Sometimes in life you find yourself sitting at a crossroad. Well, I have officially reached that point. For the first time in my life, I am faced with knowing that I must soon decide what option is best to pursue in terms of a professional career.
There's one thing I know for sure, and that is that I refuse to graduate college and go home to watch countless episodes of Private Practice (do you have Netflix?? Cause if you don't, you should!) while sitting on my parents wonderfully comfortable big purple couch. That couch combined with Netflix has killed many a productive day for me. As wonderful as that sounds, I know it won't do me any good. I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind having me around. In fact, I could probably get away with being one of those kids that lives in their parents basements for the rest of their lives. Yep, my parents love me that much. However, I have seen the sacrifices and hard work that my parents have invested in me and its simply too much to waste.
Therefore, I will forge on with my journey and continue to discover where I belong. With all that said, I have been invited to spend a week training at the South African Jockey Academy. I met the headmaster, Graham Bailey, at Summerhill's Ready to Run Sale in February and expressed my interest in riding as a jockey. I will admit that riding as a jockey is probably one of the toughest jobs around. You've got to be strong and tough. Tougher then most people are when they head to work in the morning. Honestly, I'm not quite sure yet if I'm cut out for the job, but how will I ever know for sure if I don't try? I refuse to spend the rest of my life regretting having never tried. I understand how difficult it is, but I am thrilled to have the opportunity to "test the waters" of riding as a professional jockey. I'll be training at the academy for a week and will hopefully gain some valuable insight into how I feel about pursuing a career as a jockey.
Like I said, I'm at a crossroads. When I head home to graduate in a month, I would like to know in what direction I should head. I also realize that the idea of knowing exactly what I'm going to do next is rather idealistic. The best thing at this point is for me to try to keep an open mind and explore my options. With that said, I'm very excited to spend a week training as a jockey! I can't think of anything that sounds more fun! I'm hoping I'll have some sort of enlightenment about the future, but we'll see. I also need to relax, take a breath and keep going...
I'm not sure if I'll have internet there or not. After all, this is Africa so you just never know. I would love to be able to blog through my experience, but if there is no internet access then I'll just have to blog about it when I get back to Summerhill next weekend.
Well I'm off to my next big adventure!
Cheers guys!
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Thursday, March 20, 2014
A Day at the Races!
Last Sunday I spent the day at one of the most exciting places I know- the racetrack! I was invited to join the de Klerk family of Yellow Star Stud here in Mooi River to travel to Durban to watch a few of their runners. We traveled to Clairwood Racecourse in Durban which is about a two hour drive from Mooi River. I made the drive with Ashley de Klerk, whom I met at the Summerhill RTR Sale last month, and her brother Pat.
I've been to the races before when I was younger with my Dad. He would take me to Kentucky every year on my spring break to tour the big stud farms and go to the races. Those memories are some of my most cherished childhood memories. I believe my love of horses and horse racing came largely from spending time around my Dad on those trips. My Dad also has a passion for horse racing and I'm so glad I am able to share that with him.
My experience at Clairwood here in South Africa was nothing like my experiences at the racetracks in Kentucky. The de Klerk family are not only breeders, but they also race some of their own horses. Most of the horses they race are horses that they weren't able to sell at the sales. On Sunday, Yellow Star had 7 horses running all through out the 10 races of the day. They ended up with three 5th place finishes and one 4th. Being with racehorse owners meant I was able to go into the parade ring before races, meet the jockeys, listen to the trainer instruct the jockeys on how to ride, sit in the Member's Dinning Room and get insider information on who to bet on! At the end of the day, I lost about 3USD, but I had a blast and got to see the inside of racing in South Africa!
My experience at Clairwood here in South Africa was nothing like my experiences at the racetracks in Kentucky. The de Klerk family are not only breeders, but they also race some of their own horses. Most of the horses they race are horses that they weren't able to sell at the sales. On Sunday, Yellow Star had 7 horses running all through out the 10 races of the day. They ended up with three 5th place finishes and one 4th. Being with racehorse owners meant I was able to go into the parade ring before races, meet the jockeys, listen to the trainer instruct the jockeys on how to ride, sit in the Member's Dinning Room and get insider information on who to bet on! At the end of the day, I lost about 3USD, but I had a blast and got to see the inside of racing in South Africa!
Clairwood Racecourse
Inside the parade ring
Yellow Star Stud's jockey
Rider's up!
Heading to the track
I totally fit in, right?
Behind the scenes... the stables
Saddling up for the next race
View of the track from the dinning room
The winner's circle
A very friendly racehorse in training
Ashley de Klerk with our friend
A duck (or goose?) patrolling the training yard
He caught it. It was not happy
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Big Adventure Weekend
This past weekend was full of African adventure. Ilze's husband Quinton was in town from Tanzania where he works as a helicopter pilot on an animal wildlife preserve. Ilze (yearling manager here at Summerhill) and Quinton are the type of South Africans that don't sit still for long. A fun weekend for them has to involve some sort of outdoor activity that gets your blood pumping, so their weekend activity choice was whitewater rafting down the Umkomaas river located in the Hella Hella Gorge in Richmond, South Africa.
Of course, being the wonderfully friendly and kind people that they are, Quinton and Ilze asked Leigh (Summerhill photographer) and I along for the trip. I suppose I never really thought much about whitewater rafting and heartily agreed without even giving it a second thought. I'm always up for a new adventure! Neither Leigh nor myself had ever before been whitewater rafting. And to me, it doesn't really sound all the scary. "Whitewater" and "rafting" aren't really very intimidating words. Leigh and I looked up videos on the rafting companies website and got more and more excited about our trip.
We decided the make it a weekend trip and head down to the capital of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, to hit up the mall and do some shopping! I'm always down for some good old fashioned retail therapy! Leigh and I traveled the hour journey from Mooi River to Pietermaritzburg in the back of Ilze and Quinton's "bakkie" (truck) that has a cap on it. I know at home that's pretty illegal, but after putting down a few mattresses we actually have a very comfortable and enjoyable ride. Let me tell you, there's nothing quite like sitting in the bed of a truck, twisting and winding up and down the mountainous roads, listening to Noah and the Whale, while viewing the spectacular countryside of South Africa. It was amazing! It was a blazing hot day, but with the windows down we were perfectly ventilated. It was an experience I won't soon forget. If you ever get the chance to view the countryside of Africa from the back of a truck while listening to your favorite band, take it!
So, along the way we stopped at this quaint little roadside outdoor shopping complex. We had lunch a Piggly Wiggly, which to me is a grocery store chain in Louisiana, but here in South Africa is a delicious restraint and bakery. I had an open sandwich with marinated chicken and avocado on homemade brown bread (now I bet you're getting hungry). Does that not sound delicious? Well I'm here to tell you, it was!!! I was standing in line waiting to pay and I looked over at Leigh and expressed how I wish I would have taken a picture of that sandwich so I could post it to the blog, but then I looked down at my stomach and realized it was much too late for that. Oh well, maybe next time.
So we spent about an hour or so browsing the various shops after lunch. I mostly enjoyed the sunshine. Sunny weather is good for the soul. We then continued on our way, stopping once more to visit the Nelson Mandela Capture Site, where Mandela was captured in 1962 during apartheid and subsequently spent 27 years in prison. From the road, where Mandela was actually captured as he was posing as a chauffeur in order to evade capture, the sculpture looks like a series of metal polls, but as visitors approach the sculpture from the other side and get close an image of Mandela's face appears.
We then hit the road once more and finally arrived in Pietermaritzburg where we stayed with Quinton's sister. The mall was not huge, but a good size and there was not a single store I recognized. All the stores were places I'd never seen or heard of. That was quite fun exploring new stores. I bought a few souvenirs for friends and family. It was a wonderfully relaxing and fun day spent with good friends!
Good thing we got a chance to relax on Saturday because Sunday started out with nothing but big adventure! If you've never been whitewater rafting before, I'll tell you a little bit about the gamete of emotions that flow through you as you sit and listen to the "safety" briefing. You start with giddy excitement! Its like a fair ride that you've been waiting in line for and its finally your turn, but then the guide starts talking about what you should do when (not if) you fall out of the raft. They discuss getting your foot stuck in a rock or being smashed up against a rock or fallen tree. Did you know there is 2 tons of water pressure flowing down the Ukmomaas River? Well now you do, and the guides made it very clear to us that it is impossible for any human to swim against that. We were told if we get sucked into a "washing machine" where the water is turning in multiple directions and can be difficult to get out of, we are to relax (haha) and let the water spit us out on its own. There were many other scary things discussed during this talk but I can only remember fighting the feeling of "why on earth did I sign up for this?!!!" Leigh and I both exchanged nervous glances throughout the entire briefing and I know we were both thinking of throwing in our life jackets and helmets and watching from the river bank, but in the end we were so happy we did it!
The rapids were level 2 and 3. The highest a rapid can be is level 6, so the waves we were riding weren't child's play. In our six man raft, before heading into the first rapid, the guide yelled from the back of the boat, "I know you're going to be scared, but JUST KEEP PADDLING!!" That's exactly what we all did and we made it safely through each of the 4 intense rapids. It was really quite exhilarating and fun! If you ever get a chance to go whitewater rafting I would say don't bail after the relatively terrifying safety briefing. It's worth it!
After our big adventure, Leigh and I set up camp in the back of the bakkie for the drive home. We made beds and slept the whole way home because we were so exhausted. Needless to say, this weekend was tremendously fun and exhausting!
Here are some pictures taken from the rafting company, Trailblazer Adventures' Facebook page.
The walk down to see the sculpture called "The long walk to freedom"
The museum
Ilze, Leigh and I in front of the sculpture.
We then hit the road once more and finally arrived in Pietermaritzburg where we stayed with Quinton's sister. The mall was not huge, but a good size and there was not a single store I recognized. All the stores were places I'd never seen or heard of. That was quite fun exploring new stores. I bought a few souvenirs for friends and family. It was a wonderfully relaxing and fun day spent with good friends!
Good thing we got a chance to relax on Saturday because Sunday started out with nothing but big adventure! If you've never been whitewater rafting before, I'll tell you a little bit about the gamete of emotions that flow through you as you sit and listen to the "safety" briefing. You start with giddy excitement! Its like a fair ride that you've been waiting in line for and its finally your turn, but then the guide starts talking about what you should do when (not if) you fall out of the raft. They discuss getting your foot stuck in a rock or being smashed up against a rock or fallen tree. Did you know there is 2 tons of water pressure flowing down the Ukmomaas River? Well now you do, and the guides made it very clear to us that it is impossible for any human to swim against that. We were told if we get sucked into a "washing machine" where the water is turning in multiple directions and can be difficult to get out of, we are to relax (haha) and let the water spit us out on its own. There were many other scary things discussed during this talk but I can only remember fighting the feeling of "why on earth did I sign up for this?!!!" Leigh and I both exchanged nervous glances throughout the entire briefing and I know we were both thinking of throwing in our life jackets and helmets and watching from the river bank, but in the end we were so happy we did it!
The rapids were level 2 and 3. The highest a rapid can be is level 6, so the waves we were riding weren't child's play. In our six man raft, before heading into the first rapid, the guide yelled from the back of the boat, "I know you're going to be scared, but JUST KEEP PADDLING!!" That's exactly what we all did and we made it safely through each of the 4 intense rapids. It was really quite exhilarating and fun! If you ever get a chance to go whitewater rafting I would say don't bail after the relatively terrifying safety briefing. It's worth it!
After our big adventure, Leigh and I set up camp in the back of the bakkie for the drive home. We made beds and slept the whole way home because we were so exhausted. Needless to say, this weekend was tremendously fun and exhausting!
Here are some pictures taken from the rafting company, Trailblazer Adventures' Facebook page.
The Umkomaas River running through the spectacular Hella Hella Gorge. The rafting trip began at the bridge
Amazing views
Our group
Loading up the boats
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
So, what's next? Facing the reality of REAL LIFE after graduation
So let me take a few deep breaths before I begin writing this post....
There. Much better. Now I can begin discussing the big What's Next question that everyone in my shoes faces.
The countdown has commenced and there's no turning back now. Graduation, which once was a shining beacon of light far in the distance, has now become a pit of darkness in the foreseeable future (I stole that from Huff Post. I tough it was rather clever). Tick tock tick tock. Two months until crunch time.
Of course, now that my collegiate career is coming to a close I can't help but become a bit nostalgic. College has been an incredible journey full of life changing experiences. I've grown up so much along the way. I've become independent (i.e. I do my own laundry, grocery shopping, make my bed (well, sometimes), cook my own meals and have held a job the majority of my years in college). It has felt good to get out there and experience life on my own.
I will never forget the day when my Dad had to drop me off at college for the first time (see, I told you I'm getting very nostalgic). I had a "mandatory" meeting (I now know that nothing in college is mandatory) about dorm rules and I didn't want to have to say goodbye to my Dad yet, so he sat out in the car for over an hour waiting for me. Once the meeting was over, I headed straight out to the car and sat there with him talking for almost two hours. It started to get late and I knew my Dad would have to get going to make the three hour trip home. I felt as though I was being left at summer camp, which happens to be some weird phobia I have (I just hate the idea of summer camp. Like I don't know why... I just... ugh! No thank you). Anyway, I got out of the car and seriously wondered whether or not I would be able to handle being away from home or not. If you don't know me, then I'll have to tell you I'm a bit of a homebody. Okay, I'm a HUGE homebody. I had serious doubts whether or not I would actually be able to make it at college and be away from home (the most safe and comfortable place on earth). So anyway, I got out of the car and had a good old fashioned cry. I knew I would see my parents again like a week later, but for some reason I felt like I would never see them again. I know it was difficult for my Dad too. He didn't want to leave either.
Needless to say, I've come a long way since that day. I've made it all four years and had some exceptional experiences along the way. By the time I graduate in May, I'll have studied on 3 different continents and traveled to 8 different countries, riding horses all along the way. I've had the honor of serving as the team captain of my collegiate equestrian team and I've enjoyed making friends that I know will be friends for life. Of course, there's been ups and downs along the way. Let's face it, heartbreak sucks but you get back up and keep moving forward.
I've spent the last week and a half coming to the realization that I will soon be facing real life after college. Woah. I mean really, where did the last four years go? I would like to view my impending graduation and departure from Butler not as an ending, but as the setting foundation for the future. In a sense it is the ending of a major chapter in my life, but the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the book. With that said, I have been feeling the pressure to begin planning, or should I say "drafting" and "editing" this new chapter.
My personality is one that likes to have a plan. I don't like to go into things without having all the details and know exactly what to expect. Unfortunately, life doesn't always work like that. You can't always have a plan for everything. I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself to get everything figured out and have a plan for, well, basically everything. I've also always felt like I know exactly what I'm going to do with my life. However, with my experience here at Summerhill I've become a bit overwhelmed with the possibilities and I'm not quite sure where I fit in yet. I suppose I shouldn't be complaining. It's probably way better to be feeling overwhelmed with the vast number of possible career paths that you can pursue, rather than having not the slightest clue what on earth you want to do.
One thing that I do know for sure is that I am going to graduate and follow the plan God has for my life. While I may not have the slightest clue yet as to what that plan includes for real life after graduation, I will continue on taking it day by day and search for my next adventure.
I will say there appears to be a tentative plan in the works. I've even gotten three rather promising job offers, as I have started the wonderfully fun process of applying for work. All three of the said positions are outside of the U.S. Hmmm.... All I'll say about that for now is we'll see, we'll see.
I do, however, have a general direction that I know I'm heading. This is what I have figured out so far: I want to work with Thoroughbred racehorses (this is the most concrete concept). I want to travel the world (while simultaneously working with racehorses. This is also rather concrete). I love to ride. I perhaps have a talent for writing, albeit it's a bit underdeveloped. So I guess I'm looking at a career as a world-traveling jockey/part-time freelance journalist/ magazine columnist/PR-Communications manager that will eventually retire to work at a stud farm doing... something... somewhere in the world. Well, thats what I've got so far.
I've found that in the past, things tend to sort themselves out with time. I'm confident that this trend will continue (fingers crossed). In the few short months I have left until crunch time, I will continue to make the most of my time here at Summerhill and continue to discover new possibilities. I'll take it a day at a time and not allow myself to become overwhelmed by the pressure of needing to have an answer to the looming question, What's Next?
I'm not exactly sure what the future holds for me, but I'm starting to see the vague skeleton of plan forming. Its a journey and I fully intend to enjoy every moment of it. The ups, the downs and the in-betweens.
Stay tuned...
There. Much better. Now I can begin discussing the big What's Next question that everyone in my shoes faces.
The countdown has commenced and there's no turning back now. Graduation, which once was a shining beacon of light far in the distance, has now become a pit of darkness in the foreseeable future (I stole that from Huff Post. I tough it was rather clever). Tick tock tick tock. Two months until crunch time.
Of course, now that my collegiate career is coming to a close I can't help but become a bit nostalgic. College has been an incredible journey full of life changing experiences. I've grown up so much along the way. I've become independent (i.e. I do my own laundry, grocery shopping, make my bed (well, sometimes), cook my own meals and have held a job the majority of my years in college). It has felt good to get out there and experience life on my own.
I will never forget the day when my Dad had to drop me off at college for the first time (see, I told you I'm getting very nostalgic). I had a "mandatory" meeting (I now know that nothing in college is mandatory) about dorm rules and I didn't want to have to say goodbye to my Dad yet, so he sat out in the car for over an hour waiting for me. Once the meeting was over, I headed straight out to the car and sat there with him talking for almost two hours. It started to get late and I knew my Dad would have to get going to make the three hour trip home. I felt as though I was being left at summer camp, which happens to be some weird phobia I have (I just hate the idea of summer camp. Like I don't know why... I just... ugh! No thank you). Anyway, I got out of the car and seriously wondered whether or not I would be able to handle being away from home or not. If you don't know me, then I'll have to tell you I'm a bit of a homebody. Okay, I'm a HUGE homebody. I had serious doubts whether or not I would actually be able to make it at college and be away from home (the most safe and comfortable place on earth). So anyway, I got out of the car and had a good old fashioned cry. I knew I would see my parents again like a week later, but for some reason I felt like I would never see them again. I know it was difficult for my Dad too. He didn't want to leave either.
Needless to say, I've come a long way since that day. I've made it all four years and had some exceptional experiences along the way. By the time I graduate in May, I'll have studied on 3 different continents and traveled to 8 different countries, riding horses all along the way. I've had the honor of serving as the team captain of my collegiate equestrian team and I've enjoyed making friends that I know will be friends for life. Of course, there's been ups and downs along the way. Let's face it, heartbreak sucks but you get back up and keep moving forward.
I've spent the last week and a half coming to the realization that I will soon be facing real life after college. Woah. I mean really, where did the last four years go? I would like to view my impending graduation and departure from Butler not as an ending, but as the setting foundation for the future. In a sense it is the ending of a major chapter in my life, but the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the book. With that said, I have been feeling the pressure to begin planning, or should I say "drafting" and "editing" this new chapter.
My personality is one that likes to have a plan. I don't like to go into things without having all the details and know exactly what to expect. Unfortunately, life doesn't always work like that. You can't always have a plan for everything. I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself to get everything figured out and have a plan for, well, basically everything. I've also always felt like I know exactly what I'm going to do with my life. However, with my experience here at Summerhill I've become a bit overwhelmed with the possibilities and I'm not quite sure where I fit in yet. I suppose I shouldn't be complaining. It's probably way better to be feeling overwhelmed with the vast number of possible career paths that you can pursue, rather than having not the slightest clue what on earth you want to do.
One thing that I do know for sure is that I am going to graduate and follow the plan God has for my life. While I may not have the slightest clue yet as to what that plan includes for real life after graduation, I will continue on taking it day by day and search for my next adventure.
I will say there appears to be a tentative plan in the works. I've even gotten three rather promising job offers, as I have started the wonderfully fun process of applying for work. All three of the said positions are outside of the U.S. Hmmm.... All I'll say about that for now is we'll see, we'll see.
I do, however, have a general direction that I know I'm heading. This is what I have figured out so far: I want to work with Thoroughbred racehorses (this is the most concrete concept). I want to travel the world (while simultaneously working with racehorses. This is also rather concrete). I love to ride. I perhaps have a talent for writing, albeit it's a bit underdeveloped. So I guess I'm looking at a career as a world-traveling jockey/part-time freelance journalist/ magazine columnist/PR-Communications manager that will eventually retire to work at a stud farm doing... something... somewhere in the world. Well, thats what I've got so far.
I've found that in the past, things tend to sort themselves out with time. I'm confident that this trend will continue (fingers crossed). In the few short months I have left until crunch time, I will continue to make the most of my time here at Summerhill and continue to discover new possibilities. I'll take it a day at a time and not allow myself to become overwhelmed by the pressure of needing to have an answer to the looming question, What's Next?
I'm not exactly sure what the future holds for me, but I'm starting to see the vague skeleton of plan forming. Its a journey and I fully intend to enjoy every moment of it. The ups, the downs and the in-betweens.
Stay tuned...
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