Riding Miss Butter

If you followed my vacation blog, you might recall the snippet where I was having a bad day with Butterscotch. I was going to ride her one day at Ft. Rob. When I got to the barn, I found her stall weaving. She was obviously uncomfortable in that environment & I thought she would enjoy the reprieve out on the trails! But she was a pistol to saddle & after lunging for a bit, found her even more difficult in the saddle. I wasn't having the best day either & before one of us (Butter or I) did something we would both regret, I put her back in her stall and fetched Windy.

I wasn't happy with Butter for quite awhile. Although it's no secret that our Black colt is one that I prefer NOT to ride, (yeah, I am scared to ride him even though my 14 yr old son will!), I have never been afraid to ride Butterscotch. Oh, she can be a bit sassy -- some would say "mare-ish" -- but I have always thought she was a fun little horse to ride.

Once we got home, Butter was back to normal. She always comes up to me in the pasture or corral. She knows when the other horses are hogging the grain or alfalfa that if she moves away, I'll slip her her own stash... we just have this understanding. So I couldn't stay mad at her for long.

Yesterday, I took her over to Two Rivers to ride with friends. It continues to puzzle me how this great little trail horse I rode yesterday was the same horse who was throwing fits, rearing, head tossing and spinning at Ft. Rob. So completely out of charactor for her. They sure keep us guessing, don't they?

So all is forgiven with Miss Butterscotch. We are buddies once again. Although we will never be BFFs like Windy & I are, we will continue our mutual "like" for each other.

Big Fat Lying Weatherman (BFLWM) Strikes Again

BFLWM struck again. Storms to the north of us, storms to the south of Lincoln... probably will break up before they move this direction... 30% chance... Yeah, I fell for it and convinced Brenda that we could trust him! And if I would have put my rain gear on the back of the saddle, that would have secured a dry ride! And where the heck is that 99 cent poncho I usually have in my cantle pouch?

We were thrilled that the temps had cooled to 79 degrees. The wind was strong, but there are a lot of trees along Oak Creek that would block it. Move quickly thru the open areas. Fast trots; loping. Fun to be able to just move out! That was our goal; cover a lot of ground & cover it quickly! Finny did not like the signs along the lagoon & Windy would syncronize to his lovely moves! "This is why I have a horn," says Brenda! Crossed the bridges and a good water crossing.

"Was that thunder or a truck?" asked Brenda.
"Truck", says BFLTV.

Then Windy spooks at a flash of lightning. There was no sprinkling. Once we felt that first drop, it started to pour. Went for the nearest trees. Lightning, thunder. Heavy showers.

Nothing we were wearing repelled water. We just kept absorbing more. It looks clear to the west. Shall we risk it and ride out further? As soon as we hit a clearing, the wind cuts through our wet clothes. I never thought teeth could chatter in July? But you do warm up a bit if you gallop! I think our top speed was around 24 mph. Wet clothes, cold wind, frozen fingers! Yes, frozen in July!

Who'd of thunk.....

tv