Today there couldn't have been a greater contrast with last Friday's weather. Getting soaked by the rain and having to keep one eye out for falling trees last week while today I was driving with the car windows open under warm, blue skies. In town people were walking around in t-shirts and quite a few in shorts as well.
Town itself was very crowded, with the roads and car parks full and people everywhere. It's half-term so all the kids are off school and there are lots of holidaymakers in the area too. I went into Tesco'a, something I don't usually do, and there were at least 20 people queueing to use the self-service checkouts. I ended up going to a normal checkout despite only having three items.
I spent a lot of time looking for either button batteries or led tea lights for my Halloween pumpkin. In the end I found some Halloween ones in M&S only to find the ones I really wanted in Lidl.
This morning there were only four of us in the lesson and to my delight I was riding Tex. Grumpy, chunky, hairy Tex. He wasn't too pleased to have his breakfast of hay interrupted by me wanting to put his bridle on and did his usual thing of threatening to bite. I just tell him off and he's never actually bitten me or even come close. It's more of a warning or expressing how he's feeling. At the end of the lesson I'd dismounted and was standing next to him giving him a good scritch under his mane. That's his special place. It was so funny because one of Tex's ears was pinned back as if to say 'Why did you make me do all that work?' but the other ear was forward and his lip was wobbling in sheer delight as if he was saying 'I'm loving this, please don't stop.' He's such a character.
In the lesson itself I mainly worked on keeping my shoulders, neck and head in the correct position ie square and upright, something that is a bit of a challenge for me with my rounded upper back.
When I got home I noticed some riders with their horses out on the beach. I think is the same group I saw last year but with different horses. My camera battery ran out before I had a chance to photograph some quite athletic vaulting from the older girls.
I think every young pony girl's dream is to ride in the sea. The smaller pony wasn't too keen on the waves and needed a couple of girls walking next to it to give it the confidence to try again. The larger horse was a little wary at first but then went in up to its tummy.
Red sky this evening so hopefully I can spend the day working outside tomorrow.
PS The horsefly bite has finally stopped stinging and the red patch although the same size is a lot paler.
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