Speechless

Little things

I love getting model horse things in the mail. Big things. Little things. Snail mail. Email. It's all good and it's all appreciated. Here are a couple little things that have brightened my mailboxes recently.

First up, is a darling photo of big baby Zuzu with her brand new nameplate halter. I love customer pictures, especially when they're this cute. Thank you so much, Tracy!

Here's something else I love: pink glitter bell boots from Nichelle Jones' Desktop Stables. Aren't they awesome?

That's all for now, but I'm looking forward to the next delivery!

More pictures from NW Congress

Erin and Tiffany went to (another) show without me. I was all sad and emo about this yesterday, but today I'm like, "Woo hoo! I get to steal all their show photos and post them on my blog!"

Erin is a perpetual overachiever so it's no surprise that she showed three performance horses at Northwest Congress. The first is Treats?!, a customized Breyer Proud Arabian mare by Melanie Miller.

Marty McMine is a Breyer Bobby Jo also by Mel...

and FTB's Purdy Darn Good is a Smart Chic Olena with a Totilas head. As his name would indicate, he was created by Tiffany Purdy.

These three went in lots of classes... 

and won... 

lots of ribbons! 

The explanation card says: She would rather molest a nearby judge than get bridled, thankyouverymuch. Treats?!

Tiffany had a lot further to travel, so she only brought one performance horse. Fortunately, it was a good one.

This is Purdy Spun Silver, a customized Breyer Bobby Jo. 

This one went in pretty much everything... 

and won pretty much everything...

including the Overall Performance Championship. 

Here's my favorite of her entries. It's a Frozen themed free style reining set up with a card that plays, Let it Go. 

Purdy Spun Silver will be listed on My Auction Barn later this week. If you're in the market for a top notch performance horse who can also do halter, look no further. This is a good one! 

There in spirit

Tiffany and Erin are competing in the Northwest Congress live show in Kent, Washington today. This is the third model horse event they've attended together, but without me, this year. I'm glad they are having fun, and I know it's not their fault I haven't been able to travel with them. Still, I can't help but be a little jealous.

When I mention this, they tell me, "You're there in spirit!" which is one of those thanks/no thanks kind of deals. I mean, I'm glad they're thinking of me and all, but that doesn't change the reality of the situation. My "spirit" and I are here in Colorado, the land of no shows.

Woe is me.

Anyway... For this and other reasons, I've been a little bit crabby all day.

Then Tiffany sent me this picture:

Then Erin sent this:

 And this:

Now I'm having a rethink. Maybe I am there in spirit after all! Not only that, I'm taller, skinnier and 1:9 scale. Awesome! Thanks, Tiffany and Erin. Be sure to have a drink for me after the show is over!

State of the harness

Progress is glacial...

but at least there is progress!

Ahoy there mateys

It's no secret that I am a big fan of Erin Corbett's work, so I was really pleased when Teresa brought a new Corbett saddle to my house a couple Sundays ago. 

At first glance, this looks like a pretty typical Western pleasure set.

Closer inspection reveals something much more creative!

Although its currently in Teresa's possession, this saddle is owned by Carra McClelland. She asked Erin if she create a pirate themed saddle, with a treasure map in place of Erin's more usual floral tooling.

As you can see, Erin had no trouble fulfilling this request!

The tooling is different on each side...

and features all sorts of pirate items in addition to that treasure map. I especially like the parrot and the bottle of rum! 

Congratulations to Carra on her new saddles, and also to Erin for turning Carra's fanciful idea into a such a successful reality. Great work, ladies!

Dexter by design

A couple months ago, Erin listed a number of high quality models for sale, including this custom Idocus by Melanie Miller.

I have wanted a traditional scale piece by Mel for the longest time, and this is a good one. The price was reasonable, but sadly, my PayPal account was empty. I watched and waited, expecting to see him listed as "Sold."

It didn't happen. I waited a little more, and then I sent Erin a private message letting her know that her Idocus would be a really good harness bribe. She laughed and said, "Good to know."

 I thought that would be the end of it, but...

look what arrived in the mail yesterday! 

Woo hoo! Looks like I'll be making Erin a harness... and perhaps a few other things, as well! 

Thank you so much, Erin. I am so happy to finally have my own Melanie Miller horse. He was definitely worth the wait! 

P.S. This horse's original name was Dexter. For reasons known only to Erin, his name was changed to something I am not supposed to mention. Because I like my horses to have non weirdo names, he is Dexter once again.

Jim's memorial

This was the hard one.

On Saturday, October 17, 2015, we gathered together at Starry Meadows to celebrate the life of our friend, Jim West. 

Starry Meadows is a piece of land owned by the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society. It's located near the small town of Gardner, Colorado and is a remote, dark sky area.

The ceremony included speeches by Jim's family... 

and friends.

The model horse hobby was well represented by Carra McClelland,

Sandy Sanderson... 

and Jim's long time girlfriend, partner in crime and soulmate, Vicky Kitzman. 

Vicky's dog, Orion...

provided canine therapy...

throughout the ceremony.

After everyone had had a chance to talk, Jim's young friend, Eric, delivered a bouquet of balloons to center stage. They were attached to the card we'd signed for Jim at the previous night's wake. 

 Jim's friend, Jason played the violin as Jim's children released the balloons.

At first they didn't want to take flight... 

but then they caught a breeze... 

and soared up... 

and away. 

We watched them go until they were out of sight. There wasn't a dry eye in the house. 

All that was left was the scattering of Jim's ashes.

This was done, in turns, by Jim's three kids and Vicky.

Ashes to ashes. 

Dust to start stuff.

"Goodbye, Jim. We will see you in the stars."

This was such a beautiful and heartbreaking ceremony, worthy of a man whose life touched so many. Clear skies, Jim. You are missed.