West Palm Beach

The most exciting thing I did while off the grid was take a road trip to West Palm Beach. It was a girls' weekend and it was awesome! I went with Jedi's Breeder, her sister, and their two nieces/granddaughters, plus Jedi's brother, Chili and older half-brother, Trump.

We got to West Palm Beach early on a Thursday afternoon. We relaxed in our adjoining rooms, hung out at the pool, enjoyed a good meal at a dog-friendly restaurant and met up with a few other club members. Not a bad first day! We woke up early the next morning, got the girls and dogs ready, and headed to the fairgrounds. The Sunshine State Herding Group Association hosted a Junior Jamboree. 35 kids aged 9-17 attended a FREE day-long workshop on junior showmanship. Judges, professional dog handlers, groomers and long-time dog fanciers shared the ins and outs of dog showing. I listened in as much as possible and actually learned a few things.

The next day was even more exciting! We went back to the fairgrounds for the Jupiter-Tequesta Dog Club show. It was HUGE! There was an all-breed show and an obedience trail running concurrently. I was overwhelmed by the experience. We had club members showing, and I cheered them on; I watched people that we had met the night before at the hotel; and the girls showed dogs for people they didn't know. I was on the floor and I loved it. I talked to breeders, and handlers, and owners, and vendors. Breeder and Sis are bolder than I am, and talked to everybody. I think their courage rubbed off on me.

We ended the weekend at the Ginger Goat Farm. The owners are friends of Breeder and let us all crash at their place. They are a fun (and kinda funky) couple. Billy and Angie are former City people who moved to the middle of nowhere to live the natural life. They have ducks and chickens and dogs (but amusingly, no goats) and were happy to share it all with us. Under different circumstances, I could have lived Angie's crazy life (instead of my own crazy life.) The best part: she blogs, so I can live it vicariously.

We came home Sunday afternoon educated but worn out. I was so glad that I took the next day off. And I was really happy to see Jedi again. Next time I do that I'll have to find a way to bring him along. -- K