That's not how it works, is it?

Whoops.

So I've been perusing Craig's List, English Tack Trader and eBay recently for brown dressage saddles.  Haphazardly looking for a unicorn: ostentatious blocks, pretty, MW, good condition, and cheap.  And brown.

And then I found it.

Not gonna complain, but it sells closer to $4.5k new, with the two-tone leather.  Will be selling the carrier, if anyone is interested in black and pink.

I showed the ad to D and he wondered briefly why the guy was selling it so cheap.  Me, too!  I sent an email to the guy, regardless, and he didn't respond.  So I texted him.  Because I'm persistent.  And mildly obnoxious.  I knew I'd like this saddle because I rode OR's mare in the exact same thing.

The guy and I had a great chat about why he was selling it and he gave me a ton of photos of every angle that I asked about, verified the size of the gullet and the seat, and I talked it over with D.  Because, whoopsie, the saddle was about four hours away.

Yeah, the irons are Korsteel composite.

D was sold on the idea of a road trip after the guy offered to meet us almost half-way.

So Saturday, D and I drove to Columbia and ate dinner at an amazing Mexican restaurant that I'd found on Yelp and then wandered across the street to meet the Guy With the Saddle (because that's how he introduced himself on the phone before telling me his name) at a CVS.  He was concerned about adequate light for me to see the saddle.

He was blown away by his Molcajete.

I checked everything over, removed the bit from the bridle he was selling with the saddle (his wife wanted to keep it) (she's a trainer out of Charleston, small world) (he said she'd come give me lessons, if I wanted, for a price), tugged on the billets (replaced a year and a half ago at a reputable Aiken saddlery), checked the tree for any give, squished all the squishables, poked all the pokeables, and put the saddle in D's arms.  Ours now!

It was probably one of the best exchanges that I've ever had with a man over fifty.  He'd had another man with him, for safety, I suppose.  But, you know how when you're the only woman in the group, even if you're one of the primary parties, the men will still rather talk to each other?  Like going to a car dealership and having them talk to your husband when you're making the purchase.  This guy didn't do that.  He politely acknowledged D, but his focus remained on me and on my questions and opinions.  He was just respectful and I appreciated that.

I did find out why he was selling so cheap:  a) his Hanovarian mare was recently retired and b) he wants to get into road cycling, so we talked about bikes for a little bit.  Like, he immediately used the money to purchase a Trek on Monday.

So here's my silver-lining to our semi-retirement, Seidenschnabel.  It's Buckbeak's German name.  His barn name is Wither Wings, which is Buckbeak's name after Sirius dies and he gets returned to Hogwarts.  Given the giant blocks on this thing, I felt pretty proud of myself for the names.  #nevertoomuchharry