Rally-O!

After looking through the calendar for the NC State Fairgrounds, I decided to get Pogo ready to enter into a novice Rally-O trial at the end of March. If you want to learn more about Rally Obedience, check out this site: AKC Rally Obedience

Pogo knows most of these moves/commands already, but I need to work with him on staying in heel position when sitting and laying down. Since he's so little and he likes to keep eye contact he tends to swing himself out so he's facing my side instead of us being side by side. To help this I've been walking along a lot of walls, fences, curbs, ditches, etc so that he has no choice but to sit straight. Otherwise he's doing really well and has already learned to "come around". It's called a finish right and it means that when he's directly in front of me he has to circle around behind me and end by sitting in heel position on my left side.

If you see a red haired girl and little black and white dog at the fairgrounds that's probably us practicing! It's my favorite place to go because I can let him off leash without worrying about getting in trouble (At least I haven't yet) and because there's usually enough activity there that it's a sufficient distraction for Pogo to learn to work through.

Hopefully the video below will work and you can see what a novice rally course looks like :-)




In other news....my sister and her boyfriend, Bryan, got a 7 week old Golden Doodle Puppy last weekend! She is adorable and her name is Raley, named after Raley Hall on the App State campus.

Since she's so young they're having to take her out to potty every two hours at night....hmmm now what does that sound like? :-)

Britt and Bryan are coming "home" to Cary this weekend so I'll get to meet the little lady and hopefully have some pics of Pogo showing her who is boss!*

*Pogo is a people dog, not a dog's dog and gets very offended when other dogs try to play with him and treat him like a dog.

Today I am thankful for....

...the mess to clean up after a party
because it means I have been surrounded by friends.

...the taxes I pay
because it means that I'm employed.

...the clothes that fit a little too snug
because it means I have enough to eat.

...my shadow who watches me work
because it means I am out in the sunshine.

...the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot
because it means I am capable of walking.

...all the complaining I hear about our government
because it means we have freedom of speech.

...that lady behind me in church who sings off key
because it means that I can hear.

...lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing
because it means I have a home.

...my huge heating bill
because it means that I am warm.

...weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day
because it means that I have been productive.

...the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours
because it means that I am alive.

All things are made new

This break has given me a chance to relax and recharge before school starts again. I've got some rough classes coming up and I can honestly say that this semester looks like it will be the hardest yet.
-Electrical Engineering Principles (why do I have to take this???)
-Mechanics of Solids (what does this even mean?)
-Irrigation and Drainage (ehh boring)
-Structures and Environment (sounds like civil engineering to me....)
-Properties of Biological Engineering Materials (seems a little vague)

My textbooks have started to arrive and I have yet to find a picture in any of them. They look like tech manuals for a super complicated computer...oh well, say a prayer for me :-)

During break I had a chance to ride Gambit, a friend of a friends daughters horse. The girl who owns him rode him through high school but went to undergrad at Ohio and is now going to vet school there so I've been lucky enough to be able to ride him. Unfortunately he's in Cedar Grove, which is near Efland...not exactly close by and convenient to ride frequently.

There's a water crossing here...he wanted to go through so badly! But, there was still ice on the marsh and he's an old man at 27 y/o so we avoided the water.

School starts on Monday so now I'm just moving back into my apartment and getting ready for a new school year!

May this semester be happier and healthier than the last :-)

Christmas!

We had a great Christmas at the Long house in Cary, Brittney was off work Friday and Monday, and is now returning home to Winston on Tuesday morning. Dad had off work the same days and is also taking off Tuesday and Wednesday to get some work done around the house.

I decided that this year we should try a new church for Christmas Eve. We're Catholic and so we usually attend Christmas Eve Mass. Usually is a bit of an overstatement as Mass has become so dry and boring (the Catholic religion as a whole, in my opinion, has become out of touch) that we rarely attend, and can't really even call ourselves "Christmas and Easter Catholics" anymore. I looked up non-denominational churches in Cary and we went to Triangle Community Church and had a lovely service. The Children's groups sang a few songs at the beginning, then the band took over and we sang Christmas Carols for about 20 minutes, had about 25 minutes of a sermon, and then ended with more Christmas Carols. It was fun! It's still new to me that church can be fun and something to look forward to rather than dread.

It renewed my need to find a "church home", I've heard good things about Summit as well as Hope but haven't made the commitment yet, so if you have a preference, let me know and I'll check it out!

Anyway, hopefully this week will conclude with a little more work getting done by me, and a little less sleeping than before Christmas.