Personal Updates

I’m starting here because while this is really a horse blog and also I don’t need to explain my absence. However, I personally kind of like getting to know all of you and try to strike a balance of only posting horse things but also sharing enough for this to not feel too impersonal. I'm also going to post a pony update on the same day so if you're only interested in that feel free to skip this post.

As mentioned previously there’s a lot going on in my life right now but this past month or so really took the cake as the craziest month I’ve had in a long time. To start off with, I moved into that new apartment I mentioned which not only meant moving all my stuff but also getting everything situated and starting to feel like I know where everything is again. Luckily I don’t have much stuff both because it makes moving easier and because the new apartment is tiny. However, I LOVE it. This is definitely my first real adult apartment and the first that really feels the way I’ve wanted it to. I still have a few more things to add or switch around but it’s getting close.

Then there is the bf who I’m head over heels about. He’s amazing and while he’s extremely supportive of me riding and spending lots of time at the barn, I’m also trying to strike a balance of spending enough time with him especially since this is still quite new. For the past few months I’ve been onboard for all of the plans which has really limited my availability to go to the barn. I’ve stayed away from the evenings that I typically ride but recently we’ll get a big snow storm on one of those evenings or my car will break down (more on that later) and suddenly I go from having 4-5 evenings to ride to 2 evenings to ride. This past week I let him know that I wasn’t going to make evening plans during the week for the next few months and was only going to do limited weekend things. He was completely on board and so far, for this past week or so, it’s been working out great. We’re still spending lots of time together just the two of us but aren’t doing the planned, set stuff so we have more flexibility to do the things we’re passionate about.

I even have a whole tack room closet!

Then there is the car. A couple of weekends ago now I was driving home from work on Friday evening and the steering wheel very strongly and mechanically turned right sharply twice. This was on top of a whole host of other minor electronic issues but was the final straw. I limped it home in stop and go traffic and then tearfully called the bf. He completely dropped all weekend plans and drove me around to several dealerships to shop for cars. I was emotional about spending money on something I didn’t really want (a car) when what I REALLY wanted this year was a trailer but I just couldn’t justify buying a truck with the amount of driving I do and my down payment savings needed to go to the car instead of a trailer. However, after much discussion (he’s a car guy and has a BMW M2) I ended up with a SmartCar. I LOVE this car so much and it’s probably the first time I’ve ever loved a car. I even got it WeatherTech mats so that it stays pretty and survives my mucky barn boots.

 

bf teased me that since it's a rear engine, rear wheel drive car,
that's branded from a german company (Mercedes-Benz)
that it's basically a Porsche.
Then I was behind this one at a stop light so needed a picture 

Finally there is puppy who actually has been easy compared to Veggie who’s struggling with some separation anxiety in the new place. Since I got him as a 2 year old he’s also always been fairly dog and kid aggressive which means that walks, that are now a necessity since I don’t have a back yard, have been tough as well. It’s been sad to see him struggle but we’re about 80% of the way there at this point. I don’t think that he’ll ever not be dog and kid aggressive but we’ve come up with some good management solutions and thank goodness he’s little so I can scoop him up if he’s really freaking out.

 

Going for big girl walks now that it's warmer out

With all of this going on I’ve only recently started to find a good balance and as part of that right now I’m happy when I’m getting to the barn 4 days a week. Of course a part of that is also just not feeling very motivated to spend even more time in the indoor arena right now and with our horrible weather this winter I just feel like I've taken a real beating motivation wise. I'm working on it though and hope to continue to do better over the next few weeks.