Ahhh, King Oak

Where else would I spend my 30th birthday weekend than jump judging and cheering on friends at King Oak Farm's spring horse trials?

Uneventful day and only one refusal at our jump, last BN rider of the day.

Here's the morning Training jump, just after the water:

And the afternoon Beginner Novice fence, logs with mulch between them meant to mimic a ditch:

The rain held off until the last few riders, and then it started coming down pretty good. We hopped the fence to the Opa Opa Steakhouse for a filling dinner and I had a martini with vodka, chambord, and white chocolate liqueur, because on the extremely rare occasions I drink, I like it to taste as little like alcohol as possible.

Prelim and Novice and my actual birthday, eep.

Patience is a virtue, right?

Auuuuugh how is it that Tristan's new shoes were overnighted in Monday and they're STILL not here?

I'm going to try to take Friday afternoon off to meet the farrier. They'd better be there by then. The suspense is killing me.

Trying to stay productive by tack cleaning. The bridle I did last night soaked up a really obscene amount of oil. Oops...I guess letting it sit since August was a bit too much.

So close...

The farrier is back, and after consultation with the vet he wants Tris in fancy, custom glue-on shoes. They should arrive Wednesday morning, and then go on Wednesday night. If all goes well, I will be riding this time next week - fingers crossed.

I have been cleaning tack in very lazy, very slow stages for about 2 weeks now. For example, this is what our bathroom sink has looked like for the last week. It's a good thing my boyfriend doesn't notice clutter...

Daydreaming...

First things first: this website is the devil.

I've picked out my dream house. Come visit me if you want.

It's in "pristine" condition, with 10 bedrooms, a professional kitchen, around 50 acres of preserved park.  It's a short drive from the French city of my heart, Poitiers, where I lived and rode for a year. Here's the best part:

An elegant, 19th century stable block stands approx. 200 m (219 yards) away from the chateau. The 2-bedroomed caretakers’ cottage, adjacent to the property entrance, is in a very good state of repair.

Siiiiiiiigh.

Which castle/manor house on that website would you move into?

Huh

The vet sent me an invoice for Monday's appointment and I realized that for the first time in a very long time, I don't have another appointment to look toward. This is it. It's not going to be normal to see her every two or three weeks.

I'll probably still see her around on a regular basis, but it won't quite be the same.

It's funny how you get into patterns like that and what was once normal now seems weird and uncomfortable.