Whirlwind of a Week

I rode on Sunday, and Gali was a good boy.  We just goofed off and got nothing really productive done.  Jason took a bunch of pictures, and I'll throw them at the end of this entry.

My other big news is that I'm moving Gali.  I found a great farm 3.5 miles from my house.  It's a 5 minute drive, and so I'm going to be seeing a LOT more of my horse when finals are over and he moves in.  I was worried that my current barn owner would be upset about me leaving, but telling her (yesterday) went over well, and everything has been left on good terms.  I also found out, yesterday, that I've been accepted to intern for an organization that I've been dying to get involved with.  It's in Brooklyn, though, so I've got to work out how I'm going to make that happen.

However, the high mood of yesterday fell terribly when I got a call from Jason shortly after 6 pm.  His father had been in the hospital all week, and we got word that he passed away last night, and we drove back from school.  It's going to be a very tough next few weeks.

Anyway, here are some pictures from my ride on Sunday.

Elbows? What are they?

 More behind the cut:

Where the Wild Things Are

I mentioned a few days ago that I had a fantastic ride on Max, Lynn's lovely quarter horse.  Max has put up with me jumping him for the past three years that I've known him, but it's never really been a pretty thing.  I had a few 'lessons' from my friend Alexis, who had him in training, in the summer of 2010, but I haven't really jumped him since.  Last week I jumped him for the first time in months, and this past weekend I took him over some crossrails again.  Lynn got video.

I'm not a jumper by any stretch of the imagination - my only formal jump training came at a 3 week camp when I was 16 - but I've tried to pick up as much of it as I could from working with Alexis and clinging on to Max and Katie as they tolerate me over fences.   As these videos make painfully obvious - I haven't been jumping regularly in quite some time!  Still, Max is the best horse and dealt with me getting left behind and my pendulum leg with nothing but a smile on his muzzle.

Helpful critiques are welcome, as I know I have a lot to learn.  I think my biggest issue is my total lack of relaxation - I jar so badly on the landing that I'm sure Max must hate me.  Anywy, enjoy my singing of Maxwell's Silver Hammer.

This is the worst of the bunch.

Max took Jason on his first ride since his TBI and subsequent brain surgeries in December - on the very first day he was cleared to ride :)