The sky tonight.
Boy, do I have a lot to share with you. Lots and lots of photos in particular. Hope you’re ready for it!
Every Wednesday morning, Jayde and I have agility class. We’ve only been going for about three weeks, but we absolutely love it. We’re in the advanced class with two other ladies who have an aussie and a terrier mix. Wonderful people. And if you didn’t already know this, I kinda sorta really have a soft spot for aussies (yes, someday I will own another one!). Indy (male blue merle) is absolutely gorgeous, intense, fast, energetic. Just a blast to watch and I can only imagine what he’d be like to run. (Seriously though, there’s nothing more photogenic than a merle aussie, except perhaps Jayde.) Anyway.
Jayde and I have not done serious agility for quite a while. I’ll be honest, I stopped training at home because the connection was gone when we ran. She didn’t enjoy agility a single bit. And while I adore the sport, I wasn’t going to do it to her if she wasn’t loving it and having fun like I was. But I knew when we moved that I would have to find something to keep us both occupied and maybe to make some new connections with people, and what better way to do that than agility? I went into it with the mindset that we were just going to play, fool around, keep it light, and who cares if she didn’t keep criteria or knocked a bar?
Well, I think it was about two weeks before I actually got enrolled in classes and became a regular. But I could see the change in Jayde the first time we ran a small course together there. She was engaged, she was excited, she wanted more, I could see it in her eyes and her body language. She loved it. Let me tell you, there is no better feeling than knowing your partner, your teammate, your dog loves something you do together. It’s a connection that cannot be beat. And that made me love it tenfold. Of course I didn’t immediately assume we were back to our old ways and I could get into serious training. We’re still keeping it a game, if she messes up, I don’t make a big deal out of it like I used to. (If you haven’t ascertained this by now, *I* was the problem in the relationship the entire time – of course). Every Wednesday so far she has never become stressed, nervous, or shut down. She keeps her eyes on me the entire time and is so eager to run with me. Like I said, no better feeling. ❤ We’re going to keep playing and maybe I’ll take it more seriously down the road, enter a trial or two, but I’m not ever going to sacrifice my relationship with Jayde again. Love that dog so so much. (I have to add, it’s a shame that dogs bear the brunt of human mistakes and fumbles… but that’s a whole post by itself.)
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After agility this week, I knew I had to get down to business and work on some homework. So I left Jayde sleeping on the couch, picked another coffee shop off my list, and headed downtown.
I’m not going to lie. My first impression of this place was “old lady’s house.
My second impression was, “Holy crap there are a lot of people here!”
I grabbed a table by the door before going up to order coffee. I couldn’t believe the amount of furniture and people stuffed into such a tiny little area. But somehow, it worked. There were all sorts of baked goodies on the counter. I heard the barista tell another guest that everything was made from scratch “back in the tiny kitchen.” And the menu was very fancy.
It was a very homey place. Someone appeared to be doing some serious work on her laptop at another window. Another lady walked in with her friend and said, “Oh my, I just might go take a nap on one of those couches!” What looked like a knitting club (or otherwise busy activity) was huddled around a round table at the end of the coffee bar.
I sipped my coffee and set to work with notes on the lecture material, reading other responses on the online discussion forum, and otherwise focused on getting what I needed to do done. Looking back, I think I would’ve liked to visit such a cafe with a more relaxed task instead of something drilling like short answer questions. But, I finished the assignments, packed up my stuff and headed out. This time I took the back door (because I had to park in the back, in an alleyway). And this is what I saw.
And probably the coolest outside seating ever
Overall, I enjoyed my stay at Montague’s. It was an interesting atmosphere.
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Later that day, I found a bookstore.
And perused the downtown just a bit the next day. But it was a tad intimidating so Jayde and I went home. 🙂
And last but not least, the h2o situation. H2o as in rain. Rain as in flooding. Lots of it. I’m no stranger to storms (and even minor tornadoes) but the amount of flooding going on all around my area is slightly alarming. All I can say is I hope this is as bad as it’s going to get and the rain decides to visit Texas, or Florida, or the Atlantic. Even Alaska. Just go away from here. xP Anyway, please keep Coloradans in your thoughts! ❤
Off to watch a movie with Ashley! Hope everyone has a safe Friday the 13th! (it is only a number after all xD).
Peace & Pawprints
The Mind of Mezz 