Life and Times

The Edmonton Journal featured dad in its Life and Times section today. They also ran his obituary as he wrote it last week. It was very long so we thought they would edit it, but can't find anything missing. He wrote his obit the day before he died. Can you imagine writing your own obituary? He also specified he wanted to be cremated with no funeral, just a memorial, which is being held on September 30 at the Uof A faculty club.

Mom is doing well. Kept busy returning her house to a semblance of order after my sister and her young kids left, reading cards and emails, and just trying to find her balance. Rob and I went over yesterday so Rob could do some minor house repairs and we had supper. It was odd being in the house without dad.

Prior to that Rob and I went to Seba Beach so I could learn the basics of sailing. I was surprised to realize I actually really like it, although figuring out how the sails should be set is far from intuitive for me, so my neck is sore for looking at the sails and strings! The instructor showed us the basic positions of the sails, how to tack and jibe, and we practiced some "man overboard" stuff where we dropped and come around to retrieve a life jacket. I was not so good at the retrieval part. I think if anyone was counting on my to hook them they would be at grave risk of being stabbed with the hook.

Karen

Joseph S. Nelson. April 12, 1937 - August 9, 2011.

Father, Grandfather, husband, professor, researcher, and third degree black belt karate instructor.

He taught me to think, to question, and to look out at the world with never-ending curiosity. He is gone in flesh, but not in spirit. Every time I look at something with curiosity, or impart some obscure bit of trivia, that is my dad.

I am grateful to my mom who had the strength to look after him in his final months and days, so he could live and die at home as he wanted. She was the last face he saw, and the last voice he heard, just as he wanted.

I am also thankful to all the doctors, nurses and support staff at the UofA and home care who gave him almost a year and a half of living after his initial three month prognosis, and did it with compassion and dignity. As well as to Dynalife and Canadian Blood Services whose support was also integral in maintaining his well being. And of course to all those who donated blood and plasma.

I will be teaching jumping lessons at 5:30 and 6:30 tonight.

Karen

Lessons cancelled tonight

Lessons are cancelled for tonight (tuesday). Sorry for the short notice Will explain later. Lessons will resume tomorrow.

Karen

This week in lessons it is once again forcast to rain, rain and more rain! I feel like a mushroom. Most of this week will just be dedicated to bringing horses and riders back from what turned out to be a bit of a break week last week...of course it was the one week we have been able to be back outside that you all decided to go away!

Karen

phobias

Apparently I have a phobia I didn't really know I had. I am not sure if it is a confinement phobia, or what exactly it is, but phobias aren't fun, and I never really understood them as well before.

I discovered my phobia while trying to get an MRI of my brain. Something that I need done, as as the health care system is so tiresome with waiting lists, we decided to go ahead and pay for it to get done. Not cheap, but hopefully worth it.

I was prepared for the "tunnel" and I don't think of myself as being overly claustrophobic (and they have a mirror positioned above you so can see behind you), and I didn't think the noises would get to me, so I wasn't overly worried.

The technician was great, and after about 5 minutes of questions, I was given a wrap around gown that could have covered 3 of me, and then led to the machine. It was more comfortable and less of a tunnel than I though, so I figured it would be a breeze. 22 minutes of getting to lay down and do nothing? No problem!

Once ear plugged and laying down, and suitably covered with a blanket, she lowered a helmet like thing over my head and wedged in some padding to help hold my head still. Still comfortable, and not as bad as I expected, so I was still feeling fine.

And of course you can't move once they start, so of course that is when you realize your nose/chin/forehead is itchy.

The first "scan" was short. 60-120 seconds, I don't remember exactly...and was just a solid jackhammering for the entire time. I am not sure why they bother with music head phones as the sounds are too loud to hear the music. After this was over I was still fine.

So on to phase two. This was to be a 5 minute scan. Started out with the jack hammering, but them progressed to "chunka chunka chunka, CLANK CLANK CLANK, chunka chunka, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK". And I started to get anxious. Then I wanted to swallow. I couldn't swallow. Then I felt nauseous...and still couldn't swallow. I could feel my heart rate climb, and even though I KNEW i was safe, I could not stop the over whelming feeling I WAS GOING TO DIE. I was shaking, sweaty and my skin was on fire. I could not convince my body to calm down.

Rational/shamtional, it didn't matter that people have this procedure regularly and survive, I could not talk my body down from this out of control panic and I am ashamed to admit I had to hit the panic button.

Did you know they can't just pick up where they left off? Fortunately they don't charge you for failing attempts either...because there is no way I could try again right away. I could hardly drive home I was such a nervous wreck!

But it opened my eyes to understanding panic attacks and phobia. it doesn't matter that you KNOW you will be ok, and can still think somewhat rationally, your body has other ideas and that is that.

Since that day, I have done some research, and I guess phobias are made worse/created by being allowed to flee a bad experience rather than resolve it...so it will just be worse next time. Great. But I think I narrowed down the root cause; I think it stems from when I was hurt in December and strapped to the back board/neck brace for so long my back began to spasm out of control and they wouldn't let me up nor give me much for pain medication (liquid children's tylenol) and I began to panic a bit then too.

So having my head locked in place for the MRI was likely a reminder, so even though I was in NO pain for the MRI, my body reacted like it was, and I couldn't convince it otherwise. Fascinating in a way....but not in a good way.

I figure I will help prepare for next time by eating chocolate while listenning to MRI sounds on Youtube and laying under the bed. Will it help? Maybe, maybe not, but sounds like a good excuse to stock up on chocolate!

Karen

It was nice teaching outside again this week. Hopefully the rain holds off long enough that I can do lessons outside tonight too, as I have no intention of building a course inside...so if we have to ride inside tonight I think we will just to lots of no stirrup work...and to make it fair to Joan, she can also ride backwards.

I see the forecast is for rain all weekend. I hope that changes otherwise I may actually have to clean house...and only a silly person cleans their house in the summer!

Starting to think about the fall riding schedule; I realize that with some of you growing up, and doing things like getting jobs or going to university, that you may not be able to make it out as early in the day, so you will have to let me know your fall riding time preferences.

I am likely going to take a week off teaching at some point this fall; either the week you all go back to school, or the week after the last horse show (Harvest). The horses will likely get that week off too, as I think they deserve time off that isn't weather or soundness related.

Karen

Having fun this long weekend?

The weather is trying to be somewhat good for this long weekend. It still can't seem to resist raining, but at least the days are mostly sunny and a nice temperature.

Rob hauled Clare over to Amberlea for the dressage show on Thursday; it looked pretty nice when we picked her up again on Sunday, but I guess the it was quite flooded Thursday and Friday.

On Saturday, Rob, Ginger and I took the canoe out on the North Saskatchewan for an all day boat ride. We hired Edmonton Canoe to pick us up at Emily Murphy Park and haul the three of us, the canoe, and our provisions down to Devon. It was a nice day to be on the water, but silly Rob got a bit of a sun burn.


I was surprised by the lack of plant life in the water. I guess the fish in the river are all carnivores, so they don't need plant life to do well, but we didn't see much for life on the water other than one beaver and a bunch of birds.

Ginger did well on the boat once she found her balance...and the copious dog treats we bought. She enjoyed getting out on some sand bars, although I think she was disappointed by the lack of smells on the little islands.

We were surprised that she didn't try swimming at first, but finally at our last stop near Fort Edmonton she got excited by some wake created by a jet boat, and she tried attacking the waves as they reached the shore, and then finally went for a swim.

I think the last time I was on the river would be about 30 years ago; it has changed! More big houses and more activity along the river. It was a little freaky to see the houses poised to fall in the river by Riverbend. The two new foot bridges across the water looked impressive and well used.

The other thing that surprised me was the 17+ dogs playing in the water at Twilliger park. Ok, the dogs didn't surprise me, what surprised me was the 4+ toddlers also in the water with the dogs. Who brings a toddler to an off leash dog park and lets them play admist the dogs? Particularly in water that isn't safe to drink.

We spent about 7 hours on the water in total. My bum was a tad sore, but I would go again. It was nice being on the water with no bugs, crowds or horses : )

On Sunday I taught, then we went to pick up Magnus from the show. Clare was happy as she was able to break 60% at training level! Last night we went to visit my parents and brother for dinner. Dinner was nice. Dad isn't doing so well and is back on regular blood and platelet transfusions. Summer time is not a good time to need blood as less people make donations (hint hint), so their time spend in the hospital trying to located a suitable match means it is an all day process. Dad's mind is still 100% though, so he was able to explain to me how fish can still live in water that appears dead to me.

Today will be a day to relax and then lessons tonight. Lots of people are away this week, so the lesson plan will just be something simple...maybe we will even get outside this week? Now that there are less mosquitoes being outside is much nicer! I can't get over how much standing water there is.

Karen

Cats are smart

I am typing this while dodging drool. Yes, Charlie the resident barn cat is in the house, on my lap, getting pet while I type this. Why is Charlie, the resident barn cat, in the house? Because he was afraid to come into the house, so of course I had to win his trust so he would feel safe in the comforts of our living space.

And I am not the only sucker. How many of you have spent time trying to convince Charlie or Rolo that it was safe to let you come near so you could pet them?

Yes, cats are smart...they make you feel special when the let YOU pet THEM. After all there really isn't much in it for you to pet the cat...other than drool, cat hair, and potentially cat claws. But yet they still manage to get us to spend the time convincing them to let us pet them.

I need to crack the secret to the cat manipulation so I can have people begging to give me money and cupcakes....unfortunately I am guessing drooling and shedding won't work.

Karen

More rain. Very wet. So wet in fact that some little frogs made their way into the barn when I opened it up this morning; even the amphibians are tired of the rain and wet.

No idea what we are doing in lessons this week. Nothing ground breaking as there are a fair number of people away...likely in search of blue skies and dry ground.

We worked a bit on counter canter yesterday, so maybe we will do some more counter canter, or at least work on picking up the correct lead without having a wall to help position the horse.

Maybe a grid?

After today the weather forecast looks promising...fingers crossed we can start jumping outside again soon!

Karen

It rained all night. It is still raining now. There as a raging white water torrent of water draining across the parking lot this morning; poor Ginger was unsure if it was safe to cross. The dug out has completely jumped the banks and there is now a creek of water draining from it; hopefully the grass and weeds keep the gold fish and water plants from getting out.

The mares in the front feild didn't even bother to come out of their shelter when they heard me feeding; I even fed them under the trees so they could stay semi dry.

Dexter and posse are likely the only ones appreciating the weather; it means they can go out back and graze without being eaten by mosquitos.

With all the technology out there, why can't they sent some of this rain to some of the many places suffering from drought? Although i suppose a God like power like that would be scary too.

If you come to the barn tonight or tomorrow and can't find it...just look downstream.

Karen

The week in jumping lessons...

This week in jumping lessons we will be working on better corners. Not only getting the horse further into the ends, but also using the corners to re balance and refocus.

To this end I have built a course that goes like this:

Left lead canter to the yellow vertical, then about 6 strides to a bounce set at an angle in the corner. Across the diagonal over a three stride, then into the far corner, and down the other side in four strides, with the second jump being a new scary lattice jump. Then into the corner, over the bounce again, and across the diagonal over a fan jump.

The bounce will be tiny, but will still require riders to sit UP and re balance with the inside leg and outside rein, followed by outside leg to sent them forward again and keep their hind end engaged as they approach the corner. It will be a bit of an optical illusion to the horse, and they will want to drop onto their inside shoulder and miss the bounce all together if given the option.

It is important to use leg as well as hand/shoulders when re balancing as we don't want to inadvertently pull the horse onto its forehand, or take away its push from behind, which it needs to get the lead change nicely, and to get over the next jump in an athletic manner.

Karen

This week in lessons

With rain forecast for every day this week, I think it is safe to say lessons will be indoors again this week. I miss teaching and riding outside...but I think the horses enjoy the fans and the break from the bugs!

Dressage lessons will work a bit on sitting trot and going from a leg yeild to a baby half pass.

I will figure out what jumping lessons will do tomorrow!

Karen

I went for a hearing test today. Not because I think my hearing is off, but I needed to pay for the test to get a referral to an ENT specialist. First they pressurize the ear drums and then play beeps of different tones into the ears to measure the ear drum's reflexes. Next I had to repeat words back that were played quieter and quieter...fun words like Milkshake and Iceberg.

For step three I had to hit a button every time I heard a chime. The chimes got quieter and quieter until my own breathing annoyed me. Lastly I had to repeat words again; this time the volume stayed normal and it was more to test how I picked up different sounds.

All in all it didn't take very long, and I found out I had good ear health with above average hearing. My right ear is consistently good at hearing, with my left ear better at hearing lower pitches. If you doubt your own hearing, I recommend having it checked...maybe then I won't have to yell as loud when teaching!

Karen

Finally!

finally Rob and I got out in the Canoe. Ok, so not to Elk Island or a river...but our dugout. We figured it was a good way to test Ginger out in the canoe and it let us put out a little solar powered mini-fountain.

I saw a few flashes of gold fish, so that was a relief, but then Rob and I saw something else in the water; too big and brown looking to be our Gold Fish. We finally managed to catch one, and Rob identified it as a Salamander! Apparently our dug out has plenty of the creatures. Not sure where they came from, but kind of neat to see. I am thinking all the things we saw before and thought they were tadpoles were really Salamanders.

Ginger was pretty good in the boat, and nobody ended up in the water!

Karen

@$&!*@($

What would you do, if you heard someone screaming? Screaming loudly at you to please stop what you were doing? If you were our neighbours to the west, you would turn off your movie, and go outside to investigate. If you are our neighbours to the south you continue to flaunt the law and endanger others in the pursuit of having fun....

The evening started with Rob and I getting home from dinner just before 9pm. I was exhausted and would have just done night feed and gone to bed, but Lindsey was in the barn bathing Java to get ready for her 4H show. I missed hearing her truck leave, and for once I am glad she was out late, and that I procrastinated.


I headed out just before 10pm and noticed fireworks going off to the south. The horses were alert, but not overly bothered by the sputtering initial attempts to light up the sky. The geldings came galloping up from the back, and the rest kept their eyes on the south sky between bites of hay.


But then they set off some crazy ass sounding whistling sparkler things...and that was it. The fillies completely LOST it. I called Rob to come out and started SCREAMING for our neighbours to knock off the fireworks. Piper in particular wanted OUT of there and was ramming the gate and I think would have considered jumping if I (and soon Rob) had not been on the other side. Once Rob was there to keep them from jumping out and rushing the fence I ran to the top of the hill to once again scream at them to stop. But apparently they HAD heard me...as I heard back "Deal with it Karen, it is a Birthday Party" .





WTF?





Deal with it?





Four young horses are blindly panicking and in imminent danger, and she wants me to "deal with it"?

Not that she knew what the issue was; they can't see up and over our hill. For all they knew a horse was trapped in the fence/gate, running while injured, or a person had been hurt while handling their horse when the fireworks started.

But that didn't matter. All that mattered was that they and their guests got to watch and listen to those fireworks.

Stuff like that pisses me off and frightens me. I am SO glad Lindsey's late night at the barn meant that I was out when the loud fireworks went off; who knows what would have happened if Rob and I had not been out there to keep them from rushing through or over the gate and fence. Can you imagine if they HAD gotten out? Four young horses, one with a previous injury, running in blind panic?

The ignorance and disregard for our safety and well being still shocks me.

But at least I know the neighbours to the west can be counted on to come check on things if they hear screaming.

Karen

Is summer back?

Quick! It is sunny out!

And...when I was feeding I was not swarmed by mosquitos! Maybe the little black bugs don't like the sun? Is it possible we may have a nice weekend ahead of us? fingers crossed!

Irony....

From a Kijiji Ad:

"Tired of barn politics and barn gossip. Board with us where every horse is beautiful and well cared for. Indoor facility outdoor arena padics and very knowledgable people. We but the fun back in boarding."

If you are going to put that you are knowledgeable, at least spell the word right! And maybe spell check if you don't know how to spell paddocks? The "but" instead of put is just a funny typo, so I can forgive that one...

What sucky weather. I want to be outside! But at least inside there are no bugs...what a waste of a summer!

So lessons will definately be inside this week. Not sure what we will be working on, but starting off on a good course pace will again be a focus. Maybe some sitting trot work too...

Karen

Stupid weather...

First the weather scuttled plans to go to Still Meadows for jumping, and today it caused me to cancel the first of the two Ride for Red horse shows. We had all the jumps loaded on the trailer, and the prizes organized, but with the forecast being rain and thunder, we made a last minute decision to cancel.

It didn't even look that bad by 8am, so I was wondering if I made a wrong decision...but then we heard thunder at 9:15, and the rain came soon after...and wow we are flooded here! So the decision was the right one, but I really want to get out to a jumping show soon!

Hopefully it dries up enough so we can go to the Heads Up show, but we will have to see.

Thanks to everyone who planned to come out to help, and to Christine & Rob who braved the cold and rain to help me get the jumps organized to be loaded on the trailer.

So after calling, emailing, and texted everyone that the show was cancelled and doing chores, Rob and I went to brunch, and then went to Greenlands for some plants for our dug out. If you are brave enough to wade through the mosquitoes, check them out; they look really cool.

Karen

This week in lessons...

This week in lessons we are going to work at creating useful energy in our horses, and keeping it.

For both dressage and jumping, we want the horse to be energetic and responsive. We want to feel that the horse could and would go faster/more forward if we asked, and we want the horse to be powered from behind.

All too often when jumping, rider's let the horse lope up to the first jump, leaving the horse to have to increase its energy to perform, and then the horse continues to increase its energy as it goes, resulting in a round that starts with a pokey short stride and a chip, and ending with a rushed horse and an overmade line. Instead we want a course that starts with the needed tempo, and finishes the same. This means the rider must create energy to start with (rather than let the initial jumping effort create the energy), and must rebalance during the course to regularly "reset" the horse to the ideal pace.

In dressage, things that require effort and precision sometimes make the rider forget the forward part of the equation, and the horse ends up behind the leg and on its forehand. This leads to sloppy transitions and a dull horse.

By being less boring as a rider, and by setting higher expectations of the horse, we create an energetic, focused, and willing mount, that will feel (and be) more athletic. Transitions, paying attention to details, and being sure to be in control of the horse at all times (by doing things such as riding off the track) all help to create a more focused horse. Energy can be created and kept by paying close attention to the horse, and correcting it as needed when the energy level falls. It is also very important to remember to use leg when steering and balancing. Riders that rely too much on hand will also find the horse getting dull, unresponsive, and tipped on the forehand.

Carrying a crop may be a good idea for this weeks lessons unless you are confident in your forward!

Oh, and if you are wondering, yes, my face is swollen, and no, I have no idea why. I am sure the cure is chocolate....or cookies....or cupcakes....

Karen