So, since there might very well be a major Half-Life announcement tomorrow, the Doc wanted to get his two cents' in ^_^

This is one of the funniest music videos I have ever seen. This guy needs to meet the Red Elvises so they can do a Titanic Team-Up. (I had a look at the translated lyrics and this is basically a parody- Gangnam is a posh area and he's visiting all the places normally associated with posh lifestyles and doing goofy things in them and pretend-macking on the ladies.)

We are postponing the anniversary festivities until Sunday, since the weather is shite for going outside (it's storming, and is expected to all day) and the Doc has to work anyway as he's been put on a new project. So Sunday, weather permitting, we will be doing our usual thing of packing up a picnic lunch and heading out to Presque Isle for a day at the beach, followed by dinner in town somewhere when we're tired of swimming. (In the Doc's case, that's usually about the time they close the beaches- he can't get over being able to swim in something that is basically an ocean, but warm :)

Guess whose anniversary it is? I'll give you a hint:

So I had a very good ride today, even though I didn't have a whole ton of time (we work it into the day wherever it's convenient for the Doc to pause his workday.) As I was riding in the indoor my instructor trotted in from outside with no warning, as she didn't think anyone was around, and all Fi did was a little scoot- no big hysterics, just a very reasonable reaction to having Slew pop up behind her unexpectedly. My instructor asked whether Fi would have an issue if she did some jumping, and I replied that I didn't think so, but if she did it was something she would have to get used to. One can't have a horse that can't operate in a busy arena. So Slew did some jumping, and Fi and I worked on walk halts (she's been very resistant of late on nice square soft downward transitions; she throws herself on the forehand and plows through, so we've been going back to basics in a big way to get through this.) Slew was being a bit too quick and knocked down the Blok jump on the circle at A with a rather large crash, and Fi looked up, tensed a bit, and then I half-halted and told her we were working and she sighed and went back to her job. She didn't get bothered when Slew was cantered by us, trotting near us, jumping, fussing, being stopped by the wall, or knocking the jump over (again- she was having a bit of a day, I guess) and in all respects acted like a proper well-seasoned horse should. And later, when my instructor swapped horses she just scooted a bit again when the new horse came up in through the big doors (he was silhouetted against the bright outdoors while we were in the dim arena and it looked a bit like he'd appeared there suddenly) and then she came right back after a little urging. I don't block her in front in any way, since that seems to be her only real panic point; I just concentrate on keeping the energy moving forward and back like a wave box, and keeping the space in front of her open so she knows she always has an out, and she stays calm and reasonably obedient (we're working on the reasonably part, she is a lazy pony :) It was really very awesome!

So, productive day so far- the hammock arrived, and it's great, I just need to get or make it a storage bag so it can go in the camp kit. I then went blueberry picking with my packsister and her daughter- two bucks a quart for the biggest, tastiest berries imaginable. My niece is nearly seven and is an actual help at picking this year, although as the lady who owns the place says, the nicest berries go directly in your mouth and not your bucket, and there were a lot of the nicest berries, so there was maybe a one in the bucket to one nommed ratio going for a while there :) Five quarts seems like a lot, but once I make a little jam and a blueberry pie, and the rest get grazed on, they're going to be gone before we know it. So we plan on being back out next week for another batch.