Well I have lucked out this week. Monday has rolled around again and I got it off YAY. It also happens to be THE last day off while we are here as next Monday I am heading back to Ontario.
So just to recap I had Saturday off....worked Sunday and now have Monday off :)
Sunday was organised chaos. It was the last $25 000 Grand Prix of the season and Assini was showing in it. I got Mercy ready for patrick to ride in the am, then got Cuervo Gold...some of you might know him he was one of Margie Goldstein or Ingle or...whatever her name is now, old horse. Kaila had all 3 of her horses showing so we all helped where we could. I took him up to the grounds where I met here and switched horses to bring Jose back. It all took longer then planned though so I was late getting back to the grounds to get Assini ready. I ran back to the barn with Jose where Lori met me so she could drive me in the golf cart....thank goodness because it was like 90 degrees out!
Got up to the grounds with a few minutes to spare. The other girls thankfully got her braided and ready for me so all I had to do was put her bridle, boots, hoof oil on and go.
All 5 grooms were busy with taking horses to the grounds and poor Niclas was stuck back at the farm all alone.
The day ended well.
So today....I am just sitting outside tanning and relaxing. It's a blistering 95 degrees out but not all that sunny...it comes and goes with wind and clouds...kind of odd weather.
I might update again later...time for a glass of orange juice and back to tanning :)
TTFN
Monday, April 6, 2009
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Day off again
I had a day off today....I was supposed to have one on Wednesday but my horses were showing so it wasn't possible. I am supposed to have Monday off but I'm not sure if I'll still get still or not? If i do we are going to the waterslides :) YAY
I spent my day tanning for the morning until the sun went away. Then I just relaxed in the house and watched TV. Once the others got home from work we went to the grocery store. After that I decided I wanteds to make the trek to TJ Maxx....I LOVE that store. I had never been before so I pulled directions off of Mapquest. Driving on 8 or more lane highways in a big truck is imtimidating when you are by yourself and have no idea of the area haha. Had to stop and ask where I was going once but then I found it and boy did I shop. Again...I adore that store. Had to have the truck home by 8 so the others could go to nightcheck.
Two of our grooms leave on Wednesday with the first load of 10 horses. The rest of us leave the following Monday, 5 days later.
It`s getting bittersweet thinking about leaving. I will miss the sunshine on my days off but not on that days I have to work in it. I know once I live in the cold I will want the sunshine back again...
Assini is showing tomorrow so we are starting at 6:30 so she can flat her before the class at 12.
I better get to bed. I just love seeing how many people are reading and where you all are from :) Very neat. Thanks for reading!
Shawna
I spent my day tanning for the morning until the sun went away. Then I just relaxed in the house and watched TV. Once the others got home from work we went to the grocery store. After that I decided I wanteds to make the trek to TJ Maxx....I LOVE that store. I had never been before so I pulled directions off of Mapquest. Driving on 8 or more lane highways in a big truck is imtimidating when you are by yourself and have no idea of the area haha. Had to stop and ask where I was going once but then I found it and boy did I shop. Again...I adore that store. Had to have the truck home by 8 so the others could go to nightcheck.
Two of our grooms leave on Wednesday with the first load of 10 horses. The rest of us leave the following Monday, 5 days later.
It`s getting bittersweet thinking about leaving. I will miss the sunshine on my days off but not on that days I have to work in it. I know once I live in the cold I will want the sunshine back again...
Assini is showing tomorrow so we are starting at 6:30 so she can flat her before the class at 12.
I better get to bed. I just love seeing how many people are reading and where you all are from :) Very neat. Thanks for reading!
Shawna
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Good ol Thursday
Thursday....started at 7....I LOVE when we start at 7....we get to sleep until 6 and don't have to leave the house until 6:45....it almost feels like sleeping in hahahahahahaahahaha.
This morning was a typical morning, no one was in a rush because the classes didn't start until 12 pm. Put my horses on the electro blanket, on the walker and got them turned out.
Mercy and Assini were showing in back to back classes so Niclas had to take Mercy to the grounds for me.
My rider flatted Aubie and Assini during the morning. I got Assini cleaned and ready again for the 1 o clock class. I walked all the way up to the show grounds....takes 15-20 minutes and JUST as I was almost to the International ring I heard Lori hollar at me from her scooter zooming up behind me. Turns out they changed the time of the class to two o clock....ugh. So now being 1:00, I turned around and headed back to the barn. Took off her sheet, boots and bridle and tied her in her stall for 20 mintues. Got her out and ready and headed BACK to the ring to be there by 1:45 haha. It wouldnt have been so bad if it wasnt killer hot out today. I believe is was 93 degrees....thats like 34 celcius....it was gross. The heat doesnt stop...each day we say its so hot and then the next day is even hotter...please stop.
Assini was AWESOME in the class and only had one rail down. It was a BIG 1.45 course. I was proud of her. Ian won the class on Leroy. Today was a good day.
I took a few pictures but I want to take some more before I upload and resize them all. Got a nice pic of my sock tan hahahaha. TTFN.
PS....I am loving my new tool that shows where people log into my blog from. I had NO IDEA so many people from all over the place were reading. Hi All!!! Thank you for following my story
This morning was a typical morning, no one was in a rush because the classes didn't start until 12 pm. Put my horses on the electro blanket, on the walker and got them turned out.
Mercy and Assini were showing in back to back classes so Niclas had to take Mercy to the grounds for me.
My rider flatted Aubie and Assini during the morning. I got Assini cleaned and ready again for the 1 o clock class. I walked all the way up to the show grounds....takes 15-20 minutes and JUST as I was almost to the International ring I heard Lori hollar at me from her scooter zooming up behind me. Turns out they changed the time of the class to two o clock....ugh. So now being 1:00, I turned around and headed back to the barn. Took off her sheet, boots and bridle and tied her in her stall for 20 mintues. Got her out and ready and headed BACK to the ring to be there by 1:45 haha. It wouldnt have been so bad if it wasnt killer hot out today. I believe is was 93 degrees....thats like 34 celcius....it was gross. The heat doesnt stop...each day we say its so hot and then the next day is even hotter...please stop.
Assini was AWESOME in the class and only had one rail down. It was a BIG 1.45 course. I was proud of her. Ian won the class on Leroy. Today was a good day.
I took a few pictures but I want to take some more before I upload and resize them all. Got a nice pic of my sock tan hahahaha. TTFN.
PS....I am loving my new tool that shows where people log into my blog from. I had NO IDEA so many people from all over the place were reading. Hi All!!! Thank you for following my story
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
April Fools Day
Just realized it's April fools day haha. Shows you how busy I am....I usually have no idea what day it is.
Woke up at 5:30....looked at the "the book" when I got up and noticed the time had changed....could have slept another 20 min...ugh. "The Book" is where we write messages to other people in the house and where the time we start work in the morning is always written down. Lately it keeps magically changing once we have all gone to bed which makes for a not so happy morning for most....
Yesterday morning I got told I could take today off so I was happy about that...however by the end of the day they realized I had a horse showing today so was no longer allowed to take the day off. This is the first time I've had to work a full two weeks without having a day off though so I'm not complaining.
It is still grossly hot and continues to get hotter each day....I am SO ready to go home (home being the farm in Perth Ontario). Apparently we are going to have a meeting soon to talk about who's going when and with which load, vehicles ect. I REALLY want to be on the first load that leaves in 7 days now :) Fingers crossed.
I have two horses showing tomorrow so that should be fun in this heat. All the riders and horses have sure noticed the difference in temperature.
Well on that note I am going to have a shower....I had to clip Aubie today and with the humidity I think the majority of his hair stuck to me....itchy!
Hope everyone is having a GREAT day. TTFN
Woke up at 5:30....looked at the "the book" when I got up and noticed the time had changed....could have slept another 20 min...ugh. "The Book" is where we write messages to other people in the house and where the time we start work in the morning is always written down. Lately it keeps magically changing once we have all gone to bed which makes for a not so happy morning for most....
Yesterday morning I got told I could take today off so I was happy about that...however by the end of the day they realized I had a horse showing today so was no longer allowed to take the day off. This is the first time I've had to work a full two weeks without having a day off though so I'm not complaining.
It is still grossly hot and continues to get hotter each day....I am SO ready to go home (home being the farm in Perth Ontario). Apparently we are going to have a meeting soon to talk about who's going when and with which load, vehicles ect. I REALLY want to be on the first load that leaves in 7 days now :) Fingers crossed.
I have two horses showing tomorrow so that should be fun in this heat. All the riders and horses have sure noticed the difference in temperature.
Well on that note I am going to have a shower....I had to clip Aubie today and with the humidity I think the majority of his hair stuck to me....itchy!
Hope everyone is having a GREAT day. TTFN
Monday, March 30, 2009
Another life lesson mood....
Well I'm in another one of those "life's little lesson" moods.
Good people attract good things and happy people bring light into other peoples lives. How the heck do negative people get ANYWHERE in life? No one has any given right to be rude for the sake of being rude or nasty to anyone for any reason.
I try to see the good in people and stay very posotive for the most part. I am only human and I too have my days however ,I think these people really need the mirror turned back at them to look at themselves. How can you carry on day after day being in a bad mood. Does that not attract bad feelings where ever you go?
Anyway....end of rant....whew....feel better now that I got that out.
Ahem...so today was a fairly good day. It was a Monday...which is supposed to be an easy laid back day. We start at 7....feed, clean stalls, put every horse on the walker and outside in the paddock. Don't forget the "boot routine"!
We also had 4 horses that needed to be hand walked for 15 mins each time, three times a day. So between the 3 of us working we did alot of walking today. And it was another HOT one. Thank goodness I wore a tank top like shirt today. I have been very respectivly dressed for work since the day I started and I don't wear tank tops like many of the girls do (I dont feel it looks professional) anyway since today no one else was there and its laid back and bloody hot....I wore my tank top :) haha
We had everyone on the walker and turned out before lunch so we got to go to Ihop again for lunch....mmmm
The afternoon was nice and easy. More hand walking, pick stalls, fill waters, clean outside paddocks, pick and rake the walker, feed, sweep and done for the day. We were done just after 5 and got home at a fairly decent hour. We are SUPPOSED to work 7-4 but I think that has happened once since I've been here and I think it was closer to 4:30 hahaha. I understand though...we work with horses and horse people...things never go according to plan.
Onto another week....this could very well be my last week in Florida. The first load goes home on the 8th and the second load leaves on the 13th. I have no idea which load I'm in yet. I hope I'm in the first....then I'd leave in 9 days and get back to my new position at the farm....in the COLD weather. I'm so excited for cold weather haha. Think I'm backwards.
Anyway....writing is such a great way to clear my head before bed so I can actually get some sleep. It's neat to think about how many people might read this. All the well wishes and comments sure make my day and make being away from home easier.
Thanx ya'll....Over and out. TTFN
Good people attract good things and happy people bring light into other peoples lives. How the heck do negative people get ANYWHERE in life? No one has any given right to be rude for the sake of being rude or nasty to anyone for any reason.
I try to see the good in people and stay very posotive for the most part. I am only human and I too have my days however ,I think these people really need the mirror turned back at them to look at themselves. How can you carry on day after day being in a bad mood. Does that not attract bad feelings where ever you go?
Anyway....end of rant....whew....feel better now that I got that out.
Ahem...so today was a fairly good day. It was a Monday...which is supposed to be an easy laid back day. We start at 7....feed, clean stalls, put every horse on the walker and outside in the paddock. Don't forget the "boot routine"!
We also had 4 horses that needed to be hand walked for 15 mins each time, three times a day. So between the 3 of us working we did alot of walking today. And it was another HOT one. Thank goodness I wore a tank top like shirt today. I have been very respectivly dressed for work since the day I started and I don't wear tank tops like many of the girls do (I dont feel it looks professional) anyway since today no one else was there and its laid back and bloody hot....I wore my tank top :) haha
We had everyone on the walker and turned out before lunch so we got to go to Ihop again for lunch....mmmm
The afternoon was nice and easy. More hand walking, pick stalls, fill waters, clean outside paddocks, pick and rake the walker, feed, sweep and done for the day. We were done just after 5 and got home at a fairly decent hour. We are SUPPOSED to work 7-4 but I think that has happened once since I've been here and I think it was closer to 4:30 hahaha. I understand though...we work with horses and horse people...things never go according to plan.
Onto another week....this could very well be my last week in Florida. The first load goes home on the 8th and the second load leaves on the 13th. I have no idea which load I'm in yet. I hope I'm in the first....then I'd leave in 9 days and get back to my new position at the farm....in the COLD weather. I'm so excited for cold weather haha. Think I'm backwards.
Anyway....writing is such a great way to clear my head before bed so I can actually get some sleep. It's neat to think about how many people might read this. All the well wishes and comments sure make my day and make being away from home easier.
Thanx ya'll....Over and out. TTFN
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Today was a GREAT day :)
It has been hot lately and it's only supposed to get hotter! Walked out the door of our nicely air conditioned house this morning to an already hot 6:30 am....yuck. I HATE being sticky from the first moment of the day to the last....it's gross. I love the sun and warm weather however that statement comes from lazying on the beach and soaking up the rays in between dunks in the pool or lake/ocean. Having to WORK and I mean actually work your butt off in mid to high 80 degree weather is NOT cool. After we were done sweating away to get the barn fed and cleaned, the riders started to appear. Lori and Amy were in the office when they came out and asked for me. I thought uh oh what did I do? That feeling lingered around a little longer as while I was standing there waiting to hear the news one of the other barn guys was going on and on about his story. Finally Amy said we are going to have a meeting....so he appologised and left haha.
Turns out Beth called the Millars to talk more about me and what I was wanting to do. I am SO glad I have been upfront all along about who I have talked to and what my intentions were otherwise that could have not gone over so well.
(Now that I think about it I still don't know what it was exactly that they talked about however I got the feeling it was all posotive about me)
Still standing there thinking I was in trouble I was nervous as to where this was going. Finally they said they really don't want to lose me and was wondering why I wanted to continue talking to Beth about a job position. I explained that as much as I enjoy it there I really want to ride and train, learn all I can as a rider to further my skills and not just be a groom like I was 6 years ago. I also mentioned that Beth's salary started alot higher and the money appeals to me because I still have a farm to run at home and bills to pay.
Well guess what......they offered me to train the young horses for Millarbrooke :) !!!! They said "PERFECT we would love it if you'd work with the young ones" I assume I'll be working with Mandy and Christian once I get home riding and working with the young horses and some of the schooled ones if they need me to ride them. Lori also said I'll be getting lessons as they want to make sure I'm going along with their program and the horses are progressing as they should. How cool is that!!!! EEEEKKKKK I am grinning ear to ear but all day I have kept quiet as I feel it's the professional thing to do....I don't want to rub it in any one elses faces as they all want to ride too.
I have no idea if I'll still get to go to shows as a groom or if I'm just going to be a "rider" for the Millars. I can't wait to talk to them further and find out exactly what I'll be doing. And even better yet, I can't wait to get home in 2 weeks and get started on my new "position"
So what do you think about that....talk about everything happens for a reason. I have been activly searching out different options as to what to do and where to go as my next move. But I am happy as heck here and if they are willing to up my pay and let me do exactly what I want AND teach me....what more could I honestly ask for.
Oh the other scary thing that happened to me....I was getting a horse ready in the middle of the isle when Ian walked by and stopped....(thats NEVER a good sign haha) He looked at me and said "I hear you've been talking to Beth Underhill about a job" (nervous feeling came over me again...I'm really not good when put in the direct line of fire lol.... I said "yes I spoke to beth before I came to Millarbrooke and then met up with her here in Florida and agreed to speak with her further about the position at the end of March." He said "ok but recently...you've been talking to her about the job..." I said "Yes I have however I just had a meeting with Lori and Amy about it" He said" AANNNNDDD what are you going to do" Talk about having no time to think about it or even consider my options (luckily I was really happy about it and knew the answer as to what I'm going to do already. I said confidently...."I'm going to stay :) " He said "Well good, appreciate that" and started to walk out of the barn. I said as he was leaving "thank you very much for the opportunity to be here Ian"
I felt good about how that went.....
Ahhhh now I'm home and get to tell my mom who won't answer her phone....or my sister....or my barn manager...so I just HAD to write it here for you to see. But Shhhh I don't want to wreck a good thing before it's started so I'm just going to stay quiet about it until I get back to the farm and everyone just sees how it goes down.
I AM SOOOOO EXCITED.....here's the the bigger and better!!
Turns out Beth called the Millars to talk more about me and what I was wanting to do. I am SO glad I have been upfront all along about who I have talked to and what my intentions were otherwise that could have not gone over so well.
(Now that I think about it I still don't know what it was exactly that they talked about however I got the feeling it was all posotive about me)
Still standing there thinking I was in trouble I was nervous as to where this was going. Finally they said they really don't want to lose me and was wondering why I wanted to continue talking to Beth about a job position. I explained that as much as I enjoy it there I really want to ride and train, learn all I can as a rider to further my skills and not just be a groom like I was 6 years ago. I also mentioned that Beth's salary started alot higher and the money appeals to me because I still have a farm to run at home and bills to pay.
Well guess what......they offered me to train the young horses for Millarbrooke :) !!!! They said "PERFECT we would love it if you'd work with the young ones" I assume I'll be working with Mandy and Christian once I get home riding and working with the young horses and some of the schooled ones if they need me to ride them. Lori also said I'll be getting lessons as they want to make sure I'm going along with their program and the horses are progressing as they should. How cool is that!!!! EEEEKKKKK I am grinning ear to ear but all day I have kept quiet as I feel it's the professional thing to do....I don't want to rub it in any one elses faces as they all want to ride too.
I have no idea if I'll still get to go to shows as a groom or if I'm just going to be a "rider" for the Millars. I can't wait to talk to them further and find out exactly what I'll be doing. And even better yet, I can't wait to get home in 2 weeks and get started on my new "position"
So what do you think about that....talk about everything happens for a reason. I have been activly searching out different options as to what to do and where to go as my next move. But I am happy as heck here and if they are willing to up my pay and let me do exactly what I want AND teach me....what more could I honestly ask for.
Oh the other scary thing that happened to me....I was getting a horse ready in the middle of the isle when Ian walked by and stopped....(thats NEVER a good sign haha) He looked at me and said "I hear you've been talking to Beth Underhill about a job" (nervous feeling came over me again...I'm really not good when put in the direct line of fire lol.... I said "yes I spoke to beth before I came to Millarbrooke and then met up with her here in Florida and agreed to speak with her further about the position at the end of March." He said "ok but recently...you've been talking to her about the job..." I said "Yes I have however I just had a meeting with Lori and Amy about it" He said" AANNNNDDD what are you going to do" Talk about having no time to think about it or even consider my options (luckily I was really happy about it and knew the answer as to what I'm going to do already. I said confidently...."I'm going to stay :) " He said "Well good, appreciate that" and started to walk out of the barn. I said as he was leaving "thank you very much for the opportunity to be here Ian"
I felt good about how that went.....
Ahhhh now I'm home and get to tell my mom who won't answer her phone....or my sister....or my barn manager...so I just HAD to write it here for you to see. But Shhhh I don't want to wreck a good thing before it's started so I'm just going to stay quiet about it until I get back to the farm and everyone just sees how it goes down.
I AM SOOOOO EXCITED.....here's the the bigger and better!!
Friday, March 27, 2009
What's next...
Hi All,
My appologies....I have been lacking in my blog writing. I've had a tough week again....We have been so busy and working even longer days. My horses have been showing everyday and life is so much fun but very tiring.
Yesterday I was finally so exhausted I went to bed by 7:45 pm and I slept for 10 hours. I was still tired. This is not an easy lifestyle. I often remind myself that I am hear by choice....not that I have to be. The good outweighs the bad and I look to the tough days as character building. I've been doing an awful lot of character building lately. I'm amazed at the fact that you truely find yourself when your surrounded by people you don't know and have no choice but to look at your own actions. Why you feel the way you do, why you act the way you act. I am a strong person and every day I grow stronger even if I don't feel that way at the time.
I am so passionate about what I do....like so many of you reading this are. Us horse people are a special breed. Every day I look around at the people who live this as their everyday lives. How dedicated both the people involved, their spouses, their families have to be in order to make it this big. It's not just a passion for them it's who they are and who they strive to be.
Ian, Amy and Jonathan are wonderful riders and wonderful people who work incredibly hard for what they have. I am thankful to them for having me be apart of this hard working, dedicated team because without this team they too wouldn't be able to live life this way. So much time, effort and money go into this lifestlye it's downright insane. I wouldn't change it for any other way.
I know I'm not the first, nor the last to ask myself why am I putting myself through this day after day? For the love of the horse of course.....
Oneday I too will be great and if I fail (because lets face it, you can't please everyone) I will know that I put my heart and soul into being the best I can be and will continue to until the day I decide I'm done.
My adventure is far from over and I know these are powerful words. My body asks why, my mind asks why but my heart asks...whats next.
There's your thought for tonight. Goodnight (BIG BIG hugs)
My appologies....I have been lacking in my blog writing. I've had a tough week again....We have been so busy and working even longer days. My horses have been showing everyday and life is so much fun but very tiring.
Yesterday I was finally so exhausted I went to bed by 7:45 pm and I slept for 10 hours. I was still tired. This is not an easy lifestyle. I often remind myself that I am hear by choice....not that I have to be. The good outweighs the bad and I look to the tough days as character building. I've been doing an awful lot of character building lately. I'm amazed at the fact that you truely find yourself when your surrounded by people you don't know and have no choice but to look at your own actions. Why you feel the way you do, why you act the way you act. I am a strong person and every day I grow stronger even if I don't feel that way at the time.
I am so passionate about what I do....like so many of you reading this are. Us horse people are a special breed. Every day I look around at the people who live this as their everyday lives. How dedicated both the people involved, their spouses, their families have to be in order to make it this big. It's not just a passion for them it's who they are and who they strive to be.
Ian, Amy and Jonathan are wonderful riders and wonderful people who work incredibly hard for what they have. I am thankful to them for having me be apart of this hard working, dedicated team because without this team they too wouldn't be able to live life this way. So much time, effort and money go into this lifestlye it's downright insane. I wouldn't change it for any other way.
I know I'm not the first, nor the last to ask myself why am I putting myself through this day after day? For the love of the horse of course.....
Oneday I too will be great and if I fail (because lets face it, you can't please everyone) I will know that I put my heart and soul into being the best I can be and will continue to until the day I decide I'm done.
My adventure is far from over and I know these are powerful words. My body asks why, my mind asks why but my heart asks...whats next.
There's your thought for tonight. Goodnight (BIG BIG hugs)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
