Sterling Home Pair of Horse And Horseshoe Bookends, 6-Inch Tall $45.00 Horse with Gold horseshoe add style to any room Antiqued look finish With Gold horseshoe shape base for support to two standing horses Great accent decor Can decorate a table or shelf and to hold up books Made of composite material Gold and Brown finish 11.5 in. L x 4 in. W x 6 in. H (4 lbs.) Sterling Industries specializes in bringing creativity and imagination to decorative home accessories. S…

Art Poster, Book of the Horse – 12×18 $14.95 This high quality, durable art poster measures 12×18 inches and arrives ready to frame. Posters are printed on heavy-stock, semi-matte paper producing the best possible combination of color vibrancy and durability. All products from ClassicPix are made on demand one-at-a-time, just for you — not mass-produced. To see all of our posters, click on ClassicPix above. About this image: Originally publ…

Art Poster, Book of the Horse – 20×30 $19.95 This high quality, durable art poster measures 20×30 inches and arrives ready to frame. Posters are printed on heavy-stock, semi-matte paper producing the best possible combination of color vibrancy and durability. All products from ClassicPix are made on demand one-at-a-time, just for you — not mass-produced. To see all of our posters, click on ClassicPix above. About this image: Originally publ…

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The Best of Spike Jones $9.98 Sure, you’ll laugh at the zany sound effects (gunshots, auto horns, and sounds that can only be described as semiflatulent) and delightfully loopy monologues from the great Doodles Weaver (his absurd horse-race call on “The William Tell Overture” is classic). But Jones and his City Slickers display impressive musical chops as well. Just how easy can it be to play “Dance of the Hours” on a cowbell,…

Race Horse Photography books

A Look Back At The History Of Horse Racing

No matter which major city from around the world it is that you will visit, you are bound to witness a horse racing event – Australia, Mauritius, New Zealand, USA, UK, Europe, the Middle Eastern countries, and a few Asian countries. This equestrian sport has been around for centuries, but how exactly did it start out? Before delving deeper into that, let us first check on the most popular forms of horse racing. One of the most typical sights that you will see in affluent communities is Thoroughbred racing.  In Australia, Standardbred horses racing is more popular – just like in New Zealand. Quarter horse racing; and purebred Arabian horses racing or endurance racing are other forms of the sport.

Important Breakthroughs in the History of Horse Racing

After learning about some of the basic facts about horse racing, let us now check on its history as a sport. Take a look at the following important specific dates, periods and breakthroughs in horse racing:

-    4500 BCE
As mentioned earlier, horse racing as a sport has existed for centuries now. It actually started during this period when horses first became domesticated animals. Back then, it was Central Asian tribesmen who trained the animals – and this was the signal for horse racing to become a sport of the privileged and leisured.

-    680 BCE
According to the roster of ancient Olympics during this period, two-horse and four-horse racing was added to the gaming events.

-    753 BCE
One of the best ways to trace back the history of a centuries-old sport like horse racing is to consult the ancient books – and it was in the story of Romulus’ founding of Rome during this period that the mythical city-founded organized a series of horse racing events. The goal was to distract Sabine men abducted the women.

-    12th Century
This is the time that the horse racing that we know of today came to be. During the 12th century, a wave of battle-weary English men returned from the Crusades with Arabian horses. The endurance of these animals over the English ones is incomparable – so they were used in horse racing.

-    1702-1714
Under the rule of Queen Anne, the first modern races where spectators bid on their bets started. It was in 1759 that the Jockey Club was formed.

-    1894
Just like the English’ British Jockey Club, the American Jockey Club was established in this year to set up rules for breeding racing horses.

-    1930s-1970s
In the United States, the sport of horse racing has had its ups and downs – but it was during these decades when the popularity of champion horses like Seabiscuit revived the life of the sport.

Today, horse racing has become almost a national tradition – especially in the state of Louisiana. Whether you’re a true-blue horse racing fan, if you’re in it to win money or if you’re simply interested with the different facets of the sport, nothing beats the feeling of knowing that you know exactly how the sport came about so that you would appreciate its origins even more.

About the Author

Wanna learn more aboutHistory of Horse Racing Around the World? There are plenty of online resources that you can use to learn as much information as you can about the Treasure Island Resort and Casino and how you can increase your chances of winning should you decide to bet.

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Re: 2 Guys 1 Horse (Hood Deacon Style)

Preparing to take Photographs at your child’s next horse show with your D-SLR camera

There is nothing more fun then spending the day with your child at a horse show. Create a great keepsake photo album of their adventures in the show ring. Watch them grow over the years by photographing them. Here are some simple tips for taking photos of your equestrian.

1. Get ready the evening before. Charge your charger. Pack a spare battery. Did you know that ideally, batteries should be taken out of cameras because they can drain inside them? Charge the night before.

2. Clean your camera lens. Hopefully you have a UV filter to protecting the camera lense from dirt, and scratches. A lens hood can further protect from scratches and glare. They are affordable items that protect your big investment.

3. Clear your memory card the night before. Erasing photos at the event takes up a lot of energy. And you may miss a great shot. Get as much off your card the night before. Buy the biggest storage card.

4. Take a lot of photos. Check a couple to make sure your light and your speed is ok, but do not waste a lot of battery life in erasing photos at the show. Do that later at home. You may get 50 excellent shots for every 250 you take.

5. During cold winter days, store your extra battery in a jacket pocket, not in your camera case. The cold will affect your camara’s battery life. Bring some hand warmers to the winter show. Keep your hands warm!

6. Stock a couple of basic lenses. Outdoor shooting is so much easier than inside shooting. Indoors, you need a lot of light and have to watch what speed you are shooting at. Ideally, a 2.8 lens with a 70-200 range is excellent for low light indoor rings where you cannot use a flash. Flashes irritate riders more than the horses. Be sensitive about using your flash. See if others are. You do not want to spook a horse and rider.

7. Position yourself someplace where you can get great action shots but be away from obstructions and at a place where you may spook the the horse and rider. You will be told if you are in the way. Look for someplace where the backdrop is not so busy or maybe has a great sign. Keep the light behind you.

8. Take your lens cover off. If you are changing lenses, try not to get dust and dirt in there. Be prepared for rain and have a lense hood on to reduce dust, dirt, rain and sunshine from getting on your photos. Invest in a great camera backpack and keep some cleaning supplies inside. I don’t bother with a purse and just carry everything I need for a horse show in my camera backpack.

9. For close up shots in the warm up ring, show your rider’s horse the camera. Let the horse see you and smell you and the camera by his side. They get curious. Photograph some close ups of the horse’s head and the tack. Ask permission to photograph some riders. Get in the photo with your rider!

10. Read your manual and know how to use your camera. Understand the automatic settings and how to adjust your ISO. Understand how, perhaps, to use your video setting. It is fun to create movies that incorporate stills and video shots! If you are shooting video, tell the folks next to you so you are not catching their conversations on tape.

11. Hold the camera steady. Know where the horizon is and keep it steady. Know about when your rider is going on during the show. Let the folks know, nearby, that you are shooting so that they keep their hands and elbows out of the picture. Watch where the professionals shoot from and consider moving to obtain the angles they are getting. Know the kinds of shots you want to capture. Practice your timing as they jump the rails or pass a certain part of the indoor ring. Aspects of the photo can be changed with your camera software. Take lots of candids with their friends. Ask the kids to pose for group shots. Get shots with the helmets on and off.

Good Luck!

copyright 2011  Cathy Marsh    Cathy Marsh Photography

About the Author

Great Photos will happen.  Check out Equine stock photography at http://www.cathymarshphotography.com

Blog about Equestrian Daughters at She Rides Horses.com   http://www.sherideshorses.com

Quality Equine cards at Horse Card Shop.com    http://www.horsecardshop.com

my horse and his hoods!!!! what to do?

my horse has a hard time keeping hoods on. he either rips them or somehow gets them over his eyes.

try sewing on extra ties or whatever onto the hood and securing it closely to the headcollar rings. Other than that, possible he just cannot and will not tolerate them and he will have to go without. I presume he must have a summer sheet on too and the hoods go down to his chest. Try sewing tapes to the bottom end and some how securing them to the chest strap and circingle.

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Horse

Internet Viruses – What Are They? and Why Should I Care?

Whether you are considering the many free antivirus programs available or subscription based options, each of them can help protect you from the threats found on the internet. What are some of these threats? and how can they harm you?

Malware; is software that enters into your computer without your knowledge, has been in existence since the 1970s. Types of malware include viruses, worms, spyware, trojan horses, and any other program intended to harm your computer or steal your data. These threats can be found on websites, inside email, email attachments and potentially anything downloaded from the internet.

In 1971, the Creeper virus written by Bob Thomas was found on ARPANET, a then little know technology later to become the world wide web. Once Creeper gained access to your computer system, a harmless message appeared on the screen saying “I’m the creeper catch me if you can”. Elk Cloner was the first Apple virus created in 1981 as a practical joke. Next was the first PC virus called Brain in 1986 which was designed to prevent software piracy.

Although these viruses were written out of curiosity and fun, these innocent intentions soon gave way to malicious computer programming.

Spyware for example is designed to monitor your browsing habits, which then causes unsolicited advertisements known as “pop-ups” to appear on your computer screen.

Some other examples of malicious programming include software designed to take control of your computer system and make them part of a network of computers known as a “BOT” Network.

A BOT network (short for robot) can range in the millions of infected computers and be remotely controlled. Bot networks can be used for profit in many ways, including sending out mass amounts of email otherwise known as spam.

Computer viruses have the unique ability to copy themselves into the computer and quickly spread throughout a network, infecting hundreds if not thousands of computers. It accomplishes this by way of an executable file embedded into an already existing program. An unsuspecting user clicks on the file and downloads the virus.

Computer worms like viruses also can copy themselves, however, unlike computer viruses they do not require user intervention or to be embedded in an existing program to spread. Instead they take advantage of the computers missing or out-of-date security program.

A Trojan horse, is like the Trojan Horse story of Greek mythology which used deception to enter into the guarded city of Troy. This usually is done by packaging the malicious payload with something desirable like a picture, calendar, or music download. When the user installs the desired program it also downloads and installs the malicious program. Trojan horses can delete files and install backdoors.

The internet like the world is full of the good, the bad and the ugly. That’s why it’s essential to be aware of the hazards and to have an up-to-date antivirus program installed and running on your computer.

About the Author

John Carlo works in the Computer and Networking fields, has several Computer and Networking Certifications and owns a home based business. For more information go to http://best-antivirus-programs.blogspot.com/

I need jokes!!!!!!!!!!?

Ok so my friends and I take turns every night telling jokes. Tinight is my night so I need some GOOD ones.
They can be dirty,lean,long,short, what ever!
Just dont say ‘the horse fell in mud’, cuz that’s gay!
So plz help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
P.S. new ones are apprieciated!
I meant Clean, instead of Lean.
Sorry 4 the typo!!

a toddler was playing near his dad who was reading the paper and he says look daddy wiggleing his finger at his dad. His father said I’m going to eat that finger right up and grabbed it in his mouth and pretended to eat it. The little boy pulls it back out and looks at it with a tear in his eye he asked where’s my booger.

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Rainbow’s Lunchbox Meet! Part 7 – Drops of Jupiter & Black Horse and A Cherry Tree

By Chance, A Lasting Encounter

                                                 By Chance, A Lasting Weekend Encounter.

                                                                Dave F. Ryan  © 2009

      Saturday dawned with such innocent charm it belied the viciousness of the thunderstorm that attacked the large country town some two hours drive from the city, which I was returning to after a few days away on business.  The company I am part owner of had supplied a major component to a rural client and as our field technician was on leave, I took the opportunity to do the work and get away from the office.  Before returning home, I had planed to stop at the town which was my birth place, to have both a rest and an early dinner. The storm had been showing its anger from early afternoon with the formation of large pure white cauliflower like clouds banding together to form an impressive wall of white beauty in the sky to the south.  By the time I returned to my car that had changed, the skies where now dark, the air still and calm.  In the distance the rumblings of thunder hinted that both car and self had better seek protective cover out of the way of the fury that was about to be lashed down onto the town, least there be damage to both may beyond human control.  Well why not; I hadn’t slept in the town for some thirty-two years and this situation was a very good excuse for me to do so.

      My search for a place to stay the night ended at the first motel I came to.  No sooner had I got out of the car in the garage and the first heavy drops of hail began to fall.  The entire yard seemed to light up as if by a camera flash on delay followed by a very loud clash like a whip cracking with a sharp snapping sound added to it, filling the air.  I ran into the room closing the door and felt scared.  Another blinding flash of light in harmony with an extremely loud shrilling snap followed by the faint smell of something burning.  I dived onto the bed out of fright and hoped that the lightening would go elsewhere to charged the earth with its anger and leave me alone.  Strom had no intention of taking my plea into account and ragged on for almost an hour before dying with age. Sleep in its claming way came and hid me from the reality of the night.

The next morning reviled many trees had come down and in one part of the town, two homes where left roofless.  What had the town’s people done to upset the wind and clouds for them to launch such an attack I wondered on getting into the car having paid for the room?  With the sky above a deep blue as if in an offering of a beautiful day to apologize for the storms behavior, I pondered on the idea of spending a few hours here to check out some of my old haunts.  I was seventeen year old when my parents left town and moved to the city because of the line of work my dad was in.  The opportunity offered was a platter inviting me to stay and look the place over. I hadn’t been back since leaving though I often thought about the people I knew on a personal and social level.  The school reunion committee had invited me to attend their event back in 1983.  I didn’t go for some now obscured reason and I have regretted my failing.  Though now here I was with a boyish need to explore and an excitement welling up inside of me.

I phoned my wife to tell her I’d be home a bit later than expected.  She seemed to understand and told me to enjoy myself.  Turning off the phone, a vision of the forty-five year old woman in Sydney spending a day alone with her three children without me came to mind.  I was free and going to enjoy myself.  But where to start, I had grown up in this town coming here in the way most babies tend to come, back in 1954.  Jari, my sister of course, came first, though I did beat my brother whom for some odd reason, never seemed to have much time for me, naturally we clashed a lot. I don’t think we hated each other; we were so different in how we saw life. Jari, who is two years older, was like a mother, a sister and a brother rolled into one.  She had the ability to gel and mend the fights between her two younger brothers and also ease the disputes with mother on our behalf.  Though I did get married before they did and yes we are still with our selected partners; we are still very distant.  

The town was a play ground for me with old coal mine and disserted factories to dream in. I’d get hold of a torch and go down the abandon mines much to the discomfort of my mother who said I would go down them one day and never come out again and added, she’d miss not having to cook for me.  That hit home more than telling me not to go down the holes in the ground like a lost rabbit.  Jari though shared my adventure and went down a couple of the man made caves that extracted wealth from the earth.  She would ask me a lot of questions and once commented that she felt sorry for the people who had worked in the darkness.  I had walked to the site and was surprised to see not the old workings, but a housing estate with new modern homes and parks with swings and things.  Not what I had ever envisioned as a growing child full of static insight.  I took a couple of photos and moved on towards the house I grew up in which was still there; very different to how I last remembered it.  Moving to another house that was of interest was where Libby lived with her parents and two younger brothers. Libby was a lovely young fifteen-year-old girl in 1970, who I knew in a very special way and believed that she was my girlfriend until I discovered I was not the only guy visiting her by the bedroom window in the late night hours.  Looking at the house I wondered what ever became of her and if her parents knew of their daughter’s love life would come through her bed room window?  A young child came out onto the verandah and greeted me, the mother quickly followed and gave me a filthy look as she ushered her child back inside.  Well maybe not, I thought and walked away.

In total some five homes held a level of importance to me in town.  I would stop and take a photo, ponder on what became of the girlfriends who once resided within the walls and decide not to go and see if the parents were still there to learn of what became of their daughters.  I needed time to think of what to say and not having my wife here with me, made me feel out of place. Though there was one hose that was very special to me and it was that house in which I now stood in front of from across the street.  See this house is the main reason I wanted to stop in the town alone and check out my past, for it was this hose that a major change came into my life and a time that helped me to understand myself and what I was about.  Thirty-two years ago I knew the young couple who lived within, I used to work there of a Saturday cleaning the yard and doing chores for the woman while her husband was at work.  He worked on the railways and was often out of town as part of a train crew.  The job came about after my mother saw an ad on the notice board at the local Super mart and gave me the phone number.  I think she was trying to get me out of the mines and somewhere safe, as well as earning some pocket money from someone else’s pocket.  I phoned the number which was answered by woman, I told her who I was and wished that my mum would go away so I could talk without her listening in.  The woman told me what she wanted done about her house so she could get on with her own work.  She wanted to see me first and a time was set aside the following after noon after school.  That night I wondered if I should go or give it a miss, would other guys be there and would it be another inspection of the town’s best looking youth for some ageing woman to dot over.

The house was old yet there was freshness about it.  The lawn was well kept, the few shrubs and flowers growing near the veranda, looked like they were happy being there, which was something my grand mother had taught me.  She would say that you can tell the people in a house by the quality of the garden.  I knocked on the door and waited expecting an old dear to open it and feel someone was interested in her.  The door opened and there stood one very beautiful young woman dressed in jeans, a lose top and nothing on her feet.  Thoughts flashed through my mind like a stampede as I saw myself taking her to the movies and dinner.

“Hi I’m Shane; I’m here to see Mrs. Semit about the job.” I said trying to hide my feelings for her.  She invited me in and led the way through the back of the house where we sat down on a bench seat in the shade of the veranda.

“Actually Shane I am Mrs. Semit, you’ll be working for me if you like the job.”  She told me crossing one leg over the other and settling into a comfortable position.  The thought of asking her out on a date died in midstream.  I knew in an instant I liked her and secretly wished she had been born after me.  Her excellent face made it easy for me to keep good eye contact.

“Now tell me a bit about yourself?”  She asked in a relaxed voice as if she did this every day.

“I’m in my second last year at school and feel I will do well in the end exams.”  I began and went on to explain some details about my hobbies and interest, the friends I had.  All the time I was talking she had been gazing at me intently, watching my movements as if I was a suspect in some major criminal investigation.  I finished by asking her what did she want me to do. 

“Well Shane the job here.”  She said getting to her feet “is mainly to keep the yard and house tidy, and sometimes help me in the house.”  I followed her to a small garden shed where a few tools, a hose and the lawn mower were kept.  I was told about the routine with cutting the lawns and general expectations that she expected of me as we moved to the front of the house.  I asked about her husband, what he did. He worked on the railways as a train crew and was away a lot of the time with shift work.  Inside the house, she asked if I wanted something to drink, well seeing as she’s a married woman, I’ll have tea and dream that I’m her hubby for a while.  I was by now feeling far more relaxed in her company and more adventurous in talking to her, like asking what she did for a living.  She turned and smiled at then said she thought I already knew. I shrugged my shoulders and felt an absolute idiot for being so basic.  I quickly corrected that by telling her.  I had no idea what she did.  Placing a cup on the table in front of me and offered the choice of cake or biscuits, I took the cake.  She told me she was a Child Psychologist who dealt with abused children during the week.  I had no idea how a child could be abused and that was what clicked the conversation into gear.  I asked questions and questions about her work, how she got into that field. I was surprised to learn she had been to University.  I was shown her degree that hung on the wall in her interview room, a room that I wasn’t to worry about cleaning.  Eventually it was time to leave; I had the job and was to start Saturday at 8 am.  That was about the only hard part; usually I didn’t greet the day till well into the midmorning hours

One’s mum is an excellent back up to any failed alarm clock and on my first day, I made sure I arrived before 8 am.  My first choir was to bring in the garbage bins and clean them and tidy up the yard, which didn’t really need a lot of work done to it. The windows were next, that was a different matter, and I hated removing the cobwebs more than flicking away the terrified spiders.  Her dog came over to me getting my attention and a pat.  I liked the animal and gave her the name of Flopsy because she had longs ears that flopped down over her head.  When I told Mrs. Semit of the name when she came over to me about midday saying I should clean up and come inside for some lunch, also liked the name. But as she had chosen Sweetness as the name, that it would remain, though I would tease her and call her dog Flopsy.  We had lunch in the kitchen and that was when she told me to call her Lyre. I liked that name and had no problem being on a first name basic with her. Lunch was excellent, simple and relaxed, not rushed like at home with fights and disputes and a younger brother wanting the jam pot just as I was about to get it.  What peace.

These lunchtime brakes enlightened me in many ways by slowly improved my ability to talk to women including my mother.  Jari was a real gem of a girl who was more than a sister; she was a friend, a mother and a big sister all rolled into one slender package that had managed to attract a guy in town for the past two years.  She noticed the change in me. In time came trust between us and we could talk to each other about everything and anything.  But apart from that, Lyre and I talked about life, the earth and about the people living on it.  It was in the garden where she taught me to talk to the plants.  I thought it odd at first as if the plants could understand me.  Well they did grow and were very healthy plants. Sometimes Lyre and I would sit in the garden, close our eyes and focus on the plants and listen.  Slowly I began to see they were an important part of all earth’s life.  See, Lyre was very much into Earth Medicine.  When she talked to me about this, I was fascinated at what she had to say about the early peoples and earth life forms that once lived here.  They came in their time for a mument then left without really being noticed or missed, yet they being helped to form the energy now for all that is here now.   She naturally gave me a couple of exercises to do which I found, brought about a change in how I saw people and things about me.  I saw Jari in a far deeper way than as a good friend and sister, she was a special form of being who was herself and no one else.

The weekends came and left to reside in history allowing me to meet Lyre’s husband on a couple of occasions when he wasn’t away at his work.  He didn’t seem to mind me being alone with his wife and surprisingly there wasn’t much for me to do when he was home.  Lyre got me to take a photo of her and Devon sitting on the bench seat, she also took the first of several of me.  On wet days with little or no work done outside, I would help her clean the house, folding the ironing and even doing the vacuum cleaning while she did other things about the house or looking at her photo albums and sharing the story’s of the paper trapped images.  She was a gem of a young girl when she was my age.  Now she was a superb gem of a young woman.  There were times when making the bed she would through a sheet over me and we’d tumble playfully onto the bed with much laughter and excitement.  She was stronger than I expected her to be and it was not hard for her to have me in positions were I was unable to get off the bed.  She would throw both arms into the air and shout girl power wins again.  I’d tickle her feet and she would fall on me in a heap and say something like we had work to do and normality would return.  She had by then got into the habit of touching me, like when I got there, she would give me a hug saying my mother must be a very happy woman having me as her son or she hates my girlfriend for being the lucky girl in town to have reeled me into her life.  I was flattered by that and feeling far more relaxed, I opened up more to her than I could to my own mother.  Besides my sister, I found that talking to Lyre was just as easy and eventually, I improved in relating to both of them freely.  One afternoon when being driven home, she asked if I was doing anything special the next day.  Most Sundays were spent with my girlfriend and as she was out of town with her parents for the funeral of her aunt, I had nothing important happening.  She suggested spending a day with her.

I met Lyre at 8:00 near the library as arranged.  I got into the car and looked at her splendid thighs, she had tight fitting shorts and a lose top that revealed more of her than I had seen before. We drove towards some old water storage weirs that were a short distance out of town and very secluded by bush and therefore, not known about by many town’s folk.  To get there meant turning off the main road and going alone a dirt track for a few minutes to the first of the two weirs.  The second weir was by far the best one to go to with its many rock formations and small caves by the water’s edge.  There we laid out a rug on the ground and set up the picnic things.  At first our conversation was about the earth at being a part of and listening to the sounds that were around us.  She taught me how to develop the ability to see myself from within.

The morning hours aged with time and with them the topic of my girlfriend came up as natural as if I was asked the time of day. . I was not ashamed when she asked if I enjoyed screwing her.  I replied by saying it was part of being together, seemed to satisfy Lyre. 

“What’s your fascination with my legs?”  She asked knowing that I’d been looking at them.

“They’re an excellent means of support.” I said feeling just a bit put off having being caught out.

“What these logs?”  She replied moving them apart and running her hand along her thighs. “Devon thinks they are tree trunks, but I like them.” 

“I do too Lyre.”  I said.  Her legs were not over sized, they were well proportioned to her body and Devon was joking to her about them or he liked women with thin legs

“It must be nice to have three means of support.”  I said making her look at me in an odd way.

“Having a top job, a top guy and those two excellent legs to get about on.”  I said.  She lent over to kiss my cheek and whisper in my ear that I could look at them anytime I wanted.  I reached out and ran my fingers along her shin up to her knee.

“I said you could look at them Shane.”  That caused me to totally withdraw feeling shot down about doing anything else to her.  Maybe she was just a tease, I thought and went quiet.

“It’s been a while since someone did that to me. You have a nice touch.”  She said putting her foot on my lap. I sat there looking at her legs thinking a thousand thoughts.  Reaching over, she took hold of my hand and placed it on her knee than laid back on the rug.

“You can touch them.”  She said with a smile and closing her eyes, left me to get on with stimulating her sense.  Slowly at first I guided my fingers along her shins from the ankles to her knee in a light tickling motion, and then ventured further touching her thighs. I stopped short of going any further than the hemline.  After a while I stopped and took hold of a tuff of grass and slowly dragged it over her stomach, the muscles quivered with delighted torment.  From there I moved to her face, which I tickled in slow circular motions that gave her the most pleasure yet.  She sighed slowly saying it felt nice and soothing.

A few minutes later she parted her legs slowly then reached up and grabbed me with both hands rolling me onto my back then sat her self on top of me, thrust her arms into the air above her head and claimed another victory for girl power.

“I’m going for a swim.” She said getting to her feet before I could tickle her.

“I don’t have any cozies.”  I pleaded.

“Hey I don’t either!”  Came her excited reply as she began removing her clothing in front of me as if it was something done every day then ran towards the water.  I quickly followed her lead removing my clothing then stood beside her at the waters edge.  My emotional focus was very obvious, though she appeared not to take any notice of that.  I looked at the excellent form of her body.  Not the first time I had seen a woman completely nude.  Apart from my girlfriend, there were times I spied my sister changing in her bedroom or having a shower.  Though one night I was busted big time.  Jari told mum she was going to have a shower and went to the bathroom while I went to my bedroom and climb out of the window.  What I didn’t know was mum was in on it with my sister and when I got to the window to have a look; mum opened it fully and asked me to come in and have a good look.  I was more or less dragged in and Jari gave a full on pose, as did my mum who said with that much frontal exposure, I shouldn’t need to perve through the window anymore.  The truth came out that Jari saw someone looking at her and told mum who was waiting out side when my sister had her shower and saw me.  She told Jari who it was and left it to Jari to deal with me and that was how she dealt with it.  She warned me that if I did it again, she’d tell dad.  Amazing is that line.  Tell dad, can put so much fear into a child.  Seeing Lyre though was so different, it was natural and someone outside of family.

Lyre slipped into the water sinking up to her neck and as I hadn’t stepped into the water; she thrashed her arms wildly splashing me.  I dived in and swam towards her.  As I got near to her, she swam away, a wry grin on her face.  We played catch me if you can for about a quarter of an hour until I dived under and grabbed her feet.  Not being able to take hold of her moving feet, I surfaced in front of her thinking I might steal a kiss.  She gave out a shriek and turned to swim away, then a few of strokes later rolled onto her back and floated motionless faking she had drowned.  Treading water I looked at her natural form.  Being this close to her, she looked even more beautiful and tantalizing.  Jari had remarked that Lyre was a voluptuous young woman.

“A good life guard you are.”  She sighed opening an eyelid to look at me.  With that said I took hold of her arms and swam to the shore,  lifted her out of the water and placing her on the rug.

Knelling beside her I fed my eyes on the naked form before me.

“Well don’t just, look. I need mouth to mouth.”  She said.  I needed no further prompting; my lips graced hers in a meaningful and long kiss.  She seemed to be totally absorbed in being the center of my attention and totally engulfed in the pampering showered on her now having over come my earlier inhabitations.

“Are you this slow with your girlfriend?”  She asked in a soft voice as she moved her legs over mine presenting an obvious position that she wanted me to take.  Lyre was the first real woman I had shared with in a private way.  Being with her as I was enabled me to act out my fantasies. Those girls who were my age at the time and who shared their pleasure with me were of course, nice.   In comparison, Lyre was the magic a teenage boy dreams of.

“Hey I hate your girlfriend!”  She said pushing me onto my back.

“Why.”  I asked wondering what she was getting at.

“Because if she’s getting from you what I just got, she’s one very lucky young woman.”

Wanting to know what married women really got up to, I asked many questions about her sex life and got as many answers.  One question that brought the topic to a close what when I asked her about the very first experience in her life.  She was then a fifteen year old and for her it was a very enjoyable time, sadly the guy left life the next day on his way home from school when he was hit by a bus when he ran across a busy road on his bike.  He’d have been twenty-seven now

I felt embarrassed at that news.  I hadn’t expected anything like that to come out.  My first experience in compassion, was a lame affair, Neither of us had much idea what to really do.

“What would your girlfriend do to you if she knew about this?”  She asked in a parental way.

“The same thing your husband would do.”  I replied thinking it the best reply to say.

“Oh well in that case, you don’t tell your girlfriend I won’t tell your mum.”  She informed me.

Not wanting to go back into the water, we made out way around the shoreline of the weir where I took the opportunity to give her a piggyback.  My girlfriend was sexually playful, but no where near as much as Lyre was with me.  Very educational and informative to what is expected.

Over the next few weeks we would often shear our feelings with each other.  For me those events were muments of learning about what a woman expects and likes.  She taught me how to feel for a woman, to adjust my thinking towards her rather than myself.  I was surprised on that first day to learn a woman could have more than one orgasm.  Even my own girlfriend began to suspect something, though she didn’t get too much into it and accepted my tale that I had an excellent text book.  Maybe the pleasure between us had become more satisfying for her.

Not all our time together was of a sexual nature; there were times when we simply shared

each others company like the times she taught me a few basic piano lessons and excited my musical

interest into leaning to play to a higher standard.  Tuesday she would have free to herself and during the school holidays, she would take me on trips with her to neighboring towns. Those times were spent shopping and lunching at restaurants.  Being in her company on those outings, I felt important at being part of her life.  Other times we would go for a drive into the bush far enough away from the town so as not to be seen, leave our clothes in the car and let our body’s connect to the natural forms of life about us.  On one of her days off with Devon in the city for a three day course, we went for a drive along an old abandon rail line as far as we could go in the car; she let me drive her car some of the distance.  The first time I’d driven somewhere special, what a thrill that was for me.  We walked the short distance to a tunnel, which we went through.  Yes we were in our natural form as usual, but on that day we were seen be two girls of Lyre’s age who had been camping in the area. As we came out of the tunnel, there they were, getting some water at the spring.  We looked at them and as they showed no sign of being embarrassed by our intrusion.  Lyre apologized for our exposure. They smiled and one girl asked if this was the natural way to be in the Australian bush.  Anyway, both girls also stripped off saying it felt much better.  We were invited to have lunch with them at their campsite and we accepted.  Lyre and the girls got on as if they had known each other for years.  Though here on a six month holiday from Portugal and were slowly making their way to Sydney by car for a few weeks before returning home.  The conversations between them and Lyre were varied, I listened more to how they could discuss so many topics as if talking to each other was something very special to them.  The hours of course passed and it was time to leave, Lyre asked if they needed anything, they would love a lift into town where their car was.  They had walked into the bush a week ago to explore a subject related to their work. They were Geologist and part of their University studies covered Shale Oil extraction.  They knew of the old work site and had followed the discarded rail line to the once vibrant town in the middle of nowhere   It was no trouble for Lyre to give them a lift back to their Motel. I had of course, felt a bit left out of their conversation and brought this up with Lyre as we sat in the car.  She explained that women see the importance of communication as being an important personal value – years later I knew what she meant when I was at University.

As with my sister, Lyre also shared my sense of adventure in exploring the local coalmines.

This all came about during a lunchtime discussion when I asked her if she had been underground.

The experience had not crossed her path, so a time was set for the next day.  The mine I took her too was not all that far out of town.  Leaving the car off the side of the road, we made our way along the private road to the mine site nestled in among the trees.  She was as keen as mustard and asked me lots of questions about what each building was for and what the equipment did.  She fell in love with the three pit ponies enjoying their weekend rest.  With the top side tour over it came time to go below and with touches on I led her by the hand into the earths opening walking slowly over the uneven surface.  She asked more questions about the smell and why it was warm and where the breeze was coming from and why were the post so thin,  I told her the reason was thin prop post splinter and make and make a creaking noise if the roof starts to weigh down on the post.  For a mument I thought she was about to give up going any further.  About half an hour later we arrived at one of the coalfaces.  She was hungry for knowledge of every little detail about this darkened place of work. I showed her the equipment and explained how it worked and what it did.

That was the first time she had seen explosives, there were several sticks of Gelignite in a waxed papered box hidden under an upturned skip. Finding a bundle of detonators, I used the torch to fire one off.  The nose gave her a fright so from there I took her to the crib room, which was something else. Turning on the lights, I was shocked to see someone had left their lunch on the table and alarm bells in me rang loud as my heart almost stopped.  Was someone else down here doing weekend work?  I hadn’t seen any cars topside so I asked Lyre to be very quiet while I listened for any sounds.  None could be heard but the ring of silence and the old drop of seeping water.  She poked my arm and suggested I use some of my inner ability to see if anyone else was done here.  I focused but could not detect any other energy.  Inspecting the food, it was a bit stale.  Someone didn’t hang about for crib time. Lyre had found the usual supply of girl magazines and opened a centerfold spread for me to see.   I think she wanted to see my reaction, I told her she was far better than any of those paper dreams.  She laughed at that remark.  For the first time I was able to look at a pin up magazine with a woman and ask her questions about the images on the pictures.  That was the day I learned how to tell by her nipples, if a woman had been pregnant.  I found out that she also liked looking at other women’s bodies.  I looked at her in a strange way for a mument wondering were she was taking the topic.  I was too bashful to ask in case she wanted to know if I’d played with any of the mates I had.  I had and didn’t want my mum to know of the experiment.

“Hey I don’t mean it that way, sometimes I which I looked different to what I am.”  She said as she stroked the tip of my nose with her finger.  From there I put my arm around her and a while later, another first had been added to our list of experiences.

We walked out of the mine carrying our clothes and made our way over to the stable were we fed the pit ponies before I managed to convince her to sit on one of the horses back.  I led the animal about the yard for a while as she laughed with joy at doing things she always wanted to do The ponies were happy for the social integration with the two-legged forms.  That was when she noticed a car parked further up near the office and lamp room.  I looked at her trying to read her face.  Maybe we had been a muments live performance to some silent viewing mine inspector who never thought that was part of the job description. In reality, the alarms bells rang very loud then.

“Do you think what I think?”  I asked trying not to sound concerned.

“Maybe he got more than any magazine page could ever give him.”  She replied as slid off the pony and hurried over to a more secluded area were we quickly dressed then left without checking to see if anyone was actually there.  Lyre now had a better understanding of where that black mineral comes from and how it is obtained, so next time when she puts some coal on the fire, its origin won’t be such a mystery to her.

I was allowed to drive her car again and this time, I took her to the lookout where we sat on a rock holding onto each other.  Our favorite position was for her to lean against something solid allowing me to lie between her legs on my back with my head against pelvis.  That way we could stroke each other at the same time while we talked about my future, like what I wanted to do and how well I could talk to my mother about these topics.  I couldn’t really talk that much without mum letting her familiarity cross over into the conversation and my immaturity as a child to the parent being the big obstacle to doing what comes natural to a mum.  Lyre was a big help in how to go beyond the school gate towards independence and the future that awaits all who leave school.

I had spoken to my sister on a few occasions about the same topic, but with her being only a couple of years older, it wasn’t with the same level of experience that I had with Lyre.  Mum of course was never as open and informative either, or was it parent child familiarity again that held me back from being as freely open thinking that mum would never know anything Lyre and talked about.

One of the best outings with her was to the lake a short distance from town by the old rail viaduct, a location off the main road and again, a location not all that well known by many people.  There we had lunch and a photo session, the first snaps she took of me nude.  She always had her camera with her and often took photos of me. The usual adventure with each other naturally happened and then after lunch, I took her for a walk along a dirt road that once was the main rail line to a tunnel were we entered by forcing open a corrugated metal door.  It was used as a mushroom farm and of course, we helped ourselves to several mushrooms.  We returned to the lake for another hour before setting of home.  The other outing that was special to me was a trip to Sydney.  This meant I had to ask my mum if I could go for the weekend.  Mum listened to my request then gave me a strange look as she handed me a tea towel.

“Go; just don’t do anything I wouldn’t do unless you can do it better.”  She cautioned me

“What sort of things wouldn’t you do?”  I asked wondering if she might know about something.

“Never you mind.”  She replied with a faint smile handing me a wet plate.

“Can I come?”  My sister asked with an expectant look on her face.

“No!” I exclaimed not wanting my mum to know I really wanted Jari to come. 

“You should see if your sister could go along.”  Mum suggested.

“I already have one woman with me.”  I replied.

“But two would be twice the fun.”  Jari said asserting her desire to come.  Lyre was dying to meet her again and as usual, I let them think they had won a victory over me.  My sister came and as always, she was fun to be with, even more so with another woman for her to talk to.  Lyre took us to see her best friend Sam.  Jari and Sam clicked as if they knew each other all of their lives, but Jari was that type of personality that made people feel important.  I also liked Sam; she was about the same age as Lyre and a mum of a seven month old boy.  When babies and women mix, there is a special kind of magic among them.  Well it brings out the thing they have about new life and of course, that let me see a side of my sister I hadn’t thought of.  Holding the woman’s natural handy work felt odd yet normal.  When Marissa gave birth to our own bubs, there was an even brighter level of magic; they were born because I was there to help them get started.  Lyre and Sam caught up on the latest gossip leaving Jari and me to look about the neighborhood, though we were told not to go too far and given Sam’s phone number.  That night though, we were taken into town for dinner and a movie, followed by a long walk back to the car.  Sam and Jari talked while Lyre and I strolled along behind them. I wanted to hold hand with her and would have if my sister weren’t there.   All too quickly the weekend ended, yet for Jari and me, it was a exceptional time.  What an experience, no parents fussing over us, freedom and trying to blend in as if we lived there like everyone else.  Total freedom.

Sadly this relationship came to and end.  Devon was leaving for work with an overnight stay in the next town; he was expected to return the following afternoon.  I got on with my work as usual and when I’d finished, Lyre and I where sharing the pleasure of each other in the hallway when Devon unexpectedly walked in saying something about a train derailment and no work, so he came home.  I lost my emotional focus and looked at Lyre for help.  I was too shocked to hear what she said to me.  Anyway, he saw us and came over to stand beside us asking Lyre if she was okay, she was.  He then placed his foot on my backside telling me not to make a habit of this then told Lyre he was going into town and with that, left us to get on with it.  Naturally I was flawed by the unexpected suddenness of being caught.

I got dressed as a million thoughts flashed through my mind.  The biggest fear was that my mum would find out.  Lyre was helping me to get dressed and reassuring me that it was fine and not to worry about it, she would sort it out with him.  I held her nude body in my arms and kissed her lips before falling to my knees for the last time.  I continued to work there and felt accepted by Devon who never mentioned anything about the event.  Lyre though thought it best we ease up a bit, which was fine with me.  The shock of being caught was a bit too much to endure a second time.  A few weeks later, I had left town and this story of the house behind.  Dad had been given a transfer to the city with his work; something he and mum wanted, so the three offspring had to follow them.

I never saw Lyre again nor did I make any contact with her, but she had never been forgotten.

Now as I stood in the street looking at the house, I felt the same level of shock again and that stopped me from going to the door.  Maybe the past is best left unfinished in the future. 

“Hey do you want something.”  A gruff sounding voice was yelled in my direction.  I looked up to see a guy standing at the front door looking at me.

“No.”  I replied, “I used to live in this town several years ago and new the people who lived here.”

That made gruff voice walk over to me, which was not what I really wanted happening

“Hi I’m Dane.” He said holding out his hand to me.  Bit of a change of mood I thought.

“I’m Shane.”  I replied wanting to know more while also wanting to get away.

“Did you live in this place?”  He asked as if he didn’t believe me.

“No, I worked for the couple who did for a few weeks.”  I said, “Lyre and her husband Devon.”

“They moved out a while ago.”  He advised me.  A young woman appeared at the door and asked Dane if everything was okay.  He told her I was Shane.  That revelation brought the young woman out of the house to join us.  A young woman in her early thirties and about at tall as Lyre was, who lived in an excellent body that was well looked after and her hair, well that would make any shampoo add executive empty his pockets for the chance to grace the many television screens and shampoo bottles in the country.  Dane told her about my time working for Lyre.  She looked at me in a strange way for a moment before introducing herself. I felt very much at ease with her.

“I’m Shaya and Dane is my husband.”  She began, “so tell me, what did you do here?

She listed intently as I told her the basic outline of how I got the job and ending with leaving town.

Satisfied with that, she looked at Dane then asked me if I wanted to see the place again and have a coffee.  I had hoped for this and accepted her offer.  I followed as she led the way to the house along the side passageway that gave access to the rear yard area.

“I take it you are a hair dresser.”  I ventured a guess.

“No.” She said without turning around, “why do you ask.”  

“You have absolutely top quality hair.”  I replied wishing I’d said something more intelligent.

“Thank you.”  She replied opening the gate that had been placed there.  Dane said he would make the coffee leaving me with his wife.  The yard itself though had changed little, the shrubs I had planted were now grown trees, I mentioned this and Shaya smiled at me.  The shed that once housed the garden tools and lawn mower was still there, pained a different colour.  A few gnomes had taken up residence and a birdbath too was in the middle of the yard.  I mentioned to her about the aviary not being there.  It was removed a long time ago and now naturally free birds come and went as they pleased.  With the yard tour over, she led the way to the veranda and sat down on a bench that had been fixed to the cement flooring of the veranda, it was comfortable.

“Tell me Shaya, why did Lyre move away?”  I asked feeling some concern.

“She’s still here; she and Devon have a flat in town.” She said then went on; “we bought the house not long after we were married, so that’s eight years ago now.”

Dane joined us with the coffee and handing me a cup, asked if I remembered Sham, the cat.

I looked at him for a moment puzzled by his question.

“She had a dog named Sweetness, not a cat.”  I said adding the name I used.  Shaya looked at Dane and took a sip of her coffee then drew her knees up to her chin putting her arms around her legs and looked at me with an enigmatic smile.  “She told me you took her down a mine once.”

“Oh you know about that adventure.”  I said surprised that she would know something personal.

“Lyre and I are good friends.”  She replied taking another sip of her coffee.

“I guess you know about the swimming then.”  I offered trying to gauge just what she really knew.

She gave me a broad smile raising her eyebrows and told me she and Dane go there a lot in the summer time.  I was surprised to learn that the weir was still there.  Everything else I knew of so it seemed had gone to make way for houses, but yes it is a popular family spot now.

“You should go and see her before you leave.”  Dane suggested.

“Lyre I think would enjoy meeting up with you again.”  Shaya added with a go and see her, look.

“I take it you have her address because I would like to see her again.”  I replied in a happy voice.

Dane said he would get it and got up to go inside, Shaya suggested he phone her and say we’re coming over.  With that said she got up kissed her hubby then told me to follow her.

More walking I thought as we left the house, wrong.  Lyre, I was told lived a few minutes drive on the other side of town in a new block of flats.

 She drove me, which gave her the perfect opportunity to give me a short tour of the town.

I expected a dose of a million questions, but no.  I was taken past the school where she has been teaching the fifth year students for some nine years in the room below that which I attended in part during my schooling.  She stopped the car, which gave me an opening to tell her some more of the youthful stories from those days now long past.

“Nothing has changed then.”  She said.  Her students still do the same sort of things thinking it is all very new and untried let alone known about by their teachers.  She of course loves the age group and teaching in general.  The conditions are a bit dated, yet holidays are an added bonus.

“What dose Dane do?”  I asked finding it a bit strange as how relaxed Shaya appeared to be with me, an almost total stranger alone with her, yet she was talking to me as if I was an old friend she’d not seen in years.  I enjoyed the atmosphere she imparted onto me.  Turning left off Main Street we drove along a section that used to be known as the old part of the town, well it used to be. Modern homes had settled on the blocks of land the old terrace houses once knew.  They have gone, taking with them their tales of the towns earlier times.  She stopped the car

“My sister lives in there; I think she might have gone out.”  She told me.

“This has all changed so much since I live here.”  I said telling her about the place I once knew how it used to be.  She gave me a quick smile before cutting across town on a road that in my time, was a closed off paddock. The changes to the place were many which I had not known about or even considered ever happening.  But that is progress and like the people living here, it has changed with age too.  I told her of what I could remember of the place, pointing out where a mate once lived and mentioning the name of people who lived in that house, the corner shop that was removed because it stopped people seeing around the corner when they drove along the through road in town only to come to a accidental stop with another car or a coal truck.  Much had changed I thought as the car came to a stop again at a newly built block of unit that was once the site of an old factory.

The door opened reveling the same woman I knew yes, but not as the vibrant twenty six year old.  She still had those unique features and self-confidence.  Time in unfolding the years, had been very kind in ageing her gracefully.  Shaya moved forward to give Lyre a hug and kiss which I thought a bit odd, but then they are both women who see life in a more important and meaningful way.  Lyre looked at me for a moment with a faint smile on her face.

“It’s been a very long time Shane.”  She said motioning us both to enter her flat.  Once inside, Shaya sat down in an easy chair next to the piano.

“You still have the old piano!  I exclaimed surprised that it had not been sold long ago.

“Play something.” Shaya said moving to the edge of her chair with an expectant look on her face.

Lyre opened the lid and pulled the stool out for me.  I sat down and began to play the very first piece she had taught me which brought a delighted sound from Shaya; I looked at her and smile.

“Lyre made it possible for me to take that first tune further.”  I said and began playing a Bach prelude.  Lyre sat down and listened as I played to the conclusion of the piece.

 ”You play very well indeed Shane.”  She remarked when I had finished.  I gave her a pleasing smile and then played another piece.

“I haven’t heard that before.”  Shaya said when I had finished.

“Its title is, To People Who Have Gardens.”  Lyre said adding she hadn’t heard it in years.

“I found it in an old second hand shop one day.”  I replied asking if she would like a copy of it.

Both Lyre and Shaya clapped in unison as I closed the piano.  I thanked her for having opened the door for me to learn to play.  My parents hadn’t even thought of music as an outlet for either my sister or brother.  As I swung around on the stool, I noticed the poster of world horses I gave her.

“I had forgotten about the horses!”  I exclaimed getting up to have a closer look and find fault with my schoolboy attempts of frame making.

“And why not, it was special to me.”  She replied in her usual commanding voice.  Shaya drew my attention to a framed photo on the television.  It was one that she took of me with Devon.  I picked up the frame and studied the image of a youthful time long ago frozen onto paper.  

How is Devon?”  I asked wishing I had said it differently.

“He’s fine, out again as usual.”  She replied then turned the topic back onto me by asking what I had been doing in all those years.  I told her, explaining why I left town in a hurry.

“I wondered why you up and left town.”  She remarked with that typical grin on victory on her face.

“Another claim for girl power.”  I said and was surprised to hear Shaya make an excited sound.

“Would you like something to drink Shane?”  She asked as she got up to go to the kitchen.

“I’d love one thank you Lyre.”  I answered remembering that first time I shared a coffee with her.

“Are you staying Shaya?”  She asked the young woman.

“I wouldn’t attend my own funeral if it meant missing out having a coffee with you.”  Shaya said going into one of the rooms, which caught my attention, but then, she did buy Lyre’s house, so they must have some connection. 

“Sit anywhere.”  Lyre said as she pointed to the table.  I sat down and looked out of the window at the view and remarked about the old factory that used to be here and the mine over on the far hill that hasn’t a hint of what it once looked like. 

“Milk and one sugar.”  She asked as if it had been yesterday since she last made me a cup.

There was a knock at the door and Shaya yelled out that she would get it.  Lyre smiled at me in a strange way as she asked if I still remembered any of my teaching.  I had and told her that even my own three children are very much aware of being a part of the earth as an extension to it rather than an existence living on it.  I added they were Rainbow’s which caused a raised eye brow from her.

“You should let your inner focus run wild.”  She said placing the coffee cup and a teacake on the table.  Before I could answer, Shaya entered the kitchen in company with another young women.

“Shane, this is my sister, Teraya.”  I stood up out of politeness and looked at the young woman.

“That is a very pleasant sounding name.”  I said hoping she would hear it as a complement.

“Thank you, though don’t you think Shaya also sounds unique.”  She pointed out as she sat at the table across from me.  By this time Lyre and completed her task and sat down next to Teraya which meant that Shaya sat next to me.  I couldn’t focus well with so much feminine power about me

“I brought a few photo albums out for you to look at.”   Shaya said placing them onto the table; she opened the first album to revile some photos of Lyre and the house.  Turning the page there was a print of me pushing the lawn mower over the back lawn, a few where of Lyre and me on some of our weekend outings.  Those first two albums in compassion to the next were general in contents.

I was able to add the history lesson to the times she had never known.  Next she opened a white album and showed me a picture of Devon and Lyre holding a baby in her arms.

“That must have been you.”  I said studying the images on the photo.

“Yes, I was only three days old when that was taken.”  I looked at the print with more interest.

“Okay then, I take it from these photos Lyre and Devon are your parents.”  I said wondering why they had been so secretive to me.  Lyre looked at me as if from a distance.

“He must be a very proud dad.” I said to Lyre who raised her eyes brows and looked at Shaya.

“You could say something like that.”  She said in a soft voice giving me another smile as she directed my attention back to the album to a photo of Devon holding her like any dad would do.

There was a family outing for both Shaya’s and Teraya’s fifteenth birthday taken by the lake.

It had changed a bit since my last visit there.  Teraya turned over the page and told me that the next few pages were taken at her sisters twenty-first birthday party. There were several of her with friends and people I had no idea of knowing.  However, when I saw one of Shaya next to Lyre I noticed then that Devon hadn’t been present in any of those photos.

“It must have been hard for your dad not being there.”  I said closing the album.

“There was very little chance for her to know him.”  Lyre said as she reached across the table to hold my hand.  They were looking at me expectantly for what seemed an endless time.

“I think that went over him.”  Shaya said to no one in particular sounding somewhat resigning.

“My sister has never really known her dad Shane.”  Said Teraya as she gave a comforting smiled to her sister.  I looked at the woman for a moment and began to think of some possibilities

“You were adopted then.”  I remarked hazarding a guess as to her coming to life.

“Not in the true sense of the word.”  She said sitting back and folded her arms.

“I am correct then at saying Lyre is your mother.”  I ventured wondering where I was going.

“You got that right and my sister’s as well.”  Shaya said as she gave me an enigmatic smile.

“Okay then do I know your dad?” I asked starting to feel at a loss to the game.

“You do indeed know him Shane.”  Said Lyre with a smile of achievement on her face.

“You’re my dad Shane.”  Shaya said looking me straight in the eyes, her voice clear, the remark hitting me like a screaming siren that opened a million emotions at once as a deep sense of empathy for her filled me at not being there as she grew up knowing I was somewhere and wondering what I looked like or if I even knew she existed let alone cared about her.  The children that I helped Marissa have were important to me.  Shaya was equally important to me, if not more so.

“You are here because of what Lyre and I got up to?”  I asked shaking off the shock.

“That’s the usual way us women become pregnant.”  Lyre said, her face showing no expression.

“Oh you darling, how hard it must have been for you.”  I said placing my arm around Shaya’s shoulders.  She placed her head against my arm and cried with relief that I had not been offended or upset. Teraya got up and also put her arms around her sister and kissing my cheek, thanked me.

“Devon did a very good job of raising you both.”  I said in an effort to comfort her.

“He did an excellent job in raising her.”  Lyre corrected me in a proud and motherly way.

I felt the time was right to show them the photo of my family from my wallet.  The three women showed a lot of interest in the children, asking questions about what they were likes, their hobbies and interest, schooling.  Teraya held it for a while studying the image, then said.

“It’s true then, the mother makes the child look the way she does. I look nothing like your daughter or anything like my sister.”  It was true; Shaya didn’t resemble any of the features of the three I fathered through Marissa, yet I was the same father to both forms of life.  Teraya’s features were so much different to her older sister.  I placed the photo back into my wallet.

“Would you like to have lunch with us Shane?”  Lyre asked, her eyes silently asking me to say yes.

“I would love to share a meal with you all.”  I answered.  Shaya gave my arm a gentle squeeze.

Both Lyre and Teraya got up from the table.  Shaya took my hand and suggested we go out into the courtyard, as there were a million questions she wanted to ask me.  Lyre smiled a smile of thankfulness as our daughter led me out of the kitchen.  She led me out of the unit to a common area at the rear of the units were we had a degree of privacy.

“Thank you for to day dad.”  She said stopping to face me.  I took her in my arms again and held her warm firm body close to mine.  She felt nothing like my own children, she was different.

“I am happy you had the strength to come through this far without knowing me.  I replied.

“Mum often told me that when I hold my dad, I would no longer feel the emptiness inside.”

“Has it gone from you now?”  I asked looking deep into her eyes.

“Yes, the moment I knew you are my father.”  She replied and pulled herself towards me.

I kissed her head and explained that I too felt something inside me that I’d never felt before.

I added that a dad makes part of the child who on birth, needs that energy to help it grown in towards the future years.  Meeting that dad connects the missing cycle filling in the hollowness.

We sat next to each other on a beach seat in the center of the yard and talked of the gap in our lives.  About Lyre and if I ever thought I might have left her pregnant.  The possibility of Lyre ever becoming pregnant was never considered, relating socially to her friendship squashed any idea of that happening, besides that topic was never been discussed in any depth.  She was keen to hear about my time at university as she also spent her study years there and we both had the same lecture.  How I met Marrissa captivated her and that gave birth to the question, was I going to tell my wife?  I had no problem there; we have a very open and honest attitude with each other.

I suggested she come to the city and meet my wife and family.  The idea intrigued her, but she would feel a lot better when assured my wife could handle knowing about her.  Teraya came to ask if I would like to have lunch here or out by the lake.  This event started at the lake, so why not go full circle.  Shaya smiled at me; clearly she was happy that I had come into her life.  Lyre would go with Teraya while Shaya would take me there in her car.

“We should be ready in an hour.”  Teraya said.  Shaya glanced at me and lent forward a bit.

“I’d like to show you off to my best friend!”  She exclaimed in a happy voice, I agreed.

We followed Teraya to the kitchen where Lyre was making sandwiches.  She looked at Teraya.

“The lake.”  She told her mother who smiled at me in her usual victorious way.

“I’m taking dad over to meet Karen.” She told her mother and motioned me to the door.

“Okay.”  Lyre replied kissing her daughter,  “I’ll see you at the lake then.”

In the car I was told about Karen, her best friend who she met some sixteen years ago when she was child minding the then ten-year-old girl.  Her mother being a police officer would have night shift ever three weeks and as her father worked afternoon shift every second week, Shaya got the job of minding the young girl along with her eight-year-old brother.  Over time, a very special friendship developed between them that has stood the test of time.  Karen is now a twenty-five year old woman.  Sadly though, she is blind.

Shaya and I went along the side passageway to the back patio where Karen was sitting with a cold drink in her hand.  On hearing us she got up and greeted Shaya with the usual hug of friendship then looked in my direction waiting for the introduction.  Karen stood open mouthed when told who I was.  She glared at me for a moment and hugged Shaya again expressing her joy that I had come into her life.  Invited to sit down, she said that her mother was on the phone.  Karen looked at me from behind a full smiled face.

“Shaya has said to me a million times that her wish was to know you.”  Karen said booming with true happiness for her friend’s fate.

“It almost didn’t happen.”  I replied and explained the reason.

“Storms do have their good points then.”  She remarked.

“Well hello Shaya.”  A voice from behind me said sending a slight chill through me.

“Hello Mrs. Gale.”  Shaya said getting up and turning to face the woman.

“I have someone I’d like you to meet.”  She said directing my attention to Mrs. Gale.

“This is Shane, he’s my real dad.”  She said as I got to my feet and faced the woman.

“Well you wasted no time then I see.”  She said, a faint smile on her unforgettable face.

Mrs. Gale and I looked at each other for a moment.  It seemed as if it was only yesterday that

I had last seen her.

“Hello Jenny?”  I said.

“Hi Slanky.”  She greeted me with the name she gave me because I was a tall yet short.

“Does that mean you two know each other?”  Shaya asked shocked that I should know her best friends mother.

“Indeed it does.”  Jenny replied in a jovial voice, “I was his first.”

“Oh hell!  Karen exclaimed looking at me, “you knew my mother too?”  

“A long time before your were born.”  I shot back at her in a friendly tone.

“You must have been some broom to sweep them off their feet.”  She remarked looking at me.

“Love was relatively free and sex was proof we were no longer children.”  Jenny informed them.

“Those were enjoyable times to grown up in.”  I added.  For me the late Sixties and early Seventies were a time of feeling I had broken free of the parental hold yet, I could return to if I felt the real world that would be my future, got too difficult, then I could return to the parental hold.

Jenny sat down next to me and was keen to learn of the missing years from my point of view, as I was to know about her.  I verbally filled in the gaps in our lives since closing the school gate for the last time.  She of course had wondered why I just up and left town.  Anyway, she finished high school and left for the city where she joined the police force and met a guy who she reeled in to be her husband in nineteen seventy-four.  Three years latter on returning for her dad’s funeral.  Her family liked the town and soon after she was transferred and here she’s been ever since.

I mentioned I’d been to her old house earlier and learned her mother still lives there.

We talked about the people I we knew when at school, most had gone their separate ways and are married with families.  There was a school reunion some time ago that I knew noting about and so missed the opportunity to catch up on the past.  Jenny asked if I remembered Kevin Omni.

“We were friends for a while, why?”  I asked wondering what she would say about him.  

“No one knows what happened to him.”  She said.

“Did something happen to him?”  I asked surprised his name should have come up.

“He won a lottery one day and vanished the next leaving his family behind.”  She explained.

“What no trace, just up and left?”  Jenny shook her head in comfermation.

“She must have been well off then.”  I said which put an annoyed expression on her face.

“No the prize went unclaimed; his wife didn’t have the ticket so no one got the money.”  She said, her voice hinting at the puzzlement of it all. “His wife and family gave up hope and left town.”

“Was his wife your sister?” I asked thinking there might be some connection.

“No relation at all.” She replied then added, “it’s been a mystery ever since.”

“That type of loss would be very hard for any woman.”  I concluded feeling a bit uncomfortable.

There was the usual moment of silence that gave Shaya an opportunity to change the subject.

“You guys got anything planed?”  She asked in a, want to come with us, voice.

“Nothing important.”  Jenny replied.  “Why?”

“Devon’s at bowls and I’m taking dad to the lake for lunch with mum and Teraya.”

“Do you want to take Karen with you” Jenny asked, her voice hinting at the pleasure she felt.

“That’s why I came here for.”  She said in a voice reflecting the value she felt for her friend.

We made our way to the car and helping Karen to sit in the front seat, I turned to face Jenny who shared a hug with me.  It had been a long time and we made the most of it.  She like Lyre was still the same woman.  Seeing her again had added a touch more meaning for being in town as so we exchanged phone numbers and addresses promising to keep in touch.

“We better go or mum will think we’re got lost somewhere.”  Shaya suggested touching my arm..    

Sitting in the back seat, I fed my eyes on the passing views of what was once my territorial playground for youthful adventure.  Not all that much had changed; several new homes had been built in what once was farm land and the road of course, carried more traffic now that it was connected to another part of town which I guess is also populated.  The lake road is sealed now and signed posted.  The lake itself is now a major attraction, with far more people now knowing about it than I could ever have imagined thirty years ago. The council erected shelters and other amenities. There were some rowboats on the water along with the few swimmers.  Shaya parked the car in what used to be the site of a large derelict building that was once a pump house.  Several nights my friend and I slept in there dreaming we were major discoverers of the future, well we were both fourteen then.   The building is now used for administration and a café by the lake owners.   

Lyre and Teraya were only a

About the Author

lunch box %?

Jan has 4 kids. Joey, Britt, Candle, and Harry. Each morning Jan puts something special in their lunch box. On this morning she was following a specific request from John, the husband. John had given Jan 4 specific items to give each kid. Joey was into baseball, so dad had picked out a pack of baseball cards for him. Britt was into horses, so dad had picked out a small ceramic pony for her. Candle was a big hockey fan, so he had a puck for her. Harry was a big fan of Twisted Sister, so he had a music CD for him. Jan had many things on her mind on the morning of the mistake. She gave each of the kids their lunch boxes, and after they had left she second guessed who got what. She did give one gift to each kid. What are the chances that exactly 3 of the kids got the correct gift? In %.

zero chances if she had switched a box then definetly the other one is also false therefore she would have given correctly to all the four or atleast two of them and three has no room at all.

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BEGINNING GROUND WORK: Everything We’ve Learned about Relationship & Leadership (eBook Nuggets from The Soul of a Horse) When Joe Camp, author of the national best seller The Soul of a Horse – Life Lessons from The Herd, and his wife Kathleen were first starting with horses less than five years ago they dove deeply into the training books and DVDs of several of the top clinicians in the United States. They owned virtually everything ever written or videoed by Monty Roberts, Clinton Anderson, and the Parellis and the…

Elk Creek Ranch Horse Training Facility Oxford PA

The word “hippotherapy” may sound very strange to someone who has never heard it before. However, hippos is actually the Ancient Greek word for horse: in this kind of physical therapy, patients with disabilities spend time riding and interacting with horses. Proponents of this practice claim that it can have a wide range of physical and emotional benefits for those who undergo it.

It is important to note that horses have been integrated into certain kinds of psychological therapy, but this is not the same as hippotherapy. While the practice discussed in this article may well have mental or emotional benefits, its primary focus is on helping people with physical disabilities increase their motor skills. For example, many people suffering from cerebral palsy have benefitted from this practice.

How It Can Help

People with cerebral palsy often experience difficulties with both gross motor skills (larger movements such as walking or sitting upright) and fine motor skills (more detailed movements such as manipulating an object with one’s fingers). It may seem strange that riding a horse could address both of these issues, but it can.

Many of the benefits of this form of therapy lie in the fact that a horse’s gait is very similar to a human’s. In other words, riding on a horse involves moving your body in the same way you would if you were walking. For people who have difficulty walking, or cannot walk, this movement helps them practice some of the required motions while exercising the muscles involved in walking.

This is the basic principle around which this form of therapy is often based. However, there are many other advantages that patients may enjoy. These include:

• Sensory processing (the ability to experience, identify, and cope with different sensations, including touch, smell, sight, and taste)
• Fine motor skills, by completing tasks such as holding the reins
• Improved posture from learning how to balance in the saddle, which can improve back health and even respiration
• Verbal expression and articulation, from communicating with the animal and instructor

Some patients, particularly children, also develop emotional and behavioral benefits. For example, the opportunity to ride a horse can present a fun physical activity for people who are often excluded from physical play. Forming a relationship with a gentle and attentive animal can also improve a patient’s happiness levels and overall mental functioning.

Finally, learning to ride a horse can help a person learn patience and discipline. Although the instructor will be working closely with him or her to ensure safety, the skills acquired can foster independence and increased self-esteem.

To learn about causes of cerebral palsy and related issues, contact personal injury lawyers Beltz & Ruth, P.A.

portraits of the case knives company?

this portrait have a brick surrounding on it it also has a face of a man on it thats kind of like in the middle of the pitcureand right below the it there are 5 knives and down below that there is 4 buildings and on 2 of those buildings the name case is written on them and laying in front of 1 of the buildings there is a calender month laying on the ground with another knife laying on it the calender month says october 1929 and on the left hand side of the buildings there are 3 soilders walking away from the buildings also by the paper with the month on it there is a man holding the reings of a horse and behind the man there is a train this is on the right side oh yes on top of the 2 case buildings there is a diggar also on the picture i said it was 1 man but it is 2 men and surrounding thier picture a map its got names of 9 state names here is some of the names ny, little valley,pa bradfords ,olean it also has case tested xx &established 1889 robert sall 1989 who is he thanks

I’m not sure what your question actually is, but here is the website for the Case Knives. Maybe it can help you.

http://www.wrcase.com/

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Co-axial Remote Control Rc Helicopter w/ Built in Gyro (colors may vary) $44.95 This is the new 450 sized Double Horse 9101 3 Channel helicopter. The 9101 is uniquely built with a sleek design and alloy structure, making it the most impressive and durable helicopter in its class. It comes equipped with a built in gyro, offering you unrivaled stability, with an advanced intelligent balance system, you’ll never lose control. The Double Horse 9101 has a fully functional, all aro…

Training Gear Set: BCP, BCPP $4.85 Helicopter training gear set. RC Helicopter Training Gear Universal fits most RC Helicopters. you can easily fit this training gear to Apache RC/E Sky Brand and so many more. Not made for small indoor helicopters….

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Clinton Anderson’s Downunder Horsemanship: Establishing Respect and Control for English and Western Riders $15.76 Clinton Anderson’s training techniques can achieve amazing results with almost any horse. Now you can learn the program that teaches “everyday people” how to better communicate with their mounts….

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Model Railroad Supplies For Beginners – What You Need To Get Started With Model Trains

Starting any new hobby always brings a sense of anticipation and Model Railroading is no exception.  Once they have been to a train show, or have simply seen a model train layout displayed somewhere, many people become excited by the possibility of operating their own train setup.  This excitement often leads to a sense of being overwhelmed and sometimes sticker shock, after visiting a hobby store and looking at the huge array of model railroad supplies available and the wide range of prices. 

Well, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming and it doesn’t take a fortune to get started with model trains.  The simplest layouts consist of a small oval track and an locomotive with a few cars.  It can be set up on the floor, a simple table, or even an old door or piece of plywood on two saw horses!  Often when you talk to experienced hobbyists, they talk about the need for a strong custom bench and lots of room to set up your layout, but don’t let that stop you from getting started.  You can graduate to a more complex and expensive setup as you get more involved in railroading.  As a beginner, you may not even know in what areas you are most interested.  Do you enjoy the different locomotives and rolling stock which comprise your trains, or do you prefer building the scenery and making the miniatures look realistic?  Maybe you prefer wiring the electrical control parts of the track or configuring the software to work to your liking.  One of the best things about model railroading is the wide range of skills that you can learn and put to use.  There is something for almost everyone to enjoy. 

The other nice thing about this hobby is that you can do as much or as little of it yourself as you like.  Some of the most popular model railroad supplies are kits for just about every aspect from trains to tables to scenery, to electrical wiring and software.  These range from simple all inclusive starter kits to kits for individual parts designed for the more advanced modeler.  You can buy train and scenery kits separately or kits that include both.  The kits themselves can be either completely finished and ready to set up and run, or do it yourself kits that require more complex construction, painting and assembly.  Once again, it is easy to get started with a simpler kit and upgrade to something more complex as your needs dictate, and budget allows.  These kits also vary in price and complexity depending on the scale or gauge with which you decide work. 

Starter train kits can be purchased for as little as $80 or $90 but most will want one of the kits in the $200 range.  These train kits can be specific to an industry or a type of train, steam or diesel for example.  Starter kits typically come with a 4′ by 3′ oval track, a locomotive, several cars and a simple transformer and controller. 

Scenery kits, building kits and layout kits vary widely depending on the components and how much do it yourself work you want to do.  A building kit for a simple small town with 15 buildings can be purchase for about $160.  Layout kits, which provide the base for your layout including materials for hills, valleys and tunnels start at about $250.  Scenery kits which contain materials for trees, grass, rocks, etc. start at about $65.  Each of these can be purchased individually as the need arises. 

Software for model trains starts at as little as $20 for simulation software, and layout controllers at about $200 but you don’t have to have either of these for your first train setup. 

Any of these model railroad supplies can be purchased at your local hobby store.  Hobby shops are usually very helpful because they want you to keep coming back .  They can provide a hands-on experience and the chance to talk to others who know what it is like when you are just getting started.  They can often help you avoid common beginner’s mistakes that they have already made.  These items can also be found at local model railroad shows and conventions. 

You may also find these items locally advertised or at yard or garage sales or auctions.  All model railroaders were once beginners and you can often find bargains on trains from the hobbyist who is ready to trade-up.  Be sure to do your research before buying from these sources so that you know the value of what is being offered.

As you can see, there are many sources of model railroad supplies for beginners on any budget.  One of the great things about this hobby is that you can get involved as deeply, or as little as you like.  You can begin with a simple kit and advance in whatever direction your interest takes you.  Some hobbyists never make their own scenery, preferring to enjoy simply running their trains, while others get involved in every detail down to making their own coal and logs and plants!  So get started.  You’re going to love this!

About the Author

Henry Michael is a model train enthusiast who enjoys sharing his knowledge and experience with others to help them get the most out of this exciting hobby.  For more information on  model railroad supplies, visit my website at http://www.modeltrainenthusiast.com/ and learn how easy it is for you to get involved with model railroading.  It will help you to avoid mistakes that most beginners make.  If you are more experienced, it will give you a different perspective on things you maybe doing or would like to do.

*NEW* Weekly Caption Contest!!!?

Hey yall!

1. Cant open
2. ‘We are not interesting in a three way relationship!’
3. ‘Am I sexy? Or am I very sexy?’
4. ‘Hand over the carrots, or the screaming kid gets it!!’
5. ‘Dont make any sudden movements..!’

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Gold cup 2010 horse race – Starters Orders 4 game

Horse Racing Software – Taking Advantage Of The Horse Racing System Software

Horse Racing Software

All attention is on the software that excellently finishes the task as horse racing betting becomes automated. What makes the software beloved? It is the fact that novices or those who are numerically-challenged can bet with confidence applying the results of the software. Even those expert with the calculator no longer needs to depend on wild guesses.

You can bet on any horse racing derby by Betfair anywhere in the world with the correct software. You no longer need to go over numbers to assess the odds. You can set the software on autopilot and it will do the job for you, providing you everyday selections by the buckets.

A few software are all publicity and don’t deliver what they promise. If you purchase a software without a money-back guarantee that’s also untested, this is the danger you have to take. It is expected that you will judge all software because of such a negative experience. Fortunately, there is software that profits and even has a money-back guarantee.
It is just a case of installing the perfect software in your PC. As soon as it’s done, the software’s numerical algorithms can do the job for you. However, do take note of these points before you get swept away: Horse Racing Software

* Formulate a staking plan that is realistic.
* You pay the price for your income stream.
* Prioritize household expenses.
* Your bets determine the money you make.
* Have a separate budget for horse racing betting.

The horse racing software requires capital like other efforts for extra income. Aside from the software, you have to have the wherewithal to operate your betting system to double your bank. To win the thousands of pounds you are imagining, your betting money have to be proportionate to win that much.

Exhausting work such as the analysis of the Daily Racing Form is eliminated by the software.

You only need to check your bank at day’s end because the software will do the job for you with precision.

Seasoned gamblers advice exercising prudence in the betting game, so whatever your game, formulate your betting system realistically. They move in for the jugular when they’ve set aside sufficient funds for living expenses for the month, adding more confidence to their betting. Indeed, they exercise caution over their betting money to earn lots of money.

Make the most out of your horse racing software by choosing the ideal tipster service. Obviously, a money-back guarantee is a benefit, just in case. Horse Racing Software

About the Author

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Horse Pc game.?

Does any one know any good horse game that you can breed them sell them and ride them.Not those one games that you just race horses.

There are PC games with the name Pippa Funnell which are supposed to be good. I think there are 4 of them. The latest being:

Pippa Funnell: Secrets Of The Ranch (PC)

It’s features include:

- Raise your horses from birth to competition developing their abilities as the adventure goes on.
- More than 35 decors and environments: 6 equestrian centres to train your horses, 6 different competitions to win, 6 outdoor environments to ride around in.
- All equestrian activities of a real ranch: clean your horses, train them in cross country, jumping and dressage and enter into exciting competitions to test you and your horses abilities and skills.
- Create your own foal who will have skills and characteristics according to the mother and father you choose.
- Improved animations from previous games to create a more realistic adventure.
- A multi-path adventure: several different endings to the adventure depending on your choices.
- Meet 7 new characters and well as 7 characters from previous games.
- Dynamic changes in weather and time for a more varied experience.
- Shop in the village for new items, clothes and riding gear.
- Show your horses on the internet, check your friends progress and get codes to unlock hidden content.

Here’s a link (it’s UK link):

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pippa-Funnell-Secrets-Ranch-PC/dp/B000UVRX6I/ref=pd_sbs_vg_h__title_1/026-2754647-0693252

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Lisa’s Iinspirations

Plan A Spring Wedding – 28 Ways To Tie In The Season

The tulips are blooming, the temperatures are rising – what a perfect time for a wedding! Get started planning your spring themed wedding now with these inspiring ideas for spring weddings…

Spring Theme Weddings – Things to Consider

Daylight saving time – In 2008, daylight saving time begins on Sunday March 9th, after which the sun will set an hour later. Keep this date in mind if you envision a sunset outdoor ceremony.

Prom factor - May and June are prime prom months, so be sure to book your transportation and locations early.

Variable weather – spring weather can be unpredictable. An unseasonably warm and sunny Friday can give way to a miserably cold and rainy Saturday. Be prepared for both extremes.

All in the Details – Spring Wedding Ideas

Invitations & Stationery

* Add a spring motif – such as a tulip or butterfly – to your stationery suite
* Consider color – use paper or inks in a spring color palette – pastels, greens, etc.
* Get whimsical – find a fun, flirty font to evoke a festive spring feeling
* An added touch – insert a sprinkling of silk flowers into each envelope

Location

* Garden settings abound – take advantage of budding leaves and flowers with botanical gardens, mansions with lush grounds, or another venue with a pristine garden or courtyard.
* Take it indoors – if an outdoor setting isn’t possible – find an indoor venue with panoramic picture windows affording lots of sunlight and a bright airy ambiance.

Décor Elements

* Color palette – 1) green and white – an elegant accompaniment to a garden setting. 2) yellow and green -another fresh, natural color pairing. 3) preppy – combine hot pink with green or mango (think polka dots and gingham). 4) chocolate brown – this trendy hue works well for spring – pair with pale blue or pink.
* Go wild with patterns – create a playful effect – think gingham, polka dots, eyelet lace, swiss dots and stripes.
* Add some greens – grasses and greenery are a natural for outdoor garden settings. Drape over arbors and incorporate in arrangements

Flowers

* Seasonal blooms – classics include tulips, daffodils, lilies (especially calla lilies and easter lilies), magnolias, gardenias, hydrangeas, gerbera daisies, apple or cherry blossoms. View our complete list of spring wedding flowers
* Creative containers – put your arrangements in simple, homespun containers like wicker baskets, watering cans, teapots, or urns.
* Potted plants – potted arrangements create a natural, organic look. Best of all -you can plant them for a timeless reminder of your wedding

Menu

* In Season – serve a main dish featuring ham or lamb
* Fresh produce – round out the meal with a bounty of fresh fruits and young vegetables like baby carrots, baby asparagus and new potatoes
* Elegant sides – serve mini quiches or update traditional deviled eggs by adding salmon or crabmeat
* Bar favorites – a spring menu seems to call for champagne. Mix up a batch of mimosas for a morning wedding, or create a festive champagne cocktail.

Wedding Cake

* Coconut Confection – coconut frosting and fillings make a quintessential spring treat
* Crazy for carrot – carrot cake with cream cheese icing is another springtime fave.
* Light and fluffy – go with angel food cake and fresh strawberries or strawberry cream
* Whimsical adornments – decorate with bright, fanciful details like ribbon, swiss dots or swirl patterns.

Attire

* Loosen up – feel free to relax the dress code a bit, especially if the wedding will take place outside
* Lighten up – lighter fabrics like lace or cotton create a perfect springtime look
* Wedding gown – Add some color with a sash or detailed embroidery
* Bridesmaids dresses – Pastels are a springtime classic. Keep yours fresh by choosing a color and allowing each of your maids to select a different hue. Or go in another direction with a bolder turquoise, fuschia or mango.
* Avoid satin shoes – they don’t hold up well under springtime showers
* The guys – They’ll look seasonably appropriate in tan suits, colored shirts and ties. For a formal evening affair, a basic tux always works.

Favors

* Keep love blooming – with packs of flower seeds
* Plant it – give miniature potted plants or herbs

Getaway

* Horse-drawn carriage – this Cinderella-like getaway make a fitting finale to an ethereal springtime wedding

Get even more ideas for spring weddings in this complete guide to wedding themes.

About the Author

Cori Russell is editor for Elegala.com and Gala Weddings Magazine. Elegala.com is a complete Weddings and Wedding Planning resource with a national directory of wedding venues and services, how-to guides, photo galleries, checklists, and expert advice to walk brides through every step of the wedding planning process.

View the complete sitemap to find everything you need to plan your wedding.

Gymnastics Class, Training Ship Wellesley, North Shields Framed Prints Boys taking part in a gymnastics class on the Training Ship Wellesley, on the River Tyne at North Shields, Northumberland. In 1868, James Hall and other local businessmen set up a charity to provide shelter for Tyneside waifs and train young men for naval service. Their base from 1874 was the Wellesley until a fire in 1914 forced the institution ashore to become the Wellesley Nautical School…..

Gymnastics Class, Training Ship Wellesley, North Shields Photographic Prints Boys taking part in a gymnastics class on the Training Ship Wellesley, on the River Tyne at North Shields, Northumberland. In 1868, James Hall and other local businessmen set up a charity to provide shelter for Tyneside waifs and train young men for naval service. Their base from 1874 was the Wellesley until a fire in 1914 forced the institution ashore to become the Wellesley Nautical School…..

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Horse Training Tip #2 Bridling and Collection

Equestrian Accidents: Has Falling Off Your Horse Become A Bad Habit?

Recently, I came across a tread in a forum that stopped me dead in my tracks. It was about falling off. One contributor complained that she fell of regularly, sometimes even several times during a lesson. I was amazed; I couldn’t quite figure it out.

Was she much younger than me to be able to allow herself the luxury of falling out with such regularity and risk severe injury? Was she very good at falling, like a martial arts expert, so that she never got injured? Was each fall a real fall, or was she exaggerating the frequency and severity of her falls? I have seen “falls” that can at best accurately be described as slip-offs, where the only part of the rider that is injured is her pride.

Falling off always results in injury, if not physically, then mentally.

Maybe it has become a habit, for both horse and rider. Maybe it is by now even a form of communication between them. And where does the instructor come into all this, allowing it to go on? I was under the impression that a horse that dumps a rider regularly is a seriously disrespectful horse and that this sort of behavior should not be allowed to continue.

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that this rider allows her horse to walk all over her, risking injury to both herself and her horse.

So often, we replicate the way we behave amongst other people in the way we behave towards our horses. If we allow other people to take advantage of us, because we lack self-respect, we allow our horse to do so too. Except in the latter case, we risk serious injury; mentally and physically.

Tackling this problem will not be an easy exercise. Firstly, the rider should understand that she should allow nothing but the most respectful behavior from her horse (as well as from everyone else), because she deserves it. And secondly, she should demand only the very best performance from herself.

We’re really good at demanding the best from others, but we often give ourselves a bit more slack. We allow excuses for our own and our horse’s behavior to hold us back, and then we use those same excuses to explain why we haven’t become the successful riders that we want to be. It’s not surprising that we try to go a little easier on ourselves since we already feel pressured and overwhelmed by our obligations and the expectations of others.

Demanding the best from ourselves is not the same as expecting perfection or never being satisfied with our riding progress. It’s not about being unreasonable with ourselves or trying to push ourselves or our horses beyond our true capabilities. Demanding the best from ourselves is about being honest about our capabilities, about learning how to stretch our limits and refusing to buy into excuses that limit our potential.

Today, take a look at your own accomplishments, and assess your and your horse’s true strengths. Have you been pushing yourself as hard as you can? Or have you been slacking off because it seems like too much work to step out of your comfort zone? Has falling of become such a habit that it forms part of your comfort zone?

If you are honest with yourself, you may realize that you have not been pushing yourself as hard as you can, and therefore you haven’t accomplished as much as you are truly capable of. Changing this is as simple as demanding the best from yourself, starting right now.

It all boils down to a lack of self-esteem and self-confidence. Riders, who have lost their riding confidence for whatever reason, should work on it pro-actively. Although there are many books available on the subject, it is difficult to increase our self-confidence all in one go. It is better to do so gradually. An equestrian self-confidence e-course, spread out over several weeks, in combination with a reputable horse training e-course, will allow both you and your horse to adapt in your own good time.

About the Author

Dr Margarethe de Clermont is the author of the e-books “Ride with Supreme Self-Confidence” and “Letters to Lady Belle, my Friesian Mare” and edits the Equestrian Inspiration Newsletter about the mental skills needed to master the art of horsemanship. Subscribe at Equestrian Life Coaching to receive your FREE 7 day confidence e-course and more info about Prof J Beery’s excellent Horse Training Course.

What is the term for riding a horse and leading another horse next to you?

I can’t remember the word for leading an unsaddled, brideled horse next to a riding horse for training and exercise. It’s not lungeing, I know what that is. I want to say trotting but I think that’s wrong. Could someone un-jog my memory? Thanks,

That’s called ponying- and it’s a common sight at many race tracks, as well as at polo barns. My sister is a polo player, and that is how she conditions and trains her horses to get them in shape- she rides one horse and ponies two others. As long as the horses in question get along with each other, the risk to them and to the rider is minimal. The danger comes in when the horse which is being ponied doesn’t get along with the horse being ridden- and the result is often a fight or a kicking match.

Ponying is a great way to exercise horses when it’s not possible to ride them all the time- and it gets them fit without putting a lot of extra strain on their legs and back. In many ways, ponying is actually better for a horse than longeing would be, because it’s possible for a ponied horse to go straight for short distances, instead of turning constantly in a circle all the time. This reduces the pressure on their shoulders, lower legs, and back. My sister uses a halter with a chain shank for ponying her horses, but it’s quite common to see them ponied in bridles as well, especially at the track.
To each his own, when it comes to this.

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Sunny – Tim Azbill Horse Training – log dragging

Horse Jumps What Materials Are They Made Of

Horse jumps are the equipment used to set up jumping courses either in a show ring or on a trail. The abilities of horse and rider are both challenged. A beauteous animal jumps over a fence and you want to make sure he can clear it and land safely on the other side. Buy your jumping equipment from reputable manufacturer for safety sake.

Safety comes first, price comes second. Price is, of course, an important consideration. When you can buy from a company that guarantees its prices are lower than any other seller s, it is your first choice of where to buy your jumping equipment.

The design and detailing of the jump equipment is crucial. Jumps are manufactured out of wood or PVC, which is a man made material. Many of the people who organize and run horse shows consider PVC superior to wood. The material is long lasting and unlike wood, does not have to be brought in out of the rain. PVC is not affected by rain.

The PVC material itself is more expensive to begin with, but the manufacturing methods are superior to those used with wood. This keeps the price of the finished product lower. Therefore it is preferable.

There are many things about this industry that the average person does not know. There are a variety of types of jumps. Cavalletti jumps are used in dressage exhibitions. The horses trained for dressage, also known as dancing, are different than those used for Western trail competitions for example. Those jumps are similar to natural things found on trail rides, such as logs.

Horse show planners know the specifications for each type of jump. A beginner may want to set up a few low jumps to learn with. You can set of your own jumps if you are cautious. Make sure no nails or sharp protrusions exist in the material you use. Try a cross rail jump with two poles of an upright fence meeting at a cross in the center. This trains the horse to aim his body at the center of all jumps.

Setting up a pyramid jump and oxer jump or any combinations requires carefully measuring the height as well as the distance between jumps when there is a combination two or three in a row. An upright fence is the most difficult for a horse to perform.

Measure the distance between jumps at approximately twelve feet for a horse or ten feet for a pony. Alternatively, you can measure your own horse s exact stride. Use a tape measure and set up the distance between jumps according to your horse.

It would be extremely dangerous to place a pole behind a jump. This creates a false ground line that confuses the horse. He will perceive the jump as being farther away than it is. His judgement of distance would create a danger as a result.

The requirements for the size regulations in competitions are stringent. Planners of the shows want to add accessories that are aesthetically pleasing to those spectators attending the event. You can buy accessories such as extra rails, cups, wings and flower boxes to make the ring a lovely place. Jumps can be purchased in package deals or individually. Appearance is not of primary importance, but it does add to the horse show experience.

Horse jumps provide the course for the jumping competition. Spectators love to watch the graceful jumps made by horses. They do not realize how difficult these jumps are. They might not know how much training is involved to accomplish this feat. But, the pleasure of watching their graceful maneuvers over the course is a wonderful thing.

About the Author

To race horses or even get them to perform on
crosscountry jumps
tourneys, you need to know where check into. On the web you will find that
horse jumps
is a major horse event that goes on every year and to find out the best tips look on the web.

I am getting into Pat Parelli’s training methods can someone help me out with something?

I’m reading a book by parelli at the moment but I would like to know about the different levels!! I have the feeling you have to log your hours with your horse to know how far you are progressing. is this right? Is there something else I need to know about the levels or this training in general.
P.S i cant wait to start !!!!!

You will need the DVD’s or you can find the old VHS tapes with pocket guides. The levels are very specific and you need to accomplish the tasks in the lower levels because they prepare you and your horse for the upper levels. There is no need to log hours, especially if you are just doing this for yourself and your horse to improve your horsemanship and advancing your riding. Basically, the methods are about safety (level one) and communication with your horse by developing respect and language. Your horse already knows most of this information, but you have to learn it and learn how to communicate the information to your horse so that you both understand the requests and can respond calmly and with trust. The book you are reading is very general in information, and you need the specifics. Take your time and be patient. Dependent upon your horse, your progress could be relatively quick or very lengthy and time consuming. Horses are individuals and while they all learn quickly, you want to make sure you don’t teach the wrong lesson. Developing your timing will be a great measure of your success. Good for you and your horse. Ignore the negative junk and don’t get discouraged. Best of luck to you.