Thoughts on Valentine's Day......Where is that Mr. Right?

I'm sitting here during the waning hours of Valentine's Day...having just read my sister's blog about the wonderful gifts her husband gave her. It has now been 3 years since I have had a Valentine's Day with a spouse to share it with.....and one of the "dumb" things I do is to buy an extremely romantic card.....in the hope that someday I'll have someone to give it to. I am wondering if each year alone gets easier....It is holidays like this that make me really think that I have "gone mad." And then some day, I wonder if romance really does exist....or if that only happens in the movies.

But...c'est la vie.

I did get flowers from ProFlowers (gorgeous - almost purple Irises) from my dogs that are living in Oklahoma. That was a kind gesture. Those flowers were so cool. They even came to my office!

I had a movie "date" with my friend, Anne. We saw Music and Lyrics with Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore. It was a great flick!! While Anne is a great movie-going bud....it would have been more romantic to have gone with Mr. Right....

The cynic in me suspects that he's not out there.....

But c'est la vie.

However....the "best" news is that.....last weekend, I took one of my Gordons to a United Kennel Club Dog Show (UKC) in Ixonia, WI. Here's an excerpt from my post to a dog discussion group -

Going to a UKC show is different venue. Points are earned differently but it is conceivable that you can finish a championship with the United Kennel Club (UKC) in one weekend which consists of 4 shows. Two shows are held concurrently on a given day. A dog needs to win 100 points with 3 competition wins. If you are the only one in your breed, you can earn competition wins by a group placement. So, if your dog gets a Group 4 and there are 5 dogs in the group, you'll get one of your competition wins. (That was how it was explained to me.)

On Saturday, February 10, under Judge Donna Rommelfaenger, River earned Best Male Gordon from the Junior Dog class and Best of Breed. He earned 25 points for that win. In the Gun Dog Group, River earned a Group 1. So, he had his first competition win. And then, the most exciting thing happened.....River was given the nod for Best in Show!! You get no extra "points" or anything for a Best in Show, but I was thrilled. In the second show, under Marsha Shively, River earned his 25 points toward his championship, but did not place in the group at all.

On Sunday,February 11, Laurie had Flame entered and I had River entered again. Gail Godding, who keeps River's coat up, feeds him and cares for him, came to watch and take him home when we were done. When we finally got to show today, we showed to Dean Spielvogel. River won Best Junior Male and Flame won best Junior Female. River got the Best of Breed so he got his 2nd competition win and a chance to go on to the Group. He did nothing in the group. The next judge was Carol Glodowski-Starr and she again gave the nod to River, but as we were leaving the ring she said, "but the bitch is very nice, too." That made us all feel good, because Laurie was the one encouraging me to participate in this venue. River by virtue of this win earned his UKC Championship title.

Then we went into the Gun Dog Group and River took another Group 1. What made it more fun was that Gail and Laurie were there to cheer River and me on. Then for the Best in Show we were in very good company. There was a Borzoi, owned by Pam (WI) who incidently gave River a Best in Sweeps at the Great Lakes GSCA Specialty in July, a lovely Beagle owned by Chardon Beagles Chuck Kitchell, a Schipperke, a Siberian, a White German Shepherd, Terrier group was not represented in the Best in Show that I can remember.

And...again, River won Best in Show. Back-to-back Best in Show wins at a UKC show is just such a thrill. And a new championship title, too!!

I can't thank Gail and Laurie enough for cheering us on. River, was so true to his graceful style and elegance. The judge was telling Gail that she knew that the minute he walked into the breed ring that he would get "something" as he has incredible movement and is such a flashy dog.

So...thanks to everyone and thanks to breeder Marte Wetzel for her support of this venture. Thanks to Gail for her idea of this co-ownership and to Laurie for encouraging me to try something new.

It was a blast!!

I am proud of Ch. BIS-U-Ch* Glen Oak's River Breeze Shiraz!! (*pending confirmation, of course).

River...for now...is that knight in shining armor. He really did shine...and that makes me proud!!

Winter is Official....for another 6 weeks.

Wow....where does the time go? I know that I resolved to blog more and my mom and sisters have encouraged me to as well.

Since Januaary 1, it's been busy for me....my new job within the State keeps me busy as do all the dogs and the litters of puppies planned for Amethyst Gordons and Amethyst Kennels. To see the latest batch of pups, you can check them out here. Next up will be Keno, then Asti and I'm waiting on Emma to come in. When it rains, it pours, but I haven't had a litter for almost 3 years, so it'll be great to raise a new puppy. In the meantime, Fire, Ice (my geriatrics) and Whisper (Irish) and Dugan and Emma keep me busy. A couple dog shows in early January kept me busy and a week long training in Brookfield for an A+ computer certification also added to my "busy-ness." Not to mention troubleshooting PCs for a couple people and working on web updates for clients.

Last night I drove to Milwaukee for a surprise celebration for my friend Daleen's 40th b-day party. She and her husband, Dick, co-own Dugan with me. Dugan has been living with me since April 2006 so that they can sell their home. The market is soft and they haven't had any takers. D told me that she was the most pleased to see me at her party. It meant a lot to her that I'd take time and drive all the way to Milwaukee to help her celebrate. It was a lot of fun!! And..friends do that for each other.

Since Dick and D are trying to sell their home and having a hard time, I can relate as trying to decide what to do out here with this old farmhouse makes me crazy. I have always tried to make "goals" or "resolutions" for myself, since my divorce....and one was to build a new house before I'm 50. I'm not sure that I want to adjust that yet as I have about 1.5 years to that goal, but getting there is as frustrating as it gets. Plan A probably will not take place, so it's on to plan B. I have decided that life is just a series of plans and back-up plans. Perhaps the goal-setting that my dad instilled was a good thing. The frustrating part is when I get upset that Plan A doesn't go.....*grin*

Last weekend, Mom and I traveled to Ripon College, my alma mater, where I was so very honored to present for my sister, the Maternal Optimist, a wonderful tribute to her favorite professor, Dr. Robert P. Ashley, Jr. The family had asked her, but since she lives in North Carolina with her family, I was the stand-in. Again, what an honor to be asked by Ruth to do this. And, to have my mom in the audience. I maintained my composure, got the correct laugh lines and truly realized that this is why I love Ripon College. Ruth's words can be found on her blog, but I would like to share my preface:

Good afternoon. We are here to remember and honor the life and work of Dr. Robert P. Ashley. As is evidenced by those of you here, Ripon College was “home” to Dr. Ashley. Family was important to him. This was embodied not only in his human family, but his college family as well. My name is Peggy Gero DaValt, a member of the Ripon College Class of 1980. I was a history/religion major here. I never had a class with Dr. Ashley. But of course, I knew who he was and I had great respect for him. My little sister, Ruth Anne Gero Adams, was one of Dr. Ashley’s favorites. Ruth was asked by the Ashley family to provide a few remarks. She is not able to be here today with you, as she is at her home in North Carolina where, along with her husband, David, raise a son and twin daughters all under the age of 5. Ruth asked me to read her tribute to Dr. Ashley. I am extremely honored to do so.

It's February....and Jimmy the Groundhog (Sun Prairie, WI) claims we'll have 6 more weeks of winter. And...today is evidenced of that....a day to hunker down....and not get up. It's bright and sunny but the light dusting of snow is blowing everywhere. It's about 5 degrees (BELOW) zero and the windchills are in the 20 to 30 degree BELOW zero mark. It hasn't been that cold in about 6 years. It does so remind me of the days of my youth in New York and Wisconsin where snow would start in November and not end until April. I even opted to leave all the dogs in the house now until the weather breaks.....hopefully by mid-week. My movie-going buddy wants to go see 2 movies today, so perhaps she and I will have to do that...popcorn and great cinema. At this time of year we try to take in all the Oscar nominated performances. I believe that we'll see Notes on a Scandal and The Last King of Scotland.

Life is good. Life is busy. I wouldn't have it any other way.