Quote of the week...

"I'd love to get married again. I have to find a really rich woman so I can stay home and read books all day."
~ Alec Baldwin

Happy Turkey Day!

EAT AND BE MERRY....

(for tommorrow is Black Friday...and you might not make it out alive...)

I need your vote!

Here's the deal:

Most of you know I also am the writer/editor of a horror-themed blog: Fascination With Fear.

Well this last year has brought me some actual recognition within the horror blogger community.
Earlier in the year I was invited to join The League of Tana Tea Drinkers (LOTT D for short)- which is a group of both amateur and professional writers who host horror blogs. There are around forty of us now I think, and the group is a real hodge-podge of horror-based opinions, reviews, news, complaints, rants and loves.

One of those bloggers has what is arguably the best blog in horror these days, at least in my humble opinion. Brian Solomon of The Vault of Horror. I've gotten to know him through the group and on the always popular Facebook, and he's witty, smart, and always on top of the very best the horror genre has to offer.

Brian is hosting the "Ms. Horror Blogosphere 2009" competition, and has been kind enough to include me in the nominations. So I need everyone who reads this blog to head over to Brian's site and give me a vote, please. Even if you hate horror, just vote cause you love me!!

I don't expect to win (and I pretty much know who will..but I'm not telling!) - but I don't want to make too poor a showing! So head over there and vote for me, and if you have even a passing interest in horror, reading both the entries and the blogs of the nominated bloggers is entertaining! Everyone had to answer a list of questions - such as why we got into horror, blogging, and what our thoughts on the genre are comprised of.

So I'd appreciate a little love here, folks.

Thanks in advance!

Quote of the week...

"They seem to drag me out at Christmastime. I'm kind of like a snowplow."

-Jim Carrey, on being in holiday movies

This just in...

YES!!!

First star to take the "honor" twice in one decade... and only the third celebrity to do it twice (Brad Pitt and George Clooney being the other two)....
All I can say is -

Yum...




Yum...




Yum...

Randomness...

*All this worrying about 2012 - is it really necessary? Maybe the Mayans just ran out of stone or bark paper to write on, okay? And even so - if it does happen to be true, there wouldn't be anything we can do about it. Bruce Willis is not gonna save the day on this Armageddon.

*I totally miss True Blood. My sundays haven't been the same since the season ended.

*I still see my high school mega-crush every morning at the post office. Imagine that. And while 25 years ago my heart would have fluttered if he even looked my way, he now always speaks to me - but it's just so routine and small-town that I don't even think about it. Or care. Even though he still looks pretty damn good. Not as good as my honey though;)

*Who is this Lady Gaga anyway?

*If I was choosing a last meal, it could quite possibly be an entire Chef Boyardee pizza and a bowl of strawberry ice cream with hot fudge on top. Washed down with Mountain Dew, naturally.

*I pre-ordered the new Stephen King book (Under the Dome) a month ago on Amazon cause there was some sort of price war going on between them and Wal Mart. The pre-order price was only 9 dollars. NINE BUCKS for a new hardback. It came the other day, and may I say I doubt I've ever had a bigger bargain in my lifetime. The book is 1074 pages long. I don't have a calculator in front of me, but that seems like less than a penny a page to me.
Oh, and sorry folks - it's now $17.50 both places - you snooze you lose.

*Why do people complain about getting lime jello at the hospital? I like lime jello, dammit.

*I've read over 70 books this year (I've kept a list, so I'm sure... and that's three times as many as last year, at least) - and 99% of them are paranormals/horror/fantasy. I'm a freaky kind of girl.

*Oprah should not have exploited that poor woman who was attacked by the chimpanzee. I will not post a link so you can see her face. Look it up yourself if you are that sick. I saw it accidentally and wish I wouldn't have.

*I'd like to have our first big snow before Thanksgiving. So sue me.

*Why aren't there cartoons like Bugs Bunny and Scooby Doo anymore? If there were, perhaps I'd still watch.

*I hate the little forks in my silverware set. Those ones you're supposed to use for salads or whatever - they seem, at first, like a regular fork - but the handle is like, two inches shorter and I feel like one of the Munchkins when I accidentally get one. Contrary to this, my husband feels it necessary to use them. I wash them, annoyingly, and hide them in the very back of the silverware drawer, but somehow they seem to find their way back in with the regular ones. Seemingly a trivial complaint, but I gotta say - I'm thisclose to pitching them all out!

*If I were a flavor of ice cream, I'd be rocky road. Do I really need to explain?

*Why does it seem like the Steelers fall apart without Troy Polamalu in the lineup?

*I told myself I wasn't going to watch a new tv show this year (with the exception of The Vampire Diaries - that was a given) ... but I went against my better judgement and started watching Eastwick. It turned out to be a quirky, fun, light-hearted show that I didn't want to miss. Hence, it was cancelled. I friggin' hate ABC. They did the same thing two years ago after they hooked me on Men In Trees. I am therefore boycotting ABC. I will not watch LOST this winter until it comes out on Netflix. Screw you ABC.(Sorry, I'm exceedingly bitter on this one).

*Frosted Mini-Wheats needs to make a peanut butter flavored variety. And a cheese one that you could just snack on, not coat with milk of course.

*Is anyone as sick of Taylor Swift as I am? I mean, I'm happy for anyone who can make a ton of moola at such a young age...but let's face it, folks - the youngster can't really sing all that well. Simon would have kicked her ass to the curb in the first round on Idol.

*I love my DVR. What did I ever do without it? I get to watch so much History Channel these days that I could almost teach a class on the Ancients and/or Jack the Ripper.

*Speaking of Ancient times.... NO, I still do not have a cell phone.

*Can we just possibly wait till after Thanksgiving to start the inevitable decline into Christmas madness? Please....just once? And can we NOT turn on our outdoor Christmas lights yet either? UGH.

*Does James Cameron's new movie 'Avatar' look really strange to anyone else but me? I think that is a major SKIP for me. Matter of fact, I doubt I'll even add it to my Netflix queue.

*Black Sharpie markers give me a faux high. And I don't like it.

And lastly: Ten things I am unbelievably tired of (besides Taylor Swift):

1) "Balloon Boy" & family
2) The health insurance fiasco
3) Jon and Kate & the great debate
4) Scientology
5) Brad/Angelina/Jen (let it go, people!)
6) H1N1 (please SHUT UP about it, ok?
7) Commercials for male-member enhancing products, lawyers who can get money for YOU, violent video games, and car insurance
8) The New England Patriots and their weasel of a coach
9) Sarah Palin and her damn book
10) The Kardashians. Why should anyone care about these people? Just cause Daddy (RIP) was O.J. Simpson's lawyer and BFF? That alone should be reason not to care. How bizarre.

Quote of the week...

"[God] gave her the talent. But he hit her with a f--king ugly stick."

-Sharon Osbourne ~On Britain's Got Talent star Susan Boyle

Susan Boyle

Thank you.

HAPPY VETERANS' DAY.....

You gotta Zenyatta!

It was all Zenyatta in the Breeders' Cup Classic Saturday at Santa Anita Racetrack for the 26th running of the World Thoroughbred Championships.

photo : NY Times

And it was the first time a filly has ever won the Classic.

Also a compelling fact: Zenyatta has never lost a race. She is 14 for 14, undefeated and more than likely on her way to retirement and no doubt the leading contender for Horse of the Year honors.

In the post parade, Zenyatta reacted to the thousands of "Girl Power" signs in the crowd and did her typical expected prancing thing. She has this crazy little prancing thing she does all the time. She walks around, strutting her stuff - looking like a Tennessee Walking Horse. She paws at the ground constantly with her right foot. Perhaps she is counting out her numerous wins for the crowd, I don't know. But it is hilarious to watch. She is very full of herself. Maybe she knows that at over 17+ hands high, she towers over the rest of the competition. In comparison, Secretariat was only 16+ hands high. She's big, folks.

The race had a forboding start when Quality Road (#12) had absolutely NO desire to load in the gate. He jumped, he bucked, he kicked... the jockey dismounted....he was backed out, put back in for more combative protesting...he was blindfolded to no avail....then he was taken out through the front when it was clear there was no way he was standing in that gate come hell or high water. He bumped the gate in several places, was checked out by a vet, and ultimately scratched to become the first horse in the history of the race to scratch at the post.
Whoa.

So all this time, the other twelve horses were hanging in the gate.... so, as is customary, they backed every horse out again, reloaded, and then they were finally off.

Zenyatta didn't really break too well, starting off on the left foot instead of the usual right. But her jockey (Hall-of-famer Mike Smith) settled her down off the pace and they sat back in last place for quite some time till she finally got down to business, flying up on the outside to pick horses off one by one.

And these were quality horses - the best from the year in racing. Including Mine That Bird (the Kentucky Derby 50-1 longshot winner), Summer Bird (Mine That Bird's half-brother and the winner of the Belmont Stakes, Travers Stakes and the Jockey Club Gold Cup), Gio Ponti (the leading American turf horse this year), Colonel John (winner of the '08 Travers and Santa Anita Derby) and Einstein (7 year old multiple grade 1 winner and the richest horse in the race)...as well as some leading contenders from Europe.

The only glaring omission from the race was the great 3 year old filly, Rachel Alexandra.

Rach.

Her owners opted not to race her because they don't like the Pro-Ride (synthetic) surface.

Rachel has been a tour de force in her own right this year, winning the Preakness Stakes, the Kentucky Oaks, the Haskell Stakes, and the Woodward against older males).

Zenyatta is by Street Cry out of a Vertigineux mare. Her owners named her after the early 80's record by The Police, Zenyatta Mondatta. I remember this album and always thought it was the stupidest damn name for a record ever. Sounds pretty good for a horse though, right?

FYI - Owner Jerry Moss is the co-founder of A&M Records - the record label of countless famous acts, including The Police. Imagine that. He also owned the 2005 Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo, who was named after Sting's son.

owner Jerry Moss, jockey Mike Smith, Ann Moss, and trainer John Shirreffs.

In all reality, it should be a two horse race in the Horse of the Year honors.

To some, Zenyatta has not proven herself simply because she has not run out of the state of California and has only raced on synthetics. Whereas Rachel has run on 8 different tracks in 6 different stakes, against both the girls and the boys (including a race against older males), and on synthetic as well as traditional dirt tracks. She has also set many stakes records - including 3 fastest times and two largest winning margins.

That being said...

Rachel has lost - 3 times. But she only landed off the board once though. And we must consider she is only three and has raced 14 times. (Rachel started racing at age 2).

Zenyatta is 5 years old but did not race until she was 3.
She has won all 14 of her races. It is most likely that she raced her last race today, and will be retired. I mean, what else does she have to conquer? She won the premier race for fillies and mares last year by winning the 2008 Breeders' Cup Ladies Classic, so they upped the ante this year and ran against the boys. A fine thing to do for all us crazy horseracing fans.

So what about Horse of the Year honors?

Case in point - any horse that wins every start is a freak. It just doesn't happen, especially in this day and age, and not in such considerably impressive fashion. Zenyatta has an astounding turn of foot, and crushes her rivals in such a profound manner that watching her race becomes almost a religious experience.

Rachel is pretty much equally as awe-inspiring, and if I'd tell you I wasn't taken aback at her formidable wins this year I'd be lying. When she won the Preakness Stakes I was practically screaming my lungs out in glee.

But Rachel didn't come to the Breeders' Cup. And I like an analogy I read in the Daily Racing Form today, which basically stated - "If you won the AFC Championship game you wouldn't not go to the Superbowl cause you didn't like the field where it was being played." Touché.

I have to concur.

To not have brought Rachel to California for the Championships was perhaps a tactical move by Jess Jackson (owner) in part. My feeling is that if any other horse besides Zenyatta (with the possible exception of Summer Bird) had won the Classic, surely Horse of the Year would be in the bag for Rachel Alexandra. For seriously... if a horse such as Awesome Gem or Girolamo would have won, they really would have no case for H.O.T.Y.

Just a thought.

So Jackson says she's done for the year, and that they'll be no showdown between the filly powerhouses - which is indeed what any racing fan worth their salt wanted to see.

The excuse about the synthetics is just that. An excuse. She already won a race over a synthetic track at Keeneland last year.

I do think Rachel needed a rest after her vigorous campaign this year, but I still believe she absolutely should have made every effort to get to the Breeders' Cup for that race against Zenyatta. Hey, if you've got it, bring it!

When interviewed by the press, Zenyatta's owner said he felt it important to be there, not just for the race itself, but for the horse because "she deserved it" and for the fans, because they've shown her so much love (obsession) in her career.

So, how should one vote if one were to consider HOTY accolades?

If it were me, I'd go with Zenyatta.

As impressive as Rachel was all year (and I was totally leaning her way until I found out she wasn't coming to Santa Anita), Zenyatta put it all together where it counted the most.

After all, these are the World Championships, people.

To me, you gotta be in it to win it.

Fab filly Zenyatta is the only horse to have won two different Breeders' Cup races in two different years.

Another tiny factor for me would be that Zenyatta will no doubt retire now, and Jess Jackson has already said Rachel will race next year (and a big thank you to him for his stellar sportsmanship in that area - he also raced Curlin as a 4 y/o and wouldn't have had to...).

Give it to the Big Z!

photo of The Big Z: Sarah K. Andrew

Lassie speaks up...