HoofPrints Newsletter
January 15, 2012 Issue
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NEW STUFF - A lesson in keeping an open mind...
| I personally read every book that we have for sale.
|  If there's something about it I don't like, or if it doesn't hold my interest, then it doesn't make it in. Like everyone else, I have fairly strong personal opinions about how I think animals should be interacted with. So, naturally, I would likely not be selling ANY book that endorses activities that go against what I feel is appropriate. Until now. Ironically, I ended up with two titles at the same time that each had potential "deal-breaker" content.
The first is I'm Listening With a Broken Ear by Vicky Kaseorg. This book has all the makings of a modern classic. It's so good I think it'd make a great movie. It's 426 pages, and once I started I couldn't put it down (except for essential distractions like work and animal care) until I was finished. It's that good. In a nutshell, the author finds a pathetic, nearly dead dog abandoned in a parking lot. She brings her home and nurses her back to health. Somewhere along the way the family realizes they are in way over their heads as the dog has behavior issues that they can't manage. Dangerous behavior issues. It's hard enough to find homes for dogs who behave perfectly, so rehoming this one was NOT an option. Vicky spends a lot of time online trying to solve the problem, and ends up getting hooked up with a rescuer named Malta. Malta supplies Vicky with a horse whip. And teaches her how to do the "alpha roll" when the dog gets out of line. Now, before you run screaming, thinking you totally don't want to waste your time reading a work written by someone who keeps a whip in hand and rolls her poor dog - give this one a chance. You WON'T be disappointed. I guarantee it. It's thoughtful, spiritual, laugh out loud humorous - and the ending is so very good you will probably cry. Or cheer. Or both. There's a more detailed description and a couple excerpts to read here.
 Next is The Smart Woman's Guide to Midlife Horses by Melinda Folse. I got a copy of this in to review this fall, but was much too busy to give it a thorough look. It sat on my vintage glider for quite a while. I'd picked it up a couple times, and skimmed over it, I kept seeing Clinton Anderson's name, so had pretty much decided this was NOT a keeper as I don't care for this trainer. Now, in all fairness to Clinton, I have not personally attended any of his presentations. My opinion was formed by watching him work with horses on TV. I hate how his horses skulk around with their heads so low. Looking dejected, not softly flexed or collected. Even the horse in his logo looks that way. I hate how the beginning of his show has footage of him spinning and spinning and spinning that poor horse. Enough already. He waves his "handy stick" entirely too much, and doesn't appear to have any consideration for how the horse is feeling about all this. I assumed that this author, since she made so many mentions of this particular trainer and his teachings, would likely not have anything to say that I'd find merit in. But as I read, I discovered that I was wrong. She "canceled out" the negative of mentioning Clinton, by quoting some of my very favorite authors - Linda Kohanov being at the top of the list. It turns out, this book is a wonderful compilation of information that will interest the beginner horse owner, as will as those who've had horses all their life. It's arranged in concisive chapters - you can skip around and not feel like you've missed something. And it tackles unlikely subjects like Finding Your Soul Values, Plateaus, Ruts and Fear, Women of a Certain Age, and more. And is not all technical "business" - there is much information about the aspect of horses as healers, building better human relationships through horses, and other life skills issues that busy women often put by the wayside. An excellent, inspirational reference. You can order a copy here. |
Still cleaning (ware) house
| All the stuff that I was too busy to notice this fall is getting on my nerves...
|  ...and it's gotta go. Our big warehouse that we've lovingly furnished with used grocery store shelves seems to become a repository for oddball items. Samples, returns, slightly damaged items, experimental items, vendor mistakes... they collect here and there until we are nearly out of room (again) Our second purchase of used shelves (Craigs List) enabled us to line one wall and stack stuff, quite literally, to the ceiling. My ingenious hubby fashioned a storage sling for those huge bags of packing peanuts - out of a VOLLEYBALL NET (how clever was that?) and it's suspended from the ceiling so they don't take up any floor space. Click here to see a picture of that nifty arrangement on our facebook page.
The point being, sometimes the space becomes more valuable than the items that are occupying it. So this is where most places say... "our loss is your gain!" Well, check out this super-cheap stuff and BUY IT. And your gain will be our gain, too. Because we need that space on the shelf.
Shown here is our 100% wool Horse Woman Flap Hat. It's been very popular, but we ended up with quite a few left after Christmas. Because I'd rather see these warming ears the rest of this season instead of languishing on our shelves until next fall, I've marked them down by $5.00 here.
The Half Price Page is here - check this often as they're one-of-a-kind things that will sell quickly and be replaced with whatever else starts to get on my nerves.
Our Closeouts Page features items that are being phased out - still lots of good deals to be had there, too. Click here.
*Note: We will keep the sales pages updated the best that we can. Orders will be processed in order of receipt, so if you see something you're interested in, don't wait to order. Many items we have just one of. |
| Oh What Fun it is to RIDE! (even if it is 5 degrees out) | |
This longsleeve cotton t-shirt makes a great first layer AND
|  it shares your passion for riding (fair weather or foul) with the world. We ended up with an overstock on these, too, so I've marked them down a bit.
The galloping horse logo is screenprinted in wintry white on a soft, long sleeve red t-shirt.
Sale price is of a limited time.
You can order here. |
ANOTHER Horses and Hope Calendar update - PLEASE READ!
| We ran out, and had to do a THIRD printing!
|  Last week I told you all about the amazing success we had with this calendar, how it sold out - twice - and that we were reprinting so we could continue to fill orders - sales would continue to benefit One Horse At A Time. I promised folks who'd been waiting patiently for their order that our friends at Hudson Printing would be delivering a shipment that week and the calendars would shipped back out to the eager recipients as soon as they hit our doors. Well, we did NOT get the shipment as expected. Bad weather came in, the printer had a lot of employees out - either because of the weather, or because of illness. They promised me I would see them Monday (1/16) - I was all geared up to get them out the door Monday, and realized that it is a holiday and the Post Office is closed. So, for sure they will go out Tuesday. Please don't email me scolding. Everyone is doing the best they can. The calendar pages are collated and bound BY HAND, so it's just not a matter of speeding up a machine to get more done faster. To keep things in perspective - you'll have almost 11 1/2 months to look at it. Plus, you get the extra pages in the back with more photos and tips on how you can help the rescue effort. You can see a sneak peek of those photos on our Facebook page here.
If you've not ordered your Horses and Hope calendar for 2012, you can do so here.
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Recap - From the last newsletter...
| Here's what we talked about last time
|  HoofPrints Pony Girl Jewelry is made here in our shop.
Glass Heart Keepsake Locket is here.
We talked about clutter, too. See pictures of our warehouse AND Barbie's trashed dream house (huh?) here.
HoofPrints Year in Review as one of our most popular newsletters yet. We didn't try to sell a single product - just recapped the joys, sorrows, mysteries and chuckles that 2011 brought us - one section for each month. If you missed it, you can read it online here.
ALL THE PAST NEWSLETTERS - see what you missed - for years! Click HERE to catch up (or reminisce). |
| More about HoofPrints - and miscellaneous ramblings from Gina | | Check out our NEW "GOOD STUFF" links at the bottom of this section! |  ABOUT THE COMPANY AND THIS NEWSLETTER
Farriers Greeting Cards was started by Gina Keesling in 1986 (in a very small way) to provide helpful promotional materials for farrier husband Rob. This newsletter is emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and more.
This week's quote is by Garrison Keillor
"Thank you, God, for this good life and forgive us if we do not love it enough."
Thanks everyone, for reading!
Gina Keesling, owner
Contact Information
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GOOD STUFF: The Ripple Effect
| Links to things we like, things that make us smile, things we want to share...
|  In a world of six billion people, it's easy to believe that the only way to initiate profound transformation is to take extreme action. Each of us, however, carries within us the capacity to change the world in small ways for better or worse. Everything we do and think affects the people in our lives, and their reactions in turn affect others. As the effect of a seemingly insignificant word passes from person to person, its impact grows and can become a source of great joy, inspiration, anxiety, or pain. Your thoughts and actions are like stones dropped into still waters, causing ripples to spread and expand as they move outward. The impact you have on the world is greater than you could ever imagine, and the choices you make can have far-reaching consequences. You can use the ripple effect to make a positive difference and spread waves of kindness that will wash over the world.
Should the opportunity arise, the recipient of a good deed will likely feel compelled to do a good deed for someone else. Someone feeling the effects of negative energy will be more likely to pass on that negative energy. One act of charity, one thoughtful deed, or even one positive thought can pass from individual to individual, snowballing until it becomes a group movement or the ray of hope that saves someone's life. Every transformation, just like every ripple, has a point of origin. You must believe in your ability to be that point of origin if you want to use the ripples you create to spread goodness. Consider the effect of your thoughts and actions, and try to act graciously as much as possible.
A smile directed at a stranger, a compliment given to a friend, an attitude of laughter, or a thoughtful gesture can send ripples that spread among your loved ones and associates, out into your community, and finally throughout the world. You have the power to touch the lives of everyone you come into contact with and everyone those people come into contact with. The momentum of your influence will grow as your ripples moves onward and outward. One of those ripples could become a tidal wave of love and kindness. - From DailyOM - you can read more, and subscribe here
Gina's note: Shown here is Sarah K. Andrew's picture of Walter. Walter is, quite literally, a homeless horse. He was found wandering loose on a road in New Jersey. Animal Control picked him up, and after he went unclaimed, Helping Hearts Equine Rescue stepped up and took him in. Now, Helping Hearts is not just a rescue. It's spearheaded by a busy professional horsewoman who owns a commercial boarding/lesson facility. She rides and trains her own horses for competition. She could easily let "other folks" take care of rescuing these unwanteds. But horses have given her her livelihood, and she knows it. So she gives back to those in need. As does photographer Sarah K. Andrew - who took time out of her busy schedule photographing high-profile race horses to visit Helping Hearts and take these lovely shots of Walter. She's posted more pictures, along with a synopsis of Walter's story on her blog here. Walter's looking for a new forever home, he's about 14.3, in his late teens, and is gaited. More at Helping Hearts website here.
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