Diva Challenge #119 and Some Wrangling

Wranglin'

Of course I went to the barn on what was THE hottest day of the year so far. (Monday) Cheerios needed his hooves trimmed, so off I went. It was 92 degrees, 45% humidity, and thank goodness for the stiff breeze or I'd've been a goner.

After his hooficure, I gave him a spa treatment. (I hosed him off while he ate grass. Then he rolled in the dirt and coated himself like a fried chicken dinner. Helps keep the flies off.) He hasn't been trimmed in awhile, so I wanted to give him a couple of days to settle into the new trim before riding him; besides, in that heat?!? He's too much energy for me.

So I changed plans, and worked with my Summer Project. Her name is Sky, she's an off-track thoroughbred (OTTB), and it's my duty to acclimate her to the life of a riding partner. She's not mine; the short of it is, she was rescued by a previous boarder, who did some eventing with her, then moved out of state and sold her to someone elsewhere. Sky belonged to the someone elsewhere for about a year or so, and as fate would have it, wound up back at the boarding barn. 

Her basic issue is that she is what people call flighty, nervous, skittish. I understand that she's scared, uncertain, and just needs to gain confidence in herself and in humans. My own personal horse is LBI (Left-Brained Introvert), but for some reason I'm much better with RBI's and RBE's (Right-Brained Introvert/Extrovert) because they require a hundred saints' worth of patience, very soft requests, a confident leader, and a quiet energy.

There is a lot of "hurry up and wait" with RB's, because it's important for me to ask the question with infinite patience, let her find the answer, and the minute she does, I need to let her dwell. Like for a lot longer than I have to with my LBI (he likes machine-gun rapid-fire requests or he gets B-O-R-E-D and that's when he creates drama).

Hot, humid days are great for working with horses that require very little physical energy. I only lasted an hour with her, then I had to hose her and me both off. I'll be glad for the cooler temps this weekend.

Tanglin'

Yay, the Diva's Challenge #119 was posted today. It's "Ebony and Ivory", balancing black and white in the piece. I'll let you read about it at her link. I'm psyched because I'm also working my way through OZAD, "One Zentangle A Day" (Beckah Krahula) and I'm on Lesson 14, and the tangle I did for OZAD also works for Diva Challenge.

So here it is.

Tangles used: Chainging (t), Keeko, Dyon (t), Hollibaugh (t), and something that started as Fescu (t) but is probably another pattern I haven't learned yet. (t) means the pattern has been tangleated, varied from the original. For instance, my Dyon in the center has been tangleated in a way reminiscent of Knightsbridge.

This weekend, I'll start posting my Tangles-To-Date. I'm just a beginner, so there are only about 20 but it seems apropo that they all be here.