I'm on a horse

Lesson #9 and we are off on a trail ride again, yay yay yay! The horse and I prefer being out in the vast openness :)

So I was supposed to get Mac to trot up a hill; I was nervous as I hadn't really mastered the whole posting rhythm thing. The gorgeous animal, bless his soul, decides to canter up instead. 

I have NEVER cantered a horse. Halfway into a scream, I was silenced by the blur of trees, drumming hooves and adrenaline rush. OMG it was glorious. Super friggin' incredible. Stuff dreams are made of. I want to bottle that moment up. Have it imprinted it into my brain. I want to remember it forever. 

I got to the top of the hill and I think I said "was that a canter? that was f**** nuts!"

I still can't wipe the smile off my face. 

I feel invincible.

♥

Cherry Blossom Series

I have two favourite ornamental flowering trees - the jacaranda, and this, the cherry blossom.

Its flowers are pretty, delicate and striking against the dark trunk. When it isn't flowering, the tree is just as gorgeous with its deep purply red leaves.

They've been associated with the fleeting nature of life, mortality and renewal. As I create my Cherry Blossom Series, my thoughts are with those affected by recent devastating floods, bushfires, earthquakes and tsunamis.

And a little haiku is in order:
pretty pink blossom
blooms despite adversity
as does the spirit

I keep a painting close by to remind me of how lucky and blessed I am, and to trust in the power of my own spirit.

Miles is a fan too :)

♥

Sorted, somewhat

I like things to be in order (aligned even) and everything to have its place, but I'm also a messy person. Go figure. 

Also, me and Cleaning, we don't get along.

But once in a while, it all gets a bit too much for me and I clean like a woman possessed. After a week of intensive scrubbing, vacuuming and rearranging, things are looking presentable! There are actually loads more paperwork and things to be sorted, but they're shut away. It's just that I need my surroundings to be neat and tidy before I tackle the stuff I hid :) Except that by the time I get to it, it's probably time for a cleaning spree.

Omg this is my life. Things often look ok on the outside, but there's always something that needs sorting out and I never quite get to it.

o.O

Old School

A spur of the moment decision to watch a movie led me to Cygnet Cinema in Como. I call it the 'arty pink cinema' and now I know what it looks like inside...

I like the Art Deco style, tickets, wall sconces, low seats, wooden floors. 
Two words: Old School
♥

One eyed bandit

After nearly falling off a horse twice during last week's riding lesson, I'm really glad that this week's lesson is an easy, cruisy trail ride. This is my third trail ride and my second on Mac, my favourite.

I love horses, I think that they're powerful, intelligent and majestic. I love that I was born in the year of the Horse...wouldn't want to be any other animal in the horoscope :)

Mac is a handsome 15.2hh standardbred gelding. He has a shiny brown coat and a faint star marking between the eyes. He can sense that I'm nervous and tense (mostly due to my fear of heights and fear of anything bigger than I am) and he's always patient and careful with me. 

gentle giant

We see a mob of kangaroos frolicking in the fields. It's just incredible to ride among the trees and shrubs in gorgeous Darlington. The heat of the day has gone and there's now a constant, fresh breeze. 


Mac negotiates the slopes and ditches expertly and although he slipped a few times on loose rocks, he regains his balance before I can let out a scream.

When we get back, I brush him and tell him how wonderful and amazing he is (it's a bonding thing) while he chows down a well-deserved meal.

I love Mac. He's blind in one eye and I trust him completely.

♥

The hills are alive

waterless waterfall

It was a public holiday on Monday and we had a family outing in the Perth hills. First stop, John Forrest National Park, off Great Eastern Highway. As we got out of the car, two kangaroos hopped across the car park... they were the only animals we would see for the rest of the day.

We decided to take the Heritage Trail to check out a waterfall and tunnel. We'd been warned that there was no water at the waterfall but I didn't mind, I was actually excited about the idea of standing on rocks that would normally have water gushing over it.

Plants in dry, desert-y, muted greens and grasstrees flanked the trail. Every step was accompanied by the crunch of loose rocks and pebbles underfoot and calm blue skies overhead.

2.2km later, we found refuge in the Swan View Tunnel. It was a little eerie but the echo of our voices soon drowned everything out. Bits of the train track were visible through the ballast and I could sense history in those walls. 

We rested and recharged soon after, and trudged back to base. I'd love to be back again when wildflowers are in bloom and to take on the other trails. 

After lunch in Mundaring a.k.a. the heart of the hills, we visited idyllic Mundaring Weir. The dam is a magnificent structure and the view from the dam wall was breathtaking, best enjoyed in silence...

After a bit of camwhoring, we headed home via the Zig Zag in Kalamunda. It's a scenic drive that provides a panoramic view of Perth. The roads are narrow and there are a few hairpin turns. 

I can now understand how things might get even more exciting and hair-raising here late in the night.

An awesome day trip to places I'd never been to! :)
♥

Because I can

If I can eat out of a can or jar, you can bet that I will.
Especially if no one's watching ;)

♥