Her head has arrived!

18 months old.  That's about what I was figuring.  And it's only getting better. 

I've been working Reese every day for the last week or so, and things are progressing pretty nicely now.  She's falling into balance, although, it's not completely natural for her.  It's not often now where she hits the balance point and overflanks.  We're starting small outruns.  I am working on her understanding what the outrun is rather than repeating the same thing over and over.  I don't set it up the same way twice.  And she's figuring it out.  Her down is pretty solid, probably more solid than any of my other dogs.  She wants to please me at every step.  I love love love working with this little dog.  Watching her figure out a problem makes me laugh.  The look on her face is priceless.  Phyllis mentioned to me today that our new corian whistles have arrived (I lost my buffalo horn whistle, and despite begging Ray Coapman, he won't be making anymore), so once I get that from her, I will start Reese on at least a down and walk-up whistle.  Oh ... her walk-up is lovely.  She usually comes in with a purpose, but I can put the brakes on her pretty quickly and get her to steady up.  Doing that was a complete mystery until the Shannahan clinics with Echo, who used to come in like a bullet.  I can't wait to get her out into more open spaces to see where this training is really at.  It's easy with a fence really close all the way around us. 

Tomorrow morning I am headed out to Don's to work dogs in the morning.  Echo is lame (front left) ... I don't know what she did, but she's been gimping around on it on and off for a few days.  It doesn't look like a pad, so I'll crate rest her for a few days and see what comes of it.  So it'll just be me and Reese.  And the story should unravel ... along with the training, I'd imagine.  We'll see.

D&B is having their semi-annual sale ... 10% off everything ... so I am going to run down and get a couple of hog panels, which will give me everything I need to complete the dog run I'm putting up.  I'd like to get it done (a) before my brother gets here at the end of the month; and (b) with enough time before winter to get the back yard all cleaned up.  The dogs have made quite a mess of it since I took the other kennel run down in the spring.  This one will be ... not necessarily bigger ... but better.  It will have a much better gate on it, and will have a few trees right in the middle of it for protection.  And none of it will be near the privacy fence so Zip can't piss on it, or dig under it!  Ha!  I am sure Reese will still figure out a way around it, or rather ... over it!

Dean, my awesome neighbor, came over this morning and brought me back my cutting board.  I gave it to him yesterday and asked him if he could sand the top of it down since something I was cutting on it stained it in several places.  I don't mind all of the cuts in the top of it, but the stains ... they were kinda grossing me out.  So now it's nice and clean again.  It's one my ex-husband made, and he was the type that made stuff that would be the only things left standing after the huge earthquake came and wiped California off the grid. 

I was telling Dean that this year I am going to be smart about buying pellets, and am going to buy a ton at a time, instead of a few $5 bags, and then freezing my ass off when I forgot to stop and get some.  So I moved the crates out of the laundry room and put them in the dog boxes in the entry way, and Dean and I went out back and found some old wood to make quasi pallets out of.  My son's old headboard/footboard combo fit the bill perfectly.  Dean trimmed off a few inches and laid those down, and then we grabbed an old sheet of 3/4 plywood I had laying around and cut that down to size and laid it on the headboard/footboard combo, and it works perfectly!  There's 50 forty-pound bags it needs to accommodate, so I am hoping the dimensions work.  I made it as large as I could, still leaving the laundry room workable.   And the best part ... the pellets get delivered!  And if I have good beer here waiting ... the "delivery guy" will even stack it for me!  Woo hoo!  Suchadeal ... Whattabaahgain.

The ice from my ice-maker is starting to taste pretty freezer burned.  Time for a new filter. 

I wanted to go see the Brian Bateman Blend tonight in Boise, but I am poor broke white trash, so I'll go see them when they play back out this way again.  They are starting to become regulars at the Knitting Factory ... very cool! 


Please keep some good thoughts for my brother.  He needs them right now. 

Thanks.
J