Friday i had the afternoon off work so i couldn't wait to finish and get over to see Angie. I went and bought her a new saddle...Ellen very kindly let me take the saddle she has leant me to the shop to find one the same size. The women in the shop were very helpful and i managed to find the perfect saddle...thank you to mum and dad for the money for my birthday to allow me to buy the saddle. She looks lovely with it on! By the time i got back to the stables, caught angie, groomed her and tacked her up ready for the ride, it was getting dark. It gets dark here at 5.30 and is pitch black by 6! She went very well for me in the round arena. she earnt her feed!
Gaz had spent the day playing on the computer which went well. We couldn't be bothered to cook so we ventured to Diggers for a pizza. yummy.
Yesterday i had work in the morning which went very smoothly. Ive had feedback from the manager of the practice saying i am doing extremely well and that my books being full so early on is a reflection of me as a dentist. She said its a small town and people talk so word is getting around about me. Its nice to have some positive feedback!
After work i went up to see Angie and she was a little restless when tied up whilst was trying to groom her but yet again, she performed well for me. She had a 3 second panic when the lawnmower started in the field next to her but after that, she was fine. By the time i got home, gaz was cooking up some more curry bases to use for future curries. It smelt amazing! Jack the next door neighbour came round with some cookies he had baked for us...so very kind! they taste lovely.
Today I was up at 6am to see Angie. I gave her an early schooling session in the large arena but i was lucky because the sun was shining, albeit a little chilly. Angie has moved fields now into a 3acre paddock down the bottom of the stables. she can still see the other horses so she isn't alone. Ellen is 'slashing' her field to help the grass grow better so Angie can return in a week or two.
When i got home around 9.30am Gaz and i went to our first surfing lesson. It was awesome! There were only 3 of us int he class and the one guy had been the day before so he was pretty much off on his own any way. The instructor was your typical surf dude....tall, athletically slim build and very good looking (those were gaz's words, not mine). And he was really easy going and a great instructor. Both Gaz andy were standing on the boards after a few attempts. I think the snow boarding i have done really helped as i was finding i was even starting to direct where i wanted to go. Same principle as snow boarding. It was tiring work and we were both shattered afterwards! The weather too a turn for the worse during our lesson and the rain came lashing down and the wind really picked up. By the end of the lesson we were the only people in the water! We enjoyed it so much we are going to arrange for another lesson some time...i think ill need a few days to recover as my legs are starting to ache already!
Gaz and i have been invited over Wyatts house at 6 tonight. Wyatt is the other dentist at pacific smiles so it will be good to meet his fiancee and have a chat and some dinner!
Day off tomorrow so gaz and i are going to take the kayak out in the morning before i have a lesson on angie in the afternoon. Will try and get some photos of gaz on the kayak!
Saturday, 28 April 2012
Thursday, 26 April 2012
Thursday 26th April - Kayak
Gaz has today been and bought a kayak! We have gone halves on it but i don't think ill have much time to use it...plus if it meant it will get him out of the house I'm more than happy to put some money towards it! Its nice to see him excited about something so hopefully this can be his new hobby and help keep him fit. He is having it delivered tomorrow so he should be able to use it on the weekend...lets hope the weathers nice!
I had a riding lesson on angie yesterday. It was ANZAC day so we had a public holiday therefore no work! yippee! It was a very windy day so all the horses were a little spooked. I was lunging angie in the round arena and in the arena opposite a girls horse had run loose and was galloping around the arena like a maniac! Angie took no notice and carried on going about our training session. A horse was then being unloaded from a hors box next to where i was schooling angie...again, angie paid no attention to the horse. I got on Angie and began riding her...Ellens horse had run onto the road (it barged past Ellens husband with a wheelbarrow and was running around on the road almost giving ellen a heart attack!)...the horse in the field next to Angie started bucking and rearing in a mad frenzy...again, this would have been a great opportunity for Angie to get all spooked but she didn't bat an eyelid...she kept listening to what i was asking of her. Ellen has had me working on circles with angie to get her flexing. We are trying to ease her in to giving her nose to give that nice rounded shape you see typical of dressage horses. She is learning slowly - it takes a lot of neck muscle to do it for a long time but she will get there! I began trotting her...she was so tired by the time i finished with her! She saw me dishing the feed out into her bucket and gave a little neigh of excitement. She is very gentle and i carried the bucket to her field, leading her next to me and not once did she try and steal the feed from the bucket. She has lots of manners! I gave her the day off today so i didn't go up to see her. Hopefully it will make her all the more excited to see me tomorrow! i have taken the afternoon off work so i can go and buy her a saddle with the money mum and dad gave me for my birthday. She's going to look so smart! can't wait to get riding her again tomorrow.
Work was very busy..had two very difficult extractions...i got the teeth out in the end, just took a little while. Im still enjoying work here...its nice looking forward to going to work!
Gaz hasn't played on the computer today but is currently downloading the apprentice episode for the week. We enjoy watching it and seeing how stupid they all are - its one of those irritating yet addictive tv shows.
I had a riding lesson on angie yesterday. It was ANZAC day so we had a public holiday therefore no work! yippee! It was a very windy day so all the horses were a little spooked. I was lunging angie in the round arena and in the arena opposite a girls horse had run loose and was galloping around the arena like a maniac! Angie took no notice and carried on going about our training session. A horse was then being unloaded from a hors box next to where i was schooling angie...again, angie paid no attention to the horse. I got on Angie and began riding her...Ellens horse had run onto the road (it barged past Ellens husband with a wheelbarrow and was running around on the road almost giving ellen a heart attack!)...the horse in the field next to Angie started bucking and rearing in a mad frenzy...again, this would have been a great opportunity for Angie to get all spooked but she didn't bat an eyelid...she kept listening to what i was asking of her. Ellen has had me working on circles with angie to get her flexing. We are trying to ease her in to giving her nose to give that nice rounded shape you see typical of dressage horses. She is learning slowly - it takes a lot of neck muscle to do it for a long time but she will get there! I began trotting her...she was so tired by the time i finished with her! She saw me dishing the feed out into her bucket and gave a little neigh of excitement. She is very gentle and i carried the bucket to her field, leading her next to me and not once did she try and steal the feed from the bucket. She has lots of manners! I gave her the day off today so i didn't go up to see her. Hopefully it will make her all the more excited to see me tomorrow! i have taken the afternoon off work so i can go and buy her a saddle with the money mum and dad gave me for my birthday. She's going to look so smart! can't wait to get riding her again tomorrow.
Work was very busy..had two very difficult extractions...i got the teeth out in the end, just took a little while. Im still enjoying work here...its nice looking forward to going to work!
Gaz hasn't played on the computer today but is currently downloading the apprentice episode for the week. We enjoy watching it and seeing how stupid they all are - its one of those irritating yet addictive tv shows.
Tuesday, 24 April 2012
Tuesday 24th April
Gaz has had a really good day on the computer again so he is back to his winning streaks after a month of not doing very well. He seems to have got his confidence back and is definitely happier for it. Work was really bad today...my root canal went awful and one woman whose husband has parkinsons was very rude to me. I have met them both before in my first week. She wheeled her husband in today and i asked what we were doing for him and she gave me a very smarmy laugh and said 'well you should know.' i said that when they booked the appointment, the girls on desk had written 'pt needs fills' but i wasn't sure which teeth. The woman said "well your the one who told us to come back to have the fillings, how can you not know?" i said very calmly that i see a lot of patients each day and it has been a while since i have seen the patient so i can't be expected to know off the top of my head whats going on! luckily i write good notes so it was all there as to what needed doing. the poor guy has parkinsons, can't even put his denture in and out and has 6 teeth on the bottom that are so engrossed in plaque that you can smell it from a metre away when he opens his mouth. His wife obviously isn't helping him brush his teeth...she dumped him in the dental chair and went shopping so i couldn't say any thing to her. He's a lovely chap too...god knows how he puts up with her!
This evening gaz came up to see Angie with me. I didn't finish work till 5.30 so we drove up in the dark. She left her hay and got all excited to see me...i feel so loved! gaz had a little pat and a stroke of her. I gave her a lunge with the saddle on before getting on her. Gaz was very impressed how well she listened to my voice commands. She trotted when i asked for a trot, cantered when i asked for the canter and walked when i asked. She stood still swell when i asked but that took a little more encouragement. 10 minutes into the lunging session and i felt ready to get on her. She stood very patiently when i got on and off. She listened to everything i asked of her...we worked on circling her in the walk as we did in the lesson with ellen yesterday. Angie has a very soft mouth so doesn't pull on the bit at all. Some horses try and pull the reins out of your hands but angie does none of this. She stood dead still as soon as i asked her to and walked when i want her to. She was very very good tonight, i am very pleased. She has come on such a long way since i took her on only 10 days ago! After the ride she had another big feed which she enjoyed. Gaz and i couldn't believe how cold it was! He was so cold he had to go sit in the car. Luckily angie has her canvas rug on but if it gets any colder, she can have her warmer rug on! She also had her second dose of worming tonight which she didn't approve of. It went everywhere and she somehow got it all up my arm!
For dinner gaz and i went to Diggers only I'm starting to notice more and more patients around the place and its horrible! i wish i had a disguise for going to public places in...maybe a bag over my head? Anzac day tomorrow...day off from work and another lesson on Angie!
This evening gaz came up to see Angie with me. I didn't finish work till 5.30 so we drove up in the dark. She left her hay and got all excited to see me...i feel so loved! gaz had a little pat and a stroke of her. I gave her a lunge with the saddle on before getting on her. Gaz was very impressed how well she listened to my voice commands. She trotted when i asked for a trot, cantered when i asked for the canter and walked when i asked. She stood still swell when i asked but that took a little more encouragement. 10 minutes into the lunging session and i felt ready to get on her. She stood very patiently when i got on and off. She listened to everything i asked of her...we worked on circling her in the walk as we did in the lesson with ellen yesterday. Angie has a very soft mouth so doesn't pull on the bit at all. Some horses try and pull the reins out of your hands but angie does none of this. She stood dead still as soon as i asked her to and walked when i want her to. She was very very good tonight, i am very pleased. She has come on such a long way since i took her on only 10 days ago! After the ride she had another big feed which she enjoyed. Gaz and i couldn't believe how cold it was! He was so cold he had to go sit in the car. Luckily angie has her canvas rug on but if it gets any colder, she can have her warmer rug on! She also had her second dose of worming tonight which she didn't approve of. It went everywhere and she somehow got it all up my arm!
For dinner gaz and i went to Diggers only I'm starting to notice more and more patients around the place and its horrible! i wish i had a disguise for going to public places in...maybe a bag over my head? Anzac day tomorrow...day off from work and another lesson on Angie!
Monday, 23 April 2012
Monday 23rd April - first day riding angie
Yesterday it rained all day and was pretty much the same all day today too! I was up the stables yesterday to do some more ground work with Angie. I went to the horse shop to get her a bridle...there are 3 sizes - pony, cob and full. I got her a cob thinking it would be ample but no, the size of her head is deceiving. I had to cut the labels off to get the bridle part so i could try it on her so i didn't think they would exchange it...but they did! She now has a full sized bridle which fits her perfectly. Today i went and got her some horse feed. She now has some loupins to fatten her up, some chaf which is a bulk feed with lots of fibre, a hors emix with some seeds and barley to keep it interesting, some garlic and some vitamins. She's one lucky horse!
I fetched her front he field. As i called to her and she saw me coming, she started walking over to the gate to meet me. She seems to be really enjoying all the work. I did some ground work on her in the pouring rain and then Ellen gave me a lesson. We put the saddle on her and lunged her before i got on. She had a flighty few minutes in canter so we made sure we tired her out before i got on her. I only did a walk on her but was doing lots of circling and changing rein (changing direction) to get her to supple her neck and listen to my hand and leg aids. I am learning so much with ellen and Angie was so lovely to ride! she listened to everything that i asked of her and she was very soft in the mouth and didn't pull back on my reins. To reward her for all the effort she had put in to the schooling lesson and also to fatten her up, she had a big feast in her feed bucket! She made me laugh because i was stood int he field watching her eat her feed. When she got to the end of the food int he bucket, she picked the bucket up with her teeth and moved it over to the side so she could get at the bits she dropped on the floor. So very cute! She also has her lovely new canvas rug on - thanks to chris and ian who offered to buy it for her as a birthday present. thanks guys it looks lovely on her! Ellen is very impressed with the style and quality of the rug that she's going to get some for her own horses!
Meanwhile gaz has been playing on the computer. Yesterday gaz had a very good day at poker. He hasn't done much else to talk about other than the other night when he went fishing he managed to catch a few fish, one of which was big enough to bring home so he cut its head off and gave it to our next door neighbour, jack who was very grateful. Gaz has rung a kayak company who has a kayak he disinterested in in stock so he's going to pick that up some time this week..but for 20AUD they will deliver it which will be easier!
I fetched her front he field. As i called to her and she saw me coming, she started walking over to the gate to meet me. She seems to be really enjoying all the work. I did some ground work on her in the pouring rain and then Ellen gave me a lesson. We put the saddle on her and lunged her before i got on. She had a flighty few minutes in canter so we made sure we tired her out before i got on her. I only did a walk on her but was doing lots of circling and changing rein (changing direction) to get her to supple her neck and listen to my hand and leg aids. I am learning so much with ellen and Angie was so lovely to ride! she listened to everything that i asked of her and she was very soft in the mouth and didn't pull back on my reins. To reward her for all the effort she had put in to the schooling lesson and also to fatten her up, she had a big feast in her feed bucket! She made me laugh because i was stood int he field watching her eat her feed. When she got to the end of the food int he bucket, she picked the bucket up with her teeth and moved it over to the side so she could get at the bits she dropped on the floor. So very cute! She also has her lovely new canvas rug on - thanks to chris and ian who offered to buy it for her as a birthday present. thanks guys it looks lovely on her! Ellen is very impressed with the style and quality of the rug that she's going to get some for her own horses!
Meanwhile gaz has been playing on the computer. Yesterday gaz had a very good day at poker. He hasn't done much else to talk about other than the other night when he went fishing he managed to catch a few fish, one of which was big enough to bring home so he cut its head off and gave it to our next door neighbour, jack who was very grateful. Gaz has rung a kayak company who has a kayak he disinterested in in stock so he's going to pick that up some time this week..but for 20AUD they will deliver it which will be easier!
Saturday, 21 April 2012
Saturday 21st April - Night fishing
Yesterday i had a busy day in work which is great because the busier i am, the more money i make! i have now finally got around to sorting out my income protection too which i felt would be a wise move, especially now with all the horse riding I'm doing. Im also insured incase i have a needlestick injury or if i loose my hand or anything else that would stop me working (god forbid!).
I went up to see Angie after work today...shes so cute! i tied her up and another girl tied her horse up next to her so angie and the other horse were nosing one another. the girl was very friendly but kept trying to talk to me..i feel a bit bad because she was very lovely but i just didn't really want to talk...i wanted to concentrate on angie. I took angie in the schooling ring and she worked very nicely and did what she was told. The girl was still plaiting her horses mane and asked if we could take the horses back to their paddocks together...her horse kept stopping to eat grass. Ive taught angie better than that but she was getting a little frustrated that we had to wait for this horse all the time! The girl was fussing about with a rug in the field so i told her i was off and going home. I don't want to get too pally with the girls up the yard as i know horsey people are strange and I'm more than happy being on my own with angie...a little anti social i know!
When i got home gaz had cooked a beautiful pork belly ...the crackling on top smelt and tasted amazing! the meat was very moist and was cooked to perfection...clever chap! Gaz has now gone night fishing to see if he can catch any thing so thats given me a chance to blitz the house which has got a bit messy since I've been so obsessed with the horse! Hopefully gaz is safe and having fun!
Gaz and i have also booked a surf lesson next weekend. Unfortunately it is the end of the surfing season here so we won't be able to go again for a few months unless we hire out our own stuff. Gaz is currently in the process of finding a kayak to keep him entertained.
Nanny, as you haven't seen these photos yet...here is Angie!
Very underweight!
I went up to see Angie after work today...shes so cute! i tied her up and another girl tied her horse up next to her so angie and the other horse were nosing one another. the girl was very friendly but kept trying to talk to me..i feel a bit bad because she was very lovely but i just didn't really want to talk...i wanted to concentrate on angie. I took angie in the schooling ring and she worked very nicely and did what she was told. The girl was still plaiting her horses mane and asked if we could take the horses back to their paddocks together...her horse kept stopping to eat grass. Ive taught angie better than that but she was getting a little frustrated that we had to wait for this horse all the time! The girl was fussing about with a rug in the field so i told her i was off and going home. I don't want to get too pally with the girls up the yard as i know horsey people are strange and I'm more than happy being on my own with angie...a little anti social i know!
When i got home gaz had cooked a beautiful pork belly ...the crackling on top smelt and tasted amazing! the meat was very moist and was cooked to perfection...clever chap! Gaz has now gone night fishing to see if he can catch any thing so thats given me a chance to blitz the house which has got a bit messy since I've been so obsessed with the horse! Hopefully gaz is safe and having fun!
Gaz and i have also booked a surf lesson next weekend. Unfortunately it is the end of the surfing season here so we won't be able to go again for a few months unless we hire out our own stuff. Gaz is currently in the process of finding a kayak to keep him entertained.
Nanny, as you haven't seen these photos yet...here is Angie!
Very underweight!
Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Wednsday 18th April - my birthday!
Yesterday it rained non stop and Angie didn't have a rug on. Although it is raining, it isn't cold here and therefore the rug i got her is a little thick still for this time of year and is more of a winter rug for this area. I therefore didn't have anything more lightweight to put on her so Ellen very kindly dug out a canvas rug for me that i could use. After work i drove straight up to see Angie. She sees me coming and walks right up to me - its very cute! She was happily led down the fields to the stables where she was able to get out of the rain for an hour. I gave her a feed which she really enjoyed and then put the canvas rug on that Ellen has leant us. Its only for 2 days as i have ordered her a lovely caribu canvas rug which she will look lovely in.
Today was my birthday and Gaz was up at 7am to wish me happy birthday. I opened my cards and presents in bed before heading off to work. thank you to everyone who sent me a card and birthday wishes! Work was pretty miserable as it still hasn't stopped raining and the patients were really annoying. I was happy to finish work today! Gaz came to pick me up and on the way home we saw a little cockatoo hobbling around on the pavement. We watched him for a long while and decided he wasn't very well. gaz rung the bird rescue place and they told us to catch him and take him to the vets which was literally around the corner. We did just that...gaz chucked his jacket over the bird...i could see two girls in the distance wondering what the hell was going on and whether we were kidnapping this poor bird. The poor thing must have been very scared and continuously pecked at gazs fingers. we got hint to he vet where they will look after him.
Back int he house, gaz had been to the bakery and bought me a chocolate cake and had the cake lady sprinkle little hearts all over it...so cute! he even got me a '2' and '5' shaped candles and put them on the cake. Very thoughtful! After cake we ordered a dominos pizza...yum yum. we scoffed the lot. I'm not looking up personal trainers in the area! lol. tomorrow i have a schooling lesson with ellen and angie..i hope it stops raining!
Today was my birthday and Gaz was up at 7am to wish me happy birthday. I opened my cards and presents in bed before heading off to work. thank you to everyone who sent me a card and birthday wishes! Work was pretty miserable as it still hasn't stopped raining and the patients were really annoying. I was happy to finish work today! Gaz came to pick me up and on the way home we saw a little cockatoo hobbling around on the pavement. We watched him for a long while and decided he wasn't very well. gaz rung the bird rescue place and they told us to catch him and take him to the vets which was literally around the corner. We did just that...gaz chucked his jacket over the bird...i could see two girls in the distance wondering what the hell was going on and whether we were kidnapping this poor bird. The poor thing must have been very scared and continuously pecked at gazs fingers. we got hint to he vet where they will look after him.
Back int he house, gaz had been to the bakery and bought me a chocolate cake and had the cake lady sprinkle little hearts all over it...so cute! he even got me a '2' and '5' shaped candles and put them on the cake. Very thoughtful! After cake we ordered a dominos pizza...yum yum. we scoffed the lot. I'm not looking up personal trainers in the area! lol. tomorrow i have a schooling lesson with ellen and angie..i hope it stops raining!
Monday, 16 April 2012
Monday 16th April - flat battery
yesterday i was up at the stables bright and early so that i could lunge angie in the morning and then go buy all her shampoo and grooming essentials. She worked very well for me and was very calm and pleasant when bathing. She wasn't phased by the hose pipe and i think she enjoyed having her tail brushed. She lifted her legs one by one for me to pick out the hooves and gave the occasional little snort to show she was content. I spent most of the day up with her and then returned home and went for food with gaz to our new favourite place, Diggers. It was hot and sunny yesterday and for mod tof today the sun shone but this evening has gone very wet! I went up to see Angie this morning and take her rug off her (as it did pour int he night). I sat in the car to have a chat with my new tax man who was recommended to me by the other dentist where i work...to be fair, he seems pretty on the ball and after all the mess I've had with trying to get an ABN number, he's managed to get one for me in a few hours! He's also on the ball about claiming money back for things so i figure he will be a worthwhile asset.
I had a lesson with Angie this evening. Ellen has been away all weekend and was very surprised to see such a calm horse before her! we have progressed with the lunging work and ellen showed me how to place ropes from the horses bit to a 'roller' (a bit like a girth that goes around their tummy) and to tie the rope with gentle pressure on the horses mouth...with the aim of the horse rounding their neck down and in to their chest slightly. The idea of this is to give better balance to the horse, better movement and it arches their back so that it is strengthened and can take more weight. Angie has a lot to learn but after the schooling session we went through some basic behavioural lessons i should be doing with angie...for instance teaching her the world 'back' and 'forward' and to turn in certain ways when pressure is applied...im learning an awful lot with ellen...its great learning for both angie and me! The next time i will be able to get up the stables and see angie is thursday after work where ellen will give me another lunging lesson. Its still too early to be riding angie (although she's had people riding her before)...if I'm going to make a good dressage horse out of her, we need to get the basics right first without a rider...hence why we are only lunging. Next week i have changed my hours in work to accommodate me being able to get up to the stables more often.
oh and when i went to start the car, the battery had died...i must have been talking too long with the door open and the lights on...i don't know for sure but ellen had to jump start me. I went to a local garage and they tested the battery but they said it all seemed fine. We are going to purchase one of those mobile battery and spark plugs you can put in the car boot.
Gaz has had an excellent day on the computer but didn't get to go fishing as it started raining a lot earlier in salamander bay than where i was with angie. He even cooked me dinner bless him!
I had a lesson with Angie this evening. Ellen has been away all weekend and was very surprised to see such a calm horse before her! we have progressed with the lunging work and ellen showed me how to place ropes from the horses bit to a 'roller' (a bit like a girth that goes around their tummy) and to tie the rope with gentle pressure on the horses mouth...with the aim of the horse rounding their neck down and in to their chest slightly. The idea of this is to give better balance to the horse, better movement and it arches their back so that it is strengthened and can take more weight. Angie has a lot to learn but after the schooling session we went through some basic behavioural lessons i should be doing with angie...for instance teaching her the world 'back' and 'forward' and to turn in certain ways when pressure is applied...im learning an awful lot with ellen...its great learning for both angie and me! The next time i will be able to get up the stables and see angie is thursday after work where ellen will give me another lunging lesson. Its still too early to be riding angie (although she's had people riding her before)...if I'm going to make a good dressage horse out of her, we need to get the basics right first without a rider...hence why we are only lunging. Next week i have changed my hours in work to accommodate me being able to get up to the stables more often.
oh and when i went to start the car, the battery had died...i must have been talking too long with the door open and the lights on...i don't know for sure but ellen had to jump start me. I went to a local garage and they tested the battery but they said it all seemed fine. We are going to purchase one of those mobile battery and spark plugs you can put in the car boot.
Gaz has had an excellent day on the computer but didn't get to go fishing as it started raining a lot earlier in salamander bay than where i was with angie. He even cooked me dinner bless him!
Saturday, 14 April 2012
Saturday 13th April - a new edition to the family!
In work yesterday i received a missed call. It was a very unexpected call but it was from Ellen the lady that owns the horse stables where i have my riding lessons. A few weeks ago, Ellen had asked if i was interested in a mare who had been left by the girl who had her on loan. I said i was interested but by the time Ellen got in touch with the girl to let her know, she said she already had someone to come and take the horse. The weeks have gone by and the mare is still there! So Ellen was ringing to see if i was still interested. I thought i best check with Gaz first as i knew i would get a level headed opinion...he seems to think its my money, i have the time and she will be looked after at Ellens yard so if i was happy to take her on, its my choice. Yippee! I rung Ellen and said id like a 2 week trial period to see if i get on with the horse. After work yesterday evening i went straight up the yard where i got Ellen to give me a lesson in lunging the horse. This horse has been left in a field with no rug (she ripped hers weeks ago and the girl never bothered to bring up a new one) and has not been ridden since november. She has a fat belly but you can see her ribs. Poor thing. She's about 15.1 hh i think...ill have to measure her some time! I learnt so much from Ellen in the lunging session. Angie (the name of the horse...short for andromeder something...her racing name) had a few little bucks when we put a roller on her back...Ellen said its best i lunge her for a week or two to get her used to being worked again and get all the energy out of her! She sped around and around but eventually settled in to it...i can see a lot of potential int his horse! I went up to see her again after work today...i had intended to bath her but being a saturday, patients kept turning up with emergencies! I didn't get out till 2.30. I went to buy Angie a new rug (she looks posh as in that thing!) and gave her a lunge for half hour. She was like a different horse! She saw me coming to get her in from the field and she walked to the gate to meet me! She's so cute...she enjoyed a nice brush and she was like a different horse when lunging her! she went beautifully. I must take some before photos so that in a few months i can get some after photos and show the difference...shes going to look amazing!
Work was very busy today but i really enjoyed it. I had my pay cheque a few days ago which was a beauty so its been a good boost to working hard. Gaz's day didn't go so well on the computer...but he's going to come and meet Angie on monday :D
Work was very busy today but i really enjoyed it. I had my pay cheque a few days ago which was a beauty so its been a good boost to working hard. Gaz's day didn't go so well on the computer...but he's going to come and meet Angie on monday :D
Thursday, 12 April 2012
Thursday 12th april - bad weather
Gaz has been doing much better on the computer this month and seems to have got his confidence back which is nice to see. The weather has been terrible so he hasn't been able to get out fishing. It rained non stop yesterday and today hasn't been much better. Its also getting dark by 6pm now so when i finish work the sun is going down. Not much has happened in the last few days to really write about other than gaz and i have booked our flights home. We will be flying on 20th july so landing 5.45pm uk time in london on saturday 21st. I then have a wedding to get to on the 22nd...talk about cutting it fine! we are flying air china as they seemed to be the only reasonably priced airline...with the olympics and all, the flights were double! I am very much looking forward to seeing theenie and gaz's parents new cocker spaniel puppy!
Monday, 9 April 2012
Friday - Monday 9th April - Holiday to canberra
Gaz and i have been away this easter weekend for a trip down to canberra to visit gaz's cousins John, his wife sue and their son, Rhys. It was a 5 hour drive to canberra made half hour longer by the heavy traffic but it was well worth it. Friday night gaz and i checked into a 4 and a half star hotel in Canberra city centre. Rhys and his girlfriend sarah came to pick us up later in the evening to take us for a meal in chinatown. Gaz really enjoyed seeing rhys again although he did say he's quietened down a lot! The first restaurant we ventured into was almost empty until a sudden rush of asian people just as our order had been taken. we waited...and waited....and waited....eventually our entree came out....then we carrie down airing....drinks empty....waited...over an hour later and our main course still hadn't come. We asked one girl how long the food would be but she went to the kitchen, came out with a cup of coffee and completely avoided our table. We then asked another guy how long our food would be...he went to the kitchen and then started serving other people and taking food out to all the asians that came well after we had arrived! We weren't the only ones getting annoyed...a table net to us with aussies on were also being ignored and they got up and left. we did the same and were so disgusted with the service, didn't bother paying. We headed down the road to the next restaurant where we were served much quicker and the food was excellent.
The next day gaz and i took a trip to cocking ton green. This was a place one of my dental assistants told me i should visit. It is a place full of miniature models and people and buildings from all over the world. Gaz was very disappointed and moaned the whole way round although he did enjoy the train ride. The models were a little naff i must admit but i enjoyed it...it was different. The only black person model we saw though was lying dead on the ground being resuscitated by some white person...very strange! We then went to visit the war memorial. I was very impressed with the museum...which was free....and had lots of war memorabilia...they even had a sound and light show which tried to give you an idea of what it was like flying a plane in the war...it was very well done. We went to the place where all the names of those who died were up on the wall. Very sad.
Next was a trip to the old parliament house where we saw the aboriginal camp outside...what a mess! and then to the new parliament house. We didn't stop to have a look around as our bellies were rumbling and food was on the cards! After lunch, gaz drove us to John and sues house.
They were excellent hosts and have a beautiful house near captains flat just outside canberra city centre. It is in the middle of lots of hills and is a very interesting house. When we arrived, they served some cheese and biscuits down on their little veranda over a little bridge int he garden. John let his very friendly chickens out which would come up and let you stroke them. They have a new fox terror dog called millie who was very anxious of gaz and i but she's only 4 months old and very small. They were also puppy sitting for their friends 8 months old cocker spaniel, Rylie (its a girl). She was beautiful! her big droopy ears and her big fluffy paws...she was so sociable and her temperament was lovely. Her whole bum wiggled when her tail wagged and she loved attention! In the evening sue and john cooked a steak dinner with all the trimmings...it was lovely. They appear to have an open house policy so a lot of the locals would just call in to the house to say hi, have a chat and then disappear. It was a lovely atmosphere.
On sunday morning sue and john did a cooked breakfast for us which we ate int he company of the king parrots that attend their tree next to the porch every morning for their feed which john puts in the bird feeders for them. John bbq'd the meat on the bbq around the corner and the music played...it was so relaxing and sue and john made us feel so at ease. it was great. We talked the whole time.After breakfast, sue and john had arranged for us to visit the kangaroo rescue place at their friends house at the top of the mountain. This was so nice of them! The track up to the house was VERY worn and luckily john was experienced at driving the 4x4 up the road because there were times when the car felt like it should topple on its side. I was starting to think i should have sorted my income protection out before the holiday! Sue was funny...she said she didn't like going up the track because it scared her so every time we were coming up to a big hole she would be like "oh john, i don't like this!' every time sounding more and more panic. Gaz and i flew around in the back of the truck until eventually we reached the kangaroo rescue place. The woman who run it was called cindy. She was very friendly and let us in the cage with the little joeys. She had them in comfy looking sacks to imitate the mothers pouch. She had reared these kangaroos from little babies coz their mothers got hit by cars or died from other incidents. It was lovely to see them being cared for. they all looked so chilled! She had other older kangaroos in another cage and said that even some of the kangaroos she has released still come back for visits and have started bringing little joeys with them! Gaz and i would love to one day do something similar, looking after kangaroos and koalas!
After our adventure up the mountain, john drove us into little town for a milkshake. It was beautiful weather so we sat outside and even bumped into cindy again!
In the evening Rhys and his girlfriend sarah joined us again for a meal in a very nice restaurant. It was called 'the outsiders' and although the restaurant was closed, the owners opened it up especially for us to cook us an evening meal. The food was fantastic. The restaurant was an interesting place...full of the owner, gunthers, art on the walls. The wife, christine has a sad story to tell. her daughter, ebony simpson, at the age of 9 was kidnapped by a man from the bus stop, thrown into the boot of the car, taken to the nearby river where her hands were tied with speaker wire and she was raped, before being thrown into the river with her legs tied and rocks put in her satchel. The next day there was a search for her and the murderer even joined in the search. he later confessed to everything and has now to life imprisonment. There is a painting on the wall to show the story...it is very sad.
This morning gaz and i woke up to yet another cooked breakfast which we again ate outside on the porch in the shining sun. Although it was getting very cold in the evening, the days were warm. Gaz and i are back in salamander bay now but we have had a great weekend and we will deffinately go back and visit when we come back out to aus again.
The next day gaz and i took a trip to cocking ton green. This was a place one of my dental assistants told me i should visit. It is a place full of miniature models and people and buildings from all over the world. Gaz was very disappointed and moaned the whole way round although he did enjoy the train ride. The models were a little naff i must admit but i enjoyed it...it was different. The only black person model we saw though was lying dead on the ground being resuscitated by some white person...very strange! We then went to visit the war memorial. I was very impressed with the museum...which was free....and had lots of war memorabilia...they even had a sound and light show which tried to give you an idea of what it was like flying a plane in the war...it was very well done. We went to the place where all the names of those who died were up on the wall. Very sad.
Next was a trip to the old parliament house where we saw the aboriginal camp outside...what a mess! and then to the new parliament house. We didn't stop to have a look around as our bellies were rumbling and food was on the cards! After lunch, gaz drove us to John and sues house.
They were excellent hosts and have a beautiful house near captains flat just outside canberra city centre. It is in the middle of lots of hills and is a very interesting house. When we arrived, they served some cheese and biscuits down on their little veranda over a little bridge int he garden. John let his very friendly chickens out which would come up and let you stroke them. They have a new fox terror dog called millie who was very anxious of gaz and i but she's only 4 months old and very small. They were also puppy sitting for their friends 8 months old cocker spaniel, Rylie (its a girl). She was beautiful! her big droopy ears and her big fluffy paws...she was so sociable and her temperament was lovely. Her whole bum wiggled when her tail wagged and she loved attention! In the evening sue and john cooked a steak dinner with all the trimmings...it was lovely. They appear to have an open house policy so a lot of the locals would just call in to the house to say hi, have a chat and then disappear. It was a lovely atmosphere.
On sunday morning sue and john did a cooked breakfast for us which we ate int he company of the king parrots that attend their tree next to the porch every morning for their feed which john puts in the bird feeders for them. John bbq'd the meat on the bbq around the corner and the music played...it was so relaxing and sue and john made us feel so at ease. it was great. We talked the whole time.After breakfast, sue and john had arranged for us to visit the kangaroo rescue place at their friends house at the top of the mountain. This was so nice of them! The track up to the house was VERY worn and luckily john was experienced at driving the 4x4 up the road because there were times when the car felt like it should topple on its side. I was starting to think i should have sorted my income protection out before the holiday! Sue was funny...she said she didn't like going up the track because it scared her so every time we were coming up to a big hole she would be like "oh john, i don't like this!' every time sounding more and more panic. Gaz and i flew around in the back of the truck until eventually we reached the kangaroo rescue place. The woman who run it was called cindy. She was very friendly and let us in the cage with the little joeys. She had them in comfy looking sacks to imitate the mothers pouch. She had reared these kangaroos from little babies coz their mothers got hit by cars or died from other incidents. It was lovely to see them being cared for. they all looked so chilled! She had other older kangaroos in another cage and said that even some of the kangaroos she has released still come back for visits and have started bringing little joeys with them! Gaz and i would love to one day do something similar, looking after kangaroos and koalas!
After our adventure up the mountain, john drove us into little town for a milkshake. It was beautiful weather so we sat outside and even bumped into cindy again!
In the evening Rhys and his girlfriend sarah joined us again for a meal in a very nice restaurant. It was called 'the outsiders' and although the restaurant was closed, the owners opened it up especially for us to cook us an evening meal. The food was fantastic. The restaurant was an interesting place...full of the owner, gunthers, art on the walls. The wife, christine has a sad story to tell. her daughter, ebony simpson, at the age of 9 was kidnapped by a man from the bus stop, thrown into the boot of the car, taken to the nearby river where her hands were tied with speaker wire and she was raped, before being thrown into the river with her legs tied and rocks put in her satchel. The next day there was a search for her and the murderer even joined in the search. he later confessed to everything and has now to life imprisonment. There is a painting on the wall to show the story...it is very sad.
This morning gaz and i woke up to yet another cooked breakfast which we again ate outside on the porch in the shining sun. Although it was getting very cold in the evening, the days were warm. Gaz and i are back in salamander bay now but we have had a great weekend and we will deffinately go back and visit when we come back out to aus again.
Wednesday, 4 April 2012
Thursday 4th April - car problems
I didn't realise it had been so long since i last wrote the blog. After all the sleep i lost over the guy i saw on saturday who i failed to take the tooth out on, he was meant to be booked in today with the oral surgeon to have the tooth removed. The receptionist rung him up...he said he has been fine, the pain hasn't been too bad and he had a chat to his friend who is a dentist and theres no need to worry coz his friend has booked him in with a guy he knows who can take the teeth out...but thats not until next week! the antibiotics run out today so hopefully he will be ok till then as it is so important he doesn't get an infection on his new heart stent! silly boy.
Any way, last night gaz and i drove to woolworths only to find the car was making very strange noises. It was the same noise that we had heard in hervey bay before when the catalytic converter screw came loose. Gaz was able to get the garage to have a look at it today. Turns out its the OTHER catalytic converter thats gone and will need replacing. worse still, it isn't covered under the warranty (yes the warranty that has made us get our car serviced 4 times in the last year and costs 170AUD each time....what a joke). So whilst they sort that tomorrow, they will also put some new tyres on for us. I guess it will be worth getting it all sorted before our trip down to canberra over the weekend.
Not much else has happened. Gaz and i had a movie night tonight so i made some popcorn (ie. i put the bag in the microwave and pressed the start button) and we watched lord of the rings...the extended version. 3 hours long! Gaz has done ok on the computer today so he's a little happier.
Any way, last night gaz and i drove to woolworths only to find the car was making very strange noises. It was the same noise that we had heard in hervey bay before when the catalytic converter screw came loose. Gaz was able to get the garage to have a look at it today. Turns out its the OTHER catalytic converter thats gone and will need replacing. worse still, it isn't covered under the warranty (yes the warranty that has made us get our car serviced 4 times in the last year and costs 170AUD each time....what a joke). So whilst they sort that tomorrow, they will also put some new tyres on for us. I guess it will be worth getting it all sorted before our trip down to canberra over the weekend.
Not much else has happened. Gaz and i had a movie night tonight so i made some popcorn (ie. i put the bag in the microwave and pressed the start button) and we watched lord of the rings...the extended version. 3 hours long! Gaz has done ok on the computer today so he's a little happier.
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