After irregularly (due to college & other activities!) attending those dance-for-fitness classes, I decided to finally try something different that actually involves weights and using my arms for something semi-useful. This class involves 20 minutes of cardio, 20 minutes of weights and 20 minutes of stretching! I actually did push-ups! Who knew this could ever happen! I wonder if I should tape my wrists at least when I attend classes like these though, to prevent me from over-flexing them. The first time I realized that I could have my elbows point upwards with my arms stretched out… I kept doing it for most of the day because it seemed so hilarious. It wasn’t that hilarious the next day when the pain started to kick in. Ouch.

Today I realized that I’ve been ignoring Persona 4 due to its complexity and how I was not able to keep up with what’s going on because my brain has not given it a logical sequence, yet. So it was time to restart it and remember how to play! But… I got bored because they talk too much. I need my PS3 back, please! Speaking of electronics, I saw a laptop I really like.

My addiction to Poupee Girl has not really gone down, except I’m tired of comment clubs and such and decided to chill for a while and actually do what I like to do – which is comment on my poupee friends’ newest items! When a new event arrives on poupee… I never want to use the items from the event because everyone else is using them. Or well, I like to use them in a “unique” way and I don’t want the way other people use them to influence me! It also gets tiring to see a lot of people more or less colour coordinated. When the Halloween event was here I was in my “my doll doesn’t need new stuff” mood and really only got those garter boots and the cat doll that came with it (and the mummy outfit too since it didn’t stand out)... and I totally forgot about them. While some people might find this a very silly game of “dress up” and “aren’t you a little old to play with dolls?”, in actuality… the clothes in poupee girl are very close to real life and for me it is somewhat simulating to mix and match since I rarely do it in real life.

Are my posts lacking substance lately? Oh well…

Should probably use this place before I stop being able to justify its existence! I cannot possibly NOT have anything to write about anymore!

Bookworm lent me her full set of Full House DVDs and I find it completely adorable. Brings back so many memories even though I don’t remember any of the episodes.

This year only made me realize the extent of which I enjoy giving presentations, and pouring my heart out in them. Today I had one for my ethics class and my chosen topic was Animal Testing. We always discuss the presented topic after the student had finished speaking about it. I was worried that Animal Testing was not as interesting to my classmates as some of the other topics were (and they had a more political / financial). However, I was very pleased with the results! People were actually interacting with me while I presented, or actually making comments about what I was saying as though it was really important to them. This was enough to make me content, but my professor told me that due to interacting with my audience and capturing their interest, I was marked up!

Earlier this semester, I came back from school and my friend had dropped this off at my house… Thanks Kay!!

This weekend, I felt that I went back and conquered situations that I have failed in some years ago. The first one was yesterday, with a horse named D. I didn’t feel like I could get her to listen to me, and instead she just went where all the other horses were. People told me to relax, don’t ride her for now and try again a year later and we bet that she’ll be listening to you and you won’t know what you’re doing differently. I sort of know what I did differently yesterday, though, I wasn’t afraid to be tougher! It went great!

Today I rode C. The last time I rode him was around 2 years ago, he reared up and my nose hit his neck. Then my trainer wouldn’t let me ride him anymore. I never ask what horse I’m going to be riding in advance so I had no idea I had C today. But I was really excited! My cousin was riding him before me and she told me he was rearing. I was nervous heading back towards the school riding him. We walked for a bit, but as soon as I asked him to trot, he began with the theatrics. But it was a lot of fun. Although he would buck and rear trying to get me off his back every time we stopped to have a rest (especially between jumps when we were changing directions). It was funny, I can’t help but think back to it and laugh. I loved every second of it. It’s experiences like this that make me feel good about myself. I guess my definition of a great ride is different than most. I just really love this horse.

After years of being almost the unluckiest person you’ve ever met on any game I played, something remarkable happened. I was with some friends one night and we were playing some game. I had to place an amount in, choose a number (in the dice range), and roll… if I get it, I could get times ten the amount I placed. And guess what! I got it! That made me giddy for the rest of the night.

I feel like I am obsessed with Poupee Girl these days. I love messing around with it and making outfits. Here are some of my favorites over the past month! It’s cool, though, I don’t do much on it when I have more important things to do!! The screenshots were taken for the livejournal community thing… and I didn’t even do it daily because it feels like a lot of work!

Figured it was about time to unleash my “creative” thoughts over at this place. My biggest source of inspiration at this moment is the recent change in my riding lesson pattern. I’ve switched instructors after being with the same one for 2.5 years. It was just… time. Having the exact same lesson pattern for so long, and riding with groups of big level differences just wasn’t giving me much to work with. One morning I managed to watch a lesson that another instructor gave. For some reason I never thought I’d ever want to ride with them, not sure why… perhaps my loyalty to my old instructor. That lesson was everything I wished was available to me in my lessons, the schooling, the sheer determination, the speed and how strongly everyone rode.

The next morning before my regular lesson, I approached that instructor and asked if I could book with that group and she said as long as there’s space she’s fine with it. I was incredibly excited, but also – as the day came closer I started to doubt myself. Was I being a fool? Maybe I’m not strong enough, maybe I don’t know what I’m doing, maybe I wouldn’t be able to manage with that group because they’re at a level much higher than what I’m used to.

When the day came the feelings started to fade. I thought I’d take things as they come and try to get as much as possible from the experience. I hadn’t spoken to my old trainer yet at the time. When she saw me, she asked what happened. I was always happy riding with you, I explained, but the regular group that rides at the only time slot / days that I can come here isn’t able to do the exercises that I want to do, and isn’t able to jump. I didn’t want to take from their lesson time nor did I think it was productive or challenging enough for me to ride with them. She started to say that since I’m riding with a new instructor, she wouldn’t let me jump; she’ll act like you haven’t been learning to ride all these years. I smiled and said that I knew.

What can I say though? All of a sudden, I think that my riding experience has changed completely. I can’t wait to go ride now. That first day, I rode a stubborn little chestnut pony with a white face and dark mane. Her name is L and she was the pony I rode on the day where I felt I couldn’t ride. It was very easy to get her going that day, she seemed energetic and willing to work, and give me some very smooth transitions, too. Some of the instructions confused me due to being in a different language but I could manage… until I heard the words “three loops”. However, I managed to follow someone that was doing them so it was okay. We trotted over some poles, sat the trot without stirrups then started the rising trot without them too. No one stopped going when one person cantered, everyone knew how to keep their horse going… or keep them at a trot when the person in front of them started to canter. It was great fun! More canter than I ever did… also made smaller circles while cantering… not something I was ever asked to do in my other group. It made me a bit sad because for a long time I thought that I probably couldn’t steer my horse at the canter (but the pony I leased in December showed me that I could!). After that the instructor started to set up a jump, and I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to start going at it so I stood next to another person (the only one who didn’t jump), until she told me to follow them too! It was a wonderful introductory lesson that had me completely worn out after, and I was able to identify one of my weaknesses!

On the next day I rode W. I only ever had one other successful lesson on him. He’s a 9 year old pony with the sweetest temperament! He’s also very sensitive. I was riding with a younger group, but again, everyone knew what they were doing and followed instructions well. Again, new patterns and steering exercises that I had to get used to. It was a struggle for me to keep cantering for as long as I did that day but hopefully as I do it more, I’m sure it’ll get easier. W has the smoothest (and prettiest to watch) canter transition! Again, we did a small jump near the end. I’m very happy that pole exercises and jumps are a standard part of the lesson… not one that I have to specifically ask for in advance every single time.

The week after, I got to ride my old friend S, the Arabian. We started cantering much earlier in the lesson, as the only other person there is quite advanced (and was riding a horse that had a frequent buck). Makes S seem like a harmless little lamb. We had around 8 (I think?) poles on the ground that we used throughout the ride. We trotted over them with stirrups in the rising trot, without stirrups at the sitting trot, with (or without in my case haha) stirrups at the canter, then again at the canter in two point. Later on a jump was added at the end of it. Most fun I’ve had in a long time! I just need to untense my right hand so I wouldn’t keep pulling my horse’s head to the right…

Today, I rode M! I’ve been on her a couple of times, she’s lovely. Except I had to use a crop because she was so sluggish (well, it seems I allow all horses I ride to be sluggish earlier in the lesson…). Today I made sure to keep thinking about my hand, and keeping it relaxed and keeping my horse’s head straight. It seemed to get better! There were four of us in the lesson and we did this exercise where we did the rising trot whenever we were trotting in straight lines, and sitting the trot when circling. We trotted in a small circle in every corner. I’ve watched people do this before, it is harder than it looks! After that we stood in our saddles at the trot then without sitting down modified that into two point. Sat the trot for a few circuits without stirrups then rose the trot without them too. This latter was tough due to having to circle sometimes, and trot over poles, too. I kept losing my stirrups (as usual) at the canter and I kept being told to put them back in. Without stopping, I had to canter over poles, then come back and canter over them in two point, and at some point I had to canter on the flat in two point. We did this both directions, and whenever someone was cantering everyone else had to sit the trot without stirrups. When we were jumping, I decided to shorten my right stirrup because it was the one I lost more. Overall, I was very pleased with the amount of constructive feedback that I received and can’t wait for my next lesson (:

I’d write more about what I’ve been up to but I have something else to do for now. There are a few deadlines due this week and I’m not ready, eek. For now I just want to show you guys my latest polish! One coat of Blue Satin under a coat of Azure, both belong to Chanel if you’d like to check them out!