I'll Blog With A Little Help From My Friends

Sometimes seven days a week and twenty-four hours a day just doesn't seem like enough time to get things done. In this short span, I try to find time for the dozens of things I love to do and there's simply never enough minutes in the day. At times I get stressed out about it, but then I remember that I'm not the only one keeping busy...

For instance, Ernie Munick just returned from performing at the Fountain of Youth down Florida way. If the Woodbine Media Department is reading, please invite Ernie up to Woodbine for a little "Stump The Guitarist" and some jammin'. When not performing, Ernie also finds the time to lead the TRNY troops through their exercises on behalf of Thoroughbred Racing in New York.

Here's Ernie belting out "Horseplayer Stuck in North Carolina"


Another good friend, Wendy Uzelac has started a blog to keep track of the development of her Off Track Thoroughbred partner-in-crime Jaguar Hope. Check out Wendy's blog Race Horse To Show Horse.

Alex Brown is watching the entries roll in for his $1000 Anti-Horse Slaughter Contest. Do this busy man a favour and send in your Youtube entry now.

Another busy friend is local racetrack legend Peter Gross. Peter is a Toronto media personality and editor of Down The Stretch newspaper. Peter won the Sovereign Award in 2008 for Best Feature Story and you can find all sorts of his old TV spots on Youtube. Though his segments on City TV were meant to focus on the people of Toronto, Peter often found a way to make his stories focus on the people of Woodbine and Greenwood.

Check out a little bit of the World According To Gross.


By the way, you can read my latest article for Down The Stretch by clicking here. Please check out my links in the right margin to find out more information on my friends at the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society.

Meanwhile, top blogger Wind Gatherer has been regaling us with stories of his up-and-coming horse Imalexus. When not trying to take over the racing world from the track up, Wind Gatherer is busy writing some of the finest pieces online. It's a good place to start your day. Add his blog to your favourites list.

Wind Gatherer is part of the rampaging blogging group, Thoroughbred Bloggers Alliance on whose homepage you find everything from FREE past performances to polls to widgets and photos from all over the horse racing galaxy. The TBA group is led for the most part by blogger HandRide who today is tweeting about Twitter.

Speaking of Twitter, you may have noticed my Twackle box over in the right margin. If so, twank you very much.

Another friend, Brooklyn Backstretch recently posted a great debate on the use of language in racing. Click on the link above to check it out. Teresa has a way with words and her blog is one of the most visited horse racing sites on the net. That must keep her busy too. Take the time to reward her hard work with a click or two.

Speaking of language and how it can be mis-construed, a co-worker stopped by my office yesterday to ask me if I'd heard the new Britney Spears song. Yeah, I know. Still, I humoured her when she pointed out the title had the word "AMY" in it. My girlfriend ~ ~ and entrepreneur extraordinaire ~ is named Amy and has complained about the lack of songs with her name in it. My co-worker sang the chorus of the latest Spears anthem, "If You Seek Amy" for me a few times before I managed to suss out the true "meaning" behind this song and thoroughly embarrass my co-worker in the process. Needless to say, she won't be singing this one around the office anymore.

See if you can figure out the not so well hidden meaning.


Finally, to leave this on a happier musical note, I'll share a story from my Sunday night when Amy and I joined a few friends for Kickass Karaoke at the Rivoli in Toronto. This night is legendary in Toronto and the evening featured several stirring performances including a little Bowie, a rambling Shane McGowan and a brilliant cover of Tom Waits' "The Piano Has Been Drinking" by street performer Kate Awesome. Kate started out on the stage, before stumbling her way across the room in faux drunken stupor to sing to all the tables. As the song spun further out of control, Kate began to climb the walls as she sung in a brilliant Waits-esque growl ending her performance by laying flat out on the bar to a cheering group of bartenders and patrons alike. It was...awesome. Our friend Anneke just about topped that performance with her version of "America" from West Side Story that featured singing, dancing and the entire bar yelling out the parts meant to be sung by the American Jets.

Here's Tom Waits performing the original "The Piano Has Been Drinking"


Phew! I'm exhausted and just too busy to write a post today. Hopefully visiting my friends will make up for it. Cheers!