Dog Duties, Movie Review

As I watch my dogs sleep endless hours I have decided to do something about it and put them to better use.  It is really not their fault that they have fallen into this thinkless time spent on their blankets, chair, couch or back yard.  It is time for them to start earning their keep around here and I think I have figured it out.  They will start functioning in a useful way by each having chores or duties around the house based on their strengths and seemingly natural abilities.  Since Buffman is the oldest(12) and has this natural look of authority his duty will be to watch guard over the household and the other dogs.  He has a way about him with his hard looks, gray hair in his eye brows, and loud bark that says, “hey dudes I am in charge here!”  Then there is Squeaky(8) who is designated as the Diva of the neighborhood and must remain on the higher throne by sleeping in the chair, as opposed to the floor blanket in their room.  She has such a look of arrogance and “ I am really not a dog at all but the princess of the neighborhood”  that she demands special handling by all concerned.  Marley(3) also demands special attention since she hails from California and has that far West girl attitude.  She waggles her stub tail a lot and likes to lick on the other dogs.  She is also very bossy so is designated as the “pit boss” of this motley crew.  Then there is Bob(2) who is a toy Boston and is only 8 inches tall, and he has a very different personality from the other three.  He came to us through the animal rescue program so his humble background makes him very self sufficient and easy to please.  His job is to teach the other dogs how to be appreciative of what they have and too keep out of his bowls and special treats.  Now as I look around me I see all four of them are resting up to carry out their duties and was that a snore I heard?  Yep, they will be ready to go again in about four hours I am sure!  A dogs life is not that bad!!

Speaking of teaching old dogs new tricks, I would like to mention my trip to Dallas to get some new training tips for triathlon from the Play Tri performance center.  For all these years of training and competing in this great sport I have always had a real challenge in the swim portion.  It is not that I can’t swim well it is simply I can’t propel my lead feeling body through the water in a very speedy way.  They other point that bothers me is that my position in the water has a tendency to tire me out.  So, when I come out of the water I am behind my fellow competitors and since my position is so bad I am also tired.  And to think I still have the bike and run to go before I finish this multi-sport.  So, I went to these specialists in swim, bike and running to get some new state of the art pointers for putting more ease in my swimming.  What I found is a technique that keeps my body in the flat horizontal mode and this is accomplished by flutter kicking within an imaginary 8 inch box as opposed to the long flutter kick that I have been using.  So, now I am back at my pool putting this new training to use and hoping for some kind of positive response from my old dog body.  Now I have done two workouts and find that it does work but I must get to the pool more often to possibly see good results for the Ironman Texas triathlon in May, this year.  How I have completed over 340 triathlons and 7 Ironman races in the past 29 years amazes me, especially when I swim like a tugboat and then struggle through the bike and run.  Since this is a new concept it is not like it was there for me and I didn’t go for it.  I used the methods that were taught me at the time and with no natural feel for the water from my body I struggled for all these years.  So, maybe this ole dog can learn some new tricks!!

Movie Review:   “The Hobbit:  An Unexpected Journey”, ****, This is a well done movie for the type of movie it is.  Normally I don’t enjoy the “Lord of the Rings” type but this one was very entertaining and well done.  This adventure finds Bilbo(Martin Freeman) joining a quest by 13 dwarfs to reclaim the Kingdom of Erebor, their homeland having been conquered in violent fashion by the new sleeping dragon.  This is only the beginning since they do find the new homeland while sequels 2 and 3 will arrive in December of 2013, and 2014.  That is what I call job security for all concerned in this new theme of dragons, short people, tall people and mystery.  Rated PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and frightening images(dragons and other creatures). 

EA(see you in COS), SH..........!

greerman