Still alive, New companion for Cody and Photos
Well, I'm still alive. Completely exhausted but alive.
Today is the first day I've logged into LJ after months and months of absence and I haven't been able to catch up with everyone on my F-list yet.
I've been teaching for 7 months now and my life is about to change dramatically this summer. New recruits are required to participate in the great yearly 'migration' of teachers. We're not allowed to stay in the area we're currently teaching in for more than one year. We work for the state and we have to go where the state needs us. This is a very complicated system that's based on points. Basically the more points you have the more likely you'll be able to go where you want. The less points you have.....well, the more likely you'll be sent where no one else wants to go.
Of course, as a new teacher, single and childless, I'm at the bottom of the pool. I've got 71 points and to stay where I am right now I'd need about 230.
So I started to look for more 'affordable' areas and found one where I'd love to live: the Vosges region in the North East of France. It's a region of low mountains and lakes, with very few big cities. Perfect for me and Cody. It's about 600 miles from Bordeaux. I'm crossing fingers that I'll be able to go there. Here's a link to a website with pictures of the Vosges region for those who are interested:
http://www.photo-alsace.com/thematique/environnement_paysage/paysages_vosges.php
In other news, my mother bought herself a horse, a young QH mare. Her name is Savannah and she'll be 4 on the 4th of April. She comes from Arizona and she's not even home yet. She flew into Amsterdam last week and is currently staying in Calais until the haulers can bring her down to Bordeaux. She should be home tomorrow evening or wednesday.
Here's Savannah:
Mom has always dreamed of a buckskin horse.
And here's my usual collection of pictures of Cody and life in the south west of France which you'll find under the cut. I'm also putting my Best of 2007 video which I made a few weeks back--it's a great way to make 'living' memories I find.
My loyal Easyboot Epics. They go everywhere.
That's my little 'anti-hunter' bell. Hunting season is open for 6 months in France--from September to the end of February--and hunters often shoots everything that moves in my area so I feel safer wearing this. This is the kind of bell they put on their dogs.
Portrait during a trailride in the fall
A sign of my laziness: I've been wearing this safety pin for months with that particular pair of jeans. I somehow never get around to sewing it back together.
Cody playing hide and seek
Mom and Cody cuddlinh after an at liberty lesson
Grouchiness
The tassel of my rope seems to never stop gathering burrs
Being a good boy during a trail ride
Portrait
Cuttle little logo on a blanket belonging to one of the horses staying at my barn.
Load of shavings for the stalls.
This is Spoune. A cute little guy who arrived this winter
His owner was angry because people at his previous barn did this to his butt without asking permission.
One of those frosty mornings. Grey sky and frozen mud. Depressing.
Early morning fog lifting off the ground
Hoof shavings from a january trimming.
Wee!
At play at liberty
It's raining and the sky is grey but spring is just around the corner. Cody's coat says so.
My new pad. I ended up buying this limited pink edition because it was the only Professional Choice pad I found that could be delivered to France (ProChoice has prohibited the export of its products overseas unless it's to an authorized dealer And those dealers sell pads for around €260-280 and that's more than $300!!! NO WAY). I could have waited for other pads to show up on Ebay but I really needed a pad asap.
Indeed. lol
The video. Music by Yann Tiersen
Today is the first day I've logged into LJ after months and months of absence and I haven't been able to catch up with everyone on my F-list yet.
I've been teaching for 7 months now and my life is about to change dramatically this summer. New recruits are required to participate in the great yearly 'migration' of teachers. We're not allowed to stay in the area we're currently teaching in for more than one year. We work for the state and we have to go where the state needs us. This is a very complicated system that's based on points. Basically the more points you have the more likely you'll be able to go where you want. The less points you have.....well, the more likely you'll be sent where no one else wants to go.
Of course, as a new teacher, single and childless, I'm at the bottom of the pool. I've got 71 points and to stay where I am right now I'd need about 230.
So I started to look for more 'affordable' areas and found one where I'd love to live: the Vosges region in the North East of France. It's a region of low mountains and lakes, with very few big cities. Perfect for me and Cody. It's about 600 miles from Bordeaux. I'm crossing fingers that I'll be able to go there. Here's a link to a website with pictures of the Vosges region for those who are interested:
http://www.photo-alsace.com/thematique/environnement_paysage/paysages_vosges.php
In other news, my mother bought herself a horse, a young QH mare. Her name is Savannah and she'll be 4 on the 4th of April. She comes from Arizona and she's not even home yet. She flew into Amsterdam last week and is currently staying in Calais until the haulers can bring her down to Bordeaux. She should be home tomorrow evening or wednesday.
Here's Savannah:
Mom has always dreamed of a buckskin horse.
And here's my usual collection of pictures of Cody and life in the south west of France which you'll find under the cut. I'm also putting my Best of 2007 video which I made a few weeks back--it's a great way to make 'living' memories I find.
My loyal Easyboot Epics. They go everywhere.
That's my little 'anti-hunter' bell. Hunting season is open for 6 months in France--from September to the end of February--and hunters often shoots everything that moves in my area so I feel safer wearing this. This is the kind of bell they put on their dogs.
Portrait during a trailride in the fall
A sign of my laziness: I've been wearing this safety pin for months with that particular pair of jeans. I somehow never get around to sewing it back together.
Cody playing hide and seek
Mom and Cody cuddlinh after an at liberty lesson
Grouchiness
The tassel of my rope seems to never stop gathering burrs
Being a good boy during a trail ride
Portrait
Cuttle little logo on a blanket belonging to one of the horses staying at my barn.
Load of shavings for the stalls.
This is Spoune. A cute little guy who arrived this winter
His owner was angry because people at his previous barn did this to his butt without asking permission.
One of those frosty mornings. Grey sky and frozen mud. Depressing.
Early morning fog lifting off the ground
Hoof shavings from a january trimming.
Wee!
At play at liberty
It's raining and the sky is grey but spring is just around the corner. Cody's coat says so.
My new pad. I ended up buying this limited pink edition because it was the only Professional Choice pad I found that could be delivered to France (ProChoice has prohibited the export of its products overseas unless it's to an authorized dealer And those dealers sell pads for around €260-280 and that's more than $300!!! NO WAY). I could have waited for other pads to show up on Ebay but I really needed a pad asap.
Indeed. lol
The video. Music by Yann Tiersen
Click to view