I’m another year older and hopefully all the wiser! Or at least that what I wished for! Hehe! As with all my birthdays I get a bit frantic and although I’ve ALWAYS wanted a special surprise birthday party my over-zealousness gets me in trouble! I guess was planning a kewl little surprise shin-dig and I put the kibosh on that with my “let’s all go down to the sheep, have a few cold ones and get dressed up Texan style to make it a bit odd” but all-in-all it worked out. The Texan dress added a little flavor to the evening and Tiffany put together a classy and fabulous table of balloons, flowers and party favors. It was mellow and fun to get to hang with friends and ring in another year. I was still a bit low key from Nicole’s birthday burial from yesterday but I’ve been so positive lately that even that was an exceptional day in it’s own right and while sad, very necessary and very eventful!

Josh was creative and kind enough to design a swank banner for me! (see picture) Thanks Josh!

Joewell is going nicely and HorseGirlTV is moving along at a steady pace finally so life is good.

This is my first birthday since Nicole and I became friends that I won’t phone her up at 552 0872 and offer my birthday wishes. This is the first year since Nicole and I became friends that I will not hear her wish her young Aries friend Happy Birthday as well. Although we were decades apart Nicole and I would revel in sharing birthdays separated by mere hours, divided by a date and subsequently astrological signs! She would tease me about how Pieces was the older and wiser sign and Aries was the younger and obviously less wiser of the two. I would smile and understand, regardless of whether it had to do with signs or not, the truth in her statement.

I got a bit sad recently thinking that Nicole never got to meet Joewell in person. We were so close in our scheduling but just missed. It was this thought I was pondering earlier today when I had the opportunity to share with several other of Nicole’s friends up at the top of Nevada Street where we were laying her ashes to rest. It was this thought I was pondering, standing in a circle around her future gravesite when I glanced towards the city behind me and notice Lara’s barn. I saw the arena, I saw the paddocks and I saw them clearly and smiled realizing that although Nicole would not meet Joewell in person (as silly and insignifant as this might see to some) that her ashes were being laid to rest in a spot on the hill where, over the next few weeks or month a view of Joewell in turnout would be clear. So… on some level they would be close for a period of time. It was this realization that made me smile through my tears knowing that she would literally be looking down upon me while I rode and that in turn she would always be looking down upon me. It was then, I was struck with fear! Holy cow! I better keep my act together or else Nicole little fiesty spirit will grab my arm and her little voice in my head will say “stop it. stop it. stop it. you need to listen to me.” and she’ll proceed to give me advice. It won’t, of course, be the same but I know I have the tools from her teachings that will guide me to take better decisions in my life.

Happy Birthday Love! I will miss you and not forget you!

After much going round and round (and not just in the arena) with trying to get some sample logos and subsequent HorseGirlTV website samples we’ve decided on a direction. It has been a bit of a challenge in working with designers trying to convey “what is” HorseGirlTV but my long time colleague and developer extrodonaire (Taber) pulled through with some fabulous samples. It’s been brilliant to have him on board this early on to help develop the voice through the look and feel of HorseGirlTV.

We have decided to change direction with editing and I’m looking forward to my meeting this coming week with Brent at Jackhammer. I hear he’s a smashing editor and can bring some fresh style to the project.

We’re really starting to roll and I’ll be even more exciting when we’re really rolling video and shooting episodes on a regular basis. HorseGirlTV… It’s not gonna be what you think!

Well little old Ashland, Oregon has been receiving quite the dumping of snow recently and that’s all right by me. Considering I’m not driving right now due to the pain meds my oral surgeon prescribed. It’s been beautiful out at the farm and I just had to snap a few shots this morning to prove it. Note that Jo’s window is the middle window in this picture with my Jeep!

I haven’t ridden Jo in a week cause my jaw is just feeling rather unpleasant considering a tooth and all it’s root was chiseled from my jaw last week. It’s not too bad but I’m a bit sluggish and just not feeling a big spring in my step, much less the desire to sit the trot! This has been great timing as it may because the weathers sooo cold, Jo (I think) is enjoying being inside, I’m working LOTS on HorseGirlTV and really getting the project going. I was hopeful to have some great logo mocks by now but we hit a few small glitches in the path to success albeit nothing to write home about. I now have Taber (designer superstar) on the case and we should have some rocking samples tonight or tomorrow night. HorseGirlTV is so close to being so cool and I get more excited daily!

I’m thinking I’ll be back on the saddle within the next day or two and have been lunging Jo the past few days so he’s getting his little (actually huge) body moving again.

Oh yes… training in Germany! I spoke with Bemelmans this morning. He’s currently at Sunshine Tour training the team. I’m suppose to ring him on the 14th of March and work out details as I’ll probably be working initially with a good friend of his at least until he gets the team smoking for the European Dressage Championships! I’m really looking forward to finding a flat, finding a fabulous assistant, getting on the plane and heading over horse, dog and assistant in tow! Maybe I’ll stay longer than I’m expecting? Maybe I’ll come back to the states and move to California? Maybe I’ll surprise myself and end up in a state I’d never imagined before? The possibilities are limitless at this point. Perhaps it will be a HorseGirlTV motor coach touring up and down the east coast for a season and up and down the west coast for another? I so miss my friends in Spain and am actually quite bummed today that I did not make the trek now to compete at Sunshine Tour myself but tis all for the best and getting HorseGirlTV really vamped and ready before departing my home country is the best actually.

So Jo is going to be doing quite a bit of standing around the next week or so. Please note his demonstration in the picture! Heh! A component of show host perfect teeth entails getting my one (yep, I only have one!) wisdom tooth out. They’ll also be pulling the broken molar underneath it so I’m gonna be knocked out for a bit. I’ve heard horror stories about wisdom teeth extraction and I’m hoping I won’t become a statistic. I’m hoping I’ll be back in the swing of things very shortly as we’re planning to begin shooting HorseGirlTV, I’m in the throws of design and brand development and general final preparations not to mention keeping the horsey in shape. I’m sure Jo is going to love his sabbatical and will be more than willing to come back slowly lunging and hand walking!

Becky has been kind enough to agree to take me to the surgeon and pick me up. Thanks Becky! I’m sure I’ll be, at least, mildly entertaining after being under the knife and on knock-you-out drugs. I have a date with the remote control and HBO planned as I’m guessing I’ll be off and on sleeping/recovering. The oral surgeon I’m going to is in Ashland but the best dentist I’ve ever been to is in Medford. If you’re ever in the market, and they can fit you in, his practice is called Mountainside Dental Design, they are on State Street and my docs name is Dr. Randy. He’s fabulous, kind, and witty and his staff is uber-nice!

So I feel bad about Jo not getting out and worked while I’m out of commission but he’ll be fine. He might get to go outside some and his stall enormous, hay plentiful and water always flowing. Plus I’m sure I’ll feel well enough to walk over and ply him with handfuls of treats.

I’m going to phone Bemelmans this coming week and find out about scheduling for training and will plan from there. It’s all in the timing and I have to do what is best for the training schedule as well as HorseGirlTV! I’m getting sooooo excited to see the logo mock-ups! I might even share a sneak preview here so keep on checking in!

That’s what I have said for years now and it’s still holds true. I’m starting to realize how possible living my dreams with this horse could be possible. I have been so fortunate in my lifetime to have had some crazy tragic experiences and subsequently constructive and successful events occur and it goes without saying that has made me be the somewhat skeptical and weary but equally brash and trudging blindly forward kind of gal that makes me a bit off, yet still endearing to most. To know me is to love me as that’s your only option!

I keep pinching myself so I remember how fortunate I am to have this time to get to work in such a safe, helpful and positive environment and have Lara, Tiffany and Becky around to provide me with training insights on Jo. This whole system of working with your horse rather than telling him what to do has really gotten me thinking about what I have been doing all these years with my riding and how my whole psychology of dressage and riding in general has been so faulted. This blog’s picts I pulled from video clips. (the other Jo I’ve been spending a significant amount of time with) was nice enough to offer to video and Tiffany helped me from the ground. The moments of true through-ness and light-ness are ever-increasing. I am now able to obtain that feeling of having him “in” my hands and not “on” my hands, really pushing from the hind end with a desire to move forward and light off my leg. He’s a pretty special horse and getting more special and fun to ride daily.
Europe or bust!.. I’m still in a holding pattern for my European trip as my plans keep changing but I’m looking forward to announcing the changes in my training plans and hope they are as exciting of news as I imagine they will be. Kari isn’t going to be able to go due to commitments at her farm and the timing with school for Chelsea just didn’t work out either but I do have a travel companion and I’m thinking he’s pretty excited about the trip. It will be fun to share in someone’s first European experience too!

The video podcasting daze continues as opportunities abound for HorseGirlTV! I’ve shot the 4 episodes thus far, have 2 more lined up here in the Rogue Valley and some AMAZING prospects of shoots in Holland, Germany and Spain. The website is coming together nicely. I’ve delved into my branding on the logo fairly heavy at this point. The LLC is setup and I’m researching my insurance needs and the basic organization biz aspects so the ball is rolling. Now I just need a more concrete biz plan, start hammering out the database, episode editing and get my marketing plan in order. Not too much for this gal of course! No problem to be marketing, engineering, biz dev, Q & A, design & development, finance and the CEO all in one person! Hmfp! So yuh… I’m crazy to try and do this all on my own but I’m hoping I can outsource my database work and that my fabulous designer friends will provide me with much needed criticisms on my development of the logo AND that my network of amazing people in my life will provide the emotional support to make it all possible.

I’m rambling now and guessing that means I’m done for the day. Just another sunrise and sunset in ye ole Ashland. I thought of Nicole a great deal yesterday and laughed out loud and cried out loud yesterday evening at a flick with a friend. It’s called “Running with Scissors” and I recommend it. I was having some issues yesterday and so wished I could just phone Nicole up and have her yell at me for a bit. You don’t miss it until it’s gone and I certainly miss her but I have to remember this of the folks that are in my life in this time. We’re all far from perfect but how would I feel without these not-so-perfect people in my life? What do I take for granted in those that I spend my days and nights with? Yup, you’d don’t miss it until it’s gone. I am happy that I’m mostly living in my days and not fretting so much over my tomorrows. It’s a happy place to be for certain!