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Cool Stuff for a Hot Summer Day
Jul. 1st, 2004 09:00 pmLast night while checking something else, I discovered that Rite of Conquest was #34 for advance orders in sf&f on amazon.com--right in between Batman and Andre Norton. Gotta love the company. :)
This morning I took keed for a trail ride--turned into a long ramble for us, hour and a half or so, exploring some trails we'd never been on before. Keed had a ball. He got all snorky when I said we had to turn around and head home. He is not a pushbutton trail horse--you have to ride him, he can get a bit lively when faced with, say, pit bulls slamming against a rickety fence right next to him--but he is very sane and sensible and his dressage training means he has pinpoint control in tough situations (q.v. pit bulls). That is what dressage is for--not, as many suppose, accumulating show ribbons.
One part of the trail was absolutely gorgeous--rolling desert with no houses in sight, the Rincon Range enfolding it. In another world I would buy that land, about 40 acres' worth, and live on it. In this one, alack, the developers have their claws in it. It's Phase II of Antler Crest, upscale housing, I think. Or else Phase Whatever of Rincon Trails. :( Meanwhile however it's a beautiful piece of desert with cactus, mesquite, mountains, and ATV trails, which are good for horses as well.
During the heat of the day, I wrote pages and plotted a section of novel, then had a nap. In the evening I ring-rode Capria, who was in a nice mood--doing dressage bits and pieces, mostly involving the feel of movement in space (trot shoulder-fore on spirals, to be technical)--and took Camilla for some rather lively walkies. She's starting to let me work with her out on the trail, and starting to learn to focus on me. Afterwards she got to be loose around the hay while I did the feeding thang--great fun when the neighbors started doing something down the way (running the horse around, I think) and everybody got wildly excited. She was blasting around, never going where she shouldn't, and having a wonderful time being fiercewild&free.
So, a good day. Still some work ahead, more first draft, and tomorrow, it's Pooka's turn again to be Horse of the Day.
This morning I took keed for a trail ride--turned into a long ramble for us, hour and a half or so, exploring some trails we'd never been on before. Keed had a ball. He got all snorky when I said we had to turn around and head home. He is not a pushbutton trail horse--you have to ride him, he can get a bit lively when faced with, say, pit bulls slamming against a rickety fence right next to him--but he is very sane and sensible and his dressage training means he has pinpoint control in tough situations (q.v. pit bulls). That is what dressage is for--not, as many suppose, accumulating show ribbons.
One part of the trail was absolutely gorgeous--rolling desert with no houses in sight, the Rincon Range enfolding it. In another world I would buy that land, about 40 acres' worth, and live on it. In this one, alack, the developers have their claws in it. It's Phase II of Antler Crest, upscale housing, I think. Or else Phase Whatever of Rincon Trails. :( Meanwhile however it's a beautiful piece of desert with cactus, mesquite, mountains, and ATV trails, which are good for horses as well.
During the heat of the day, I wrote pages and plotted a section of novel, then had a nap. In the evening I ring-rode Capria, who was in a nice mood--doing dressage bits and pieces, mostly involving the feel of movement in space (trot shoulder-fore on spirals, to be technical)--and took Camilla for some rather lively walkies. She's starting to let me work with her out on the trail, and starting to learn to focus on me. Afterwards she got to be loose around the hay while I did the feeding thang--great fun when the neighbors started doing something down the way (running the horse around, I think) and everybody got wildly excited. She was blasting around, never going where she shouldn't, and having a wonderful time being fiercewild&free.
So, a good day. Still some work ahead, more first draft, and tomorrow, it's Pooka's turn again to be Horse of the Day.
