Its a year today, but I really do still miss Murphy like it was yesterday. Best little Irish horse ever, stubborn as sin at times and grumpy too, but with such a heart. I can still see him looking over the side of his stall when I was somewhere else in the stable. Mind you, I don’t have any illusions about why; mostly he wanted more treats. But the way he made such efforts for me when I rode him, he must have liked it too. I certainly did.

I still haven’t done my lesson report for this week, mainly because I am upset that the schedule is changing next year and I am not sure how to be able to manage a weekly lesson unless I move to private tuition which would be lots of fun but also a lot more expensive. In the meantime, however, I (or rather, Elio) came across an interesting paper about the horses in Tolkien. Made me very inspired to try for something horse-related for the next big paper (the final requirement for the new Masters degree) that I may be starting next semester. Something about horses in the Iliad and/or in Greek myth and religion would be interesting, if I can formulate a good question to discuss. And then, if I continue with the Literature, maybe something on horses in fantasy…

Of course, a more practical approach might be to write something involving horses that could actually pay for my riding. Or at the very least, getting some horse-related translation jobs. I am so tired of motocross and surfing. ;P

I picked up yet another book on dog training from the library today. This one focuses on clicker training or shaping, and my hope (and that of the rest of the family) is that a more focused approach to this type of training (we have only dabbled in it so far) will help us out with our currently very lively boxer puppy. I’ve already read a few chapters, and though I’ve had a look at several other books focusing on dog training through positive reinforcement, this one suddenly made me realize a couple of things I had only partially grasped before.

At first, I had meant to make this a part of my lesson post for last week. But then I thought it merited a post of its own, and of course that led to me forgetting about it entirely.

In the course of debating how much a horse can carry over at the A Song of Ice and Fire board, Elio came across the webpage of the Equine Studies Institute, and pointed me to a fascinating article called Best Built to Ride.