Congratulations Da' Tara

Congratulations to long shot Da' Tara in his impressive wire to wire win in the Belmont yesterday, the longest (1 1/2 mile) and hardest race in the Triple Crown series. And condolences to Big Brown. To win all three of the races that cover a 5 week period is one of the hardest accomplishments in sports. Citation did it in 1948. It took 25 years for Secretariat to come along in 1972 and blow away all of his competition. Now it's been 30 years since Affirmed, the longest wait in history for a Triple Crown winner. I'll be watching every year for the horse whose name will become as well known as those above.

It is anyone's guess or theory as to why Big Brown was off yesterday. I think Dan Fogelburg said it best of the racehorse, it's something unknown that drives and carries a them to the finish. Their's is a chance of a lifetime, but a lifetime of chance.

Reminder: It's Been Thirty Years Since Affirmed!

Date: June 7th, 2008

Place: Belmont Park, Elmont N.Y.

Post-Time: 6:25 EST

Event: 10 horses running for the Belmont Stakes

THE EVENT: One horse running for the Triple Crown!

GO BIG BROWN !!

Triple Crown Trivia

This year is the 30th anniversary of Affirmed's Triple Crown Win and Citation's 60th.

Big Brown has been compared to Secretariat. Big Brown won the Preakness by 5 1/4 lengths. Secretariat beat Sham by 2 1/2 lengths in the Derby and Preakness. He won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lenghths and beat the track record by 3 seconds. He was a 2 year old when he was named Horse of the Year and only lost 5 races in his career. Before the final leg of the crown Time Magazine, Newsweek, and Sports Illustrated featured Secretariat on their covers on June 11, 1973, the first horse to be featured on all three magazines' covers in the same week, though no one expected his absolute domination of the field at the Belmont Stakes.

2008 is the 140th running of the million dollar Belmont Stakes. It is the oldest and longest leg (1 1/2 miles) of the Triple Crown.

The last living Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew passed away on May 7, 2002.

Triple Crown Winners
1919 Sir Barton
1930 Gallant Fox
1935 Omaha
1937 War Admiral
1941 Whirlaway
1943 Count Fleet
1946 Assault
1948 Citation
1973 Secretariat
1977 Seattle Slew
1978 Affirmed

Horses who won the Derby and Preakness, but didn't attain the final jewel:
1932 Burgoo King
1936 Bold Venture
1944 Pensive
1958 Tim Tam
1961 Carry Back
1964 Northern Dancer
1966 Kauai King
1968 Forward Pass
1969 Majestic Prince
1971 Canonero II
1979 Spectacular Bid
1981 Pleasant Colony
1987 Alysheba
1989 Sunday Silence
1997 Silver Charm
1998 Real Quiet
1999 Charismatic
2002 War Emblem
2003 Funny Cide
2004 Smarty Jones

My Father's Daughter

My dad was a gadget man and he liked to try out new things. When we were growing up he collected them like people collect stamps. He had hotdog cookers, crepe makers, milkshake machines and so on. Some got relegated to the basement and a few are still in mom's cabinets. His last fancy was some sort of software he and Uncle Cal found on the internet so they could talk to each other over the computer (back around 2000). Since I worked on a computer all day long I was a good person to experiment with. Both of them were calling me while I was working. I had this crazy laptop that had the speakers coming out the bottom. I remember hearing dad’s muffled voice while I was typing. I had to tip the computer over sideways and talk to him through the bottom. There was an easier way invented in the 1870’s called the telephone.

I am my father’s daughter and I inherited the desire for the unusual and a willingness to try anything once. You never know some of the crazy things actually work. In the last year I’ve gotten two great microwave inventions, one for steaming and one for pressure cooking, you know the kind of stuff I’m talking about…”14.99 if you call now!”. A few of my gadgets from this year are collecting dust in the barn or in a box of kitchen stuff I never use. That box is collecting dust bunnies under our bed. I don’t think I will be able to put my latest contraption under the bed if it doesn’t work out. Thank-goodness for E-bay, dad didn’t have it but I do. I bought the thing on E-bay and can surely sell it there.

You need a little history to fathom why I bought what I did. Somewhere along the way Jeff told our friend Ray that horses produce 40 pounds of poop a day. Ray wonders what we do with all that poop. I wonder what we do with all that poop; with two horses that amounts to 29,200 pounds a year. Last summer I tried composting some of it. I mixed up a cart full of poop with a cart full of old hay and a cart full of leaves. Once a week Sadie and I went down to the poop pile and flipped it around. Summer turned into fall and I forgot about my poop project.

This spring I needed some compost for the trees we planted and remembered the poop project. Sadie and I headed down back to the pile and were disappointed; the top of the pile looked the same as it did last summer. I jabbed at it with my pitch fork and to our amazement underneath the top layer was black, crumbly, rich compost.

My mind was at work while we mulched the new trees. How much compost can I make with 29,200 pounds of poop and what is the easiest way to do this? The answer was a few clicks on the internet: The Compost Tumbler: Makes Compost in 14 Days! On the web site you get the Tumbler, the thermometer and the activator for one not so low price. In that respect I am not like my dad, he would have bought it anyway. I switched personalities and became my mother’s daughter and searched for tumblers on E-bay. After watching for a few weeks I found a used one. The lady advertising it said it didn’t work out for them. I switched back to being my father’s daughter, bid on it anyway and won the auction. I mean really, I have composting experience and how could this thing not work.

The Compost Tumbler arrived on Thursday. Like my dad, I have a knack for getting other people to help me out with my schemes. Jeff put the tumbler together for me and set it up near the garden. Following the directions in the manual, we raked up the right combination of fresh grass clippings from the pasture, old leaves and horse poop. He mowed over them to mulch them up and helped me get one load of it into the Tumbler. Hmmm, the thing has to be 2/3 full and one load barely hit the ¼ mark. At that point I lost my helper.

Saturday morning I raked up three loads of grass, a load of old hay, a load of leaves and a load of horse poop. I mulched it all down with the lawnmowers and used enough gas to buy the equivalent of 10+ bags of cow compost at Lowes. After 4 hours of work, blisters on my hands and a sunburned nose the Compost Tumbler is loaded. All I have to do now is rotate the drum 5 times a day for the next 14 days. In the mean time I’ll be thinking about an easier way to get all this stuff into the Tumbler. I wish my dad was here, I’m sure he would have some ideas!

Two Down, One to Go!

Big Brown Cruises to Another Easy Win in Preakness
Excerpts from AP Racing Writer: Beth Harris

BALTIMORE - Not once but twice, jockey Kent Desormeaux sneaked a peek to see if anyone was gaining on Big Brown. "I looked between my legs, under my arms, and they were eight (lengths) behind me," Desormeaux said. "I stopped pushing. I said, `That's enough.'"

His big bay colt ran away with the Preakness on Saturday and now is pointed squarely down the path toward the Triple Crown.

The 3-year-old with the perfect record heads for the Belmont Stakes in three weeks as the fourth horse this decade to try for the triple, a sweep last accomplished by Affirmed in 1978. The last to try was Smarty Jones in 2004.

"Wow is all I can say," Steve Cauthen, who rode Affirmed, said by telephone from Kentucky. "He looks pretty special. It was like a cakewalk for him. The important thing to me is he keeps passing all the tests."

...As he did two weeks ago in a Kentucky Derby marred by the breakdown of Eight Belles, the colt named for UPS delivered another stunning win, this time by 5 1/4 lengths. Macho Again was second and Icabad Crane was third.

"We just got beat by a monster," said Julien Leparoux, who was aboard Macho Again.
Big Brown slipped a bit while breaking from the middle of an undistinguished pack and Desormeaux took him off the pace in front of 112,222 fans.

..."My whole job in that first half-mile was to keep his face clean," Desormeaux said. "There's not a grain of sand on most of his body."

The decisive moment came just before the final turn, when Desormeaux angled Big Brown out three-wide for clear running room. As he hit the top of the stretch, Desormeaux simply crossed the reins to let Big Brown know it was time to take off.

He didn't even need the whip, which he initially left behind in the jockeys' room. He could have saved himself the trip back to get it. His horse covered 1 3-16 miles in 1:54.80.

"This is the best horse I've ever ridden," Desormeaux said.

That's saying something.

In 1998, the jockey rode Real Quiet to wins in the Derby and Preakness only to be denied Triple Crown immortality when Victory Gallop stuck his nose in front at the wire in the Belmont. The final jewel is also the longest of the three races, a grueling 1 1/2 miles that proved the undoing of War Emblem in 2002, Funny Cide in 2003 and Smarty Jones the next year.

"We should have the horse to get the job done," Dutrow said.

Big Brown went off as a shorter priced favorite than Secretariat in 1973, who went on to win the Triple Crown, capped by a stunning 31-length victory in the Belmont.

"It looks like Big Brown might win the Belmont farther than Secretariat," said Paddy Gallagher, who trained 10th-place finisher Yankee Bravo.

Penny Chenery, Secretariat's owner, said she plans to be on hand for the history making try on June 7.

"I don't know whether Secretariat can stay with him or not," she said. "I won't speculate how that would come out, because we haven't seen him at that long a distance. But you have that big sweeping race track. I think he's going to do just fine."

In the Derby, Big Brown started on the far outside of 19 horses and used an explosive finishing kick to win by 4 3/4 lengths, the tightest margin in his 5-0 career. He's won those races by a combined 39 lengths.

The muscular colt joined Majestic Prince (1969), Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew (1977) and Smarty Jones (2004) as undefeated Derby and Preakness winners.

The victory put the sport's focus back on racing after two weeks of frenzied debate about safety and breeding following Eight Belles' catastrophic breakdown. His dominating performance came in front of a crowd that surely breathed easier after all 12 runners returned safely. On the same track just two years ago, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro broke down early in the race.

The Preakness win also means Big Brown's connections — Dutrow, Desormeaux and principal owners Michael Iavarone and Richard Schiavo who once worked on Wall Street — are headed back to their New York base with a horse that could make history.

It was an especially meaningful trip to the winner's circle, since Dutrow had accompanied his late father, respected trainer Richard Sr., on past Preakness days before the two fell out over the younger Dutrow's drug use and blown chances. In the past, his training license was revoked for personal drug use and he was suspended for doping horses.

The Preakness was also a homecoming for Desormeaux, the Cajun jockey who launched his career in Maryland in 1987. Cheering him on were his wife, Sonia, and two sons, including 9-year-old Jacob. The boy was born with Usher syndrome, a genetic disorder that stole his hearing at birth and is slowly robbing him of his sight.

In the winner's circle, Jacob said to his mother, "I wish Daddy would buy Big Brown. Mom, can we buy Big Brown?"

Big Brown earned $600,000 for the win and boosted his earnings to $2,714,500 for Iavarone and Schiavo, co-owners of IEAH Stables, and Paul Pompa Jr. Pompa named Big Brown in honor of UPS, a major client of his Brooklyn trucking business.

The festive mood at Pimlico after the race was in sharp contrast to the scene at Churchill Downs two weeks ago. Eight Belles, the filly who took on 19 colts and finished second, broke both front ankles while galloping out and had to be euthanized on the track, the first time that has happened in the Derby.

It was the second time a horse had broken down in the past five Triple Crown races. Barbaro shattered his right rear leg shortly after the start of the 2006 Preakness. Many in the grandstand cried that day at the sight of the Derby winner taken away in an ambulance. Barbaro was euthanized eight months later because of laminitis, an often fatal hoof disease.

There was no sadness Saturday, only giddy anticipation that racing might see a Triple Crown winner at long last.

Tornado Stono Bridge

When we lived on our boat in Charleston we lived at the Stono Marina right of the bridge on John's Island. The weather has been awful this week across the US. I heard there were tornados in Charleston and found the reports:

2210 1 SE HOLLYWOOD CHARLESTON SC 3272 8023 LOCAL MEDIA REPORTED A TORNADO ALONG HIGHWAY 162 LESS THAN 1 MILE SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF HOLLYWOOD SOUTH CAROLINA. (CHS)

2220 1 S JOHNS ISLAND CHARLESTON SC 3271 8007 LOCAL MEDIA REPORTED TORNADO ON THE GROUND ON THE STONO BRIDGE. (CHS)

2225 ROCKVILLE CHARLESTON SC 3260 8019 CHARLESTON COUNTY SHERIFF OFFICE REPORTS A POSSIBLE TORNADO AT 4897 MAYBANK HIGHWAY. NO KNOWN DAMAGE OR INJURIES AT THIS TIME. (CHS)

Horse Party at Our House

Aunt Betty sent out an e-mail titled the Cowboy Bible. The first truth was "Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight and bull-strong." We have personal experience with the first one. Last week Jeff stayed up to watch a movie and fell asleep on the couch. He woke up to thundering hooves and whinnies that sounded too close to home. He sat up and looked out the window just as three horses walked by. Thank goodness they weren’t ours. The neighbor's horses decided to have a party and invited themselves over. They were having a great time playing a game of "run and tease" with Skipper and Peanut along the fence line. Our horses were wanted nothing more than to be on the free side of the fence. So at 1am we’re all outside with the neighbor trying to capture the wild Comanche’s. I was in charge of looking down by the creek with a flashlight that needed batteries six months ago. Jeff and the neighbor ended up chasing them (in a pick-up) through the other neighbor’s field and finally got them back where they were supposed to be. I wouldn’t trade living in the country for anything.

PS: Jeff came home the other day with a cool flashlight for me… it’s a spot light and I can see clear to the back fence with it.

Thai Cooking Class

Jeff and I signed up for a cooking class at The Foxfire Gallery in Greenville. I'd heard about the shop in the Living in South Carolina magazine we get from our electric coop. Fox Fire is a gourmet kitchen shop in a quaint section of Greenville. They have an outstanding selection of kitchenware, gadgets and small appliances. They converted a section of the basement into a full size kitchen that rivals Emeril's. Chefs from the Greenville area teach classes in the evenings and weekends. Sometimes a chef will come up from Atlanta or Charleston and other big cities across the US.

Our chef for the evening was Alyn Abrams of Greenville. He spent twenty years as the head chef in a few different restaurants in Greenville and attended culinary school in New York City. He now devotes all his time to managing the "cooking class" department of the Foxfire Gallery. The Thai Class menu was Coconut Milk Soup, Crispy Spring Rolls with Spicy Ginger Dipping Sauce (tom kah gai), Potstickers with a Soy Ginger Dipping Sauce, Spicy Thai Chicken with Peanut Sauce and Chai Cream Tea.

When we arrived we were graciously greeted by one of the four assistants and seated at a long bar that formed a half circle around the kitchen. There is seating for about 12 people at the bar and we were lucky to be directly infront of the "chopping" area. Alyn showed how to prepare each course of our dinner then the assistants served us as it was completed.

We had a great time! Alyn was entertaining outside of being the teacher for the evening. He had many stories to tell about working in the restaurant industry. We got copies of all his recipes and I had to laugh when he described the process of getting the ingredient list together as he normally doesn't measure for the type of cooking we did this evening. It reminded me of asking my mom for a recipe and her answer was something like, "a little of this and a little of that". But I cook the same way for the most part.

I can't wait to try everything at home. The soup was wonderful and Jeff and I already decided to make Potstickers next year for our annual get together with friends over Thanksgiving. They can be made ahead and frozen. The two dipping sauces will be perfect marinades for grilled chicken.

The best secret we learned: The Asian restaurants don't use cayenne pepper or tobasco to heat up their dishes. They use "rooster sauce" (there's a picture of a rooster on the bottle) the actual product is Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. It's become so popular now that you can find it in the international fool isle at the grocery store. It is hot! But, there is a smooth quality to the taste and a small amount adds another level of dimension to whatever you use it in.

Next month Foxfire has a Saturday trip to the La Bastide Country Inn. La Bastide is known for some of the finest dining in the Carolina's. The trip includes a tour of the Inn and gardens where they organically grow their own produce for the restaurant. The trip ends with the chef preparing a meal based on produce the class participants pick from the garden.

We had a wonderful evening and are looking forward to more classes at Foxfire.

12 Trees

Last winter Jeff and I made a promise that we wouldn't plant any trees and bushes this year. Last summer, especially because of the drought, we were tied to watering. I can't remember how long it took each morning and afternoon. I imagine this summer, when it's 90 degrees in July, that memory will come back to me.

Last week Aldi's had a really good sale on ornamental trees, shrubs and fruit bushes. I was kicking myself for not getting there sooner because they ran out of the blueberries early in the week. But they sure weren't out of trees and bushes.

Saturday we planted, three Eastern Redbuds and two Purple Leaf Plums. We long forgot promises made in the dead of winter and the spring day got our adrenaline going (adrenaline I'll question when it really is 90 degrees in July). Soon we decided if you have to water five then what is a few more? And, a White Dogwood would really look good paired with two of the Redbuds and the horses could use some shade in the front pasture. Sadie, Jeff and I piled into the truck and headed off to our favorite nursery. We came home with a Cherokee Princess White Dogwood, two Red Maples (to line up with the one we planted last year), a Weeping Willow (for the low damp spot in the pasture) and a Blueberry Bush. By the time we got home it was pouring down rain. So much for having a relaxing Sunday.

Sunday the trees were in the ground by 2pm. We were putting stuff away when Jeff walked out to the cabin and came back saying, "You are not going to believe this but the trees Judy gave us last year, that you thought were dead, they're budding out." I couldn't believe it. Someone gave her some oak trees and she had more than she could plant. We ended up with three of them. It was the 90 degrees in July thing and we couldn't decide where to put them, so we transplanted them into bigger pots. Nothing special, no peat moss, no special dirt, no fertilizer, no mulch; we just stuck them in a pot of our hard as a rock clay. They didn't get much water all summer and none this winter (except when mom was here and she felt sorry for them). I told her, go ahead water them, but they're dead. We got the shovels out again and planted the most drought resistent, neglegience resistent, trees I have ever had. If they survive the summer then I'm going to throw all my gardening books out the window. You know the ones that tell you in great detail how to take care of newly planted trees; we broke every rule in the book on these.

Then we got the Blueberry Bush in the ground and pruned the two we bought last year, cut the grass, dug up another flower bed and planted three of the six shrubs I got at Aldi's. These are Burning Bushes and supposed to have fire red leaves in the fall. My back is aching and the other three Lilac bushes will have to wait till next week-end.

When I was growing up I had a friend named Debbie who lived up the street from my house. She had a huge Lilac bush in her front yard. I have been in love with them ever since we made May Day baskets of Lilac's every year and took them to all the neighbors. She and I both had our bedrooms painted lilac. Mine is still that way at mom's. I have never had a Lilac Bush and not sure how good they will do here, but it's worth a try. Aldi's price was to tempting to a Lilac Lover.

Then there are the plants coming from The Michigan Bulb company. Jeff doesn't quite know how many there are and how many more holes he is going to be diggin'. I'll let him in on that after the fatigue from this week-end wears off.

We'll we broke our "no new plants" promise...it will still be 90 degrees in July and we'll be watering all summer, but next spring is going to be absolutly beautiful!

Ramblings from Aunt Betty

Richard, Johnnie, Nancy, Ginny & Stacey

Carla sent an e-mail out yesterday with pictures of kids getting into all kinds of messes for instance kids who spilled a bucket of paint in somebodies living room. Ginny and I were commenting that we probably wouldn't have thought some of the pictures were very funny if they had happened at our houses. Aunt Betty sent this reply:

"No, none of us would be laughing. Actually one of us rarely laughed at stuff like that. Like the time I was stupid enough to have a bucket of water on the kitchen floor with a mop in it, and left for a minute to attend to whatever crisis in another part of the house, then came back to find one of mine mopping the flooded floor! Or the time Johnny's dog Taurus had a run in with a skunk and when he came to the door, we were unaware, opened the door and in the house he ran! Or the time Stevie had a ball walking through deep mud, but knew he'd better not come inside, so he walked down the hill to Great Grandma's instead. She cleaned him off! Then the teenage years with a bedroom full of clothes tossed onto the floor (not Ginny!!), me ironing her hair, her not setting the parking brake and the car rolling down the hill on the drive, just to mention a few!Or the time Johnny and Richard were fishing with Grandpa's equipment, unknown to Grandpa, and Richard's hook got stuck in Johnny's head!

Oh, speaking of head, mine hurts now. Guess I better go have some coffee. And a cookie! Betty"

Trip to See Memphis

I finally got to go home to see Memphis last week-end. Friday night we went shopping at Oak Park Mall then to Ginny's house to visit with them and Betty and Cal. Saturdy more shopping for diapers and baby formula. Sunday morning we got ready for church and then found out it was canceled because of the snow. Carla and I got all her baby shower stuff sorted through, washed and put away. Most the time we just watched Memphis. In the few short days I was there he started using his right hand to hold on to a rattle, cooing more, and trying to imitate us when we moved our arms around. He is a character and the happiest baby I've ever been around. His smile lights up a room!

Happy Valentine's Day

A week ago we rented the movie The Jane Austin Book Club. The book club comes into being when a woman discovers her husband is having an affair. Her close friend decides a monthly get together with three other friends will help get her through the current misery. The women are all Jane Austin fans and decide to reread her books and discuss one each month.

Several years ago we both tried to read Pride and Prejudice, after watching Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan battle out the books merits in You've Got Mail. I got through page one and decided I couldn't deal with sentences that were ten lines long. I felt I needed a highlighter to mark the comma's, the subject, and the verb of each sentence to not get lost in what was being said. After watching the book club movie though I thought maybe I should give them another try someday.

Last night I told Jeff I was going to run out to Barnes and Noble and get a book for the plane ride back to Missouri. A few minutes later he came in with a gift bag and Valentine's Day Card; there inside were all six of Jane Austin's novels. What a wonderful surprise! He surprises me constantly with the things he thinks of. Wonderful husband of mine!

I've picked out Northanger Abbey to read first. It's one of the shortest. I usually read pretty fast even to the point of skimming paragraphs, but that's not possible with these. They need to be digested sentence by sentence and the first page of Northanger Abbey is no exception! I'll enjoy this present for the next year, it will surely take me that long to get through them!

Jane Austin's Books: Sense and Sensibility, 1811; Pride and Prejudice, 1813; Mansfield Park, 1814; Emma, 1816; Northanger Abbey, 1818; and Persuasion, 1818.

January 2008, The One to Remember

Skipper is finally weaned off the last of his meds. The vet came out and looked at him one last time. He has about a 1/2 inch scar on his cornea, but the uveitis is gone and he can be outside now during the daytime. I'm planning on going back to MO to see Memphis over a long week-end in February.

Barn Work

Jeff says we run a Bed and Breakfast for Horses

Skipper's eye is doing better but still needs to get meds for at least another 10 days. Last week-end Jeff decided if we were going to be putting in eye ointments much longer we needed more lights in the barn. Peanut always has to be in the middle of what's going on and give his opinion about everything. Skipper supervised all the work from his stall.

With all the snow and rain last week we had a sloppy mess as you go into the run in shed. We were at Lowe's at 7am on Saturday buying guttering and had it all put up by 1pm. Since it was cloudy Skipper got to be outside all day (still dilating his eye with Atropine). We shut the gates and locked them out of the lot so we could put the guttering up. They bucked and reared and ran around the fence showing their indignation about the whole thing.

We are one big happy family! Everybody likes to be where everybody else is. I swear Peanut would like it if he could just come in the house with us. Finally we opened up the front pasture and they took off running up the hill.

Snow in South Carolina!

We haven't had snow in several years. I was excited about going to bed last night to see what it would look like this morning. It had just barely started snowing when we turned off the lights last night. Sadie had fun playing in it, but was shortly ready to go back in the house and have her face dried off!

Memphis Baby Shower!

As soon as I made my flight arrangements to go back to Missouri, Ginny and I started working on a family baby shower for Memphis. We had a great time planning it and lots of laughs trying to figure everything out when we are separated by over 1000 miles and the parents were holed up in Seattle.

Ginny hand made as many invitations as she could given the short time frame. They are darling! We switched our plan for the food at the shower several times (the guest list kept getting longer, decided to include both sides of the family, decided to invite husbands, invited some of my friends who have known Carla for years and also decided to include the girls and guys from Collision Repair). So what was going to be a small family get together at Carla and Frank's house ended up being moved to the church social room at Huffman Memorial.

Ginny and I scraped the idea of making the food. There was no way we could make enough appetizers for that many people given I wasn't flying into MO until Friday. So we opted for cake, punch and fruit trays. After a zillion phone calls and e-mails we had it all figured out.

Then I had to cancel my trip!!! Skipper apologizes profusely but there's no way I could go home right now. Everyone is suppossed to take lots of pictures for me. Sure going to miss seeing Ginny and laughing over all the funny things that happened while we tried to plan a baby shower that turned into the size of a wedding reception!

Skipper Update

Last week-end Skipper's eye started weeping and it seemed to be bothering him more. Called the vet on Sunday and he came out first thing Monday morning. He did an eye culture and debrided his cornea. We put him back on the Banamine for pain and added atropine ointment every two days to dilate his eye and reduce spasms. The eye cultures came back later in the week and the vet was back on Thursday to re-check. So now he's getting Banamine every day, atropine every 2-3 days, miconazole cream twice a day, triple antibiotic ointment four times a day and we've added tobramycin four times a day (to cover some bug that grew in the cultures that was resistant to the neomycin in the triple antibiotic). The tobra is the injectable form that gets reconstituted then I draw it up in a syringe and squirt it in his eye (needle removed). My kitchen counter looks like a med station and I told Jeff it feels like I'm working in ICU again.

The vet said I should have saved that acorn shell for posterity. We are all getting into the routine now, Jeff comes home from work at lunch everyday to help, though I've been trying to convince him that I could do the noon time meds by myself. Skipper is very calm about the whole thing now, maybe it's because he knows if he holds still he gets a carrot after every treatment.

He has to be up in the stall during the daylight (dilating his eye), but gets turned out as soon as the sun goes down till morning. Horses do get into a routine though and he and Peanut are waiting in the barn for us to get out there every night for the last treatment before bedtime.

The other funny thing is I leave Peanut's stall door open during the day so he can come and go as he pleases. He wanders out for awhile, but comes back and stands in his stall for most of the day keeping Skipper company. He is enjoying all this attention also. He doesn't get poked on every six hours, but he always gets a carrot too!

Thursday the vet said 1-2 more weeks of meds probably.

Cowpens Battlefield

Today we took Chase and Sadie to Cowpens Battlefield in Cowpens SC. It's about 30 minutes from our house. I know that's a weird name for a town. I thought it was odd the first time I heard it and you can imagine what went through my mind when I envisioned a town named Cowpens. Now, whenever I mention it to other people they almost always say, "Cowpens? Why'd they name a town that?" So here is the rest of the story:

If you didn't know, South Carolina had more Revolutionary War battles than any of the other states. Several of them were significant turning points in the war, including the battle at Cowpens led by General Daniel Morgan. The term cowpens referred to a local grazing area for free-range cattle at the time. Before the days of the Internet, the General Morgan's message swept across the Carolina countryside, "Meet us at cowpens!"

Through an ingenious plan Morgan composed the front line with the local patriot militia. The British under Colonel Tarleton sensing an easy victory advanced on the line. Morgan ordered the front to fall back and then on the next hill the British found themselves facing the Continental Army in full force. The Revolutionaries lost 72 men at Cowpens on Jan. 17, 1781 to the 600 losses in the British Army. Colonel Tarleton was sent fleeing into the hills. The overwhelming victory at Cowpens gave hope to the Patriots and changed the course of the Revolutionary War!

Bamboo Forest at Cowpens

Cowpens Battle Reenactment Jan. 15, 2005

The Moses Basket

Carla keeps referring to Memphis being in the Moses Basket, so I asked for pics. He is the most beautiful thing in the world!

What a Way to Start the Year

This has been one horrific day. The vet got here at 10:30 and Skipper had a piece of an acorn shell stuck in his eye, it was almost 1/2 inch imbedded way down underneath his bottom lid and he has a corneal abrasion. He has to have antibiotic cream in his eye every 6 hours, fungal cream every 12 hours and Banamine for pain every 12 hours. Confined to the stall for 24 hours and in the dry lot till Friday when the vet comes back. I've been to Landrum, SC to get horse supplies (bedding and miconazole cream). I don't keep lots of shavings on hand because rarely keep the horses up in stalls, so didn't have enough to get through till Friday.

When Jeff got home we could not get the antibiotic cream in Skipper's eye. He is so tall and got his head so far up in the air it was impossible. Talked to the vet again and he told me to come get some ACE (sedative) at the office. So Sadie and I got in the Subaru and headed for Columbus, NC to pick it up. When I got home we decided to try one more time without meds to do the "ointment thing" and we figured out if I stood on a bale of hay I was able to do it. So Skipper is tucked in his stall, slurping up his slurry (his normal pellets soaked in lots of warm water) and seems in a better mood that earlier today. Now we're watching TV and waiting until we need to go out and do it all again around 10 tonight!

Happy New Year!!

Frank, Carla and Memphis

We had a nice day and took The Sadie Lady on a walk at Cowpens Battlefield. She loves it there. Sarah is coming up for the week-end with Chase and so we'll go back again on Saturday. I've got a sick horse, Skipper did something to his eye. It is swollen shut and tearing, so he is in a stall with Peanut in the stall beside him. Been out holding a warm compress to it, don't know what he did, but he is really unhappy about it. I don't know where this day went, but it went to fast. Ginny and I are trying to organize a family shower for Carla when I go home on the 11th. Finally after a zillion phone calls and changes of plans it is coming together.

I got a cute e-mail from Carla, the excerpt is below. Happy New Year to everyone!

"We're going to go down to the lobby later when Memphis wakes up and see if someone from the hotel will take a picture of the three of us together. I've got him dressed in a little outfit with stars all over it for his "New Year" picture. That was another ordeal, getting that thing on. I put on the pants, which wasn't so bad, then Frank said "what are we supposed to do with this". Well, it was the top part, but I thought it was just a t-shirt, but it was actually one piece and the pants were supposed to go on top. I said "for now it will be ok". There was no way I was attempting an undress and do over. Changing clothes is not easy. But now he's had a new diaper change and I've put him back together properly. He's sound asleep in the Moses basket, arms stretched out above his head. Talk to you later. Love Carla"

Memphis Allen

Dad and Son
Why do boys get the good hair?
Mommy's Doing a Great Job!
I wonder if Carla will still find time to get her nails done when she gets home?
See a tad of tension in Mommy's face, (known her a long time!) Hang in there you are doing fine!
Snug as a Bug in a Rug!

Proud Parents

Memphis was discharged from the hospital yesterday. Discharge from a hospital is monumental in and of itself. All those instructions, forms to sign, etc., add a new baby and here is a quote from Carla's e-mail, "I seriously thought I was having meltdown when we got to the hotel. This is the scariest thing I've ever done and it terrifies me. Here's our newest problem. We are afraid to go to bed! I think we are going to take turns standing guard. How do people do it? We're scared to go to sleep!!!!!"

Frank and Carla's Christmas Present Delivered!!

Will write more later, but Memphis was born at 11:25 Seattle time: He weighed 9 pounds 2 ounces and is 19.5 inches long, lots of blondish hair. Carla got to go in the delivery room and has already fed him once. Everybody is doing fine!

Here is their blog:
http://memphis-in-seattle.blogspot.com

Stacey

Merry Christmas

Jeanne gave Sadie a Christmas collar. She loves it and if I take it off she whines at me to put it back on!

Yesterday we went to Miliken for a walk. Sadie was the envy of all the other dogs at the park with her Christmas collar. Then we had our traditional Thin and Crispy Hamburger Pizza from Pizza Hut. Jeff doesn't like pizza much, but we have it on Christmas Eve.

Today another walk at the soccer park. There was no one around so we had the playground to ourselves. We even convinced Sadie it was okay for her to go down the slide. Jeff and I played on the swings. I had forgotten how much fun it is gliding through the air!

For Christmas Jeff got a refrigerator to have at work and a safe to store our papers in. I got some cheese stuff, but the coolest present was a photo of Secretariat at the Belmont. It's signed by his jockey Ron Turcotte and it is shot from the front during the race. The jockey's head is turned slightly looking at the other horses 31 lengths behind him as he crossed the finish line!

Dan Fogelberg

I was saddened to hear Dan Fogelberg died today after battling prostate cancer since 2004. I always loved his music but one of my favorites is about a horse and the Kentucky Derby (the race is also known as The Run for the Roses). So in memory of him:

Run For The Roses

Born in the valley and raised in the trees
Of Western Kentucky on wobbly knees
With mama beside you to help you along
You'll soon be a-growing up strong

All the long, lazy mornings in pastures of green
The sun on your withers, the wind in your mane
Could never prepare you for what lies ahead
The run for the roses so red

And it's run for the roses as fast as you can
Your fate is delivered, your moment's at hand
It's the chance of a lifetime in a lifetime of chance
And it's high time you joined in the dance
It's high time you joined in the dance

From sire to sire, it's born in the blood
The fire of a mare and the strength of a stud
It's breeding and it's training and it's something unknown
That drives you and carries you home

And it's run for the roses as fast as you can
Your fate is delivered, your moment's at hand
It's the chance of a lifetime in a lifetime of chance
And it's high time you joined in the dance
It's high time you joined in the dance

Depressing Saturday

Karen and Ray were on the road by 0830 and then we left to take Sherrie to the airport a few hours later. We made one quick trip through Cowpens so she could see what it was. Next week is going to be lonely.

Most Wanted

Jeff has a pistol range down in the back and every year on the Friday after Thanksgiving we go down and do some target shooting. Steve loves to shoot and has an assortment of vintage guns from WWII and so forth. And Karen is really good also!

She always has the best ideas for the annual group picture. Last year we took pictures of everyone sitting on the tractor with our croquet mallets. Now after seeing the picture of Jeff's version of a hot dog bonfire, we don't want you to get the idea we are a bunch of rednecks but a picture is worth a thousand words. By the way we had the camera on a timer!





Steve left to go down to Charleston for the week-end. Jeff the pyromaniac with Rays help built a little fire out in the driveway and the seven of us (Keeshia and Sadie included) sat in our chairs around it. I'm sure the neighbors think we are nuts!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This year we girls did it right. We made enough of the food ahead of time that we didn't spend all day in the kitchen. Most of the afternoon we spent out in the yard watching the guys fry the turkeys. Everybody was a little tired from last night. After a wonderful dinner we all collapsed in the living room and watched a movie! Wonderful day spent with wonderful friends!

Turkey Frier Set-Up

The Chef's

Garage turned TV Room

Karen and Sherrie

Sherrie and her friend The Sadie Lady

Sadie fell in love with Steve this year!

Thanksgiving Eve

We all slept in a little this morning, then Sherrie and I started making appetizers (beefy cheese dip and crab dip), pumpkin pie and a cherry pie. She and Jeff hung the pictures we picked up yesterday. Jeff worked on getting the tables moved down to the backyard and running errands to town for stuff we forgot yesterday. Steve got here around one. We were still chopping stuff for gumbo and roped him into slicing all the cheese to go with the sausage Jeff was going to cook on the grill. Ray and Karen showed up around four. The three guys finished carrying stuff down to the back. The evening was a blast, we had a great time and hope to do it again next year. Several neighbors and their kids came. Judy and her mother came down also. I was so glad that Karen, Ray and Steve finally got to meet Sherrie, they've heard me talk about her for years. Here's a few pictures from the evening.

The wind started picking up during the afternoon and we thought we would have to cancel the bonfire. But by 7pm it had died down. I was up at the house directing someone down to the back when Jeff lit the fire. All I remember was seeing a big swoosh and the whole back yard lighting up. That's Jeff standing by it with the little bucket of water. We had to build a little fire off to the side so the kids could roast their hot dogs.



Finally the fire died down enough that we were able to sit around it!

Shopped Till We Dropped

Thank-goodness we canceled the trip to Gatlinburg. We started out around 0930 this morning and didn't get home till after 1600. The three (yes Sadie always goes with me) of us piled in the Subaru. First stop was Hobby Lobby in Spartanburg. Jeff told me if I didn't hang some pictures on the walls before Thanksgiving he was going to go around the house and start putting pictures up with scotch tape. Last week we gathered up all the large prints we've collected over the years and the four oil paintings we bought in Paris (in May of 06) and I took them to be framed.

Today only the horse pictures are ready, imagine that! But, it will please Jeff to have a few things on the wall. One horse picture is going above the black wrought iron bed in the guest room. The other one is a picture done by Orren Mixer, called Legends of the Breed. Orren Mixer has been known for his paintings of American Quarter Horses. I got this print from AQHA many years ago. It has three horses (just the heads) on it: King, Wimpy and Leo. Leo is Skipper's great-great-great grandpa and Peanut goes back to Leo and Wimpy. This one is going to hang in at the end entry hall where you come in the back door.

The Secretariat picture is going in the living room, to hang above an old antique table I found somewhere along the way. The photo was taken after he won the Belmont Stakes and thus the Triple Crown in 1973. The race is also know as The Final Jewel of the Triple Crown series. (The Derby is The Run for the Roses, the Preakness is the Middle Jewel). Only 11 horses have won the Triple Crown and Secretariat won the Belmont by 31 lengths. I get chills and tears whenever I listen to the live radio broadcast of that race, unbelievable!! In 1973 he was featured on the covers of Time, Newsweek and Sports Illustrated in the same week. A few years ago I read an article about Secretariat and it said a group of MIT scientists entered his vital statistics into a computer and it told them he was not possible! I've been in love with him since I was 12 years old and he captured the hearts of Americans and horse lovers throughout the world.

While we were over near the mall trying to find a place to get a replacement battery we made the mistake of asking some guys sitting at a bus stop for directions and the next thing we know the crazy man is walking up to the car asking us for money. Sadie did not like it and told him about it! He didn't come much closer, I threw two dollars out the window and we got out of there.

Last stop of the day was to get stuff so Sherrie could teach me how she makes her meatloaf and it was great!

Landrum, NC

Today Sherrie and I went up to Landrum. We stopped in The Hare and Hound for lunch and were able to sit outside on the patio. It was a beautiful afternoon in the 70's. Did some shopping in town, tried to find a new battery for her camera, and then stopped in The Hayrack to pick up some wormer for the horses. Of course The Sadie Lady went with us.

Jeff took us to dinner at the Mexican Restaurant in Chesnee. We spent the time talking about everything we have left to do for tomorrow and decided to trash the idea about driving over to Gatlinburg. Tomorrow night after Ray and Karen get in we're having a bonfire/hotdog roast way down in the back yard near the creek. Also invited the neighbors (Jimmy, Robin, Christy, Brian and all the kids). This will be the first time they have all been down to our place.

Jeff and Sherrie tried hard to convince me it was okay to serve boxed wine down by the bonfire with all the appetizers we're making on Wednesday. It didn't work. I just can't imagine serving boxed wine to the neighbors we just recently met. My plan for a hotdog roast was to get screw off cap wine, which seemed as redneck as the boxed kind. We laughed till we cried arguing the points of boxed wine versus screw off cap wine. Finally they decided they weren't going to convince me and so screw off cap wine is what we're getting and hoping that our first impression on the neighbors is a little less redneck than serving wine in a box!