Pre Cip Eh Ta-ae Shun

Or, more correctly, precipitation! It was misty all day yesterday, and it turned to light rain around 6 p.m. - the kits kept getting themselves wet, then drying off on my sweats last evening. I heard thunder around 2 this morning, and thought - ah, well... we really need the rain. When I got up and peeked out the window, I said a few other words. There was an inch of snow on the ground, on top of the 3/4 inch of rain we had yesterday. Hooray!! I'll walk Rosie and Remy and Lucy early this afternoon, as the snow was still falling at 9 a.m. It's due to end, and a westerly Chinook is predicted for this afternoon. I'd rather have just had the rain, but the rain and snow mix is a blessing to those who are recovering from last year's and this spring's wildfires. The heavy, wet snow helps to hold the dirt and little bit of mulch down - a heavy drenching rain would cause too much run-off and, probably, mud slides. > Saturday's Arkansas Derby has 13 entries - with betting favorite The Factor leaving from gate number 3. D Wayne Lukas has a 30 to 1 shot named Kentucky Red in the 13 hole. ... The Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland will have a solid field of 12 running - Santiva, breaking from post 3, is the 3 to 1 favorite. I like Queen'splate kitten, a late running Ontario-bred, who is breaking from post 12. ... Rick Dutrow, who trained Big Brown, has been denied a training license by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. The KHRC questioned Dutrow about "the lengthy list of violations on his record and inconsistencies on his license applications this year and in previous years." Dutrow is also facing hearings in New York regarding two suspensions of 30 and 60 days for violations of his training license there. Dutrow was visibly upset when he left the hearing, but made no comment.