(In the Time of Covid)

Hey guys. How ya doin? Hanging in there? The world is certainly a strange place these days, huh?

Thankfully, other than working from home 100%, my day to day hasn't changed too much. I'm aggressively introverted, and usually way too busy to spend a lot of time going to bars and restaurants. Turns out, I've been preparing for quarantine my whole life. That said, it's weird how the rest of the world seems to have just discovered how cool it is to spend time outside. Strange how people seem to never go outside until you ask them to please not.

I'm so lucky to be able to easily work from home, and have such amazingly cuddly co-workers.

Anyway, the girls and I have been spending our early mornings getting our miles in before the rest of the world comes out and clogs up the city sidewalks. Living in a small basement apartment isn't usually an issue for my two wolf-a-likes, but that's only because I enjoy getting them out for 4+ miles a day. It's important they get out for their health (and mine!) so, we're trying to be as safe as possible while getting them their exercise.

While DC might be "Virus City" (thanks neighborhood kids), it's also been "Cherry Blossom City". Unfortunately hoards of people couldn't stop themselves from visiting the blossoms at the Tidal Basin, and the park ended up being shut down. Fortunately, there's tons of cherry trees in every neighborhood, so the girls and I made sure to enjoy them where we could (safely by ourselves). 

Meanwhile, life at the farm has ground to a near halt. For the first couple of weeks, I was living the life. I found myself working from home full time and riding at sunrise 5 days a week. I even managed to take a virtual lesson with Megan. It was awesome!

Unfortunately, it turns out other people usually like to ride at more hospitable times, and with other people around. Weirdos. That meant the state had to take some action, and mandated that boarding barns evaluate their policy of allowing boarders access to farms. That meant a restriction in seeing my boys.

Unfettered access to the barn was the time of sunrise hacks and virtual lesson shenanigans.

I'm lucky. As my horse's farrier, I am allowed access to the horses as needed. The moment I came to that realization was probably the only time I've looked forward to trimming both horses at once. Trimming is really hard work, especially when you only have two horses to care for! Plus with the spring grass shooting up, the horses are on a 1-2 week schedule. Their feet grow so fast this time of year. It's really hard to keep up (especially since they aren't getting worked a lot). Plus, Pig's abscess foot has taken a lot of extra poking and prodding.

During my barn time, I've found time for other horse chores. Like cleaning tack and giving Pig the literal worst haircut of his life... sorry friend.

Quarantine haircuts are rough, amrite?

I've used some of my time at home to work on editing some of the media I've captured during recent rides. I'm hoping to get some of that ready to share here soon.

Still, not everything is cherry blossoms and happiness. This week my family suffered the loss of my grandmother, who had been declining in health for some time. It's definitely surreal to lose a loved one, and be unable to travel to spend time with family. We're coping, but it's hard. My heart goes out to anyone in a similar situation. I know with all the changes going on right now, it's most important to realize how people's lives are being affected and lost.

Hugs to all going through a rough time right now.

Day to day, I'm just trying to do my best to stay safe, sane, and healthy. The beautiful weather we've been experiencing certainly helps with that, and I hope you've been able to enjoy it. Please tell me some of your quarantine stories (especially accepting tales of quarantine haircuts). How are you coping on your own? Do you get to see your horses?