Snowmageddon!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Snow-Zilla!!!

OK, so, scroll down for a second and look at the last picture I took of our fence line.  Then come back and take a look at this one. 

Are you kidding me?

We got an OBSCENE amount of snow.  Easily 24″ – 26″.  No clue but at this point, I don’t even care.  All I know is, this year, I have shoveled more snow than I ever have in my entire life.  Shoveling the driveway got to the point where I couldn’t even toss that high anymore. 

We shoveled last night and when we got up, it was like we’d never shoveled at all.  We clear an area out back so the dogs can go to the bathroom.  Pippen wasn’t quite sure how he was going to navigate is way back there.

Um, I don’t think I can get over that

So, we let the dogs out front, not like that was much better but they were at least able to get under some of the bushes.

Go potty!!

 

Remember when you were a kid and it snowed and you built a fort with your buddies?  Yeah, well, we basically did that for the dogs to pee and poo in it.

Go potty!!

 

Our puppy pipeline

Yes, he’s pooping.  Sorry….

It was a great ab workout

 

I was tired and had to sit down.

It was actually quite comfortable

 

Bob is so not amused

 

The neighbor’s dog came to use the potty fort

Seriously – he loved the potty fort.  I think we have the only patch of exposed grass in the neighborhood.

Baby made me some yummy blueberry pancakes afterwards.

Thank you, baby!

Everyone helped clean up.  Especially Pippen.

Good boy!

Then, we all chilled in front of the fire.

Lucifer herself

 

We watched a little TV…

Pippen loves to curl up wit daddy

 

Then we all settled in for some Prison Break and a nap.  What a day.

Snowed In? Make Yourself a Valuable Resource Book.

Need a horse-related project to keep you busy while you’re indoors this weekend?  Make your very own reference book.  I’ve got one. 

Call me anal but I'm organized like that

I love all the information my favorite horse magazines such as Practical Horseman, The Chronicle of the Horse and Equus give me.  The problem is, as you are reading them, you might not need certain information now, but could use it somewhere down the road.  I don’t like to have to dig through stacks and stacks of magazines before I find the article I’m looking for.  If I find the article I’m looking for.  So, through the years, I’ve come up with a way to organize all of that information so now, it is at my fingertips whenever I need it.

My reference book is a 2 1/2″ tabbed binder with sections for all the stuff that’s important to me.  I started this thing years ago as something I could share with the kids (back when I was teaching).  That’s a picture of Leah and Shammy on the cover from when they were at WIHS Local Day back when it was at Paper Chase (now Fox Chase). 

To make my binder, I got some sheet protectors (by Avery) that come punched and ready to be put into a 3-ring binder.  The left side of the sheet protector pulls open so that content can be easily slid in and out of it.   

I add as many pockets as I need then separate them by section with nifty colored stick-on tabs.

I can't help myself

My tabs for my book are as follows: 

• Motivational
• Groomig
• Horse Care
• Barn Management
• Meds
• Nutrition / Supplements
• Tack / Equipment
• Flatwork
• Over Fences
• Horse Showing
• George Morris (yes, he gets his very own tab)

I don’t mind saying, I love my book and refer to it often. 

In the ‘Over Fences’ section, I have such jewels of wisdom from great riders and trainers like Kim Prince, Mark Watring, Geoff Teall, Amy Tryon, Nona Garson, Leslie Webb, Missy Clark, Emil Spadone and Patty Stovel to name a good handful.  Topics cover subjects such as how to walk a course, how to really show your horse off during your hunter circle, how to start a young horse over fences, how to ride an oxer, how to slow a rusher and who can’t use advice on how to find a distance!

Because I'm distance blind....

I can never get enough information about nutrition, supplements and other horse care.  The information is constantly changing.  While I don’t currently own a horse, I want the information on hand for when I do.

 

And, in case you weren’t aware, when you go to a horse show, you are supposed to show your horse.  Don’t just spend all hours of the night thinking about what shirt to wear with your jacket and what belt you’re going to pair with your breeches.  You should be up all hours of the night prepping your horse so that he can outshine all of his competition!

As George Morris says, “It’s a HORSE show!”

Don't you DARE show up in the ring half-cocked!

There are so many great professionals to learn from out there.  No one is more proven in his methods than George Morris, so, whenever he writes a piece or a story is written about him, I save that article.  I’ll even save quotes I read by him. One of the quotes I clipped by him reads, “You have to practice what is not comfortable.  If you’re not comfortable going fast, you practice fast.  If you’re not comfortable putting the horse deep, practice getting deep.  Practice your discomfort.”

I hang on every word

So, there you have it.  Break out your scissors (I actually use a razor blade) and start plowing through those stacks of old magazines!  There’ll be 2′ of snow waiting for you when you get done!

Enough Already!

And we’ve got more coming on Friday and Saturday!

Weekend Wrap-up

More snow!  We’d finally gotten rid of the last of the snow last week and I’ll be darned if we didn’t get more.  Nevertheless, I will not let a little snow keep me from the barn so off I went for my lesson. 

By the time I got on the road, not much snow had fallen but it did still slow things down a bit.

A snowy drive

It seemed that only me and a guy plowing the road were out and about!

First tracks

By the time I got on the final drive to the barn, I was definitely the only one who had passed through.

The barn

The barn is pretty but every barn looks even more beautiful with a blanket of snow on it.

C'mon in! It's toasty inside!

The temps can be in the single digits but with all the horses in and with the right attire, once you start grooming, it’s quite balmy.  I rode Russian, who I’d not ridden before.  He’s a good boy and is a different ride than the others that I normally ride (they’re all different!) so it was fun to adapt to his style.  I had a good time, as usual.

What we gonna do today?

Today, I went back out and had a practice ride on Luke.  Luke had his snugglies on to keep him nice and warm.

Let's go do some jumpin'!

Luke is all tacked up (well, except for his bridle) and ready to go!  We put quarter sheets on them to keep their backs nice and warm.  Since the horses are body clipped, they appreciate this. 

I had the whole barn to myself!  Luke and I worked on canter transitions, sharpening my eye by cantering out of a turn to a flower box, my release and having Luke trot a little gymnastic until he was very bored of it.  We worked on straightness going towards, over and after the gymnastic.  I tend to anticipate the turn which of course makes the horse do the same.  Which means we aren’t straight!

We had a good time and accomplished some good practice over some easy tasks.  It’s always a good day when you get to ride!

Weekend Wrap-up – Thanks be to the Glue Fairy

Had a lesson Saturday.  It was a pretty day, relatively speaking.  Maybe in the high 40’s?  Around this time of year, that’s like summer.  40’s with no breeze and lots of sun makes for a beautiful day.

I rode Luke again.  Luke is a nice enough horse that I can learn stuff on him but he’s green enough to where I have to ride smart.  As usual, I have my stupid moments up there but I try to focus on the positive.  One positive thing is, I have pretty much figured out how to get changes on Luke.  He had the lead change already but like most horses, you have to set them up correctly and ask correctly and you’ll get them.  During our warm up, while Jess was showing a horse to a prospective buyer, I had these fabulous changes.  Then, when Jess came in to give me my lesson, what did I do?  Screwed it up a few times. 

Then, we were schooling an outside line – a pole to three strides to a small oxer.  I kept letting Luke drift left in the air (we both were anticipating the turn) so Jess put a guide pole down on the landing side.  Of course she explained that Luke would ‘peek’ at it and most likely over-jump, “….so be prepared”.  Yeah, yeah – got that.  So, we come cantering along – I’m all ready – all parts in place, heels down, leg close and firm and SCREEEEECH-SWIVEL!  You know, for such big creatures, their cat-like athleticism never ceases to astound.  Luke had a spin on him like a bucking machine in a redneck bar with a guy with a bad sense of humor at the controls.  UnFREAKINGbelievable.  I damn near came off. 

Lemme tell ya, falling off after a certain age ain’t no joke.  I can tell you, after having fallen off a few times in my 40’s, I don’t dig it at all.  So, at this time, I’d like to give thanks to the Glue Fairy for waving her magic wand and giving me some ’stick’ in the tack to allow me to stay on.

Who me? I'm innocent.

Weekend Wrap-up

Great weekend.  The sun decided to come out and play, which was a nice change.  Can’t say that it made things especially warm, though.  At least not out in horse country.  The wind was still whipping off of those mountains and making things just a little too chilly for my taste. 

Bob and I were slackers on Saturday, which was nice.  It was pretty overcast.  We ran some errands after doing our usual breakfast then went home and did a Prison Break marathon with a nap session sandwiched somewhere in there. 

I rode on Sunday – had a lesson with Jess on Luke again.  What a workout!  We did a two element gymnastic and then worked on a two stride line, which on Luke is tough because he has such a huge stride.  Everything always works perfectly when I actually ride.  Which means I have to remember to pull everything together that we’ve discussed and practiced a million times.  For me, that’s tough!  I have to pick the right pace, come off the turn correctly and straight (this requires all sorts of elements involving my hands and my legs), stay the same, find the right distance, land, sit up, whoa, put in two matching strides and either land and stop straight or continue through the turn at the canter.  I know, I know, it sounds easy.  It ain’t!!

And you thought it was just a restaurant name!

  Denise came out to meet Jess and watch my lesson which was such a treat!  I love having friends visit.  You might recall, I also ride at Denise’s during the week.  Afterwards, she and I headed over to Hunter’s Head for a little warm-up and some appetizers.  YUMMY!  It was the perfect treat on an overcast, misty, dreary day!  This crappy weather really needs to move on.  I think we’re all done with it. 

Monday was better but still chilly with the breeze.  I had a practice ride at Jess’s on that day.  I rode Luke again.  Such a nice boy!  I spent a good while letting him just walk out long and loose.  We did lots of turns and circles.  Then, I started working him at the trot.  He likes to carry his head a little more ’up’ but since he was so relaxed, he stayed pretty level in his topline.  I really liked our trot work.  I also trotted him over some poles that Jess had laid out until he jogged through them with the same relaxed topline.  We then worked on a few flying lead changes, which he does a great job on as long as I don’t screw him up.  I was not exactly straight the first time, so I missed that one but after trying again, we got it and got the others that we aimed for.  I then built an X and trotted back and forth over that, working on my long release.  I tend to follow my hand or not release much at all.  So, I worked on staying back in my hips and letting my hand move up independently.  I also had to work on pressing my knuckles into the sides of his crest rather than just burying my knuckles into his mane.  The latter is certainly acceptable but I actually want to do what is appropriate for my level of riding.  Which, that said, means I should be doing an automatic release!  But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

I was really proud of my independent ride because I corrected some mistakes and made some smart moves to stave some mistakes off before they even happened.  I realize a big difference from riding when I was younger and now is that back then, I had my own horse and no one on the ground to be that extra pair of eyes for me.  I had to learn everything by trial and error but mostly feel.  When you are forced to sort things out on your own, sometimes it sticks much better.  Most of all, you can only listen to the horse (provided you are capable of doing such) and the horse will teach you everything you need to know.  For those moments when you can’t hear or feel, it is your trainer’s job to be your eyes on the ground and cover everything they saw so you can fix it. 

On the way out, as I creeped along the gravel road back out from the farm, I noticed a dog standing smack dab in the middle of the road and thought, “Hmmm…is that one of our dogs?”  Sure as anything it was Chase, one of the newest (and ditsiest) dogs.  As I got closer, Chase moved to the shoulder to let me pass.  I unrolled my window and said, “Where you goin’?  Are you supposed to be out here by yourself?  C’mere!”  Now, as ditsy as Chase is, he seemed to understand me because he came down the little embankment up to my car.  I opened the door to grab his collar and ushered him back to the passenger side of my car.  I was hoping I could park him on the floorboard and have him stay.  Um… not gonna happen.

First off, I was not convinced I could close the door without getting his tail stuck in the door.  He solved that problem by moving himself to the backseat as soon as I stepped back.  There was Chase, muddy feet and all, taking a little stroll on my light beige leather seats.  Awesome.  I told myself that they wipe clean and got behind the wheel.  On this particular stretch of gravel road, there is nowhere to turnaround.  And, because it is fairly remote and lightly traveled, I just put the car in reverse and backed up all the way back to the barn.  As I did, I talked to Chase in the way I tend to talk to animals – dogs in particular.  I said, “You shouldn’t go running off by yourself.  You should stick with the other dogs.  It’s not a good idea to be on the road, even if it is a back road.  You could get hit.”  Mind you, all of this is said with a particular I’m-talking-to-a-dog voice.  If you know me, you know the voice.  As I talked to Chase, he leaned himself against the back seat, ears flat and alternatively looked from me back to the scenery scrolling past him in reverse.  He truly had a look on his face as if he regretted going off on his own.  And knew I was right but because he got busted, he didn’t really want to admit it. 

Once back to the barn, I walked towards the rear of the car from the passenger side in hopes that he’d keep his eye on me and stay in the backseat.  Nope.  My seat hadn’t yet been annointed.  Chase made sure that got done.  As soon as I let him out of the car, he said hello to his friends, probably told them about his ride and took a spot in the sun against the barn.  I was glad I brought him back.  Especially when I saw a kid on a motorbike whiz by on the road on my way back out. 

I also saw James on my way back out.  He’d just walked a horse back to Jess’s ’satellite barn’, a place just the next property over that Jess has leased because her business is growing (which is so cool, I might add).  So, yet again, I offered James a ride back to the barn.  This time, I had a driveway to turn around in and yes, I could count on James to stay in his seat.

Ahhhhhh, such a good weekend.  I love my life.

How to get a free ride Part VIII: How to KEEP that ride

I’ve been a real slacker on this particular series so thought it was about time to build on it.  At the end of the last installment, “How to get a free ride Part VII: Run an ad!”, I said I would tell you how to keep that ride.  Now, mind you, when I say keep, I mean figuratively speaking.  Because your job as a horseless rider is simply to keep the animal fit or do whatever their owner has agreed upon with you, which might include your keeping it in work until the animal sells.  So, be prepared to detach yourself when the time comes.

Be up front, honest, fair and realistic

For me, keeping rides means that the door is open for me to go back to wherever I’ve been riding and the owner of the horse or horses feels comfortable letting me back in and giving me more to ride.  When I ride at different places, I make certain that we are on the same page – that I follow their rules and the arrangement continues until it doesn’t work out for either of us anymore.  That doesn’t mean that things end because of a disagreement, that means that the horse might have gotten sold, I’ve had an opportunity that suits me more come along or between work, life and my own lesson schedule, things have gotten too hectic to balance.  But bottom line, I make certain that the owner knows that we both will openly discuss if either of our statuses change at anytime. 

Follow the rules!

So, let’s say you’ve gotten your ride.  You’ll first want to understand what are the owner’s goals for the horse and understand any limitations they might have.  For instance, they might not want you to jump the horse without their being present.  Next, you’ll want to make sure they also understand yours.  There might be days you are unable to ride the horse.  Whatever restrictions there might be on either side need to be discussed and understood clearly.  Also important is to know the barn’s rules.  If your owner can supply you with a printed copy of barn rules, even better.  I once rode at a barn with very strict rules pertaining to their ring – the ring was closed if there had been rain.  Another expected you to pick your horse’s hooves as he exited the ring and wanted you to pick up his poop should he leave any behind.  Many barns have active lesson programs.  You’ll want to find out of the instructor is OK with your riding in the same ring while they conduct their lesson and if it is OK for you to use the same set of jumps they might be using.  The list of rules can go on – every barn and owner are unique.  You’ll want to be conscientious enough to get as much information as you can and take special care to honor all wishes whether you think they are fair, senseless or not.

Take care

You’ll also want to take exceptional care of the horse and any equipment you use.  I have a grooming system I use with every horse, every time I ride.  It is thorough and the only time I deviate from that is if the owner prefers I do otherwise.  For instance, at one barn where I ride, the owner does not like hoof oil to be used nor does she like for boots of any kind to be used on the horse.  At yet another barn, it would be unheard of to go without doing either of those things.  At the minimum, I make certain that if an owner does not want a tail to be brushed out, I finger through it, removing all shavings and other debris.  I might still take a wet brush to the each side of the dock (top) of his tail to give it a neater look.  If an owner doesn’t want hoof polish used, I would at least scrape/brush off any mud off of their feet. 

Lastly, when done with the horse and his equipment, I take special care to clean them and put them away correctly, again, abiding by the rules.  If the owner is pretty lax in their rules, then I apply mine, cleaning the tack properly and figure-8ing the bridle, hanging it up neatly when I am done.  With the horse, I make certain that there are no sweat marks to be found where his bridle and saddle once sat.  If it is warm, I might hose him off, if not I apply some elbow grease with a towel and brush until the horse is dry.  If he is very wet and has not yet been body clipped, I put a wool cooler on him which will wick the moisture from his coat.  That does make for a very long drying process so you must build the appropriate time into your visit to put the horse away properly.

Be sensitive

After the ride, dependent upon the owner, I will give a recap of how things went.  In the past, with one owner, I was very descript about my ride on the horse.  I’d make note of anything that seemed out of the ordinary.  I was always worried that if I didn’t mention a hitchy step or a display of discomfort while girthing up that the horse might end up lame days later or be sore in his back and I’d be the awful person that didn’t give the heads up when signs first appeared.  I unfortunately learned that the owner took this as my picking on her horses and possibly always finding something wrong with them.  I soon learned that simply telling her the ride was great or not at all was just fine.  Certainly, if something glaring was presenting itself, I had to say something but I learned to take special care with this particular owner.  I also rode for other owners that absolutely trusted what I did with their horses and didn’t need a recap at all.  Every owner is different, be prepared to adapt to their particular style.

Be on-time and dependable

Be there when you say you’ll be there.  Not only does punctuality say you are responsible, it shows that you are dedicated and serious about your arrangement.  People count on you.  Don’t let them down.

Do your best

In closing, I think it is important to share what Leslie Burr Howard shared with me when I attended her talk at the Syracuse Invitational, she said to “realize that you will be riding a lot of not-so-good horses, which will only make you a better rider.  To be certain that you always practice textbook horsemanship to build trust with an owner so that you can continue to ride their horses.  And to give every horse the best ride you possibly can.”

Syracuse Recap Part II

The below is a post I’d started months back when Dani and I went to the Syracuse Invitational.  I had these ambitions to give a blow by blow of the classes, the courses, observations… I clearly never got to it.  So, I added on to what I had and wrapped it up as best as I could.  Enjoy.

During one of our shopping sprees, Dani and I happened upon Anne Kursinski who was sitting at a table signing autographs.  I have no idea what sort of peole had been to visit her before me but I’d imagine they were mostly juniors.  When I walked up, there was a little girl there flanked by her parents who was having a DVD signed.  I’d met Anne in Palm Beach one year when I dragged one of my juniors up to her to get her autograph.  Anne couldn’t have been more personable and accommodating after we stalked her back to her barn at the Wellington show grounds.  She went so far as to ask us what sort of riding we did.  Being the eternal 12 year old, I went on to tell her how much I love her book, and that it spends many a night on my bedside table (this is true).  I get a little frustrated when I read it, though, because without a horse of my own, I’m never able to get very far in the book.  But, I start all over from the beginning from time to time, just to reassure myself that I’m doing the right thing. 

The 12 year old girl in me hasn’t aged a bit because upon reintroducing myself to Anne this time at Syracuse, I yet again gushed about her book.  She said she was thinking about writing another and I sincerely hope that she does.  I swear, that is the best book and it is unfortunate that it is out of print.  I feel lucky to have it, thanks to Leah letting me mooch it off of her years ago.  I regret not having Dani get a picture of us together.  I dig Anne.

I also asked Anne if she’d consider being a stop in my ‘send myself to camp’ journey – where I spend a vacation with a different professional each year.  Answer was an enthusiastic ‘yes’ and I’ll just have to flex the network to find a horse to haul to NJ or find one close to her.  Which, honestly, I can swing.  Note to self, get that done. 

Now, for some comments on the class we went there for – the ASPCA Medal Maclay.  Since I am only just now writing this, months after the event, most of what I initially wanted to write is of course lost.  Somewhere, I have notes and now, I just can’t seem to dig them up. 

Bottom line, there really were no perfect trips.  But there were indeed some very good trips.  It was fun to see how some took the safe route, some took some risks, which unfortunately, blew up for them.  Then, others chose their course and made it look easy.  For the most part, yes, every horse that walked in was well-trained to do their job and tried their little hearts out for their riders.  And, as always is the case, the judges had to choose between the best that day in those classes and decide which faults weighed heavier in their list of preferences than another. 

I mostly admired how each rider appeared cool under pressure.  I’m sure that wasn’t the case but that’s the whole point.  They ‘appeared’ to be cool.  Each rider was well prepared and the cream that rose to the top were a result of all of the usuals:  Missy Clark, Frank Madden, Max Amaya, Stacia Madden, Christina Schlusemeyer and so on.

Having coached kids to a much smaller scale Finals, I know how exhausting prepping kids to wins is.  It is day in, day out, weekend after weekend, practice, practice, practice.  And when Finals roll around, just because it is at the end of your show year, you have to pull yourself up and press on some more. 

By no means do I believe things are tougher in the smaller rings but I will say this – in the smaller rings, you don’t have staff, you don’t have up and coming pros, you are doing everything yourself.  As the trainer, you hauled the horse there, checked into the same hotel room as your client, your client, and you are the feeder/mucker/braider and you are the one who must be prepared to prep the animal for your client, regardless of what hour that is.  No matter how exhausting it was or how many tears where shed or how many claps were heard, when your classes are over you are so, so happy and you look back and realize that all of that ass busting was worth it.  No matter what.

Weekend Wrap-up

Another great weekend.  Bob and I did our usual Saturday, by starting things off with breakfast at Silver Diner.  YUMMY!  Afterwards, I had to head over to DinnerZen to put our meals for the next few weeks together.  Place was PACKED!  Now that I have one visit under my belt, I have the routine down pat.  While I do not profess to being a good cook by any stretch of the imagination, it was surprising to me to see that there are actually people out there with less talent than me.  By no means am I some powder puff that has no experience.  That’s the problem.  I’ve had too much of it and I just don’t dig it.  My sister and I were putting dinner on the table when I was probably 9 and she was 12.  I’ve wielded a cooking tool or two in my time.  So, it was amazing to me to see the difficulty, the fish-out-of-waterness that some women had at DinnerZen when it came to the part where you were supposed to pound out your chicken breast.  Seriously?  How hard is it to beat the daylights out of a piece of meat until it is about a 1/4″ thick?  Apparently, quite a challenge for some.

Anyway, I breezed through the stations, then made my way home to unload everything and get on with my next task which was hunting down more pieces of a pattern of china I picked out from Pier 1.  Sure, going online would have been easy but guess what?  It wasn’t online!  I’d reserved some pieces at the Sterling store, then got on the horn and found the rest of what I needed at the Tysons store.  So, that’s how I spent the rest of the day – on that goose chase.  But, I got it all, so I’m set.

Bob had an afternoon meeting and to the best of my recollection, after he got back and after we moseyed around the house for a bit, we went out to dinner.  Because God forbid I should cook one of the 12 meals I’d just put together at DinnerZen.  People, I don’t cook on weekends. 

Sunday, I had a lesson at 11 and because I’m a freak, I like to be there at 10.  I need a half-hour to chit-chat and catch up on all the latest in Jess’s very successful barn.    Then, it takes me another half-hour to get my ride all pretty and tacked up.  I tell ya, Jess is one of the few people in the horse business that I know that is kicking butt.  She’s a great horsewoman and an even better business woman and I really admire how she runs her business.  Then there’s James, her fiance.  James brings his own special something to the barn and makes me laugh out loud.  He makes everyone laugh out loud.

I rode Luke who Jess and I have decided is a very good match for me.  I rode him once last year but he was very green then.  He’s turned out to be quite the nice boy.  For a green horse, he’s an excellent amateur horse.  He has a huge step and is forgiving when you make a mistake and just canters away from the fence quietly.  I have to say, all of Jess’s horses go like that.  I love that. 

Sticking with Luke in the air is much easier than it is with Lenny.  I definitely felt very secure in the air and could feel my leg staying smack dab underneath me throughout the entire arc of Luke’s jump.  I also like how I’m getting more accurate with my eye and didn’t make any majorly stupid moves.  All in all, a good, fun lesson.

After that, I met up with Kelly and Denise for lunch at Hunter’s Head.  YUMMY!!  It was perfect timing.  That place is WILD just about every day and every hour that it is open.  We sat in the pub area, which, quite frankly, I have never sat in the dining area.  I like the pub area because you get to see everyone that is walking in and even though I’m not a big drinker, there is just something about sitting in a cozy pub at the bar in a little horse town with your horse girls.  I had the chicken pot pie and a cappuccino with Amaretto on the side.  YUM!  Denise had one too and Kelly had a coffee with Kahlua.  All perfect stuff for a bitterly cold day.  It was great to hang out, talk horses, talk life and just chill. 

As always, I’m always ready for the next weekend to come quickly!