In which buying a prom dress is a horse-related expenditure

I'm not quite sure how the decision was made, but it seems to be quite unanimous now:

The awards banquet at the Pacific Northwest Endurance Rides conference this year will be "prom-dress formal."

Time to go shopping!
I last attended a prom in 1982.

(we'll pause for a reverent moment of silence, as some people do the math on that).

Prom in the 80's was Serious Business. You had your Serious Date. You had your Serious Dress. You had your Serious blah blah blah blah. (I actually had fun at my proms, but I cringe in memory of the dresses!)
This prom-dress event promises to be much Less Serious, if only because the ladies wearing the shiny dresses are endurance riders...

In other words, we are Sturdy. We are Ample. We are Traditionally Built Ladies.

Also, most of us are Significantly Bow-Legged!Off we went, the other day, with our riding friends and our senses of humor, seeking some Fancy Frocks.

" So, the trick is to contain the boobages and flaunt the tattoo?"

This dress was sooooo awful it was fabulous. Um, but it wouldn't zip up all the way. Dang!

But check out Lori's shiny self:

Ewww, maybe not the rabbit-fur sweater thing. But I did manage to snag something green and sparkly. OOOOooooooh, shiny!

Oooh, and bonus: Meagan didn't love this amazing purple dress so I grabbed it. Cuz I'm probably gonna need a shiny dress for next year's convention, too.

In which a blogfriend comes to visit and we compare notes about stuff

lytha and her man from the horsecrazyamerican blog have come from Germany to visit friends and family in the Swampland!

Just before they came here, they finished building their modular barn for much-loved Baasha, so they wanted to see our modular barn-in-progress, Our conversations are truly specialized and geekazoidal: the techniques of hoisting roofing materials up onto the top of the building...the reasons for selecting clear plastic roofing in some parts of the building (but not others)...the texture of hay. You know. Horse stuff.

lytha is a bit intimidated by chickens, but she agreed to feed the Minerva Louises from the "safe" side of the fence.
She thought the goats were much cuter than the chickens.

Quit taking pictures, lady! Pet my head instead!

Speaking of petting...

...Puzzle thinks that you should stop paying attention to everybody else.

Petting the cat is clearly the most important thing.

In which I engage in a little dreamin' and cloud-castle building

All the leaves are brown
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
And the sky is grey...
I've been for a walk
I've been for a walk
On a winter's day
On a winter's day
I'd be safe and warm if I was in L.A.
California Dreamin' on such a winter's day...

Clearly, I'm not just dreaming of California (although if somebody wants to send gas money and an entry fee to Warner Springs for next weekend, let me know...I'd love to go there).

Winter is a good time for all kinds of cloud-castle building. Some day, I want to travel Kenya and ride horses there. My parents will be visiting Tanzania next month, and apparently there are plenty of opportunities for riding adventures there.

My folks will also be visiting Egypt while they're on the far side of the globe.

If I went to Egypt, I could visit Maryanne Stroud Gabbani, who lives and works and rides horses there! Wouldn't THAT be a fine cure for the winter doldrums?

Alas, my parents are not riders. And I'm not going with them on their adventure, either...but it got me thinking: where in the world would I go and ride if time and money were not a problem?

I'd go to Iceland! And Mongolia!

Where would you go?

Who would you take along?

In which all work and no play is NOT the way we do things around here!

When there's work to do, my friends are there to help.
But let's face it: we like to ride!
Sure, there's sn*w everywhere (still), and the thermometer hasn't risen above freezing in at least four days, and we are Swampdwellers who prefer moss to icicles.

We are also endurance riders. Adversity is good training.
And riding with friends

is fun!

Strap on your helmet and join the parade:

The sun is shining. It's a good day to get out and play!