It's been a few days since my last post, and a lot has gone on. Where do I begin to recount the past few days?
On Thursday, Trainer and I had an "artistic disagreement," in a Guns N' Roses kind of way, and I threw him off the farm. Now he isn't speaking to me. Bad heavy metal clichés aside, I think the pressure of being a trainer to a competitive person got to him, and he doesn't want that level of responsibility. That's not to say he doesn't have the knowledge to be successful in that venue; he does. I think Peter Pan just doesn't want to deal with the commitment.I tend to be very focused in the pressure-cooker sense, and not many people can take the stress. To me, it's just a natural occurrence, and I'm just doing what I feel needs to be done, but not many people are that way. I've been told I have enough energy to sustain New York City. This gross exaggeration aside, I am, how shall we say, NOT CALM. This is just speculation; I really don't know what's up, because he won't speak to me.
So, Trainer has strutted and fretted his hour upon my stage. I think this is the end of Team Nicolbria, and we must "break on through to the other side," in the words of the poetic Jim Morrison. I don't want it to be this way, and I hope it's just temporary, but I cannot stop the wheels of progress because of a minor setback.
Really, though, I'd been seeing signs over the past month of some wear and tear on our working relationship and of Trainer's waning interest. He wasn't returning calls regarding Nic's health, he didn't respond when I asked him if he wanted to go see Nic's babies, the incident at the show, etc. His Mr. Spacely-style outbursts were becoming more frequent. So, there you have it.And thus begins the Great Trainer Search of 2007. I have someone coming on Thursday, a local FEI trainer (for the uninitiated, FEI is the international governing body of the Horse World. A FEI trainer is one that competes at an international level). I'm gun-shy with regards to trainers as a result of my interactions with the Cult of Beauty; the Horse World is a true "Vanity Fair," and, like Becky Crawley, one is generally at the mercy of the Old Biddies's Club.
I hope it works out with this new trainer. In the meantime, I'll just do what I do with the mare.
Nic and I have our 2nd show next weekend. I have to rearrange transportation - that's the big issue here. I've sent out queries to people to see if they can help; it will be easier to sort out a game plan once I know my ride times. Hiring a trailer shouldn't be hard, it's just expensive. Then there is the issue of needing someone to hold my jacket and watch the clock, etc.
