"Ooooh, Pick ME, Pick ME!!!!!" [Waves hand wildly]

A year or so ago, attending the World Equestrian Games was my dream. I swore, Scarlett O'Hara-style, that "BYGODIAMMGOINGTOWEG!" Then Riley's surgery drained off my fun-things-fund (and then some).  Last fall, when a friend passed along a signup sheet for a bus trip to WEG, I reluctantly declined. That is, in a rare moment of self-denial I said "no" to spending money on horses.  I said no. But I wasn't happy about it.

Then, lo and behold, a ray of hope!

Purina is sponsoring a contest, Live from Lexington, for someone to blog the Games. The notion leaves me feeling giddy -- going to WEG and actually getting to blog it is a double-whammy of wonderful. I think I'd be good at it -- I really do! Now, how to convince Purina of this?

Here's where I could use your help
Last week I submitted a  writing sample (excerpted below) to the Purina Web site. If I'm chosen as a semi-finalist,  they'll ask the general public to vote for their favorite blogger from June 14 to July 1.

If all my friends and family vote for me I'll have about 13 votes, and that's if I include the cats. It'd be great if my readers -- the ones who have never been subjected to the real-life me -- could cast a vote (or two) my way.  Wish me luck!

clipped from www.livefromlexington.com

Stacey  Kimmel-Smith Bethlehem, PA

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--Why I love dressage--
Dressage is the most cerebral and
psychologically-oriented equestrian discipline -- you can compel a resistant horse to jump a fence, but a horse will not piaffe beautifully unless he *wants* to do it. That's why I love it -- it's a sport that makes the horse a full partner in the journey up the levels.

Dressage is not as unapproachable as many people think it is. My non-horsey husband takes my World Cup dressage videos to the chemical plant where he works. He tells me that janitors, PhD researchers, and sales reps gather around his computer to watch Debbie McDonald and Brentina piaffe to the musical strains of "Brick House."

If there is one thing I'd like to change about our sport (click to read more...)

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