MAE JULIAN

The Kentucky Derby

The 135th Derby is over, and it delivered its usual and unusual stories. All of you are probably familiar with the infield. It is the focus for mainly younger people, and even though it has doubled in price to get in, there never seems to be a lack of kids wanting to outdo the last crowd.

I read a piece in the Courier-Journal on the opinion page that got me to laughing my head off. She was on an absolute rant. She went to the infield to sit and have a picnic with her husband, or someone. This was her first Derby and she was from out of town. She had looked forward to a nice picnic in that picturesque place she had seen on the internet. She had even bought a small hat so she wouldn’t be out of place, as she heard a hat was almost a prerequisite to attend the Derby.

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I guess she got the shock of her life and I’m surprised they didn’t have to haul her out on a stretcher. Oh, the goings on! She complained there were nude people sliding on a wet plastic slide laying on the ground. She saw boys peeing in the most convenient places, which meant wherever they had a mind to. Girls were pulling up their shirts and boys were cheering. And drunks! Why she had never seen so many drunks in her whole life. She complained that it seemed to be encouraged because she was quite sure that ID’s weren’t being checked. In fact she was positive, considering the mayhem being carried out by kids who certainly weren’t 21. She had looked forward to seeing the beautiful horses run around the track, and she never even saw a horse! What kind of a place was this that led a poor soul, especially a dignified woman, to think she would see the most beautiful and fastest horses in the world, and then all she saw was unspeakable behavior ! Every time I thought about her outrage, I got to laughing.

The infield is not for the elderly or the judgmental!

I have been to the infield. I haven’t been for years. Nor do I go to the track at all. I watch the whole thing on wide-screen TV, and that’s enough for me.

This year’s Derby was a big upset, as I’m sure you have heard, with a 50-1 long shot taking first place. It was great to watch it on TV from a camera placed high above the track. The only one that I personally know, that won, was my grandson because he likes the number 8. I can only imagine the money that was dropped at the track that day.

My granddaughter, Lulu (Lauren Britt), got out my old Derby hat and put it on. Here is a picture of her. This hat is stored in a huge round box, the same one that I bought when I bought the hat, and is so big you have to shove it under a bed. But never let it be said that I don’t own a legitimate Derby hat!

A great guy, 85-year old Clyde, a former Waynedaler, now living in Placid, Florida, has been communicating with me. He is an amazing guy and I will be doing some columns on his stories. He survived the great depression and I know you will enjoy the great stories he is willing to share with us. I have gotten several letters from him, and I hope to begin his stories in my next column.

Many blessings,

Mae