http://halt-near-x.com Halt Near X's blog, plus horse-related poems and images (more poems than images). en rider@halt-near-x.com Copyright 2008 2008-11-26T03:52:59-06:002008-11-17T07:40:32-06:002008-11-10T00:29:24-06:002008-11-07T04:37:14-06:002008-11-05T06:40:45-06:002008-11-03T03:59:29-06:002008-11-02T23:00:25-06:002008-10-30T04:43:55-06:002008-10-27T06:01:06-06:002008-10-27T00:29:29-06:002008-10-26T07:19:28-06:002008-10-22T04:26:01-06:002008-10-19T23:37:06-06:002008-10-17T04:34:27-06:002008-10-14T00:49:15-06:002008-10-13T01:47:55-06:002008-10-09T00:53:16-06:002008-10-05T01:20:49-06:002008-10-01T22:54:29-06:002008-09-24T03:28:32-06:002008-09-22T04:15:17-06:002008-09-19T16:52:26-06:002008-09-07T04:04:35-06:002008-09-04T01:26:33-06:002008-08-31T02:06:57-06:002008-08-27T03:02:19-06:002008-08-24T04:41:39-06:002008-08-22T21:01:03-06:002008-08-17T00:01:54-06:002008-08-13T22:42:28-06:002008-08-13T00:11:42-06:002008-08-12T15:50:47-06:002008-08-11T03:32:18-06:002008-08-09T17:01:38-06:002008-08-09T01:58:01-06:002008-08-08T04:01:08-06:002008-08-06T01:31:25-06:002008-08-05T21:30:53-06:002008-08-05T02:29:09-06:002008-08-02T22:15:46-06:002008-07-17T04:33:49-06:002008-07-17T01:55:57-06:002008-07-16T06:09:19-06:002008-07-13T18:08:00-06:002008-07-10T04:19:00-06:002008-07-10T03:51:00-06:002008-07-10T03:45:00-06:002008-07-10T03:42:00-06:002008-07-10T03:35:00-06:002008-07-10T00:37:00-06:002008-07-01T04:42:02-06:002008-06-29T02:33:00-06:002008-06-22T04:00:00-06:002008-06-20T04:05:01-06:002008-06-19T05:56:00-06:002008-06-18T00:35:00-06:002008-06-18T00:34:00-06:002008-06-18T00:33:00-06:002008-06-18T00:30:00-06:002008-06-18T00:30:00-06:002008-06-18T00:28:00-06:002008-06-18T00:27:00-06:002008-06-18T00:26:00-06:002008-06-18T00:26:00-06:002008-06-18T00:25:00-06:002008-06-18T00:24:00-06:002008-06-17T05:13:00-06:002008-06-17T05:13:00-06:002008-06-17T05:12:00-06:002008-06-17T05:11:00-06:002008-06-17T05:10:00-06:002008-06-17T05:09:00-06:002008-06-17T05:08:00-06:002008-06-17T05:06:00-06:002008-06-17T05:05:00-06:002008-06-17T05:04:00-06:002008-06-17T05:02:00-06:002008-06-17T05:01:00-06:002008-06-17T05:00:00-06:002008-06-17T04:58:00-06:002008-06-17T04:56:00-06:002008-06-17T04:55:00-06:002008-06-17T04:53:00-06:002008-06-17T01:59:00-06:002008-06-17T01:58:00-06:002008-06-17T01:51:00-06:002008-06-16T02:53:00-06:002008-06-16T02:51:00-06:002008-06-16T02:48:01-06:002008-06-16T02:42:00-06:002008-06-16T02:10:00-06:002008-06-16T01:49:00-06:002008-06-16T01:34:00-06:002008-06-16T01:25:00-06:002008-06-16T00:54:00-06:002008-06-16T00:35:00-06:002008-06-16T00:23:00-06:002008-06-16T00:12:00-06:002008-06-15T23:43:00-06:002008-06-15T23:20:00-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/there-must-be-a-lesson-in-there-somewhere/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/there-must-be-a-lesson-in-there-somewhere/#When:03:52:59Z I think I traumatized some small children this weekend. You need a little backstory here. A week or so ago I went to pick up something, completely misjudged what I was doing, and jammed my middle finger into the wall. Since then, I’ve been splinting it and keeping it wrapped because otherwise I try to type with it, and typing hurts. I was using bright blue vet wrap. I love vet wrap. However, it is… 2008-11-26T03:52:59-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/i-crack-myself-up/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/i-crack-myself-up/#When:07:40:32Z I haven’t been posting because I’ve been dying of some strange virus. I’m probably better now, which is a relief, because dying isn’t any fun. On the other hand, strange ideas occur when you’re feverish. Check out the 404 page to a new project I’m working on: Page Not Found “I wish it need not have happened in my time,“ said Frodo.“So do I,“ said Gandalf, ‘and so do all who live to… 2008-11-17T07:40:32-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/jousting-and-other-ren-fair-type-things/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/jousting-and-other-ren-fair-type-things/#When:00:29:24Z I spent part of the day, at least, as the Texas Renaissance Fair or Festival or whatever they’re calling it. It was amusing. Apparently it was a Greek or Roman themed weekend, although the number of people in togas were sadly outnumbered by the number of people in Star Wars costumes I saw. I am a little confused by the presence of Star Wars costumes at a Ren Fair, but hey, if someone wants to… 2008-11-10T00:29:24-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/why-is-it/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/why-is-it/#When:04:37:14Z That I can never just vacuum? I started out vacuuming, but as I passed the bookshelves I noticed they were a little, um, neglected. They got dusted—and not just dusted. Books were moved. They were dusted. Then I went back to vacuuming, and got as far as the sideboard. That poor thing had turned into a giant junk drawer. It still is a giant junk drawer, but it’s now the most organized junk drawer in… 2008-11-07T04:37:14-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/obama-needs-to-give-his-speechwriter-a-raise-and-other-election-thoughts/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/obama-needs-to-give-his-speechwriter-a-raise-and-other-election-thoughts/#When:06:40:45Z I have held my tongue about politics all year, so now that results are coming in, I’m going to spout off. So we all know where I stand, let me put it out there for the record: I’m an Indepublicrat. I’m liberal on some major issues, conservative on others, conflicted on others, and sometimes change my mind. I’m no party robot. Both major presidential candidates have views I support. Both scared me just a little… 2008-11-05T06:40:45-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/copyright-part-i-you-need-to-register-your-copyright/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/copyright-part-i-you-need-to-register-your-copyright/#When:03:59:29Z Ever since I discovered my copyright had been infringed, I have been carefully researching and documenting everything I can to better understand copyright law and my rights under it. When I spoke with a lawyer last week, one of the things he suggested was sharing what I have learned with other people. I think this is an excellent idea. I am still pursuing certain actions as a result of the infringement of my text, but… 2008-11-03T03:59:29-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/as-observant-as-a-turnip/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/as-observant-as-a-turnip/#When:23:00:25Z When it comes to non-critical things, I am not the most observant person in the world. When I was in high school, someone asked me if my brother had gotten his braces off. I said I didn’t think he ever had braces. My best friend slapped me upside the head and told me he had, and they’d come off a week before. I’m sure I knew all of this on some level, but it wasn’t… 2008-11-02T23:00:25-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/is-that-a-zebra-in-the-road/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/is-that-a-zebra-in-the-road/#When:04:43:55Z The other night as I was cooling out the horse, I stopped to talk to another rider who said she couldn’t believe I was wearing a t-shirt. I kind of laughed; I had just been thinking how perfect the weather was: cool enough that I didn’t have to worry about overheating, not so cold that I had to worry about frostbite. Somewhere in the 50-60 degree range. It’s what I consider ideal riding weather, and… 2008-10-30T04:43:55-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/a-company-that-got-it-right/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/a-company-that-got-it-right/#When:06:01:06Z I thought, since right now I feel like I am surrounded by individuals and companies who can’t do the right thing, that I’d take a moment to point out one that did. You know all the times I griped about companies that want me to promote their products out of the goodness of my heart? The whole “Post my Post” fiasco? And how I kept saying that if they wanted to do it the right… 2008-10-27T06:01:06-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/insights-on-the-lease-horse/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/insights-on-the-lease-horse/#When:00:29:29Z I have discovered something interesting about the horse I’m half leasing: he’s tone deaf. Which is to say, if I start singing when I’m tacking him up or while I"m cooling him out, he doesn’t seem to mind one bit. He is one of three creatures in the world who will tolerate my singing. Obviously, I tolerate my own singing. But I am tone deaf, so what do I care if I’m out of tune?… 2008-10-27T00:29:29-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/its-2-am-do-you-know-where-morpheus-is/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/its-2-am-do-you-know-where-morpheus-is/#When:07:19:28Z After an unbelievably stressful week, I had a great ride Friday night and went to bed feeling, for the first time all week, nearly human. I was planning to go watch a schooling show on Saturday, and was finally able to really put the source of my stress out of mind. Unfortunately, after a period of significant stress, the same pain issue that made life unbearable for me in the far north kicks in.… 2008-10-26T07:19:28-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/i-am-a-great-big-blueberry/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/i-am-a-great-big-blueberry/#When:04:26:01Z When I bought my breeches, I really only had two things in mind: they weren’t white, and they weren’t hunter puke-green. No, they were a nice pretty navy color: conservative, but, again, neither white nor that funky khaki color. It worked for me. You can tell I’ve lived in the north for way too long, because I obviously didn’t factor in sun fade. My breeches are now, for lack of a better word, blueberry. Yuck.… 2008-10-22T04:26:01-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/a-plagiarist-among-us/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/a-plagiarist-among-us/#When:23:37:06Z This post has been modified because the blog that stole my content has deleted the infringing post, per WordPress, and gone private. I stand by what I said: there is nothing flattering about someone stealing your work, and no one should be “honored” that someone “liked” their text enough to steal it. You wouldn’t feel honored to have someone break into your house and steal your jewelry, would you? If someone stole one of your… 2008-10-19T23:37:06-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/am-i-the-crazy-stalker-person/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/am-i-the-crazy-stalker-person/#When:04:34:27Z You know those crazy stalker people who seem to have some sort of magic tracking device installed on their computer so that they can instantly show up when their pet topic is mentioned anywhere on the web, post one of their five or six standard rants, and then hang around endlessly droning on about their viewpoint? I recently received an email that indirectly involved Crossed Sabers/Second Wind Adoption Program, and as I was writing my… 2008-10-17T04:34:27-06:00 http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/speaking-of-virtual-things/ http://halt-near-x.com/blog/archive/speaking-of-virtual-things/#When:00:49:15Z This is horse related, I swear. Stick around for the ride. I’m pretty sure I’ll get to the horses bit. So, psychology fascinates me. People, they are crazy. All of ‘em. Me, too. And the internet brings out the crazy in everyone, especially when they think they are anonymous. I don’t post much on forums, but I do read them; they are more entertaining than many novels. There was a time I thought about majoring… 2008-10-14T00:49:15-06:00