Blessi has a Coat of Arms and a Motto

About a year ago, Blessi and I moved to a new boarding stable that has never had an Icelandic before.  Blessi is doing well there and the owners and other boarders really like Blessi.  In fact, 24 hours after I moved him to the new stable, I went back to check on him and Rena,the owner,  told me that if I ever leave, Blessi has to stay--they are going to adopt him.

Well Icelandics are smart and they are opportunistic.  Not long after moving in to the new stable, Rena told me that she and her husband were having lunch in the kitchen.  They looked out their French doors and saw Blessi grazing right by their deck--note that is not his pasture.  The electricity for the pastures went out  and Blessi noticed the golden opportunity.

It turns out that there is a lower gate that consists of two wires attached to the "bicycle" handles.  I didn't even notice the gate but Blessi did.  He undid the lower wire and then ducked under the upper wire.  What
is impressive about this is that he associated the "bicycle" handles with "gate."  Blessi has never been taken in or out of the pasture at this area.  When Rena went to fetch him with a halter and lead rope, he led her on a merry chase around the yard until she thought to get some grain.  Luckily there were no other horses in the pasture.

The stable owner analyzed Blessi's personality.  She said that his personality is described by the expression "I can so I will" and that he should have a sign on his door with that phrase.  I thought that would be cooler in Latin, which per the online translator is:

"Possum sic ego."

This could be the motto of many an Icelandic horse.  So Blessi now has his own coat of arms complete with motto.  Rena has a sense of humor and they still want to adopt Blessi--I think.

Note:  The horse artwork in the center is not a very good representation of an Icelandic but the image was in the public domain.

Of Horses and Men

The Icelandic Film and TV Academy selected  Hross í oss (Of Horses and Men) as Iceland's entry as Best Foreign Language film category for the 2014 Oscars.  Directed by Benedikt Erlingsson, the movie is about the importance of the horse in the life of Icelandic country side in 1970s with themes of romance, daily living, friendships, and rivalries. 

Source:  http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/daily_news/?cat_id=29314&ew_0_a_id=403102

Due to a stallion acting like a stallion in the official trailer below, this clip is not recommended for children.  So parents, please preview!

Alana Odegard of Icelandic Review On-Line reviewed the film.  Highlights from her review include:
"...the movie was about what has always been close to Icelanders: horses and nature. However, Hross í oss is no ordinary horse and nature film, but rather a keyhole peep into Iceland’s past...

Hross í oss masterfully weaves together parables; negative passion, such as breach of peace, drunkenness or vengefulness are punished, the positive passion finds reward. The film also describes the experiences of two foreigners, deeply touching as acts of initiation, although they could hardly be more different from each other..

Horses are everywhere in this movie. Strong and fast, life-giving, overwhelmingly wild and yet tender, and always at people’s side, up to the last breath. In the static nature shots horses are the moving elements. They move people. They move the soul. At the same time they are the stationary element, as if to indicate, “why are you going mad?” They represent beauty, power, and eternity in this loving story that does not condemn ugliness and weakness. "

Alana Odegard notes that although both actors and horses face danger in the film no horses were harmed during the filming due to the training of great work of the eight men led by Benedikt Líndal.


You can read the entire review at:
http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/reviews/film/

I look forward to seeing how "Of Horses and Men" fares at the Academies this year.

Pignon Riding with Les Chevaux Islandais

And here is one of the videos of Jean-Francois Pignon, famous for his at-liberty horse act,  riding with one of the French Icelandic demo teams.