My girl, epiphany and cookies

Yesterday morning it was very cold- some where in the low twenties. I trundled out the door to throw the ball for Danny, and the Frisbee for Lucy. Danny doesn't care a bit about bad weather. Lucy, however... We didn't play long because I was afraid Danny would cut his pads on the ice. At one point as I was watching Danny, Lucy came up and gently slid her head under my hand. It was quite a moment. We were just us, together. Anyway, I took it as a more practical sign, that she was cold, and we should head in... So we did.

Today, I am making Chocolate Chip cookies. Yum. Going to start them now... Okay, got the first batch in the oven... Cleaning a bit today- this is a good thing :)

So, what was the epiphany you may ask? Well, I felt like I had been spinning my wheels with Danny. He was making little progress, as it was a battle with his slicing in, although it was getting less and less. I just didn't like his too fast approach, almost not thinking.

So, this last time I worked him, I decided no more whip, or stick just me. Me who was not in a particular jovial energetic mood. Me who was going to work my dog, not react- just work him. So, I go out there, stand up tall, and stayed calm. I had a different dog by miles, I mean many many miles. Danny just worked- calmly. Thought of getting tight maybe once, but no, not really. I even had him doing small gathers. He was so nice behind the sheep, kept his head low, behind, and lay down when asked. It was huge. A major breakthrough, and all because I changed how I comported myself. I feel like we will make very good progress now because both our heads are in the right place.

Christmas, Sugar!

TOO FUNNY!!! I LOVE This song, this vid is just a nice extra :)

I love Sundays

The view this morning





So, yesterday after work, I came home and proceeded to clean. Well, not too much, but I did pull the furniture (including the bed) out from the wall, and vacuum the dust etc., that was residing there. Then, I did lots of laundry. Finally, I had a nice dinner, and read a book. Good day.

Last night, there was *nothing* on tv. Well, with the notable exception of the PBS drive with Peter from Peter Paul and Mary, and another gentleman, who were doing a drive with their music, and memories of Mary. It was so very touching. At one point it came up that Peter was with Mary when she died. He recalled noting that she was in pain, and he asked if she was, she said yes, so he went and got a nurse. When the nurse returned, Mary fessed up to just wanting him to get to the point of his story ;) I can see that would be me on my death bed ;) Anyway, I cried, because these two had been through so much together, they broke up the group for 10 years, but came back together like they had never left. They sang in the 60's a period of time where music brought people together, and gave them hope- like Peter said. Imagine, having your dearest friend with you when you pass. I am always so deeply touched by the strong, and impenetrable support that is there when you need it. Mary, you were a cool lady.


This morning I got up and then went back to bed, but it was short lived, because Danny was absolutely going to die if I did not allow him his usual play session in the morning. So, after that, I did the usual morning preparations, had some great coffee, and then headed out to the MALL.

I got some jeans, and a nice soft sweatshirt that was on sale. I also went to PETCO, and was dismayed to find the Snuggies for dogs all sold out! So, I just got some bird food.

Now, it's home, and just time to chill. That's what's nice about Sundays....

Cramps, Lucy, and cleaning

Man. I am getting old?... I worked the dogs yesterday, and came home, had a bad for me dinner, and my legs were pretty cramped up. My right thigh quad was fasciculating, and I was just plain uncomfortable. Woke up at 2:00 am really hot, and then had a glass of water, changed into summer night clothes, and back to bed. Awoke this morning, and found that my legs felt like I had run a marathon. It's odd. I guess I am in bad bad shape... Danny makes me run a bit, though it is less and less.

Would like to finish Christmas shopping, but lack the funds to do so.. So, I will have to wait on that. I really want to clean the house today, it's groty- I may even shampoo the carpet in the living room.

This morning Danny was laying in his normal place while I prepare food for the dogs, and Mr Chips walked over to him, and I saw Danny's nose crinkle! I may have even seen a little pearly white! I corrected him for that. Mr Chips is clueless when it comes to dogs. He thinks he IS a dog, but doesn't read dog language well. Well, he does read it somewhat, because he is a bit afraid of Danny- I can see it in his body language. Danny likes to nip him, and he did that today- he was just playing, but I have to come down on him for that.

Danny is coming along nicely on sheep- we still need to keep him calm when he first starts- he wants to zip them- it's almost like he wants to get it out of his system. And, it's very hard to get in there and block. So, not sure what I can do, but will have to figure it out, because that is basically the only issue right now. He is yielding to my pressure, and he did something cool. When I just stopped, and the sheep just stopped, he just stopped. That was waaaay cool. It's good that he is seeing that he is "doing" something with the sheep, not just flanking around.

Lucy was a nut case yesterday. I sent her to fetch the sheep to the barn, and then almost there, she headed them?? WHAT THE HECK??? She may be feeling neglected with Danny getting more work, but she best stop that. She is so fit, that dog could hold out for lessons, run a farm, run in trials non stop. She doesn't even need much food. Her hair is cool- she was muddy yesterday, and I just used my hands to brush her off, and she was clean.

I may hit Petco today, and use that gift certificate the cat owners gave me... Maybe a nice new cat tree for Meow, aka Mr. Chips. Other than that, as I said, cleaning and maybe just maybe chilling out. I ordered the Alisdair shedding dvd, so if that comes in, I will watch that. Oh, and I finally ordered a lanyard for my whistle- the yellow ribbon ain't cutting it anymore....

So, I hope everyone has a good weekend. I hear we may get some snow. Joy to the world eh? Well, as long as it melts, that's fine with me!

HMKG 04 Norwegian Military Tattoo

Since I am 1/2 undiluted Norwegian, this is just very cool to see!

Charlie Bringing in Sheep

An illustration of why sheepdogs exist.

Speed, holes, and fire

I see it's been a few days since I updated last... It's a trend caused by being so busy, and just wiped when I finally do get to stop.

I worked the dogs again, and there were some memorable moments, that I would like to share.

First, Lucy. I was working her on shedding, and I had only three sheep- that's hard, but I figured what the heck. She was forced to re-set her position several times, as she was too tight, and the sheep were being butt-heads. But, to her credit, she never thought of NOT doing what I asked. So, I finally get the sheep set, and when I have Lucy down, she takes a couple steps in- that is the KISS of death for shedding.

So, I had a glove in my hand and I went to whack it against my other hand, but missed (I wanted to underscore to Lucy that lie down means lie down- right then). The glove flew to the ground and one of the ewes decided it looked like lunch, and she ran over to it, making a nice hole, through which to call Lucy through. TOO FUNNY. I thought, hey, that's ONE way to make a hole :)

So, later one, I had Lucy shed two off, and put them near a fence. I want her to learn to just cover and hold, and not be so compelled to mix it up- if you know what I mean... So, she had them there, and then, I guess she had to pee, so as she is giving the hairy eye ball to the sheep, she pees. When she pees her tail came up, and when she finished, she had her tail up, and one leg up, looking like a pointer. I was thinking "hey, do we get extra points for style on this?" Gotta love a dog who just works through the bodily functions ;)

The other thing, and this I am not sure I can adequately convey... At one point, Lucy had to cover, I forget why, but she had to turn on the speed. She went out and she ran. She didn't just run, she covered ground as fast as any single dog I have ever seen. She looked just like a racing Greyhound. She completely extended her entire body, and looked to spend very little time on the ground. My mouth actually fell open. At that point, I thought to myself, I defy any dog to beat this speed. I have seriously never seen a dog run/float/motor that fast. Afterward she wasn't even freakin' winded.

I worked Danny too. We are getting there. He is so keen, and just wants to keep going back to work, and well, I love his little mischief he also gets, when I have the sheep on the fence and want him off, and he does a little stomp at the sheep, just to rile them. Yes, it's bad, but I LOVE a little fire in a dog.

So, that's it for now.