Let's discuss the weather

It's a normal enough topic, should be safe in any circle. In this case, it's about how weird New England can be, and how disruptive Mother Nature can be. On Sunday I was all dressed to ride, a bag of homemade treats in hand and my new power de-shedder ready to make it's debut. I got as far as putting on my boots before my husband stuck his head out of his office and asked me where I was going.

Husband is an engineer. He has two BS degrees. I looked down at my breeches and field boots, thinking 'they keep telling me he's bright'. I was going to the barn, of course. It's about a 35 minute drive north, 30 if traffic is good and the State Troopers aren't out in force. He asked if I'd checked the weather. Well, no, I had not. We have an indoor at the winter facility, so what was the problem?

I'm glad he noticed I was leaving. About two hours after that talk, I sat in my living room and watched the wind kick up and the snow start to come down. We got 15" of snow combined with enough wind to be an official blizzard. That kept me at home for two days. Add to that a relapse with my terrible cough and it was suddenly Thursday. Fiona had not been ridden in a week. With winter camp going on at the barn, she hadn't been ridden by my trainer, either. That's an alarming thought going into a lesson.

Lo and behold, she was fine. More distracted than usual, but fine. It was a flat lesson and I didn't push her to do much. Just easing her back in after a week off. It seems fair. I get a week off, she gets a week off, and then we both get back to work. The only thing she seemed annoyed about was the lack of serious grooming. It was 40 degrees out today, so all of the horses had their blankets off. The princess is shedding like crazy already. I was working her over with a metal curry and she just leaned into it. Such an odd little mare. Tonight none of the horses had blankets on, just three days after the blizzard.

Is it spring yet? Please? I'm already counting the days until we get to head off to camp. I still have hopes that a certain princess will be making her Beginner Novice debut this year, and camp is going to be a big part of my plan to get her up to speed. I've got three months to get her as fit and prepped as possible. Assuming the weather and my health hold out. Funny, two things that are almost as hard to control and as unpredictable as horse ownership.

I'm doomed.