The Weird Reality of a Horseless Life

Winter 2012

When I was sixteen, if you had told me that in the fairly-near future, I would have to be horseless, I would have told you that there was absolutely no way in hell that that would be the case. I'm not sure I could have even imagined a life without horses in it. I don't think I could have survived it at that period in my life.

But today, I've been horsesless for a month and 2 days and you know what? I'm really doing okay.

I've had SEVERAL people tell me that they don't think they could make the same decision I did, which puzzles me a little, because we do what we need to do when it comes to the animals we love, but everyone has their own priorities and while I don't love horses any less, I know exactly what I want in life. What is came down to is this: as hard as it was, I could imagine a world where Missy had an amazing home other myself. What I couldn't imagine was cheating myself out of something I know with all my heart is what I want. Period. This is it for me. I want this more than I have ever wanted anything else in my entire life.

I freely admit that it is HARD sometimes. I'm pretty hard on myself because I know that the vet school acceptance rate hovers around 11% (yes, ELEVEN) and I want in on application cycle numero uno. So yeah, I study my butt off and give up a lot of the social stuff and I'm probably a tad obsessed. I'm not a hermit, though, by any means and I have fun with my friends (my friend and I went to a Brad Paisley concert a couple weeks ago...I had never seen him in concert. WHAT.A.BLAST.). It's definitely about balance. I'm pretty lucky, though, I figured it out pretty quick and started strong. A lot of people screw around their first year and then have to play catch-up in the GPA game for the next several years. But I've learned HOW to study and I plan out my week and divide the work appropriately. Most of all, I don't procrastinate.

Life is enjoyable, though, I'm involved in a lot of student orgs and I spend a good bit of my time being involved and volunteering. I especially love working with the SNAP program in the county (Spay and Neuter Assistance Program) because I get the opportunity to talk to a lot people and hear their stories, while at the same time helping their pets. One less reproductively-capable dog and cat in the world makes my heart happy! Prevention is the best kind of medicine there is, in all forms...

Next week is a busy one. My singular Tuesday class is canceled and so I'm meeting up with the ever-fabulous Dr. J to go acupuncture like 8 horses, and then next weekend I'm driving home (again) to go to a conference with her...yay for kick-ass mentors!

Is this the life I imagined? Nope. But I'm happy and I know what I want...the craziest part is, I'm starting to really believe I can do this! :D

The Magic of Bloggers

When I started this blog back in 2010, I had absolutely no idea that I would end up meeting--both physically and through realm of cyber space--some seriously amazing people. Back then I wasn't even sure if I would be able to regularly maintain a blog, let along have people follow along and read what I wrote. Five years later, a fellow blogger owns my (former) horse and I've met a bunch of you and so many of you have been incredibly supportive of me in all that I do...

And then after I got back from my Chem lab today, I checked my mailbox and discovered a package from Em that seriously made me cry.

My Missy Wall. A reminder of what a little hard work can get you in life...a reminder of where I'm going and why...

 She painted Missy! IT'S SO HER!!! She even got the details of her right ear right! I seriously can't even put into words how much this gift means to me. It's absolutely perfect. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU EM!!!! I will seriously treasure this forever...and ever...and ever...

Ya'll are just so darn amazing.

Never Forget.

"In our weakness, we called the madmen 'Them' and 'They.' Are we so different, would be have stood in their way?" -Anonymous

70 years ago today, the Soviet Red Army liberated some 200,000 remaining prisoners at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. The low estimate of the number of individuals who were murdered in the camp between 1940 and 1945 is 1.5 million (of course, we will never know for sure exactly how many perished). Our world is very different than it was in 1945, but yet it is still so very much the same. Please never tolerate the persecution of fellow human beings or hate in any form. Please, Never Ever Forget.

I think, one of the saddest realities is that the slogan for Holocaust remembrance used to be "Never Again." Sadly genocide has happened many times in the last seventy years...it happens every single day, as the world looks on.

Walking with survivor, Howard Chandler, at Birkenau (July 4th, 2014)

TOABH: Worth 1,000 Words.

I've haven't really been doing Beka's blog hoppage that's been going around, though I have been reading some of your replies...mostly because so many of the topics just don't apply to me at the moment...but I figured this is kinda up my alley so I'm doing this one!

"Let's share our favorite photos of our stud muffins.  No limit."

Seven years of memories right here...(more or less in chronological order). It was hard to choose...I have so many more...