THUNDER OVER LOUISVILLE KICKS OFF DERBY FESTIVAL!

This is it! Today is the day that opens the non-stop, two-week long celebration known as the Kentucky Derby Festival. Derby Festival concludes with the annual running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchhill Downs on the first Saturday in May. It is an absolutely beautiful day for the airshow and fireworks extravaganza known as, 'Thunder over Louisville'. As I indicated in last year's post, 'Thunder over Louisville' is the largest annual pyrotechnic celebration in all of North America and consistently rates in the top ten world-wide. Discovery Channel includes it in its list of Top 100 Events in North America. This evening, an estimated 750,000 people will line the banks of the Ohio River in anticipation of this megapalooza of stratospheric illumination and its concussive, color-laden, multi-hued explosions. Many of those spectators have already assembled and are at this moment enjoying picnics, watching the airshow, sampling the wares of dozens and dozens of vendors on the Great Lawn at Waterfront Park and basking in the warmth of a beautiful, sunny, Spring day in Kentucky. In addition to the fireworks display, Thunder also features an incredible air show over the Ohio River that precedes the evening activities. If you've never attended Thunder in person, you owe it to yourself to make every effort to get here at some time in the future. It is a spectacular sensory experience. . .auditory as well as visual. I am including a link that will take you to the Thunder 2009 web page http://www.thunderoverlouisville.org/index.html and a slideshow of past Thunder displays for your enjoyment. Perhaps one of the least talked about features of 'Thunder' is the soundtrack to the fireworks show. One word. . . . incredible. You can also check out http://www.whas11.com/ for info, pictures and video of today's events.

This year we have opted to stay home and watch the day's events from the comfort of our living room in glorious HD. By the way, staying at home to watch Thunder afforded me the opportunity to go fishing for a couple of hours this morning. GREAT way to start the day.

A KENTUCKY EASTER SUNDAY AFTERNOON

We enjoyed a very nice, relaxing and special Easter Sunday this past weekend. As several other families in the Elizabethtown Ward enjoyed the company of their extended families - we too had that pleasure when Michael, Amber and Madi came down from Louisville and attended church with us. After church, the entire clan headed out to Penny's home in Glendale where the brood of grandkids (and some adults) participated in the traditional Easter Egg hunt. Penny's daughter, Linda and son-in-law, Wes - along with grandkids Amanda and David - had come down from Indiana for the weekend. Penny outdid herself with a wonderful and sumptuous Easter dinner that included ham; mashed potatoes; asparagus and cream cheese rolled in prosciutto; pasta; rolls and the obligatory (and equally delicious) green bean casserole prepared by Amber.

What was doubly nice about the long, four day weekend for me was that we also got to visit (over the phone) with the grandkids in Utah. Kayden called us on Saturday to thank us for his birthday and Easter presents. We had a great visit with him and with Cheniel. She is sooo ready to have that baby! On Easter morning, just as we were preparing for church, Lily called and left a voice mail thanking us for her birthday and Easter presents. We picked up just as she ended her message. We called right back and had a great talk with her and big brother Nick, who is also celebrating an April birthday. The Lehi gang, aka Tyler, Kim, Nick, Lily, Andrew and Max are making plans to be out here in late June or early July. Lynne's already making plans for Six Flags - Kentucky Kingdom, Mammoth Cave, Holiday World & Splashin' Safari, etc. Truth be told, she's just a big kid herself. . . especially when she's around her grandbaby, Madi.

CHINESE VISAS, CATHERINE ZETA JONES AND THE AQUARIUM

FedEx delivered our passports with the attached Chinese Visas yesterday afternoon! As the date of our departure draws closer, we have begun to feel more and more like it's actually going to happen. One of the items I will be taking on the China vacation is my new cell phone. My Samsung slider had begun to act slightly demonic in its operation of late and since I was entitled to a full upgrade on my next phone, Lynne met me at the T-Mobile store after work one night last week. I was looking at the Blackberry phones and really liked a couple of them. . .almost picked one out, in fact. I was impressed with the Curve, the Touch-Pro and the World Edition. All are smart phones that would enable me to retain Internet, email, international calling, etc., that I currently have on my slider. But then we looked at the G1. Ah yes, the G1. This is a phone that was made for me. 3G smartphone, touch screen, 4gig micro SD card, language translator, Google Earth, hundreds of applications, GPS, Scriptures, enhanced international calling and sooooo much more. And, get this - the G1 phone...very appropriately named. G for Great and G for Greg and the number 1 for. . .well. . .you know - self explanatory. Lynne said, "I think you should get it! It has more than you'll ever need and it's never going to be at a lower price than now with your full upgrade. . . besides, I'll bet Catherine has one. . yeah, you should definitely get it." That was the clincher. Not Lynne's ringing product endorsement, but the fact that 'Catherine probably has one'. That would be Catherine Zeta Jones, the spokesperson for T-Mobile and the primary reason I went with them as a carrier eight years ago. Their quality and coverage has been outstanding. I have not had, let alone voiced, a single complaint to T-Mobile in eight years. Their service is stellar and the quality speaks for itself. But, come on, Catherine Zeta Jones? That was the kicker. Who in their right mind could refuse to at least investigate a product she was hawking? I mean, did you see her in 'Entrapment' sliding underneath those laser beams? Catherine Zeta Jones and Sophia Loren (no explanation required) are the only two women that Lynne has consented to allow me 'drool-time'. The only two for obvious reasons - not the least of which is the fact that I will never be any closer to either of them than the Movie screen or the flat panel HDTV at home. You see, the way it works is Lynne allows me this (Catherine and Sophia), I graciously allow her Sean Connery, Dermot Mulroney and a couple of other beefcakes. Heh, heh. . .works out fine for each of us.

Since I had today off, we headed for the Northern Kentucky /Cincinnati area for our date night- date day thingie. We spent most of the day at the Newport Aquarium and had a fantastic meal at Mitchell's Fish Market at Newport On The Levee. Great food. . .and somewhat ironic in that first we look at all the aquatic life at the Newport Aquarium. . .then we go next door and EAT their relatives. I took about a hundred pictures. Here are thirty or so in a quickie slideshow.