On Wednesday, I returned from my last business trip of the year. I planned to spend my first free weekend in months catching up on domestic tasks at Casa Magnolia, including a good cleaning of the walk-in closet, the floor of which has not been seen in months:




















Let's see how that worked out...




















Huh...

Saturday was the Hunt and I thought I would be missing it for the first time in at least 10 years. One of my usual cohorts was out of town and the other thought she was unavailable due to child-care issues. Thus my plan to use the day productively, even drafting a list of household chores I wanted to tackle.

Well, that list remains untouched.

Thanks to a last-minute change of plans, KJ and I arrived in Far Hills on a beautiful, sunny day. We employed our usual system of free agency, wandering to various spots to visit different friends. Most of the day was spent in the "ghetto," the lower area that serves as host to the real clown shows. Case in point, our funnel-toting friend above, whose party also featured a grown man in a Superman costume and another dressed as a tin-man keg...




















In a change from most years, we actually watched a few of the races and placed a few bets with Shan's friends. We must be maturing. In many years past, we have gone the entire day without seeing a horse.











All in all, very good times.

Oh, and for anyone who enlarged the first photo, yes, that is a Devils-era Sean Burke poster, which has been in my possession since 1988. Despite his recent retirement, it will remain on the wall.