Get Knowcked Out and Get Up Again

I Get Knocked Downward (But I Become Upward Once again): The Refrain of 2020

This year keeps delivering its hits, and July has been no exception (at least for me). The skilful news is that with these blows comes the opportunity to grow and learn. Between a house fire and a laid upwardly horse, I am beingness afforded plenty of chances for growth.

2020 has been a hell of a twelvemonth. Between multiple global crises and, like, life in general,  we're stuck in this never-catastrophe wheel of suck. As I sit hither sipping my java and reflecting on the past sevenish months, Chumbawamba'due south 1997 song "Tubthumping" keeps coming to my mind unbidden (also, I was today years one-time when I learned the name of the song was "Tubthumping" and not "I Get Knocked Downwardly"):

I get knocked down, but I get upwardly again
You lot are never gonna continue me down
I get knocked downwardly, but I get up again
You are never gonna keep me downwards
I get knocked down, only I get upwardly again
You are never gonna keep me down
I go knocked downwards, but I go upwards again
Yous are never gonna keep me down

Truthfully, information technology was just that portion of the song that kept popping upward in my head. When I looked up the lyrics, I was surprised to realize that refrain makes upward about half the song. Then I realized that the vocal evenmore than fitting for 2020 because, well, we keep getting hit with moving ridge after moving ridge, right?

(If you can zoom in on the pictures in this Instagram post, I recommend it. Information technology's worth it.)

Looking at the rest of the lyrics, they're non unsuited to this yr either:

He drinks a Whiskey drink, he drinks a Vodka drink
He drinks a Lager drinkable, he drinks a Cider beverage
He sings the songs that remind him of the adept times
He sings the songs that remind him of the all-time times

Maybe not so much the part about singing songs, but definitely the part most drinking. I mean, 2020 has been a hell of a year, right?

And but to add some more whine to the situation, I've had a couple of personal things popular up that are keeping life … interesting. Three weeks ago, my firm caught fire. Y'all. My. House. Defenseless. Burn down. On my husband'southward birthday.

The scene when I arrived at my house. Photo past DeAnn Long Sloan.

Fortunately no flames were bursting through the roof, only they did have to saw into my slate roof to find the source of the burn. Photo past DeAnn Long Sloan.

To be fair, other than not having a burn, nosotros are really truly lucky. My husband, kids and domestic dog were outside in the lawn. I was at the bar like the skilful mother I am. The kids smelled something and the neighbor saw smoke, and then my husband was able to react quickly past flipping the main breaker (it was an electrical fire) and the neighbors chosen 911 correct abroad. Multiple fire departments were training at a park nearby, and then they arrived within 5 minutes. The burn was controlled and nothing was actually burnt other than some joists and insulation in our cranium.

Burnt spray foam insulation and … other stuff. Photograph by DeAnn Long Sloan.

Simply, the fire started in the attic, so to make sure it did not spread, the fire departments did an admirable chore of locating the source and dousing it with h2o. A lot of h2o. And the source was in the attic… in a higher place the third floor. The laws of physics tell u.s.a. that what goes upward must come downwardly, and come up down the water did… all the way to the basement. And then even though non much burned and the smoke harm is minimal, the water damage is extensive enough to ensure that we're out of the house for the foreseeable time to come and that a fair amount of mitigation, demolition and rebuilding volition be happening.

My third floor after some demolition. Photo by DeAnn Long Sloan.

My sleeping room afterwards some sabotage. Photo by DeAnn Long Sloan.

The adept news is that everyone is safety and healthy. Even the true cat, who appeared the mean solar day after the burn after hiding who-knows-where.

Toothless the Wonder True cat (existent proper noun is Moana), rubber, sound and clearly thrilled. Photo past DeAnn Long Sloan.

It doesn't seem that we lost annihilation irreplaceable (and even if nosotros did, it's but stuff, right?) and we have adept insurance. It may have taken a fire to arrive happen, but my basement is organized, my floors will be refinished and someone else is washing and folding all of my laundry (since I accept a husband, 3 immature childrenand I'thou an equestrian, this is no small thing). I retrieve there were even a couple of horse coolers and my chinks that got taken to be cleaned. Silverish linings, correct?

So, equally my family unit and I take been navigating the fire and everything it entails, a pre-existing concern became more of an issue. Mac, my vi-year-one-time off-track Thoroughbred (JC Rightful Goddess) had come in lame the calendar week before the fire. Seeing some diagonal lameness (right front to left hind), I put her on stall residue. To make the case interesting, there was no obvious swelling or oestrus, but I put a standing wrap on the right front end anyhow, rubbed down her hind end with some liniment (every bit the issue appeared to exist upwards high), gave her some Bute and called the vet. The vet couldn't make it out to do a full lameness examination until the following week and, equally information technology wasn't urgent, I connected the course of activity I was already taking and waited for the vet.

Over the course of the side by side few days in that location was some pocket-sized improvement (the hind end lameness subsided and the front right lameness appeared to be in the foot), just my horse certainly wasn't audio. Then in she stayed, with a standing wrap and hoof wrap in case it was a actually bad abscess. My mare is non known for her stoicism, so it was not out of the realm of possibility that an abscess would crusade this extreme of a reaction.

Hoping for an abscess. Photo by DeAnn Long Sloan.

Then the burn down happened (read above), my friend and befouled director took over my mare's care for a couple of days while I regrouped, the aforementioned course of action ensued and I waited for the vet.

What seemed like an eternity later on (simply it was really only a calendar week and some), the vet made information technology out. Even though I had made an engagement with the intention of doing a full lameness work up, it was quite apparent that the issue was in the right front end. After blocking the pes both medially and laterally, the lameness became less pronounced only did not go away. So, not an abscess. Damn.

Mac, sedated and playing a balancing game on the wooden blocks following her 10-ray. Photo by DeAnn Long Sloan.

Let me back up: I don't typically call the vet every time I recall my horse has an abscess. Normally I treat it like an abscess (liberally use an epsom salt poultice to the foot, diaper it, vet wrap it and duct tape it,) perhaps talk to the farrier and move on afterward information technology drains. Nevertheless, this year has been marked by a lot of small issues that have kept my mare laid up more often than not. I decided to exist done with information technology and just do a full work upward. However, that was derailed by the obvious issue with the front correct leg during this vet visit. After all, y'all can't do a full lameness work up if there is an astute issue that needs to be addressed in the moment.

Anyway, dorsum to the outcome at hand. Post-obit the cake, we sedated Mac and took radiographs (I say "nosotros," but let'southward be honest — my vet did all the work while I held a lead rope and watched). My dorsum was turned away from the computer when my vet pulled up the films on the screen. I heard her say "Well, that'southward interesting."

That'southward never a skilful sign.

The 10-ray indicated that Mac has a hairline fracture in her front right pastern. Not bad.

At that place's the fracture… Photo by DeAnn Long Sloan.

The good news is that it is a fracture and information technology volition heal with proper rehab. More skilful news is that there seems to be little damage to the ligaments and tendons. I had my vet exercise an ultrasound to make sure because if there is extensive soft tissue impairment that will affect our futurity more than profoundly than a fracture ever could.

So, for now, Mac is on stall rest with a no-bow quilt and vet wrap on the right (fractured) leg and a no-bow and standing wrap on the left leg for support. As of correct now I haven't wrapped her hind legs because her incessant stall walking keeps her from getting stocked up. She'due south on anti-inflammatories and all the hay she can eat. The vet volition exist doing a recheck in a few weeks and nosotros volition motility forrard from at that place.

Equally I navigate my mode through my mare's rehabilitation, I volition exist offering regular updates with some burn drama thrown in for good measure. And, lest I seem like I am feeling too sorry for myself, let me say that I am very aware of how fortunate I am. My family and pets are condom and mostly healthy. I have been afforded the opportunity to Really organize my firm and purge it of unnecessary stuff (of which there was a lot), examine what is necessary and what is not and to rethink my approach to my goals with my horse.

I get knocked downwardly, but I go up again…

Mayhap it's time for the Whiskey drinkable or Vodka drinkable. Onward and upward.

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Source: https://www.horsenation.com/2020/07/22/i-get-knocked-down-but-i-get-up-again-the-refrain-of-2020/