| The Derby Party |
Down in Kentucky in the Louisville area, Derby parties are everywhere. It is like graduation season. You can not find a place to park to save your life there are so many parties going on. I believe there are more than a few in Lexington as well and that is over an hour away. Horse racing is big in Kentucky and the Derby; well the Derby is the Daddy of all excuses to throw a party. Heck I have even been to a Derby party up here in Michigan once. My favorite M*A*S*H episode has the gang celebrating the Derby.
Anyway there is no such thing as a standard Derby party. The one thing they have in common is there is you usually watch the actual race. Also there is usually betting going on at the party. Usually there are some clever games thought up that are tied into the race also, some more clever than others. It is also not uncommon to see mint juleps at the party.
Well the party I go to is rather on the mild side of things. There is always the main betting where you cross off the person that has the horse you want and you write in your name with a higher bet then the person before you. Back several years ago the kids (who had their parents fund them) were betting wild amounts. Money did not matter to them and they were about impossible to knock off because they would just out bid you. Now the youngest kid will be graduating high school next year. One is soon to be a father to be, another is married and is a father and I think the other is divorced. How quickly things change. Anyway the full post is always paid back to who ever wins. Another thing that usually happens is you get in on one of those things that have numbers on the top and side and you fill in squares. Later the horse names are added in. That has been a fun diversion. This year I lost 70 cents on that (wow, big spender).
We kind of alternate who's house it is at but this year we needed it to be back where it was last year. It was a good showing as all but two people made it this year. Anyway we got to eat, shoot pool, eat, play corn hole (more about that in a future post) eat some more, talk, eat some desert and just in general have a nice pleasant evening of it. We also played DVD Family Feud. As a matter of fact that is the last thing we did for he evening. It had Al Borland (sorry I do not remember his actual name and not his name on Home Improvement) as the host so you did not need to worry about your daughters or maybe even you getting kissed or more. It took a little to understand what we were doing but in the end it was a few close games but the team I was on never could seem to win. I suspect the other team was cheating. I think I enjoy the Derby party because I get to visit with some people I never get to see except then.
The next day was our tradition that we have probably been doing for 15 years or so, Prim Rib dinner. We cook a nice piece of meat (everyone loves their meat) on a Webber under indirect heat and that always turns out perfect. If you do not show up for that night there is something seriously wrong with you. Everyone covets the ends that have delicious spices on it. After that every one just does not stop eating. Forget the rule about 3/4 of a pound of meat per person. Even the kids eat more than that. Of course the kids are not kids anymore. When the heck did they grow up? Well I thought I would sneak in one picture of the meat. Yummm!
I have been doing the Derby activities for 19 years now. I would not give it up for anything. Of course it has become more of a visit than anything with a few Derby events scattered in for flavor. Still I love my friends and I love Kentucky that time of year. As long as I can still afford to make the trip and I do not have a spouse (someday) that frowns on it I will continue to do this for years to come.
Well that is how I spend my vacation minus a lot of the boring details that, well what can I say, I like the boring stuff. I was able to attend two recitals, do a bit of shopping, sleep (yea) by a Monopod so I could take better pictures at the second recital, go book shopping and read for a while at the nice book store, go to starbucks (my one friend and her daughter are addicted to that stuff) and a bunch of other little things.
Well time to get back to regular posting. Let's see, what have I done interesting lately?
Anyway there is no such thing as a standard Derby party. The one thing they have in common is there is you usually watch the actual race. Also there is usually betting going on at the party. Usually there are some clever games thought up that are tied into the race also, some more clever than others. It is also not uncommon to see mint juleps at the party.
Well the party I go to is rather on the mild side of things. There is always the main betting where you cross off the person that has the horse you want and you write in your name with a higher bet then the person before you. Back several years ago the kids (who had their parents fund them) were betting wild amounts. Money did not matter to them and they were about impossible to knock off because they would just out bid you. Now the youngest kid will be graduating high school next year. One is soon to be a father to be, another is married and is a father and I think the other is divorced. How quickly things change. Anyway the full post is always paid back to who ever wins. Another thing that usually happens is you get in on one of those things that have numbers on the top and side and you fill in squares. Later the horse names are added in. That has been a fun diversion. This year I lost 70 cents on that (wow, big spender).
We kind of alternate who's house it is at but this year we needed it to be back where it was last year. It was a good showing as all but two people made it this year. Anyway we got to eat, shoot pool, eat, play corn hole (more about that in a future post) eat some more, talk, eat some desert and just in general have a nice pleasant evening of it. We also played DVD Family Feud. As a matter of fact that is the last thing we did for he evening. It had Al Borland (sorry I do not remember his actual name and not his name on Home Improvement) as the host so you did not need to worry about your daughters or maybe even you getting kissed or more. It took a little to understand what we were doing but in the end it was a few close games but the team I was on never could seem to win. I suspect the other team was cheating. I think I enjoy the Derby party because I get to visit with some people I never get to see except then.
The next day was our tradition that we have probably been doing for 15 years or so, Prim Rib dinner. We cook a nice piece of meat (everyone loves their meat) on a Webber under indirect heat and that always turns out perfect. If you do not show up for that night there is something seriously wrong with you. Everyone covets the ends that have delicious spices on it. After that every one just does not stop eating. Forget the rule about 3/4 of a pound of meat per person. Even the kids eat more than that. Of course the kids are not kids anymore. When the heck did they grow up? Well I thought I would sneak in one picture of the meat. Yummm!
I have been doing the Derby activities for 19 years now. I would not give it up for anything. Of course it has become more of a visit than anything with a few Derby events scattered in for flavor. Still I love my friends and I love Kentucky that time of year. As long as I can still afford to make the trip and I do not have a spouse (someday) that frowns on it I will continue to do this for years to come.
Well that is how I spend my vacation minus a lot of the boring details that, well what can I say, I like the boring stuff. I was able to attend two recitals, do a bit of shopping, sleep (yea) by a Monopod so I could take better pictures at the second recital, go book shopping and read for a while at the nice book store, go to starbucks (my one friend and her daughter are addicted to that stuff) and a bunch of other little things.
Well time to get back to regular posting. Let's see, what have I done interesting lately?
Posted by barman at 1:32 PM::
Question. with all of that partying going on, did you do any steaking?
Did you get down and dirty?
It was fun but nothing to over the top. I am not likely to need bail money any time soon. Now I am not picking on anyone as I love them all. The host and hostest are super people. The people I visist are my best friends. I can be a little more wild than that but I get the feeling I do not compare to you or Crabby. If you were to rate me as a salsa I probably would be somewhere between a mild but closer to a medium.
That's a fine lookin' piece of steer flesh! Now I'm hungry again.
That meat does look wonderful. Sorry to any vegetarians out there. It has always but a big highlight of the trip.
To late to do anything about getting hungry from that now. Maybe stake and egss tomorrow? Hummmm.
Why on earth would you think the we were wild and crazy?
I'm a good girl.
Now I'm starved!! That's my favorite food in the world. Can you hook a girl up? Just kidding!
GASP! You can't even put me in the same league as ME. I only mooned the vice-principal of our high school and I had to cause it was a dare. And one car load of people. But that's it. ME is the streaker.
You know I don't even eat prime rib as a rule but that looks good!
I think the Derby party sounds like fun.
Have you ever been to Daschund racing, Barman? maybe you should encourage the family to try that next year?
you might want to cook a different piece of meat though - the one you had looks suspiciously like one of those cute little hounds...
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