Photo Adventure Fridays.... Literally!

Last Friday afternoon, I had a pre-planned surprise from JenJ take place at my barn. A friend of hers, Josh Baker of AzulOx Photography, came up from Austin to do a photo shoot of just the mare and I. I have a lot of competition photos and photos of just Gogo over the years, but I didn't have any good ones of just the two of us together looking nice. We decided that we would trailer over to a local park where there was actually *gasp* some grass and trees and that would provide a nice beautiful backdrop for us. The day dawned warm and sunny, just like every day has been for the past four and a half months. It hasn't rained in that long either, so I of course didn't give the weather a second thought as I walked out the door to work that morning. Obviously there would be good weather for the shoot, we're in the worst drought in Texas history, how could there be any other weather aside from hot and sunny?

Fast forward to 5pm later that day as I am finishing up at work: there are giant stormclouds brewing on the horizon. Great... The first day we've had rain in almost five months and it ends up happening on the ONE day that I needed to be outside looking nice? Fail! After clocking out, I sped off to the barn (which thankfully is 10 minutes away from work), and had just enough time to bring Gogo up from her back field before the sky absolutely opened. Josh showed up at about this time as well, and was spared a moment of dryness to get inside the barn before the deluge began. It POURED! Sideways rain, thunder, lightning, wind.... and there was no end in sight! Josh and I stood around after I had cleaned Gogo up and chatted for about an hour about whatever came to us. He's a funny guy and he thinks I belong in Austin.... I think he's right!

We had a momentary lapse in the rain and we decided to go for it. We had long since abandoned the idea of trailering out anywhere - why bother, when we knew we might not even get to shoot at all before sunset - and we rushed out to the back pasture where Gogo and her friends live and decided to make the best of the scenery. The rain was still drizzling (and sometimes pouring) on and off, so Josh took refuge in the horses' shed while I took outside and posed with the Mami.

And they came out GREAT!! I can't believe it given the weather and the dim light and the whole situation in general! I waited to post about it until all the photos were uploaded online so I can share... these are just a few of my absolute favorites. Enjoy!












Also, for those inquiring about the grass in my pasture.... this is proof that there is NO grass, just check out the muddy shoes! I think I will never get them clean again!


It was super fun and I can't thank Jen enough for this. So awesome!


I have more updates on life changes for Mami mare coming soon.... they include a diet, a move to a drylot, and a stab at homeopathy. Stay tuned ;)

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure....




Bryce Canyon, Utah, USA.
Easily one of the most fascinatingly beautiful places I've ever been. The crazy rock formations are called hoodoos and are created through the process of erosion - wind, water and time sculpting the land. We rode horses (and mules) through the canyon... I had the most delightful little red mare who had a super soft mouth, turned on a dime, and was seriously careful while walking along the edge of a cliff. Proof that sometimes trail riding guides don't give the "experienced" riders the crazy horses... sometimes they give them the nicest horses so that they don't get ruined!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...









Georgia Aquarium, Atlanta, GA.
This was the second time I've visited the aquarium and it was just as magical as the first. If you're ever in Atlanta, GO. It's amazing.



I am in the process of moving quickly.... very, very quickly. Sometimes, you just have to get out of a toxic situation as fast as you possibly can. Gogo moves Sunday to her new home. You might not hear from me for a few days... I'm not sure. But wish us luck, and I will keep you updated as soon as I can.

Photo Adventure Fridays: The Shady Tree

This week's Photo Adventure....






My own backyard, under the Shady Tree.
Because sometimes having to tramp all over God's creation to find where the heck your horse is on her 15 acres is an adventure in and of itself.

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...



Somewhere over Mexico on the way to Costa Rica.
If I remember correctly, this is the last thing I saw before falling temporarily victim to food poisoning. Nice.

I've not been having very many far away adventures as of late - my work hours and time off simply don't allow for it - but I have some BIG upcoming news that may be changing this sometimes in the not so distant future. Stay tuned!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...



Mangrove forest, Bradenton, Florida.
Just strolling around on this fine Christmas Eve. I have dreams of a white Chrismtas, but 70 degrees and sunny ain't bad either! We come down to Florida quite often for Christmas, as my grandparents live here and my parents also own a condo. Glad the weather is nice this year... I do recall a few years ago when we actually had a tornado touch down a few miles north of us ON Chrismtas Day!!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...



Kahurangi National Park, NZ.Where Nicole and I got hopelessly lost after the trail ceased to be marked somewhere on top of a mountain. We were god knows how many kilometers away from civilization with no contact to the outside world, and had no way of surviving a freezing night should we have to. One of the few times that I realized how utterly unprepared we were should something go wrong, and one of the only times I've felt truly frightened and unsure of which way to go. Thank god we stumbled upon a cabin somewhere along the way where other trampers were, and found the path home again... yikes. (Still awesome though.)

(PS: I am still alive, I promise. Lots to write about, no time to write!)

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure....




Kincardine, Ontario, Canada.
Where we often took our boat in the summertime while traveling up Lake Huron. Kincardine is an awesome little town that calls to my Scottish heritage with summertime bagpipe parades in full kilt attire. Yes, we are flying a Canadian flag on our US vessel - when traveling into a foreign port it is customary to fly a courtesy flag on the bow while also flying your own home country flag at the stern, 1" of flag for every 1' of vessel. (I know, it's weird.) We always knew we were arriving safely in Canadian waters when my father would call for the kids to get the flags out.

They keep telling me they're selling the Sapphire and I keep telling them that they just can't. Truth of the matter is that she's 13 years old now, and I haven't even seen her for at least three years - maybe even four. But... they can't sell her, that's like selling off a member of the family! :(

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...



View of downtown Detroit, Detroit River, Michigan.
My hometown. Well, kinda - I live about half an hour north of there, in a small yuppie town. (By small, I mean at least twice the size of my largest local 'city' here in CT.)(And yes, this was taken while on our boat... did I mention yuppie.) Detroit has a tendancy to breed loyal people - look at Kid Rock and Eminem as a small example, an album doesn't go by for either of them where they don't have SOMETHING to say about it - and I am much the same way. Despite that fact, right now Downtown D is a terrifying place to be, and is ranked one of the most poverty striken, most depressing, and most crime-ridden places in the States. I have thankfully so far not been mugged/raped/murdered/jacked/set on fire when spending time there, but that day will probably come. I love it anyway, who couldn't love the Motor City? Yes, even with the collapse of all the giant auto makers - which is why I am lucky enough to own such a nice truck. Thanks, crappy economy!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...




Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio.
AMERICA'S ROLLER COAST. My old summer stomping grounds. I knew this park back to front and in and out when I lived in MI and OH. Pretty sure you are not EVER supposed to take pictures while on roller coasters but the Blue Streak is such an adorable epic that we couldn't help ourselves. (Also on the Blue Streak, if you put your seatbelts and the lapbar realllllly loose and fake the attendant out, you FLY over ever hill! Safety first!)

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure....






Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Who doesn't want to explore a lovely city?


(PS - My honey is finally fully moved in. Hooray!! More time for blogging! ;) )

Photo Adventure Fridays

Today's Photo Adventure...




Río Tárcoles, Carara National Park, Costa Rica.
Pretty sure I never, ever want to get ANY closer than this to gigundo cocodrilos. Ever. Again. But it was amazing to be sure. And kind of scary.

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...




Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park, Colorado.
One of our stops on our drive to California in 2006. Both my traveling companion and I suffered some ill-effects from the change in altitude, but while I rested and hydrated, he insisted that we hike and 'work out' and refused to listen when I said he really needed to acclimate first, and he of course got very sick. Dumbass. We drove all the way across the top of one of the mountains above the tree line (in the alpine tundra, 11,500 feet above sea level!), came awfully close to getting chased by elk, and saw some amazing sights. It was so gorgeous.

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...





Reserva Biologica Bosque Nuboso Monteverde (Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve), Monteverde, Costa Rica.
Hiking through the Costa Rican rainforest, we saw some amazing flora and fauna, swung from a Tarzan rope and took a zip line canopy tour, ate some outstanding food, and discovered some terrifying creatures, such as millipedes the size of your hand and a nest full of angry scorpions in our hotel room. Now that's not something you see every day!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure....








Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls Ontario/Niagara Falls NY.
Yes they're two different cities with the same name. If you had this cash cow in your backyard, wouldn't YOU name your city after it too?? The falls were amazing and we had one of the best long weekends of my entire college career (pictured left to right: Stranger, Me, Nicole), even though the surrounding cities were disgusting and skeezy and everything we did cost us an arm and a leg. But we didn't care, it was amazing anyway.

Photo Adventure Fridays - with a twist!

This week's Photo Adventure....




DDDAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. DEATHSTORM. An adventure in running panicked trying to get horses in from turnout as a giant storm literally develops RIGHT over your farm, lightning striking the trees on the property perimeter and thunder cracking so loud it sends all the horses into a terrified galloping frenzy. I think they said there were three tornados in all with these storms, one of which was the one that developed directly overtop where we were - thankfully it passed!! We've had something like six tornados in the state this year alone, which is five more than I remember ever having last year. Connecticut doesn't get tornados like we do in Michigan, but we're giving them a run for their money. Hell, even where I was in Ohio didn't get tornados like we've been getting!

Honestly though, this year's weather has all been so ridiculously stereotypical month by month. January it was FREAKING FREEZING with many random blizzards, February was cold and dreary, March was GORGEOUS and warm and spring-y, April was very warm and fresh and green, May was bright and beautiful with a rainstorm every day and massive plant growth and sunshine all around, June was HOT and very, very dry for three weeks, and July has been utterly terrifying with amazingly HUGE thunderstorms every few days and soaring humiditiy levels and temperatures in the 90's every single day. You can NOT get more predictable than that for this area. I'm enjoying being terrified every day of my life, but honestly, there is a limit to it somewhere. And I'm also starting to get a little sad because it's now 5:15 and it isn't totally light out anymore. We may be in the thick of summer, but it's still kind of sad to know that it won't be here forever.

Another reason I'm a little sad about losing my daylight hours is that I've been using the precious hour between five and six AM to go running in the Avatar shoes. I LOVE THOSE AMAZING THINGS. Because of them, my entire running form has changed. No longer able to land on my heel (because of the extreme pain involved if you run incorrectly in a shoe with NO padding), I've completely changed my stride, and find that by landing midfoot, I save my entire system from a painful shockwave. I'm running extra efficiently, and find that my recovery rates are far better and my body hurts far less. Where is that hip pain, those eternal aching knees and burning shin splints I used to live with every day of my life? Gone, unless I don't stretch properly. I spend most of my morning runs on one giant eternal hill, and find I can do it without getting utterly exhausted and winded like I used to. In fact, I still feel fresh as a daisy at the top.
The most exciting thing for me is that I plan on running my first every competitive road race on August 19th, a 5k. I've never run competitively before! I ain't no Stacey triathalon-ing her way across the universe but hey, everybody's gotta start somewhere! I was supposed to go to California that week, but that vacation plan got blown out of the water. Oh well... maybe in like.... December I can go. Sigh.
I also have plans to try eating more Primal like Tamara and more recently Funder. I am in no way going to be severely hardcore about this - damnit, if I want some ice cream that badly then I'm going to have some - but there is a lot to be learned here. There are things about the Primal diet that don't mesh perfectly with me, like the fact that I think coconut is the devil's food of death and I won't touch it, but there are plenty of other ways I can make simple changes for the better. Stay tuned for a little more on that.


I was just treated to the most magnificent pink sunrise rainbow out my window. I ran around the house trying to find my camera, but my honey appears to be sleeping on it in the bed. By the time I came back out to take a picture with my phone, it had gone. Sigh....




More on Gogo's week of boring-ness coming soon!

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure......





Tarrywile Park, Danbury, CT.
Not a far away destination but an adventure nonetheless - where we got hopelessly lost for four hours without water last Sunday in the 90+ degree heat, eventually getting rescued by two backwoods Bubbas in a tow truck who took pity on us and drove us several miles back to our car. Dangerous and stupid? Yes. An adventure I won't be forgetting anytime soon? Definitely.

Photo Adventure Fridays

This week's Photo Adventure...







Aoraki/Mt. Cook National Park, South Island, NZ.
Where Nicole and I went tramping on our Easter holiday, amongst other places. It was f-ing amazing, to put it politely!