When Your Mind is Racing While Waiting to Buy the Horse

Previously on Saddle Seeks Horse, Susan found the next horse of her dreams. A tall, dark, handsome gelding in her price range and with a seemingly kind personality. An offer was made to buy the horse, and accepted contingent upon clean blood work. Not that anyone thinks the results will come back and reveal the horse was drugged in any way, shape, or form. But one can never be too careful these days. Just as someone is probably not going to burglarize your house while you’re at work, but you still lock the door, precautions are never a bad idea.

While in the process of trying to buy Knight, my lesson plans were about knights. #Ironic

The vet was supposed to notify Susan (okay, I’m going to switch back to first person) on Monday, but I didn’t hear anything.

Yesterday my next door neighbor teacher friend giggled when she asked me, “How was the drug test?”

“Sorry, it just feels so funny saying that to you.”

I get it. I’m not a professional athlete. But I think she was giggling because I’m so straightlaced I would be the last person she would ever have suspicions about regarding using drugs. I get high on horses.

“I haven’t heard anything back yet. I’ll let you know.”

It has been quite touching the number of colleagues who’ve seen me in the teacher’s lounge the last two days and have smilingly asked, “Have you heard anything? Did you get the horse?” I truly feel there is a family vibe on my campus, but I wasn’t expecting so many of my teacher friends to care that deeply. Even male colleagues. I had one today ask me really quickly before the faculty meeting started how it was going and, “So do you really have to be in good shape to ride a horse?”

Of course I said yes. And something about “it helps to have strong cardio.” The principal took the front of the room to start our meeting but my brain was elsewhere. Here’s what I WAS thinking about:

I don’t think no news is always good news.

Are the lab people finding something really bad in the blood? Some drug cocktail they’ve never seen before and that’s why it’s taking them so long?

I think I might cry. 

I can’t cry in front of all of these people. He’s going to call on me to present what I learned at the San Diego AVID conference. Think of something to say. Sound intelligent. Storyboards. That’s it. Talk about using storyboards.

Is my trainer waiting to call me until she knows I’m off work because it’s really bad news? 

If I have to start this whole horse search over again I will cry. I don’t know if it’s worth it. It’s too hard. Maybe I can just lease a horse.

I can’t believe we’re sitting here in a meeting discussing whether or not the “Sunshine” fund should spend 10% to apply toward sponges and dish soap for the teacher’s lounge? Aren’t there more important issues to discuss. Like Common Core? Or why the vet hasn’t called yet?

In the middle of my drive home, my trainer called and said that the vet left a voice mail. The lab was supposed to get the results back tonight (Tuesday) or tomorrow.

I was tempted to write a blog post titled “An Open Letter to Veterinary Labs Who Analyze Horse Blood For Potential Buyers” and go on about the human, the little girl at the other end who is just waiting to know if she can have the horse. Certainly I’m not the only person who’s been in this position, and yes I feel like a child because my emotions are having a hey day. Today I am all of 11.

My trainer talked me down and said she would call the seller and tell him of the lab’s delay and ask in what form we can make the payment and set up a Thursday delivery date.

I relaxed at this new plan as my fear was that someone else was going to swoop in on this awesome horse and buy him from out of nowhere. I did not want to give the seller mixed signals.

As I thought about these words, “Thursday delivery” or maybe she said shipping, all I could think was, “Do I even have a lead rope anymore? When am I going to have time to go to a tack shop and buy brushes?” (I looked for them last weekend but I think I threw them away when DC died. It’s okay. A new horse is deserving of new brushes. And a new lead rope).

So I’m trying to keep busy to get my mind off this. I ate some leftover brussel sprout salad from last night’s Cooking Light recipe I tried. I walked the dogs. They’re getting better going out together and not pulling me two different directions. I observed I was channeling my equestrian energy into training the dogs to be better tandem walking companions. It’s got to be somewhat like training a team of horses, only smaller, right?

Then I came back and cleaned out the back seat of my car. I’m not sure how I seem to end up with at least five pairs of shoes in my car. Glittery flip flops, comfortable flats, retro wedges with the bow–you know what I mean. And I also end up with several half-full (see, I’m an optimist) water bottles in the back too. And junk mail. And yoga mats. And the book I have partially read that I showed to my trainer last week when we drove down to see the horse.

Now that I’ve let the cat out of the bag, yes, this new horse (that I hope I will get) is a retired race horse. He is a great, great grandson of Seattle Slew (if I counted generations correctly). His sire was actually a VERY famous, VERY successful race horse. So successful as I was perusing YouTube, I found a documentary about him. And he’s at stud currently in Lexington. The funny thing is my mom, sister, niece, and I did a breeding farm tour several years ago and we went to this farm. So the chances are quite high that somewhere on one of our computers that we have a picture of this stallion. (Small world!)

Speaking of bags, I found my riding glove in my bag today while looking for my wallet. I left my wallet at home and I was low on gas. My sweet former Midwestern classroom neighbor loaned me $10 so I could get home and have some extra gas in the tank. Anyway, I’m just a bit scatterbrained.

So now that you know a bit more about this horse that I have my sights set on and I’m in agony waiting for the blood work results, I will tell you his barn name: Knight. My childhood best friend told me, “So, you’ll be a Knight rider. Very 80s.” Well done, Gail. My husband was even impressed with that one. (I think Gail had or has a crush on David Hasselhoff).

While I was at school today I tackled some grading (while waiting to hear about Knight). Can you believe the timing of this medieval history lesson? Come on!

Yesterday we had a class discussion on chivalry. I wrote “Chivalry is dead” on the board and gave the students mini whiteboards and five minutes to come up with arguments for and against. I told them to cite specific evidence. This was one response.

And finally, persevering reader, I leave you with my favorite knight image from the assignments I mentioned. Enjoy! (I was so proud the student credited the source where she got the idea for the picture!)

Question: Do you think chivalry is dead? 

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