chas_lou

this guy can help you blow out the candles....

Well, the greatest 2 minutes in sports are over, and so are the Derby hangovers (none for me thanks; I avoided jello shots this year!).  However, after all that food, I feel like I need to eat salad and water all day to recuperate.

And now to the long-awaited pics.  I'm starting with these from last weekend, Saturday, April 25, which kicks off the Derby Week festivities with a mini-marathon, and the Great Balloon Race.  There's also a Steamboat Race on the Ohio River on Wednesday and the Pegasus Parade on Thursday. 

Anyway, one balloon, the "hare balloon," takes off and lands somewhere, with the other balloons following.  Whichever balloon lands closest to the hare balloon wins the race, and is the hare for next year.

Here's a few that passed overhead.



And this one got a little too close to the ground, where it was quickly captured by a family of giants and hung from a tree as a warning to other balloons:



I bet you're wanting to see those chapeaux now, aren't you? ( Well, here they are.... )

Welcome, race fans... (I saw a sign in front of a church yesterday: "Welcome, Grace fans."  **eye roll**)

As you know, today we have this little matter of a horse race right here in the Derby City... that's Derby with a capital "D" and that rhymes with "P" and that stands for "Party."  We're going this afternoon to a party at one of Michael's neighbor's in the posh Oak Park section of Jeffersonville, Indiana.  Never heard of it, you say?  Of course you haven't!  Did I mention how exclusive it was?  Neither Paris nor Perez Hilton are on the guest list.

So last night, Derby Eve, was our Dollar Tree Derby hat craft project (TM).   My friend Kat helped with couture consulting and glue gunning.

I bet you're dying to see the pics, aren't you?   ( Cover your eyse and click here )

First up, we have my dog Friday schmoozing up to grandma when we visited Shady Pines last week.  Then Alfie and his bff Mabel claimed their spots on the bed.  And that look:  "Can't I just lay down without the paparazzi following me?"



Next up, Spring is mostly definitely here in the Ohio Valley, as seen in the blooming azaleas (not as tasty as a bloomin' onion, but probably healthier) and the tulips around an oak tree in Kelly's front yard:



Finally, some things I recently noticed that I felt had to be documented for posterity.  In my complex parking lot, there was a PT Cruiser "LIMITED EDITION" with that certain fishy logo:



Finally, I was behind a truck this morning, driven by a proud teamster with a "Buy American" bumper sticker.  What kind of car is he driving, one might wonder....

Those racy Europeans.

Who is that Derby-perfect bombshell in a flowery frock, stunning hat, pearls and sassy sandals? It's the Kentucky Derby Barbie Doll, and I want one right now!


http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009904040317

Churchill Downs and Mattel teamed up to design her and did a truly winning job. Seriously, I saw her in person at the Kentucky Derby Museum, and she is one of the finest-looking special-edition Barbies ever.

She costs $47, and you can buy her at www.thederbystore.com, www.barbiecollector.com, walmart.com or Wal-Mart stores.

Non-Barbies will also get a chance to win a human-size replica of Derby Barbie's hat, designed by milliner Christine A.
Moore. She'll be creating 135 hats in honor of the Derby's 135th year.

The first hat will be auctioned off through the Clothes Off Our Back Foundation, benefiting such charities as Feeding America and HELP Malawi.

The remaining chapeaux will be available on a made-to-order basis on www.thederbystore.com.
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Also:

The Walking into the "Derby Decades: Simply Chic" exhibit at the Kentucky Derby Museum is like walking into a rose garden party with the most breathtaking dresses you could imagine.

Top designers such as Issey Miyake, Bill Blass, Nina Ricci and Chanel are represented in the collection gleaned from individuals and the Costume Collection at the Louisville Science Center. The exhibition was designed by fashion consultants and coordinators Jo Ross and Bob Stuecker. The dresses are displayed in chronological order, from the dark, formal bustled gowns of the late-1800s to the more-revealing and vibrant looks of the millennium.

www.courier-journal.com/article/20090406/DERBYFUN/90405014&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL

If Spring were a vengeful season, I would say it's back with a vengeance the past two weeks.  Last week at work, I took my usual walk around the block in the afternoon, and took some pics. 

We start in front of the building in downtown Louisville, where some pear trees and daffodils were in bloom up against the building.  Hanging in the basket are some poorly-lit plastic flowers (Plastiflora tackii)... what a relief they bloomed again, as we thought the ice storm killed them!



( Come on, you know you want to see more... )

I decided to clean out my camera today, so wanted to post these pics from around the time of Gary's visit a few weeks ago.  Here's where we ate:


The Irish Rover is one of the many unique restaurants in my neighborhood.  I'll have to do a journal entry about that soon....
( want to see more? )

1 - Go to "wikipedia." Hit “random”
or click the Wiki Random link.
The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to "Random quotations"
or click the Random Quotations page.
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click Flickr's last seven days option.
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use Photoshop (or similar) to put it all together.

5 - Post it to LJ and tag the friends you want to join in.

oops, that's Alfie....( here's what Gary really found. )

Inspired by Gary.....

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bringing that Arctic air with him.  It was 8 degrees this morning when I left home.

Tribute to Majel Barrett-Roddenberry - The voice of the computer

on the way out of Kroger tonight.

No explanation as to why they were discussing the philosophical merits of the various editions of Dungeons & Dragons at Kroger on a Friday night, instead of out with their girlfriends.

So, this afternoon, two of my neighbors at The Chateau come knocking on my door, bearing a plate of Christmas goodies.  They placed one at every door, I noticed later.  After I had eaten a delicious chocolate-covered peanut butter ball, I noticed a small book beneath the plate, whose title was:

Savoring?  My mouth watered momentarily as I thought, "Wow, sounds like a Christian cookbook, perhaps containing the recipe for these immaculate confections."  Not so, gentle reader!  They were proselytizing with food!  And not just any food, Christmas goodies!

I'm trying not to be offended by this.  Why do some people have to ruin a neighborly gesture with ulterior motives? I mean, if you want to give your neighbors cookies for Christmas, then just do it.  But this feels like there are strings attached.  Should I just suck it up, or should I bake them a plate of cookies with a copy of Annie Proulx's Brokeback Mountain and some PFLAG literature?