Spiders and snakes, and oh, yeah . . . horses!

Wednesday

I had a dream about a beautiful black mustang stallion that I wanted . . . I'm blaming this dream on beautiful Cash!

This morning we did more ballet on the ground (ground work with the horses), and then mounted up and practiced what we did yesterday . . . disengaging the hind quarters, and turning on the forehand. We would all line up at the fence facing Frank in the middle of the arena, and Frank would tell us something to do . . . just like yesterday. My horse today was Saguaro . . . like the cactus, and you don't pronounce the "g."

Then, cones were set up in the middle and all around the arena. We had to try to get our horses around the cones while using a minimum of reins. We were supposed to guide the horse with our bodies and our legs. You need to look in the direction you want to go, and point your belly button in that direction. I used to ride a motorcycle when I was young, so I kept trying to *lean* in the direction I wanted to go. But, it is just a slight twist of your body while you remain upright. I need more practice at this!

Then, we learned how to side pass. We practiced it a lot, and then we had to open a gate (on the horse), go through it, and then come back and close it. I had a little bit of a hard time with the side pass, but with Jim's help, I managed to do the gate exercise.

Afterward, we went on a hayride picnic lunch out to the desert . . . but to eat, we were under a nice shaded place. We took some group pics (with a bunch of different cameras!)

I heard this seminar about something called "earthing," which is basically going barefoot so your feet can actually touch the earth (or even on concrete that is on the earth.) It's supposed to be incredibly good for you doing things like lowering blood pressure and cholesterol, fighting free radicals, and basically rejuvenating your system. So, I knew I had to start doing it. But, except for one extremely brief episode while hiking with my ole friend, Stefan, at the mustang horse ranch a few years ago, I probably haven't been barefoot for decades. My feet are like a baby's . . . soft and vulnerable. So, since it is too cold in Colorado, and just perfect for bare feet here, I decided to give it a try.

I took off my cowboy boots (!), stepped off the porch and onto the gravel path. Ouch already. But, I held steady and kept walking trying to pick my steps. There was a tire track, and that seemed to be a little less painful. I followed the path and when I came to the other side, for some reason it was much hotter! And I didn't have the forethought to bring a pair of shoes, so there was nothing I could do but go for it! I walked as quickly as I could to a break in the path to the other side. I wanted to stay out for a minimum of twenty minutes (I think you need that for the benefits), but I only made it five minutes! Well, not bad for my first day!

Late afternoon, we had classroom time learning about how to handle certain vices, and we were allowed to ask questions about how to fix certain things. It was really interesting and informative. Then, we went back outside to the arena and young Jim gave us a demonstration of how to trim a horse's feet. A lot of people do their own trimming when they have lots of horses, and that's what I will do when I get my own horse. Pat, from the mustang ranch, trims her horses feet using an electrical sander, and that's what I will use . . . but, I'll use a battery operated one so I don't have to worry about the cord.

After dinner tonight was the reptile show! My favorite! I almost like reptiles as much as horses! Ok, well, no . . . But, anyway, the show was great! I got there early and talked to the presenters. I wanted to see a gila monster, but they didn't have any. But, I did have to brag to them about me holding a cobra! The show was great, and my roommate, Elizabeth, who sat in the third or fourth row because she didn't want to get too close (I was in the first row, of course) . . . anyway, Elizabeth was kind enough to get up close to take pictures of me holding everything, including a scorpion! I did it just to do it, but admittedly, it kind of gave me the heebie jeebies! Anyway, Phil, the presenter, was very funny, and the animals were great! I loved it!