new laptop

at vast expense .. and i'll hve to go back to the shop on monday as he forgot to put the battery in (have to go back anyway, i left some bits as i couldn't carry any more! and wanted to set it up over the weekend ready for next week)

looking forward to seeing molly tomorrow, farrier is due for a foot trim for her, and hope the weather improves..

laptop

now refuses to switch on, despite being plugged into the mains and in any event having a full battery. an internal electrical fault, i think. so need to find a good computer repair man ASAP. (it's out of warranty)

so until i can get it mended (do hope i don't have to have a new one!) this will only be updated from home. :-(

as for £60 per week - i'm used to paying £25 box rent full DIY, + buy my own haylage/feed, and £60 is only £13.50 less than i'm paying now for box rent and having Molly fully done monday to friday.... haylage/feed cost me probably around that £13.50 a week (depending on the size of the haylage bales and where i get them) + shavings at current price, if I'm doing it one bag a week (unfortunately, slightly more ATM).

well

on the yard hunt front. i wrote to the one that had no one home the other day, letter went today so you never know they might ring me tomorrow.

i rang the one in mobberley; they only do part livery for £60 per week inclusive of all hay haylage etc.. and he said, feed, but surely that can't be right? and they do morning turnout, you just turn up at night. i'm going to go look one night next week (already have plans for tomorrow). colleague had forgot to ask her friend, so sent email tonight.

on the flat front, no word from the landlord yet re the bathroom, so i shall probably seal it round myself on monday if i haven't heard anything. can't be doing with a bath in the morning, a shower it should be!

on the pay front - realised tonight that i am also paying my own EMPLOYER'S NI contribution - very bizarre! and not what i'd expected, not doing a lot for the budget!

and i thought the laptop had died - had told it to reboot, but it didn't - it wouldn't do anything! went out for milk I'd forgotten to get, and it booted up ok, so i suppose it had managed to overheat in the 20 minutes it had been switched on...

my back is hurting, which i think is to do with the seats - both in the flat and in the office, neither are ergonomically correct!

and when the place has warmed up, i'm having a bath tonight - too cold to face the prospect this morning!

photo

that fellow livery in durham took, i think at some point over the summer. apparently there's also one of molly in the air.... looking forward to seeing that! i think she looks quite imperious in this one...

so far livery yards are too far away, bar the one with no one home last week and the other with 100 horses on it....

tesco

i'm sick of the inside of. it's only a mile up the road, so if i remember i need something.

and tonight, i caved in an bought a printer for here, it really is not convenient to have to wait till i get home to print something! and opened the box at home to find no usb cable, apparently they don't ship with them these days. phooey. but i'd assumed there wouldn't be ink, bought some, and needn't have...

met one of my neighbours today, woman in her 30's, i guess, a gardener .. doing well in leafy wilmslow! nice person, i thought!

anyway, have emailed myself yard recommendations (thanks fiona & mags) and will see where they take me...

in hand...

coulnd't make my mind up what to do, so tacked up, but then no one to help get on and of course molly wasn't going to stand anywhere sensible - she'll stand, but with her head at my shoulder - i move the block - she goes around..

so in hand roudn the arena 2 or 3 times left rein, only once right rein as that side is of course counter intuitive for me, being right-handed...

then untacked, and someone turned up

turned her out without her rug as she'd actually been too warm yesterday, and i was working in my shirtsleeves and not feeling the cold - she's a very furry mare! i expect she'll be fine without, really, unless it totally teems down again...

and i saved myself £1 by bringing her in myself - with the clocks going back, it's time to bring her in before i set off (and my driving is done in the dark.....euch).

and people, avoid Wetherby until they finish the roadworks, the traffic jam was back to the harrogate turning so i turned off there and had the satnav plot an alternative route over blubberhouses pass and past skipton & colne....lovely (not, in the dark, LOL). hate to think how long i would have sat in that jam otherwise!

a flattening wind

that is, fit to flatten anyone rash enough to do anything in it! so no one did - at least, not on our yard, as the arena is too exposed to the elements. if it were in the lee of the road, would have been different, but there you go.

and i had an expensive day.

firstly, came out of the house and thought, oops, near front tyre doesn't look right. I needed 2 new front tyres. £86.

and during the week, partner had taken my mountain horse boots to the cobblers, they needed new zips. they aren't going to get them. he couldn't do it (and if couldn't no one can!) and i know it would cost £100 the pair for mountain horse to do it. so they're in the bin, and i now own a pair of Ariat Grasmere the sort with two laces). rather nice!

hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow...

a 4 hour drive

for what should have been 2 1/2 hours

i decided to avoid the M62, which is always likely to be a disaster area on wheels, but didn't do any better the other way - volume of traffic going from motorway to single lane through narrow town and then up over the tops to sheffield & the M1. THEN huge traffic jam from Wetherby back to Leeds - those who know that area, know that that's ridiculous. and THEN they'd closed the A1M at the exit just before the one I wanted. I got home at 21:25, instead of just after 8.

and the livery yard hunt? a colleague at the office has a friend who has a horse on a small DIY yard, so is going to enquire for me.

livery yards

i went and looked at two. the first one looked very nice, quiet, small, indoor that i couldnt' get to see - there was no one in! clearly there was going to be people about at som epoint as there were haynets made up but not at that point and it was getting dark.

then the other much larger round the corner, i thought since i was there i would see (this is at woodford) - barn arrangement, large stables, lockable area behind but a bit dodgy to get into, steep drop, indoor, large outdoor and other stuff it was too dark to see. seemed nice, but apparently (report hath it) has a large turnover, and i've a feeling it would be TOO big for molly to settle, really. one can't really know but it is a very large yard with a huge number of horses (and a huge amount of acreage). she says turnout all year save when they flood

anyway, i want to go back to the other one (i don't know the name, only the address!), and still need to ring mobberley which i'll try and do at the weekend.

and for some reason my email client isn't working keeps trying to connect to the wrong server, which is ridiculous. that's thunderbird, so i guess i'll go try windows mail instead..

the joys of flats..

are minimal. nice email to agent this morning with little list = including lack of sealant round bath resulting in i shan't have showers until that is sorted ... too damp.

discovered tonight can't open kitchen window, locked shut and no key, not clever when cooking!

and i wish there were lights by the main door to the building!

livery yard hunt - the lodge at woodford or a yard at mobberley (not the riding school) to be investigated - and which tack shop open until 8, to check notice board....think she said the prestbury one, but can't remember.

moved myself

into new flat, with assistance! had to go out buy ligthbulbs, and am adding to the list of faults that i don't want to be blamed for later....

foudn i'd left my orthopaedic pillow at the hotel, so had to go back for that! which meant dinner in pub again, not a hardship really!

agent sent man to mend what we thought was the inside aerial fixing into the telly, but turns out that not only did it need the external aerial sorted, but the telly itself was out of order altogether.. lovely!

most everything is put away and the bed is made, so that's the main stuff done.. and i have llist of livery yards and saddlers/feed stores.

sorry!

for not saying anything yesterday - but not a lot to say.

because she'd spent so long in - since friday night until yesterday morning, not including the lunging in the morning and bit of work inthe afternoon - i thought it much better for her to get out in the new field and get her legs excercised and thus get the swelling down ....

so out she went, and all hte horses had a really good day as there is GRASS in that field.

so that was sunday.

and edited to add

this is the yard we were talking about:

http://www.quarrystables.piczo.com/?cr=4

but i won't be going there because their routine doesn't work if you work 9 -5 ; shame, as it looks great.

bit of good bit of bad...

this morning, I turned her out in the small arena to stretch her legs whilst I mucked out - she wasnt' really interested in doing that, just stood and whinnied at me!

Then I lunged - not necessarily for work, just for exercise at that stage - had a plan for the afternoon! - but someone had left out a small pole on blocks, no more than about 6 - 9 inches high. so I lunged her over that, and by the finish she jumped it! worked it out. I was so pleased - she never has been taught to jump that i'm aware of - in fact, clearly i was right to think that! - so i was pleased that she "got" it. useful exercise for her, once she gets the hang of it we can move on up...

the plan for the afternoon was to ride out with partner on foot. unfortunately, by the time i'd managed to get on, she'd got feet full of gravel and small bits of stone, and was lame. I took her back, picked the feet out again, and we went in the arena - and she was sound.

My feeling is that with all the mud, her feet have gone a bit soft and the little bits of stone were just a bit too much

we then did some work in the arena instead....

but she was a B to be mounted again. YO had done a litte with her through the week, and got exactly the same reaction as i do - quite happy to stand at the mounting block until someone climbs up to get on, then bums away.

anyway, have pretty much decided to move her over to wilmslow - losing too much with these huge gaps

home again..

molly got wormed tonight,as did the rest, so they all have to stay in tomorrow save for leg stretching and being ridden. so since her legs aren't good if she's in, they swell, i guess i'll be doing a bit with her to keep her moving...

and thing PRO a move - there's an EE teacher in cheshire....

so, what should i do?

move molly over here or leave her over there?

pro move:
she'll get more work (if i find somewhere with a lit arena, even if it is outdoor)
it'll probably cost me less - cheaper for someone to do her for sat/sun than for monday to friday.
i'll be back in full control for more days of the week

con:
she's settled where she is
i'd have to give up that stable for the period she's away...

that's it really, i think!

if anyone thinks of other pros/cons, let me know, help me decide....

in the meantime, foudn a flat - one bedroom, bath/shower, kitchen, living/dining - small, not the best, a bit tatty really, but does the job...£425 pcm + bills....so will take it, hope there's enogh money in the bank for deposit.

and i'm struggling with expenses, putting the details on, it's a website for an umbrella company that does it all and they even have a help section, but it has missed one detail that i need them to clarify.

and i won't get paid until that's all sorted out and i've inputted everything. and i forgot to get a vat receipt for my diesel when i filled up last thursday ... bummer. and with not having a printer here was unable to print out the booking details for the hotel...which acts as receipt - so shall have to see if i can get at that via web..

i hope caroline

is holidaying somewhere warm and dry, as it's teeming down here (where i am is in her general neck of the woods)

didn't get the derby job, and it's probably just as well as it turns out ...but since this is a public blog, enough said.

so, stay in wilmslow for a while, and then see what turns up, the agency have something i will be interested in and the people want to see me, in manchester.

Caroline did wonder why i would want to move the horse - because i'm here and she's 150 miles away and that don't play.

anyway, finally watching some telly for the first time in months... having a telly that works helps (still haven't got that set back up at home!)

partner has downloaded my emails at home - i am pretty annoyed, as i keep saying, don't! when i get home at the weekend i might just delete my account at home, that way she can only get her own, not mine - i can always set it up again each friday night and take it off again on sunday afternoon! or just keep it on this laptop.

lack of updates...

i think i did well last week having anything to say, but i know i won't do as well this week so possibly won't try too hard.... a shame, but this is meant to be a blog about molly, not about work and being in wilmslow!

the bedsit i was going to see wasn't going to work - place was nice and i would have taken it, but they want a minimum 6 month let :-(

carrying her tail

was what she was doing in walk on the lunge this morning, which of course means she is relaxed. partly as she "gets it" and strengthens up and partly, i wonder, because the back man was out Friday and she had the electric machiine thingy (i wasn't there, what do i know) on her, apparently she was stiff down the left side.

anyway, she offered right rein on the lunge with no asking so i took it, no stress at all, i didn't have to get after her to go that way - WOW. is that the first time that has happened? i think so.

I was pleased.

the only annoying thing was that it was such a lovely morning that every half circle i was blinded by the rising sun - these specs are supposed to be transitions, but frankly, i think they've got them wrong when they made them. and partner says they're grey lenses - they were supposed to be brown, dammit.

10 minutes good

Decided to ride this morning, on the basis that having been away all week partner would appreciate me being at home when she is awake LOL...

so got on, in the new smaller square area as YO's OH was putting lights round the main arena - he said, just walk, there's still soft spots....

anyway, for the first time just about ever, not only did i get a soft, non resisting halt, i also got a soft, non resisting, head stayed down etc, walk from halt.

that was after about 10 minutes, and it was so good (albeit no way perfect, no doubt, but still ) I got off.

her scabs have not come back, YO has been putting mud fever prevention cream on and it's ok - just as well, the mud is still horrendous - sure the water board have created a stream where they didn't used to be one, as a result of their flood prevention works!

think i'll do some in hand work or longlining tomorrow ...

and then i'm back to wilmslow

sucessful day

120 delegates, we all had a good time and were well fed! if anyone's ever organising a conference, I'll recommend St James as a venue

2 friends will not be able to live down the fact that they were looking for a hospital ... their excuse, well i'm not sure, other than they clearly don't read the front page, let alone the sports page (for foreign readers, i am of course talking about the home of Newcastle United FC....)

back in newcastle

at a better hotel, for our conference tomorrow. good dinner.

and derby has been back int ouch via the agent and has a concern about whether i'll stick the course with the travelling, so i've made a suggestion to convince them of that

otherwise, it's wilmslow for a while longer and then there's the possibility of a job in manchester on maternity leave cover for a head of department....

looking forward to seeing molly on saturday morning

and seeing partner tomorrow night, unless she's called out!

i miss

believe it or not, the getting up, going down, turning out, mucking out, bedding up, etc and generally interacting with my horse!

another reason for fetching her over here, caroline....

anyway, i've found a bedsit and am going to look at it monday, walking distance from the office, attached to a house where the landlord lives, photos look ok .. would be half what i'm paying for hotels

different roads

to the same place. still on the subject of books.

i know what you mean, jean, about different thinking in different books from different people.

BUT in essence, they are generall all saying the same thing, if in a slightly different way.

they may not agree that they are, but they are.

and it's interesting to see how different people explain (or don't) the same thing... some easy to understand, some not, and the whole gives a more complete picture..

anyway tonight's fix of herbermann is certainly useful on bending ....

books

not being at home and thus not actually doing anything with Molly, i brought a load of books and dvd's with me to try and get caught up on my reading.

i keep Fillis in the car to dip into - i find the typeface quite hard going, so can only read a small amount at a time, so that book is useful there as i read it whilst e.g. waiting for partner or, as on saturday, having lunch in the car before interview!

i'm reading Herbermann's Dressage Formula whilst eating meals on my own. I'm enjoying that, can can see why people who've been on his clinics have got a lot out of them.

i've got Udo Burger's book with me as well, currently, i confess, doing sterling duty propping up the lap top to improve it's angle. i have started it (it was bedside at home) but think i'll finish Herbermann first.

Anja Beran's book is in the bag, i got most of the way through that a while ago, and it's to re read

and i bought maximize your horsemanship on Sunday ...

and various others! i think if i'm going to be away a bit, then it's useful reading tiem .....

also brought a load of dvd's to play on the pc - some i've already seen and need to view again, others to start from scratch

i recently bought the philippe karl set - unfortunately, on video not dvd, so they have to be watched at home when we re-set the video up (or if i have time, try and work out a way to link the vhs to the pc. technically possible, i gather!). but i think they'll be to go back to and back to over time.

and i've got the latest thomas covenant as well, on a totally non horsey note....

oops

soory about the lack of post yesterday - the new technology had a child block on it that has taken until this morning to get off (in that, having done what I needed to do last night, it didn't work until this morning...)

in wilmslow for work

I did ride yesterday morningk, in glorious sunshine (if a bit cold!) and had a nice forward trot and some nice walk.

you'll remember the horse i towed to horsepital a few weeks ago? same issues on mounting as Molly - but i think his might be easier to sort

a good day - but not with molly

I did SEE molly of course,turned her out, mucked out, bedded up etc - then went to Derby for interview, which IMHO went rather well. Seemed to get on with the people, and teh technical questions were interesting (I'd read a new case that the chap asking me hadn't....)

So have hopes of that, think it's a good prospect, without counting too many chickens!

then came home, Molly had just been brought in so fed her and came home for a well earned cup of tea.

and have arranged for her to see the back man Friday, top local horse & person physio is coming to the yard anyway and he's seen her before (saw her mother as well) so too good an opportunity to pass up. last time I had to take her there, which proved to be a nightmare as I was let down at the last minute for transport...

round pen

the morning was taken up with the man being here to sort the boiler out, and find out why we have a leak under the bath. the boiler is mostly done, but needs a new expansion chamber. and that bath? we need a new bath! very fine hairline cracks, it doesn't owe anyone anything as it's been in donkeys years (the chap remembered getting it for previous owner of house many moons ago) but a bit of a b....

and while he was doing that i was finding my work related documents (practising certificate, very important piece of paper!) for the agency..

and the weather was pants

and i had to then take partner's car to get something else looked at

then the weather improved and i planted my garlic and winter onions - thought I'd best get that done, since I've not only got a job but will be working away!

so it was later than I've been used to lately when i got to the yard, and time I'd got her in and checked her legs for mud fever (definitely sorted!) by washing them off etc, decided to just round pen as the light was starting to go. she did ok, i was pleased.

rode out .. but!

Jill came out on foot, kindly, to give molly confidence (that was the plan; jill's horse currently out of action with a bit of a virus!) - the plan in due course is to ride out together

anyway, we had two attempts to turn back before we got to the turning we want. one because, we think, she clocked some mares & foals she'd seen before; the second, i'd misjudged the turn right was turning early and she tought i meant turn round.

anyway, going up country lane we all could see a caravan that LOOKED as though it ws in the middle of said lane - you really couldn't tell that it wasn't until you got up to it.

that was a real problem for molly so we decided i'd get off and lead - but of course, no way she was letting me back on again. so we both had a long walk!

we had various attempts at various points to get her to stand so I could get back on but wasn't going to happen.

so when we got back to the yard, molly went in the arena and did some schooling, once i got on (with a hand at her head...)

YO thought i should get someone else to get her sorted onn the moutning front - i said, you're welcome to try next week when i'm away, at your own risk... but she agrees with me that if i'm losing my temper, i have to stop trying as that is counter productive. It was at least very clear to Jill today that it's just pure stubbornness on Molly's part, not fear, not pain, not anything other than her

there is no doubt some reason why this happens and she does this, but no idea what it might be..

hurray!

I have a job. a locum job, starts monday, in Wilmslow (which is just down the road from Caroline...), the money's good and it's work I know.

And Molly? Natasha's phone was switched off, so hope she's not had some other horror go wrong with her health, as she didn't turn up. I spent so long waiting for her to get back to me, i ran out of time before my evening meeting to do anything sensible with Molly so nothing got done...and since I had to leave some hourse before it would be sensible for her to be in for the night, i had to ask someone else to do that for me...