Slept In This Morning

Arrived home at midnight, kissed the kitties and fell into my bed.  The kits let me sleep for 8 whole hours.  Now I feel "draggy" because I was able to sleep that long - but it was great!  It was cool enough to turn off one of the fans, and the kits curled up on either side of me.  Pure heaven.  Lovey is now on the cat tree, and even though the raven family has chased Nedi inside multiple times this morning, he's back out there, taunting them. Besides spending time with Rosie and Remy and with Cloudy and Shady, I was able to renew my acquaintance with the 5-point buck who sleeps under Alexy's fir tree, and I was able to watch a lot of hummingbirds.  The high point for me was having a male goldfinch fly within inches of my face, and then alight on a lattice with a yard of me.  (I haven't seen a goldfinch up close and personal over the past five years...)
  I plan on lazing around the house today, and doing a little bit of a clean-up.  Other than that, I hope to just relax and spend time with my two furries.  I had a great time watching the end of the Olympics last night - and the passing of the torch and flag to Rio was refreshing.  Of course, being my age, I was thrilled to see the rockin' tributes to the bands and singers I grew up with - and I must admit I laughed hysterically at (with?) Eric Idle close to the finale.  London was a wonderful setting, and the people of Great Britain made this edition of the Olympics extremely pleasant.  I especially appreciated the streaming of events online, as one got to hear the local announcers introduce new-comers to the different sports and explain how they came about.
  Now, I just hope to win the $305 million lottery...

Womens Modern Pentathlon

The women's side of the Modern Pentathlon did not have the equine fireworks that the male section experienced.  Maybe I'm silly, but I think I could compete (except in the running section) in the event well enough to be proud of my accomplishments -  fencing, swimming, riding, and shooting, I think I could handle.  It's the run that completely throws me.  In any event, the Gold medal went to Laura Asadauskaite of Lithuania; Samantha Murray of Great Britain won the Silver; and Yane Marques of Brazil garnered the Bronze.  Margaux Isaksen (USA) was fourth, and Suzanne Stettinius (USA) was 28th of the 36 competitors.
  Looking forward to the Closing Ceremonies tonight.

Mens Modern Pentathlon

Well, the Mens Modern Pentathlon produced a few surprises yesterday.  David Svoboda, of the Czech Republic, took the Gold; Cao Zhongrong, of China, the Silver; and Adam Marosi, of Hungary, took the Bronze medal.  It was the first time anyone of  Asian ethnicity had achieved a medal in this competition.  The real fireworks were provided by Hwang Woojin, of Korea, during the equestrian phase - both on the horse, Shearwater Oscar, and on the ground.  As the pair entered the start box, Hwang kept shortening his reins, kept leaning forward, and kept his spurs in the horse's ribs.  Not a good idea.  The horse was getting very contrary signals from the rider, and acted out accordingly.  I would expect any horse to dump me if I had been riding the way he was!  He did, eventually, re-mount, and rode the course....  The only American male finished in the 32nd spot out of 36 competitors - and one of them did not finish the competition.  Today, the women compete, and I will be watching how they all ride.
   Lovey is laying up against my left forearm while I type this.  Nedi is sunning on the patio.  I need to remove all my overnight stuff from the car before I head back to Rosie and Remy's.  I did do something foolish yesterday - don't I always?  I was rounding up Shady, who didn't want to come inside, from the neighbor's back yard.  Keeping an eye on the black cat, I walked right into the side of a tree limb - took some skin off my scalp, bled quite a bit, and knocked myself flat my butt.  Luckily Shady paused at the time I fell, and I was able to get him back inside the house.  But this morning I still have a swelling the size and shape of a hot dog on the right side of my head....  Tsk, tsk...  And, I get to sleep in my own bed tonight and tomorrow night - oh, joy!
  I hope you enjoy tonight's Closing Ceremonies of the Olympics from London...  The next Olympics will be the Winter competition in Sochi, Russia.

Olympic Horses and Riders

Juan Manuel Munoz Diaz and Fuego truly impressed me this year

In 2008, I cringed when Czech Republic rider David Svoboda and his horse HunHun, from the Czech National Stud, crashed through a fence during the modern pentathlon.

This year, the Cross Country course at Greenwich Park became slippery as more horses competed

I will always hold dear in my memories that I was privileged to see Joe Fargis on Touch of Class (above), Conrad Homfeld on Abdullah, and Greg Best on Gem Twist.  Those were fantastic years.

Critters, Olympics, Football

I watched all of the Jets/Bengals game last night.  The big cats made the Jets look like flies without wings; it was sad.  I did get a kick out of watching Tim Tebow during the opening kick-off, and I was very happy with some his his decisions to scramble and/or throw the ball away.  He seems to have grown a lot over the past year.  I'll have to keep my eyes on him.
   The cats are out playing in the back yard.  They both wanted love and attention before breakfast, but once they were satisfied in that area, they gobbled and then ran out.  Both have been back to my desk multiple times for more attention.  Cloudy and Shady were pretty stand-offish yesterday - this morning, however, they both wanted love and attention; then they wanted to go out.  Last night their irrigation ditch share night came around, and as the water runs until noon, the sprinklers all over the back yard are going strong.  Cloudy and Shady were pretty ticked that I wouldn't let them out this morning.  Cloudy actually growled at me.  (But, then, she and Shady have been highly put upon during the last few weeks.  The cat formerly known as Chiton and Mango, now named Mister Kitty, has been terrorizing these two.  He jumps on them, rips out tons of fur, and then urinates on them.  It must be extremely distressing.)  Rosie and Remy are doing fine - last night they found a raccoon in the back yard and I had to get them inside so the critter could swarm back up the ivy and over the fence.  You have have thought that Rosie was a true hound, by the way she was baying.  It was funny.
   The fencing and swimming elements of the Mens Modern Pentathlon have already taken place.  The equestrian jumping part is scheduled to begin in about 25 minutes...  It will be interesting to see all of the scoring  -   and to see how the women counterparts do tomorrow.  It seems strange that the 30th Summer Olympics will be over and done with tomorrow night.  I was able to view a lot more of the different sports, and I thoroughly enjoyed it...  But, it's almost September.  It's getting to be time for FOOTBALL!!!

Usual Miscellany

Sanibel Island (Florida) Sunrise

A spatule-tail hummingbird in Peru

Warwick Castle, on the River Avon, in Warwickshire, England.  Original building began in 1068 by the orders of William the Conqueror.

Individual Dressage, Olympics Wrap-Up

The rides in the Grand Prix Individual Dressage that NBC aired yesterday morning were breath-taking.  I have to admit that I was watching sitting astride a kitchen chair, and trying to guide each horse with my legs and back.  I was exhausted by the time that Charlotte Dujardin made the last ride on Valegro, and took the Gold medal for Great Britain.  Adelinde Cornelissen on Parzival garnered the Silver medal for the Netherlands, and Laura Bechtolsheimer on Mistral Hojris took the Bronze - also for Great Britain.  I also totally enjoyed the rides of three others in particular:  Anky van Grunsven was riding the great Salinero, now 18 - they finished in 6th; Juan Manuel Munoz Diaz on Fuego, performed their Spanish dances and won 10th place; I was disappointed that Steffen Peters and Ravel were 17th out of 18 horse and rider pairs, but they gave their best for our country.  It was a truly magical morning, watching these fantastic horses and riders perform Grand Prix Freestyle to such wonderful music.
  The United States, for the first time since 1956 (when I was born), did not win a single equestrian medal; nor did Canada.  The final count was spread across five countries:  Great Britain had 5; Germany 4; the Netherlands 4; Switzerland 1; and Sweden 1.  Great Britain earned 3 Golds, 1 Silver, and 1 Bronze; Germany garnered 2 Golds, 1 Silver, and 1 Bronze; the Netherlands earned 3 Silvers and 1 Bronze; Switzerland got 1 Gold; and Sweden earned 1 Silver.
   The final competition using horses will be the Modern Pentathlon, with the Mens competition being Saturday, and the Womens test on Sunday.  The modern pentathlon consists of five disciplines (from Greek word pente) that will be contested on a single day in the following order:
1. Fencing: Epee (35 bouts)
2. Swimming: 200m freestyle
3. Equestrian: Show jumping (15 jumps)
4. Combined event: 3000m (1.82 miles) cross-country running + laser pistol (15 targets)
It should be an interesting event!
    Last night, the Broncos steam-rolled the Bears, winning 31 to 3...  Of course, it's the pre-season.  Of course, Peyton Manning did start for the Broncos.  Of course, Jay Cutler did not start for the Bears...  In any event, it was a fun game to watch.  I have found that the NFL Channel will be showing the Jets games tonight, so I can watch Tim Tebow (whenever he's allowed on the field)...
   My kits wanted lots of love this morning, but seem to be content at the moment.  Rosie and Remy had a great afternoon, evening, and night.  I was a little freaked out to arrive at the house yesterday afternoon and find the garden crew having a "war" in the street, using crab apples and gooseberries for ammunition.  The head gardener had called Nancy and told her that the plants were absolutely parched, so I gave them 4 times the usual amount of water this morning...  And I start caring for Shady and Cloudy today, also.
   I hope you have a wonderful weekend!