Quotes

  • "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of it's creed: "We hold these truths to self-evident that all men are created equal." I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be to the sit down together at the talbe of brother-hood...I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of character." -Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial
  • "But when a long train of abuses and usurptions pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them uder absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards to their future security." -Declaration of Independence
  • "There are no safe choices, Miss Temple. Only other choices." -A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
  • "If you are a painter, paint. It doesn't mean you have to paint Jesus into every picture, just paint good. If you paint good enough, then people will aask why you do what you do." -Issac Slay; The Fray (on why the band doesn't use the name of Jesus in every song)

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

What Does Love Mean?

Found this bao bei, precious treasure, courtesy of a friend on Stumble Upon today. Thoughts you fine folks like to have a peek at it.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2CPlGh/www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/06/14/what-does-love-mean.htm

Hope you enjoy.

God Bless,
Jess

Monday, July 11, 2011

Week and half left...

Okay so I looked on the calender at work this morning and realized today was July 11 (I'm not great at keeping up with dates; somedays I'm doing good at knowing what day it is). Further realization dawned when I looked further down and realized that July 22 is only a week and half away. So basically, I only have a week and half left until Marsha and I head to Mississippi and pick up the two mustangs! And I could think was: "Dang, where did the time go?"

I'll tell you where. Between mucking out stalls, riding horses, breaking colts, helping Marsha with her two Supreme mustangs (basically fulfilling my awesome apprentice duties-except the stalls; I get paid to muck out stalls ^_^), falling off horses, mild concussions, summer camps, and the occasional girl's night out, the past couple of months flew past me until that moment of truth hit me at 7 o'clock this morning. Even though I had been anxiously counting down the days, the date still managed to sneak up on me. And now with the added load of training my mustang, the days leading up to the Extreme Mustang Makeover competition will only fly by faster.

So this week and the beginning of next will be a little more than hectic. Along with helping getting the other two mustangs further in their training and riding my other assigned training rides, Marsha and I are breaking a 3-year-old Warmblood stud colt to ride; and we only have until next Friday to get him going. His name is Indy and I worked him in the roundpen this morning, doing basic join up work and getting him to flex his neck. He did really well and seems to have a fairly steady head between his ears, which I really like. It'll make the process go that much more smoother. Tomorrow, Marsha and I are going to put the saddle on him for the first time.

Another update is I got a CT-scan on my head and cervical x-rays on my neck last Thursday. Later that afternoon, my doctor called me with the results and said everything is fine and I did receive a mild concussion (as noted above) in my fall. He did warn me though that I needed to make sure not to fall on my head again in the next 30 days or else I could suffer from chronic migraines and/or neurological problems. Today, Marsha had me try out one of her jumping saddles (it's a Stubben, so it's a really well-made saddle) and when I told her how secure I felt in it and how much I liked it, she said that we'll try jumping in it...in 30 days. So no more jumping lessons until my 30-day "no falling on my head" period is up. *sigh* Bummer.

So in short: I have a week and half left until I get my mustang, a week and half to break Indy, a 3-year-old Warmblood stud colt to ride, and no more jumping lessons for 30 days. *sad* Still bummed... That it? OH! And I got a new helmet! It's an International Riding Helmet. It's made out of better material than my old Tipperary helmet, so I considered it a cool upgrade. And just in time for my mustang! YAY!

Okay, I think that about does it.

Peace out and God bless everybody!

Until next time,
Jess

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Important lesson on helmets...

I have just recently learned an important lesson about helmets: if you take a fall and hit your head, go ahead and replace the helmet! I learned this the hard way last Wednesday.

Yes, I did take another spill off a horse, this time on MJ, my mare. We're taking a jumping lesson Wednesday night and as we were going over the jumping lines, I fell behind MJ's motion and she rushed the jump, which made me lose my balance completely. I went straight up in the air and fell off on the side, landing hard on my head and then my back. I'm not sure, but I probably blacked out for a second before waking up completely dazed and everything spinning around me. After a minute, I eventually got up and got my horse, but for a week after I had chronic headaches and even migraines which caused dizziness and some nausea. It wasn't until yesterday I went to doctor and (after giving me a death glare for five minutes) he ordered a CT scan on my head and cervical x-rays on my neck.

Everything turned out alright; turns out I had a mild concussion. He did warn me if I fell off and hit my head again within a month, I could have chronic headaches and even neurological problems. Other than that, everything was normal.

Moral of this story? If I had replaced my helmet when I fell off in March, I'm pretty sure this wouldn't have happened. There's a reason why the helmet companies say to replace the helmets if they take a hit: even if there aren't any visible cracks or damage on the helmet, there could be hidden damage underneath the shell. And I'm pretty sure that's what happened to my helmet. Even though I couldn't see any damage to it on the outside, there was more likely damage on the inside. So when I fell Wednesday, my helmet wasn't able prevent a mild concussion, even though I know that if I wasn't wearing a helmet, things could've been much, much worse. So after I get done with this entry, I'm going on the helmet company's website and see if they have a warranty on my helmet. If they do, then I can send it in and they'll send one back to me as a replacement.

On another note, if anyone knows of anybody selling an older Dover jumping saddle in good condition for a decent price, let me know. The reason for my fall was based on my English saddle because of how slippery it is. I have a hard time keeping my balance in it, especially going over jumps. So if anyone knows anyone selling an older Dover jumping saddle or even a Stubben jumping saddle for a decent price, post a comment and let me know. I would really appreciate it. ^_^

God bless,
Jess