Monday, January 26, 2009

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly


WHITNEY


At yesterday's show,Whitney won the final two points she needed to gain her Junior Warrant. The letters JW now go after her name. To gain this award she had to amass 25 points. A first at a championship show is worth 3 points and a first at an open show is worth 1. Three points must come from both types of shows. Whitney gained 24points at Championship shows and 3 at Open level.

THE SHOW

Yesterday's show was a disaster. The judge is a well known Poodle and Yankee exhibitor. Both those breeds are very flashy, and are moved fast and hard. He chose to make us do the same. Completely inappropriate for our breed, not to say difficult for many exhibitors, not just me. Whitney was entered in 4 classes (because I was after those points). In the first class she was made to move 5 times. In the subsequent 3 classes, she was also made to move at least 3 times in each class. Now this means a complete lap of the ring and then across and back. Not only was this very hard on me, but made the judge look incompetent. Could he not tell how the dog moved on the first lap? It also seemed that he was not looking for a good Lhasa Apso but a glamorous flashy show dog. They are not the same thing at all. I breed for the good Lhasa Apso with the attributes need for life 16000 feet above sea level in Tibet. I don't want a generic show dog.

One of my fellow exhibitors is successful and a championship show judge of our breed. I have found her behaviour when she loses to be appalling. She goes red in the face, looks as if she will cry and she stomps out of the ring. She is a large woman so this is unmissable. She also is rather rude in that sometimes she will greet you at a show but most times she will look away and ignore you. Yesterday, I discovered that she is truly without ethics and will do whatever she will to win. She did what she could to upset my dog and me. She was behind me, and moved much faster than I was able to without suffering or losing my balance. I just managed to not let her run me down. I will NEVER allow this to happen again, in that I shall make sure she is not near me in the ring. I do not feel inclined to continue to acknowledge her regardless of her response, as I have been doing, out of politeness. I try not to let the behaviour of others alter mine, but right now I just don't feel like sticking to that rule! You know, it is one thing to try and disrupt a fellow exhibitor but to do so to an infirm one is quite frankly astonishing. Considering my past, I ought not to be shocked by the behaviour of people but I am. I can't believe this person is like that especially when her job is caring for others !!!!


POOL

I do not know what has happened but I do know the lifeguard in question was seen by the manager today. I also know I have been backed up by at least one member of the lifeguard team.


PRESIDENT OBAMA

I have just been listening to him give an address to the USA ( and the rest of us really). It is pleasure to experience listening to a man in his position and not feel like one is being bamboozled and screwed. Truly, I have never before felt trust for a politician. Trust is a huge thing for me and I do so hope I am not being fooled. With Bush there was no doubt.


SOCKS

Sigh. These blasted socks, I am really fed up with them. I like the colour and the pattern but I am just fed up with them now. For some reason I have made several mistakes whilst knitting them. I knit the first on up to the heel turn, did the heel turn. That was the first error. I used my Mach 1 heel when the math was for the Mach 2. I then knitted the second sock a whole 60 rounds longer before I did the heel turn! I must have been knitting like a tit in a trance to have not noticed. So I frogged it back and did it right until the heel turn. I did the Mach 1 heel. So then I had to frog both socks back to heel turn and do the correct Mach 2 heel. This is where I am with them now, just starting to knit up the legs. Two weeks of work and not done yet. Arrggh!

6 comments:

knitwych said...

Congrats to Whitney! :-)

It's really a shame that some people display such immature, unprofessional behavior like that woman at the show. I think a degree of competitiveness is healthy, because it makes us want to do better, but some people become obsessed by it, and the results are always ugly. I like to win as much as anyone else does, but I was taught as a kid that you can't win *all* the time, and that part of life is learning how to deal with that gracefully - no tantrums, no huffy attitude, no trying to ruin things for someone else, no taking your disappointment out on others or trying to discount what others have accomplished. I've seen a lot of parents set their kids up to become creeps with lousy attitudes by letting them win all the time. Those are the kids who become obnoxious and selfish when they get out into the real world, and who seem to think they're owed everything.

As for Obama, I have to say that it is UNBELIEVABLY delicious to hear my president speak without feeling embarrassed, disgusted or ticked off. After eight years of the bitter bile Bush inspired, I almost feel like I'm dreaming.

Glad things are going better at the pool, and sorry about your sock frustrations. When I have a pair that trouble me, I put them in Time Out so they can think about how naughty they've been. Then I go back to them later. ;-)

FuguesStateKnits said...

Hi Colin - quick comment before dashing off for the PM docket - It never ceases to amaze that in what should be a bastion of good behavior such immaturity exists! How do you put up with this? I'm glad the mgr spoke with that lifeguard - she needed it - safety first!
As for our new Prez - I have to say, I was driving between client visits and heard a quick newscast - talking about closing Gitmo, stopping secret prisons and torture, getting rid of "don't ask, don't tell" as being wasteful and stupid and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton talking about this being the beginning of a new era - for a split second I thought I was dreaming! Then I couldn't help but cry with joy!
And this was on his second weekday in office!

Anonymous said...

I like the new blog look.

LizzieK8 said...

Congrats to Whitney and her papa!

Boo Hiss to the Bitch that tried to run you down.

Fingers crossed for the dismissal of the life guard.

I'm so glad you feel trust for President Obama. I do, too, and am glad to know I'm not the only one. And he's articulate. Isn't that amazing!!!! and wonderful!

Sorry about the socks. It happens.

Anonymous said...

re the Socks, I feel your pain. I swear sometimes the yarn just does not want to be what we want it to be. Good luck with them.

Re our President, I am so excited and hopeful, and that feeling has grown rather than diminished in this first short week he's been in office. I really have hope our country can survive now; two and one half short months ago I was sure it could not.

Re the pool--I hope things improve. Including the life of that miserable person who was taking it out on you.

Re the Show---great news re Whitney, esp under such difficult circumstances. I do have to say that reading your experiences has really made me re-think getting into showing our Tibetan Mastiff and entering that whole world. I have no patience for the whole power-trips-of-small-minded-people game, and I don't think I could play very well with them. So Arlo will spend his days as a beloved family pet, and we'll pass on the whole championship/breeding thing. I admire you more than I can say for your ability to tolerate those people for the sake of your dogs. That takes a very special and dedicated breeder/owner/lover of your babies!!!!!

fairy godmother said...

Congrats to Whitney! Isn't it amazing how some people act. I'm just sorry she was acting like that towards you.