You know, Boss, if you wanted to get rid of me, you could just fire me.
DEAR GOD I HURT EVERYWHERE.
You know what makes me really angry? Stupid people. Really stupid people. Really, REALLY stupid people. My boss happened to be one of those today. You don't-you just don't do this! I mean GOD. Is it so hard to inform your employee that has been working for you for three years that the horse you want her to try out hasn't been ridden in two years!?
Okay, so my job is basically being a babysitter, but I also clean house, cook meals, and sometimes do office work for bosses home-run business. I started when their girl was four and she is now six, soon to be turning seven. Now recently, my young charge acquired a very cute little pony and her mother also obtained a beautiful Palomino Quarter horse. The pony's name is Monty and the quarter horse's name is Buttercup. My boss knows that I have a horse and that I have worked with other people's horses here in our little community and she wanted me to try out Buttercup. I was all for it. She's a beautiful horse with a wonderful personality and when she runs...my horse, Desperado, is half Tennessee Walker and because of that he has extremely smooth gaits, but even he never looks like he's gliding across the ground like Buttercup does.
I was smart about the process. I asked questions; how old is she, has she been broken in, etc. ect. I didn't rush into riding her. I worked with Buttercup on the ground for a week, testing her responsiveness to voice commands and touch, trying her with the saddle and bridle on, and every other ground work trick I know. She did wonderful. Today was the day to mount up.
My boss, her husband, and their daughter were standing off to the side watching. What happened next with my young charge was actually slightly eerie. She ran up to me, right before I stuck my foot in the stirrup, and said, "Rebecca, please don't ride Buttercup! What if you fall off and break your neck!?" She was actually on the verge of tears. I gently laughed and told her not to worry, that I had fallen off much bigger horses before and I said Buttercup was doing fine today.
I'd be a liar if I said that didn't make me a bit uneasy.
I gently mounted Buttercup and she seemed just fine. I let her sit there for a moment and get her bearings. I adjusted the reins, made sure my feet were secure in the stirrups, and then a last tug on the cinch to make sure the saddle wasn't going anywhere. I then squeezed my legs gently to make her step forward.
That's when all hell broke loose.
Buttercup squealed and lunged forward, ducking her head to her chest and started bucking and rearing wildly. At that first lunge I lost my balance, and when she jerked her head down it snatched the reins from my hands. I tried to stay on, latching on to the horn of my saddle. (Thank God that I declined my boss' english saddle; western saddles FTW.) I think I stayed on less than six seconds and when I landed on the ground, I landed hard. Shoulders first, then back, and finally butt. Knocked the breath out of me so that I couldn't breath for a bit, and when I finally did catch my breath I was gasping.
Buttercup had settled down almost immediately once I was off her. My boss got a hold of her and her husband had come to see if I was okay; no broken bones and such. The girl was in tears and sobbing hysterically. I finally got enough breath back and told her that I was fine, it's gonna be OK.
I smiled and said to her, "Look, Lacey. No broken neck!"
She giggled through her tears and softly punched me in the arm. "That's not funny, Rebecca."
Later, after everything was settled down, is when my boss told me that Buttercup had not been ridden in two years. This 10 year old horse had not been ridden in two years...and come to find out, she hadn't been broken in at two years of age like normal horses. She had been broken in two years ago...around the same time that people stopped riding her.
Are you-are you kidding me? Okay, for one thing, a ten year old horse really isn't that old. They're still young and prime. They're like the 20 year olds of the horse world. They've got some experience under their belt but can be quite naive and stupid with a lot of things (I'm 20; I know this stuff >:I) and especially if they haven't been worked with constantly. Most 10 year old horses have got some pretty awesome achievements on their pedigrees, but again, experience. Take my 26 year old horse. I have gone six months without riding him, but I knew I could just jump back on at anytime and not worry about getting killed because he's an ex-rodeo horse. He had been worked with extensively since he was two years old. He has done barrel racing, pole bending, and every other speed event you can think of. He's not gonna forget how a rider feels on his back any time soon.
I was almost killed. Not because of the horse but because my boss saw fit not to tell me vital information about the horse. I am an OK rider. I do not boast prowess when it comes to my skills. They're actually quite basic, even though I have been riding for six years now. I've taken falls, have gotten kicked, stepped on, and bitten, but none of this happened out of lack of information. So I was royally ticked off when I left work today.
When I got home, I was so angry, at myself and my boss, that I just sat in my car for a while. I hurt, but not too much yet. (I'm so gonna be black and blue in the morning >.<) So, to let off some steam, I grabbed my grooming box, Desperado and Duchess' halters, and started grooming the crap out of them. Desperado now gleams like polished mahogany, his mane and tale nice and flowy, and Duchess got pampered like there's no tomorrow.
I am now completely calm but extremely exhausted. I am going to be so sore tomorrow....but you know what?
I DON'T CARE. SCREW YOU SORENESS. I'M STILL GOING TO GO FREE RUNNING IN THE WOODS WITH MY BEAUTIFUL HORSE IN THE MORNING. RUNNING AND JUMPING OVER FALLEN TREES WHILE YOUR HORSE IS RUNNING BESIDES YOU WHEN HE HAS NO HALTER OR ANY KIND OF LEAD ON HIM IS AWESOME. BECAUSE IT FEELS LIKE YOUR AN ELF RUNNING WITH A WILD HORSE AND JUMPING AROUND LIKE A MANIAC THROUGH A FOREST IS FUN. I WILL CONFUSE ALL THE NEIGHBORS. ESPECIALLY THE DRUNK ONES.
.............*groans and reaches for asprin*
