I Know my Place in the Universe

Just finished a three day stint at Sonoma Horse Park, participating in the HMI June Classic Horse Show.  There were some firsts.  If I think about the novelty, the firsts, the unique events, this gig never gets boring.  First the first first.  Princess and I were in the under saddle equitaion class for people that can drive and pay their own horse show bills (meaning age 36 and over).  Princess knew it was a class and was on her best behavior.  In my mind, her head didn't go up more than an inch higher than it should, and she didn't bury it between her knees either.  She had impulsion but looked relaxed, not squeezed under pressure.  Nice prompt but not hurried transitions.  Some different activities than a normal class, plenty of sitting trot, a halt and a departure at the canter.  Fun stuff.  We lined up and my number was called first, I won the class.  Later I thought I imagined it, and asked the the back gait man, Anthony, if I misheard and snagged someone else's ribbon.  He said, yeah, the judge listed the numbers wrong but he let it go.  Really, a mistake.  I know my place in the universe.  6th in the real world. So the first first was imaginary, elusive, evanescent..

The second first was the 100 degree rule, jackets optional, and sunglasses very helpful.  I would have wilted off the saddle if I had to wear a jacket.  Check out the Men in Black look.

The third first was coaching.  Hugh had to get ready and walk the Grand Prix just when Jennifer was going to show.  There was a bit of a snag since he asked Jody as well and neither of us knew the other was asked. We chose the covered arena to stay cool.  Charlie was cautious in the beginning, but opened up his stride without going too fast and struck that just right balance.  Jennifer and Charlie did 3 nice rounds.  He scurried sideways when the judge stood up an coughed when they were not 10 feet away, right next to the judge's stand.  But Jennifer re-convinced him that there was no one chasing him, told him to chill and get his act together, and finished up nicely.  That was unanticipated, but probably unavoidable too.

The last first was jumping 3'3" in the PCHA Medal Class, first time with Princess at that height.  What a gas.  Walk in, pick up the canter and proceed to the first jump, an oxer, with no circle.  Roll back to the right for fence 2, roll back to the left and trot fence three.  We cleverly landed on the right lead and turned 270 degrees to fence 4, another oxer, building momentum in the turn to make the long distance that presented itself work.  She bent perfectly, I kept her haunches a little to the outside so they were travelling a longer track and therefore had to add power.  Up the 2 stride and down the diagonal and trot out of the arena.  6th place (a real sixth place this time, no mistakes) and very happy with the round.  And I had a fan club, HWTS Misfits and Ed and Rowena DeMayo.

That's all from the participant's blog.  See you next month!  Joan

We Are Talking Way Too Pink Here

Projects start in your head and end up in your hands.  I just finished my entry for the Marin County Fair.  It is a saddle pad, more accurately, a liner between the cushy pad and the horse that can be washed easily and kept clean and dry.  Clean in horse terms is relative.  Less that caked visible dirt is clean.  On the other hand, keeping the saddle area as clean as possible reduces any chance of abrasion injury.

At the last Tamalpais Textile Arts Guild meeting, weaver and artist Sheila O'Hara shared her body of work.  A double faced twill caught my eye.  She graciously shared the draft from a magazine article she wrote.  She used bright, really bright, colors.  "Go out in the garden., look around, see what mother nature uses, don't be afraid!"  Or something like that.  So, my lupines were in bloom, Some native roses and guava blossoms caught my eye.  I generally drift towards a more neutral palate, grey, taupe, ecru, white, black, maybe an earthy olive thrown in.  But echoing in my head was advice from friends, use color for once.  Fuchsia and lime green, what was I thinking?  Hallucinations in technicolor.

Now to the technical part.  1296 ends, that is threads in the loom before I even start weaving.  Why 1296?  because I wanted the fabric hefty, so that is 36 ends per inch x 36 inches before wash/dry shrinking it down to 31 inches.  And 1296=18x72 (72 ends per 2 inch sections of the sectional beam)=8x162 (8 ends groups in the double faced twill threading).  I graded the colors to look like three dimensional bands, with 7 color changes, off set as if the light was shining slightly off from one side.  Then every single ends had to be sleyed into one and only one heddle, 3 per dent in the reed, tensioned, and finally weaving could begin.  But what if I didn't like it after all that?  Too bad, complete the project and move on.   

So move on I did, every night throwing the shuttle and adjusting the selvage so the judge would not have to point out any technical shortcomings.  Not that I am sensitive or anything.  Cut off the loom, zigzag the hems for security, wash and dry to integrate the fibers, and take a look.  From 20 feet away, pretty cool looking.  But form up close, it literally makes you dizzy!  Designing functional fabric is harder than it looks.  On to the the next project.  Hope Princess look pretty in Pink.