In which I get some new wheels and Fee totally knows what she's doing

Although we've done some cosmetic improvements to my cane, I don't intend to spend more time with it than absolutely necessary.

Motto of the Usual Suspects:  No Object Left Un-blinged!

Instead, Rosemary and I took a little international journey to Canada to pick up

Texting while in line for the border--our phones are useless on the Other Side

my new wheelchair!

A jog-cart!  Isn't it cute?!!
It needs a pirate ship name.  The truck/trailer rig is the SS Illegible.
Put your suggestions in the comment box! 

The cart and harness are a gift from David and Freda, who have lived in Western Canada since 1957 but retain the most adorable Very-North-of-England accents, overlaid with a charming Lower Mainland British Columbian drawl.  I could have listened to them both for hours.

Their barn was one of those immediately-comfortable places, not new, but absolutely clean and comfortable, with photos of their racing standardbreds on the walls.

Photos of winning standies.  I love these horses!

(One of theirs is currently at Greener Pastures--check out Midnite in L.A.!  He's a cutie!)

The cart has been waiting around for a while and needs some TLC.

We crammed it and the harness into the horse trailer and headed South to 'Murka.  But first...

The shafts don't quite fit.

we gotta stop at the tack store!

It's like a candy store for horse people.

I saw some awesome purple boots, will maybe have to go back for those.  But I resisted temptation.  Somehow.  This was not easy, y'all.

Look, Fiddle!  I brought you a present!

Hmmm.  I gotta idea:  you pull it, I ride in back?

Of course, my true-and-forever love is riding trails

Trails in winter = better than no trails at all.

...which I actually did yesterday, with minimal (comparative) pain.

Errr, I had minimal pain after staying off the horse for almost three weeks, and then medicating rather heavily so I could go 9 miles on a Sunday morning.  Not exactly bringing me up to endurance standards.

I'm not giving up on that whole surgery plan by any means, but it's good to know that I can still ride a little bit.  Not much.  But some.  That helps make everything better.

But today

Dory figures out the harness pieces

 I had my first-ever ground driving lesson.

First, Dory did the driving to see what Fiddle remembers from her days before she came to 'Murka.

Nobody can tell us how much training Fiddle has had, or how she reacted to it.

Given what I know about this mare, it's entirely likely that they started her in harness and she kicked the dickens out of the cart and maybe also the driver.

She didn't even think about kicking.  Hooray!

Our plan, therefore, was to start her as if she knew nothing, and praise good behavior.

That's kind of my life plan for this mare, actually.

She knew a lot more than "nothing."  She seems to remember everything...and didn't seem upset by the rig or by the process.  A little confused at first, and then she set straight to work.

Fiddle returned to old knowledge immediately, and even appeared to be
"pushing the shaft" with her hip while turning, even though we haven't
put shafts on her yet!

Unlike my mare, I really don't know what I'm doing.

Her body language here is what we call "pushing the pram."
She does this when she works with a young horse.
Since I'm obviously ignorant, Fee took things slowly to let me learn.

Straightaways,

turn, and circles.  My mare was SO GOOD!

She exaggerates her motions so I can practice
I didn't see it at the time, but I can see it in the photos.

You know there are those days when you're so pleased you didn't eat your offspring while their bones were still soft?

This was one of those.

Good Dragon!  What a good mare!