February...Already?

Somehow it's February. Somehow I'm already a month into my second semester of graduate school. I have no idea how that happened. My first semester and the holidays absolutely flew by.

There's probably not much point in updating because I primarily lurk now, but I still enjoy the art that shows up in my inbox every day. I still sketch occasionally, but nothing complete enough to post. 

Finesse is doing very well and we're growing a lot together. We had our first adventure at a show last September. It started with her throwing a fit in the schooling ring and ended with us winning our last class of the day. Now that I've owned her for several months, I realize how sassy and opinionated she is. And I love it. She's challenging me to be a more confident and assertive rider. But I'm learning to trust her too. She's very reactive and sensitive to her environment and spooks easily. I'm learning to ride through it. She throws bucking fits occasionally. I'm learning to "yee-haw" it and push her forward and out of it. Although it can be frustrating sometimes, she's teaching me to not be so afraid of getting hurt--because, with horses, that fear is what gets you hurt. She's teaching me to believe in myself and commit to decisions--because if I don't, she's going to make a decision for me. And she's teaching me to be quiet, calm, and patient--because if I tense up, she's too overwhelmed. I love her for all these things.

And more news on the animal front: Tom adopted a greyhound last month. His name is Piper. He's a 1/ 1/2 year old light fawn color. Piper never raced, though the adoption organization did rescue him from the track. From what I can see over Skype, he's quite the goofy personality. He LOVES jumping onto the first step of Tom's parent's pool. He's very vocal and communicates with whines and "rooing." He's a super snuggly fella, and loves to give kisses. I can't wait to meet him next month when I'm home for spring break. 

I hope everyone is well and happy