Vegas Disappointment; Upcoming Racing

I watch little television - mostly news, the game show Jeopardy!, four shows on CBS and one on the History Channel.  I detest all of the "reality" TV shows, and have limited myself to less than three minutes of viewing such "shows."  The CBS shows I usually watch are: NCIS, Vegas, Person of Interest and Blue Bloods; along with Vikings on the History Channel.  The news was released this past Friday that Vegas has been cancelled.  That is a terrible shame.  Vegas is an interesting show, set in the early 1960s, and using vintage sets,clothes, cars, and music.  It's the story of Sheriff Ralph Lamb (played by Dennis Quaid) and a mobster, previously from Chicago, Vincent "Vinnie" Savino (played by Michael Chiklis).  The episodes are based on what actually happened in Las Vegas while Sheriff Lamb, who has been on set as a technical consultant, was in office.  These are stories of love and money, in-fighting, scams, murder and  the conflict between two men who both believe that their own way is the best.  Michael Chiklis and Dennis Quaid were the co-producers of this show, and wanted authenticity.  It showed.  It was a fantastic television series - with music, action, and a lot of unforeseen twists.  Too bad  that CBS was stupid enough to kill this show and keep several of those faked "reality" shows on.  At least four of the five shows I like were renewed....
  We're coming up on a great weekend of horse racing here in the US.  Friday at Old Hilltop (Pimlico Racetrack, outside of Baltimore, Maryland), the second part of the Triple Tiara and Triple Crown series will begin.  Friday's racing includes the Jim McKay Turf Sprint, covering 5 furlongs; the Black Eyed Susan Stakes, second part of the fillies' Triple Tiara; and the Pimlico Special, which is run at the same distance as the Preakness Stakes - 1 and 3/16 mile.  The Pimlico Special began as a match race with Seabiscuit facing his uncle, War Admiral, the Triple Crown Champion.  Saturday, colts will be competing in the second leg of the Triple Crown, and most eyes will be locked on that race.  I will also be interested in the outcomes of  two jumping races  - the Radnor National Hunt Cup Hurdle Stakes and the Radnor Hunt Cup over Timber.  The Hurdle covers 2 and 3/8 miles, while the Timber race is run over 3 and 1/4 miles.
  Oh, and the young man who is charged with the theater shootings in Aurora, which killed 12 people and wounded 58 others, is getting ready to plead "Not Guilty by reason of Insanity."  Insanity in the state of Colorado is defined as being unable to know right from wrong.  From what the media has released about this man's plans, he clearly knew that what he planned to do was wrong.

Boulder Sinkhole, TV, Bits & Pieces

Just a quick bit today...  The street in front of my apartment complex is closed, and has been since early Thursday morning; a water main broke, causing a huge sinkhole that swallowed the entire street and some sidewalks.  It was originally announced that Folsom Street would be reopened Friday morning, but the folks are now saying sometime this week, as they have "run out of" needed materials.  Several bus routes have been diverted, and it's making life around here interesting; trying to figure out how to get where with one of the main roads to the University of Colorado campus closed.  I guess it's good that it happened now, because the road that fell is a part of the Bolder Boulder race course on Memorial Day next month.
  I'm keeping busy.  Lucy and Sadie are used to walking at least 14 miles every day, and I certainly have my wind-endurance back for long walks now.  We've already had our 6 mile morning walk and I'm at home with my kits for a few hours before heading back to the yellow girls.  Their folks come home sometime tonight, and they will find me curled up before the TV, watching this season's last episode of Vikings on the History Channel.  And - hooray! - Vikings has been renewed for 10 new episodes and will begin filming in about 6 weeks.  That's exciting!  I know that three of my other favorite shows have been renewed, but I'm still awaiting word on Vegas.  Co-producer, star, and occasional director Michael Chiklis says that the series will be renewed - and I really hope that is true!
   The Kentucky Derby is next Saturday - the big question, as always, is who will win the 1 and 1/4 mile race?  I'll be writing about the horses, jockeys and trainers; as well as listing my picks during this coming week.   .....   My sister and brother-in-law's "Big Red" Toyota has finally died after 26 years of service.  They are getting a new vehicle.  I'll be interested in seeing what is purchased.   ....   I had a huge spike in "readership" yesterday; a couple of photos that I posted of Marcus Lattimore on his 21st birthday were viewed more than 500 times.  I like and admire this young man for his determination and work ethic; and I'll always be cheering for Marcus, whichever team he plays for in the NFL.  .....  Tugger, the cat I was worried about the previous week, had surgery on Wednesday.  He stopped breathing when given anesthesia, and before the actual surgery occurred.  He was revived, and has spent 3 days in Kitty ICU - he was allowed home Friday evening, and I'm going to stop by and visit him this afternoon.  He isn't interested in eating at this point in time, and I'm going to see if I can get his appetite stimulated.

Television Programs and Snow

Wednesday evening's snow is still just sitting there on the ground - it's all of 15 degrees at the moment (in the single digits overnight), but the sun is shining, and we're supposed break the freezing mark this afternoon. Expecting more snow Sunday and then again Tuesday. The kits are pretty bummed with the snow, but they did have a couple of wild chases this morning, running up and down the lengths of every ones patios. Nedi is asleep in the cat tree, soaking up sunshine, while Lovey is curled up on my pillow in bed. Tomorrow evening I start "working" again - I'll be house-sitting for Aiko and Yoshi, the Shih Tzus, through Wednesday night. I'll start walking them Sunday, and, thankfully, with their short little legs, I won't have to exert myself too much to keep up with them. I will, hopefully, start working with Rosie and Remy again on Monday. I've recently lost two clients due to the "illness" of old age: Brandi, the Zen Australian Shepherd, who was blind, passed away last month; and Peach, a wonderful and very lovable yellow Labrador, left us two days ago. It doesn't seem possible that they are no longer here, in the fur. I'm sure, however, that they crossed the Rainbow Bridge in loving company and they are running happily through heavenly fields.
  While waiting for Person of Interest last night, I ended up on the BBC America channel, watching Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan. I was amazed and entranced by the young man, and was immediately reminded of Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter. Young Mister Monaghan was very interesting and knowledgeable about the things he talked about, and he had the verve, excitement, and intensity that Steve Irwin had. Last night, the episode was about seeing the white Goliath beetle in it's natural habitat in Cameroon. The show introduced us to the insect collection trade, the country of Cameroon, the customs of the local people, and introduced the local wildlife that was seen during the search for the beetle. I haven't been so riveted to the TV since Steve Irwin passed away. Dominic Bernard Patrick Luke Monaghan has always had a spot in my heart since he portrayed Merry (Meriadoc) Brandybuck in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He certainly has my attention now, as a master craftsman of a very informative wildlife show.
  Speaking of television, I thoroughly enjoyed Person of Interest last night, and both NCIS and Vegas on Tuesday night. But then I realized that I kept seeing ads for a new show called Golden Boy that will be showing in the Vegas time slot beginning next week. - I admit that my TV is on quite a bit, without me truly watching whatever is on. I use it as background noise, since I live in a downtown area with frequent heavy truck traffic, fire trucks and ambulances, plus the fact that I can hear my neighbors in the building without any problem, if there is no background noise. I don't like being an eavesdropper, and it can be very embarrassing at times, if one does not have some background noise covering the sounds that come through walls and ceilings. (You must remember I'm living in an apartment building that is older than I am.) - I was upset to see that Vegas will more than likely, not be on the air next year, due to low viewership. Now I don't sit camped in front of the TV: I watch local news and weather; I watch Jeopardy!; I faithfully watch NCIS, Vegas, and Person of Interest. If I have nothing that has seduced my attention, I usually watch CSI:NY and Blue Bloods. All of those shows, with the exception of the game show, are on CBS. I watch local NBC news, and Jeopardy! is on ABC. So, in trying to find out why the new show was coming on in the Vegas time slot, I was amazed to find out that both CSI:NY and Vegas are under the proverbial hatchet... If they go, I'll just have more time to read and do research... I truly like both shows, but I love Vegas. Too bad that people don't enjoy a good, twisted story line involving family, the law, crime families in Vegas, gambling, and classic cars and clothing. I have a blast each time I watch the show. Apparently very few others enjoy the same thing, however. That's just too bad.

Snorting Scrambled Eggs

NCIS was superb last night - especially the last scene, where Gibbs tried to get his ex-wife to drop the torch. There were so many funny moments, that I forgot it was a drama and that we needed to catch the villain at the end of the show. So Gibbs has realized that he didn't really love her; Fornelle is still in love with her and is jealous; her current husband is thinking of leaving her; and poor McGee got caught on the couch with her..... My, oh my..... And then Vegas: I find it strange that I really like the two opposing main characters. I've liked Michael Chiklas since I first saw him in Soldier with Kurt Russell - and I love him as Vinnie here. And I've always been fond of the tall, lean, rugged, quiet man as the sheriff, cop, or PI.... so Dennis Quaid is a shoo-in. Last night's episode was a doozy - Ralph showed that he cared, and Dixon couldn't hide his fear of spiders...

  It was pretty warm last night - we didn't fall below freezing, and it's in the low 40s already. The snow from yesterday has melted from the grass in the back yard, and I've put out nuts for the squirrels and bread for the ravens and crows. I purchased a loaf of artisan bread yesterday, not realizing that it was sour-dough, so the birds are getting hunks of it.... for some reason, I don't like sour-dough and peanut butter together.

  I was reading e-mail while eating scrambled eggs, turkey sausage and hash browns this morning. Got a quick response from my friend Michele, and snorted scrambled eggs out my nose. The eggs themselves weren't too bad.... it was the pepper I'd poured on them that just about killed my nasal passages. So I'm off to walk Rosie and Remy, Lucy, and then Victor and Xena today... Then I'll be at home doing genealogy research; and I hope to call my friend Mary in Florida this evening. I have a pretty lazy time of working until Christmas Eve, when I start taking care of three houses full of pets... But I have to complete a Christmas gift and send it off, too.... *Sigh* It looks like I'll be sending e-cards for Christmas, again...