Live like a dog

Live simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.

Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.

Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.

Take naps.

Stretch before rising.

Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.

On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.

On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.

When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

Be loyal.

Never pretend to be something you’re not.

If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!

On failure and motivation

Today Bravo and I competed in another agility trial. Once again, we failed to successfully complete the Jackpot game. We seem to have hit a roadblock with this particular game, as we have gone 0 for 4 this year.

When I realized what had happened, I was quite upset. I contemplated just leaving, without completing the last 2 games of the day. I walked around outside for a while, fighting the frustration. If I couldn't get out of this mood, there was no point in continuing, at least not today. Bravo enjoys this so much, and I can't run him if I'm in a bad place. It wouldn't be fair to him. And I didn't have much time.

I managed to shake it off a bit, and got ready for the standard run. This is a game where you just follow the numbered obstacles. The ending was tricky, changing directions, alternately pushing out and pulling in. We ran well, and Bravo responded perfectly to all my cues, verbal and physical.

The last run of the day was Full House, where you make your own course, incorporating 3 single jumps, 2 "circles" (tunnel or tire jump) and 1 "joker", all while accumulating the appropriate number of points for your level. It seemed to me that getting enough points wouldn't be too tough, so I decided to put in a few techniques that don't show up in courses all that often, but that we have been practicing in class. Again, we kept the teamwork going throughout the run and finished the day with a great run and a first place ribbon.

When I got home I decided to review our stats.
2011: 13 trial days, 49 qualifying scores
2012: 13 trial days, 45 qualifying scores
2013:  6 trial days, 17 qualifying scores
Completed all 80 runs for Levels 1, 2, 3, and 4, as well as 31* of the 40 required for Level 5 in just over 26 months. That's a pretty good record. We have about an 80% success rate, and I can't really complain about that.

I had set my sights on completing Bravo's C-ATCH (those 9 remaining runs) before he turns 9 in September. But you know, that's a very arbitrary measure of success. We got started running really late, not until Bravo was 6. I'm happy with how we're working in general, and I love how enthusiastic he is. The most frequent comment I get is that he is so happy when he's in the ring.

So I plan to celebrate the joy and teamwork. Challenge myself to use different techniques and not just play it safe. Make sure that Bravo is having fun in each and every run. And have fun just running with my dog.

Bravo, showing the joy

courtesy of Herreid Photography

*For anyone who is nerdy enough to add all this up, you will notice there is an extra run. I have 1 more qualifying score than I need in the Jumpers game.

On gender politics

Yeah, I'm tired of the political rhetoric from this campaign, too. But I read an article about the election gender gap in the NYTimes today, and it struck a chord.

“What was really frustrating is that there was this myth manufactured by Democrats in Washington that the Republican Party as a whole is against women,” said Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, who said she watched with disappointment as her friend Senator Scott P. Brown of Massachusetts was tarred by the broader fight and lost his bid for re-election, to a woman. “There is no doubt we need to do a better job as a party in reaching out to women, recruiting strong women candidates and sending a more positive message,” Ms. Collins said.

When you put a goal in the party platform that would not only ban abortion, but also some forms of contraceptives, then I think it's fair to assume that is one of the party's objectives. When Republicans fight as hard as they did to allow companies to opt out of providing contraception coverage in their health plans, then yeah, I look at that as being against women. I'm not sure Democrats manufactured a myth, here.

“It has never made sense that my party, the party of individual freedom and personal responsibility, thinks the government should be involved in issues” like abortion, Ms. Collins said. “We are the party that trusts individuals to make their own decisions. That is one of the defining issues of the differences between Republicans and Democrats. So this is just bewildering to me.”

This is something I have always wondered about. I DON'T agree with the statement that a defining  issue between Republicans and Democrats is that Republicans "trust individuals to make their own decisions".  But they do talk a lot about individual freedoms, especially in regards to guns. When the issues have to do with sex (abortion, contraception, homosexuality), all of a sudden individual freedom and personal responsibility are not part of the Republican conversation.

I feel like this was a pretty rough campaign. Attack ads were more ubiquitous than ever. In the past, I think Republicans were successful in their smear campaigns (e.g. swift-boating), and Democrats were not very good at hitting back (kinda like the first presidential debate, what little I could stand to watch). While I would prefer to think candidates should campaign on their own issues and goals, without resorting to such relentless attacks, that leaves you open to the situation from the movie American President, where "they're the only ones doing the talking". In this campaign, I thought the Democrats did a good job of capitalizing on the mistakes, lies, and mean-spirited positions that many of the Republicans took. Yes, there were some failures, but overall, I think this election was a success for liberal's and women's issues, and that Republicans made their own beds when it came to alienating women voters.

And by the way, I think it should be a rule that when a health plan doesn't cover contraceptives, it can't cover Viagra either.

Reading variety

I used to read only one book at a time. In the last few years, though, I've changed that habit. I listen to books in the car (currently a mystery), read on my Kindle when I'm out of the house (currently a romance, plus occasional snippets of Self-Reliance by Emerson), and typically read paper books at home (just finished a fantasy novel). Yeah, that's most of the genres I read. Throw in a little biography and sometimes general fiction.

The fantasy, by the way, was Ravenous, first in the Dark Forgotten series by Sharon Ashwood (library classifies it as romance, but I really think of it as fantasy). A witch and a vampire team up to defeat a demon - with help from werewolves and hellhounds. Yeah, NOT my usual fare. But I read about the series on a blog I frequent, and started with the third book - Unchained. I liked it a lot and so now I'm reading the rest of the series. Now on to the next book on my vast to-read pile!

By dawn's early light

I really do like walking at dawn. Even though there are inconveniences (like I need to take a flashlight and why did my tiny flashlight disappear over the summer so now I have to carry a honking big one?). And even though it was raining today (which made it darker than usual at this time of day).

But the streets are mostly empty and the streetlights make the scene prettier.

And there's always the chance of seeing some animals that are nocturnal or crepuscular (though not today). But the sky did turn pink. No, the sky doesn't really look pink in this picture, but it really was, and the street reflection kind of shows how pink it was.

And yes it was raining. I didn't take a long walk, but I did enjoy going out and seeing how the light changed and the reflections on the wet streets.

Doubly grateful

Ok, so obviously I'm not going to manage a daily post. The last post was a little weird. The ubiquitous 9/11 hype was annoying me, and I didn't want to mention it. But the post did have to do with some of my feelings about the event and .... never mind, I don't want to go there.

Anyway, I'm still going to try to post, but I'm going to give myself a break by not expecting it will be every day.

Since it's been a while - or just because I feel like it - today is a two-fer. The first thing is that I love the light rail. I wish I lived closer to the line. I'd like to ride it more often. If I move to another city that has a subway/light rail, I'm going to try to find a place to live close to a station. As it is, I usually have to make an occasion to use it, as I did today. I did a little shopping at the Mall of America, then took the light rail to Franklin Avenue and walked to Mezzanine for a haircut.

(I tried to get a picture including the train, but the phone was slow to respond and I missed the shot. Good thing I'd taken this one as practice. I also like that you can see downtown in the background.) By the way, today was the first time that I have been asked for my light rail ticket. I was actually happy to see them checking.

Today I am also grateful for Carly. She's been cutting my hair for quite a few years now - 7 maybe? I've followed her to a couple of different salons, and introduced Jason and Karis to her. I really enjoy chatting with her. I can tell her things I haven't told anyone else. It was a relief to talk to her today. Plus I got a great haircut, and it gave me an excuse to ride the light rail!

Thank you, Mr Jefferson

Today I am grateful for the words from the Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I bought a book some months ago called The Faith Club: A Muslim, A Christian, A Jew - Three Women Search for Understanding. I'm reminding myself that I should read the book, and embrace and celebrate the differences between us.

It was hard to think of a photo to illustrate this post, but I decided on this one taken from the steps of the Capitol.