Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group discussion
What are U doing today?
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What are U doing today? (Ongoing thread)
message 3101:
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Jim
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Jun 16, 2012 03:51AM
tempted?
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Jim, "tempted" is a good word but no cigar. :)Perhaps I was thinking of the expression "fatal attraction". It doesn't quite cover Nina's situation (being fascinated by a book which she really didn't like*), but it does suggest the power of an attraction.
* The Night Circus
I started reading the sample and I can see the attraction. It's not something you can put your finger on, but it's there. See the sample here:
https://play.google.com/books/reader?...
PS-Ah, the attraction may be the magic which a magician performs in the story. In fact a lot of magical things seem to happen. Magic can be a strong attraction.
I think it would be a fun book to discuss if some of our group would read it and add comments.
Thanks, Nina (message 3087); I did have a good trip! No, I wasn't aware that your daughter is a librarian, but I'm glad to hear it. She's in a great line of work; and I'm sure she gets her interest in books, at least in part, from her mom!
Nina wrote: "I think it would be a fun book to discuss if some of our group would read it and add comments."Nina: I'm still reading the sample of The Night Circus.
Am also still reading The Seekers.
I'm way behind. :)
Werner: Welcome back! Glad you had a good trip.
Werner wrote: "Thanks, Nina (message 3087); I did have a good trip! No, I wasn't aware that your daughter is a librarian, but I'm glad to hear it. She's in a great line of work; and I'm sure she gets her interes..."My daughter is a children's librarian in Post Falls ID. When she has a program based on one of the children's books she often has to turn people away because the laws won't allow that many in the library. I think there are often five hundred waiting outside. Truth! When she did Peter and the Wolf she was able to get some of the musicians from the Symphony in Spokane, WA to come and let the children try out some of their instruments. She has been written up in newspapers and in library magazines. We are proud of her as she got her degree working full time and while raising five childrens and having a dreadful year battling cancer. End of a mother's story. nina
Nina, you must be very proud of your daughter. I think she has some of your genes. :)
Just got back from visiting our son in Montreal.Will catch up here soon.
I rode in a horse show today for the first time in 40+ years. It was a lot of fun. Just did cross rails, about 18" high, but wound up doing the Equitation division which judges on the rider, not the horse. We wound up getting two seconds & a 6th (I didn't hear them call for a sitting trot & posted half the time until Marg yelled in from the sidelines.) in the hack class. They didn't call for a canter, either. Amazingly, that was enough for Chip & I to win Reserve Champion of the division. I've still got it! I can whip a bunch of 10 year old girls at their own game.
;-)
Chip was a super star. This was only his 3d time away from the farm, the 2d by himself. It was also only his 2d time in an indoor arena, a very spooky place with lots of activity, loud sounds & weird acoustics. On top of that, it was his first show ever. What champ!!!
Pics are here:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?s...
They're not great because the lighting is so tough for a camera. Lots of bright & dark places which throws them all off.
Jim, congratulations to you! (And to Chip, too. :-) )
Thanks, Werner. I can't believe how much fun we all had. Marg coached me while Erin took pictures & helped out a lot. She also rode Chip around to keep him calm during the wait. The girls were thrilled to have me do this & it turned out to be just as much fun for me. Erin took a video that I posted here:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=...
of my second jumping round. I was shocked by how good I looked. That's not tooting my own horn, it's genuine amazement. I hadn't ridden in a saddle in over 2 months! IOW, we went in cold & still did well.
Jim, thanks for the great pics and video. That was an education in itself for me. I had never seen a horse show before. You look great and so does Chip. I wish I could hug him. He's such a good boy. Did you reward him? Did he show any signs of nervousness?Congratulations on your success! Nice ribbons!
Were all the horses in the show ponies? How does that work?
Chip gets cookies, probably more than he should, but I'm a sucker. They're horse cookies & I always carry a pocketful, so all the horses & goats love me.Chip was very nervous. Indoor rings are very strange to a horse since the light & acoustics are weird. On top of that, there was a ton of activity with other horses, kids running around, & stuff like that. I was leading him in & he suddenly jumped a foot over & landed on my foot. So much for my polishing job.
I hand walked him around the place for a while, then hopped on & rode him around. One idiot was sitting next to the ring & put his feet through the bars. That freaked Chip out. Apparently this guy has done this before, almost getting Marg dumped off of Cutter once. I don't know what it is about feet sticking out from the fence that startles them, but it does. Any kind of movement can do that. Chip almost jumped over another horse when the trash bag in a can rattled in the breeze.
Erin helped out a lot by riding Chip around for about 30 minutes before my class started. By keeping him moving & letting him check everything out, we got him settled pretty much before our class, but he was still pretty spooked when we did the warm up. I came out of the ring huffing & puffing. We were both nervous & I forgot to breath. He went sideways on me a few times, but we did get around the ring. After that, obviously things worked out pretty well.
As for size, there isn't any limit in this division. One little girl was on a 13h (medium) pony while another was on a draft cross (BIG horse) that was over 17h. Chip is 14.1h, a large pony. Different classes, divisions, & shows have different rules about that.
There was only one other guy at the show & if I wasn't the oldest competitor of the day, I was oldest around at that time. We were chatting before the show & one mother noted that the last time I was in a show, she hadn't been born. I was competing against her daughter, so I really was the odd man out.
;-)
Still, Chip & I wound up with quite a cheering section. Everyone loves his looks & the way he moves. He's just so honest & willing. Everyone could see that & we got quite a cheer after our first round, which spooked Chip some.
In about an hour, we'll be heading out for a few days up at Fulks Run. We'll be back sometime on Friday, if all goes according to plan, so I'll be back online then!
Jim wrote: "Chip gets cookies, probably more than he should, but I'm a sucker. They're horse cookies & I always carry a pocketful, so all the horses & goats love me.Chip was very nervous. Indoor rings are ..."
You should write a book about Chip.
He'd make a good character. Very lovable.
I can imagine how nervous he was at the show.
Gee, even *I* get nervous in new surroundings.
Obviously, it takes a lot to control a horse, especially if they spook easily.
Our ex-dog-groomer had some horses in stalls outside. Every time we went there, I wanted to pet their noses but I was afraid they'd bite my hand off. :)
Horses can take fingers off, but they usually don't mean to. Did I share this video with you of Marg & Blue?https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=...
Yes, Jim, I had seen that video and enjoyed it. Marg is brave. LOL I was once told that the hand should be held out flat with the treat so the horse could get the treat without biting you. But I was always afraid to try giving a treat to a horse.
Yes, you should offer treats with a flat palm. I know a few horse folks with missing ends of fingers. Marg was not doing that correctly, but Blue is a bit of a special case, too.
Jim wrote: "Yes, you should offer treats with a flat palm. I know a few horse folks with missing ends of fingers. Marg was not doing that correctly, but Blue is a bit of a special case, too."I'm sure that Marg knows her horses... and they know HER! LOL
Hi, everybody. I am staying INSIDE all day today. The heat index in Omaha is forecast to be over 105 degress.(Note: dear air conditioner: don't die today lol)
We're expecting that tomorrow & for the next five days or so. It was 59 yesterday & this morning, too. Felt wonderful. We haven't had any rain, either. We're in a moderate drought & they're hoping we get some before the 4th or else they might have to cancel fireworks.
Stay cool, Mary JL and Jim!We've had a cool, rainy spell here. I'm not used to feeling chilly at this point!
It's expected to go up to 80F on Saturday.
Every day it's a toss-up as to which clothes to put on. Sweater, no sweater. Long pants, short pants. Sleeves, no sleeves. Socks, no socks! Light nightie, flannel nightie. LOL It's tough keeping the clothes in order.
PS-Hope you get some rain soon, Jim.
Jim wrote: "I rode in a horse show today for the first time in 40+ years. It was a lot of fun. Just did cross rails, about 18" high, but wound up doing the Equitation division which judges on the rider, not ..."Congratulations to you and the horse; I like the picture with the ribbons. Not used to seeing you in pictures all dressed up. Pretty snazzy. thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Nina. I usually dress for comfort as you can see in the picture with all the ribbons. I don't usually bother to button the shirt this time of year, though.
Want to know what we are doing this week? Sweltering, that's what; 107 degrees predicted tomorrow and in the hundreds all the rest of the week. This never happens in June. I shouldn't say NEVER as it was over one hundred one day in 1987 and once in 1980. I thank God and whoever invented air conditioning.
We're having desert-like heat, although not that hot. It's so dry we're going down to about 60 every night & are supposed to hit 100 tomorrow, too. Very odd & horrible. No rain in sight, either.
Sweltering is a good word, Nina!Hope things cool down soon for all you folks.
Last week, when I went to Montreal with my sister, it was so HOT that it was almost unbearable. It was the wrong day to go their Botanical Gardens! The only spot there which was air-conditioned was the gift shop. LOL
It was 99 degrees last night at 7pm when a wind front went through really fast & hard. In 15 minutes, it lowered the temp by 15 degrees! Then it got calm, so we took a ride around the place. I'm going out this morning to mow the fields before it goes back up to 100 this afternoon.
Amazing, Jim! Keep cool.Today we're throwing a surprise 80th birthday party for Eddie. Hope it all goes well.
Tell him that we all wish him a very happy birthday, Joy!
Happy birthday, Eddie!It got hot again this morning. We were closing in on triple digits by the time I got done mowing the fields just after noon. Yuck.
Eddie Happy Birthday and glad you aren't here with our one hundred and one degree day after day; relief coming in ten days. We'll take it; better late than never. Have fun in cool NY.
Thanks for the birthday wishes for Eddie.The party was a great success.
We have a nice cool morning here.
My family gathered for an overnight visit and most of them are still here.
The boys will help Eddie put his boat in the water today. They got it ready yesterday.
Life can be so good!
We had a huge storm last night. Got 3/4" of much, much needed rain, but the winds were terrible. We have no power or landline phone, a Purple Martin house came down along with a tree in our front yard plus other damage, so I'm at home fixing. High humidity, going up to 100 again, & no AC. Ugh. At least we have the little generator to keep the important things like the fridge, freezer, TV, & computer going. ;-)
Jim, condolences on your damage and power outage. Glad you guys have that generator!The stormy weather and intense heat apparently was going on over a wide area this weekend (the Weather Channel reported a total of 13 people killed at one point). No one was killed here, but there were severe thunderstorms for the last three nights, with 80 mph winds reported on Friday. (They were having some kind of country music concert at the local stadium, and had to shut it down in the middle.) The days have been swelteringly hot, with downtown Bluefield VA reaching 104 degrees on Saturday afternoon.
We had a busy, hectic weekend (as usual), and the bad weather forced me off the Internet much of the time when I would otherwise have been online. And when I tried to log on yesterday morning, I learned that our Verizon Internet connection is down --no guarantees on when it will be fixed. So I haven't been here lately as much as I'd like, and won't be until that outage is resolved. :-(
Oh to have a rain storm; not power outage, just rain and minus the one hundred plus degrees for at least on day..it has been that hot for over two weeks..
I hear you, Nina. We were happy for the rain. We got our power back by 11:30, just before the AC would have kicked in. It was 77 in the house & we keep it set to 78, so we just made it. It's only up to 92 so far, too. I got most everything fixed, although the Purple Martin's pole is a couple of feet shorter. They like it again, though. They were so weird about it before. It was 1 panel to the side of the old place, tied above the fence on the 2x4 that we have for a laundry line, so it was only about 10' up instead of 15' & 8' to the side. I thought that was pretty darn good for a repair at 10:30 at night, though. I cut the bent part out & rigged it back into place now.
Getting rid of the tree & all wasn't bad. Thankfully, I have a tractor. I just dragged the tree down to the brush pile & then shoved it up & over with the front end loader. The stump wouldn't come out, though. I guess I'll just cut it off even with the ground & drill some holes in it so it rots. If any tree had gone, I'd rather it had been the one on the opposite corner. I might have to take it down because it's tough for Marg's bus.
I still have the door to fix in the barn, actually the latch. It's incredible that the latch broke. It's a 1x4 of white oak, a horizontal piece in between 2 pieces of iron I bent up to fit the door. There's only a foot in between them. How much pressure was against those doors to do that?!!! I can't even imagine.
Hard to repair but how fortunate we all are not to be homeless in CO. My heart goes out to them. Yes, it's hot and we are already tired of summer but we have a roof over our head and it's cool inside.
You're right about being thankful that it wasn't worse. I got everything fixed plus cut up a few more big branches that Marg noticed in the woods. We took a quick ride around the place & there are a lot of sticks to pick up, but we've pretty much got it all under control.I had one other chore today, the satellite TV reception went out. They can't get here until Thursday, so I left it on the signal strength screen & readjusted it myself. It's working fine now, but it's not as secure on the roof as I'd like, so I'm going to let them come out anyway.
They can check my work. I've never adjusted one of those before. Heard it was tough, but it seemed easy enough. I just turned the TV so Marg could see it while standing on the porch, then slowly moved it until it got to its best strength. When she saw it start going back down, she hollered & I stopped, backed it off a bit & clamped it down. Not exactly rocket science.
Sorry to hear about the storm trouble and terrible weather. Hope things improve soon.Sorry to be late with this reply. I've been recuperating from the big party.
Happy 4th of July!"Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independ...
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!
-Samuel F. Smith, America
Happy 4th to you too, Joy. It's supposed to be another scorcher here.
Thanks, Jim. Try to keep cool if you can.Right now we have a temp of 83F.
Our house by the lake stays fairly cool because it's under trees. That can be a disadvantage because it discourages me from going for a swim. Sometimes you just can't win. LOL
I am jealous. We are on our second week of one hundred degree plus temps. I am alread tired of summer. We had a nice picnic, however, at my daughter's inside. The kids, no matter the heat, swam in the pool most of the time. Even the cat and dog were inside and we saw nary a glimpse of the two horses. Next week might be in the upper eighties for the All Star Baseball GAme to be played in KC..nina
Nina, what a terrible heat wave you're having!Try to stay cool!
I envy those kids swimming in the pool. I don't do enough of that. First of all, we have no pool. Second of all, the water in Lake George always seems too cold to me until the end of July. I need water that's at least 80 degrees. Lake George seldom comes near that unless you're in a shallow, sunny spot.
Ever since Sunday morning, my back has been giving me fits, evidently from a muscle strained sometime last week. It's very sore and ginger, so I can't straighten up and I'm not good for much in the way of physical activity. :-(On the plus side, I'm on vacation this week, so I'm not missing work; and we didn't have any travel plans this week, so I'm not interfering with those. I'm taking Ibuprofin, which fights inflammation, so hopefully that'll clear the problem up soon!
Sorry to hear about your back, Werner.The Ibuprofin should help.
I'll bet you'll be doing a lot of reading on your vacation! It's a good way to rest your back.
Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group
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