The Half Blood Prince's Potions Book

I hate getting the cold. I hate it with a venegeance. I sometimes think of it kindly in a backwards glance, but I forget how awful it is to have my nose rubbed raw and my throat torn to shreds and every breath weighing heavily on my chest like a vice. I hate sneezing so much that I make myself cry. I despise breathing through my mouth because my nose is blocked and tickley and having every damn breath grate down the back of my abused and dry throat. I hate having the choice between suffering and taking so much medicine that I can't process normal thought. And I can't stand menthol and eucalyptus.

This is just to remind me, next time I'm thinking 'Oh, colds, they aren't that bad -- I bet I could handle it a lot better than you are' that it is NOT TRUE.

And naturally, getting cramps at the same time does absolutely no good.

*cries*

In other news, before I take some more cold capsules, I have discovered that I actually have some time to do some writing/cosplaying. Yesterday I made Hitsugaya's 10th squad haori for my brother: http://i458.photobucket.com/albums/qq303/regasssa/josh1.jpg , which was great fun and diverting. I can't believe it only took a day - hahah - if I'd told myself I could do it in a day last year, I would have probably laughed and shook my head. A week - that's more like it. I want to finish Ishida's bow today before the sun vanishes forever, but it's going to have to be dismantleable, which makes things a bit more complicated. It will involve a pillar drill, I suspect.

Writing is...going to happen. It's going to rain like hell over the next few days, I think - the temperature's dropping and the sky's filling up with clouds. I hope it hits sooner, to be honest, because it will cause less damage to the plum and magnolia blossom while it's still young and strong. That way they'll last longer, and I'll get to enjoy the way the garden smells fantastic for the Easter holidays.

Um...oh yes - my brother vomitted on my bed. Fun.

I've been long reining Soraya - for those who aren't familiar with it, it looks like this: http://www.luxury-accommodation-bay-of-islands.co.nz/images/farmstay-3-lrg.jpg . She didn't quite get it to start with, but when she worked out that the cues are exactly the same with the reins as the legs, she picked it up pretty quickly. What I did work out is that I need a surcingle to run the reins through, because otherwise she tangles me up every time she stops to eat grass *not amused*

So Soraya and I finally got out today - I used the excuse of the beautiful weather for another set of photos I've been meaning to take for ages. Soraya has changed a lot since the last photos I took of her - she's now totally barefoot, barrel shaped rather than round, and her mane and tail have actually grown out so she looks adorable. I took her through all her gaits to make sure she was moving alright, but the photos also double as me showing her off to you guys.

So picspam and a video (hopefully) under the cut:

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