I'm mmeelllltttiiinnggggg...

So, it's been kinda hot here.  Don't know how you folks from the deep South deal with this all the time.  It's been 43-44C (110F) with 100% humidity since last Saturday.  And it is gross outside.

We are supposed to get a reprieve this weekend, so I'm hoping that the weather guy is right this time around.

I had Monday off, so I went out super early and took Rusty on a short ride. We made it about 30 minutes and I just couldn't do anymore.  When I got back from my ride, the barn owners were unloading some hay into the barn, so I decided to help.  I love doing hay. I guess I'm weird that way, but the one thing I miss about having my horses at home is the work. I actually like cleaning stalls and doing hay and all that stuff!  Anyway, I helped them for about an hour or so and was pretty hot and sweaty by the time we were done.

All of that said, I have no interesting riding news to talk about this week!  I was reading through some of my old posts and came across the post I wrote in early Janaury about my goals for 2010.  I had to chuckle as I was reading it, since I haven't done so well on most of the goals.

So, for lack of any better things to write about, I've decided to do a mid-year review of my goals and realign them with how things are going as of today. (Can you tell I work for the government?  A boring mid-year goal review?  Yikes!)

• During the winter months, make it to the barn 3x a week to ride or work on clicker training - this one was a big FAIL.  I probably made it out 2x a week if I was lucky and it was mostly on the weekends. It is so cold and dark in the evenings here in the winter, that even with an indoor arena, I really just didn't want to ride much. I feel better going into the winter this year, because there is no indoor, so there is also no pressure to ride if I don't want to.
  
  
• In the spring/summer/fall (April – October), ride or work with Rusty 4x a week. - I'm actually doing great on this goal since we have moved to the new barn. I have my joy of riding coming back along with a good dose of confidence!  Riding is fun! Who knew?
  
  
• Attend a hunter pace or an organized trail ride.  - This one is a scratch.  Trailering is so expensive and I have no one to go to one of these events with. I also don't feel the need to go as much now that I have lots of space to ride on...
  
  
• Continue weekly lessons starting in Feb or March (often too cold in Jan) if financially possible, if not lessons twice a month will be a good alternative - This one was scratched too, since my hubby was out of work for most of the winter. (He is working again now - yeah!)
  
  
• Maintain my emergency vet fund (for all pets). I have a decent amount set aside and I need to make sure not to touch that money… - Somehow, I have been able to maintain my emergency fund - needed a bit of it to take the cat to the vet a few weeks ago, but that is what it is there for.
  
  
• Avoid buying any tack, riding clothes or anything from a tack shop (except in case of emergency), in person or online until June 2010 - This one makes me laugh! Who was I kidding??? LOL  I did ok until March, then I caved and bought a couple of pairs of riding breeches and a few other things here and there. 
  
  
• Start a contingency fund for a new horse and/or for retirement board. - I put this on hold once we found out that hubby lost his job.  Probably a smart move.  Now that he is working again, we are working on getting our finances back in order, so I can start saving money again.

So, there you have it - some goals are moving along well and others, well, not so much. I'm ok with that though - that is how life works. Not everything goes according to plan.  I'm trying to be flexible and let my goals flow with how things in my life are going - much less stressful that way!

Stay cool kids!