Ok so I’m back at school in TN, and I have a thing for this guy. Now people who know me know that I have absolutely the worst luck/experiences/common sense when it comes to guys. Lets just be honest, I’m guy retarded.

I’m pretty positive that there is (or at least was) some mutual attraction between us, so it’s not like I’m making up this whole scenario in my head. Since I don’t have a whole lot of experience in this area I’m not sure if this is how it is for everyone, but I have got to tell you that it is one of the most confusing/awkward things ever.

For example last night we’re at a softball game. My game was at 8 and his was at 9 so my friends and I, having nothing better to do, stayed around to watch. So after the game all my friends start to leave, and this guy is still over by his teams bench. Now WHAT DO I DO? Do I stand around by myself trying to look like I’m not waiting for him, but obviously waiting for him, hoping that he’s going to come over when he’s done? Do I leave without saying anything? Do I try to make some sort of cool approach to talk to him? I don’t want to look like some kind of crazy stalker, but I don’t want him to think that I don’t want to talk to him either.

So while all of these options are running though my head, my hands are starting to sweat. GREAT.

Now apparently guys don’t think about this kind of stuff as much as girls. Lucky them. Because seriously, it’s stressful.

Anyway….

On a less frustrating note, remember that puppy I said I got back in January? Well she’s here at school with me, and apparently she’s a guy magnet. I take her to the baseball fields with me, and I don’t think I’ve ever had so many guys around in my whole life. Nobody ever says hi to me anymore of course, but they all know Chloe and as soon as they see her they come over, talk baby-talk to her, and let her lick them all over their faces. Oh to be a dog.

All the friends now want dogs too, or at least to borrow Chloe.

So I haven’t written in awhile. I guess that’s because life has been pretty dull.

I’ve been working for the cooking ladies regularly, meaning Tuesday-Friday 9-5. It’s nice to be able to get out of the house and feel like I have a purpose, but it’s also DULL. No internet connection, and very very few customers. Often only 1 per hour.

So I end up doing other things to occupy my time. I watch movies, read books, and mess around writing my book. I haven’t gotten too far. It’s hard to write it, because I’m not yet sure if it’s even good enough for people to want to read. Everyone I give it to to read has a strong emotional reaction to it, but that’s just because they were there for the experience. I don’t know if the storyline is good enough for an outside reader, or if the writing is smooth enough. It may just end up being a nice (long) keepsake.

So last week CL came to visit me at the store and told me that she thought we should go see Hannah Montana. I know, I know, WHY? I have no idea. But we decided we were going to bring Ashley, Katie, and Ryan to see it. Who are, by the way, in the appropriate tween age group for the movie.

Friday night rolls around and CL and I head over to pick up the kids. We end up with those three and Katie’s friend. It’s really the perfect excuse to go see the movie.

We get inside the theater, and it’s packed. Not to mention that I think besides parents, CL and I are the oldest people in there. Ashley finds some of her friends and ends up sitting with them in the back. Katie and her friend sit in front of us, and Ryan in front of them, alone, but too embarrassed to be seen with the old people.

The previews begin, and I cannot believe the amount of talking that’s going on. I mean, we’re talking dull roar. Kids aren’t even trying to whisper, just having full on conversations. I begin to wonder if this was the best decision, since we obviously don’t belong here.

As the movie starts I’m finally able to relax. The kiddies quiet down; silence is definitely not on the agenda tonight, but at least they’re making an attempt at whispering. The movie is alright, very feel good, family friendly, nothing to write home about.

About 20 minutes into it I realize that we chose the wrong seats. The kids behind us are little terrors, clapping obnoxiously during musical scenes and arguing loudly about who knows what. I want to pull them outside by their ears and teach them some manners. Instead I try to ignore them.

Fast forward to the end of the movie. You know, that feel good moment when everything works out just like you knew it was going to and Miley Cyrus gets to sing that song that’s been on the radio lately. So she gets onstage and starts to sing, and wouldn’t you know it, there’s a little choir in the theater. I almost can’t stand it. It’s like we’re at a concert or something! And as if it couldn’t get any worse, these kids pull out their phones and start waving them in the air!

I almost can’t hear the rest of the movie because the munchkins behind us are practically shouting in my ear. But it ends, thank goodness. In the hallway afterward I thank my kids for not being irritating.

So that’s the story of our trip back in time. I felt like I was in 6th grade again, only the kids seem way more annoying.

I was absolutely aghasted. Note to self- NEVER go to a tweeny movie on opening day again. EVER.

I LOVE  babies!

meghan

MK asked if I would try to sell Meghan for her. I really don’t want to. In fact, I’d really like to buy her myself, train her, and take her to the Olympics someday. Talk about a cool horse. I used to have so much fun playing with her out in the field. She’s always been a really brave baby; I have no doubt she’ll make a great performance horse someday. Plus she’s so cute

But I told her I’d try. Unfortunately I’m not really sure how to go about doing it. I’m pretty sure they’ve already got ads for her out there in cyberspace, so I don’t know how much else I can do on my own.

But I would hate to see her just hang around the barn and waste all that potential.

On another note, I’ve been riding Lady recently which is fun. I was pleasantly surprised on Saturday when CL Joc and I went for a trail ride. CL was riding Ted, Joc was on Summa, and I was on Lady. We walked through the alfalfa field to CL’s house. We had planned to just walk or trot up her hill since the horses haven’t had too much exercise recently, but of course as soon as we got into the field they all started prancing and freaking out, trying to turn and run up the hill. That’s what they get for letting the horses do it all the time

So we went way down to the flat part to see if we could get some work done. CL was in the middle of a story when all of a sudden Summa turned up the hill, Joc yelled out “Sorry!” and off they went! Of course Ted got himself all worked up then, and took off after Summa. Lady was just great though, she was anxious for a few seconds but settled down and we had a nice walk/trot up the hill. I was very impressed. Of course she ended up being the sweatiest one once we got back home.

So I was on COTH the other day and I decided to read over the horseless rider/riderless horse thread. That got me thinking how much it sucks to be a horseless rider. Against my wall I’ve got my saddle, barely broken in, with my almost brand new helmet on it. It’s depressing.

me and my buddy al

And I know I have no reason to complain. I had the opportunity to stay at Torrances and ride every day. And even here, I could go to the farm and ride Ted or Lady during the week. But neither of those things feel right. The farm brings back so many memories of when I was there and I DID have my horse to ride. But Al’s not there anymore.

I tried to take a lesson at Holiday Acres, which is a few towns away. I thought I could just give it a try. It was horrible. As soon as I got there I knew what a terrible idea it was. First of all, the woman I talked to on the phone had asked me no questions about my riding. She didn’t even ask my name. I thought that was pretty strange for her to just have me come over and not know anything about me. But I figured once I got there we would have a nice discussion and she would then choose a horse to suit my needs.

That is not what happened.

Luckily I had brought Amy Cl and Cb with me, because I got there, and she was in a lesson with someone else. Once she noticed me, she just sent me out to get a horse. The mother of the girl in the lesson went with me, and she just sent me out there. It was completely ridiculous. She had no idea what kind of rider I was, or if I had even handled a horse before. For all she knew, I was a complete beginner who was just starting out. And she sent me out there alone to bring back a strange horse into a strange barn. Once inside I had even less instruction. I eventually put the horse into his stall since that seemed to be the only place to tack up, and I proceeded to get him ready. Again, this instructor had no idea that I could handle this. However she let me groom and tack up this horse in a stall completely unsupervised. I kept turning to the girls and saying “this is the most bizarre experience ever”.

The lesson was even worse. I’m not the worst rider in the world, and Torrance told me that I have potential to be really good. However, when I was riding with her she was absolutely particular about everything. We walked for many of the rides, working on my position, my hands, and my aids, getting them exactly right. In fact, in my entire three months with her I think I only cantered like 5 times. And I improved tremendously.

But when I got on this horse it was like I had never ridden before. I was given no time to figure anything out, and I was so stressed out I could feel myself going back to all of my old habits. Half of the lesson was spent running around the outside of the ring throwing the horse over jumps, and I was given practically no instruction at all. I was so embarrassed that anyone would see me riding like that, because I could feel with every step my position was getting worse and worse. I couldn’t hold my legs still, my hands were pulled into my stomach, and I was hunched like an old lady. I should have just gotten off halfway through. If Torrance had seen me I don’t know what she would have said. She certainly wouldn’t have had me racing around the ring like that, completely off kilter.

Needless to say I did not go back there.

I haven’t wanted to try anywhere else either. The way I rode with Torrance was so different. I love it, and I don’t ever want to go back to the way I rode before. She told me once that the goal is not to go out there to an event and make it through. It’s not even to go out there and win. The goal is to regulate, and be in control of every single step that you and your horse take. And I could feel that when I was riding. That’s the way I want to ride. But now I’m scared that riding with anyone else, or even riding on my own, will destroy all of the skills she helped me to gain.

But I need to ride again. Any horse person can tell you that once horses are inside of you, there’s no getting away from it. A horse person is a horse person for life.

I actually wrote that I was sick of being a horseless rider as my facebook status yesterday, and got a pretty amazing offer. A friend of mine who lives in Oklahoma offered to let me “borrow’ one of his horses. I’ll be going back to TN in the fall, and he said that he would even bring her out there if I decided it was something I wanted to do. I can’t believe it. I know I can’t afford a whole lot in terms of board, but she’s a pasture horse right now, and the pasture board at the barn near school might actually be do-able. I can’t believe I’m actually considering it, and it might happen. Crazy.

So as of right now, I’m a horseless rider, but hopefully soon I won’t be. And even if I remain horseless, I’m still a rider… because that never changes.

Well… I’m assuming nobody is reading this to find out what’s going on in my life, because lets be honest, I’m just not that exciting. But I’m going to write anyway, mostly for my own benefit. I like to believe that someday I’ll be important enough for loads of strangers to want to find out more about me, and this will be a fabulous way for everyone to read all the mundane details of my life before fame.

So what have I been doing.

Mostly I’ve just been back working at the bakery, which is pretty fun, though not too challenging. Lets just say I’ve been catching up on my reading.

Chloe

I got a puppy That’s actually pretty exciting. Her name is Chloe. I got her mid January when she was 11 weeks. So I guess that makes her almost 4 months now. She’s unbelievably smart. We had her housetrained after about a week and a half. If I command her to sit and stay, she wont budge while I leave the room and walk around the house. She heels, rolls over, shakes, speaks, and knows to stay on her bed while we’re eating dinner. I couldn’t ask for a more loyal companion. She’s not allowed upstairs, but if I’m in the bathroom, which is right at the top of the stairs, doing my hair or something by the door, she will sit at the bottom step staring at me, just waiting for me to come down.

In other news, Jill is currently looking at houses in TN by school for us to live in next year. She found a pretty great one that I’m hoping we decide on. The best part is that it has a fenced in backyard, and pets are allowed. So Chloe will get to come, in case that point wasn’t clear.

This week is Katie, Ashley, and Ryans school vacation so I’ve been spending a lot of time with them. This past weekend

us and "molly"

Katie had a cheerleading competition which was so cute. Here’s a picture from the competition after Katie’s team won the middle school division. Molly was upset that we went and had fun without her, so she sent me the “real” picture

I’ve got a video of their routine, though it isn’t a great recording, because the camera-person kept forgetting that she was filming This weekend she’s got another one so I’ll take better video. Ashley has a soccer tournament tomorrow in NH that I’ll be going to, so hopefully I’ll get some good footage from there too.

So that’s my exciting life. Fun, I know. I’m still trying to figure out what I’m going to be doing this summer.  I have a few options. A friend of mine has a horse that will be coming here in April and I may get the chance to do some eventing with him. He’s really fun, I rode him a bunch this past fall and really loved it. Also, Torrance should be coming back sometime in May so I might end up going over there to work some as well. In addition, a friend of mine told me last night that there is a guy in Ohio who’s looking for a summer intern to work with his Clydesdale team. I would LOVE to do something like that. The pay’s pretty good and it sounds like a blast, but I would miss out on a whole lot of stuff all summer. So I guess I’ll just have to think about it.

Anyway, as enthralling as that is, I’m done for now. Here’s the video from Katie’s competition

me, molly, and the kids

Have anyone ever told you, “if you can’t count the number of great friends you have on one hand, you’re lucky”? Well I think I must be the luckiest person in the world.

In my last post about the accident, I mentioned how all of us from that time have a special bond and I know we’ll always be there for each other. Well I have a few groups of friends like that. I just sat down and counted all of the people I have in my life who I know without a shadow of a doubt will be there forever. 31 people. 31 wonderful friends. And even though we’re spread out across the world right now, that doesn’t matter, because we have each other for life.

malabika... me mal and erika

I got a phone call the other day from a friend. She’s one of my 31 people, and we went to college together for awhile too. When I answered she was crying. She told me that she’s lonely there…

I know how she feels.

For some reason, down at school I felt like nearly every relationship I made was superficial and fleeting. Friends came and went and I didn’t understand why. I mean, in my life up to college, the relationships I made were lasting. Friends didn’t just enter your life, have some fun, and then move on to the next exciting thing. But in my three years at school, I made only 4 friends who I really feel like I can count on. Sure, there are plenty of other great people there. I can go to a party and know just about everybody, and be “friends” with most of them. But it’s not the same. So when people tell me “Oh you think you made good friends in high school, sure, but you’ll move on from them and make your best friends in college”, I must beg to differ.

And the strangest part is, it seems to me that these people don’t care that their relationships are so temporary. They appear perfectly happy to be best friends for a month and then move on to someone else. And that is what has me wondering, if maybe not everyone is as lucky as me. Maybe other people didn’t have the chance to develop friendships that feel like family, and feel so secure. Maybe they think that those relationships that they’re making and walking away from are normal, and it’s cool to have a million friends, none of whom you can really count on.

my it girls

I’ll pass.

For myself, whether or not someone is a true friend to me depends on if I feel comfortable enough to call them if I’m in trouble. I don’t need a million friends who’ll make an excuse and say they’re too busy if I call because I’m stuck at the airport. I need one friend who’ll drop everything to come get me. Just like I would drop everything to come get them.

And I’m lucky. I have 31 friends like that.

Friends who can forgive the stupid things I do. Friends who call as soon as they wake up to make plans for the day. Friends who don’t knock. Friends who will drive 2 hours to be bored for 2 more hours so I’ll have someone to keep me company. Friends who know everything about me and love me anyway. Friends who I can go years without seeing and the love never changes.

the barn girls... and dexter

When I was a kid I sometimes got upset because I felt like my life was divided into too many sections. There were so many worlds that I belonged to and I felt torn between them all. I wanted everyone I knew to know and love everyone else so I wouldn’t have to choose between them. And yet, I felt as though if I tried to bring my worlds together something terrible would happen.

Now I can’t even begin to describe how privileged I feel to be a part of them all. Each group of friends brings something really special to my life, and they’ve all helped to make me into the person I am right now. Now I understand that I don’t have to bring all of the pieces together, because they can coexist just fine side by side. All of my friends don’t have to be friends (though I”ll admit I do make them watch home videos of each other ) I’m just glad I know them all.

my boys

I hope there are lots of other people out there who are as fortunate as I am. Because I don’t even want to imagine what life would be like without my 31 best friends.

And the quote-

“A best friends knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you’ve forgotten the words.” -Donna Roberts

It’s been almost three years.
And what is there to say?
It feels like I have something inside of me that needs to come out; something that needs to be spilled from my fingertips onto the page.

the boys

Three years ago, on January 20, 2006, four boys from my high school were involved in a car accident. Victor died at the scene. Ian was life flighted to the hospital, and died in surgery. Jody was in a coma for a week, and was taken off life support on the 28th. Nelson, by some miracle, escaped with minor (in comparison) injuries.

Us

Our school was torn apart. I was a freshman at school in Tennessee at the time, and myself and 6 other kids from SLA flew home that night. Kids came home from everywhere across the country. Never was there a quicker gathering of people. I can’t describe that week in such a short space. It is beyond words, and unless you have experienced it for yourself, you can’t imagine the feeling. As if the world had ended. I loved Ian… the moment when I found out he was gone is one that I don’t like to relive.

Things have changed since then. We’ve grown up. We’ve moved apart, and in some cases, grown apart as well. I think that day changed the course of history- our history. Some of us have changed for the better, and some of us have changed for the worse. Who can say if things would have turned out differently.
But I wonder.

What would life be like right now if it never happened.

There will always be something between all of us. Some connection that cant be broken, and cant be understood either. Because how can you stop loving people who have seen you at your most broken? People who have seen you at the lowest moment in your life, when you all felt as if the world was over. And then it wasn’t. And you kept on living together.
When I see those people I remember the feelings. I remember hearing A’Lisa’s voice on the phone, telling me that Ian

Ian

died. I remember seeing Dan, Mar, and AJ there at school on Saturday, and not a word needed to be exchanged… because words couldn’t say it. I remember one giant bed on the floor of Juli’s room, and knowing that I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t sleep. I remember watching A’Lisa and Becky watching Armageddon with me. I remember being on the plane and Jaris holding my hand. I remember the weeks after, when every single night I would get a call from Jamie, Rob, or Jason before bed. And I remember being held so tight when that was the only thing that was keeping me from falling apart.

Those moments forged bonds that are unbreakable.
But still, life goes on.
And so even though it’s forever inside of us, we heal. The scars that were on the outside aren’t so obvious anymore. And meeting us on the street, one would never know what’s underneath.

That’s what makes it so hard. Because it’s always there. It doesn’t go away. In some ways it lessens, and now the pain isn’t there all the time. But when it comes, and it does come, it’s blinding. It happens when we least expect it.

And I know my life is forever changed because of it.
Somewhere inside of me I know that my relationships will be effected forever, because I’m still in love with the thought of what could have been. I look at those pictures, and read those snippets of conversations, and listen to those songs, because something was started that can never be finished. And now I will spend my life wondering what would have happened.

Three Empty Chairs

And I know how messed up that sounds… and I feel messed up. But I also feel really blessed. And though I know I’ll never be the same, I know that what is supposed to happen will happen.

And above all else, I pray. I pray that when that day comes and they are risen up, I’m ready. And I wish there was something I could do to make everyone understand how important that is. Because life is short, and when it’s over, there are no more chances. This is our chance. And if there is one thing I’ve learned from that day three years ago, it is to make each day count, and never forgot what matters.

Live Honestly
Love Completely
Regret Nothing

I miss him.

So I was thinking today about how there can’t be anything good without  bad.

It’s like a quote in a book that I really liked, I think it went something to the effect of “you cant see the light without a bit of shadow.”

That’s so true. Everything in life comes with both good and bad parts; you just have to take them together. And usually, we choose the situations for ourselves where the good outweighs the bad, hopefully by a lot.

Take my riding instructor for example. Its always so hard for me to explain to people about her, because from the things we said about her, people always thought she was some terrible witch. And truthfully, she did some pretty crappy stuff. But to be honest, there was so much good too.

Like the way our horses were dealt with. At times it felt, and to the girls who still have horses there, feels like the horses didn’t even belong to us. When they were hurt or sick, they were just treated, and often we weren’t even informed of it. Once Al foundered and I got yelled at for not coming to see him, when I had never even been told that anything was wrong. Amy had no idea that Licorice was sick until about 11 am and she had been colicking all night long. And that sucks.

But then again, where else could we go where the horses are loved so much? They treated the horses when they were sick. They loved them like they were their own. We still go back to hang out, even those of us who don’t have horses there anymore. And when Licorice was sick, MK drove her around in the trailer, monitered her all day, and drove her to Tufts at 8 pm. She cried as hard as the rest of us when Beano died, and then went back the next day alone to pick up her body. She arranged everything for her to be buried in the mare field so Amy didn’t have to see it, and stood next to the tractor while the guy set her down.

Where else do you find that? That’s a lot of good to go against the bad stuff.

When you draw something, the only way to make the light show up is by shading the rest in dark. Without that contrast the picture is flat. It’s the same with everything. We can’t appreciate the wonderful things without some bad stuff to compare it to.

So tonight was the farm Christmas party, and I have to say that it was the worst one ever.

In case you don’t know who the barn girls are, they’re the other parts of me. We’ve been riding together since some of the girls were about 6. I joined when I was 11. We’re all completely different people who are now in colleges all over the place. But somehow, things are always the same between us. Well, not really the same exactly; we have all changed over the years. But WE never change. We’re always us. That’s a very reassuring thought

beano

Tonight was the farm Christmas party. When I got there at 4 I learned that Licorice was down in her stall when they went to get her this morning. Licorice is Amy’s horse, and we call her Beano. She’s absolutely the sweetest, most loving, most trustworthy horse ever. I would trust her with my life. If there was ever a horse who would do her best to take care of you, it’s her.

She didn’t really get better throughout the day. My riding instructor is Mary Kay, and her daughter Sarah is a vet, so she had really great care, but through all of the rectal exams Sarah really couldn’t tell what was going on.

When I got there Amy was down in the arena with Beano. She had just been given some drugs so she was walking around with her head hanging down, and she seemed pretty out of it. That’s not Licorice.

She was just so sick. At around 7 they took her over to Tufts for an exam and maybe surgery. But a 20 year old horse isn’t a very good candidate for colic surgery. We all waited in the house to hear any news. We tried watching a movie, and whenever Sarah got a phone call we turned the volume way down so we could hear the conversation.

That’s how we learned that there wasn’t going to be any surgery. That Beano wasn’t coming home.

We all cried.

Then we waited for Amy to get back to the farm. When she did, all she had was an empty halter and braided black hair.

Life’s not fair.

It’s not fair that a horse who was so perfect yesterday isn’t alive today. It’s not fair that people don’t understand that she’s not “just a horse”, she’s a best friend. And it’s not fair that a 21 year old has to make the decision that ends her best friends life.

I wont remember Beano the way I saw her today. I’m going to remember her the way she was, galloping up Caitlin’s hill

licorice

with Summa and Teddie, walking down to the gate, halterless, with Amy on her back, grazing with her buddies. That’s her.

And now for the quote that is so beautiful, that I hoped I would never get to use.

“If you bury her in this spot, the secret of which you must already have, she will come to you when you call- come to you over the far, dim pastures of death, and down the remembered paths to your side again. And though you ride other living horses through life, they shall not shy at her or resent her coming. For she is yours and she belongs there.

People may scoff at you, who see no lightest blade of grass bent by her footfall, who hear no nicker pitched too fine for insensitive ears. People who may never really love a horse. Smile at them then, for you shall know something that is hidden from them, and which is well worth knowing.

The one place to bury a horse is in the heart of her mistress.”

-Unknown

Ok so here’s another example of “you know you live in the boonies when…”

The kids spent a few days at our house, and today we were bringing them home. Molly was driving, and the three kids were piled into the backseat. The snow had stopped finally, and it had started raining (really really cold rain) onto the foot and a half of snow that was on the ground.

So we made it about a mile down the road from home, when we see two horses standing on the side of the road. They were right outside the fence next to a barn, and interestingly enough there were three horses inside the fence. Now of course we stopped, and I hopped out to save the day, since I’m the resident horse whisperer.

Another car stopped as well and out comes one of guys who went to camp and happens to live next door to me. He ran to the house to knock on the door while I tried to catch the ponies. There was a gray with a blanket on and a black one as well. The black one came right up to me, and because I had nothing else in the car, I took off my jacket and wrapped it around his neck, holding onto the sleeves like a rope. Luckily he was pretty good and decided after spinning around a few times that it would be smarter to just stand still.

Now during this time, about five minutes or so, only one car passed on the road, going about 2 miles per hour. Rueben had knocked on the door a few times, and when nobody answered, he walked the fence line, calf deep in snow, looking for where the horses got out.

Of course there was no break in the fence. A few minutes after this a woman who I recognized from my elementary school days parked her car and came up to us, informing me that they’re her horses. She didn’t have a halter or anything with her, so of course I ended up still holding onto the black horse, Marcus I learned at that point, with my now soaked and stinky jacket. She started walking up the road, and Marcus and I followed along with the grey.

Little did I know that it was like a 2 mile walk to her house. So I walked, holding onto Marcus, who was very well behaved, and the rain was soaking me through my jeans and sweatshirt. Molly drove the car with the kids in it behind us slowly, which I’m sure was very fun for them. Eventually the woman got into the car with them to use the phone and see if her daughter was home to bring a halter or something, so I ended up walking alone on the road with the two horses. Luckily, we live in the boonies, so we didn’t see a single car the whole time we walked.

FINALLY the woman got out of the car and told me that we would be at her house soon. She walked in front of me, and stopped at the entrance to an unplowed driveway. She said, “Ok you can let him go now, they’ll just walk right into the barn.”

I was skeptical. “Are you sure you want me to let him go now?”

“Yes.”

Alright here goes, I thought in my head as I removed my jacket from around his neck.

And doesn’t it just figure, the two horses took off cantering down the icy, windy road. That didn’t suprise me one bit.

So the woman ran to the barn to get a halter, I got into the car, and we started driving after them. We must have gone another 1/2 mile or so down the road before we caught up to them, right as they were headed up a side road. I jumped out of the car when I saw Marcus stop, hoping that he wouldn’t start moving again. The grey was still trotting up the hill, but I called out to Marcus, and believe it or not, he walked right up to me. I slipped the jacket around his neck again and off we went. Of course the grey followed right behind us, not wanting to get left somewhere by herself.

We made it to where the woman met us with halters and some grain, and finally got the horses back into the barn. I was soaked to the skin and my shoes were disgusting, so we had to drive home again and get me a change of clothes. The whole thing took a little over an hour, and we only saw one car. Yes, as amazing as that is, one car on the road in over an hour. I live in the freaking boonies for sure.

That was my Christmas good deed I guess