Function and Dysfunction

Greetings, and thanks for finding my LiveJournal.

If you're already reading my MySpace blog, this is a mirror for that blog. There are some things about LiveJournal that I prefer, and since I have friends in both places, I figure now they can pick which place they would prefer to read/comment on.

So, I'll be adding new entries as I make them, and ever so slowly adding stuff from the past (the MySpace journal has been running a little over 2 years, as I type this, eek) This also gives me a chance to fix links to my Photobucket since the original lack of organization there annoys me.

I doubt there will be much of excitement here. I had to lock up my other Livejournal (well, my cat, Kiko, orkikofreako journal) due to idiocy, but that is old news. So the bulk will remain public unless someone decides they are going to be an idiot, and then this will get locked up.

So, if you're reading, play nice already.

I'm off to get this ball rolling....so I'll see ya

ETA: Yeah, sorry...you'll need to talk to me first now. I tried to be nice and I forgot I was dealing with humans. Silly me.

Supposedly my LJ will now update to MySpace. I have my doubts. But I am hopeful

1. Make sure you have Real Player. Its free, and runs nicely on Macs at least.

2. The ceremony is July 29th, 3:30 pm Vegas time. That is 6:30 on the east coast.

3. Go to vivalasvegasweddings.com

4. Pick the "Live webcam" button

5. Pick the camera for "Main chapel"

6. You'll see a short video of Elvis telling you the wedding hasn't started yet and to keep refreshing the page. So keep refreshing the page!

7. Feel free to have a drink, blow bubbles, or play some Weird Al afterwards.

WVC was a great conference. I went to a lot of good lectures, and made up notes on how we can actually implement some of the things I learned. Clearly, we will have to do things in steps, but I am fired up bigtime. Boss 1 claims you can get all your CE from reading, and while that IS valuable, I don't get the big FWUMP! of "OMG I love this crap." from a journal. Ergo, conference is worthwhile. I am excited to not only actually share what I learned this year, but also making it work, meaning the money spent on the conference worthwhile to Boss 1.

I seem to be a big time glass half full girl, I used to be so cynical.

Anyway, one fun story and then I'll move onto what people are really interested in.

I do like to buy books at conference, and this year I was mostly in the hunt for the latest edition of Kirk & Bistner's Emergency book--its a really good book for some stuff--its my transfusion bible, but its really dippy for other things. It is cheap though, so I wanted the upgrade. While I was at that booth, I found an exotic pet anesthesia book that was also inexpensive, so I grabbed that and went to pay. Ahead of me in line was an older vet who was pondering over a huge book that we just refer to as Ettinger. It is a 2 volume classical vet medicine text, and the current edition also comes as an "E-edition" which gives you access to an online version of the book that is continually updated. We have the E-edition at work, and I use it a fair amount. The vet before me was trying to decide if he needed the E book or not. I think the E book is awesome so I piped in about how cool it was--you could read it at home if you wanted, and one time we had a dog that had a rare and unusual disease that we looked up in the E book, and then we cut and paste the appropriate article into the dog's online medical record. If we needed to print out that record, viola! The article about managing this weird disease and the citation print out.

Older vet is clearly impressed "Pretty slick," he says.

The salesman takes my books and starts to write up the receipt as the older vet makes up his mind. Before the salesman is done with my order the older vet decides on the E book. He tells the salesman to give me a discount since I sold the book.

"Already did," says salesman. And he handed me the receipt with a note that he took 10% off my books!

I was pretty excited about it.

Anyway, this is what you're interested in.

This conference always coincides with Valentine's Day. This is not really a big deal holiday for me. I think it is el dippo. I do not make a big deal of it. I do not even bring it up...but each year Dave's sent me flowers, or bought a gift. Last year we decided that we'd just do VD in Vegas, and we went out to dinner. So this year Dave suggested we just do dinner in Vegas on another night. Valentine's Day I was actually working and then we were off to the airport to fly out.

Dave decided that Valentine's Day would be Tuesday. He came up with a list of seafood places and we eventually picked out Buizio's at Rio. We never stay at Rio--its off the strip, but we go there at least once on our Vegas trips to see Penn and Teller. I think Dave likes Rio in general, too.

I got home and dressed up. I was originally going to wear a black dress but I discovered that this dress was fairly sheer and changed to a coral pink one. I am glad I figured the black dress out--but--I have worn this dress out before and no one said anything. So either no one noticed before, or they just did not tell me. Whatever. I did not go out to Vegas in a sheer dress, so hooray. Dave presented me with a glass rose before we left--he could not find live ones anywhere on the strip, but, he said, this is better.

We got to Rio, and even though they said reservations not needed, we sort of had to make a reservation. We spent 45 minutes in the casino, watching the bartenders do all sorts of tricks while they made drinks, playing penny slots, just wandering about. We got a nice table with a view of Rio's lovely pool area at Buizio's (Dave even said "Perfect!" as we got to the table) The food and wine were very good--we had a sushi sort of appetizer and I had soft shell crabs (yum!) It was a very nice place to have a cozy Valentine's Day dinner.

We took the shuttle back after dinner, and it was pretty chilly, so as we got off the shuttle I asked of we could cut through the casino to get home (We were staying at Bill's which is next to Flamingo--the shuttle is at Paris, south of where we were staying) We were across the street from Bellagio, and Dave pointed out that the fountains were about to go off, didn't I want to see that before heading home? I thought about it for a minute--it was cold for Vegas, but I like the fountains, so I said sure, let's watch those.

The Dancing Waters of Bellagio are one of the free things you can do in Vegas. Every half hour from like noon to midnight, the fountains go through a highly choreographed show set to music. These fountains are like no other--they can shoot water 60 feet or so in the air, and its something I don't get tired of. We could even see the fountains from our hotel room, so we'd taken to peeking out the windows when we heard them starting to do their thing. The music varies from pop songs to Elvis to classical works.

Dave found a spot directly in the center of the viewing area. There were not many people around, being that it was 11pm on a Tuesday. We got our spot, and Dave stood behind me, arms on either side, and I could feel him shake, though I thought he was cold. The music that night was something classical that I don't think I've heard before, and the fountains did a particularly nice show, ending with one of those impressive 60 foot in the air jets. I turned to Dave when it finished and said "That was nice," as he leaned into me, pulled a ring out of his jacket and asked if I'd marry him. I am not totally exactly sure what I said, but it was an affirmative.

SQUEEEE. Mushiness ensued. It was awesome.

The rest of the week was just really super, and though I am always bummed to leave Las Vegas (I don't think I'd want to live there, but I do enjoy the fantasy land aspects of it when I am there--I never like to leave.) I really didn't want to come home this time. I have still not actually made it HOME yet,though when you read this, I probably will be there (boo)

Details will be forthcoming. But we are going back to Vegas to tie the knot. And we didn't do it this trip because we figured there would not be a happy parent between us.

THANK you everyone for the well wishes!! :D

I can't seem to post to MySpace from the conference computers--they really do not like that site. But I have something I want to share--details will need to wait until I am home (or stuck in McCarron on Sunday!) You may have already seen the Facebook stuff, since the conference computers LOVE FB. Whatever.

Dave and I got engaged on Tuesday night. I am very much in squeeeeeeeeeee mode.

:D

Its Monday, so I am cooking, and its cool, so I am baking. And all of you live so far away that I can't feed you, so here is what I am whooping up and you can try it yourselves:

Zucchini bread:

I found this on allrecipes.com, but I made some changes, which are noted:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a loaf pan

3 eggs
3/4 cup applesauce
1 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

beat eggs well, and the rest of the above and stir well

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
1 teaspoon Baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Mix these and stir well

You can add raisin and walnuts if you want (1/2 cup each) but I don't like those in my breads. I think you could also do chocolate chips, but I did not have any.

Bake for an hour and cool.

This is baking right now--its almost done, and it smells pretty good. I ended up with 4 cups of shredded zuke from my last squash, so I have 2 cups frozen for later in the winter.

Dinner tonight (after yoga) is Pasta Fresca from the Moosewood Cooks at Home Cookbook. I love this book--its all things that go together in 30 minutes, and so far I have not found a clunker. I had this dish at Moosewood Restaurant when I lived in Ithaca, and I bought the book because it had the recipe in it. It is super good, I make it once a year. It is much better the day you make it than as leftovers, but the leftovers are not exactly slouchy.

4 cups chopped ripe tomatoes
6-8 large fresh basil leaves
1 large garlic clove, minced or pressed
1 Tablespoon extra virgn olive oil
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1 pound butterfly (bow tie) or fusilli pasta

1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cut into 1/2 inch cubes
grated parmesan or pecorino cheese (optional)

Boil a large pot of water

Set aside 1 cup of chopped tomatoes and 2 basil leaves

In a blender or a food processor (I usually use a blender, may use the food processor this time) puree the remaining tomatoes and basil with garlic and olive oil until smooth. Add salt and pepper

When water comes to a rolling boil, stir in pasta, re-cover pot and bring back to a boil. Uncover and cook pasta until al dente (8-10 minutes)

cut reserved basil leaves into strips

Drain cooked pasta and toss it IMMEDIATELY with mozzarella cubes. Add sauce and mix well. Top with reserved tomatoes and basil, and grated cheese if desired. Serve immediately!!

Obviously, this is best when HOT!

The cookbook recommends eating this outside in the summer with bruschetta, and I have to say that IS the best way to have it. It will be too chilly and dark for that when I make this later, so I will be having this while enjoying Heros and maybe a glass of white wine from the Finger Lakes region.

In lieu of the fancy "look for these at Nationals!" post that I did not do before going to Kentucky, I would like to take a moment to thank the various people who created my horses, tack and props that allowed me to do so well.

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Click here!

When I was an undergrad, I did radio. I was pretty good at it, actually. I had a good on air voice. The radio station was loosely formatted and mostly the bunch of us running the place goofing off. My second year of college we got a new advisor who actually took an interest in what we were doing and wanted to, like, run an ACTUAL radio station. This wa sa bit of a joke, as the station served only the college campus of SUNY Cobleskill's 2,000 odd students. You literally could not get the station off campus. You could not get it ON campus in some places! We were a 56 watt station. Mighty WCOB.

So, to say that the student board for WCOB and its new advisor, a woman named Wynn Norman, did not get along was putting it mildly. I was the Programming Director and we routinely butted heads until one fine day we somehow discovered that we had a mutual love for horses. I have no idea why or how it even came up. But we got on after that, me with my dreams of vet school and Wynn with plans to breed Thoroughbred cross ponies for dressage and jumping.

I went off to Cornell, and Wynn went off to central NY for a while where she eventually made friends with a friend of mine named Elaine Boardway. Small universe, I thought.

Elaine kept me sort of in the loop with what Wynn was up to, including her move south with her stallion Theodore and broodmares. She kept telling me about this pony Teddy that Wynn bred. Teddy banged around in hunters for a while and eventually found a talent for Three Day Eventing. He steadily moved up ranks, and at one point Elaine told me about how Teddy--whose full name was Theodore O'Connor--had gotten himself a new rider named--get this! Karen O'Connor! How funny! I had been pretty heavily into Three Day for a while, and I knew who Karen was...she was an Olympic level rider. I started to pay a little more attention to this Teddy horse.

Teddy's career blossomed. In the past year he could nearly do no wrong, and in this horrible spring for Three Day that saw several horse die at events (SIDEBAR: USCTA. The courses don't really need to cause fatalities, do they?) he ended up short listed for the Olympics. I saw Elaine while visiting some model horse buddies--actually, that was Derby weekend. It was also Rolex weekend, the big American Three Day event. This year two promising horses, Frodo Baggins and Quiet Man, died. One of the last emails I have from Elaine was from earlier this month, and she recounted Teddy getting short listed, and her comment was that if no one else died this year he might actually go.




What made Teddy so remarkable, and popular is that he is a pony. He is much smaller than most of his competition, and he makes them look like fools. In Three Day, they don't care what breed your horse is, or how big it is, everyone competes on the same course. Teddy stood 14.1 hands (57 inches) at his shoulder, a good 8 or 9 inches shorter than most of his challengers.

Sadly, today, Teddy spooked and broke loose from his handlers while at home and while he was running, he injured his leg very badly, slicing up several tendons. He was euthanized. I am just glad he did not die on course.

Run fast and jump high, Teddy!

Saturday morning I woke up in tears, and upset. I'd dreamed of Barbaro. I was at Pimlico, pressed up against the rail, knowing what was coming, and watching him break down again.

I shook it off and went to work. I'd lost my taste for following the Triple Crown races after Barbaro's Preakness. After work, I drove up to Ithaca to go visit my Friend Danielle for a weekend of model horse related socializing. At 7 pm, I was nearly at Danielle's and I flipped the radio on. It occured to me it was Derby Day, and I wondered who won. Almost at that moment, an announcer started reading the sports and reported a 5 length win by Big Brown, the only name I'd heard pre Derby.

And then he spoke about the horse that finished second...a tall filly named Eight Belles. She finished the race and then broke BOTH her front legs. She was euthanized on the track because her injury would not allow her to stand to be loaded into the horse ambulance. The TV missed her actually breaking down, because Big Brown was so far ahead.

As I gasped at the news, my phone let me know I had a text message from HMB. It just said "eight belles :("

I saw Charismatic break down on TV, and Barbaro really made me sick. If you do a Google Image Search for "Go For Wand" you can find very graphic photos of her almost literally snapping a front leg OFF. If this many high bred CLASSIC horses are breaking, just THINK about how many times a day the crappy ones are doing it.

I don't know WHY these horses are breaking. My theory is that they are gentically primed for it. Riding the crap out of them when they are YEARLINGS to prep them for RACING at 2 and 3 probably doesn't help either.

This HAS TO STOP.

I can no longer support Thoroughbred racing in any form. I mostly stopped following racing a while ago, but I was still up for a night of racing at the Meadowlands. No more. I'll go watch Standardbreds, but no Thoroughbreds. I don't generally do any track related stuff in KY, but if there are plans for Keeneland of Fasig-Tipton, I am going to say NO. I can't be part of this anymore, its disgusting, its sickening.

How many more have to die before the racing industry stops focusing on the money and starts doing things to keep the horses healthy?

Say hello to Alwen, aka "Al"

Al is a"Punjabi" resin sculpted by Lynn Fraley and painted to a scrumptious Belgian blonde by Liels Dalpe:





Belgia-riffic!

I should not be spending time with this while I SHOULD be getting ready for work, but I also HAVE to share this:

You are probably all familiar with Fantasy Football and Fantasy Baseball, and I suspect I am aware of Fantasy NASCAR. Twenty minutes ago I learned that there is FANTASY FISHING. I Googled this, and it is true, you can go do so yourself and be shocked and appalled. ESPN even has a portal for it.

I have decided that given this, it would be totally viable to do Fantasy Model Horse Showing. I've even worked most of it out--I nominate say a dozen of my show horses in each category of type of horse and people pay me to pick them out as a virtual show string and they get points based on how well the horses do over the show season. If I managed to get a lot of people to nominate their horses, I'd probably have to work out that the prizes get given out at the end of the year, and there would have to be some way to correct for the number of shows everyone get to in a season (maybe we limit actual shows to three per horse, and the player needs to pick out which shows they want to record points from)

That way if you want to show the Decorator Gold Charm 5 Gaiter, but don't want to shell out the grand to buy one...you can. Just like you can catch that champion walleye. I mean, a lot of people envy my collection, and I certainly covet models owned by others. Make it $10 a season and give out money at the end and I bet people would play.

Its not any more ridiculous than fantasy bass fishing--I mean I GET the foot ball and baseball--given the number of things that actual humans are doing, but fishing and model horse showing are like playing fantasy craps.

OK I really need to stop blogging about this right now, because I really could just talk about this for another hour!

So, I don't have kids, nor do I intend on ever having any, so I am mostly out of the loop on what is really going on with kids in general. However, what I gather from the world is that in America, kids are all staying home and playing with their XBox or whatever and not getting any sort of imaginitve play and down time in. This conflicts with what I observe on my street where there are constantly kids tooling about on bikes or playing kickball, but I'm not living in a particularly upscale neighborhood, so I figured I was not looking at a typical picture.

This afternoon I stumbled on a post in the Livejournal Model Horses Group (which is mostly 3 people posting to each other) about how there are videos about Breyers on YouTube. I was intrigued so I had a look...and low and behold, I know that if I was 13 in 2008, I would be ON BOARD with this:



Please forgive the sound track, and the beginning is VERY slow, but if you can get past the getting the whole getting the horse ready to go section, it really gets VERY clever--the girl who made this almost hid the string she uses to pull her truck and trailer along, and the section where she shows the jumping course as though you're going over it (I've seen something like this on televised show jumping events) is great. I'm surprised at her choice of horse--my best jumpers were already in a galloping postition, as this made it easier to "run" across carpeting, but I bet that is her favorite.

When I was 13 I desperately wanted a horse, but I had my Breyers instead, and I played with them FOR HOURS. I built myself an impressive 10 stall barn out of cardboard boxes--there was even an isolation stall for new arrivals (and yes, my newest horse had to spend 2 weeks in there...or less if I got a new one) I had a tack stall, and a feed room. I was working on a wash stall (with cross ties) too, when my cardboard barn was condemned.

I had also successfully begged for a camera by this point as well--I managed to con my folks into a Vivatar 600, which was a little 110 point and shoot. I took fairly good care of this thing. They even replaced it when a friend of mine dropped it. I was also reading a lot about stop motion photography and animation and was trying to hook up with a stop motion camera when I was not drawing little flip book cartoons in the margins of every notebook I had. I never managed to pull that off though.

However, I bet that the low end digital camera I would be able to snag as a 13 year old now would have video capability, and i would be RIGHT THERE playing with my Breyers online.

It is really amusing to see this out here--this kid has the Breyer truck and trailer, and there is a nice looking wooden barn (with lights!) in one shot. I'm not sure how she's making the horse jump (apparently it is propped up with legos, but they are well hidden) This is such a neat mix of Evil Technology and Good Old Fashion Play, I am almost tempted to make stop motion videos of my horses.

HMB is going to hate me for it, but I made Kiko a LOLCat picture

Please go vote for her so she may join the internets phenomenon.

kthxbai

This is fun, and I stole it from Alex...Copy and paste the first two sentences of the first real entry (no quizzes, memes, etc.) for each month of 2007.

Jan 4: It sort of annoys me to start off the new year with some venting, but honestly, if I don't do this, I think I am going to say something I regret soon. I was actually a ton more pissed off when I got out of work, but I have been jetting over to the gym every day for a WEEK solid and thundering along on the treadmill does wonders to my attitude.

Feb 2: Yesterday afternoon ended up being really frustrating to me...there reasons are multifactorial and not really important to the story, but in the end, I got a phone message late and it was a call I had to return, and this meant that I could not leave work before 6:30...this is when I am supposed to wrap up an hour earlier (and really, I could have been done earlier, but I had to waste time until I could make this call) So I was quite wound up when one of my techs came up to me to ask if it was OK if she could go...she generally puts this as "Do you have any more requests of me?"

March 3: I am going blind right now making a cable tiedown for a mini scale horse. How mini?

Apr 1: You know, I totally neglected to report this with all the stuff going on! While I was at MAR, a shower from CT named Leisl came to me and asked "What did you end up doing with your reiner who broke?"

May 2: So, the garden I putter about in? I had lettuce and greens to harvest this morning.

June 3: I managed to swap my work schedule around a little bit so I could not burn off a vacation day AND still get out early. Happily things pretty much fell in my favor and I was wrapping up a few loose ends just as Dave walked into my office.

July 2nd: I wanted to update my One Local Summer project, seeing as how I am planning on heading off to a closer Farmer's market today. I found one in Bloomfield (4 miles away!) that is open late on Thursday, so I am hoping to check that out this week too.

Aug 1st: Starbucks card #2 was given away this week. And it is MINE.

Sept 6: Yeah, I had fun things planned, but I also just found out something that left me stunned. Judy Renee Pope was a model horse person that I didn't know particularly well, though there was a time I was palling about with her roommate Liz Bouras a bit.

Oct 1: Sorry for dropping off the face of the earth. I pretty much tried to kill myself weekend before last...here is the short version.

Nov 12: Yeah, I am still here...work has been stupid busy of late and the time change kinda screws me up for a while this time of year. I hate that its cold and dark so early...it makes me want to hibernate.

Dec 1: So my health insurance is apparently hell bent on pissing me off every month. I am on the pill

November 21, 2007 7:12 am at mile marker 169 on the Garden State Parkway North:



The PT Cruiser is a 2002 model, but I got it October 20, 2001. In another 50,000 miles I plan on sending a photo to Chrysler. Assuming they are still in business....

Dear Santa... Dear Santa, This year I've been busy! Last Tuesday I broke cleothecat's X-Box (-12 points). Last Saturday cranbonite and I robbed a bank (-50 points). Last Wednesday I pushed anniemare in the mud (-17 points). In August I ruled Canada as a kind and benevolent dictator (700 points). Last Thursday I farted in an elevator (-6 points). Overall, I've been nice (615 points). For Christmas I deserve a wedgie! Sincerely, drsteggy

Write your letter to Santa! Enter your LJ username:

Racing Great John Henry Dead at 32
1 hour ago

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Thoroughbred great John Henry, two-time Horse of the Year who earned more than $6.5 million before retiring to the Kentucky Horse Park, was euthanized Monday, the park said. He was 32.

Park spokeswoman Lisa Jackson said the Hall of Famer's health had declined over the weekend. He had lost considerable body mass and was in kidney failure, she said.

"The next step would have been so hard on him," she said. "It wouldn't have been comfortable. ... It just wouldn't have been fair to the horse."

He was retired 22 years ago to the park, where he was beloved by the public and, along with stablemate Cigar, one of the park's biggest attractions.

Foaled March 9, 1975, and an average runner early in his career, John Henry was the highest money-earning thoroughbred in history when he retired in 1985.

The gelded son of Old Bob Bowers out of Once Double won four Grade I races and Horse of the Year honors at age 6 and 9 and collected seven Eclipse awards from 1980 through 1984.

To the end, John Henry remained cantankerous, said Cathy Robey, who runs the park's Hall of Champions, where the horse was stabled.

"He has always been nasty, from day one," Robey said. "John has always had a little attitude problem. He's like the little guy with the chip on his shoulder. He has so many people that would never actually touch him or get near him, but they love him."

"What can I say about the legendary John Henry that has not already been said," Chris McCarron, who rode John Henry in 14 of his last races, said in a statement from the park. "John meant the world to my family and me. Everywhere he raced, his presence doubled the size of a normal race track crowd. He did so much for racing, even after he retired, that he will be impossible to replace. He will be sorely missed but forever in our hearts."

John Henry was loved not for a tremendous talent but because he was a fighter who would battle not to lose at any cost.

Although he never won a Triple Crown race, he was successful at the highest levels of competition on the dirt and the turf.

"John Henry was a testament to the fact that a horse's value is far greater than the sum of his pedigree, conformation, sales price and race record," park executive director John Nicholson said in the statement.

In his career, John Henry earned 39 victories, 15 seconds and nine thirds in 83 starts and earned $6,597,947. He was inducted into thoroughbred racing's Hall of Fame in 1990.

Foaled at Golden Chance Farms in Kentucky in 1975, John Henry was called "small," "ugly" and "bad-tempered" as a foal. He was sold at the January mixed sale at Keeneland for $1,100.

He soon became known more for his disposition than his racing ability, often tearing buckets and tubs of the wall of his stall and stomping them flat.

He was sold to Harold Snowden of Lexington for $2,200 in 1977. Snowden chose to geld John Henry with the hope it would calm him and allow him to focus on racing.

He changed hands two more times until native New Yorker Sam Rubin and his wife, Dorothy, bought him for $25,000 sight unseen over the phone. John Henry's new trainer, Bob Donato, thought the horse would fare well on grass, and John Henry won six of 19 starts as a 3-year-old.

As a 4-year-old, John Henry won four of 11 races for trainer Lefty Nickerson. The following year, John Henry was sent to work with trainer Ron McAnally in California and his career blossomed.

McAnally trained John Henry with "carrots, apples and love," the horse park said. He visited during the horse's retirement and had seen him as recently as September, bringing the animal's favorite cookies and carrots, the park said. Lewis Cenicola, John Henry's exercise rider for six years, also visited the horse in September, the park said.

He won six stakes races in a row as a 5-year-old, including four Grade I races — the San Luis Rey Stakes, the San Juan Capistrano Invitational, the Hollywood Invitational and the Oak Tree Invitational.

That year also saw him claim his first of seven Eclipse awards as the nation's champion turf horse. He finished the 1980 campaign with eight victories and three seconds in 12 starts.

John Henry's remarkable run continued for the next four years as he won 18 of 30 starts. In 1981, he won eight of 10 starts and was named champion grass horse, champion older horse and horse of the year.

As a 9-year-old, John Henry won four straight stakes races, claimed $2.3 million in earnings and again was named champion grass horse and horse of the year.

He won what proved to be his last race, the Ballantine's Scotch Classic at the Meadowlands on Oct. 13, 1984. John Henry was scheduled to run in the inaugural Breeders' Cup Turf Classic that year, but a strained suspensory ligament kept him on the sidelines.

Rubin planned to race John Henry as a 10-year-old, but changed his mind in July 1985, after the horse injured a leg during training.

"If he'd have broken down on the race track, I couldn't have lived with it," Rubin said at the time.

Tom Levinson, Rubin's stepson, said in the statement that his mother and Rubin "loved sharing John's victories with his adoring fans and we appreciate their devotion even to this sad day. ... We are sure that if Sam Rubin were here today, he and my mother Dorothy would agree that their wish would be for John Henry to be remembered as the mighty, cantankerous champion we all loved."



He's not much too look at--never was, but here he is this past summer. I always visited John at Breyerfest, because I knew someday it would be the last one. John ran when I was into horse racing, and watching him run and win was exciting.

I've actually had quite a week. I have spent the day recovering from it, which means I did pretty much nothing, and that was groovy.

I will write in more detail later, but here are some stats for the past week:

miles driven: 2200
hours in car: about 40
states ventured through: (10, plus DC) NJ, DE, MD, DC, VA, NC, SC, NY, CT, RI, MA
top tens won at Bay State Live: 5 plus one overall championship
classes judged at Bay State Live: 20
Weird Al concerts: 2

Anyway. Now you get some dumb surveys because my brain still doesn't work.

Your results:
You are Qui-Gon Jinn

Qui-Gon Jinn 80% R2-D2 69% Obi-Wan Kenobi 68% Han Solo 67% Boba Fett 65% Yoda 65% Mace Windu 64% Chewbacca 63% Darth Maul 62% Luke Skywalker 59%

Overall, you're a pretty well balanced person. But maybe you focus a little too much on the here and now. Think about the future before its too late.

(This list displays the top 10 results out of a possible 21 characters)


Click here to take the Star Wars Personality Test


My current life in 83 questions.

***stolen from Dana. I am also improvising on the questions that are MISSING.

1] What was the highlight of last week?

Seeing Dave on Saturday night in Beverly MA.

2] Whose car were you in last?

MINE. I have joked about eloping with this car. I have decided instead to just be Good Friends.

3] When is the next time you will kiss someone?

When I see Dave next, I'm sure.

4] What kind of shirt are you wearing?

A black tank top that says "I will NOT get married in Vegas" several times. It passes for humor here.

5] How long is your hair?

Mid back

8] Last movie you watched?

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

9] Last thing you ate?

Some pretzels. I keep pondering the Dinner Question, and frankly, I need someone else to decide this today.

10] Last thing you drank?

Water

11] Where did you sleep last night?

Dave's bed.

12] Where do you get your news?

Usually NPR and CNN.com

13] Are you happy right now?

Yes

14] What did you say last?

"Bye!"

15] Where is your phone?

On the desk

16] what did you do last night?

Weird Al at the PNC Bank Arts Center! 4th row! pix here!

17] What color are your eyes?

Bluish green

19] Who came over last?

Uh...Dave probably came over to feed Kiko and water my garden while I was away.

20] Favorite Hero?

Hiro Nakamura

21] Who/what do you hate/dislike currently?

I am sure I could go on a tear if I were to get rolling, but I won't get rolling.

22] What are you listening to?

NPR

23] If you could have one thing right now what would it be?

A personal chef

24] What is the dumbest thing you have ever done?

Hm. I once told a man whose claim to fame was the research he'd done on embryology that it was pointless for vet students to be taught embryology. I did not know who he was when I did it. However, I still feel I was right.

25] Who makes you happiest right now?

Dave. HMB. Elsa

26] What were you doing at midnight last night?

Midnight? Um, well, I was not sleeping yet, but I was in bed. I could go on a tear here now, too, but I'll spare you. It would be a very nice tear though, but probably not things I need co-workers to quote back to me.

30] Are you left-handed?

Nope

31] Spell your name without vowels:

Jck or jcqln

32] Favorite Summer song?

"La Bamba"

33] What's for dinner tonight?

I have been trying for an hour to answer that, actually. I'm thinking "Take out"

34] What is the last alcoholic beverage you had?

ha, well, see, LAST? Probably the apricot beer I split with Skye

35] When Is Your Birthday?

April 18

36] Who was the last person to send you a text message?

Some dumb horoscope thing I don't recall signing up for

38] Last time you went swimming in a pool??

May?

39] Where was the last place you went shopping?

the Danbury Fair Mall

40] How do you feel about your hair right now?

My hair and I are on good terms right now

41] Do you have any expensive accessories?

How are we defining "accessories?" Or "expensive?"

42] AIM or MSN?

AIM

43] Best gift you've been given?

I don't know that I have a BEST, but I love the bracelet I got from Dave for Christmas (that I need to have repaired) and the necklace I got from HMB for my birthday.

44] Odd hobbies?

Aside from model horse showing? I garden.

45] First concert experience?

Richard Marx at the Mid Hudson Civic Center, Poughkeepsie, NY! Rock on!

46] Where does most of your family live?

All up and down the eastern seaboard

47] Are you an only child or do you have sibling?

Two younger brothers

48] Would you consider yourself to be spoiled?

No

49] What was the first thing you thought when you woke up?

I wasn't

50] Do you drink beer?

Yes

52] Myspace or Facebook?

MySpace

53] Do you have T-Mobile?

I have an account in case I am ever trapped at an airport Starbucks

54] What is your favorite subject in school?

Biology. Science in general

55] What type of boy/girl do you usually fall for?

Smart and funny. Warped slightly=bonus points

56] Can you play an instrument?

Just my Boombox

57] Do you have any talents?

I am a hot shot at both unblocking obstructed cats and doing vena caval sticks on ferrets. Seriously.

58] Have you ever been IN a wedding?

Yes. I'm hoping that's over, but it seems my friend Kate is Seriously In Love so I may have to go do bridesmaid duties for her again.

59] Do you have any children?

No

60] Did you take a nap today?

Yes.

61] What did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be a palentologist for a while, and then swapped to a veterinarian when I was 13. That worked out.

62] Ever met anyone famous before?

Weird Al and his band, Penn and Teller, Jimmy Fallon, David Hyde Pierce, Bruce Campbell, John Henry, Silver Charm, Seattle Slew

63] Do you want to be famous one day?

A resounding NO

64] Favorite Actress(es)?

Sigourney Weaver. She kicks ass.

65] Are you multi tasking right now?

No

66] Could you handle being in the military?

I doubt it. I have subtle problems with authority

67] What is your average cell phone bill?

I'm on a plan, so its always $35

68] Do you believe in Karma?

Oh yes I do. What comes around goes around even if I am not there to see it.

69] How was your prom?

Didn't go. It was on a boat and I was not about to get trapped on a boat when the thing got lame.

70] How many pairs of shoes do you own?

Like a dozen

71] Most exciting part of yesterday?

"Do you have any strawberry donuts?"
"NO, WE'RE OUT OF STRAWBERRY DONUTS!"

And so on.

72] Ever been to New Hampshire?

Yes

73] What are you doing today?

Nothing and it is AWESOME

74] Have you ever been gambling?

Yes

75] When was the last time you updated your blog?

Looks like...RIGHT NOW

76] Have ever been to New York City?

Yes

77] Ever been to Disneyland/world?

Yes on both counts

78] Do you have a favorite cartoon character?

Wile E Coyote, Super Genius.

79] Last thing you cooked?

I made Dad some eggs on um, Thursday. Since then, other people have been feeding me.

80] Hows the weather?

Warm and muggy

81] Any pets?

Just Kiko the Homicidal Calico.

82] Stupidest thing you ever did with your cell phone?

Nothing. The screen freaked out a few years ago, but this was solved by removing the battery and placing it back in. No idea what caused that, but I got caught in a torrential downpour at KY Horse Park right beforehand, so I bet the water made it wack out.

83] last time you were sick?

Mid February

August 4, 2007

Today's stats:

Start time: 3:39 pm
Arrival time: 10:05 pm
Approximately 25 minutes of break time

Starting mileage:190300
Ending mileage: 190???

Tolls:

NJ turnpike: $5.85
Delaware: $6.00
Maryland: $2.00

I drove through about 20 miles of DE. Its like a buck every 3.3 miles. Insanity.

Work was a little loopy, though I did leave by 1:30. I think I saw every exotic in the county, though. The species variety: 3 different birds (a budgie, a canary, and a lovebird), a ferret, and a rat (who got X-rays). I ran about 50-50 exotics to dogs/cats. I got home, did some last minute stuff and hit the road.

I found a really good radio station out of Philly--XPN. I also stumbled on one that appeared to be the Polka Medley station as they ran "Float On" by Modest Mouse immediately before "Interglactic" by the Beastie Boys. Who does that? Then they played Cake, and then I lost them.

I stopped once to get gas and ice cream, but the ice cream selection was poor, so I had pizza instead. That took FOREVER, so I almost gave up on that. I think tomorrow's meal on the run will be better thought out.

It is really nice seeing uncle Bobby and Aunt JoAnn again--I have not seen them since my cousin's wedding in 2001. I am pleasantly surprised to see some of the stuff from my Grandparent's home here as well. They had a lot of interesting antiques, and when the house was broken up and gone through, I was working my Horrible Bad Job and could not take any furniture (though Dad saved that blue couch some of you have slept on for me. And actually, my dining room table and chairs were theirs. I ended up with some jewelry--a pair of diamond earrings, a gold charm bracelet, a pair of heart shaped earrings with a blue stone of some sort, and an emerald cut white sapphire ring that I whip out for Special Occasions. I really like the ring and the earrings...the bracelet I remember playing with as a kid.) Bobby and JoAnn have this coffee table that had been my grandparents--it is one half of an enormous set of bellows from I don't know what--probably a big smithy. I always thought it a really cool thing to make a table out of. They've had it refinished (which it desperately needed) and it looks fantastic. I'd wondered what became of that table--I am glad it still has a home with Clan Arns.

We visited a bit and now I am in my room for the night. I am pretty beat, but I figured I'd jot down the day's observations before turning in.

And yes, you'll need to wait for anything else past Saturday night...its been hectic.