monday moment: cereal

One of the best things about being an adult: buying disgusting sugar cereal that you would have begged for as a child.

jumped a rainbow into my cart

The unicorn was calling me from across the grocery aisle. Finally I'd discover what a unicorn tastes like! (I suspected chicken...)

should taste like Fruit Loops, but it does not!

Damn, it says "Magic Cupcake" flavored…oh, it is AWFUL! Like bad frosting on cheap grocery store cake. Blech!

Will Major eat it?

He liked loved it! Is that animal abuse? I think he believes he will turn into a unicorn.

But I learned something important from buying unnecessary cereal: my unicorn name! (oh, you thought it would be don't give in to consumerism, blah, blah, blah? yeah, right). I am Emerald Cloud Jumper, who are you?

two speeds

We have had a couple interesting rides lately, but without much variety…in speed. Major is loving the coming fall weather, so "trot all the places!" has become his plan. I'm loathe to stop him because damn, it's fun (and he is behaving himself)! We have no endurance rides coming up, and are not "conditioning" but Major sure keeps himself in the mix!

A simple evening ride was along the lake. Major with one goal, trot! But I really did not like that plan (I was hoping for a mellow ride), so it became a game of trot and our other speed…eat. Major is still pretty incompetent at eating and walking, and with nowhere to go, stopping to eat the green tastiness is fine.

snack one: grass is good

snack two: grass is great!

this was a cougar snack: deer skeleton is all that remains

The best part was the musical accompaniment! I never ride with any music (I like the sound of nature and Major). But along the lake we often hear the boats, and this time a ski boat was moving along the lake, playing their loud music. The skier was obviously not very good, as they kept stopping to retrieve him! But unlike most times, this was actually some good music. It started with Disturbed's cover of "The Sounds of Silence" (oh, the irony), then I heard the opening notes of one of my favorite bands, Midnight Oil, and "Beds Are Burning." As I rode away, another 80s hit, "Down Under" by Men at Work played out as we trotted/danced away.

button bush: smells lovely and covered in bees and butterflies

snack three: moss is good too

Our next trotting adventure was a day exploring Empire Mine. I hadn't been there in a couple years. The trail are mostly wide with great footing, hardly a rock in sight! Very few people, a few courteous bike riders, Major was game to explore. Maybe because our home trails are so twisty and stop-and-go, he started out trotting in contained excitement and didn't stop. For 13 miles.

Prescott Mine structure, right when we started off

eager ears: oh boy!

Seriously, I would slow him, ask for a walk (not because he was tired, but because it was just a casual ride I thought) but Major had other plans. And he was so pleasant about it, just asking to trot again and stepping into a lovely, but quick, 7mph. Then 9mph, then a few canters in long, clear sections, and he was just eating up the trail, truly seeming to enjoy himself. We both had a great time (though I was tired as I didn't expect Major to be doing a solo endurance ride!), and we'll have to go back sooner than later.

contain yourself Major: walk across the raised culvert area

the trails were a blur: literally, so much trotting!

I may hate the fall, with darkness descending and the long dreary winter ahead, but these cooler days are appreciated, and I better get out there and enjoy every moment of daylight while I can…at whatever speed I get!

d.i.y.: customized helmet

Time for another super difficult and time consuming D.I.Y.…or not! This was simple and fun, and I didn't take many progress photos (and no completely final photos, oops!)

I had some cool orange reflective tape from fixing up my horse trailer, and it was just sitting there, bored! But you could do this with any outdoor vinyl from the craft store (just cut it into the strip width first.)

needed tools: helmet, colored tape/vinyl, scrap paper template, exacto knife, pencil

I took my helmet and then some scrap paper strips, and fitted them to the grooves/lines on the helmet. Each helmet will be different. I removed the visor for simplicity. One long strip will not work well, with the helmet curve I think you would get bubbles, etc. By cutting it into pieces it is easier to manage, and looks cool too.

Once I had my scrap paper template, I cut my reflective strips to match. I kept the paper backing on the tape for now. I made a couple small pencil marks on the helmet itself so I'd know where to line the tape up. Or wing it, whatever you're up for!

final colored pieces ready to stick

For the smaller pieces, I peeled off the whole backing and gently smoothed the tape to the helmet. The longer strip was a tiny bit harder, but I partially removed the paper backing to get it started, then pulled the paper out as I went along.

finished, shiny, orange!

Success! I got one small bubble that I really don't care about. I also spray-painted the tiny visor (orange of course) but forget to take that picture.

It is just for fun, though the reflective isn't a bad idea. It will probably peel off if needed, though I haven't tried it. Now what else can I stick some of that tape onto…?