Social Event of the Year

Yesterday I went to the horse races. Oh boy, was it ever an event. People get all dressed up and many wear hats as if they were on their way to a royal wedding. I've never seen hats like that up close. I wore a hat myself. A designer straw hat probably worth at least $200. Crazy!! Social events and fashion is quite different out here although there are similarities, such as teenagers dressing as skanky as they possibly can. I remember that phase. You are just trying to look sexy but you don't really know what's up or how things should fit or how you appear to others. hahah It was kind of funny for me to see and think about yesterday. There was a fashion show and everything! Besides the fashion, there were other similarities, such as drinking. :) Everyone was drinking and we were invited to stay in this big tent with a few other families. There was a lot of wine and a lot of food and that pretty much makes for good times. :)
I bet on a few horses. One had the most incredible name of Captain, my Captain so of course I had to bet on the one. I think it had a bad start and didn't even cross the finish line though. I made my horse bets based on name alone. So I also bet on Kittens got Claws, Tha Hab, Old Mystique, and I wanted to bet on Strike Me Happy but didn't. Of course Strike me Happy was the big winner. There were about 6 sets of races with different horses in each race. Pretty kool. There were like at least 10 tables of bookies there and you got to see the odds written up either electronically with the fancier bookies or by hand in chalk or on white board with the less technology incline bookies. It was my first time at a horse race and my first time betting on horses. Very fun but I ended up losing money which is a lot less fun. However, it was "play money" given to Dave and I from the family so that made losing hurt a lot less. Dave and I lost $97 dollars between the two of us. It was an experience I will remember for a long time. Don't think I will ever turn into a gambler though. Betting is just fun and it makes watching the races a lot more interesting. I advise people with addictive personalities to stay away from shit like that though. Probably for the best.
Oh and I think I've made somewhat of a decision when it comes to vegetarianism. I will limit my meat intake to 2-3 times a week and I will eat only free-range animal meat. That means that I won't eat any beef or chicken that has been kept in a box or cage with 30+ more chickens and god knows what kind of treatment. I won't eat animals that do not get any decent standard of living. At least free range animals get to chill all day out in the sun on the farm and are fed properly and treated well for the most part. Unlike the mass production of meat that goes to supply McDonald's and KFC and all that. So products here in Oz tell you if it's free range. Chicken is clearly labelled and virtually all beef out here is free range. I will have to look up what the standards are back home and how the labelling works. Free range is more expensive but at least I know I am not supporting horrendous cruelty and animal mistreatment. That will make me feel a hell of a lot better about eating meat. Maybe one day I will become a full veggie but for now I think that this is a great start. :) I would also like to encourage others to do the same where and when possible.