Winning and Losing

The last week has been one full of ups and downs, where I've felt those conflicting emotions of when everything feels great and as it should be, and as things are finally falling in the right place, only to be brought crashing down in an instant.  

On the positive side, the response to the Vale Hot Danish piece has been overwhelmingly, incredibly touching, and one that has restored my faith in the industry.  My own personal reason for being involved is centred completely around this often irrational love of the horses, and this belief that it is the horse that is most important, and therefore the most important subject in front of my lens.  This frequently causes me to forget to concentrate on the people within the industry, and there are times when I am asked whether I took a photograph of "x" person.  I then frequently have to pause and say I'm not sure, because I was probably off playing about with the pony.  I suppose it is all about reaching a balance, but my scales are always tipped firmly towards the horse, and I have to remind myself that there are people there too!  But the reaction I've had from the connections of Hot Danish has also given me cause to say a little silent 'bloody well told you so' to someone, which at least makes me feel better!

On the minus side I'm in that tedious bookwork and filing and burning phase, which always makes me feel restless, bored and frustrated.  I'm being driven by necessity of course here, having not only realised no one will be eating if I don't actually get ON with it, but also now because I've received that shouty letter from the FAO, saying 'get your tax return done or pay us back the family tax benefit'.  See, I told you those window envelopes make you wince!  And for good reason!!  So now there's a tax return to get done as well, which made me groan and have to rest my head on the desk for several seconds.   

It's Mother's Day this Sunday, and my daughter Jessica's 6th Birthday on Friday.  The media passes for the Qld carnival have been approved and should be posted this week.  There's a bit of the usual pacing of the kitchen going on, again making me try to think calmly 'pony, pony, pony'.  The horses usually make all things feel right, and am feeling confident that Saturday week will prove me right about this yet again.

Flying Spur
 
 
Redoute's Choice
 
 
 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Joyous Family

Image
Another famous and successful thoroughbred family that I have a reasonably complete library of is the family of the champion racemare, More Joyous.  She is a bay mare, foaled in 2005, which makes her a year older than Black Caviar. More Joyous is by the great American black stallion (and one of "my Boys") More Than Ready.  She's out of the Sunday Silence mare Sunday Joy, who was out of the grand broodmare Joie Denise (who died not all that long ago). Sunday Joy won the AJC Oaks in and is a half sister to Tuesday Joy. All 4 mares were/are owned by John Singleton and reside at his gorgeous Strawberry Hills Farm at Mt White, NSW. More Joyous and Nash Rawiller.  Futurity Stakes, on Blue Diamond Day.  26 February 2011.  One of my favourite images of the great mare. More Joyous, like her contemporary Black Caviar, is now closer to the end of her career than the beginning. But it is one I've chronicled in a similar fashion to the way I have documented the
Read more

The Legacy of Eight Carat: From the Vault Volume I

Image
We have been back in lockdown here in Victoria. Lockdown 5.0 to be precise and as a result it made us go back to feeling like sad sacks.  After having seen off Lockdown 4.0 a teeny tiny bit triumphantly, where we saw off both Delta and Kappa variants (evil beasts that they are - curse you stinky COVID - curse you), we had literally only just gotten back to work before being very suddenly plunged back into Lockdown 5.0 after the visit of those very nice removalists.   'Thanks very much!!!!' we all shouted indignantly!!!!  A key difference with Lockdown 5.0 was that half the country also into lockdown at the same time which made us feel slightly less sad.  The Victorian Government doesn't muck about anymore when it comes to outbreaks.  Their reaction is swift and severe and not at all namby pamby.  I just wish the same logic would be applied to Sydney which continues to deteriorate, much to my dismay.  This week we took our first tentative steps out of Lockdown 5.0, hurrah f
Read more

The physical drain of riding horses

Image
Most people agree that the life of a jockey is a difficult one.  There are a handful that rise to the top, and do extremely well out of the Sport of Kings.  The vast majority however struggle with their weights, and do their best to avoid and/or overcome injury.  Anyone who has ever been pelted off a horse would know that it doesn't tickle!  And of course the older you get, the more it hurts!  We used to fang around on our ponies, bareback, in headstalls and leadropes, never wearing a riding hat.  Completely fearless, and I am sure that on the odd occasion I parted company with my horse, I used to bounce.  In fact I rarely used to fall off, unless the horse came down as well, I guess all those years of galloping around bareback meant my balance and ability to swing my body with the horse was pretty good.  I'd like to say that I could still ride the same, but age and the maturing mind catches up, and you start thinking of the consequences of 'what if I come off', which
Read more