80 degrees today meant the first real hose down of the year and then some hand grazing to dry off.

Her mane is giving off punk rock Mohawk vibes. Maybe I should dye it purple. 🤣

Every cat video where the cat is up on the counter reminds me of why I don’t eat at potlucks. Yes, the cat is on the counter, yes it’s been in the litter box. Antibacterial sprays exist. You should be wiping down your kitchen counters before you cook even if you don’t own a cat. Like, bro. Don’t say, “this is why I don’t own a cat,” and act like that magically makes your house free of germs. Y’all nasty.

There is something about black and white barn kitties. This one is named Pepe and he is the sweetest boy that loves cuddles, purrs with his whole body, and is constantly working on his biscuit orders.

Every black and white barn kitty I have known as been the best barn kitty.

So ages ago I made a post about this silly elephant lamp that I had in my bedroom for a long time. I never really liked it, but it was a lamp and my bedroom has no other sources of light so I used it.

Well, turns out this silly little elephant lamp sells for stupid money new. $150 for this tiny lamp. Now I’m torn. Do I keep the lamp? Do I sell the lamp? What is it even worth? It’s currently sitting in my garage in the pile of furniture that was deemed no longer necessary when fiancé moved in.

100/۩ Fantastic Warmbloods

Quelle Couleur, 2019 Westphalian Stallion

ODR MaxOwen Chief from @odrappaloosas , QC, Canada

Shorter girth is too short, current girth is too long. It’s like she needs a size half way in between, which doesn’t really exist because girths go in 2” size increments. Sigh.

Yesterday I spent 50 mins hopping on and off, adjusting my saddle because it was sliding, wondering why she felt lame at one point (saddle had slid so far back at that point we looked like a saddle seat pair), trying a different short girth at the barn that is a different shape to the one I bought, but that one was hitting her elbows… And then finally gave up for the day because I felt worried that I had made her back sore with the saddle moving around so much.

Thankfully I did not make her back sore, and she got her weekly magnawave session right after anyway.

Gods I hate posting ISO. Sydney needs a shorter girth, and even with being as specific as possible on exactly what I am looking for, people are still posting everything but what I am asking for. Oh, and having to weed through the scammers. Ugh.

On the new temporary route to the barn there is an absolute dystopian nightmare fuel of a, “what in the Stepford wives?!” subdivision that I now go pass. Every house is the same color and same design and in every driveway, honest to god, is a white sedan. It made me do a total double take the first time I drove by. It’s totally an “are we living in a simulation?!” moment. Most new subdivisions, from talking to a friend that bought into one of these housing developments, require that every five houses be totally different before a design or floor plan can repeat itself. Apparently not this place. It could be military housing, but we are still a good 40 min drive from the base here, so seems unlikely.

I tore through Bride in two-ish days.

The story was 3.5/5. Solidly in “yes, I would recommend it if you want a vampire/werewolf romance, but it doesn’t live rent free in my head.”

My current read is Remedial Magic.

I was initially very excited about this book because the main character is queer. So far it’s reading like a silly rom-com. I’m not complaining about the break into something light and fluffier though.

I still haven’t 100% decided what I’m going to take on the honeymoon, but I do think I’m going to finish A Day of Fallen Night after this book before then. Only two more weeks until the wedding!

25 min ride between thunderstorms is better than no ride at all.

Jaime Corum. Red Tapestry, 2011.

Gods I hate posting ISO. Sydney needs a shorter girth, and even with being as specific as possible on exactly what I am looking for, people are still posting everything but what I am asking for. Oh, and having to weed through the scammers. Ugh.

After today the main route to the barn is going to be closed for a major road repair project until November. After looking at how they are routing traffic around the construction, it will be faster for me to avoid the area all together by taking back roads. Unfortunately this adds 20 mins to my drive because of all the lights, maybe even more during rush hour traffic as I have to skirt around downtown of the closest city. Sigh. Going to be a long 7 months.

J-Nius VV Z - Zangersheide

London International Horse Show

João Gonçalves on Madragoa das Arcas; Gilberto Filipe on Zinque

Pictures from getting to ride the best pony outside this week.

Oh, boy, okay, book update. This has been a long time in the making because I switched up books, switched back, read a fanfic, got distracted by a TV series, and have been tearing my hair out as we are in the final month of wedding planning.

I was reading A Day of Fallen Night. I stopped because I thought I would take it on my honeymoon, but it’s a THICC book, so now I am not so sure.

Similar to The Priory of the Orange Tree, this book takes some getting into, but once it takes off, it really takes off.

Part way through A Day of Fallen Night I paused to read Draco Malfoy, and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love, and I think this will forever live rent free in my head. I haven’t read fanfic since probably high school, and I could not set this one down. It was super well written. The Harry Potter follow-up story we should have gotten. Then I paused again because I got really into a show on Hulu called The Artful Dodger. Fun late 1800s period drama with some romance thrown in. Super well done, and just so happened to have David Thewlis in it, who played Remus Lupin in the HP series. I then switched entirely to reading Iron Flame, FINALLY, and finished it. FINALLY.

There was so much criticism about this book, about how poorly written it was, and how it was just an ACOTAR rip off. As I was reading I kept thinking, “huh, is this the part that it starts to get bad? Cuz this is still pretty good…” While I could still see how some parts seemed very ACOTAR-ish, there are enough differences in this book that I don’t really understand that part either.

I am torn on what I want to read next, because whatever I start next I will likely end up taking on the honeymoon and I want to make sure that I really, really am going to enjoy it. With that in mind I think I may actually restart the ACOTAR series and see if I can get all the way through it in one go this time. Wish me luck.