Insert cliche of your choice here:
Now, you'll have to understand - strike that - you'll have to be aware (I can't understand it, so don't expect you to) that the Atlanta TV station WSB-TV that originally broadcast the story has taken it off their website, as has YouTube. Read all about it here thanks to our friends at PetPAC. Lawyers can be used as scary weapons; more's the pity that they're being paid by the enemy: animal haters.
Thanks to Persian video service provider Vidoosh for having the moxy to keep this available on the internet. (How's that for irony! Iranian Video Sharing exercising our First Amendment right of Freedom of the Press, while a TV station in Atlanta, GA, USA cowers.)
The chickens are coming home to roost, and guess who the shit is going to land on. Not that HSUS would know which end of a chicken clucks.
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
Just say no
warning: the following image may not be appropriate for all viewers.
Yes, I know it's wrong. Yes, it's inappropriate. You're right, I shouldn't have done it. I'm a mean, horrible person.
Too bad. I was *trying* to eat lunch. With my mother and my teen-aged son.
It was difficult.
Jeff Foxworthy said it best: some articles of clothing should not be sold in some sizes. A crop-top is one of them.
To protect the unwitting, I will not identify the city or restaurant. This is the entire image, unlikely anyone could figure either out.
If you can feel a draft, the rest of us can see too much. Get a sweater. A LONG sweater. Thanks in advance.
Yes, I know it's wrong. Yes, it's inappropriate. You're right, I shouldn't have done it. I'm a mean, horrible person.
Too bad. I was *trying* to eat lunch. With my mother and my teen-aged son.
It was difficult.
Jeff Foxworthy said it best: some articles of clothing should not be sold in some sizes. A crop-top is one of them.
To protect the unwitting, I will not identify the city or restaurant. This is the entire image, unlikely anyone could figure either out.
If you can feel a draft, the rest of us can see too much. Get a sweater. A LONG sweater. Thanks in advance.
Tuesday, 26 May 2009
Spring has sprung
And summer will be here any minute.
Spring arrives later in our part of the state (due to latitude and elevation) than elsewhere, and brings a brief profusion of color that must be quickly savored before its gone.
Working around our ranchero this weekend, I noticed many blooms, so I thought I'd share. Our late snows and early rain seems to have accelerated the schedule this year, though I still expect the cholla to bloom in mid/late June as usual.
Named where known, otherwise merely presented for your enjoyment.
this is Indian Paintbrush. it grows in loose groupings as shown here:
unknown, probably some kind of thistle:
unknown, very difficult to photograph. opens up a soft red with yellow stamens, quickly fades to white:
unknown; this yellow fellow has leaves like a holly bush and grows about 24" tall:
unknown; this purple beauty reminds me of crocus, but is probably something else. about 8" tall.
unknown; this delicate beauty is feet away from its purple neighbor immediately above.
unknown; this tough bugger hugs the ground and blooms despite being in a high-traffic area.
unknown; this riot of blue-purple flowers is about 12" tall and right next to the driveway:
In most areas the above plants would be considered weeds. I'm pretty Darwinian about plants: if they do well without attention they survive, otherwise we don't see them again. We make exceptions for foxtails and prickly pear in areas the dogs frequent - those are aggressively removed.
also next to the driveway, a yucca blooms. the flowers have a lemony scent:
just west of the yucca, a prickly pear (barely 4" tall) waits for... something... I hope I can find it again when it blooms:
This cholla is over 7' tall; it won't bloom for several more weeks (if at all this year). The yellow seed pods are from last year's flowers; after the seeds are expelled the pods turn brown and shrivel.
One curiosity of late spring and warm days is the incessant "popping" of pinon seeds. A soft clicking noise starts as soon as the sun hits the trees and stops in the cold and at night (we're in the mid-40's at night here). This shows a pinon upper left, and juniper lower right. Juniper pollen is a potent allergen, many people suffer in early spring.
We get another burst of colorful blooms in the fall, but it tends to be shades of yellow rather than the variety of spring.
Spring arrives later in our part of the state (due to latitude and elevation) than elsewhere, and brings a brief profusion of color that must be quickly savored before its gone.
Working around our ranchero this weekend, I noticed many blooms, so I thought I'd share. Our late snows and early rain seems to have accelerated the schedule this year, though I still expect the cholla to bloom in mid/late June as usual.
Named where known, otherwise merely presented for your enjoyment.
this is Indian Paintbrush. it grows in loose groupings as shown here:
unknown, probably some kind of thistle:
unknown, very difficult to photograph. opens up a soft red with yellow stamens, quickly fades to white:
unknown; this yellow fellow has leaves like a holly bush and grows about 24" tall:
unknown; this purple beauty reminds me of crocus, but is probably something else. about 8" tall.
unknown; this delicate beauty is feet away from its purple neighbor immediately above.
unknown; this tough bugger hugs the ground and blooms despite being in a high-traffic area.
unknown; this riot of blue-purple flowers is about 12" tall and right next to the driveway:
In most areas the above plants would be considered weeds. I'm pretty Darwinian about plants: if they do well without attention they survive, otherwise we don't see them again. We make exceptions for foxtails and prickly pear in areas the dogs frequent - those are aggressively removed.
also next to the driveway, a yucca blooms. the flowers have a lemony scent:
just west of the yucca, a prickly pear (barely 4" tall) waits for... something... I hope I can find it again when it blooms:
This cholla is over 7' tall; it won't bloom for several more weeks (if at all this year). The yellow seed pods are from last year's flowers; after the seeds are expelled the pods turn brown and shrivel.
One curiosity of late spring and warm days is the incessant "popping" of pinon seeds. A soft clicking noise starts as soon as the sun hits the trees and stops in the cold and at night (we're in the mid-40's at night here). This shows a pinon upper left, and juniper lower right. Juniper pollen is a potent allergen, many people suffer in early spring.
We get another burst of colorful blooms in the fall, but it tends to be shades of yellow rather than the variety of spring.
What the hell took so long?
A change order came to fruition this past weekend.
Following Anthony's graduation on Saturday we had a house-full of family, so the house was as clean as it's been in weeks. The weather was good, so Sunday outside we went for a fencing project.
The "puppy paddock" attached to the kennel building has been significantly expanded, and is now +/- 2,700 square feet (a LOT bigger than our house!) and has the benefit of natural shade from an enormous pinon tree.
Looking east into the morning sun, the tree to the right provides more and more shade as the day progresses. (R -> L: Gin, Ren, Py)
The best part? Four hours work from 2 people and zero new dollars spent; all the materials were already here and just reused. I moved the gate from one corner to another, we relocated several t-posts, hung existing fence fabric, and voila!
Looking north, the gate has been moved from the NW corner to the SW corner of the kennel building. The entire southern fence was moved about 25' to the south, adding 1,000 sq. ft. to the paddock. (L -> R: Ren, Gin, Py)
If the fence looks odd, that's because we double-hang fencing on the posts. My theory is that the double-density with two different materials (welded wire and no-climb field types) makes the hounds' depth perception just enough "off" to discourage challenges. So far, no double-hung fence has been challenged by a resident or visiting dog. (Not that I pretend this would slow down a Beagle - I contend no fence can stop one of those!)
First thing in the morning, only 54 degrees, and the 'zoi are all in the shade. Silly siberian beasts.
This project was a breeze - why didn't we do this sooner? It's great and seems so obvious now.
So, back to insulating the inside as the next task... as we're still at 50% and that's getting pretty old.
Following Anthony's graduation on Saturday we had a house-full of family, so the house was as clean as it's been in weeks. The weather was good, so Sunday outside we went for a fencing project.
The "puppy paddock" attached to the kennel building has been significantly expanded, and is now +/- 2,700 square feet (a LOT bigger than our house!) and has the benefit of natural shade from an enormous pinon tree.
Looking east into the morning sun, the tree to the right provides more and more shade as the day progresses. (R -> L: Gin, Ren, Py)The best part? Four hours work from 2 people and zero new dollars spent; all the materials were already here and just reused. I moved the gate from one corner to another, we relocated several t-posts, hung existing fence fabric, and voila!
Looking north, the gate has been moved from the NW corner to the SW corner of the kennel building. The entire southern fence was moved about 25' to the south, adding 1,000 sq. ft. to the paddock. (L -> R: Ren, Gin, Py) If the fence looks odd, that's because we double-hang fencing on the posts. My theory is that the double-density with two different materials (welded wire and no-climb field types) makes the hounds' depth perception just enough "off" to discourage challenges. So far, no double-hung fence has been challenged by a resident or visiting dog. (Not that I pretend this would slow down a Beagle - I contend no fence can stop one of those!)
First thing in the morning, only 54 degrees, and the 'zoi are all in the shade. Silly siberian beasts.
This project was a breeze - why didn't we do this sooner? It's great and seems so obvious now.
So, back to insulating the inside as the next task... as we're still at 50% and that's getting pretty old.
Two down, one to go
Susan Boyle got off to a shaky start, and then brings it for the finish.
You gotta wonder if a frumpy middle-aged white chick in the US would have garnered as much positive attention here.
So what, this adult seems to know how to make the most of her situation. Hat's off - and good luck in finals.
Sunday, 24 May 2009
The Graduate
I'm old enough to have a son who's a college freshman. Guess that's where the gray hairs came from.
Yesterday he graduated from high school. There were kids graduating cum laude, there were kids getting special awards, there was one kid with a 4.6 GPA (talk about spoiling the curve!). My son was not among these, he was just one of 150 in his class that got a tremendous education at a school known for diversity and rigor.
All but one of his classmates matriculates to university in the fall - that boy is weighing athletic scholarship options vs. a career in professional baseball. Few schools in the country (and sadly virtually no other in NM) cultivate that statistic.
Fourteen family members, most of whom live here in NM, attended graduation, had lunch together, then came here to the ranchero for cake, games of cards, dominoes, and catch, and sitting around and visiting. So often family gatherings are at funerals, it's a blessing to have a happy occasion to be together. One of my cousins has two young sons, and wondered aloud that she could "let go" as easily as we seem to be doing. I told her that at some point we came to understand that we weren't raising a child, we were raising an adult. There wasn't a single moment of transition or realization, it was an evolution and one day that's where we were. Anthony is a great human being, and although not all grown up, he is no longer a child.
My baby, yes, but no longer a child.
He's been from California to Connecticut, Canada and China, tasted the ocean and been lost in the clouds. He can laugh and cry and argue and sympathize... he's ready to go out into the world.
Good luck, godspeed, and have the time of your life.
Yesterday he graduated from high school. There were kids graduating cum laude, there were kids getting special awards, there was one kid with a 4.6 GPA (talk about spoiling the curve!). My son was not among these, he was just one of 150 in his class that got a tremendous education at a school known for diversity and rigor.
All but one of his classmates matriculates to university in the fall - that boy is weighing athletic scholarship options vs. a career in professional baseball. Few schools in the country (and sadly virtually no other in NM) cultivate that statistic.Fourteen family members, most of whom live here in NM, attended graduation, had lunch together, then came here to the ranchero for cake, games of cards, dominoes, and catch, and sitting around and visiting. So often family gatherings are at funerals, it's a blessing to have a happy occasion to be together. One of my cousins has two young sons, and wondered aloud that she could "let go" as easily as we seem to be doing. I told her that at some point we came to understand that we weren't raising a child, we were raising an adult. There wasn't a single moment of transition or realization, it was an evolution and one day that's where we were. Anthony is a great human being, and although not all grown up, he is no longer a child.
My baby, yes, but no longer a child.
He's been from California to Connecticut, Canada and China, tasted the ocean and been lost in the clouds. He can laugh and cry and argue and sympathize... he's ready to go out into the world.
Good luck, godspeed, and have the time of your life.
Monday, 18 May 2009
Like a drug
If this smell came in a bottle, I'd drink it.
And bathe in it. Cook with it, pour it everywhere, inhale the vapors. Let it consume everything.
The first rain. It starts with some clouds building; big, whipped cream kinds of clouds, flat and dark on the bottom, tall and puffy on top. Then the temperature drops a few degrees, the wind shifts, the thunder rolls in from the distance... Almost imperceptibly the humidity grapples over 10%. And then, at last, the smell comes: the smell of water from heavenward pushing dust and pollen and tired out of the air. Birds cease, bugs disappear.
And I am drawn outside, powerless to resist, to let the sound of the universe holding its breath in anticipation of the first drops waiting to fall to earth. This smell - only in the desert when the ground is hot and the air is suddenly cool and almost, almost wet - is in every pore of my skin, every nook and cranny of my being.
For countless thousands of years this smell has heralded the arrival of rain, and I crave its return every summer.
And bathe in it. Cook with it, pour it everywhere, inhale the vapors. Let it consume everything.
The first rain. It starts with some clouds building; big, whipped cream kinds of clouds, flat and dark on the bottom, tall and puffy on top. Then the temperature drops a few degrees, the wind shifts, the thunder rolls in from the distance... Almost imperceptibly the humidity grapples over 10%. And then, at last, the smell comes: the smell of water from heavenward pushing dust and pollen and tired out of the air. Birds cease, bugs disappear.
And I am drawn outside, powerless to resist, to let the sound of the universe holding its breath in anticipation of the first drops waiting to fall to earth. This smell - only in the desert when the ground is hot and the air is suddenly cool and almost, almost wet - is in every pore of my skin, every nook and cranny of my being.
For countless thousands of years this smell has heralded the arrival of rain, and I crave its return every summer.
Sunday, 17 May 2009
She DID it!!
Kicked the boys' asses, atta girl.
Rachel Alexandra has beaten the best fillies and colts of her generation, with class and style. The favorite won the Preakness, itself a rarity.
She breaks from the far left hole, #13. Her jockey (I will remind you, gentle reader, he is a native New Mexican) is easy to find, he's in canary-yellow silks. Pretty much wire to wire, she ran a great race.
The jockey, Calvin Borel, is the first in history to walk away from the Derby winner to ride a different horse against the Derby winner in the Preakness. Would the race have turned out differently if he'd stayed on Mine That Bird? Possibly, but that's irrelevant. What's done is done, and Rachel Alexandra proved she's one of the best.
The second place horse was Mine That Bird (also of New Mexico), and given his finish in the Preakness is officially my pick for the Belmont. He has the skill and stamina for that race, and I hope to see a good one. Now we have to wait three weeks to see it.
One of the things I love about horse racing - and eventing, and herding trials and coursing and agility and many other dog sports - is there's no division of sexes. Men and women compete against the course and each other with dogs and bitches, intact and altered, take on all comers. May the best team win, the best dog on the day, and move us to try harder to do better next time.
Amen.
Rachel Alexandra has beaten the best fillies and colts of her generation, with class and style. The favorite won the Preakness, itself a rarity.
She breaks from the far left hole, #13. Her jockey (I will remind you, gentle reader, he is a native New Mexican) is easy to find, he's in canary-yellow silks. Pretty much wire to wire, she ran a great race.
The jockey, Calvin Borel, is the first in history to walk away from the Derby winner to ride a different horse against the Derby winner in the Preakness. Would the race have turned out differently if he'd stayed on Mine That Bird? Possibly, but that's irrelevant. What's done is done, and Rachel Alexandra proved she's one of the best.
The second place horse was Mine That Bird (also of New Mexico), and given his finish in the Preakness is officially my pick for the Belmont. He has the skill and stamina for that race, and I hope to see a good one. Now we have to wait three weeks to see it.
One of the things I love about horse racing - and eventing, and herding trials and coursing and agility and many other dog sports - is there's no division of sexes. Men and women compete against the course and each other with dogs and bitches, intact and altered, take on all comers. May the best team win, the best dog on the day, and move us to try harder to do better next time.
Amen.
Friday, 15 May 2009
You know what to do
VOTE! and I for one voted NO.
Survey is here.
PeTA wants to buy advertising space on school playground equipment... because they haven't poisoned enough minds already I suppose.
And if you think that's OK, read this.
Hey, I'm a HUGE fan of free speech, but advertising is schools - much less elementary schools? spare me! - is wrong. And what PeTA has are money and PR, not the "side of right."
Educate yourself, get involved, make a difference.
Survey is here.
PeTA wants to buy advertising space on school playground equipment... because they haven't poisoned enough minds already I suppose.
And if you think that's OK, read this.
Hey, I'm a HUGE fan of free speech, but advertising is schools - much less elementary schools? spare me! - is wrong. And what PeTA has are money and PR, not the "side of right."
Educate yourself, get involved, make a difference.
Thursday, 14 May 2009
Go, girl
Saturday's Preakness is a can't-lose proposition for me.
If the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird, does well, it proves what we in New Mexico already knew - some damn fine running horses here. We have the richest purse in racing, and some of the toughest and fastest horses. Personally, I think Mine That Bird is better suited to the Belmont, the horse has endurance to spare. In the Preakness he'll be ridden by a jockey from Roswell.
If the Kentucky Oaks winner, Rachel Alexander, beats the boys - look at her easy head motion and massive hindquarters on the far turn - and that's possible, she's a genuine contender. She has untapped speed, which is exactly what is needed in the Preakness. And Calvin Borel will be aboard - gotta root for him!
I still flinch at Ruffian's memory; if Rachel Alexander does well, it will be seen by some as redemption for last year's tragedy.
I'm just looking forward to a great race.
If the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird, does well, it proves what we in New Mexico already knew - some damn fine running horses here. We have the richest purse in racing, and some of the toughest and fastest horses. Personally, I think Mine That Bird is better suited to the Belmont, the horse has endurance to spare. In the Preakness he'll be ridden by a jockey from Roswell.
If the Kentucky Oaks winner, Rachel Alexander, beats the boys - look at her easy head motion and massive hindquarters on the far turn - and that's possible, she's a genuine contender. She has untapped speed, which is exactly what is needed in the Preakness. And Calvin Borel will be aboard - gotta root for him!
I still flinch at Ruffian's memory; if Rachel Alexander does well, it will be seen by some as redemption for last year's tragedy.
I'm just looking forward to a great race.
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
The more things change...
... the more they stay the same.
One of my favorite things about staying with some dear friends in Colorado is the bookcases in the guest room, allowing me the opportunity to let my mind wander through German dictionaries, old magazines, and unusual books I wouldn't otherwise come across. Last year I leafed through a very interesting book, then put it on my mental list of things to buy sometime - and forgot all about it.
Until last week, when I finally got around to ordering Joseph B. Thomas's seminal collection of letters on borzoi. Having now read them through, I find him less pedantic that I expected (based on quotes in other works) and sensibly opinionated. To wit:
One of my favorite things about staying with some dear friends in Colorado is the bookcases in the guest room, allowing me the opportunity to let my mind wander through German dictionaries, old magazines, and unusual books I wouldn't otherwise come across. Last year I leafed through a very interesting book, then put it on my mental list of things to buy sometime - and forgot all about it.
Until last week, when I finally got around to ordering Joseph B. Thomas's seminal collection of letters on borzoi. Having now read them through, I find him less pedantic that I expected (based on quotes in other works) and sensibly opinionated. To wit:
"You perhaps realize, as do I, that while shows and showing are often amusing and interesting, and while they tend to bring a breed before the public, the are not always advantageous to the improvement in working qualities of the breed... at almost every show hounds that are entirely too fat for any practical purposes are placed in the ribbons.The emphasis is his, and I'm a fan. The following sums up borzoi better than anything else I've ever read:
"In a word, the shows lay stress on purely superficial appearances... on points that catch the judge's eye, rather than on those that prove the efficiency of the animal as a working animal."
"He must, like all other dogs, be brought up for the purpose for which he is intended; but properly trained and educated, he will be found as companionable as the best - no fonder of fighting than the deerhound, faithful as the collie, and more picturesque than either."These words were written in 1912; ninety-seven years later it's all still true.
Monday, 11 May 2009
Love and Loss
Hopefully you can read this article on an organization I do contract instruction for; it's a superior program and a privilege to be a part of this work.
And goodbye to Kathryn Brice, I don't recall ever disagreeing with her. Kind, generous, funny, spot-on accurate, insightful. Sleep softly.
And goodbye to Kathryn Brice, I don't recall ever disagreeing with her. Kind, generous, funny, spot-on accurate, insightful. Sleep softly.
Tuesday, 5 May 2009
A little mud never hurt anybody
It was a weekend that separated the utterly deranged from the merely insane. Guess which category I'm in.
Nine inches of rain on Saturday, which came on the heels of inches earlier in the week, left the ground saturated, and all of us at the I.I. ankle-deep in mud.
They say a picture's worth a thousand words...
credit: Shot on Site
What're two pictures worth?
credit: Shot on Site
Now imagine: sleeping in a van with these hounds for THREE nights. I need my head examined!
Nine inches of rain on Saturday, which came on the heels of inches earlier in the week, left the ground saturated, and all of us at the I.I. ankle-deep in mud.
They say a picture's worth a thousand words...
credit: Shot on SiteWhat're two pictures worth?
credit: Shot on SiteNow imagine: sleeping in a van with these hounds for THREE nights. I need my head examined!
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