Soft soft soft!

I think I am slightly soft. My horse costs me the best part of £300 per month to keep in the Winter, that's quite a large chunk of a monthly wage. Anyway, due to some health issues and various other things (moving etc) I've not been riding recently, not for a while so a girl at the yard has been riding and looking after my horse for me for the past year. That's all fine but I was paying for everything while somebody else got almost sole use of my horse.

It got to the point earlier this month where I just couldn't do it anymore so I advertised my horse for loan. I retain ownership but the 'borrower' pays for all upkeep and costs. It's a kind of rent agreement really.

I drafted the add up, told S (girl who rides my horse) that I was no longer able to do it and that was that. Or at least I thought it was until I went up to the yard with the first set of people who were interested and S disappeared from site only to be found in tears behind the stable block....

Still I tried to harden my heart and carry on and then had four lots of people come out this week. S had hardened herself and showed my horse off to her best ability, she made her look fabulous. When S was questioned by the one lot of people about my horse's habits she could very easily have made my horse's excitable moments sound quite frightening but she didn't, she made her sound lovely but told the truth.

She really helped me show her off wonderfully. S is 14, I think her behaviour showed a massive amount of maturity and sense. Despite knowing her actions in showing my horse off would possibly lead to my horse being moved to a new home and S no longer being able to ride or see her. For a 14 year old girl that is some act of maturity.

The end result of that was I came home feeling as guilty as sin at wrenching my horse away from her, the horse who comes thundering up the field when she see's S enter the yard and who follows her about like a dog.

I battled with my conscience, looked at the reality at me no longer being able to afford to keep my horse for somebody else to get enjoyment from but still couldn't face breaking a girl's heart. Apparently she'd been in tears quite a bit recently over Sunny and then when she said to me, as a passing comment in a 'she's a lovely horse' tone rather than 'I'm going to guilt trip you' tone, "my day isn't complete until I've been to the yard, it's like something is missing from my day", that really stuck in my head.

Sooooo, the end result was me phoning her father and outlining the fact I genuinely could not afford to keep a horse for somebody else to get enjoyment from. Her father has agreed to pay the liver and contribute towards feed while I pay insurance and other running costs. I'm happy with that, she's my horse and I'd never sell her but at the same time, I'm not going to throw money away paying for her upkeep for somebody else to completely enjoy.

I just could not face being the one the completely break a girl's heart so damn my soft side but it's the right thing to do and I feel happy with the solution. I know without doubt S adores my horse and worships the ground she walks.

The fact I had S on the phone last night saying thank you, almost in tears, tells me I've done the right thing. Thank goodness her father agreed to pay the livery though as it's meant a happy arrangement can continue :-).

Success!

I am a big Mumford & Sons fan, I think they're brilliant. I hate the churned out samey pop acts and always have done really and Mumford & Sons are the solar opposite of those manufactured acts.

Anyway, I knew that they'd be touring this year to coincide with the release of their new album, Babel. I really wanted tickets but knew that there was a high chance of them selling out so last week, once it was announced they were on sale, I was sat at my laptop feverishly hoping I'd get a ticket and I did! So on the 10th December I'll be going to see them perform in Manchester. I cannot wait! I don't very often get excited about a band but I can't wait to see them :-).

I love this track, it is my favourite by far and for reasons I won't go in to now, very relevant. I'm in a happy place at the moment and I'm made happier that I have one of the golden tickets to go and see them perform. After seeing the prices they're up for on Ebay I'm very glad I got a ticket! 

One Of Those Weeks....

It's been one of those weeks. Last week was a nightmare, I am certain somebody cursed me and I should have realised it was going to be bad when I went out on the Saturday and was texting a friend to say I'd be on my way when I somehow walked smack bang in to a lamp post. I don't mean just graze it, I mean smack my face in to it so my nose got a bit of a beating.

Two days later I managed to somehow get myself locked in the local shopping centre.... I thought the shopping centre near my parents closed at 7.30. Turns out it doesn't, it closes at 7pm so when I got up to leave at 7.15, all the shutters were down and I started to feel a little bit panicked and very much like a caged animal at the zoo.

I knocked on the security door, no answer. I phoned the number on the CCTV sign, no answer. In desperation as there was nothing else I could do, I had to phone the local police non-emergency number and sheepishly admit I was stuck and unable to get out anywhere. The lady on the phone actually laughed and to be honest, I couldn't blame her. I sound young on the phone, I frequently get mistaken for my 14 year old sister when I answer the phone at my parents so when the call taker on the other end of the phone asked how old I was and I replied that I was 27, I think she possibly was a bit taken aback....

After 30 minutes of waiting and being told that if they couldn't get hold of the security guard then they'd have to look at getting me out some other way, they finally managed to track him down on his mobile phone and he turned up to let me out. 

He looked a bit red, as he might do considering he told me he'd checked the place before he locked up. Clearly he didn't as I was sat on a bench inside the shopping centre waiting for my sister (who text to say she'd stopped at her friend's place so it was all in vain anyway!) so if he had checked, he would have seen me. 

Three days after that little escapade I almost fell down the stairs. I came very close to toppling from the top of the stairs all the way down after somehow tripping over my own feet. Turns out that even size 2 feet are a liability when they want to be and bannisters really can save lives or at least broken bones anyway.

Finally, as if that wasn't enough I got locked in my horse's stable at the yard. The doors are really high, I'm not tall enough to reach over an unbolt the door if it's helpfully been bolted from the outside. So, I had to phone the yard owner to come and rescue me.

It's really not been a good week!