100 Happy Days - Day 5

Day 5

It's Saturday movie night ... and it's starting with Easy A. 

100 Happy Days - Day 4

Another day, another horse related photo. Sorry to those reading who aren't big horse fans.

Every Friday I work on a farm prepping yearlings and every time I show up, I try to spend time with this big guy. He was the first yearling I ever handled on the farm and while he has his moments, he is a sweetheart. He sells next month and I'll be sad to see him go but I'm excited to see what he does on the track in the future!

100 Happy Days - Day 3

Day 3 picture for the Thursday win ...

I enjoy nearly every story I write but my favorites are the ones where I get to really dig into a horse's family. Looking at pedigrees and learning about successful families/spotting potential young mares to watch and figuring out crosses seem to work with certain female families is where my real passion lies and is why I love the breeding part of the industry so much. Of course there's so much more to breeding than just matching pedigrees but it is a good place to start.

100 Happy Days - Day 2

Here's my Day 2 photo for the 100 Happy Days ...

Basically I took this because I enjoy getting packages. I got this earlier this week but finally opened it today (think of it as a delayed Christmas) and there was a lot of happiness involved ... especially when I saw the big bag of M&Ms!

100 Happy Days - Day 1

Yesterday a friend sent me a website called 100 Happy Days. At first I blew it off and said I'd read it after work but during some downtime clicked on the tab I had the page open in and read through it. 

Basically the idea is that every day for 100 days, you post a photo of something that made you happy. As someone who takes way too many photos, I figured it would be fun to attempt to take one a day for 100 days and post them here. Realistically I know that I will probably forget a few days but my goal is to try and keep the challenge going until the end date (October 23) and add on the ones that I missed at the end. Hopefully it's only one or two!

So my picture for the first day is ....

To everyone (or almost everyone) but me this is just a pen with a handy dandy flash drive. But to me, it is a memory of challenges I've faced and goals I've yet to accomplish. When I found it in my purse today I knew it was the perfect thing to get this challenge started.

I was given this pen at our Darley Flying Start interview and the last time I saw it was a few days after I got feedback about what I can do to improve my chances for getting in next year. The memories it brings from the past are the hurdles I overcame just applying for the program. When the idea of applying was first brought up, I didn't think I had any chance of getting in or that I had enough people to vouch for me. It turns out that I have more people that I work with on my side than I realized before sending out requests for recommendation letters. 

Just sending the packet with my application to Ireland was a big step (there were many times during the final weeks of the process that I nearly talked myself out of it) and getting word that I was accepted for an interview was huge. The process of studying for the interview, preparing a presentation, and putting together a riding video gave me a lot of confidence, as did the actual process on the day of the interview.

I was heartbroken that I didn't get in but decided to "get back on the horse" after a week or so and emailed to get the feedback they offered. That led me to where I am today getting experience prepping yearlings, which is something I've always wanted to learn but wasn't bold enough to inquire about getting, and setting myself up for next year. The prepping yearlings experience has also had me jump confidence barriers but we'll get to that another day.

So to summarize, this pen reminds me of some not-so-great moments, but it also makes me happy because it represents how far I've grown in the past year and the major future goal I've set for myself as well.

Until next time,
Mel

Yearlings, Cars, and the Triple Crown

Hello everyone,

A bit has happened since I wrote my last blog in late May.

I survived the Triple Crown, which is always a good thing, and survived the aftermath of another failed attempt. On one hand, a failed attempt means a lot less work for me as a journalist in the weeks after the Triple Crown (even with all the controversy that surrounded the Belmont) but I almost always root for it to happen because I think that having a Triple Crown winner could definitely help the sport. As someone who wants to grow horse racing on an international level, anything that helps the sport is good in my book.

With the wrapping up of the Triple Crown came my next “adventure” as well. I found a part time job prepping yearlings on Fridays and started last week. While it is extremely hard work for my out of shape body (even if I was in shape it would be hard as nothing can really prepare you for manual farm labor), it is extremely fun and educational. I have only worked one day so far but I learned a ton and both the farm owners and yearling manager have been willing to answer every question I throw at them. If you know me, you know that I like to learn as much as possible so having people who not only answer my questions but also don’t make me feel like an idiot for asking them is the perfect set up for me.

Besides the out of shape part, the biggest challenge for me last week was that the job is an early morning wake-up call and I’m not one of those people that just pops out of bed in the morning. But much like I do when I plan on watching works at Keeneland, I popped out of bed last Friday ready to go, which is a very valuable asset.

Overall, I’m really enjoying being on the farm and getting to feel like I’m having a hand in a part of the industry. Not only am I learning a ton, but I also get to be outside and around horses (and yes, I already have a favorite), which makes me much happier than sitting in an office watching the hands on part of the racing industry go on around me. Right now I have a near perfect ratio of writing work and hands-on yearling prep so I really have the best of both worlds.

On the non-horse/job front, for those wondering about my car issues that I reported in my last blog, the car is up and running. Thankfully this time the problem was a cheap fix and I had her back in one day so all is well. Other than that, I don’t have much left to report.

Until next time,

Mel 

The Year of Rerouting

"The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray" - Robert Burns (well, partially.)

To say 2014 has gone exactly as planned would be an outright lie. I've had a ton of plans for this year, some dating back to 2012 (looking at you, Fulbright trip to England) but the universe has had different things in store for me.

While all my 'best laid plans' have stepped out of line this year, it's been a useful life lesson. It has taught me not too hold too tightly to plans as you never know when you may need to change them or when they will give you another opportunity to better prepare you for carrying out those plans.

For example, when getting turned down for the program I applied for earlier this year I seized the opportunities presented with it. While it sucked not to get into a program that I had my hopes up for, they also gave me feedback that I needed in order to improve my chances next year. While I'm currently searching for a way to get that improvement (if you know of anyone who needs help on a farm or at a track/training center around Lexington, let me know!), I have also been amazed by the support I've gotten from those around me. From people helping me look for places to help me get that experience I need to those just with words of encouragement, it has really helped my confidence.

On the other end of the spectrum, the universe has kind of screwed me over on another part of my life plans. Last blog I briefly talked about my plans with Vegas. those plans haven't been halted, but they have been slowed. 

My old reliable "Betty" car decided at a little over 154,000 miles that she needed a break and decided to attempt suicide one morning on the way to work. While she was driveable enough to get back to my apartment (with lots of begging and promises from me), she has been out of commission for a few weeks now. She heads to the repair shop on Friday to see if she can be saved. 

Thankfully, I have my totally awesome truck to drive so I'm not S.O.L.. But even with how great he is, Blue eats a ton of fuel, getting only about 14 mpg on a good tank. Since the barn is 35+ miles away and I'm not willing to move, barn trips have been cut back to two or three times a week instead of every day. And since we are in the midst of a crazy Triple Crown season, when I get up there I usually want to just chill with the horses instead of ride. So for now, Vegas is getting a little extra downtime while I try to survive the truck's gas guzzling and dealing with Triple Crown stress.

But where's there's a plan going awry, there's always one to step into its place. Miss MD talked me into starting a healthy eating and exercise program with her. I don't want to call it a diet because while that's what it's labeled as, it is more of a lifestyle change than a true diet. The workouts are a killer, so my body hates me for that (but is getting into awesome shape, so yay) but since I am eating healthier (and with foods I like) I'm at a compromise with myself.

The first "block" of the program is 21 days (the exercise program that comes with it is a 21-day program) and it is over on June 7 so I'm interested to see how it works out when I finish my first round. Even though I've cheated a few times, I feel healthier and have more energy so I'm expecting good results as long as I can keep myself motivated to stay with it.

On my reoccurring injury front: After three weeks of being fine, my ankle/foot issues returned when I wore the wrong shoes for a few days (I'm guessing they need to be packed away until I am fully healed) so I have been halted on attempting to get back into 5k training but plan on adding that after the Belmont. That gives me a little under two weeks to get the foot back under control, which shouldn't be too hard.

There's not much more to report right now so I'm signing off before I totally bore you to sleep.

Until next time,

Mel