Staying Young

It was a little windy again this morning so Betty and I rode Morgunn and Sugar in our back lot. That was a good thing as it's a safe place for us and the horses. It was a good time for Betty and Sugar to work together to get more comfortable with each other and to learn about each other. It's also a good time for me to work with Morgunn to get the winter's cobwebs out of his body and mind.

We'll probably keep doing that for a good while during the winter when it's cold and mix it with groundwork. By the Spring we all should be in a pretty good place when the weather is really good for riding.

Riding and taking care of the horses is a good way for us to stay young - at least in our minds and spirits if not our bodies. I got the following from a good friend in England on how to stay young.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG:

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' And the devil's name is 'Alzheimer's'. (For us this means continually learning about our horses and ourselves in relation to them.)

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. Tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life is ourselves. LIVE while you are still alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it's family, pets (horses), keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county, state or a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is. And don't let fear be the master of your life.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity. Let them tell you the same thing.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. And, life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend it once.

Oh, today is National Nothing Day. You celebrate it by... doing nothing!

Today is Jnauary 16 and if today is your Birthday then you share your day with: Kate Moss (model), Sade (singer, "Smooth Operator"), Debbie Allen (dancer), John Carpenter (director, "Halloween"), Dr. Laura Schlessinger (radio talk host), Ronnie Milsap (country singer), A. J. Foyt (4-time winner of the Indy 500), Dizzy Dean (St. Louis Cardinals pitcher), Ethel Merman (singer, "There's No Business Like Show Business), and Andre Michelin (tire maker).

On this day in 1883 the US Civil Service Commission was established. In 1896 the first five-player college basketball game was played at Iowa City, Iowa. The University of Chicago defeated the University of Iowa by the low score of 15-12. In 1909 Ernest Shackleton locates magnetic South Pole. In 1920 the United States went legally "dry" as prohibition of alcoholic beverages took effect under the 18th amendment to the Constitution. The amendment was repealed in 1933 by the 21st Amendment. In 1957 three B-52s took off from Castle Air Force Base in California on the first non-stop, round-the-world flight by jet planes, which lasted 45 hours and 19 minutes. In 1961 Mickey Mantle signed a contract which made him the highest paid baseball player in the American League. His contract was for $75,000 for the 1961 season. Willie Mays (the National League), was making more money than any baseball player with his contract for $85,000. And in 1964 the musical "Hello, Dolly!," starring Carol Channing, opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 2,844 performances.