Tales of the Frozen North

New England is notoriously cold and snowy in winter, but this year in particular the weather is living up to its reputation. We've had two snow days--classes canceled--within six class days. Not every day has been cold and snowy, but many have.

On the first snow day, last Tuesday, all students here were required to stay in their dorms all day. Roads here in Massachusetts were closed, so we couldn't have had class if we'd wanted to. A friend of mine and I felt like our time could be better spent on the farm than in our rooms, though; we ended up getting permission from our parents and the dean of students to help during morning chores while everyone else was in lockdown.

The weather wasn't as bad as it could have been. Nevertheless there was a lot of wind, and most of the snow that fell was blown into drifts. The light was so flat that I had trouble capturing the outdoor scenes on camera. I did try!

A young calf recently born at the farm

Yesterday we had good, albeit cold, weather. I made it to Stoneleigh for my first riding lesson of the semester. I was paired with a horse new to the barn called Thatch. He's either nine or seven years old, according to my instructor, and very athletic. He's strong and energetic, but also fairly responsive. We worked a lot on varying his pace at the trot and canter and encouraging him to drop his head and relax a bit. I didn't do a terrible job, and we got to do some jumping as well as flatwork. He was a lot of fun. His pace and balance were such that I could feel power coming from his hind end rather than his front, something which I'm not talented enough to feel very often. And I'm getting better at encouraging horses to round up a little bit. While I'm unbelievably sore, it was a great lesson!

Thatch, my new favorite lesson horse

Today was the second snow day of these past two weeks. I spent most of it either sleeping or sledding. Both of those activities seem more important than pretty much anything else at this point. Winter is tough.

There are some breaks in the monotony; as well as having done chores in a blizzard and gone riding yesterday, I also placed 10th at a classic-technique Nordic ski race on Saturday-- my best result to date! There are three races left in the ski season--four, counting the NEPSAC race, which I might or might not attend depending on how my coaches feel. I'm excited for championship races, coming up soon, as well as for the end of a very long, cold sports season.

Stay warm!

Application Season

Today is October 26. The word on everyone's tongues--or in the backs of everyone's haunted brains-- is "college." For seniors applying early, this upcoming week will be perhaps the most stressful week of the year. I include myself in the legion of stressed students, because while I have been working on my essays since the summer, I'm still not satisfied with where they are. I will have to be satisfied soon; they're due on Saturday.

Even though I spent this morning and yesterday morning writing for my applications, I'm not burned out. My essays are essentially stories about myself. I journal and write this blog, so clearly I enjoy writing about myself (how narcissistic), but college essays are different. They're more focused; whereas my journal entries aim to record for my future self what I've been up to, a college essay asks me to tell a story that I find important, and then tell the world--in this case, an admissions committee--how the events of the story impact me. I have written many.

I wrote about cleaning stalls.

View from the barn towards the Richard Odman Memorial Manure Shed (right of wheelbarrow)

I wrote about Kate, a horse at the NMH farm who died this summer.

Kate

I wrote about The Phantom Stallion series.

My not-so-phantom gelding and I pose for the camera

I wrote about mountains.

Scene at the trailhead of the hike which I wrote about: 5 AM.

Afternoon thunderstorm over Buck Mountain

I wrote about how I convinced my parents to adopt three kittens.

One of the three kittens, Veronica

Except for the last one, which is part of a writing supplement, I'm still not sure which story tells the most about me. I have yet to decide which essay I will end up using. And part of the equation is how well I express what's important about the story I choose.

Despite my indecision,  and even though the deadline has me stressed, I'm confident I'll finish up with time to spare. I have every A block off this week, and my time management skills have grown so solid this year that I'm not really worried about getting my homework done, either. I might even sleep!

Writing this post has cost me half an hour, maybe forty-five minutes. I don't regret using my time this way, as I did need a break from telling an unknown admissions committee about my experiences hiking with an ice ax during a thunderstorm, but it is time for me to get back to work.

Happy birthday, Mommy!

Evening photography by Lake Solitude, featuring my mother.

October Again

'Tis the season for fall leaves and warmer clothing! Fall is my favorite time of year. Here in Western Mass autumn is particularly beautiful, but even in Austin the cooler days and pumpkin sales that fall brings are more than welcome. (That's not to say that fall has arrived in Austin yet. If I'm to believe the Weather app on my phone, temperatures are still in the 90s.)

Autumn colors were quick to arrive at NMH; since about two weeks ago, trees have been turning various shades of yellow, red, and orange. It's during this transition that I think fall colors are most beautiful. Not many leaves have fallen yet, and many are still green, which means that the bright new colors are juxtaposed against the dark, late-summer shade.

In the past few years at NMH, I've told myself at the start of leaf season that I'd go out and get pictures at some point. Of course, work and all sorts of other preoccupations intervened. As a consequence, I've never been happy with my fall pictures. So lately I've made it a priority to take my camera everywhere! I'm happier with this set than I have been in the past.

Not only have I shot more this fall, but I've also looked through my enormous Lightroom catalog to find lost photos from past autumns. I found two that I like from Family Days last year--at the time, I wrote them off.

Stormy day along a lake on the way up to Mount Washington

A few more recent shots:

Leaves in front of Crossley during the USC Endless Summer Party

Abe, Tim, and Ben

Liam and Tim Tyler prepare to hitch up the farm's new Belgians (donated recently by Tim)

 

 More to come in the next few weeks.

January

The hot topic on campus these days is a cold one. That is to say that everyone is talking about the weather, which has been very cold. Tomorrow the high is supposed to be around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, much higher than it has been the past few days. The Nordic ski team has a Classic skiing sprint relay in the afternoon--fingers crossed we don't get too chilled! We'll be working hard.

About a month ago, Isabel and I were in Austin. The weather was much nicer there and we both got to ride several times over break.

Jones was good for me. We had a pretty high number of stops at fences but worked through it pretty well. Over the course of those several lessons I got back my feel for him, which was nice. I also worked in some of what I've been learning at Stoneleigh. Stoneleigh is where I learn effective riding. Then I can put it into practice in Austin. I still have a lot of stuff to work on but my seat is way better and I think more clearly in the saddle.

As I said, it's cold up at school. And once again, I miss Austin. I've been going through old photos on my hard drive and finding shots from over the summer. At this time in the Northeast, one doesn't get much sunlight, so it's nice to look at pictures shot in the heat and remember how it feels to be sunburnt and sweaty in short shorts and a tank top.

Rusty and Pepper's pasture is a great example of grazed-down Texas grassland. Pretty, but the grass doesn't grow back very fast.

That's almost enough wishful thinking for today, but I also do miss Jackson. Thinking about summer too much can be very dangerous, as I'm finding out now. It can distract you from whatever you're doing. In my case, homework. It's had to find the motivation to work hard when the prospect of spring and sun is so tantalizingly close.

Isabel has been thinking about trail running next summer when we're in Jackson. There are several trail running groups in the area, of course, and many of them cater to people of all experience levels. And there is nowhere else where I'd rather run. Last summer on one particular hike, she and I double-timed down the trail from Phelps Lake into Teton Village in an attempt to beat our parents, who were set to pick us up there. We did beat them, and the most fun we had was when we were running, despite the fact that we both had on backpacking boots and heavy packs.To prepare for that possibility, I'm planning to run track again this spring. Depending on how my shins feel during the season, I should be in good shape to trail run with Isabel in summer. Last time I ran on the track team, I did not have a good experience. But this time should be better.

At this point, I think most people are ready for the sun to come again. Sugaring is around the corner! After that, it'll be spring. Ben T. is going to be here in mid-February. The Nordic ski season won't last too much longer, and then the team will start helping at the farm. I haven't been able to get down there much lately; probably I've gone twice since winter break ended. That's a little crazy. Soon! This Sunday will be a good day for it.

Ben picking up sap along the Northfield main road sugaring route, my personal favorite

Happy Halloween!

Winter is around the corner! It’s Halloween, barely November, but temperatures have dropped over the past two weeks and most of the leaves have fallen.  There’s still a bit of red on the hills opposite the valley from campus, though, and Mountain Day, which is like fall’s last hurrah at NMH, hasn’t happened yet. Normally it comes midway through October and is a surprise, but this year it’s been postponed until very late. The timing of Mountain Day is a great source of speculation on campus right now and no one but the deans knows what their reasoning is for putting it off.

It’s at times like these, when the temperatures drop off precipitously and I have to haul out the scarves and hats, when I miss Austin. The weather is lovely here, certainly, but fall in Austin is slightly more permissive because it’s still not cold and there are horse shows going on. The temperature at home is in the 80s right now. New Englanders reading this might not believe it, but that’s nice and cool for Austinites. I guess you could say I’m a little homesick. And it doesn’t help that Mountain Day hasn’t happened yet; it’s hard to appreciate fall in New England when you’re stuck in classes.

Apples on the farm

That being said, fall in New England is wonderful. Cidering is in full swing. Two weekends ago I spent the afternoon on the farm with my camera and got a few good shots. And I’ve had some excellent riding lessons. This Sunday at Stoneleigh I rode Ginger, a wonderful bay pony with whom I work very well, and the first course we rode in the lesson was perfect. After that we practiced some rollbacks. Rollbacks are hard to do on Ginger because after each fence she likes to get on her forehand. I have become much better at steadying and balancing her, but on a tight rollback it was more work. Even when I didn’t do a great job getting her to rock back a little, we did manage to make all of our strides perfect and get our lead changes. There’s more to work on but I feel good about my riding.

Zeph watching Bea (left) and Ben (right)

Fall is normally seen as the season when everything starts dying; however, it also always brings calves. Rachel had her third calf three weeks ago. He’s appropriately named Ben after Ben Tiefenthaler, last year’s farm intern. And Sarah, Rachel’s first calf, had her own first baby three days after Ben was born, a little heifer called Bea. 

Ben

Bea

Happy Halloween, everyone! 

October

So much for weekly posting! It's already more than a month since school started and I haven't posted once. Oops. The farm blog, however, has been regularly updated.

The leaves here have turned already, for the most part. Some of the trees have dropped their leaves, while others still have most of their foliage. Cidering season on the farm has begun already. Although I've been on the farm quite a bit in the past month, I haven't been able to actually work on the cider yet. Perhaps this Sunday.

Baelin and Ranger cidering

Instead of helping with the regular farm work I've been driving the horses with Richard and Liam. Some days we have spread wood ash and lime in the fields using the new lime spreader and fore-cart. Other days, when Liam hasn't needed them for that task, Richard and I have taken the horses out in the Meadowbrook cart. Kara is our particular favorite because she's more energetic than either Kate or Roca. She's also more used to being by herself instead of as part of a team.

Richard harnessing Kara

I am planning to start posting each Sunday. Now that my classes have settled down and I have a bit more time, that should be doable.

Summer Recap

Summer is almost over. In two days I am headed back to school for my junior year, which promises to be difficult. The days until the day school officially starts will be a whirlwind of packing, travel, volleyball camp, farm work, and meeting up with friends.

Like last summer, this break has been incredibly full. In the first few weeks, after going to Cape Ann, I went to Florida to visit family and went to the Carriage Museum. Instead of taking a driving lesson I just went for a hack around the property, which was a lot of fun and let me have the experience of cantering over bigger hills than I have in the past. It sounds a little silly but I've never really done that before.

After Florida, I came back to Austin for several weeks to ride and play volleyball before going to Washington, DC for my cousin's wedding on the 4th of July weekend.

When I came back from DC I had two weeks to prepare for my one show of the year, the first Summer Circuit. Jones was pretty good; we had a bit of trouble with him stopping out at fences, which cost us a lot of ribbons. However, the rounds when we had no stops were good and we did place in a few classes.Unfortunately, no one took any pictures of my rides.

Two or three days after the end of the show, Isabel and I were on a plane again, this time to Jackson Hole. Finally!

As you can see, there were a lot of moose in the yard! I also made my way out to Mormon Row one morning.

And now I'm back in Austin for a few days. Hope you enjoyed the photos. Also, I am planning to start a one-weekly post schedule when school starts so pictures don't pile up like this. 

Time to Relax

It's summer! I got out of school last week, after a long and grueling week of final exams.

Well, it wasn't all that bad. I ended up in good shape with straight A's and an Award in Spanish to my name. So now it feels really good to relax. I'm in Florida again, and as you might expect I'll be making my annual visit to the Carriage Museum soon.

Where I am in Florida doesn't always lend itself to fun photography unless horses are involved, but I do have a few shots to share from Cape Ann, Massachusetts.

The famous "Motif #1" at Bearskin Neck

I took a lot of photos as usual but these are the only ones I like. When we arrived at the Cape the weather was very cold and rainy, so I didn't have my camera out. Over the next few days we boulder-hopped along a rocky section of coastline, visited Bearskin Neck and Rocky Neck to check out the art galleries, and climbed up part of a cliff over the ocean that my dad used to climb a lot, years ago. I ended up climbing that cliff barefoot because the highly impractical ballet flats I was wearing finally broke after two years of almost non-stop use. I think it was more fun barefoot than it would have been in sneakers, though I wouldn't advise following my example.

My mom is also blogging a bit more actively now, so you should take a look at her blog here.

Riding in a Cast

Spring break is almost over! This means that I've already finished my shift of farm sugaring, have already gone skiing, and am now back in Austin. Obviously, I have a few pictures to show for it.

Sugaring was incredibly fun. We had several good sap runs, some lovely weather, and best of all it was a week spent living with around 10 of my best friends. It was a very good time.

In Jackson, my dad and I skied for two days. The snow conditions weren't great--I've never seen the Bowl in such terrible shape--but a good part of the mountain was skiable and we had two very good days. The moguls were great!

And that brings us to yesterday, when I went riding in a cast. I didn't think I'd be allowed to ride, but  was proven wrong, on the condition that I make my best effort to not fall off. It was a pretty decent ride--my instructor noted that my hands are much better now than they were last time I rode Jones, and that I must have been doing a lot of flatwork. She was right; that's pretty much all we do at Stoneleigh. (Even if it gets a little frustrating, at least when I start being allowed to jump bigger I'll know that I must have REALLY good eq on the flat. Or something like that.) I think my leg also looks better on the flat. 

My mom took a bunch of pictures. Here are the best ones.

I'll be able to go riding again tomorrow, and might actually be able to take some pictures of my own. Also, I spent a good portion of last night oiling my saddle, so now it looks absolutely gorgeous. I'm always surprised by how well it takes oil. 

More pictures soon!

Break is Coming!

Spring break starts next week, and it can't come a moment too soon. I didn't ride this weekend because last Sunday, after a fairly good lesson on a horse called Moe, he spooked and started galloping and bucking down the arena. I stuck with him for a ways until he reached a jump standard, dropped his head, and swerved to the right to avoid it, at which point I kept going forward and into said jump standard. And I mean  straight into it. I got up right away because of all the adrenaline, but my wrist felt a little funky so I didn't get back on.Which was a good choice because it turned out that it was broken. I also got a minor concussion, but since I had a helmet on and didn't hit my head very hard, the symptoms went away quickly. My arm is now in a bright-red cast and my role in sugaring season on the farm has been reduced to hanging around the barn waiting for someone to ask me to do any small task.

Despite the major annoyances of having one hand to use, it has its perks. For one, I don't think anyone would allow me to muck out stalls--but they're still letting me supervise morning and evening chores. Well, probably. And I should be able to lead animals around now that I have a hard cast.

The day before I broke my wrist was the one day I got to go out and do normal sugaring chores. A large group of us went out to finish putting taps on trees on the Mount Hermon campus. There were so many people to help that my job became that of official photographer (or something like that).

It was a good day! Since then we've made around 100 gallons of syrup.