Training Challenge (4)

Posted on August 29, 2010 by Dawn King

All this lunging and chasing cars while barking hysterically is a really big problem.  When Katie and I are out and about she generally behaves, probably because she’s out of her element and doesn’t feel a need to defend her place.  But back at home she reverts to her crazy self.  Especially when it’s the mail lady’s diesel truck.  That starts and stops, revving up that noisy engine at each mailbox.

So I’ve been trying to get her out to the driveway whenever we hear the mail truck approaching.  We have three times each day that she goes by; the first time is on the side road as she approaches the subdivision.  It’s our first notice that she’s on her way.  Then she comes back our way, putting mail in the boxes across the street.  And finally, once she gets way up to the end of our road she comes back down our side of the street and puts mail in our box!  That’s just the WORST!  I can often get Katie to sit quietly and wait when she goes by on the side street, but it’s just about impossible to keep her in a sit when she’s on our street Mom! The crazy dangerous mail lady is  ON OUR STREET!

So here’s the story, in Katie’s own words:

I’m waiting for that mail truck to come by…

There it goes!!!  Up the other side of street!  GET IT!!! GET IT!!!

Ok.  Mom made me hang out further up the driveway, away from the road in the hopes that putting some space between us will help me concentrate on sitting when that truck comes back.  Yea.  Like that’s gonna work.

NOW she has decided I wasn’t far enough away, so she’s making me sit way over here in the front yard.  Sheesh! This is mortifying.  I can do this, what’s she thinking anyway?  (I hope this involves treats!)

Hey!  I hear the truck coming!

It’s coming, it’s coming!  I see it!

I’m SITTING!  I’m SITTING!  SEE!?!?!?!  SEE!!!!!  And it’s RIGHT HERE!!!  She’s TOUCHING MY MAILBOX!!!!

I did it!!! Yes I DID!  WAIT!!! WAIT!!! The truck is moving AWAY!   I’m trying to sit.  Yes I am.  I’m TRYING!  BUT I CAN’T CONTROL IT ANYMORE!  I HAVE TO BAAAAAAAAAARK!!!!!!!!

Darn.  Sorry Mom.  Sigh.  Hey – Got any cheese?

Posted in Katie, Uncategorized, training | 9 Comments

The Crim and Special Olympics

Posted on August 28, 2010 by Dawn King

Last night I had a pre-race dinner with three running friends.  We all ran the “Crim,” a fundraiser for Special Olympics, this morning.  More on our race later.  As we ate  our pasta dinner yesterday evening we heard cheering out on the street and a high school band playing.  We made it outside in time to see many of the Special Olympians running their races.

You see, the Crim Festival of Races is a big deal here in Southeast Michigan.  It’s been going on for over 30 years and has grown to include the 10 mile road race, an 8K (5 miles), a 5K (3.1 miles) and a family walk as well as a Teddy Bear Trot for the little ones; all on Saturday morning.  Friday evening the Special Olympians run their own races and I have to say it’s hard to keep from crying as you watch them run or walk.  Most of them are grinning from ear to ear, and the crowd cheers for everyone.  It reminds me of a quote I read in some running book years ago.  Something like “how many middle aged folks get to do anything where people line up and cheer you on?”  That’s why we run, and that’s why they run too.  We’re not so different.

Generally I run the 10 mile race.  But these past couple of years I’ve been injured.  This year I had great hopes of being back on the 10 mile course, with it’s unweildy hills, fraternities offering beer, neighborhoods cheering, gospel choirs singing..well…you get the picture.  But two weeks ago while training I did something bad to my knee and even though I’ve stayed off of it, have iced it and heated it and massaged it, it’s still painful.  So I “downsized” to the 8K figuring I could walk 5 miles and I’d still get to see much of the course and enjoy the amazing support from the families, musicians and other runners out there.

The wheelchair racers headed off at 7:30  Then it was time for the over 10,000 runners and walkers doing the 10 miles to start.  Ten thousand runners is an amazing sight and it made me sad not to be out in that massive crowd waiting for the gun to go off.

By the time I saw the 10 milers off and got back to the finish line 3 blocks away the wheel chair racers had already completed their 10 hilly miles!  Talk about speedy!!

Those of us doing the 8K got started at 9:30.  It was a wonderful day for a road race!  Cool and sunny.  Perfect.  We had lots of support along the way, from the preacher type urging us on…

…to the cheerleader girls shouting for us to rally on our way up a hill.

There were the frat boys offering Crispy Creams…

and families with small children providing water.

There were singers and musicians along the way like this saxophone quartet…

…and a family that every year beats a rhythm on buckets for the entire time (hours and hours) that runners and walkers are going by.

I felt pretty good most of the way…

…until the middle of mile 4.  Then the knee started to give me trouble.  But I found that it hurt less if I was running, so I tried to run as much as I could.  Too bad I hadn’t TRAINED to be running!

Here are a couple of amusing photos…first the back of one woman’s shirt that made me laugh…

…and second, a beautiful little old lady, standing alone ringing a cowbell for us as we ran by…

…and a little old man playing his accordion as he walks down the sidewalk!

And then I was at the finish!  This is already too long…so I’m going to post the finish line pictures tomorrow!    Suffice it to say I made it, bad knee and all…and it was a wonderful day.

Posted in Uncategorized, exercise, fun stuff, running | 6 Comments

Making the bed

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Dawn King

I have company coming so I was making up the bed in the guest room.  Katie, always the helpful Sheltie-girl supervised.

I’m sure Sara had a similar post when Oreo was helping her…hope she doesn’t mind a little plagiarism.    Maybe we could get Katie and Oreo to make the beds together!  A little chore off our own lists.  It’s a thought.

Posted in Katie, Uncategorized, fun stuff | 9 Comments

Experiment gone wrong.

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Dawn King

So yesterday I wrote a post, then figured out how to get it to post after midnight (this morning).  I thought.  I checked at 3 a.m. when Katie and I came in from camping.  It was COLD out and I decided enough was enough so we abandoned the tent.  There was no new post, but the draft was still there, still supposedly scheduled to post at 12:00.  I figured that maybe that meant noon.  So I waited some more.

Guess what?  It’s not posted but it’s no longer in the draft section either.  So probably at noon it went somewhere…just have no idea where!  Maybe I’ll recreate it.

Technology got me again! LOL

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Reality check

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Dawn King

Yesterday I attended an AARP sponsored job fair for unemployed people age 50 and up.  I haven’t had to get up so early and dress so nicely in a long time, and it felt strange.  It started at 9:00 in a city about an hour away, so I got to experience rush hour traffic again as well, and I have to say I was OK with that.  Skills long unused came right back as I maneuvered my way down a familiar freeway with all the normal stop and go spots.

I arrived about 8:30 and the huge parking lot of the civic center was filling up.  Inside a couple of hundred people just like me were already in line.  By the time they opened the doors at 9 there were a few hundred more behind me.  All of them dressed in suits, looking quite employable.  All of them over 50.  All of them unemployed.

I talked at length to a couple of women, one used to work in the federal government’s drug enforcement and left to raise her kids.  Now divorced and years away from any work experience she can’t find anything.  She’d welcome a receptionist job if it paid for her health insurance.  Another has been a lawyer for many years and doesn’t want to do that anymore, but can’t find anything else.

The speaker, a volunteer with AARP started out by stating that we might be sitting there feeling “a little bit old and a lot beaten up” as we searched for work.  All around me heads nodded.  She told us to stop feeling sorry for ourselves, that we had a wealth of experience and employers wanted that experience.  But that we had to stop automatically closing doors, that some of us were more inflexible than we realized and we needed to show that we were open to ideas and new things, not  just focus on who we were and what we did in our old job.  We need to show a prospective employer what we can do for them NOW, not what we might have done for someone else some time ago.  And she said the young recruiters didn’t want to see us as like their moms and dads, they wanted to see us as more like them.

I have an interview next Monday for a position that would take me back to my old line of work.  I’m going to practice being hip and young and open and inventive and creative over the weekend.

Because I don’t want to be in the nicely dressed older  and unemployed demographic anymore.

Posted in Uncategorized, employment | 13 Comments

Wordless Wednesday…it’s still Wednesday isn’t it?

Posted on August 25, 2010 by Dawn King

Posted in Katie, training | 4 Comments

101 in 1001 days

Posted on August 24, 2010 by Dawn King

More than a year ago Melanie posted about putting together a list of 101 things she wanted to accomplish, enjoy, experience or learn in the next 1001 days.  I think there was a website that helped her set up her list but I don’t remember.  A while ago she updated us on her progress…which reminded me that the whole thing was something I was interested in doing.

Sort of my own bucket list.

So I started building my own list of 101 things I wanted to do.  But I got stuck.  So far I have only listed 52 things.  And I’ve been working on this off and on since the first of August.  I’m thinking that because I’m already over 50 and have experienced many amazing things that I just might not have 101 things left to do.  I’m not sure if that is a good or a bad thing.

Maybe I should take the leap and just do it.  Just because I can’t find 101 things there’s no reason I have to wait to start this.  Who made the rules anyway?  Who says you can’t add to the list even as you’re checking things off?  Or is it cheating if I only have 52 things to accomplish in 1001 days?  Should I get the 52 things done in 500 days?

And how do you figure out the date 1001 days away anyway?

Posted in Uncategorized, change, fun stuff, musings | 12 Comments

Bad news everywhere

Posted on August 23, 2010 by Dawn King

I started reading blogs this morning, stopping at Jane’s blog where she lamented that the bad news in the world came up free on the newspaper sites, but the good news was only available with a paid subscription.  I laughed at that and continued on.

Poor Faith had to go to the vet because she has an ouchy spot on her tummy and we are hoping it’s nothing serious.  Then Miley who is having laser and ultrasound therapy appears to be getting worse.  And Misty who is just the sweetest thing ever isn’t happy anymore and seems to be in pain, so she’s on her way to the vet too.  And the guys down in the Florida Keys are mourning the loss of their Grand-Paw and have posted a moving tribute to their Dog-Dad’s father.  Riley’s Mom who has been ill since last December is having even more surgery this week.    Mika, who’s Mama has already endured too much heartache was hit by a car today and is at the vet with crushed legs.  And to top it off last night I stopped at Huskee & Hershey’s site and saw a picture and story about a dog that was killed on the streets of Singapore by it’s owner…and no one stopped the man.  No sleeping for me last night with the image of that poor pup sliding in and out of my dreams.

After all that I just stopped reading.  Way too many dogs and people suffering today.  I’m giving thanks because I’m lucky that right now there are no calamities going on in my life.  And I will keep all those worried parents and furkids in my thoughts, sending them cyber hugs and healing thoughts.

Hope you will too.

Posted in Uncategorized, health, scary things | 8 Comments

Training Challenge (3)

Posted on August 22, 2010 by Dawn King

This week I decided to take Katie to a place she’s never been before with smells she’s never smelled before and sights she’s never seen before.  She was all happy to be GOING SOMEWHERE!  She loves to travel and we had her car back from the shop so she got to travel in her very own comfortable and safe crate.  Happy happy dog.

But as soon as I arrived at my surprise destination and opened up the back she started to shake.  Typical Katie; new smells, new sounds, new everything is just so scary!  So.  Do you want to know where we went?  Is this a clue?

We visited a local dairy farm where they sell the most wonderful ice cream.  People buy the ice cream and then wander among the dairy cows.  It’s a pretty unique experience – to be eating the sweet ice cream while smelling the sweet …well…  smells of cows.  Up close and personal.

From the start Katie wasn’t too keen on the whole thing.  There’s a covered picnic area quite a ways from the cows, and we walked around there for awhile till she stopped shaking.  Then I started doing obedience patterns with her and since I had cheese, well cheese trumped fear, which was a good sign that she was adjusting.  When she’s really scared she refuses cheese, and we were never in that place on this adventure.

Eventually I heeled her over nearer the cows, and then we just walked in the middle of the walkway, not too close, all the way to the back of the barns.  She was interested in all the animals but not pulling on the leash to get any closer to them.  Till she saw the baby pigs.  THOSE she wanted to meet, and they wanted to meet her too!

Then it was back through all the big cows, and she tried to sit where I told her to, but it was just too close and she decided she’d rather not.  LOL  I didn’t push the issue, my whole goal was for her to get comfortable quickly in a totally foreign environment and I think she did that.

On our way back to the car we stopped to let a family with three young children pet Katie.  Another thing we need to work on.  She allowed all three to pet her gently on the side, but only after I asked her to sit, and got down there with her.  Otherwise she continues to shy away from people that want to meet her.

All in all it was a successful trip.  And mama didn’t even eat any ice cream!

Posted in Katie, Uncategorized, fun stuff, training | 13 Comments

Saturdays

Posted on August 21, 2010 by Dawn King

When I was a kid my parents had a list of chores that had to be done Saturday mornings.   The list was generated after we were in bed on Friday nights, and awaited us on the kitchen table when we got up the next day.   Chores were grouped in relationship to how hard they were.  And every chore had a little box in front of it where we would put our initial, indicating we’d do the work described.  We each had to chose one of the harder ones first, and had to finish it before we could choose another easier task.  We were allowed to sign up for only one chore at a time.

Here’s the trick and the reason this worked.  There were four of us.  And if any of us wanted to make sure we didn’t  have to do the really yucky jobs we’d be up and out of bed before our siblings so that we could claim the least worst job for ourselves.  And we didn’t dawdle doing the work either, because we wanted to make sure we got the next least horrible chore.

So this Saturday as I mentally list the things I should get done I picture that chore list with it’s little boxes ready for initials.  And I smile.  We might have thought it was terrible back when we were teenagers, but right now I’d be thrilled to share my list of jobs with my three siblings!

Cause there isn’t anyone else here that’s going to initial the boxes on my list of things to do!

Posted in Uncategorized, family, memories, relationships | 7 Comments