Cultural Adaptation

Driving down here is a whole ‘nuther experience.  First, the yellow lights are looooooong.  Second, you do not slow down for the yellow lights without first assessing the driver behind you.  How fast are you going?  How close is he/she?  Is it a commercial vehicle or a passenger car?  Big truck?  Dumpster?  Small car?  Slowing down and preparing to stop on a yellow light can get you rear-ended.  If the light is not yet red, then it’s considered fair game.  Oh, and the first few seconds of the red light is also considered fair game.  I’ve been amazed to see as many as two cars breeze through behind me at an intersection that turned red as I drove through.  This behavior means that you also have to adapt your driving habits when the light turns green. Nobody moves without first checking whether there is still oncoming traffic.  Because of this, no one honks if there is a delay before traffic moves after the light turns green.  As for bicyclists - take your life in your hands.  There are several 3 and 4 lane highways here with speed limits of 50-55 mph, so that means traffic is moving at 60+.  And, they have bike lanes. You could not pay me to get on a bike here and commute to work.  

For those that are curious, I share the picture of the Beef Wellington from Christmas dinner.  I think the first attempt was reasonable.  It reall

Commercial version available from Williams and Sonoma

y did deliver a very moist tenderloin, encircled with spinach and prosciutto all wrapped up in a crispy crust of phyllo dough.   The best thing, from a cook’s perspective, is that all the work can be done a day in advance because it has to sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour and up to a day.  You just take it out of the refrigerator and pop it in the oven 35 min out from when you want to eat.  I was a bit skeptical, but following directions did produce something quite yummy.  I will be making this again for holidays and special occasions.  Staying on the food theme, Bill and Lisa drove her mom down to the townhouse she owns in West Palm Beach right before the New Year. They invited me over for a New Year’s Eve celebration.  Lisa had ordered a charcuterie board from The Boarderie. It was fabulous, except for the wasabi cheese that was a definite pass.  Worthwhile knowing about for gift purposes or no-stress entertaining.

Bob continues to pull his hair out, but it is not nearly as bad as last year.  The walks with Otto have devolved into me carrying him out to the bench by the lake where he and I sit together watching the birds and enjoying the view with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine.  Yesterday morning featured a heron walking around the lake, plus the usual paddling/badelynge (see last year’s blog) of Moscovy ducks.  Since the walks were not working out too well as an exercise program for Otto, I have resorted to a microchip-activated Sure Pet Feeder.  Each feeder will only open for the designated cat after associating its microchip with the unit.  If there is no microchip, then they supply a tag for the cat’s collar.  Now I am able to ration food for both of them and am beginning to see some weight loss with Otto.

This weekend I had an opportunity to scribe for Janet Foy, possibly the most senior woman FEI/Olympic level judge in the U.S.  She has a reputation for being really tough and some riders will actually choose to ride hors concours (no reportable score) rather than risk getting a low score recorded. And, in fact, as I was standing in the show office, two riders came in to change their rides to H.C. when they learned she was the sole judge for the day.  Yet, like the other judges I have scribed for, I was struck by how much she was really pulling for each horse and rider combination.  I learned that if your horse ignores your aid or messes up a movement you will get the expected low score, but if you then proceed to discipline the horse in the moment you will get an even lower score – often because the horse will show resistance as a result (like kicking out).  So, best to just move on – you can only make things worse.  There is also a strategic component to riding these tests and I watched her offer a solution to a young rider who was struggling with a particular movement on her horse after her last ride.

I also rode in front of her on Saturday.  I would happily do it again.  Laura was preparing me on Friday for getting a low score from her. The mare walked right on the trailer without any hesitation. She then came out in the warm-up in front of my leg and very responsive to the slightest of aids, but just a little less malleable than I would have liked.  I should have spent another 5-10 minutes working on that and made sure I had the test mentally mapped out in my head, but ......I was the last ride before lunch and the show was running early so I succumbed to the perceived pressure and went in the arena ahead of my designated time.  Well, strictly speaking, Laura had to lead me into the arena because Miss Mare decided at that point that it was a big “no” to walk into the arena.  I had some accuracy issues, and one bobble where the mare decided we should canter from the walk rather than trot and when I asked her to return to the trot before we cantered she decided to stop and poop.   This sport does keeps you humble. So, we got a 3 for that movement.  But, the big win was I did not lose my cool, was able to confine the mess to just one movement, and continued on.  Moreover, there were a ton of 7’s on movements where the score is multiplied by 2. Laura said I rode a very deliberate test and I was really pleased for our first outing.  Remember last year, I was not able to show her until the very last couple of weeks I was down here.  Things are definitely moving along. and we will be aiming for another rated show end of January.

My purchase of a Keurig for the show office has been a huge hit.  No more burnt coffee in the afternoon.  And staff can have coffee, hot chocolate, or chai latte as they wish.  A better use of $$ than joining the GMO!  As I left today, I was asked to scribe for their upcoming CDI competition in two weeks.  This is a level 5 international competition with judges from multiple countries.  I will have to learn the computer-based electronic scribing program, but it should beat having to write lots of comments in small boxes.  I have also passed the background check for scribing at Global Equestrian down the road and am now awaiting a call to fill out paperwork.  I volunteer at Jim Brandon; Global will be paid and I can offset my entry fees.  Woo-hoo!

I am watching the weather on the news and from the Ring camera focused on my driveway.  Hopefully, you will miss the big dump of snow that is forecast. A belated Happy New Year!