Derby Doings

It's a fine time to be livin' in the Bluegrass.

There is so much going on we can't keep our social calendar up to date. And we're not even on the "A" list....or "B"......or even "C" for that matter.

But so what? We're still havin' fun.

Saturday, we went to the Airshow.....

And stayed for the fireworks.. A friend of mine from work lives right on the Indiana side of the river. They have an annual pot luck every year so we hummed it to their house for the day. Made for a long day but it was great fun.

Next, this weekend is the Great Balloon Race with Friday night being the Balloon Glow. That's always awesome.

There's something way cool about walking around with your Starbucks while 50+ hot air balloons fill up all around you.

Next week is chock full of activities in the River City. Festivals, concerts, parades... all kinds of fun stuff. This is where I really miss my kids being young. There's a lot of joy in experiencing and watching little ones. Girly still likes to do these things, but it's not the same. Now, she has to take a friend wherever we go and they stay attached to each other while trying to avoid being seen with us. So it's Husband and me. Oh, well... good thing we still like each other.

And, of course, Saturday is also opening day for this place... I guess I know where my spouse will be that day.

We've always gone to the track. We're not big gamblers. Me, I'm a $1 Exacta Box kinda gal. $2 whole bucks. Husband is a little more sophisticated. He gets into all those "acta" and "ecta" words.... Exacta, Trifecta, Superfecta.... That's too complicated for me. I want to be able to figure out if I've won or not.

Years ago, when Girly was only about 3 years old, we were at the track on a real pretty day. She's well versed in horserace lingo. As she rode her Daddy's shoulders up to the fence to pet some of the walking horses, the bugleman played "The Call To The Post". Our racing educated daughter pipes out at the top of her lungs...

"DADDY!!! LISTEN! THEY'RE PLAYIN' YOUR FAVORITE SONG!!"

I cowered and waited for Social Services to come escort us away, while Husband just beamed with pride, responding,

"YEP, HONEY! THEY SURE ARE!"

Needless to say, we weren't nominated for Parents of the Year.

The Friday before Derby Day is Oaks Day.. or the Lillies for the Fillies. The feature race is the Kentucky Oaks for 3 year old (I think) fillies. This has always been the day for local yokels. For many years, we went to the infield and picniced all day long with a large regular crowd. The 9/11 came along and security became so tight it wasn't fun anymore. Can't bring coolers, can't bring food unless it's in a clear plastic container, no drinks and not even your own sunscreen... Just got ridiculous. Husband decided to boycott Oaks Day infield to get his point across to coorporate greedy SOBs. They haven't let on that they've missed him yet..

Everyone knows there's no way to smuggle your own booze in if you can't hide it under the ice in the cooler. Bunch of partypoopers, if you ask me.

Anyhoot, the last couple of years an affluent relative has taken pity on us and passed along box seats for Oaks Day. Now we're spoiled. Nothing like having your own chair and a real bathroom. Never mind that the Bloody Marys are $6 or $12 for a double. Beer is also $7, I think... We were hobnobbin' with higher echelon.

But just like everything else... all good things come to an end. This year, Affluent Relative did not get as many seats, so we are left out in the cold. I'm trying to talk Husband into tackling the infield again, if the weather is nice. He's taking vacation all of Derby week. How strategic is that?

So, I'll leave you with another picture of why I love the Bluegrass State.

Wish us luck 'cause WEEEE'RE OFF!