Horses of Another Color

Meet Blond Actor. He's the third thoroughbred horse my friend, Jason, is part owner of.

It's been great fun betting on the horses. I've won some and I've lost some, but having a real reason to bet on and root for a particular horse is much more fun than picking a horse because of the name! While Brent was in Canada, Jason took me to the barn to meet his horses.

This is Jason's first horse, Sea Dancer. She's quite feisty. She wouldn't let Jason pet her, and if he didn't feed her the carrots fast enough, she'd snort and stamp her feet.

This is the most recent addition to the stable. His name is Communicator, and he's a big guy. He loves those red and white peppermint candies.

I really enjoyed my trip to the stable and even fed the horses some carrots. I missed seeing Whisper That Calls as she just had sinus surgery. But I hope to get back again sometime to check her out.

So long Blond Actor. Run fast. Make me some money! LOL!

Magic Meets

On August 15, I joined friends Renee and Deb for a little Disney Magic right here in Central PA. We joined 500 other Disney fans at the Radisson Penn Harris to listen to presentations and talke about all things Disney. Renee has more information about this event on her blog http://reneesrantsandraves.blogspot.com/.

My favorite, Justin Muchoney, won a Disney sponsored contest to become the Chief Magic Official. He was great. I also had the opportunity to meet Deb Wills of allears.net fame.

There was a silent auction which netted over $23,000 for the Make a Wish foundation. This was

one of our favorites. I had my eye on a Fess Parker wine item for Brent, but when it went over $100 I decided to pass.

I'm not as lucky as Deb or Renee as they both won great keepsakes of the event: a Grumpy music box and a Mickey pitcher. I had a great time though and am sad that next year they'll be doing a cruise. We won't be able to make that trip.

Lake Chautauqua

The Seitz family owns a wonderful "cottage" on Lake Chautauqua. We had been there once before, but that was quite a few years ago. With Kim laid off and the rest of us holding onto employment by the skin of our teeth, my "wings" group planned a long weekend at the Lake.

Kim, Matt, and I took off on Wednesday night after work. It was a relaxing day and Matt did take the jet ski out for a little jaunt.

On Friday, Brent drove over from Canada where he had been working for the last two weeks and Jim and Danna drove up from Harrisburg.

What an adventure. I'm blaming it all on Danna.

First, Jim and Danna decided to go into town for for coffee and donuts. Her SUV was making a racket and adding oil didn't help. They limped it along to a garage with the hopes that perhaps on Monday the mechanics could take care of it. Then we decided to take the boat out for a spin. Planing along, our speed suddenly dropped. Uh oh, Captain Matt was still at full throttle. I kept my fingers crossed that we'd get the sucker back to the dock.

We should have known better. Really. With our luck, what were we thinking. Matt and I decided to take the jet ski out together. I'm a little hesitant to take it out myself. If there were two and I could be with someone, I wouldn't worry, but by myself, I'm so afraid I'll tip the sucker over and not get it flipped around. Anyway, Matt and I set out to the middle of the lake and hop off to take a little swim. Ahhhh, it was beautiful. Until we tried to get back on. Matt climbed on, and I climbed up behind him but we couldn't keep the sucker balanced. Ok. Try again. I climbed on and Matt climbed up behind me with the same result. We were back in the drink. We tried another time or two and I was drinking the lake. Now Matt's idea was that I would drive the jet ski and he would hold onto the back. Two problems with that. One, Matt was in danger of losing his pants. Two, I didn't have glasses or contacts, so I really had no idea where I was going. Apparently Brent, Kim, Jim, and Danna were howling.

So, Kim and Brent decided they'd show us how it was done. They were a little smarter. They didn't go as far out into the lake as we did to take their swim. We all sat out at the end of the dock prepared with binoculars for a birds eye view and beer as we settled back to watch the show.

I feel vindicated. They couldn't both get on either. Then, they couldn't get the jet ski started and we laughed as they floated further down the coastline. Finally, they were close to a dock and Matt walked down, flipped the switch to the reserve tank, and it started. Yup...out of gas!

We made the mistake of taking Danna home with us. I'm telling you, she's jinxed! Shortly after crossing the state line into Pennsylvania, the GPS quit. We pulled into a rest stop to check the map and someone knocked on the window. "I think you've got a flat." Yup. Thankfully after Brent changed the tire the rest of the trip was uneventful.

We did have a good time while at the Lake, but I gotta say, it was one snafu after another!

Final Pool Day

Last Sunday (8/23), it was such a beautiful day. We had no shortage of things to do around the house, but in typical Brent and Donna fashion, we found something much more appealing to do. I called Paul and Diane to see if the pool was open and if they were into company.


Thankfully, they were into it and we headed north for one last day at the pool. Paul had a meeting so Diane, Brent and I prepared a great meal and when Paul got home at 9:30, he was surprised we were still there. Well, honestly, it wasn't the wine. We stayed out until the last bit of sun disappeared before making dinner. It was a great time with great friends.

Witness

On my way to work on Wednesday, I witnessed an awful accident. I typically travel back roads to work and it saves me roughly 10 minutes travel time. On this morning, I was stopped at a stop sign at the corner of Macintosh and Crums Mill Rds. The black car was travelling south, coming from my right. I waited for him to pass so I could pull out and turn left behind him. As he approached, I looked to my left and the red SUV was speeding over the crest of the hill.

This is a tricky spot. It's a blind hill and if you're going too fast you catch some air (...um..ok, I may have done this once or twice) and as you crest the hill, the road curves to the right. The red SUV never made the curve and crossed over into the other lane, hitting the black car head on, flipping over, and crashing into the telephone pole. A man staggered out of the black car which had spun 180 degrees and was now in the opposite lane. I will have nightmares of this guy, doubled over, staggering, looking right at me with his hand outstretched toward me, seeking help. There were no other cars in sight.

I immediately rooted through my purse, located my cell phone and dialed 911. When I was almost done with the dispatcher, a car stopped back behind the black car and ran first toward the SUV. By this time, two cars had stopped behind me and were running toward the man from the black car, now lying in the grass. The dispatcher told me I couldn't go until I spoke with the police.

At this point, and as you can see from the video, the telephone pole caught on fire. Sparks were flying and I was really afraid a wire would cut loose. Then, the SUV began smoking. The policeman used a fire extinguisher and then began breaking out windows. As I was speaking with the police, the man from the black car was loaded into the ambulance. They still hadn't gotten the person out of the SUV and I was afraid that driver may have been dead.

The next day, I say the on-line tv report of the accident. The driver, a woman, wasn't dead. No. She was DRUNK at 8:15 in the morning, with 2 open whiskey bottles in her car. A friend wondered why she had 2. Obviously one for each hand because clearly she wasn't using them to steer her car.

I was really shaken up, but headed to work like the good little do-bee I am. The other driver was taken to Hershey Med and I hope he's okay.

Baby Kiki Turns 50

Yes, mine brither has finally crossed that half-century mark. Rick, whoever said these are the best years of your life were liars. These would more appropriately be named "the years where everything hurts but you still have to drag your sorry butt out to a job you hate, working for a company that is in all likelihood mismanaged, and is just waiting to reward you for all your hard-working years of service by laying you off." But that was too long. Then they just shortened it to "the best years of your life." Like a beer commercial. But wait, I'm being cynical.

This is how the day played out. An aborted outdoor picnic was moved indoors due to the never ending monsoon season here in Central PA. But, all your family came to celebrate as did your long-time friend, Vere. We toasted the fact that our parents wanted you more than me and the fact that your niece, at a very young age could spout gross Zappa lyrics due to your influence in exploring musical genres, and the fact that your Mommy loves you. We feasted on another Kera masterpiece (yummy chocolate on more decadent chocolate) decorated very appropriately for a Floyd fan.
We were really tickled that Vere could come. And seriously, loved those pickles, man.

Rick, all joking and cynicism aside, family and friends are what make life good, and you are well loved. Happy Birthday!

Scavenger Hunt, Take 2

Are you as sick of this rain as I am? Sheesh. Whatever happened to brown grass that doesn't have to be mowed in August? Ah, but I digress...

Another rain threatening, overcast Wednesday so we were forced to move our second scavenger hunt indoors. All the clues pertained to something in the living room.

Clue: I want fabulous!
Gwen: I know, High School Musical.
Me: Which one?
Gwen: Duh, Grandma. HSM #2 (as she dashed off to the DVD's)

Of course. Who didn't know that. Clearly these clues need to be harder yet.