Catching Up

Figuring the points for Winners Bitch

It's been a while since my last post. Sorry. Last weekend's dog shows went really well. This was a change of date and location for us. (For the past 6 or 7 years we've held our shows in Orlando during the first weekend of January.) The number of entries was lower than usual, but we expected that. However, everybody who participated said that they really liked the space and amenities of the Fairgrounds. Hopefully word will get out and our numbers will be up next year. The good thing about the change of venue was that we got a lot more members to help out. Last year only six members made the 3-hour trip to Orlando. This year nearly 20 different people helped out, including a bunch of new members. YEA!

We had 16 dogs in the morning show and 19 in the afternoon show. There were enough entries to give a major (3 points towards Champion title) in bitches for both shows. The morning show Winners Bitch belonged to a club member and was handled by her 12 year old granddaughter -- who beat out two professional handlers for the win! Granddaughter has been handling two years. I wish I had started as at a young age. Did they even have junior handling in the late 70s? Am I that old?! sigh. My Breeder entered three dogs as well -- two of Jedi's litter mates and his older half-brother. The dogs were handled by her 13 and 14 year old nieces. It was the first time any of them -- dog or human -- had been in the ring. I was impressed by the girls' poise and grace. I stood on the sidelines and was anxious just thinking about it! I'm going to have to get out my Big Girl Panties if I'm going to do this.

Several other German Shepherd Dog Club tidbits: Most of the current board members have held their position for quite a while and want to step down. It was announced that elections were coming up and nobody threw their hat into the ring. I was on the nomination committee. Three of us got together over some really good wine and brainstormed about who could lead our club to greatness. We came up with a handful of names and began calling. Imagine my surprise when everybody said yes! Wednesday was our monthly club meeting. The place was packed with twice the usual members and a half dozen guests. I have been asked to take over the club newsletter. I was drinking at the time (I see a pattern here!) and had a false sense of bravery so I said yes. UGH. I've been obsessing over the newsletter all weekend. It's not nearly as easy as blogging -- I kind of expect people to read the newsletter. It doesn't help that I'm using a crappy Microsoft template. I hope it'll get easier once I find a format that I like.

As if I didn't have my hands full with the German Shepherd Dog Club, I have been accepted as a provisional member of the K9 Obedience Club. To become a full member I need to attend two general meetings and be actively involved in two club sponsored events over the next six months. Good timing on my part -- there's a meeting on Thursday followed by Rally and Obedience Trials next weekend. I have no idea what I'm doing but I promise to share anyway. We can learn together!

The dogs at Huffman Park during a much-needed break

Doggie stuff aside, my personal life has been busy too. I had applied for the Volunteer Coordinator position at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens last year. Three weeks ago they contacted me and asked if I was still interested. Uh, YES! I thought the phone interview went well, but last week I got the "Thanks but we went with somebody else" letter. It was a nice letter, but it still hurt. I didn't realize how much I wanted that job. Truth is, I don't want to be an animal control officer forever. I'm getting too old to chase dogs, and I'm tired of dealing with the same problems. Most of the issues are stupid and preventable. I'd like to do something different. And I'd like something more proactive. Any suggestions? Any offers? And then there's taxes. I owe this year so I've been putting things off. Now we're down to the wire and I'm stressing over it. The big question: How can I earn less but still owe more?

So now you're caught up. Between blogging, writing the newsletter, and the dozens of emails that go with it, I have been at the computer for most of the weekend. My butt has molded itself to the chair and my mood has deteriorated. I'm going to log off and take the dogs to the park. There's no reason for all of us to be grumpy. Until next time, -- K

P.S. Answer to "the big question:" 1099s vs. W2s.