It's been a long time coming

So. Almost four months since I last posted and I feel awful about it. Full time student with two part time jobs doesn't really leave much time for anything else, but with the new year coming up I'm going to try to keep up with everything. As for what I'm going to post today, I just wanted to put up a photo that I took about two years ago and that was selected by National Geographic as part of their Weekly Wrapper a while ago. It was taken on the Isle of Skye, Scotland.

Hope for the future (?)

I work in a bookstore, and most of the time it's really annoying. Don't get me wrong, I love working around of the books and the store I work at is amazing. It's the people that get annoying. Just like with every customer service job, it tends to expose the rude and selfish side of humanity. I spend most of my time picking up books or magazines that people have left on tables and chairs, cleaning up cups and paper bowls and other worse thing, and cleaning nasty bathrooms. And a lot of the books I pick up are lying two feet from the shelf they belong on. And then there's the people themselves, who demand to know why we don't have a certain book, who want to know why books cost so much, etc. etc. Basically demanding.

Occasionally, I actually help people find books they want. And sometimes they even thank me.

But the other day, I saw something that made me realize I can be pretty pessimistic and I'm only allowing myself to see the bad. While I was straightening books a young boy, about 12 or 13, came over to me with an American Eagle bag and he said "I found this on the bench and it has a wallet in it." I thanked him and turned it into my manager. That was nice in itself, because the wallet was untouched. Then, about twenty minutes later, two older teenagers, about 17, came in and asked if we had found the bag and wallet. My manager gave it back and as I was walking away I heard the one boy tell the other he was going to find the boy who found the bag and thank him. That made me smile and I went back to my shelf cleaning. And finally, as I was finishing, the young boy came up to his brother and I heard him say that they older boys had given him $7 for turning in his bag and wallet.

Made. My. Day.

Dan My Man

Last Friday I signed the adoption papers for an 11 year old Thoroughbred gelding named Dangel, or Dan for short. On Tuesday we brought him home, and we're all getting used to having a horse while Dan's getting used to his new home. He's really sweet, large and powerful, and still a little skittish in his new surroundings. But we're making progress and he's settling down, and hopefully soon i'll be able to start riding him. Sometimes it's really weird having a horse, I'm not quite used to it yet, but I'm really excited for what's to come. So just a heads up, you'll probably be hearing a lot more about Dan and horses in the future. 

Short Fashion blurb

So even though I'm not a fashion person and I don't really have a sparkling sense of fashion like my friend Amber, I think I can still dress cute and I know a good deal when I see one. (usually :P ) Recently I found a website called HauteLook, and it has daily sales from brand name designers, which can still be pricey or, like today, be really well priced and really cute.

It's got a lot of things; mostly clothes, but there's shoes, jewelry, beauty and hair accessories on occasion, even vacations. Take a quick peek at it and see what you think; you might find the next blog post if you're a fashion person or maybe a dress you plan to wear on your next date. Enjoy!

www.hautelook.com

One Step Closer

This week we've started looking for a horse to buy/adopt/rehome! We have a stable to board at and a stall being held for us, and we're doing adoption applications now. I've found a bunch of horses that look really good and look really good rides, like a horse named Dangel and another called Click Here (his barn name is Ted) I'm so excited and praying that this will work out.

Right now I'm focused on finding a retired racehorse, a thoroughbred off the track. That's what the two I mentioned above are. Thoroughbreds get a bad rap because they can be high-strung and spirited. But they are actually a pretty great breed, really flexible and able to do many disciplines. They're good sport horses, great a jumping and cross country and Dressage. My mom isn't too thrilled, because of their reputation, but I'm thinking it's a really good idea because many people don't want off the track horses.

I'm wildly excited about this, but I'm also scared. I've never had a horse of my own, and I'm kinda nervous about it. Will I be able to care for it like I should? Will I be a good owner, someone who cares for the horse like I need to? Am I good enough to do this? And then if I can do all that, will I be able to compete and show and be good enough to reach a high level? I don't have the money I need really be a serious competitor by having the best horses; could I do it by skill and practice alone? All of these questions and what ifs are running around in my brain, and I just hope I can prove myself to the Equestrian World someday.

Road Reflections

I'm back from Massachusetts, and it was a cool trip. Along the road I had time to think a lot, and I just wanted to post some of my ramblings. It's much different here from my travels in Europe, in a lot of ways. For one, it was one of the few times I wasn't a foreign traveller. Everyone spoke my language and I paid in dollars. No currency exchanges at all! And then there was the city. Boston is built UP, like most American cities. It's tall skyscrapers and newness and business. Very unlike the European cities, which sprawl outward from the center where people first settled hundreds of years ago.

The buildings in European cities can be, at times, older than the United States. The buildings in Boston are the United States, or the start of it at least. They're the same churches and meeting houses our Founding Fathers walked through, the buildings where our revolution was born. And in that historical sense, it isn't that much different than Europe, except that the history seems much closer. All those events and buildings are less than 300 years old, and it the echoes of History are much louder, much easier to reach and hear. America is a baby in the world. So young. Of course I'm not the first to say that. But I think that sometimes America and Americans forget how young we really are, and it can make us arrogant in other countries. Like children.

Anyway, Happy early 4th of July!!! I can't wait to get together with my family and celebrate with good food, laughter and fireworks.

Road Trip

Tomorrow I'm finally getting out of Ohio, even if it's only for a week.

We're heading up to Boston until the 25th, to see the historical sights, the beach, and hopefully some good seafood. We'll be staying in Boston and traveling up and down the coast. I'm excited, and I can't wait to do some traveling. Road Trip!!!

But for now, it's back to mowing the yard. Ciao!