THE OBSERVATION BOOTH
OP / ED By Andrea Dialect
Photos Courtesy Andrea Dialect
Howdy, guess what? She wasn’t horsing around when mentioning his unique personality and sometimes funky attitude. So I dubbed this short Cowgirls & Hoodboyz because, seemingly, Tobias is just that, a straight-up Hoodboy.
She says that he rolls his eyes at her often when he doesn’t want to be bothered or he just ain’t feelin’ it, whatever it is, lol. Cowgirl Pam said that Bruh even bumps her to get his point across; now imagine that. I will go into my archives again to see if I was lucky enough to have captured that head tilt and those rolling eyes, trust me.
But, on the other hand, I’m told that he’s a big softie who loves children, and unlike with the adults, he never denies them a ride or pat or touch or whatever else those little ones opt to do when it seeps out of those heads. But, mind you is intelligent enough to know the difference between those little ones and those with special needs; he adores the elderly and uses kid gloves with all three. I saw pics of him resting his head on the chest of one of our seniors. That being the head, he doesn’t let just anybody touch. Can you believe that? There are scores of those loving mannerisms as engaging with folks that are now memories transfixed in those pics.
Yet again, he will sometimes opt to give ya a ride if your grown, or then again, sometimes not. You’d think that all those crazy antics and loving gestures were enough. He loves touring those hoodscapes, strutting around like he owns the place like a boss, as they say. It’s quite obvious that Tobias loves attention as much as we love giving it. We also love what his presence; their presence brings to our neighborhoods.
Check out the pics, and you’ll see how Tobias is apparently smiling for the camera in one pose and sticking his tongue out in the other. Lord knows I have seen my fair share of exposed tongues around lately, but from a horse? Now that’s something totally different, logically just as different as seeing a horse trotting around here. Imagine the impact that stumbling upon such an unexpected guest and such an experience can be on everyone who has the luxury of crossing paths with this dynamic dual.
What an incredible gift. Cowgirl Pam’s generosity shares her family (she says Tobias is her son), resources, and time with our community. How amazing. Kudos CowLady, thanks for everything you do.
COWGIRL PAM
Cowgirl: (Especially in the Western US) a woman who herds and tends cattle, performing much of her work on horseback.
Cow Slang; To “cowboy” or “cowgirl up,” you have to take a stand. You have to be strong, courageous and willing to make sacrifices. You have to face down danger, stress, and quite possibly surly in-laws with grace.
Pam: Tobias was five years old when I got him, so that means that he’s around seventeen years old now. February 1, 2013 is on the bill of sales in black and white, so we’ve been together for quite some time. Tobias was a rescue animal, so when I got him, he was head shy, meaning he didn’t want anybody touching his head. If you were to try to touch or pet him, he would put his head high into the air so you couldn’t. I spoke to his owner at the time, and she mentioned his previously being beaten by the original owner. Now you can imagine how it was putting his bit into his mouth. It took a while to establish trust.
When you’re working with horses, it’s all about pressure and release, so if you put them in a corner, that’s pressure, so you’d have to give some relief. Because I’m in his area, I’d respect his space, talk to him and not force the issue. Do things gradually to get the necessary outcome.
Tobias has a heck of a personality, and he has a very strong opinion. Sometimes he will try to challenge stuff if he doesn’t feel like doing it. You can tell how he’s feeling because his eyes will tell you. Yep, he’ll roll his eyes and give you the look. For instance, this weekend, he pushed my cousin. My cousin had just finished taking the saddle off his horse and, when walking through to, put the saddle into the trailer. Tobias wasn’t prepared for his entering that space, so as He walked by or what he was doing, so he pushed him. My cousin says, “excuse me, am I in your way?”
Pushing him means he pushed him with his head. When he does that, you’re going to move, or you’re going to stumble if you’re not prepared for it. You have to know your horse. If something were to happen because of your unawareness or being unprepared, you’d likely be asked, “Why didn’t you listen to your horse? With these animals, like anything else, you have to know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away, and know when to run lol. Everybody can’t handle a horse with personality because they’re going to challenge you. Every or just anybody couldn’t take Tobias!
Yee Haw
The upkeep for a horse is like owning a car note on a monthly or yearly basis, and you also have other expenses like maintenance. Tobias is kept in Ringoes, NJ, which is an hour away. Because horses are herd animals, they are comfortable if two or more others are around, so he has a pasture mate named Oreo.
The day-to-day of a horse consists of sleep, and they like to enjoy the weather. If the weather is nice, they like to sunbathe in the sun. Because Tobias is kept in an open horse barn, he has the option to be inside or out.
As far as hygiene goes, I keep him as natural as possible, so I don’t bathe him constantly. I usually brush the dirt out of his hair. I also use medicated baby powder in the winter usually. I brush him a lot to get the dirt out of his coat, and he gets hosed, too, but it depends.
He gets bathed if I am doing a parade or an event. I am a stickler about that because I do not want to strip his coat of its natural oils. As far as diet is concerned, he eats hay. He is kept on an open pasture with an open-house barn which gives him 24-hour access to hay. He eats grass and gets grain too.
I have always been an animal lover. Tobias has a brother also, which is my dog named Knox. They grew up together, so they’re really like brothers. When I was a child, my father always tried to find fun things for the family to do so my parents used to bring us horseback riding. My mother would often ride also, but I can only remember seeing my father on a horse once. When I got older, I would go horseback riding on my own.
My cousin Eddie Moore who lived in Newark owned horses. He used to bring them around so that we could ride. I said to myself one day; I will have my own horse. Years later me and my girlfriend Frances, who I would travel with a lot, used to go to one of our friend’s houses to hang out with who was a rider, invited us to his Western party. My sister Aisha also tagged along, and that’s where I met Keith Brown.
I started hanging out with Keith, and after riding in the Harlem Pride Parade with Hayes and attending many events where there were horses, I got the bug. To find out that I couldn’t ride when I wanted to ride the one horse that belonged to one of Keith’s friends named Buddy because he was always in hot demand – which meant that I couldn’t ride like I wanted to. It made me decide right then and there that I needed my own.
Keith is my mentor. All my training, most of the things I’ve learned about horses came from being under Keith, and Keith does a lot of buying and trading horses. So that’s when I went to Keith and told him I needed my horse. While waiting, I would still ride Harlem and other horses.
TRAIL RIDES
Initially, I considered another horse before purchasing Tobias, whose name was Blue. He was a paint horse which is the breed of horse with blue eyes, which was why he was called Blue. Keith offered the option to buy Blue, but I wasn’t quite ready then. I did a parade with Blue shortly after, and Blue got out of my trailer and got into another trailer. After that happened, I was blue, and I told Glenn that I would never own or want a horse interested in getting away. The opportunity to purchase Tobias came shortly after, and here we are.
Once I had my horse, I would hang out with Keith, and wherever Keith says that we’re going to ride, that was where I went. During that time, someone who’d observed how I was with my horse was impressed by watching our bond, and I was given the opportunity to host my first pony party. It was for a friend whose grandparent had passed, and she needed someone to fill in for that party. Then, I started doing pony parties for her and others who needed my services. Tobias and I are still doing those pony parties, working with our seniors, and many other venues and events.
Tobias is an hour away in Ringoes; when and if everything is well with him, I can see him less often. It all depends on the time of year. But I try to see him when the days are short, once or twice a week per season. When it gets dark early during those seasonal time frames, it’s really dark when I get off work or too cold, and I don’t want to be out there.
But if he’s sick or having issues, then I’ll go see him every day until he’s well. When I go down, and he catches sight of me, he comes running to the gate as soon as he sees me. When I go riding, which is usually with a bunch of folks, I’ll put him in the trailer and take him off property.
For recreation and to get out, I sometimes take him to Tyler State Park, which is thirty minutes away and the very first park and place where I rode him when I first got him. What an experience, oh my goodness. Keith came along, and he would say things like hold on, and you’d better keep up. Keith did not coddle me ever when it came to this, and he certainly didn’t then.
So, I had to learn how to handle my horse quickly. I wasn’t so worried about keeping up at the time but more about staying on. When we ride, we usually ride for about two or three hours. But it depends; sometimes, we take even much longer rides, although we do stop and take breaks. Sometimes we ride, and sometimes I let him get it out, take off, and run. Let him do his thing. This weekend we went to Horseshoe Bend, which is about the same distance as Tyler State. Honestly, we’re not normally alone when we ride. We often ride in groups.
If we’re going somewhere and it’s a distance, I’ll take Tobias off the property and bring him to the complex where I live. He’ll sleep in the trailer overnight, and Knox and I sleep in my truck because I don’t want anyone bothering him. He has his hay, water, and everything that he needs. I also clean up everything, so no one has a problem with us being there.
Everyone in the community loves when Tobias comes around. They take pictures, he gives them rides, and the youngsters brush his hair. Everyone loves Tobias. When we’re out there camping out, everyone knows we’re there. We’re there for them, and they are there for us, and we feel safe. That’s what this is all about: community.
DID YA KNOW THAT…
The National Day of the Cowboy organization and hundreds of its volunteers have been working for over 16 years to secure permanent status for the fourth Saturday in July as the National Day of the Cowboy, in all fifty states, as well as in other countries.
Western Slang to Know (Credit: clazyu.com)
Above Board
Something that is honest and legitimate. “The poker games here are all above board.”
Ace-High
This term comes from poker, but was also used to refer to things that were fine, luxurious, and respectable. “The lodges at C Lazy U sure are ace-high.”
Airin’ the Lungs
Cussing. “Hey, no airin’ the lungs out here! This is a family getaway.”
Barn Sour
When a horse wants nothing more than to be in the barn. “I was worried Remi would be barn sour today, but all he wanted to do was explore the pasture!”
Desert Canary
A donkey, like C Lazy U residents Tilly, Wilbur, and Petey.
Howdy
The typical cowboy greeting. “While you boys are out hatchet throwing, I’m going to say howdy to the Lazy You Spa.”
Tarnation
A non-cuss exclamation. “Tarnation! Chef Cory sure can cook the perfect steak!”
Tenderfoot
Someone young or new to a job. “Our daughter may be a tenderfoot, but have you seen how they taught her to ride that horse? She’ll be a pro in no time!”
That Dog Won’t Hunt
That idea or plan won’t work. “Jane is trying to teach her husband about western fashion, but that dog won’t hunt.”
Too Much Mustard
A braggart, or the quality of bragging too much. “Jake beat us all at trap shooting, and now he’s got too much mustard for my liking.” Alternatively, you can say that someone is “too big for their britches.”
Varmint
The cowboy way of saying “vermin.” Usually refers to a small or medium-sized animal, or a disreputable individual. “Did you see any varmints on the trail?” Or, “Those old West outlaws sure were some foul varmints!”
Wobblin’ Jaw
A big talker… maybe someone who talks too much. “I’d love to take Uncle Bill fly fishing… but he’s a bit of a wobblin’ jaw and might scare the fish.”
Yellow-Belly
A coward. This term most-likely comes from the medieval medical belief in the “four humors,” where too much yellow bile was thought to make a person behave irrationally. “Jim was acting a little yellow-bellied before we did the ropes course… but now the zipline and trapeze are all he can talk about!”
Yee-Haw!
The classic western expression of enthusiasm and excitement. You probably know it. Have you ever used it?
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