WE volunteered again at the RDA last night. Not quite so awfully hot but still -

I side walked 3 different kids. I am not totally happy with this place. It is kind of by the seat of your pants kind of organized. Plus, one horse called Sundance was practically gasping for breath and they still used him (after hosing him off). I was afraid he would drop dead and crush me. Also, the instructor for this student and the other side walker were very negative. The child riding was about 5 years old, I'm not sure she could speak (maybe tho) and had a plastic tube clipped onto her shirt by a cord that she was supposed to keep in her mouth (her "chewey" ugh!!). The problem was that whenever she got excited, she would bounce up and down on the saddle (lets face it, she didn't weigh much) and so the instructor and sw kept saying, "NO!! No Bouncing! NO!!" omg, so I started saying "SIT". Finally I just said, "Don't say the B word, just say SIT". Who am I to tell the people in charge what to do?? The only one with common sense at least! Whe I said "sit" to her, I would put on hand on her so she was firmly in the saddle. But it got worse, not only did they try to start saying "sit" but keep slipping back into "no, no bouncing", but practically everything else warrented a firm "No, No, No." She was only on the horse for about 20 minutes since she finally took her Very Ill-Fitting helmet off. Then they stupidly threatened her that if she didn't let us put the helmet back on she had to get off the horse, so of course that is what happened. If I had been the parent, I would have been furious. A totally negative experience.

I thought the instruction, on the whole to be almost non-existant. Granted, they are not really learning to ride, but in order to get any therapy out of just sitting and walking around, why not encourage the kids to sit up and look where they are going? The ones working on balance should be putting their arms out to the side, looking up, sideways and back, touching the mane and behind the saddle, etc. I am very disappointed.

On the plus side, OH sidewalked a very disabled boy about 12 years old who talked non-stop and was screamingly funny!!! Everything he said (told to me later by OH) was a riot. At the end, he said he was going to do an aerobic dismount - hilarious because he could barely sit up and could not walk.

Lets see, otherwise I am totally wasting my time. Spent all of Saturday sitting in/by the pool reading Georgette Heyer (omg, again). My stuff is all over the house and I have not been picking up after myself. I have worked on my needlepoint horse and all the background is done and now I have to work on the borders and the horses' manes.


Today is Hair Cut and Color Day! I'm terrified as I cut all the back off my hair last week and now it is pretty short. I just dread the stylist "evening it out" and making it way too short. And why can't anyone just copy a fucking picture and cut my hair the way I want it??? If I even see thinning shears - well, he'd better say his prayers. I do have some ideas for color that I think will be super cute.

OH has lost 7 pound in almost 2 weeks on our diet and I have only lost one or two. Could it be because he weighs twice as much as me but I eat the same amount as he does?? brainiac.

The Florida condo has been sold. It went on the market last year for $200K, was reduced to $175, finally listed with new agents for $143 and sold for $138. I don't care because the whole condo thing is driving everyone crazy. Plus ma has now misplaced the coupon payment booklet.

Ma has been to a neurologist, got only about 1/2 the questions in some kind of test right (got president right but not VP, couldn't figure out 100-7, etc.), and also had an EEG and MRI. We now await a report which will be sent to N. WE are leaning towards leaving them in Florida but are still not sure what would be best to do. Any move at this point is certain to set them back mentally. NOt that they have far to go.

that's all for now.