I'm going craazzyy...

First day of February! One day closer to spring!

But still, 2 more months of crappy weather. Emphasis on crappy. In the Midwest, the weather is pretty weird. Today it's supposed to be 46 degrees, when only two days ago it was in the low 20's. I think it's supposed to cool down again in a couple days.

But all the snow is melting now. And we had lots of snow. Which means the paddocks are going to be a mucky mess. Man... they better not roll. I do not want to be scraping mud off my horses in 30 degree weather. And it's too cold to bathe them. I hate this time of year.

But there's a light at the end of the tunnel! Spring is coming. And then summer! Hooray!

But that means the show season is coming closer, too. I'm terrified. My biggest fear is that Victor might decide to be stupid that day and totally make an ass of himself. And embarrass me. And then we'd go home ribbonless and I would not be happy. Just one ribbon. That's all I want from my first show. I don't care what color (although first place would be amazing) but I'm petrified of losing or messing up. Please be a good boy, Victor.

It's scary because I have the most knuckle-headed horse in the barn (besides Tess, of course). Vic is either totally on or totally off. There's no in-between. Some days he's perfect, other days he's horrendous. Yesterday was a textbook example of one of his bad days. The snow was melting outside and falling off the roof of the indoor, and Vic spooked every single time. The other two horses spooked once and then got used to it. Not Victor. And then he bucked a few times and refused to do anything I asked him to. He wouldn't even trot without trying to bolt or buck.

He calmed down during the last fifteen minutes and we could do some simple stuff, but overall, it was pretty unproductive. He needs to get out and run so bad. The only place he can exercise is the indoor arena because the paddocks are all icy and muddy. He's so pent up right now I don't even want to get on him unless I have to.

On the other hand, I rode Norman yesterday, too. He behaved beautifully, as usual. He's always my good boy. I love his trot, too. It's so lofty and smooth. :) Unlike Vic who has a horrible sitting trot. Well, more so now because I haven't been working him. When he's conditioned, his gaits are pretty decent. It's just this damn winter.

I hate the cold. And the snow, ice, slush, mud, wind, and cloudiness. I'm moving to the Bahamas. I'll deal with the hurricanes and storms. If it's warm, I'm game.

Aaaagghhh I can't wait to clip them! I miss the shiny coats and grass pastures and the outdoor arena and trail rides. D;

I'm losing my marbles being stuck in the barn. I'm sure the horses are, too.

Summersummersummersummersummersummer...

Why don't people put any thought into things like this?

I've seen some horse names that just make me wanna kill whoever named the unfortunate animals. I saw this one mare for sale and her registered name was Dry Soap. Yep. Wouldn't that just scream "Pick me!" in the show ring? Gag.

And that's not all, folks. Taco, Nosey, Wizzer, Doug. The list goes on. I thought Vic's registered name was boring. Classic Victor. Not very creative, but 100% better than Poopsie. My draft horse's dam's name is Toot's Buttercup. Can you say "ew"?

I've noticed that a hefty chunk of the horribly named horses are western. Especially Quarter Horses. They all have "Dun it" and "Bar" in their names. They make no sense to me. Can't they be more creative than that? But that's not the worst of it. I actually saw a mare for sale named Paris Hilton.

The horse was pretty enough, but that name... I can't get past it. That alone might prevent me from buying that horse. I'd be embarrassed every time they'd announce her name at shows. Some of these people need to be whacked over the noggin with a 2 x 4. There's no reason to give your horse an awful name. Put some thought into it. Their names stay with them for the rest of their lives and make huge first impressions.

For instance, if I come across a horse named Penelope, I'm immediately going to assume that her owners are dimwitted hillbillies that live in a trailer park and keep their horse in the front lawn tethered to a beer keg. Come on, people.

On the other hand, there are some names I absolutely love. Alibi, Breggo, Onyx, Tigress. Vic's dam's name is Social Charmer. Love that one. Native Dancer, Thorn Song, Picasso's Finest, Whispering Thunder, Luminaria. Those, ladies and gentleman, are names. Don't submit your horse to a lifetime of mockery. Put some thought into naming them. Your horse will thank you. :)

Why, WHY???

Why would you take pictures of your horse for a sale ad when they're caked in mud and look like fuzzy bears? Being dirt poor is no excuse for your horse to be filthy for pictures. All this tales is elbow grease, for all the lazy bastards out there. You wouldn't show up at a job interview wearing sweats and a stained T-shirt. same thing with horses. If you're asking $5,000 for a horse, make it look like they're worth it. Mr. Bay Stallion up top happens to be $6,000. This isn't the worst I've seen, but it'll serve as an example. This horse would look so much more appealing (1) if the photo was taken at a proper angle and (2) if he was nice and clean and there was a decent background. It seems trivial, but it says a lot.

Now, horse #2, we have a lovely Andalusian gelding . Notice the spotless arena and his squeaky-clean coat. You don't have to have amazing camera skills to take a decent picture. It doesn't have to be an action shot. A decent conformation shot would suffice. Riding shots are great for horses that are trained to ride. Se how much of a difference it makes? I'd pay $7500 for this horse if I had that kind of moola. Like I said, taking good sale pictures make all the difference in the world. No excuse for yucky pictures. Kthnx.