At Least I Can Type Now

Well, I can sort of type now – thank god for spell checkers! I have been having the strangest problem with the middle finger of my right hand. At first I thought I had gotten a foreign object down the side of the nail. It got sore and kept getting worse instead of better. I assumed it was going to abscess shortly, I could open it, end of problem. But, it hasn’t worked out that way…

Now I think it must be some sort of injury to the nail itself, because it seems to be growing off. In fact, it’s now right at the tip of my finger – which makes typing difficult again.

However – I have been riding the saddle! Yes! I’ve ridden in it three times, and the last time was for a good half hour. It’s extremely comfortable for me and very secure. It’s kinda heavy, at least compared to the synthetic ones, but that’s the price I paid for it having an old fashioned Aussie adjustable tree. Anyway, it weighs about the same as DJ’s trail saddle, and DJ was three inches taller than Indy. The problem isn’t the saddle weight – it’s my being out of shape!

It looks like this saddle is going to be a great success – finally! The most impressing thing is how Indy has reacted. He seems more relaxed and willing with every ride. I don’t get that feeling that he’s absolutely desperate to get this deal over with and get that thing off his back. He still doesn’t realize that he can urinate with me on his back – the saddle, yes. He’s done that, but only after I dismounted. I’ve heard about this problem with geldings before, but sooner or later he’ll have to go with me up, and with him it’ll only take once. End of problem. :o)

I’ve got him back on the full cheek bit, since he seems to like that one a bit more than the D ring. Actually, he seems to love both of the Happy Mouth bits. He’ll grab onto it before I’m even ready to slip the crown piece over his ears. Then he happily sucks and mouths and plays with the roller. Couldn’t do that in the show ring of course. Mouth must be closed and quiet – even if you have to crank it shut with a dropped or flash noseband. But, since we’re not going near any show rings, as long as he responds to my cues, he can play with his bit to his heart’s content.

All I care about is that he’s finally relaxed and content in his mouth and his body while being ridden. Now we can start having some real fun!