It's beginning to look a lot like the days after Christmas. Thanks to the wind my neighborhood is strewn with the aftermath of holiday decorations gones awry. Many of the homes (mine included) were all gussied up in their best festive paraphernalia for the weeks leading up to Santa's arrival. But with a sudden, ugly turn in the weather the front yards took on a war torn appearance. I have yet to find the embroidered skirt that adorned the base of the lighted pine tree on my front porch. It was probably blown into another county. Of course, this climate calamity means that the horse trails are also sporting wayward holiday decor. Rather than fight the blight, I've decided to make riding the local trails sort of a challenge. Let's see... Yesterday I devised these competitions:
1. Pine Tree Pole Bending: Here I ride my horse at a walk while weaving around the discarded Christmas trees that dot the trail alongside my house. (When is that trash pick-up day, anyway?)
2. Snowman Slide 'n Stop: A plastic snowman is cute, but not when it's lying on its side like a slain sentinel of winter. The challenge? Can I stay aboard Lexi when she scoots to the far side of the trail in an effort to avoid meeting the glazed eyes of the dearly departed Frosty?
3. Tinsel Two-Step: So much for the loop-de-loop of sparkly garland that wrapped around someone's split rail fence. Now it's lying across the bridle path like a frilly snake. Wally stepped over it all, oh so daintily, though his snorting made me a little nervous.
4. Ghosts of Christmas Past: Enough already with the deflated inflatable Santas! Can people please drag these sad, shriveled wraiths inside and stow them away for next year? My horses and I ride past them, where they're collapsed on front yards in a manner that makes them look as if they died in a desperate attempt to crawl onto the horse trail. My horses don't spook at them. They actually seem to ponder the scene, as if to ask, "What happened to them?"
Now, just so you don't think I'm merely a complainer and not a doer, I have moved misbegotten Christmas trees (disposable plastic stands included) off the horse trails. And I've tracked down the owners of lost decorations. But since the weather report is warning us of more high winds in the next few days, I'm afraid that the trails will soon be "deocorated" with more of Santa's workshop, making the bridle paths a special sort of winter wonderland.
Have any stories or comments to share? Just click on "comments" below or email me at: hc-editor@bowtieinc.com
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10 comments:
Yes, the weather does have its own opinion. For the second time this year, that darn wind came barreling in at mock speed and decided that the beautiful umbrella in our patio, needed to be in someone else's backyard. My husband and I laid there for one nanu second, thinking we should have gotten up quicker to close it up. But that dag nab arthritis kept us from moving at mock speed ourselves. We looked out the window and that beautiful umbrella was doing freestyle stunts, just like what you see the dirt bike riders doing!
I swore my husband told me it wasn't gonna do that again. His age must be setting in.
So their I was lying awake in bed thinking about what would I do if a tornado came, where would I put my horse? I am sure their is a rational decision, but I thought, well I would just build a basement for my horses and animals to go into.
Boy, what would my husband think about that? He would probably say his boat would go first! I would have to tell him Age before Beauty, not me, but my horse.... So in my mind it sounded like a good idea and with a "basement to put all my animals in" was good enough for me and I just closed my eyes and went to sleep.
Happy New Years Everyone!
My husband and I enjoy your blog, laughing and shaking our heads at the antics. We both work with with race horses (the un-retired kind) and we've both received the bumps, bruises, broken bones, black eyes, etc. while dealing with a spooked, mouthy, tempermental colt/filly.
Happy New Year to you and yours!!
Thanks to both of you for your funny and supportive comments! I've gotten a lot of emails that I need to share, too. I hope to do that in upcoming blogs.
It's a good thing we can laugh at our antics with horses. The rest of the world simply thinks we're crazy.
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