So much stuff...

Arghhh... okay. First of all.. my horse is making me so angry I could seriously cry. I'm not a crier. At least... I never used to be. My instructor informed me the other day that he has the WORST habit of cribbing she'd EVER seen. That means he's more addicted than Rocky, the former worst cribber in the barn. For all you non-horsey people's benefit... cribbing is when they "chew" on something, usually wood, lean back, and suck in air at the same time. It really bunches up & stiffens their neck muscles, can damage some of their insides if they manage to swallow or inhale too much wood, and can literally shave several years off of their lifespan. I officially HATE Jack, the horse who taught my horse how to crib. So, Dakota's on his fourth crib collar, after stretching his first two too big, and breaking one of the leather straps in half on his third one. I also HATE cribbing collars. They rub fur and occaisonally some skin off, because they have to be so tight to be effective. I'm going to look into supplements and stuff to see if a mineral deffiency is part of the problem, but... -sigh- He's addicted. Cribbing also releases endorphins in their brain and makes them feel good. He is as addicted as any smoker, or anyone doing street drugs. I would go for a shock collar, but those malfunction too easily. And I would go for a muzzle, but then he couldn't graze when turned out... not like he does that now, of course. But I might have to resort to that. But enough of this...

WARNING: That was the beginning of my ranting. hah. There's more coming.

So.. this will be a nice long rant post. I think if I let it out, it might help. Kim [trainer] has been frustrating me SOOO much lately. My students sometimes don't trust my judgement, because when Kim has a problem with me... she discusses it with me IN FRONT OF MY STUDENTS. Bugs the crap out of me! I don't care if she calls me, or hunts me down while I'm at the barn away from everyone else... but she tells me IN FRONT OF MY STUDENTS. Grr. Then, she also blames me for stuff I didn't do. And she should know I didn't do it. I don't know if I've said anything about this on here recently... I've been venting to my mom. But apparently I need to let it out some more. haha. She blamed me for putting Jack's crib collar on waaay too tight because he was found one morning thrashing around and Kim thought he passed out when his crib collar was too tight. This was AFTER she once told me to put it as tight as I could get it! When I'd put it on the night before, after one of my students used him, I made sure it wasn't too tight. For heaven's sake... I own a horse that uses a crib collar! I know how to put one on. Sheesh. At the time I was putting it on him... I even thought it was a little loose! I don't know what happened there, but it WAS NOT me. Argggh. And THEN. The battery in our truck died, so I couldn't get out to the barn to feed today. When I called to let Kim know, she asked me if I had used Rocky the night before. "No, why?" "Well, HE was thrashing around this morning, like Jack had been. His crib collar was way too tight." Hmph. It sure as heck was NOT be this time EITHER... I didn't even TOUCH him last night. There must be a phantom crib-collar-tightener going around at night or something. Because it isn't me! If anyone, I should know how to put a crib collar on because my horse uses one. And she's been treating me like I've never taught a class before in my life! "Don't let your students trot alone the first few times!" Of course I know this. I'm not going to get my students out there and just go, "Okay guys, THIS is a trot!" and smack their horses on the butt and watch them cling for dear life!!! Exaggerated, I know... but still.

Okay... I know a few posts ago I said it seemed like common sense has left the world. Well, that especially applies to my college students! I had to turn TWO away last night because they showed up without any money. AFTER being told they had to pay BEFORE riding!!! One girl forgot her checkbook the SECOND time in a row, and she couldn't just go and get it because she lived 30 minutes away! Hmmph. The second girl I turned away it wasn't ENTIRELY her fault, because apparently she's going through a rough time with money and literally didn't have enough to pay for the course... but still. They were told they couldn't ride without money. I don't get paid if they don't have money. I felt sorry for her, but still. There was nothing I could do!

Now I know how Jamie felt right before she left the barn. When Kim "trusts" [if you could call it that] you the most, and you have the most responsibility in the barn... you get blamed for EVERYTHING. I mean, a few semesters ago Kim wanted me to start teaching ORU so she could slowly STOP Many from teaching because she hates the way Mandy teaches and treats the horses. Well... now I'm following Mandy's lesson plans, and Kim keeps telling Mandy stuff to tell me... I don't want to sound bitter or high and mighty, but Mandy learned all she knows from ORU classes. She definitely isn't the greatest teacher. I'm not either. But I WISH Kim would stop flip-flopping on me and make up her mind!!!!! So, so, so frustrating. Arghh.

Bright side... outside it's been raining all day & night and it's pretty. I love the rain when I don't have to work in it. It makes me want to curl up with a fuzzy blanket and a good book. ^^

Well, before I get myself even MORE worked up... haha. I think I'll end this post.

Tina