Thursday, July 23, 2009
Happy Birthday to ME!!!
Yep, it's my XX birthday today. The SO took me out to dinner (always a good thing!) and I have received good wishes from some unexpected sources.
Monday, July 20, 2009
A 93-year old gets it! Why can't Congress?
Driving home from Ithaca yesterday and I was barely out of Ithaca when Elton John’s “Your Song” came on the radio. As I wound up, down and around the gently folded hills of Central New York, I reflected on how fitting that was. When we were all at IC, we often found ourselves at the Fall Creek House for liquid refreshments and played A104 on the jukebox every visit. A104 was (and may still be!) “Your Song.” So, here’s to JBH, who was an integral part of those evenings.
A bit further along on my trip I passed through a little wide spot in the road shortly before reaching I-88. At this intersection lives a man known to horse welfare advocates as a killer buyer, although he probably refers to himself by the more romantic title of horse trader. He buys inexpensive horses at the local auction (Unadilla) and gathers them up until he had a full stock trailer load. Then he drives them North up I-88, up I-87 and across the border into Canada, where slaughtering horses for human consumption is legal. When I passed his house both ways on this trip, there were no horses outside. However, on my trip back at Easter this year, I saw approximately 2 dozen very sad horses in his muddy, filthy paddock, all with white auction tags glued to their rumps. I’ve never seen a sadder sight in my life. And that I why I keep working to get Congress to pass the legislation that will outlaw the transport of horses to slaughter. I want people like this killer buyer to have to find another line of work. And I know that passage of the laws will not be the end. I know that after the laws are passed I will have to work even harder to educate law enforcement officials that there are laws and to get them to recognize the importance of enforcing those laws. I’m hoping for that cultural shift in my lifetime, the one that means all people value animals lives. Am I a dreamer? Yes!!
One of the true bright spots during my weekend was the few hours I spent Saturday evening with my friend Barb and her family, a group that includes Barb’s 93 year old father. He is a delight of a person who upon hearing of my interest in horse racing, told me stories of playing golf in Florida with a retired trainer who he said would bet on anything and everything. Later in the evening, he brought up racing again and asked why I was so interested. My answer was about my lifelong love of horses and that I just loved to watch the thoroughbreds run. Before I could get to the Barbaro part of my story he said to me “You know, I think they are beautiful, but the most beautiful was that one who won the Derby and then broke his leg in the next race. He was a beautiful horse.” 93 years old, not even a horse racing fan and he gets it! (And this man is a wonderful artist, so he knows “beautiful”!)
A bit further along on my trip I passed through a little wide spot in the road shortly before reaching I-88. At this intersection lives a man known to horse welfare advocates as a killer buyer, although he probably refers to himself by the more romantic title of horse trader. He buys inexpensive horses at the local auction (Unadilla) and gathers them up until he had a full stock trailer load. Then he drives them North up I-88, up I-87 and across the border into Canada, where slaughtering horses for human consumption is legal. When I passed his house both ways on this trip, there were no horses outside. However, on my trip back at Easter this year, I saw approximately 2 dozen very sad horses in his muddy, filthy paddock, all with white auction tags glued to their rumps. I’ve never seen a sadder sight in my life. And that I why I keep working to get Congress to pass the legislation that will outlaw the transport of horses to slaughter. I want people like this killer buyer to have to find another line of work. And I know that passage of the laws will not be the end. I know that after the laws are passed I will have to work even harder to educate law enforcement officials that there are laws and to get them to recognize the importance of enforcing those laws. I’m hoping for that cultural shift in my lifetime, the one that means all people value animals lives. Am I a dreamer? Yes!!
One of the true bright spots during my weekend was the few hours I spent Saturday evening with my friend Barb and her family, a group that includes Barb’s 93 year old father. He is a delight of a person who upon hearing of my interest in horse racing, told me stories of playing golf in Florida with a retired trainer who he said would bet on anything and everything. Later in the evening, he brought up racing again and asked why I was so interested. My answer was about my lifelong love of horses and that I just loved to watch the thoroughbreds run. Before I could get to the Barbaro part of my story he said to me “You know, I think they are beautiful, but the most beautiful was that one who won the Derby and then broke his leg in the next race. He was a beautiful horse.” 93 years old, not even a horse racing fan and he gets it! (And this man is a wonderful artist, so he knows “beautiful”!)
Friday, July 17, 2009
A New Start
I started this blog a few months ago as an assignment for an online class during which I supposed to learn 23 things. Life intervened and i think I made it through 17 or 18 things before I dropped out. Now I’m converting this blog to a personal one so all the class assignments have been deleted and you will be reading about things that are important to me...things like horses, quilting, gardening, books, friends and travel. The last 2 are today’s subject.
I am currently in Ithaca, New York, my hometown. I stayed here and attended Ithaca College where I had the fortune to meet a truly Big Chill-esque group of friends. Most of us do not see each other very often but when we do reconnect it is like we’ve never been apart. We’re scattered across the country now but still manage to stay in touch.
We are gathering here this weekend for a memorial service celebrating the life of JBH. John was the most intriguing and unique individual. My words cannot do justice to all that he was and did so I will leave it to others. Here is the link to his obituary (written by long-time colleague David Wickstrom) from the Ithaca Journal JBH OBITUARY. And here is the link to the absolutely perfect tribute Keith Olberman broadcast on his CountDown show shortly after JBH’s passing in March OLBERMAN TRIBUTE.
I had the good fortune to work with JBH at Karl Jaentsch VW Repair in the mid-70s. JBH arrived there with some skills but learned so much more than mechanics from Karl. I’d like to think a bit of that German discipline found its way into John’s life but not so much as to dampen his joie de vivre. For several years, John would welcome my invitations to a home cooked meal at whatever holiday was at hand. Once we both moved on to other jobs, we would still gather when college friends would visit.
The last time I saw John was one summer before he moved to Virginia. He was working at the Cornell Sailing club and I met him there to catch up on life. Ever time I saw him after a period of time it seemed as if he was into something new. That was his natural curiosity and as an “information professional” I can certainly understand that. One of our friends points out a great enigma about John - as curious as he was and as technology-minded as he was, he never really took to using a computer much. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Rest in peace, JBH.
On a brief side note: It was a terrific day yesterday on the website where I hang out and try to make a difference for horses http://www.alexbrownracing.com. Three - count ‘em 3 - thoroughbreds were taken off the track and retired to start their new lives, one the winner of almost a million dollars!!! My sincere congratulations to all involved in these life-changing moves!
I am currently in Ithaca, New York, my hometown. I stayed here and attended Ithaca College where I had the fortune to meet a truly Big Chill-esque group of friends. Most of us do not see each other very often but when we do reconnect it is like we’ve never been apart. We’re scattered across the country now but still manage to stay in touch.
We are gathering here this weekend for a memorial service celebrating the life of JBH. John was the most intriguing and unique individual. My words cannot do justice to all that he was and did so I will leave it to others. Here is the link to his obituary (written by long-time colleague David Wickstrom) from the Ithaca Journal JBH OBITUARY. And here is the link to the absolutely perfect tribute Keith Olberman broadcast on his CountDown show shortly after JBH’s passing in March OLBERMAN TRIBUTE.
I had the good fortune to work with JBH at Karl Jaentsch VW Repair in the mid-70s. JBH arrived there with some skills but learned so much more than mechanics from Karl. I’d like to think a bit of that German discipline found its way into John’s life but not so much as to dampen his joie de vivre. For several years, John would welcome my invitations to a home cooked meal at whatever holiday was at hand. Once we both moved on to other jobs, we would still gather when college friends would visit.
The last time I saw John was one summer before he moved to Virginia. He was working at the Cornell Sailing club and I met him there to catch up on life. Ever time I saw him after a period of time it seemed as if he was into something new. That was his natural curiosity and as an “information professional” I can certainly understand that. One of our friends points out a great enigma about John - as curious as he was and as technology-minded as he was, he never really took to using a computer much. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Rest in peace, JBH.
On a brief side note: It was a terrific day yesterday on the website where I hang out and try to make a difference for horses http://www.alexbrownracing.com. Three - count ‘em 3 - thoroughbreds were taken off the track and retired to start their new lives, one the winner of almost a million dollars!!! My sincere congratulations to all involved in these life-changing moves!
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