as a hand written manilla folder I have in my files. I did this with the first horse I bought when I was 15 and it really works well for me because I was prepared and knew exactly what I was getting into. (That first horse was also my best friend, but we'll get into that later.)

After all of that anal knowledge based research, I made an offer on the horse. Now, the owner had disclosed that she really needed to sell the horse since her daughter couldn't ride him and she couldn't afford the training bill each month, so I knew I could get a deal. I also had an "ace in my pocket" in the respect that I could and would walk away from the sale if it wasn't for me. Then I did a lot of praying about it and asked God, that if this horse wasn't for me to just have him sell or my offer not work out, but if it is let me get him for "XXX" price.

Well I called and made an offer right before Thanksgiving weekend this past year. I really really low-balled it, and I'm so horrible for doing it, but hey, I'm a cheap broke college student who goes to a VERY expensive private school. I offered 1/2 of their final drop in price $1500. I know, I know! Only offer 10-15% off the asking price, I did read Bob Avila's Be a Smart Horse Buyer book. But, it just felt right to me.



Well, of course the owner would turn down that offer! I would! The thing I had going for me was a re pore of phone calls, a solid offer (albeit cheap offer), and the ability to walk away! There are tons of horses in this world you don't have to settle for the nag when you can have your very own Trigger. That's the trick folks, don't settle for anything but what you want exactly, because it may take a while, but you'll find your dream horse.

Time passed after my offer, I think about 3 weeks, and I get a phone call from the owner. I am very VERY VERY bad about answering my cell phone, just ask my roommates, but I will get back to you eventually, just leave a message! Well, the owner left a message on my phone stating that she had talked things over with her husband and was wondering if I was still interested in the horse. HECK yeah! I was, but as a buyer - never be to eager. Well I didn't get the message till the next afternoon because I had 2 orchestra concerts that day to play for (more on that later as well). And, then it ended up being a Monday afternoon after class. I checked my email and she was still wondering if I was interested and if I got her message. Buyers, watch out for this, this is the classic I want to sell you my horse. Remember, never be too eager to buy.

I called her back that afternoon and chatted a little, keeping things light. She then told me she had talked things over with her husband and was wondering if I would be able to buy him for $2000. I said I couldn't, but my offer of $1500 would still work out. She TOOK it! YAY for me! I was so excited, but then don't get too excited buyers. I still had to talk things over with my family and find a ride for the horse. Well it all came together and I found a ride for him from an awesome gal named Jodie check her out if you need a horse trained and you're in southern MN.

Bogey arrived home on Christmas Eve to Albert Lea and then I got him on Christmas and hauled him over to the boarders the day after. He was a true Christmas present to me.



Part 2 Coming right up!

(Dang, I use too many cliches' haha!)