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Both Debbie and Mo'i are doing fine.  Debbie is pushing to get more range of motion (especially flexion).  She's up and about much more now than even just a week ago.  Being stuck in the house is driving her crazy (I know, short drive :-).  Mo'i is likewise doing fine.  His behavior is completely back to normal.  He's loving his 4 or 5 times a day chicken-and-rice diet :-)...

Debbie's Friends Miss Her...

Last weekend, a bunch of Debbie's friends from dog agility went to a meet – one that Debbie had been signed up to compete with Race and Miki.  They missed her, and decided to let her know how much they missed her:

Race Is Competing Again This Weekend...

Debbie and Race are competing down at NTC this weekend.  Yesterday's runs are here and here (I can't embed these videos).  He's still green – screwed up the weave poles on both runs and dropped a jump pole.  Debbie is still working out how to handle a nuclear-powered rocket ship.  The important point: he's completing the courses in half the nominal time...

Race: His First Competition...

This past weekend Debbie ran both Miki and Race in an agility competition.  This was Race's very first such competition.  In the video below you can see Race make some “newbie” errors (like knocking down the bar on a jump, or missing the weave poles).  But you can also see some fantastic speed – he looks like he's roughly twice the speed of Miki.  Several times you can see him leaving Debbie far behind.  The numbers bear this out: this course was rated at 44 seconds, and he did it in about 20 seconds.  Watch out, world!  Race is on the way!

A First Place!

Debbie and Miki ran in an agility competition this past weekend.  It was a three-day meet, and they ran twice each day.  On one of those six runs (the standard course on Friday, amongst 20 or so 16" jump height dogs), they took first place!  Miki is a Field Spaniel, a breed most agility competitors know for their inability to focus on the job at hand and their easy-going, unhurried approach to life (including agility competition, where speed matters).  They are pretty much the precise opposite of a Border Collie, the canonical agility champion.  For a Field Spaniel to take a first place against a big field of dogs that included all the usual suspects (breeds) for agility competition is a bit like an unmodified Volkswagen setting a new land speed record.  Here's that first place run:




Here are the other five runs over the weekend as well: here, here, here, here, and here...

Miki and Debbie...

...had a great weekend, in agility competition at NTC.  They ran four times, qualified on each run (so two double-Qs!), and got a total of 68 points for speed.  Miki is now almost half way to his MACH title – and on track to break all records for field spaniels in agility.

Woo hoo!

Morning Walk...

I miss Orion in the sky; at this time of year it has already set in the west before I get up.  And it looks odd to me to see the Big Dipper (Ursa major) “upside down”, almost straight overhead.  But the clear skies I really enjoy.  The half-moon was very high in the southern sky this morning, and bright enough to wash out most of the stars.  There was plenty of light to walk by.

Race chased pine cones, as is his want.  He likes any sort of ball or toy that's kicked or thrown, but for some reason pine cones are his absolute favorite.  You can see his delight when he finds one, and his joy when he chases down one that I've kicked – he runs back to me with it held in his jaws, practically skipping and dancing with happiness, his head whipping back and forth.  Then down it goes on the pavement just in front of me, and he crouches, focused totally on that pine cone and the moment of my kick.

The three field spaniels wandered from smell to smell.  I want to be able to ask them “Who visited there?  How long ago?”  I'm assuming they know, that they can tell from what they're smelling.  Maybe I'm wrong, though; maybe those smells are to them like a nice glass of wine to me – I don't really understand it very well, but I sure enjoy it!

I got to thinking, during our walk this morning, about Debbie, who is away with her friend Marsha Y. in the Los Angeles area.  I miss her, of course.  But I'm very proud of the way she leapt in to support her friend.  She and Dick (Marsha's husband) are so far Marsha's only visitors.  This isn't because Marsha is without friends or family (she has plenty of both).  I don't know why others aren't there to be with Marsha.  But Debbie is there, when Marsha needs friends and family the most.  I'm proud that my wife is the kind of person who responds to a friend's need in the way that she has.

Marsha appears to be making good progress.  Last night she was able to eat on her own, for the first time since the stroke.  In my last call with Debbie, her tone was full of optimism and hope...

Debbie and Miki, In Competition!

Five runs, five winner's ribbons.  Debbie and Miki rule the agility field!

Debbie and Miki...

Running on 5/22/10 (they took first place on each run):