Bucky

When I started taking riding lessons a little over 8 years ago, My first half dozen or so lessons were on the back of a big ol buckskin gelding named Bucky. He was a grade horse, and looked to be part draft. Bucky had the sweetest, most tolerant disposition you could ask for, and was probably the closest thing to totally bombproof that a horse could be. I fell in love with the old guy early on and wished I could've bought him from the barn.

Bucky died in February 2003. It's uncertain how old he actually was, but it's likely he was up into his 30's. That's pretty darned old for such a big horse. Well, I finally got things moving and arranged to have his picture on the cover of The Equiery, a free horse publication in Maryland that's read by lots of people. He may not have been a champion jumper or a show horse, but dangit, I and some of the other folk who knew Bucky wanted to get him some recognition. I got a call from one of the people at the Equiery tonight. We'd completely forgotten to think up a caption or dedication for the picture. I just kind of rattled off something off the top of my head. Darned sleep deprivation and stress just dont' have me in a creative or quick-thinking state. I hope it wasn't too corny or dumb. I really can't wait to see the May issue when it comes out.

Things I've Learned From Horses

*Someone else's hay is always better than your own.

*Sometimes you have to nip someone's rump to get your point across.

*Foxes, deer, rabbits, turtles, and rocks are all capable of becoming Horse Eating Monsters.

*Why canter, when you can trot really really really fast?

*Hands always contain treats.

*If a hand appears empty, wiggling your upper lip against it over and over might make the treats appear. (see above)

*It's not your fault that a finger feels just like the tip of a carrot when it's near your nose.

*When the barn hand comes into the stall with your food, try to grab it away from them. After all, just because they didn't change their mind and take it away as far back as you can remember doesn't mean they won't start now.

*There's nothing quite like a good roll in the dirt.

*Being turned out in the pasture will instantly cure that sore foot that made you too lame for the human to ride.

*How big you are doesn't matter, it's all in the atitude.

*Don't piss off the bossmare.

Associations

It's kinda weird how one's mind can associate things permanently. Case in point: I'm listening to the radio. A classical music station, to be specific, and they're playing the first movement of Beethoven's 5th symphony. Now that's one of those pieces that even people who aren't big on classical music can usually recognize. Rarely can I listen to it without at least smiling and sometimes chuckling, though.

Back when I was in high school #1 in Missouri (I went to 3 high schools. the joys of being an army brat) I was in the band. Marching I played the clarinet, and in concerts I played the bassoon. (uber nerd!) Most of my family assumed, correctly, that that meant I liked classical music. So one birthday or Christmas, I received as a gift a set of two PDQ Bach tapes. PDQ Bach was a ficticious composer, of course. The tapes were full of humorous bits based on classical music done by Peter Schcikele. One of them was Beethoven's 5th with a pair of sportscasters providing commentary. Ever since then, I can't listen to the 5th without thinking of that skit.

What can I say? My brain is weird. I'll blame it on the road crews that are out there yet again tonight.