My New Year's Resolutions are the following: - 2012 will be a year to meet new people and make connections in the Natural Horsemanship and Parelli world. - I shall finish at least one novel and continue to improve my writing. - I shall continue to put the relationship first with both Sharlie and Casper, fix my flaws and make progress in our horsemanship journey. - Survive the end of the world. :)
This is a new thing I want to do for the blog, if only till the end of summer. Not only is this an attempt at attracting more readers and followers, (who am I to complain though with almost 10,000 views) this is also an attempt to read more non-fiction and horse related literature.
So I just finished reading Mark Rashid's book Horses Never Lie and to describe it in one word: magical.
This edition of Horses Never Lie by Mark Rashid was combined with beautiful drawings and sketches as well as well-spaced words. Overall it's rather large book but it's such an easy read.
I believe that the rather large layout makes it easier to read. The whole atmosphere of the book and reading the book is magical itself. Mark Rashid gets you very detailed examples are both entertaining and educational and give you a clear picture of what he's talking about.
Being the kind of person I am I need to rate it out of five stars. I would give this 4.5 out of 5 stars because while it was very entertaining and educational read, it did tend to lag in some parts. This could be just me and my problem or it could be the book itself that's up to the reader to decide.
One thing that I feel I must point out is that through his writing, you can find that Mark Rashid actually has a great sense of humor. His words are also able to relate to you how easy and laid back he is. I can truly admire a writer who can indirectly inform the reader of what his personality is because I've read too many books where the writer is cold and inpersonal.
I do look forward to reading his other books in the near future.
I know I have been absent from here for a long time so I think that this is the time for a well deserved blog post.
School is finally out for the holidays. I plan to do a lot of writing and riding. Or- knowing winter weather- just a lot of horsey time.
As my Christmas post I have decided to talk about my darling Casper. Honestly- what is new with Sharlie? Not much...
Plus Casper and Christmas...both begin with C! :)
So Curious Casper. I have noticed that Casper's attitude while being ridden with or without a bareback pad/saddle are different. Completely bareback he is relaxed and curious. (Though it kills me because it is so bony. It is actually really painful) However with a pad (which is much more comfortable for me) or saddle he is tense, walks faster and more likely to spook.
A few days ago I went to go play with both Sharlie and Casper and I rode both. I rode Casper with the bareback pad and he was very difficult. I needed to cool off so I put him in the round pen while i played with Sharlie.
When I came back 20 minutes later to take him back to the field, I hopped on him completely bareback with just a halter and leadrope- no helmet, no nothing. And he was the best little horse I could imagine. He was curious, wanting to investigate everything. He even tried to climb into the tackroom. He went up to and pawed at the roof tilings that he had found terrifying only an hour before.
Perhaps it was my attitude too, as well as his that caused this.
One thing is for sure. No matter what I do when I ride Casper, I always feel extremely safe on him. Even when he is like a coiled spring, ready to be released. I've ridden him a bit without a helmet and those rides seem to be the best that we have.
Merry Christmas
Julia
PS- Sorry its short. Will have another post on this subject in a few weeks. :)
Just felt like sharing my adorable kitties with you guys!
Wapka: Wapka is the oldest cat. He is black and white, has the cat equivalent of a beer belly and is about 70 if you translate from cat years. He has traveled the world. We believe he was born on the Mexico/California border before being picked up by the pound in Orange County. We adopted him and since then he has traveled to South Carolina, France, England and now Tennessee. He is grumpy, lazy and loves Gold Fish and Lays. Don't question it!
Walle: You know how they say someone has 'lost their marbles'? Well Walle never had any marbles to begin with. Walle is open, friendly but still rather stupid. He is the cat that you will find laying out in the middle of the street when the garbage truck is coming. Walle is now 3 years old and has lived on this block of the neighborhood his whole life. He was born next door and now lives here. He is the hunter of the family. (As proven by the dead squirrel on the porch as well as countless birds, mice and chipmunks) There has been some suspicion he is an alien from another planet here to steal human brains and replace them with his own. It has not been confirmed nor denied.
Wabu: We got Wabu about a year ago from the pound. At first he meowed and meowed and meowed. Never ever shut up! Now he is much more quiet. He has let his walls fall slightly and we can see the vunerable, insecure Wabu. (Which is not always a good thing!!) We now get to see paranoid Wabu, damsel in distress Wabu, can't-hold-onto-my-bladder Wabu and many more. However he can still be rather affectionate and lovable. We can only guess that Wabu used to live in a frat boy college dorm room/gay couple's apartment. Not quite sure which one. :)
Wikipedia: THE FIRST GIRL CAT WE HAVE HAD IN OVER A DECADE! We picked up Wiki in the Mcdonald's parking lot.We planned to give her away to a good home because we were happy with our three cats (above) but she has wiggled into our hearts like some sort of adorable fluffy heart worm. She is rather intelligent and communicates via a series of purrs, squeaks and tiny mews. She the inspiration of a Christmas story I am writing.
