Winner's Circle

"You really broke his heart," the Olympic coach said, her former 6 week intern boss was frowning in greeting.  She dreaded seeing him in public now because she had fled the working student opportunity, rather unceremoniously on New Year's day, partially because of the boss's brother's suffocating crush, and the boss's pressure to move into bro's apartment on the farm.  Partially also because of the unsafe, unfair horse practices, and partially because of her illegal status while the aforesaid incidents were being investigated by the authorities.  She shrugged and sat down while he walked on.

Roomie was watching them across the show grounds and asking her student, as they walked the aisles of the barn at the competition, if she had ever been called by 911.  What? The young equestrian wasn't following...  Roomie said that one day during her stint in Ocala, Jill had been alone working in the barn when she answered the ringing landline.  It was the fire department, sounding desperate to find the farm.  Jill gave them the remote, rural address, calmly, and added that she was standing right in the barn and didn't see anything on fire...  The operator said, "We have that address.  We can't find it, and need directions from town.  We are responding to a medical emergency, called in on a cell phone from somewhere on the property."

Jill was new at the job, new in town and had no idea how to further define the location.  It was awful how she had time to go knocking on doors at neighbour's asking for help, while the emergency personnel waited.

The injured woman waited 45 min for their arrival, laying on the ground where the rearing horse had struck her down and crying the whole time, "I can't feel my legs, I can't feel my legs."  At the time she ended up airlifted to the nearest hospital, and then remained paralyzed for life.

"Thanks for housesitting!" a woman came up from behind and joined them, delighting "The pets seem so grounded."  Roomie had just taken care of not just the dogs and cats, but also her first birds!  Apparently the last pet sitter left the unruly puppy unattended and unexercised to the point the creature ate lightbulbs and batteries and electric wires, and then didn't even akcnowledge the housekeeper's text about it.  Roomie enjoyed taking over the babysitting assignments from her friends for the company and privacy and extra pay the mutual pet joy provided.

*

When the president of the equestrian federation passed with a joke about Jill being seated rather than officiating on the grounds, said she was "saving her energy for future exploitation," ha. "Maybe we can connect another time," he was serious.  Jill really wanted to hang around with David O'Connor and would start pitching articles as soon as she got home.  Or, how about "A Day in the Life of Chester Weber?

She still felt like the young girl who wanted to be like the star of National Velvet who won the Grand National and made headlines for being disqualified for being female before turning down the money available through the glory. "Everything comes in its proper order, Mrs. Brown" meanwhile, her mother was cancelling on her again. Jill would read the email later - she knew without reading it that the woman was either discombobulated about the date to meet at the horse show, or had come down with a sudden ailment.

Riders were chatting in line at the snack bar, "if he is expected to deliver perfection there where is the reciprocal?"

Jill caught up with Roomie and her student in the same line up, "Because i am a rider and coach i get thrust into senior positions sometimes at events and i have to ask after the basics like how to work the walkie talkie, ha." Jill caught up for the laugh.

The student wanted to know who she was riding now.  "I just work with whatever horse falls in my lap." For some reason Roomie added "Even when Jill has a boyfriend, she just expects him to stay out of the way."