Inspired to Ride...

Wow! What a tough decision that was. But in the end, Mustang Heritage inspired the winning title for this photo...'Inspired to Ride'. Pop me an email with your addy and I'll get your photo mailed out to you.

The other day I hauled down to Curt's with my new friend, Rod. Actually, her name is Roz, but when Curt asked her, he misunderstood. Then he asked her to spell it...well, Z rhymes with D, don'cha know, and he just shrugged and began calling her Rod. After that first lesson, he figured it out, but it was too late. Rod she was and Rod she will forever be...at least while at Curt's place.

Rod doesn't ride a mustang, but her cute little quarter horse mare is named Sandy, so we'll forgive her. She's a nice moving, hard stopping little mare, too, and they're catching on real well with the bull.

As for me and my Sandy...well, he's catching on so well that I swear there was light between me and the saddle on Wednesday. Better get me some velcro, or super glue, or something to help me stay in place! My boy can move, lemme tell you what! I was laughing so hard that even though I managed to stay on a couple of his hard turns, I nearly fell off simply because I was lost in euphoria.

Now I know what you're saying...where are the videos??? But my computer and my new camera are still not on speaking terms, so no video until this dinasaur of a desktop of mine can be updated. I could do it on the laptop, I suppose...but I don't want to waste laptop space with big video files. So you'll just need to be patient and take my word for it when I tell you this; it won't be long before my hiney needs dusting off...cuz at the rate Sandy is improving, I'll be visiting club dirt again, undoubtedly!

Name It. Win It.

First, a big thank you to all who wished me quick healing! Must have worked, because I woke up yesterday feeling much better. Still a little pinch of whatever it is, but nothing like the previous day or two. Trying not to over do it, but hey, what can I say? Ponies must be ridden!

Darling had a lesson on Tuesday, and since Steve Holt! hadn't been worked on Monday, I hauled him to the arena for a bit of a warm up. He was great! Nice, soft, and supple. Big improvement over what Darling's been dealing with the past month.

We've got a new bit on the boy; a full cheek with a slow twist. Because he's been slow to respond to his loose ring snaffle, we decided it was time to find something that got his attention a bit faster should he fail to respond to the voice and seat when asking for those downward transitions. This has always been Steve Holt!'s weak point; dropping from a canter to a trot for a simple change was nearly impossible last year, and Darling is a bit lighter than me when it comes to both weight and soft touch, so a bit of help was in order. At first we didn't think he was responding, as he'd try to bully his way around the arena, but after a ride or two he began listening and this lesson was mighty pretty to watch.

Of course, the beautiful afternoon light made everything seem more poetic!

There for awhile, Darling was very frustrated with Steve Holt! and back to wishing she had a broke pony on which to learn to ride. But the past week has proven to her that struggles happen, and if you persevere and work through them, there is a reward. To get to that reward, sometimes it takes more than hard work...with Steve Holt! it took some play time. We'd set up obstacles in the arena just like I did a year ago while he was training for the makeover. Steve Holt! has an active mind that has difficulty processing circle trotting, but throw a few barrels out there, and some poles and cones, and things become a game. Darling had fun, too, pretending to be a rodeo queen in an English saddle, cantering around all the props and doing her queen wave as she passed by her imaginary fans. It lightened the load for both of them, and in the end they were both in better form when it came time to trot those circles again at her lesson.

Barb commented on how fluid her circles were and wondered if she'd been practicing? No, Darling answered...but in an odd way, she was, simply because she'd had to think about going around whatever I'd scattered about in her way. Never under estimate play time, my friends!

And speaking of play time...I spent a bit of time playing myself last night, taking the above photo and tweaking it just a little to the image you see below. Now I need a bit of help...can you give me a name? Winner receives a 5x7!

And the Winner Is!

Congratulations, Black Feather Farm, on your winning submission!



"Shadows Rising"

Pop me an email and I'll send out your photo!

Thanks to everyone who made a suggestion. As usual, it was a tough choice and I found my self struggling with all the wonderful entries. I'll undoubtedly have another to offer next week because my wee wittle brain cannot fathom coming up with enough clever titles for all the photos I take. Partnering with y'all seems like the best idea (at least for me!)

And just WHY do I need your help? Well, you see, I've discovered this fun little place where I can upload my work, and then it's available to friends like you, family members, and complete strangers to purchase online. It's called Red Bubble, and they'll make note cards, framed prints, and even posters (if my images are large enough when sent.) Total fun!

So far I've uploaded about a dozen photographs. This week some of my work has been featured in a couple different categories, such as Wild West and Cowboy/Cowgirl Art!

If you're looking for some great western art and want to benefit wild horses at the same time, please consider making a purchase from my page at Red Bubble!

Emotion

Today I went in search of photos that would evoke an emotional response from you. This is today's Sunday Stills assignment. Make your readers cry. Or laugh. Or scream with fear. Not in those words, necessarily, but that's what I interpreted it to mean. And you know, with the thousands upon thousands of photos that City Boy is always complaining about me saving here on the hard drive, you'd think it'd be easily done. Certainly there are plenty that have made me weep...but that's not the assignment. It's to conjure up an emotional response in you. And predicting you is like predicting which way the wind is going to blow next, or whether or not it's raining in the front yard even though you don't see any in the back. Kinda crazy hard to do some days. But I'll give it my best shot.

This really is difficult. The above image, for me, stirs up a desire to send City Boy to the kitchen and make me some great tasting food to eat. Is this an emotion? Or hunger? Is hunger an emotion? I don't think so. However...

...I really lust after a bowl of chocolate topped ice cream. But see, that's me. And I need to shake an emotional response out of you. So lets check out my next selection. (Ahem...I need you to back away from the ice cream.)

Perhaps this next photo will spark some emotion?

I call it "Two Young Lovers with Nothing Better To Do"

Or this?



Embarrassing Moments in a dog's life brought to you by the Mustang Diaries

Perhaps a trip to the barnyard will get you all teary eyed?



Help! I can't find the light switch!

Hey, look, it comes with it's own ball of yarn!



Don't hate me because I am beEWEtiful...

Okay. I give up. You'd better go visit the other Sunday Stills folks to see what they came up with. But before you leave, scroll down to the post below and enter your caption suggestion for the photo posted, please!

And the Winners Are...

Wow. Just Wow. There were some really terrific offerings for this weekends naming contest. I really had to sit, ponder and think this through. Coming up with one winner for one photo would have been tough enough, but four? Yikes!

Here are your winners:

"Searching for a Safe Haven"
Andrea



"Far Away Dream"
Jane Augustein




"Dust Devils"
Pony Girl




"Going Home"
JeniQ

Okay, your responsibility as a winner is this; in order to claim your prize you must email me. See over there in the right column? Between the little baby Hay Burner button and the blue Awards? It says 'Email Me'. Click it, and email your address to me so I can mail your photos.

And thank you all for joining in! It really was difficult to select the winners. But it was fun, eh? Lets do it again. I need people to write greeting cards for me. I'll come up with the design, you come up with the little ditty for the inside. Then you'll see it for sale somewhere, and you can point it out to all your friends and family, and say, "Hey, look! I wrote that!", and they'll say, "Really? Do you get paid to write little ditties for greeting cards?", and you'll answer "No, but the Desperate Horsewife uses the money to go out scouting trips to see the wild horses and bring them home and find adopters!" And they'll be so impressed. Or not. But we'll have fun doing it just the same!

Name It. Win It.

I'm having the worst time. For someone with a somewhat creative brain (I did create hot dog casserole at one time in my life...that's got to constitute as creative, right?), I simply cannot for the life of me come up with titles for my photographs.

For instance...I titled this "Arlington '09"...which simply does not seem to describe what is happening here, or give any air of romantic feel, or most importantly, stir a rapid heartbeat and sudden urge to purchase it at all costs.

Photo 1

So you see, I need help. And I'm not below bribing you for it. I need know your thoughts.

Photo 2

I need to know your ideas.

Photo 3

I need to suck the creative juices right out of you. Or at least borrow them for awhile.

Photo 4

Will you help me? Simply come up with the winning title for the photos posted here today. I'll give you a couple of days. You've got until Sunday at 4 pm pacific (that's 7 for those of you on the east coast. And for my Nigeria fans? I don't know what time it is there, sorry.) I'll post the winners later that evening...unless for some reason I'm flooded with hundreds of suggestions, which I find a bit unlikely.

What do you get in return? Be the winner and get a free 5x7 out of the deal. We'll just keep playing this game every week until I get a whole slew of photos with great titles!

And while we're on the subject of photography...check out this video! It was a photo contest entered by Darling. Keep your eyes peeled for Mustang Desire!

There'll be no living with the punk from now on...

When Did I Move to Alaska?

There it is, my favorite tool

I tried. Really I did. I wanted to be out there working Tika while the sun was almost warming the air. But by the time I finished dragging the blasted hose out of the house...yes, to stay thawed, it's coiled into a trash can and they both live indoors...and watering, the sun had once again slipped below the tippy tops of the trees and all I was left with was mottled light and chilled air. When did I move to Alaska, anyway?

There's that shadow of mine, standing around, doing nothing.
As usual.

My fingers are too cold to do much work in weather like this. I recall two very short sessions a day with Steve Holt! last year during the month of December, and I'm not even working that much with Wadatika. But then again, she's a bit ahead of where he was, simply because she's been hanging around for three months and soaking it all in.

Yesterday I continued with the touching and desensitizing. I got my hand down to her pastern on the left side, and she picked up her foot...and then promptly put it down. But it was done nicely, you know? Not fearfully, no striking, no jumping out of the way. She also let me get down below her elbow on the right side, as well as reach under her belly from the right. Big steps for my ticklish girl.

The saddle blanket has her side stepping. With both Sandy and Steve Holt!, I'd had the saddle on by day 8. I'd wanted to do that with Tika, too (my timeline beginning this past weekend, when the trainers picked up their EMM horses), but I think I'll wait until she's quiet when I put the blanket on her. I'll have to go back and look at the boys to see what they were like.

Showing a bit of Tika-tude with those lips

There's something very different about this mare. Something I can't quite put my finger on. We stood there in the fading light yesterday, my nose burried in her soft winter coat. She stood like a mare protecting a foal. There's a tenderness about her once she lets you inside of her space. She curved her neck slightly around me, not tight like a hug, but a small gesture that said life was good.

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Don't forget to scroll down and leave your comment on the Pick it up and Read post! You could win Shadow Horse by Alison Hart. Great Christmas gift!

And the Winner Is!

Curves and Circles!

I'd already decided upon Circles. I just love the clean lines and simplicity and contrast. I couldn't decide between Legs and Curves, though...and then patterns kept jumping out at me as well. Seems the rest of you felt similarly, but in the end Curves edged it's way into the second place slot, so that's what it shall be.

And as for those of you who took the time to contemplate and comment? I've got another winner. AKPonyGirl...it's you! You Win!!! Email me at desperatehorsewife@gmail.com and I'll get an 8x10 photo out to you ASAP. I'll need your addy and which photo you'd like to receive.

And the Winner Is...

Susan from Sunset Hills Farm!

Pop me an email, Susan, and I'll send you an 8x10 photo!

Hooters, Drive By Shootings and the Color Orange

And did I mention just a little photo intense? Sorry, Dial Up users!

Christmas found us gathered around the tree dark and early. Dark, because we beat the sun. Which truth be told wasn't all that difficult since it was cloudy and, yes...still snowing. We've probably had about 18" of it so far.

#1 on my list of wants this year was a GPS. I have no clue how to work one, but decided that if I want to make maps of the trails I've been on, that a GPS was the way to do it. I'm also wanting to use it on our trip next summer in Oregon so that we aren't lost indefinitely up in the Steens Mountains. City Boy did not disappoint, and I found myself with a neon orange contraption which comes complete with a learning curve. I didn't ask for the learning curve, but it would appear they come free of charge.

A large box which had been sitting in the corner of the room was labeled with the names of Desperate, Darling, and Geek Boy. The three of us could not figure out what City Boy could have found that we would all be interested in. The children shredded the paper and pulled out a box which said...

As opposed to fake guitar sounds???

This has proven to be an interesting gift to give three people who haven't got a musical pinky between them. However, the Geek Boy sat down with it at the computer and figured out how to tune it, Darling believes she'd like to take lessons, and once the two of them are done playing I think I'll hang it on the wall. Not bad, City Boy...not bad.

I find it amazing that all the work and preparation that goes into Christmas can be completely dismantled in a matter of a few brief moments, leaving expensive wrapping paper strew across a room in heaps and piles. I think next year I'll just use dollar bills to wrap gifts...

Hey...wait! What's that picture doing in here!!!

Sigh...City Boy has never been able to catch my good side with that camera...

Once the drunkeness of Christmas had worn off at home we headed north to Little Canada, eh, to visit my parents and eat some of the left overs from Christmas Eve. I thought you may enjoy the "Drive By Shootings" that I took as we traveled down the road.

Frozen cow field beneath snow covered trees and Christmas Fog

Frozen Wiser Lake. Sure sign my parents must live in Canada, eh?
No way lakes freeze in the northwest...

A few short miles from the Canadian Border, eh.
Look! Pavement! Sweet, beautiful pavement...

Hoot! Hoot!

Did I promise you hooters? Well, I lied...there's only one. One wee little owl that collided with a very big thud on our living room window. City Boy thought for sure the cats would get there before him, but they didn't. Imagine his surprise when he found an owl! The poor thing was a bit stunned and since we didn't want a cat to end up with an unexpected owl feast on Christmas, we set it inside a box until it came to it's senses. It wasn't long before it flew back out into the wooded winter wonderland.

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45 followers so far! Five more and I'll draw a name for the 8x10!

It's ART, I tell ya!

Photos taken in the dark...

I've been rather negligent over the past year (or two) when it comes to posting awards that have been given to me. My side bars are so full that I wasn't sure where to place them. It wasn't that I didn't appreciate them, though, because I did...and do.

I was out and about recently and came across Laughing Orca's blog, and that's when I saw the most amazing thing...she had a separate blog for awards! WOW... And then I realized that Shannon at Oh, Horsefeathers had done the same thing!

Why have you people been hiding this from me? What an awesome concept...where have I had my head that I've not realized what's been going down in the blogging world?

So this morning I went straight to work and created myself an awards page. Unfortunately, I don't recall which awards I've received in the past, but I do have two that came across recently, thanks to Shirley at Ride a Good Horse (the butterfly award), and Shannon at Oh, Horsefeathers (Superior Scribbler Award)! Thank you, ladies, for thinking of me.

I'd like to pass these along to two young ladies who are quite deserving.




First, the butterfly to Kristi/Froglander at Mustang Dressage. Kristi is new to the blog game, but she's pretty cool. Mostly because she immediately started a blog at my request while we were in Burns. In fact, we were sitting in the hotel room when she forwarded her new blog to me. Coolness.

As for the superior scribbler...well, there's only one scribbler in my life. The trouble is determining which blog of her's to award? The Shoe, the Whole Shoe, and Nothing But The Shoe? Certainly a cleverly scribbled title...


No, I think I shall send this one to Phiber Photos, where Darling, also known as Macaroni Manatee, posts her lovely photography, despite the fact that her photos are far too lovely to be scribbled.









Now, don't forget folks, sign up as a follower and as soon as that number hits 50, I'll hold a drawing for an 8x10 photo!