or, how I spent my summer....
First of all, I saw my heroes Gillian Welch and David Rawlings perform this song in person this weekend at the
Bluegrass Festival and it was may-jor.

But anyway, this summer was momentous for me on many levels, chief among them due to the fact that I strapped on my Justin roper boots and started horseback riding again after a 20 (!) year hiatus.

Meet my new besties, Reno and Z. (Dirtier than I've ever seen them thanks to the rain yesterday and their favorite past time...)


Reno is a red dun Quarter Horse and I adore him. Total sweetsie. He is my main guy. I'm just riding for the sheer pleasure of it, starting basically from zero in a western saddle and bitless bridle and hoping to be mainly a trail rider once I am back in tip top shape. So much has changed in the horse world since I was a kid riding, and now there's something wonderful called
Natural Horsemanship that I am a rapturous student of.
Life in the saddle is something I hope to never give up again! It's the perfect combination of so many things I love and it's also an unparalleled opportunity to build a relationship with a gorgeous, strong willed creature. Being able to feel to your bones the fact that an animal is giving its all and that you are communicating and moving together is incredible, exhilarating, and simply everything.