Limes with Orange

My new couch arrived and I do love it, but I struggled with the decision making process as I wondered if that was the best way to spend my money. I mean, I've never been anywhere outside of North America and I would love to travel. Whether it's to Greece and Turkey to see the sites of so many of the ancient Greek myths and histories that I love. Or to the Isle of Man to see the stomping grounds of my Celtic ancestors. Or to England to watch the horses and riders compete at the Badminton Horse Trials (or someday compete there myself). Or to Argentina to watch the best polo in the world. Which brings me to…

I found this website that is a pretty decent "travelogue" about Buenos Aires, Argentina (although the author has been living in BA for two years, so I don't know that "travelogue" is the correct term in that case). Unfortunately, his only reference to polo is about the new polo museum in Buenos Aires, but he did have an interesting post about the Hippodrome (racetrack… and that would be horses, not cars) that gives general information, historical information and very useful information like how to place a bet in Argentina. Now if only he would do such an in-depth post about polo. Hmm... maybe I should email him and suggest it.

Labels: horses, travel

Now for the third and final installment of my writing exercise. This is the first person stuff, where all the breakthrough happens. In my case, it's a flashback for my character... possibly to be used in the script or maybe just backstory, don't know yet. But I learned a lot about my character while writing it:

I was fourteen when my brother died. When I watched him die in a car accident. I don’t really remember what happened. Not as a continuous memory. What I see in my mind is a series of jumbled images. His face tight with pain. Rain on the windshield. Broken glass. The dashboard wedged impossibly where his pelvis should have been. Blood. Mostly I remember the blood. And the moment when his face relaxed. Not unconscious. Dead. I knew it right away, even though there was no one there to tell me. Not yet, anyway. They all came later. The lights, noise, people. People taking me away from Bernon, who was long past feeling pain, telling me it would be okay even though I knew it would never be okay again. And I was right.

If my dad had been there... but he wasn’t. He’d won the big bronc belt buckle at the rodeo the day before so he’d stayed overnight to celebrate, leaving Bernon to drive me to the horse show. But Bernon was only sixteen and not used to hauling the horse trailer. We made it there all right, but coming home I guess I distracted him as I swung between joy and despair at my third place ribbon. I had so wanted to win but Elizabeth Bennet — Lizzie, my pony — had simply been outclassed. As if that matters now.

There is no sound in my memories. Except for Lizzie’s scream. They told me she died instantly but I don’t believe them. In my memory, the scream goes on and on. But maybe it was me. Memories are unreliable. Like my dad forgetting about the horse show. Unreliable.

I don’t remember much about the months afterwards either. Well, maybe I could if I tried but I don’t really want to try. Whenever I start down that path, the guilt and the heartache smack me in the face and I turn away again. I think maybe my parents feel the same way and that’s why they split up... so they wouldn’t have to look at each other and remember. I think it would have been easier for them if I could have disappeared. One less reminder.

But I didn’t disappear. I’m still here. And I’m okay. I’ve always been okay. Really. I never broke down and bawled like my mom. I never got blitzed drunk like my dad. My grades didn’t drop. I didn’t act out. Everyone told me I was such a good girl, a brave girl, a comfort. I was the only thing that wasn’t messed up back then. I was okay. I am okay. Really.

Labels: film, horses, writing

Went back to the Ship & Anchor for the Best Song Finals. The experience of the competitors this week was apparent in the greater variety of sounds and my overall enjoyment of the music. Having said that, when Jasmine got up to sing I still felt transported from a local amateur competition to a world class musical performance.

Exaggeration? Perhaps. But I was reminded of an experience I had many years ago... I was a working student for a three-day event rider on the Canadian Equestrian Team. Whilst acting as her groom for one particular competition, I had a chance to watch part of the cross country course. It was a particularly nasty combination of jumps, starting with a solid fence in the middle of a water hazard followed immediately by a very imposing series of upward steps. Almost every horse refused the steps (assuming they made it past the water). The spectators got into a rhythm with their cheers: an encouraging "c'mon, C'mon, C'MON" as the horse and rider approached the steps, then a disappointed "awww" as they refused. When my rider appeared, the chant started anew: "c'mon, C'mon, C'MON"... then absolute silence as her horse cleared the steps effortlessly on their first approach. I still remember the incredible pride that I felt, wanting to point and proclaim loudly, "I'm with her." Which is a very long-winded way of saying that I felt that way today when Jasmine sang... "I'm with her."

Aside from Jasmine, my favourite song was "Time to Kill" written by Danielle French and performed by Chantal Vitalis. I was also impressed by "Wrecking Ball" by John Wort Hannam (it was the first song of the day that made use of the all powerful metaphor rather than being entirely literal... an important lyrical approach, in my opinion) and "Dance With Me, Dad" by Heather Blush (though I was more infatuated with her smoky vocals than the song itself).

The results... (drum roll, please)...

First place went to "Blackfoot Bones" by Therese Lanz (an unusual song that had the distinction of uniqueness, though I didn't really enjoy it all that much).
Second place to Jasmine Whenham (yay!)
Third place to "Open Book" by Chris Vail (I vaguely remember enjoying the lyrics to this song, but it don't really remember the song itself).
And the three discretionary prizes went to the three songs mentioned in the previous paragraph.

So be sure to watch for Jasmine at the Calgary Folk Festival where she'll be performing her song on the Ship & Anchor stage (and hopefully her website will be finished in time for the hordes of internet searches that are bound to be made after that debut).

Labels: horses, music, pop culture