– Posted using MobyPicture.com
I have NEVER been on a horse, so when I got up there, I was kinda nervous. I was excited, of course, to see Mr. Cloppity-Clop… very high level scientific terms we’re dealing with here. I should say Ms. Cloppity-Clop. When we started moving, it was startling. I could feel this girl sneeze, whinney, and move. I have to say though, Ms. Genie was the sweetest girl.
Ryan’s horse, on the other hand, was a little impatient and passed mine, eventually. However, Genie was so chill. She tempted to stray a bit and eat some grass at one point, but eventually refrained. Perhaps that was a perfect match.
We went with Ryan’s sister Tracy, who was on a horse since 2 and used to ride competitively.
When we first started trotting, I freaked the fuck out and held onto the reign and pulled it taut. It wasn’t to slow down the horse, as much as to just kind of hold on for dear life. Later, I had fun with it, although I neglected to hold my hips up. My bum hurts.
I don’t know why, but I’m really wondering how emotionally complex horses really are. I sort of doubt that they have the psychological nuance necessary to be “happy.” Like, really, other than being chill and not showing any signs of aggression, the horse is just kind of … a horse? Then again, at the end of the ride, I witnessed Tracy’s horse being all kinds of affectionate with her and head butting her. On the other hand, it might have just had an itch and was using her as the means to its ends. You know, that horse probably never contemplated the Kantian categorical imperative.
I’d imagine a horse can be happy, like most animals. We could perhaps quantify it by amount of certain chemical produced when doing a happy activity. Perhaps you mean happy by being with a human, or by being playful about something. What do horse play, and can horse enjoy human company. I guess you could test whether they like someone because they bring food, or because they are generally affectionate. Perhaps the conclusion may be that horses like whoever brings food (cake for umi), and who doesn’t cause them harm, or perhaps they like hair combing too!
Most people live without reading Kant, and Kant in the end probably just points to a slightly sophisticated version of instinct that propells one to do justice within the evolutionary environment of the world, while sometimes creating icons to fill conceptual voids to smoothen social interaction.
When I rode a horse, the height was impressive. And I am far from being able to ride them fast. In some era and region, I’d have to learn though, and I guess I’d love it if I was any good at it. Mongolia here I come, lol.
Looking at the photos, I wonder how effective are those helmets. They definitely look solid enough on top, but I may want to wear something more englobing… Maybe like a motorbike helmet, lol. And something around the waist, to not end up like ex-Superman…