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Crufts 2010 Freestyle Winner

Crufts is the largest dog show in the world. It’s held in March every year. And while it has all the usual judging of Best of Breed, etc., I love watching the agility and freestyle parts of the program. Talk about a working and playing partnership with your dog…!

Here are this year’s winners, Richard and Pogo, of the HTM (heelwork to music) Freestyle.

And Mary Ray is one of my favorite performers. Simply amazing.

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One of My Favorite Recipes — Orange Salad

With all the anticipation of getting ready for my gardening season, I’ve been cooking up a storm testing new recipes.  Cait is always very happy when this happens.  As she was munching and I was preparing, we got to talking about favorite childhood tastes.  For me, hands down, it’s my mother’s Orange Salad recipe.  It’s so simple and refreshing.

Orange Salad Recipe

  1. Peel skin off several oranges, leaving a fair amount of pith (the white inner skin).
  2. Slice and cut
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If You Could Create a School From the Ground Up…

Spring cleaning is well under way around here. There are several projects already in varying stages of completeness. Living in an old farm house means there’s a never-ending supply. Fortunately, Cait usually likes to help. It’s a chance for us to have some uninterrupted talk time, while I apprentice her on the finer points of home repair.

As Cait and I were painting , the subject of one of her school projects came up. Her assignment was to create a … Read More

Sing Like Nobody’s Listening

Cait loves to act. LOVES to act. And she’s actually pretty good at it. But all her middle school plays are musicals. Which means that to get a decent part, she must also sing well. But, um… she, ah… doesn’t sing well. And that would be putting it kindly.

At least, she didn’t sing well — before I signed her up for singing lessons last year.

I’m not one to get Cait lessons for every little interest or activity. I’m … Read More

Reason #34 Why Not to Get a Dog

There are a hundred reasons not to get a dog. And only one reason to get a dog. On the Don’t Get A Dog side, Reason #34 is:

Mud Season

Muddy Yard

Muddy Dog

Muddy Floor.

So don’t say I never warned you.

Oh, and the one and only reason to get a dog? If you can’t live a day without unconditional love and laughter. There’s nothing else in the world quite like it.

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They Still Exist

I always find it interesting how life events cluster together.  Perhaps you’ve heard of this phenomenon known as “The Law of Threes.”

My little cluster at the moment has to do with healthcare. Within a few months of each other, my family doctor, dentist, and vet have retired. I’ve yet to find people to replace them. That’s because essentially they’re irreplaceable. They all came from the old school where they were human beings first and medical practitioners second. If any … Read More

How Long Will it Take Them…

We’ve got a messy storm blowing in, so Cait and a friend wanted to get in what may be the last of the skating for a bit.

Cait takes a moment to tighten up her laces.

nightskate1

Even though the ice is 5 inches thick (thick enough to safely drive a car on) and we have a long-line rope on the fence post, I still wind up checking on them from time to time.  My old EMT safety habits die hard.… Read More

5 Common Mistakes People Make with Dogs

fiveIt never ceases to amaze me how little someone can know about dogs and still wind up with a decent dog. Really, think about it. What other animal, wild or domesticated, can so readily adapt to our crazy, inconsistent, often self-centered ways?

I can hear some of you suggest that cats fit in with us just as well.  I would argue that cats are willing to put up with far less before they’ll try to avoid or escape us. Dogs … Read More

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