An Apple A Day

Hi everyone!


Wow ~ It's been a long time since I've had an adventure with Tia! Anways she had a LOT to say when I went up to the farm today. Apparently, she's very concerned about some of the 'goings on'.

So, I got out my new 'Adventure Blundtsone Half-chap Fall Combination' and headed out for a morning ride, to see my Big Filly.



When I got there, Tia was very concerned about something.

"Omigossssshhhhhhh! Wait till I tell you!" She wispered.


"What are you talking about, Tia? and Why are you wispering?" I asked. Tia seemed almost paranoid. She looked into the barn window to see if somebody might be listening ...

"Well I've got some "news" about Nenagh," she told me, with a wink.

"Really," I went along with it. "What sort of news, Tia, and I hope this isn't gossip." Thinking about her age and the way teenage girls can be, I avoided rolling my eyes.


"No ~ straight from the horse's mouth," she reassured me. "Yesterday after my work in the sandbox, Beach commented that I looked to be rounder and even developing a chest! Then Nenagh laughed and said that it was because I had was wearing a 'pushup'."


"Beach got so angry!" She she shuddered.
"Beach?"
"Yes," Tia nodded, "He got really mad and bucked and called her a 'crab-apple-holich'!


"A what?" I shook my head, laughing.


"A Crab-apple-holich! I didn't know what it was either. So, later that day I asked Beach and he told me. He said that 'most' horses eat apples and love them, but 'some' horses have a nasty habbit of eating the apples that have been sitting too long, and 'furment' or something like that. He said that Nenagh does that and it makes her feel funny and then she gets grumpy when she can't have any more apples. Then he said crab-apple-holichs tend to act droopy too ~ like her lip!"



"OK OK ~ Lets get some work done Tia," I said as I tacked her up.But the whole while she kept on about Nenagh...


"Are you listening?" She asked while we played the gate game, "Or am I talking to myself here?"



"Yes, Tia, I'm, Listening," I reassured her. "Go on."


Tia continued, "So anyways, the other day when we were in the trailer together, Nenagh TOLD me herself! She said she wished she could be happy with the ones still on the branches, and pick them off like me, but she's too short and eats the ones on the ground. Then s he said she got to liking them a bit too much. She said that she had a problem with overly ripe apples! She TOLD me! Then she got all emotional, and it made me a bit uncomfortable, actually."






"Wow, Tia" I said "That's a pretty big disclosure!"


"That's exactly what Beach said. And he also told me that maybe this will help Nenagh; that is a 'first step'. Beach is so wise. Do you know that Nenagh has been really nice to me lately? And now she even calls for me to go on the trailer with her ..."


Tia kept talking as I brushed her out, telling me all about Nenagh and how they are getting along now, and Frosty's famous painting that was going to go to the Royal Winter Fair, but then didn't, and the cheeky deer in the thicket snickering and plotting to steal her hay, and how she prefers the softer hay right now, and how Barn Cat is disrupting her morning nap ... she was such a chatty mare today, but I guess we had some catching up to do, with me being away at work so much.


That's it for today's adventure!

Bye for now :)

Me and Tia

Tia's Quotation ~ Swimming Lessons

"It's Me again :)

Today I finally got to see my human! And we went outside and played in the sandbox again. So that made me happy. But today we had a 'swimming lesson', as Beach puts it. You see, according to Beach, sometimes when you see a large puddle, you're supposed to jump it, but, other times it's important to wade through it. You never know what your human wants until it's right there in front of you, so it's very important to be ready either to jump or to swim. Nenagh says if it's a naturally occuring puddle you swim, and if it's a human constructed problem, you jump, and if you can't decide which, then just do a little of both, lose your rider and let them figure it out. Beach says that's not always a good idea. I think I'll listen to Beach. He's so wise.

Tia's Quotation

Hi Everyone,

It's me again ... :)

Well I've been doing some reading, while my human is *working* and it seems that coming soon is the time of year when humans start to "pack on the pounds" as they say. First it's the fall fairs, Thanksgiving, then something called Halloween, then all kinds of parties and food around the celebration called Christmas and "holidays". We all know how easily WE detect those extra pounds ... Hmmm? So this article suggests sending a quick message around this time of year to our beloved humans ~ to get fit. It says here, " ... don't wait for February when S.A.D. comes into effect ~ better to get a head start." I'll have to ask Beach about that one.

Sssooo .. now that the cool wind is blowing your mane all around and crisp smells are in the air, deer are gossiping and running all over ~ it's the perfect time to perfect those 'airs above ground'. It says here .. if you read between the lines, "... that humans need to go to a 'gym' if they aren't strong enough or fit enough." So WE just need to convince them that they're not! It's simple ~ then they'll shave off a few pounds and sit more balanced for heaven's SAKE!

Time to be exuberant equines! Get your rider to the 'gym'!

bye for now :)

Tia

"Fall Fair"

"Hi Everyone!"



It's me again, Tia :) My human is still at "work".






You know I'm trying to be really positive and everything, being a well tempered kindof mare, but this "WORK" thing is really frustrating.


EVERYONE on the T~net is talking about the fairs. I don't even know what that IS? So I asked Beach last night during our night turnout. I said, "Beach what is this "Fair Fall" thing that everyoine is chatting about on the T~Net?"

"Oh you must be talking about the Fall Fairs, my dear. A "fair fall" is something very, very different. That's what happens to your rider when he or she is NOT paying attention."







"Ohhh ... I said ... well Nenagh is making fun of me ~ saying I'm too tall to visit a fall fair, anyways. She said that I would step right over it, and miss it. But the T~net is buzzing all about the sights to see at 'fall fairs'; lights, rides, other animals ... so anyways I'm kindof dissapointed." I told Beach and I think he knew I was a bit down.





SO then Beach said, " Tia ~ you don't need to GO to a fall fair ~ because there are LOTS of things going on right here. This farm IS a fall fair.

"It IS?"

"Yes, Tia." He told me. "Fall fairs have all kinds of things that are right here in the farm yard that we see every day...

Farm equipement ...

Childrens' games and toys ...


Rides...


Strange random objects...


A bouncy castle! You've seen it all before, Tia. You're not missing out." he told me.


That made me feel a lot better. Anyways, I think maybe I'll be old enough to go to a fall fair next year. My human says she has to work or we won't have any money to spend at the fair anyways. But I don't know what money is either ~ except I keep hearing about how much of it I use up, and I don't even know what it looks like! I'll have to ask Beach about that later. He'll know.
Bye for now everyone!

Love Tia

"WORK"

"HI everyone!

It's me, Tia! My human is away right now and really neglecting her responsibility to you, our friends. She's doing something called "Work". So I thought I would drop you all a note!!

I'm really not sure what that is, 'work' but I will say that it has affected the regularity of our playtime, and I find that a tad bit confusing.

See ~ normally we meet at the gate after the first bird sings in the morning, when it's kindof buggy, and I'm very glad to see her.
Then, we get all dressed up, i get a sugar cube, and off we go to play in the sandbox.

After that, I get my serenity snack in the hayfield, until I'm nice and relaxed and cool. Then, my human brushes me, and massages my back and legs. When she's done, I have my cereal, then it's my bedtime.

LATELY, I've been waiting at the gate! Sometimes for minutes! .... You know ... when the bugs are out, minutes can last for a long time ...

Now ~ I realise that this 'work' thing is probably not easy. She told me that she has to manage a small, indoor paddock of 25 minis!!! I'd need a good gallop after that for sure!

But seriousely, my human needs to understand routines. And I think it's my responsibility to enforce them. So ~ the other day, when she didn't visit me AT ALL, I decided to teach her a lesson. The next day while I was doing the 'circle thing' on the long line, I told her to "never to miss a day again". Just like that. I think she got it, because she's been more punctual lately.

SO ... we've been doing some really neat things in our play time. Right now, my human is making something called a 'grid'! I get to jump it. I like it a lot. We did four small jumps in a row. I've only done one little jump before. ( well, not including the round bales in my paddock) My human keeps patting me, saying that I'm smart. But really it's not very hard. Beach says the jumps will keep getting higher,

but I'm not worried.

I just LOVE my new saddle, don't you? It's very comfortable. Beach says it picks up the red in my hair. :)

Know what else? I went into the trailer with NENAGH! She didn't kill me either! (And I even bit her bum on my way up the ramp) THAT wasn't very nice ~ but I couldn't help it. It was just there ~ and so big ~ don't you think?

Well I really should be going, It's almost time to go outside. Let's hope my human remembers to be on time tomorrow :)

Bye for now!

TIA

Making a Human Kite

"Making a human kite is quite easy as long as you follow the proper instructions:

• make sure you have a week off any work, as you will require ALL your energy


• time your kite making project for the day you come in season. The more bloated and grumpy the better ~ it's fuel!


• be extremely affectionate and sucky with your human just prior ~ convincing your human you are a marshmallow is vital to the success of the kite fight ~ 'catch them off guard'


• start out on the longe by being really quiet, hding eny evidence of excess energy ~ or sign of jealousy that your beloved human has ridden *other horses*


• focus on your feelings of abandonment, and betrayal as well as the pent up energy you've been stockpiling all week ~ focus hard and wait ...


• The moment will come when your human asks for you to 'canter'
• :D
• explode as if your life depended on it ~


• Once your human braces his or her two feet ~ use your neck as leverage and yank them up into the air and run ~ :D


• Don't worry your human will be right behind! ~ It works!!!

Have fun! Tia :)

Prior knowledge

Hi Everyone!

I thought I’d better wake up early and check on Tia to make sure she didn’t bump her leg again. It’s really important to keep swelling down on horses’ legs. Enough swelling can cause a LOT of stress…and even damage! Anyways… so that's why I decided I’d look for another bank to deal with ~ one that is more ‘horse friendly’.

Just then the phone rang and Anna fetched it for me!

“Thanks Anna,” I pet her … “…so smart…”


“It’s probably the kids,” said Gerry, “Remember them?”

I scoffed, “Very funny, Gerry,” and took the phone.

“ Hi! How are things in Ottawa?… Wow ~ Great! So when did you see that? Was it better than the last one? Hmmmhmm… I see … Well I’d Love to go see it but … Tia had a vet emergency… Yeah ... you know how that is … no I haven’t had to sell anything yet .. Yes, you’ve still got your beds … AND the drums and electric ...OK ~ Love you all…Bye!”

“Well that’s nice,” I told Gerry, “They got to see the new ‘Harry Potter movie with grandma and gra...THAT’s IT Gerry! That’s what Tia was picking up on the T~ Net! How could I have missed that?”

Gerry rolled his eyes, put the phone away, and went back to squishing his stress ball.

I decided to sprint to the barn, and share the exciting new with Tia. She would be SO relived to know what the scary movie was!

At the farm, Tia was having her morning nap when I burst in. “Hey, Tia, guess what?”

“Oh Hi!” She greeted me. “What a coincidence! I just got in…”

“I finally get it! The movie ~ you know ~ the ‘Trotter’ movie…You were picking up on the Telepathy net ... it's ‘Harry Potter!’ It’s just out in theatres now! It’s about a boy…”

“Oh ~ Is he a Trotter?”

“No, silly, Harry Potter is a movie about a human boy with a lightning shaped ‘scar’ not a ‘star’ and he’s being chased by an evil character named ‘Voldemort’ ~ not ‘Odenhorse’!”

“Oh ~ A scar…I don’t have a scar,” she giggled. “I wonder why I thought it was ‘Oldenhorse’?”

“Well,” I lectured, “That’s simple. It’s called scaffolding. Whenever a youngster learns something new ~ he or she has to build it into his or her 'prior knowledge'. You know so ‘Potter’ made no sense to you … therefore you assumed it was ‘Trotter” and…'Voldemort’ … Tia?”

Tia had fallen asleep on me…Poor Filly! All that stress yesterday, and now here I am keeping her up from her nap.

“Hmmm? No, no ... keep going, I’m listening, just shutting my eyes…” Tia fluffed her bedding and waited for me to continue.

“OK … well … Anyways you don’t have to worry cause it’s not real ...” I explained. “The only place you’ll find ‘Lord Voldemort' is in the Harry Potter books, the movies, or occasionally ... on some horsey on-line bulletin boards.”

“Well that is reassuring. Thanks. I’m going to sleep now. See you in a bit.” And she dozed of politely, snoring her girlish little snore.

“Hmmmm,” I thought. “Maybe I’ll just get the poultice ready for when she wakes up.”
So I got on my Special No Slip Adventure Poultice Gloves and opened the container.





“Woooow.” I thought quietly so not to disturb Tia’s slumber. “SOMEONE’s been using a LOT of poultice! Hmmmmm. Well ~ I guess I’ll have to go and get more before she wakes up.
That’s it for today’s adventure!

Bye for now,
ME and TIA