Horsing Around 101...

Curry Comb, Flicker Brush (avoid bony areas and belly), Soft Brush
Saddle Blanket, Fleece Blanket, Saddle
Buckle bridle both sides loosely
Bit - need to watch next time

Practice: Edge of step - up on toe, bring heel down and stretch lower back and hips

Goodreads Spring Challenge 2010 Part 2...

Hi All - I'm back in tune after a kick-butt-busy eight months. Life's still (oh, let's be honest, always) crazy, but missing my challenge connection - so, so ready to get this bunny jumpin'.


20.10 - Group Reads
Read One Of The Following Group Read Selections And Make At Least One Post In The Discussion Thread. THE GOLDEN COMPASS (PULLMAN)

25 POINT TASKS
25.1 - Michelleo's Task - Future Aspirations
Think of something you really want to have in the future and read a book with that thing on the cover.

When posting the book tell us what you want and why.

25.2 - Stephanie Anne's Task - Fabulous firsts or superior seconds?
I love reading from award lists, so for my task, we'll visit The Costa Book Awards since many people might not be as familiar with this grouping of books. The Costa Book Awards are a series of literary awards given to books by authors based in the United Kingdom and Ireland. They were known as the Whitbread Book Awards (starting in 1971) until 2005, after which Costa Coffee, a subsidiary of Whitbread, took over sponsorship.

For this task, select and read a book that has won the award for best first novel/book. Then, read the second book published by the same author and determine which one you enjoyed more. In your posting, answer the following questions: Which book did you enjoy more? Will you continue to read books by this author?

25.3 - Coralie's Task - Coming Out Of Hibernation
Attend a live sporting event or musical or drama event and read a book that is somehow connected to the event. AFTER THE MUSIC (FEEHAN). ATTENDING "THE RAILS" GIG @ EMERALD ISLE 4/24/10. PROTAGONIST'S FATHER IS A FORMER CLUB MUSICIAN

25.4 - Diane's Task - The Name Game
A. Read a book written by an author that shares your first, middle, OR last name. THE GIANT’S HOUSE: A ROMANCE (ELIZABETH MCCRACKEN) MY MIDDLE NAME IS ELIZABETH
AND
C. Read a book with a character’s name in the title. ALICE ADAMS (TARKINGTON)

25.5 - Leora's Task - Spring Cleaning
For this task you must read at least 850 pages from your TBR pile.

25.6 - BJ Rose's Task - This Day In History
A. Read a book about an event that took place on that day in history (other than births or deaths), or a book about the topic of that event. THE BIKINI: A CULTURAL HISTORY (ALAC)
AND
B. Read a contemporary book (1950 to present) that takes place in the same area of the world as Book A, OR covers the same topic as Book A THE ELEGANCE OF THE HEDGEHOG (BARBERY) SETTING - PARIS
AND
C. When posting, include the event you chose from the website, along with the books you read. On July 5, 1946 Louis Reard's bikini swimsuit design debuts at Paris fashion show

25.7 - Ashley FL's Task - The Gods Must Be Crazy
Read a book involving Greek and/or Roman gods. May be non-fiction or fiction. Half-blood Gods are fine. A GREEK GOD AT THE LADIES’ CLUB (MCKNIGHT)

25.8 - Helen's Task - Talk to the Animals
In honor of our animal friends, read two books (fiction or non-fiction):
A. A book narrated by or written in the voice of an animal SHAKESPEARE’S DOG: A NOVEL (ROOKE)
AND
B. A book demonstrating the relationship between owners and pets THE DAILY COYOTE: A STORY OF LOVE, SURVIVAL, AND TRUST IN THE WILDS OF WYOMING (STOCKTON)

25.9 - Wendy's Task - Spring Break
Read a book written by an author who was popular when you were in high school or college. RAPE (JOYCE CAROL OATES) LATE 1970s - EARLY 1980s

25.10 Melissa GA's Task - Deja Vu
A. Read an original work of fiction, 100 pages or longer... PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (AUSTEN)
AND
B. Read a published book of 100 pages or more that is based on the first book but written by a different author. The second book may be a sequel, a prequel, a re-telling, or featuring characters from the original work. MR. DARCY BROKE MY HEART: A NOVEL (PATILLO)
THEN
C. When claiming points for this task, tell us whether the second author's work lives up to the original.

30 POINT TASKS
30.1 - Roseann's Task - Spring Fling
A.Read a book with the word Spring in the title.
And
B. Read a book with "Fling, Throw, or Toss" in the title.

30.2 - Cheryl TX's Task - A Texas-Sized Task
A. Read one book from this year's Texas Bluebonnet Award List THE PENDERWICKS ON GARDAM STREET (BIRDSALL)
B. Read one book from this year's Texas Lone Star Reading List SLOB (POTTER)

30.3 - Ms. Anderson's Task - Birth and Renewal
A. Read a book first published in 2010. The book may be part of a series; however, it must be the FIRST BOOK in the series. Stand-alone books are fine. SELF MADE (WEHM)
B. Read a book (again, any genre is fine) with the prefix "re-" in the title or subtitle. A REMARKABLE WIFE (GOOLICK)

30.4 - DLM Rose's Task - One if by Land, Two if by Sea
A. One book with a natural landform or land feature in the title- mountain, valley, plain, volcano, cliff, cave, cape, canyon etc. CLAN OF THE CAVE BEAR (AUEL) OR THE CAVEMAN’S VALENTINE (GREEN)
And
B. One book with a natural body of water in the title: ocean, pond, lake, stream, river, bay, fjord, etc. OCEANS OF FIRE (FEEHAN)

30.5 - PJ Reads' Task - As Suggested By Tanja - Six Degrees of Separation
A. Read any book off your TBR. THE CONFESSIONS OF EDWARD DAY: A NOVEL (MARTIN)
AND
B. Read a book that the author is at a maximum of six degrees of separation from the author in Part A. In your post for this task you must explain the connection in order to get credit. THE HELP (STOCKETT) KATHRYN STOCKETT GRADUATED THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA. VALERIE MARTIN HAS TAUGHT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA. THAT IS ONE DEGREE OF SEPARATION.

30.6 - Donna Jo's Task - As Suggested By Liz Brooklyn - Character References
A. For this task you need to read a book (fiction or non-fiction) AND A book or book written by an author that the first book references. WHEN YOU REACH ME (STEAD) AND A WRINKLE IN TIME (L’ENGEL) (2ND BOOK IS BEING READ BY PROTAGONIST IN 1ST BOOK)

Goodreads Spring Challenge 2010 Part 1 ...

and court, and lectures, and clinicals, and finishing FAFSA, and celebrating 20 years of awesomeness, and staying in my 40s while Vooch leaves 'em, and graduations and parties, and waiting for my best girlfriend's schedule to sync with mine so she can spend some of that kick-ass new income she's earning, and painting the pool room and installing the pool and kicking back in the Adirondacks and hiking, canoeing, getting lost with my family, and feeling great. Life is sweet.

Look at Lois' New Toy...

An Email to cjane...

Hi cj - If I've learned one lesson in life it is to never second guess the voice in my head. It lives in there - all large and in charge - not to be messed with in the normal course of affairs. It's in there when your head hits the pillow under the stars and when your eyes open to the glory of a new day. It's in there when you're searching for answers and when you're trying to think quietly without interruption. Heck, it's in there when you vacuum. Follow your voice, cj, it often knows more than we realize. Blessed be on the birth of your wee one. Amy

Orange Ladybugs Are Harshing My Mellow...

Are toxic orange ladybugs the latest environmental threat?
August 21, 2000

Dear Straight Dope:

I was recently told that the U.S. is being overrun by toxic orange lady bugs. These lady bugs, according to my source, were imported from Asia to combat aphids and other garden pests. However, they have become a threat to human health because they give off a toxic vapor which causes asthma and they invade homes. Since hearing this I have noticed that the only ladybugs I see are orange. Where have the red ladybugs gone? Are these big orange Asian bugs taking over? Who is responsible for importing them?

— L.E. Herrick


Straight Dope's Reply - You're thinking of the Asian ladybug, Harmonia axyridis, intentionally released by the USDA in a well-intentioned but ultimately misguided attempt to add yet another "beneficial" insect to our fauna. Ironically, most of the evidence suggests that the USDA attempts at introduction only worked in the western U.S., and that the ones running rampant through most of the rest of the country were accidentally brought in, like most pests. As an aside, I appear to be the first entomologist to record this species in the western U.S., in Seattle in 1991.

Asian ladybugs have no natural enemies here, so they outcompete our native ladybugs in the wild and build up large populations rapidly. This is good insofar as it concerns their ability to control aphids, which is what they feed on. Unfortunately, it's not good that they're driving our native ladybugs to extinction. This particular species also has the annoying habit of choosing human homes as places to spend the winter. They don't give off a toxic vapor, at least not in amounts large enough to be detectable by a human nose, unless they are handled or crushed--and all ladybugs give off the exact same "toxic chemical," a foul-smelling yellow oil. The toxic effect on humans is negligible; you'd have to eat a few pounds (thousands) to get sick. But you'd notice it if you were a sparrow, fence lizard, etc. That's why ladybugs are brightly colored--predators associate the bright color with poison, so they stay away. The phenomenon of orange/black or yellow/black = toxic is common in nature and is called aposematism.

What's special about this species is the number that accumulate indoors over a large geographic area. People in parts of the western U.S. have had to put up with the native convergent ladybug (Hippodamia convergens) entering their homes in the winter for well over 200 years, but now that this new species is bothering easterners, the press gets into the act, and people start to panic. The truth is that we have been introducing new exotic species of ladybugs into the U.S., both intentionally and accidentally, for decades now, and in many parts of the country (like most of the eastern seaboard) it's almost impossible to find a native species any more. If the Asian ladybug didn't happen to invade people's homes, this new introduction would have been ignored just like every other case like it.

Consider me INVADED

OMG...

omg, omg, omg I am going to be sooo beeezy over the next sixteen weeks. I have GOT to get organized - I've got to divide my day into work, school, rest and play - and I've got to start NOW. Tonight I hit the ground running and I intend to stay ahead of the fray. Tomorrow the plan's rough draft will be developed BEFORE I end the day. The light is green, the water's boiling and I am so freakin' psyched. I can do this, I can do this, I can do this - my loud and beloved mantra until June 1st. Here we go biatches.

On My Bookshelf...

It Never Gets Any Easier Leaving Them Behind...

We drove Sach back to Syracuse today. She was not quite ready to start the intensity of learning all over again. For the first time since she started, she mentioned how far away from home four hours is. Rich and snobby have never appealed to her. Watching her walk into her dorm while we drive away is hard for me. Vooch keeps reassuring me, but I know that it's hard for him too. Square fish, fries and a diet coke helps, a little.

A Little Curry Please...

Sam's been accepted to college.

8 inches...

for the cause.

B56...

That's as close as my natural color as exists in a bottle and I'm stickin' with it, and Jen, and my side part, and my bangs, and my every-six-weeks-Tuesday-at-6pm cut, and feelin' beautiful in my bathroom mirror with no makeup on in my pj's.

And Where In The Good Book Does It Say...

On the Seventh Day she'll vacuum until she breaks every toenail on both feet; sneeze until there are no dust bunnies left, anywhere, including the side porch; catch hell from a nineteen year old who isn't nearly as cool today as she usually is; rearrange a room including a two ton piano in the middle of a playoff game wherein the house team is sucking wind; eat pigs in a blanket after being told that if it were up to her we'd all starve; drink multiple cups of high-test to combat the cramps that she no longer needs at this age but without which she'd need multiple cups of high-test to combat the lack of hormones; and, find the funds to pay the bills that should have gone out ten days ago? Rest? Psshhh

Beneath a Blue Umbrella...

a melon seller sat,
selling yellow melons,
succulent and fat.

A huge and hungry hippo
made the melon seller mad,
when he swallowed all the melons
that the melon seller had.

It used to be a whole lot easier when this was the favorite book in the house.

Knitting 101...

Insert pic of J learning to knit

Progess, Evolve...

...Develop - My word for 2010.

–verb (used with object)
1. to bring out the capabilities or possibilities of; bring to a more advanced or effective state: to develop natural resources; to develop one's musical talent.
2. to cause to grow or expand: to develop one's muscles.
3. to elaborate or expand in detail: to develop a theory.
4. to bring into being or activity; generate; evolve.
5. Drafting. to transfer the details of (a more or less two-dimensional design, pattern, or the like) from one surface, esp. one that is prismatic or cylindrical, onto another, usually planar, in such a way that the distances between points remain the same.
6. Biology.
a. to cause to go through the process of natural evolution from a previous and lower stage.
b. to cause to progress from an embryonic to an adult form.
7. Mathematics. to express in an extended form, as in a series.
8. Music. to unfold, by various technical means, the inherent possibilities of (a theme).
9. Photography.
a. to render visible (the latent image on an exposed film or the like).
b. to treat (an exposed film or the like) with chemicals so as to render the latent image visible.
10. Chess. to bring (a piece) into effective play, esp. during the initial phase of a game when pieces are moved from their original position on the board: He developed his rook by castling.
11. Mining. to prepare (a new mine) for working by digging access openings and building necessary structures.
–verb (used without object)
12. to grow into a more mature or advanced state; advance; expand.
13. to come gradually into existence or operation; be evolved.
14. to be disclosed; become evident or manifest.
15. to undergo developing, as a photographic film.
16. Biology.
a. to progress from an embryonic to an adult form.
b. to progress from earlier to later stages of ontogeny or phylogeny.
c. to reach sexual maturity.

Origin:
1585–95; < MF développer, OF desveloper, equiv. to des- DIS- 1 + voloper to wrap up; see ENVELOP

Related forms:
de⋅vel⋅op⋅a⋅ble, adjective
de⋅vel⋅op⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun

Hello 2010...

You were ushered in with blue skies and cold temperatures. In celebration of this crisp freshness, I rattled my tired, post-holiday brain and came up with the idea that this year I'm going to try: Less talking, more listening. Less stressing, more acceptance. Less them, more us. Less law, more nursing. Less than seven items on my to-do-list at any one time. More finishing of projects in progress. Less carbs, more fruit - maybe. Balancing - more or less - one moment at a time.