At the track

I went to my local thoroughbred racing track this past Saturday. I had my usual luck when betting a horse trained by one of the better trainers there. For one reason or another, I have lost every bet save for one that I have ever made on his horses. I always seem to bet the right horse at the wrong time. Horses with proven records never seem to win when I bet on them.

Anyway, on this occasion, a new way was found for the horse I bet on to lose. The horse started out fine around the middle of the pack. By about one third of the length of the race, he had worked himself up to first. Suddenly he pulled up very quickly and went out of camera range, all the horses advancing well past him--not a good sign. A thought popped into my mind of how appropriate the horse's name was given these circumstances--Payday Peril.

At that point I got up from my chair where I had been watching the race on a big-screen monitor and went outside to see what the matter was. Somehow, the horse had managed to make his way almost a half mile further along the track and was right in front of me where I exited the grandstand. I thought maybe there was hope for the horse since he had gone that far after sustaining whatever ailed him.

He was surrounded by 5-6 people, including his trainer which I recognized. While a couple of men consoled the horse, a couple more were checking out his front legs. My view was slightly obstructed, so I couldn't see exactly what was going on. Just then, the horse reared up and then immediately laid down and suddenly there was no movement. I tried as best I could to look for any signs of breathing. I could not detect any. The horse was very eerily still and I concluded they had euthanized him.

It broke my heart. It made me realize how insignificant my wager on this horse was. This horse who had worked his heart out in perhaps ten races or more, having won three of his last six, including his last two, had earned a small fortune for his connections and had the promise of even more success. I can only hope that he had received the affection and fine treatment he deserved.

They placed a large screen between the horse and onlookers (too late, I thought) and prepared to load the poor creature into the horse ambulance. I retreated back to my seat and remarked to those sitting near me "I think they euthanized that horse". My comment was greeted with stone silence of indifference.

Anyone who has ever entered a horse racing establishment would have immediately noticed how unsavoury many of the patrons are. They are loud, boisterous, rowdy, unkempt, of poor breeding and generally lack proper hygiene. But that day, I found yet another adjective to add to the list: heartless.

Late that night, I googled the horse's name and to my surprise and dismay, I couldn't find a single item relating to the horse's death (or less likely, his condition). I even checked the race track's own website to no avail. The fine career and promise of this horse, and his painful and sad passing had gone by without so much as a footnote.

As I was writing this today, Monday, I checked again for an item on the horse and am glad to see that a few sentences were written in a blog by Jennifer Morrison to mark the gelding's life and death. Jennifer Morrison is the track odds-maker. Kudos to her. The horse racing sport needs more like her.

Here is Jen's blog.

Q & A's from around the web

Why can't people just say whats on their mind?

well maybe that just dint wont to hear your fill but that sure tell you what on they mind others want that hear

Huh?

Ripped from the headlines

Fed scientists, food experts demand Ritz resign

Growing demand to fire Agriculture Minister

By Peter Zimonjic, Sun Media

The federal government's own scientists and food experts jumped into the fray and added their voice yesterday to the calls for the resignation of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz.

“Minister Ritz has repeatedly disappointed the professional scientists and inspectors who work for him during the listeria crisis,” said Michele Demers, President of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada. “The comments he apologized for yesterday are the last straw. Crisis requires real leadership and Mr. Ritz is clearly not fit to lead.”

One more comes out of hiding

I have a long history of "finding" lost celebrities. By "find", I mean long after someone essentially disappears from TV or cinema and has changed in appearance substantially, I suddenly discover the guy/gal in a TV show. Admittedly, pickings have been sparse, lately, but I found one this evening.

While watching Two and a Half Men, a very old man makes a guest appearance. His manner of speaking seems familiar. After a few minutes pass, I become almost sure I've seen the man before. I looked closely and was then sure I knew the man from somewhere, although I could not place where. Two minutes later, it struck me. He was a regular on Johnny Carson. I try to recall his name but it momentarily escapes me. I keep thinking "Barnes", but it doesn't seem quite right. Then, I realized that Barnes was one of my high school teachers who I had thought back then looked a lot like the character whose name was escaping me.

And then, the final piece fell into place. Orson Bean! my mind yelled. As soon as the program ended, I came to my PC and looked it up. I was right, but the episode turns out to be from 2005. I also discover that Orson was 77 at the time. It seems he was never really absent from show business, having had regular guest appearances on TV and movies, but was only absent to me. The last time I saw the gentleman was circa 30 years ago!

The man was a passionate, talented, story-teller with a great sense of humour. For anyone who knows him, he seems to be going strong and the world is better for it.

What do the following movies have in common?

What do the following movies have in common?

A Christmas Story - It's 1948, in the fictional northern Indiana town of Hohman (based on real-life Hammond, IN). 9-year-old Ralph "Ralphie" Parker (Peter Billingsley) wants only one thing for Christmas -- an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model BB gun with a compass in the stock.

A Map of the World - Alice Goodwin, mother of two, school nurse and wife of an aspiring dairy farmer in Wisconsin, is getting ready to take her two daughters and her best friend, Theresa's two little girls to their farm pond to swim. When she goes upstairs to find her bathing suit, Lizzy, Theresa's 2-year-old, slips away to the pond and drowns.

Ararat - Ararat is a 2002 film directed, written, and co-produced by Atom Egoyan about the Armenian Genocide, an event that is denied by the government of Turkey.

Adventures in Babysitting - When Chris' friend Brenda (Penelope Ann Miller) calls from a Chicago bus station, having made a failed attempt to run away from her family, Chris reluctantly takes Sara, Brad, and Brad's sex-obsessed best friend Daryl Coopersmith (Anthony Rapp) from their safe suburban surroundings into the city to rescue her.

A History of Violence - Tom Stall is a local restaurant owner in the small town of Millbrook, Indiana who lives peacefully with his lawyer wife Edie, his teenage son Jack and younger daughter Sarah. One night the robbers come into Millbrook and stop at Tom's restaurant.

Angel Eyes - The film opens on an accident scene on a wet rainy night in Chicago. Sharon Pogue (Jennifer Lopez) is a police officer at the scene and she is holding the hand of one of the victims and pleading that he hold on, not to give up and help is on the way.

American Psycho - Showing contemporary urban life through the eyes of a serial killer -- forcing the audience to enter his mind and understand his motives -- the film sets forth a vision that is both terrifying and chilling.

Chicago - Chicago, circa mid 1920s. Naive Roxie Hart (Renée Zellweger) visits a nightclub where star Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) performs (All That Jazz). Hart is having an affair with Fred Casely (Dominic West) in hopes that he will get her a gig as a vaudeville star. Velma is arrested after the show for murdering her adulterous husband and sister Veronica after finding them in bed together.

Detroit Rock City - Detroit Rock City is a 1999 cult film about four teenagers in a Kiss cover band who try to see their idols in Detroit in 1978. It takes its title from the Kiss song of the same name.

Ginger Snaps - When they set out to take revenge on a girl who slighted them, Ginger is attacked by a wild animal: The Beast of Bailey Downs. Later that night, as Ginger's wounds miraculously heal, it is clear she is changing. Ginger wants to believe it is nothing more than the onset of puberty; but her sister Brigitte knows better...

New York Minute - The story follows Jane and Roxy Ryan, twin sisters with opposing personalities. Jane (Ashley Olsen) is an academic obsessed with order and planning, while Roxy (Mary-Kate Olsen) is a school truant who is interested only in rock music and her band, in which she is the drummer.

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While all (except Ginger Snaps) purport to take place in a specific place, they were all filmed (partially, if not entirely) in Toronto. Ginger Snaps was actually shot at a house on my street about 100 yards from my house at the time. Wikipedia actually notes that the filming took place in my town (Brampton, part of the Greater Toronto Area), at one of the actors' home. Ginger Snaps