Personal Assistant (Life organiser) required....please apply within.
*BOUNDS IN THE DOOR - SCANS THE ROOM...FLOUNCES INTO COMFY CHAIR*
OMG!!!! It's been FOREVER since I wrote here..... most remiss of me I know but having a year off is BUSY Y'ALL!!!
THE GOOD!
Ok so the rock I've been hiding under lately was this place here:
The Sydney International Equestrian Centre - yeah the one they used for the 2000 Olympics....this was one of the quieter moments but in the evenings when every dog (762 of them!) was competing in here, the stands were quite full, the lighting was fabulous and the atmosphere ELECTRIC!
My girls had a BALL!! And so did I :)
And there were outdoor rings too!!
The event took place over 5 days and even made National news here in the morning of last Sunday the day of the finals.
I came away with five wins and three second places and about three top ten placements, a couple of those top ten placements were in classes of over 230 of the country's best dogs and handlers (including a few New Zealanders!). Each of my girls made THREE out of a possible FOUR finals on the Sunday and sadly Sunday was just not our day. I don't know where my head was at (perhaps nerves though I didn't feel them too much more than the previous four days of competition) but on at least two finals runs I was the one responsible for it not going to plan, in the first few Savvy had one unlucky dropped bar in one final and little miss Spryte just decided that that dogwalk contact was taking too long to do! Roll on the next Nationals I say in 2014! And in Brisbane!
We camped out in a motor home (or RV in USA speak) for the six days we were there and of course this period as we landed from Perth was one of Sydney's wettest periods in decades! Seriously did not get dry for about 48 hours after we landed, it was just INSANE. Learnt how to drive an RV which is handy because we're hiring one at the beginning of September in Canada.
I watched a number of fantastic dogs and handlers compete, saw the New Zealand dogs and handlers completely bring it (they didn't win a Nationals title but they were up in the placings!) and caught up with heaps of interstate friends in the sport and made new friends with ones I'd just been in contact with via FB and email only. In short I had a very exhausting blast of a week! Up at 6am everyday, crawling into bed by about 11.30pm each night.
One other thing happened too that is kind of bittersweet for me - young Savvy (she is 2 and a half) came in season whilst we were over there. My friend (who is a Border Collie breeder and bred Savvy who is from Spryte) was thinking about having a litter with her when we left her and her mum Spryte with her for six months whilst we are in the States. The dog she wanted to use was this guy here:
This guy is called Flynn! And I met him at the Nationals, he did some great runs and was very popular. And pretty damn good looking to boot! So long story short I only came back to Perth with Spryte and Savvy is off in New South Wales as I type this having a good time romancing it up with Mr Flynn! If all goes to plan she may be having her first litter of puppies around the end of August!! It was VERY hard leaving my youngest girl there, Savvy has not been away from us for any longer than a couple weeks last year and now when she gets flown back to Perth T and I will already be in the air heading to the US for six months!! I am going to stay in close touch with her breeder and hopefully I can keep up with young Savvy's first foray into motherhood. And no I can't keep a puppy! *she says completely convincingly*
Anyhoo that's it on the dog/puppy/agility front! Oh except there may be a few more puppies on the horizon. I am hoping to import some semen from the UK and do an AI on Miss Spryte on what will be her last litter before I sterilise her next year. Some fresh new bloodlines into the country won't hurt and I am very in love with the dog I have chosen to use. Fingers crossed it all goes to plan!
Oh and apparently Mr Cypher has a girl lined up for him when we're away! Not my litter at all but fellow BC enthusiasts/breeders want to use him on their rather lovely girl (so far she hasn't taken on a couple of attempted matings so hopefully Mr C can do the job!) so that will be interesting if the mating takes. Doggy rendezvous happening all over the shop and I will be away for most of it!
In other news I have burning questions for my flisties!!! MEGA USA AND CANADA TRIP
First off - the best most ubiquitous gym chain in America would be???? I'm curious to know if I can perhaps sign up for a 6 month membership that will allow me to attend a gym club in most of the major cities we stay in. I really do not want to let my fitness go by the wayside and looking at all the fancy restaurants T wants us to go to I'm going to have to be very strong on sticking to the exercise regime whilst I'm away.
Secondly - Universal Studios in LA....different from the one in Florida right??? We should definitely try and do both??
Thirdly - Long term car rental places?? Anyone have any experiences good or bad with these?? We will be looking to rent a car for quite a long period (from beginning of Sept through to New Year) so we were wondering if anyone had anything pressing to say on the issue?
Fourthly - What are the definite MUST SEE Nationals Parks? The US seems to have a tonne of them so I was wondering which ones should we absolutely not miss? So far we have Yellowstone, Yosemite and up in Canada Banff to do.
Onto more frivolous things, I feel like my flist and I are in the kind of place with our relationship that I can confess certain things of which I am not proud (much like years ago when I spoke of being utterly baffled by my addiction to the Twilight series of books - honestly I still have NO idea, find the movies kind of adorably laughably fascinating) and so I feel I can share this with you:
I am be smitten with the EL James trilogy 50 Shades books. The writing is on a par with the most average writing in fandom (that is to say I will sit and read through it whilst wincing at certain moments just because the topic is one I love - namely Supernatural) and indeed I can name at least five writers in the SPN fandom off the top of my head who WIPE THE FLOOR in terms of prose composition of this author and yet I AM ENAMOURED PEOPLE!! Again I cannot say why - and of course have to put up with T's teasing of - you're head still stuck in that mummy porn crap? Where I indignantly inform him it is NOT JUST THAT :P Whenever this sort of thing happens I always wonder if perhaps I should not invest in some self reflective psycho-analysis because really I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND MY BRAIN!!!! Anyway - I love the trilogy - have downloaded the soundtrack and am about to launch into rereading them all again whilst composing a way of rewriting the whole set using either Sam or Dean or Jared and Jensen. I haven't quite decided yet. In the meatime I'll be over here downloading the entire soundtrack for the series so I can listen as I reread.
Okay confessions over.
Next on the list - I have to say I am, for the most part, really enjoying the SPN BB fics I'm reading, most of those recs came via big_heart_june, and so far I think I have loved Fish out Of Water by nyxocity the most although I still have another 10 to go!
Planning a stay in Vancouver in August leading up to the Vancouver Supernatural Convention - cannot wait to get back with my fandom friends and roll in all that is good about our show. Very excited to see where they go in Season 8, counting the days - will be brilliant to get to the Dallas con as well - will our show be back on air by then I wonder?
So this post has turned into a MASSIVE rambling behemoth of a post but excited redteekal is EXCITED!!! FIVE MORE SLEEPS till we are on a plane to Los Angeles!!! Never been to LA - except for a brief stop in LAX and I don't think that counts, open to any and all must see and do things for LA - only have about 5 days there however I believe one of them is for July 4th! Where does one go in LA to celebrate July 4th I ask???
OMG!!!! It's been FOREVER since I wrote here..... most remiss of me I know but having a year off is BUSY Y'ALL!!!
THE GOOD!
Ok so the rock I've been hiding under lately was this place here:
The Sydney International Equestrian Centre - yeah the one they used for the 2000 Olympics....this was one of the quieter moments but in the evenings when every dog (762 of them!) was competing in here, the stands were quite full, the lighting was fabulous and the atmosphere ELECTRIC!
My girls had a BALL!! And so did I :)
And there were outdoor rings too!!
The event took place over 5 days and even made National news here in the morning of last Sunday the day of the finals.
I came away with five wins and three second places and about three top ten placements, a couple of those top ten placements were in classes of over 230 of the country's best dogs and handlers (including a few New Zealanders!). Each of my girls made THREE out of a possible FOUR finals on the Sunday and sadly Sunday was just not our day. I don't know where my head was at (perhaps nerves though I didn't feel them too much more than the previous four days of competition) but on at least two finals runs I was the one responsible for it not going to plan, in the first few Savvy had one unlucky dropped bar in one final and little miss Spryte just decided that that dogwalk contact was taking too long to do! Roll on the next Nationals I say in 2014! And in Brisbane!
We camped out in a motor home (or RV in USA speak) for the six days we were there and of course this period as we landed from Perth was one of Sydney's wettest periods in decades! Seriously did not get dry for about 48 hours after we landed, it was just INSANE. Learnt how to drive an RV which is handy because we're hiring one at the beginning of September in Canada.
I watched a number of fantastic dogs and handlers compete, saw the New Zealand dogs and handlers completely bring it (they didn't win a Nationals title but they were up in the placings!) and caught up with heaps of interstate friends in the sport and made new friends with ones I'd just been in contact with via FB and email only. In short I had a very exhausting blast of a week! Up at 6am everyday, crawling into bed by about 11.30pm each night.
One other thing happened too that is kind of bittersweet for me - young Savvy (she is 2 and a half) came in season whilst we were over there. My friend (who is a Border Collie breeder and bred Savvy who is from Spryte) was thinking about having a litter with her when we left her and her mum Spryte with her for six months whilst we are in the States. The dog she wanted to use was this guy here:
This guy is called Flynn! And I met him at the Nationals, he did some great runs and was very popular. And pretty damn good looking to boot! So long story short I only came back to Perth with Spryte and Savvy is off in New South Wales as I type this having a good time romancing it up with Mr Flynn! If all goes to plan she may be having her first litter of puppies around the end of August!! It was VERY hard leaving my youngest girl there, Savvy has not been away from us for any longer than a couple weeks last year and now when she gets flown back to Perth T and I will already be in the air heading to the US for six months!! I am going to stay in close touch with her breeder and hopefully I can keep up with young Savvy's first foray into motherhood. And no I can't keep a puppy! *she says completely convincingly*
Anyhoo that's it on the dog/puppy/agility front! Oh except there may be a few more puppies on the horizon. I am hoping to import some semen from the UK and do an AI on Miss Spryte on what will be her last litter before I sterilise her next year. Some fresh new bloodlines into the country won't hurt and I am very in love with the dog I have chosen to use. Fingers crossed it all goes to plan!
Oh and apparently Mr Cypher has a girl lined up for him when we're away! Not my litter at all but fellow BC enthusiasts/breeders want to use him on their rather lovely girl (so far she hasn't taken on a couple of attempted matings so hopefully Mr C can do the job!) so that will be interesting if the mating takes. Doggy rendezvous happening all over the shop and I will be away for most of it!
In other news I have burning questions for my flisties!!! MEGA USA AND CANADA TRIP
First off - the best most ubiquitous gym chain in America would be???? I'm curious to know if I can perhaps sign up for a 6 month membership that will allow me to attend a gym club in most of the major cities we stay in. I really do not want to let my fitness go by the wayside and looking at all the fancy restaurants T wants us to go to I'm going to have to be very strong on sticking to the exercise regime whilst I'm away.
Secondly - Universal Studios in LA....different from the one in Florida right??? We should definitely try and do both??
Thirdly - Long term car rental places?? Anyone have any experiences good or bad with these?? We will be looking to rent a car for quite a long period (from beginning of Sept through to New Year) so we were wondering if anyone had anything pressing to say on the issue?
Fourthly - What are the definite MUST SEE Nationals Parks? The US seems to have a tonne of them so I was wondering which ones should we absolutely not miss? So far we have Yellowstone, Yosemite and up in Canada Banff to do.
Onto more frivolous things, I feel like my flist and I are in the kind of place with our relationship that I can confess certain things of which I am not proud (much like years ago when I spoke of being utterly baffled by my addiction to the Twilight series of books - honestly I still have NO idea, find the movies kind of adorably laughably fascinating) and so I feel I can share this with you:
I am be smitten with the EL James trilogy 50 Shades books. The writing is on a par with the most average writing in fandom (that is to say I will sit and read through it whilst wincing at certain moments just because the topic is one I love - namely Supernatural) and indeed I can name at least five writers in the SPN fandom off the top of my head who WIPE THE FLOOR in terms of prose composition of this author and yet I AM ENAMOURED PEOPLE!! Again I cannot say why - and of course have to put up with T's teasing of - you're head still stuck in that mummy porn crap? Where I indignantly inform him it is NOT JUST THAT :P Whenever this sort of thing happens I always wonder if perhaps I should not invest in some self reflective psycho-analysis because really I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND MY BRAIN!!!! Anyway - I love the trilogy - have downloaded the soundtrack and am about to launch into rereading them all again whilst composing a way of rewriting the whole set using either Sam or Dean or Jared and Jensen. I haven't quite decided yet. In the meatime I'll be over here downloading the entire soundtrack for the series so I can listen as I reread.
Okay confessions over.
Next on the list - I have to say I am, for the most part, really enjoying the SPN BB fics I'm reading, most of those recs came via big_heart_june, and so far I think I have loved Fish out Of Water by nyxocity the most although I still have another 10 to go!
Planning a stay in Vancouver in August leading up to the Vancouver Supernatural Convention - cannot wait to get back with my fandom friends and roll in all that is good about our show. Very excited to see where they go in Season 8, counting the days - will be brilliant to get to the Dallas con as well - will our show be back on air by then I wonder?
So this post has turned into a MASSIVE rambling behemoth of a post but excited redteekal is EXCITED!!! FIVE MORE SLEEPS till we are on a plane to Los Angeles!!! Never been to LA - except for a brief stop in LAX and I don't think that counts, open to any and all must see and do things for LA - only have about 5 days there however I believe one of them is for July 4th! Where does one go in LA to celebrate July 4th I ask???