24 Festive Tasks | Door 3: Melbourne Cup Day

The 24 Tasks of the Festive Season

hosted by Murder by Death, Themis-Athena, and Moonlight Madness

(November 6)

Updates

12/17/2018: Well... I thought I'd finished all four non-book tasks for this door, but in fact, I did not post that last one about the Jello. I tracked it as completed... but I never actually completed it. So... it's here now! And no, it's not some great reveal of an update, it was just something simple I recalled after talking to some friends as a very short update. So... moving along now.

11/06/2018: Ahh... two down! I'm already doing MUCH better than I did last year. And I've only really finished reading one book for a different task! =D

Task 1

Pick your ponies! MbD will post the horses scheduled to race as soon as they’re released; everyone picks the three they think will finish (in any order).
-- COMPLETED 11/06/2018 --

So here is the link to MbD's Melbourne Cup Day announcement; also where to choose your horses!

24 Festive Tasks: Door 3 ... Wait! What Happened to Door 2?

In light of the fact that the door wasn't to be revealed until the day of the race, we were given a sneak peak of this first task in order to be able to choose our horses ahead of time. And so here are the horses I had chosen for this task with hopes that I have better luck than... well... any time, really.

Horses chosen: 1) Sound Check / 2) Zacada / 3) Rostropovich

These choices were based on a very scientifically complex strategy of "Eenie Meenie Miney Moe" and "This like the sound of this name!"

Here is the final winning line-up of the race itself:
24 Tasks of the Festive Season: Melbourne Cup Day RESULTS

Winning horses: 1st - Cross Counter / 2nd - Marmelo / 3rd - A Prince of Arran

So... drat. No points were earned by yours truly this round.

Edited update: We DID earn one point for participation!

Task 2

Cup day is all about the hats. Post a picture of your favorite hat, whether it’s one you own or not.
-- COMPLETED 11/06/2018 --

I don't really like to wear hats if only because I always get a gnarly case of hat hair that I can never fix--so it's either wear the hat always until I get a chance to see a mirror and a brush, or wear no hats. Of course, you always want the things you can't have, so I DO have a couple hats that I love, even if I never find a chance to wear them.

Well, hello there Penni! Trying to wear my hat, are you?

I got the black one at a Japanese general store in Dallas called Daiso, where they sell everything for pretty much under $5. It's a little hard to tell, but it's a cadet style hat rather than a baseball cap. I liked it a lot, wore it out twice, and it's been sitting on Blue Bear's head ever since we got home from our vacation in May.

The other hat I got at Disney World and instantly fell in love with it, if only because I immediately took to the "This is my happy face" quote. XD

Task 3

The coloring of the “horse of a different color” in the movie version of The Wizard of Oz was created by rubbing the horse’s fur with jello. What’s the weirdest use of jello you’ve ever come across?
-- COMPLETED 12/17/2018 --

After talking to some friends about this game, my BFF reminded me about high school where some of our friends used to dye their hair with Jello. Apparently there was something about how the color of Jello mix worked really well, and washed out easily or something like that. I can't confirm the legitimacy of this since I never tried it myself.

But this would be the weirdest use of Jello I'd ever heard of.

And of course, all those Jello Salad posts from before...

Task 4

Have you ever been to or participated in a competition involving horses (racing, jumping, dressage, whatever)? Tell us about it. Photos welcome, too!
-- COMPLETED 11/06/2018 --

Unfortunately, I don't really have any good pictures, but I went to a horse track for the very first time in May this year when my parents, brothers, and I visited my elder brother in Dallas! Yay for completing tasks without realizing it!

These are the best pictures I was able to get though.

We weren't in the best spot, but it was still an interesting experience. We won a couple dollars and lost a lot more, and I learned a bunch of new terms... that I promptly forgot about what it means for different combinations of horses to win. I'm recalling terminology like 'Trifecta' and 'Exacta'; and that 'Show' just means the horse you chose to 'Show' places at all? Goodness, I should have been taking better notes.

But it's the fun that counts, right?