Happy AF.

11:35 AM
By Beka Burke
21 Comments

It might be the new meds (surprise!), but I was just.. fucking thrilled with life this weekend. So before I puddle into contented goo, here's a small novel of some of the happy things:

Shoes

The Archer got his feets put back on. Sure, he was a total asshole the entire time, but shoes! The farrier went for a bigger shoe and was really satisfied with the results. I'm just happy to have two shoes on the Kid, because it means we can do more than gimp along in a boot at a walk. Like show off our ability to trot and canter in the ring. It's the little things.

New Rider

There's a new rider at the barn who is lessoning with the BM and leasing one of the BM's show ponies. It's not your typical situation. This isn't a kid or someone who's been riding forever or an adult re-rider. This lady has never ridden, her kids are almost grown, and, by god, she wants to be a dressage rider. I can't get over her passion. She asks questions, she talks theories, she absorbs everything we tell her and asks for more. It's refreshing. It's invigorating. Her passion is contagious and I love it.

Used the opportunity of riding Big G to explain to her how downward transitions start with the seat.
He's so sensitive that it was perfect.

Photos

The BM's kid and I did a trade off - I took some photos of her and her new (enormous) pony, and she reciprocated with some photos of the hubs and me. She's young, just got a dslr last Christmas and is a natural. I set it up on aperture-priority, set the ISO to auto, and tossed my camera with my 24mm lens into her hands. She'd never used a primary lens and she was phenomenal. She has a natural eye for composition and angles and I hope she keeps it up. She got some great photos, so here are some of my favorites.

I just like how gray my hair looks.

I thought long and hard about getting on Archie. And if we'd taken a single step, I wouldn't have. But I felt okay about sitting on him without a helmet in a relatively controlled setting. Vanity, your name is hypocrite.

More Photos

The Humane Society at which I volunteer got a studio set up donated by Purina. The requirement is that all my photos will now have to be on this white backdrop, which is more time-consuming, but it's freaking awesome to get some experience with remote flash photography and figuring out appropriate settings. Like, I can't shoot faster than 1/320, or I'm too fast for the flash. And, whoops, why am shooting the white cat on the white backdrop wide open? I always use the lowest F setting and had to ask the helper to bring that cat back once I figured out that I could close the aperture a smidge and actually see the cat. Prepare for those photos on Wednesday.

Trail Ride

Boss pony is cementing his position as trail leader. We took a group of three other riders on a trail ride yesterday, including the baby QH and the beginner rider, and we had absolutely no issues. No spooks, no falls, no panics, just perfection. I freaking love this horse. He kept one ear on the people behind us and periodically looked back to check their position. I rode on the buckle the entire time.

Listening ear.

Fitness/Appearance

Fuck squad goals. I have quad goals. I'm half-way through my third week in a new training program and it's kicking my ass. I love it. If you've got access to a gym and some experience, it's the free training program by Ashley Horner called Charlie Mike, offered via app for free from Bodybuilding.com. The first week is devoted to finding your one-rep max for a bunch of traditional lifts, then building on your ability to regularly lift a percentage of that. It's hard.

And, oh hey, I'm a serious blonde now. I took my stylist a few photos and walked out with a higher side cut and some high lights. It's petty, in the grand scheme of things, but I feel like every day I'm becoming more "me" again. And me is a blonde. With a hint of silver, because yes.

The Hubs

Ten years ago yesterday, I sent the man a friend request on Facebook, thinking that he'd blow me off like he did all through high school. Ten minutes later, I'm in the bathroom calling my bestie because he not only accepted, but messaged me with his email address and wanted to hang out. We've been together ever since.