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<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>Today, I played hooky from work.\u00a0 Well, kind of.\u00a0 I arranged to quit work a little early so I could go to the racetrack with my friends.\u00a0 It\u2019s been a long and stressful few weeks.\u00a0 Karen, my shadow, had suggested that we schedule a day to go and watch the ponies.\u00a0 We did just that a couple of months ago.<\/p>\n
At 2:00, we packed up and left the office.\u00a0 I had to get Rich\u2019s keys to put my computer and stuff into his truck.\u00a0 Then I had to sneak back in to return his keys.\u00a0 All of this, I did without anyone stopping to ask me to do anything or to have a conversation with anyone.\u00a0 That in itself is a miracle.<\/p>\n
Kim and Diane were running late.\u00a0 Karen and I found our way into the clubhouse and up to the luxury of an executive box seat.\u00a0 Kim had made the arrangements and purchased the tickets.\u00a0 We just had to show up.\u00a0 The box holds 7 people.\u00a0 We had 5, including Rick when he got off of work.\u00a0 That meant we were sharing the box 2 unknown people.\u00a0 Wonder what they would think of us.<\/p>\n
The usher showed us to our box.\u00a0 We had to make our way through a crowd of people standing on the stairs.\u00a0 There was an office party in progress.\u00a0 That\u2019s a nice way to spend an afternoon with your co-workers.\u00a0 There was a couple already seated in our box.\u00a0 Time to meet the betting competition.<\/p>\n
Bruce and Michelle were Kiwis on a train tour of the U.S.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard for me to tell an Australian accent from a New Zealand accent.\u00a0 Believe me, there are differences.\u00a0 I warned them that the box would be full of chicks out for an afternoon.\u00a0 I assured Bruce that Rick would be coming out and he wouldn\u2019t have to suffer alone.<\/p>\n
Kim and Diane arrived as the first race was getting under way.\u00a0 Karen had made her bet on the way.\u00a0 I was waiting the read the program.\u00a0 We were off to a good start.\u00a0 No one won on the first race.\u00a0 Rick arrived before the next race.\u00a0 We headed up to the window to make our bets.\u00a0 You only had to be 18 to bet.\u00a0 That meant that Rick could spend his own money.<\/p>\n
Emilia was our server.\u00a0 We kept her busy with drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic.\u00a0 We did appetizers to cover the table and share.\u00a0 Surprisingly, we did very well on drink and food.\u00a0 Kim and Diane decided to have sandwiches, but I wasn\u2019t particularly hungry.<\/p>\n
We continue to work our way through the racing program for each race.\u00a0 I won only one race.\u00a0 Kim won a couple.\u00a0 I think Diane and Karen won, but don\u2019t quote me on that.\u00a0 Bruce and Michelle were doing very well. \u00a0It was fun to make the bets and wonder around admiring the horses in the paddock and on the track.<\/p>\n
The names of horses are amazing.\u00a0 We betting some of our choices based on names alone.\u00a0 I wanted to bet on Rosie’s Wild Tale, but it scratched.\u00a0 There was Richielillady, but it scratched also.\u00a0 Rick bet on Stig’s Deputy, but didn’t win.\u00a0 Most of us bet on Virginia’s Joy in one race, but we didn’t win.\u00a0 Now we did bet on Pirate’s Vow, and did win.\u00a0 One out of how many?\u00a0 See a pattern for us.\u00a0 Winning isn’t everything.<\/p>\n
We held conversations with Michelle on their trip from LA to Chicago to Niagara Falls to NY to DC to the Big Easy, then Vegas and to LA again.\u00a0 Sounded like fun.\u00a0 They were enjoying themselves with many side trips, like this one to the track.\u00a0 Turns out, they own a horse that does steeple chases.\u00a0 They knew a lot about horses as well.<\/p>\n
Finally, it was winding down to the last couple of races.\u00a0 Bruce and Michelle left to catch the train back into the city.\u00a0 I pulled Rick away to take me home.\u00a0 I still needed to pack for my Kansas City trip.\u00a0 Karen followed us out.\u00a0 All in all, it was a pretty good day.\u00a0 I laughed with friends, met new people and watched one of my favorite sports.<\/p>\n
Yeah, Rick made the observation that this was our second set of touring Kiwis in a year.\u00a0 We met the Mustang touring Kiwis last year at the Salt Flats.\u00a0 Wow, both encountered involved horses.\u00a0 There must be something to that.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>