We are trying to remember what happened to summer. I think it was too hot to really DO anything. It's a little cooler but not much, however this month is chock full'o things I have to do. And at the end of the month MAYBE there will be a new puppy waiting, or maybe not. I won't know for awhile and meantime, just eat Valium.
(No that's not true. Valium makes me really stupid. As in, worse than normal. It turns me into a zombie. I know people who take it before they go into the show ring but I tried it once and nearly fell asleep waiting for the Judge to examine my dog.)
Anyway the GABR Bash&Waddle is the weekend after the Park Forest Art Fair which is the 15 & 16, if anyone feels inclined to drive a thousand miles to see a dying institution. Am I bitter? Moi??? This year there are 62 vendors. SIXTY TWO!!! Do you know how tiny that is? This is a show that used to draw people from all over the country, no kidding. One of the biggest, best art fairs of the year.
This is the town that used to have the Scenic 10 Run. It drew runners from all over the world. It was considered one of the big prep races of the year. We don't have it anymore.
I am convinced the Village powers have decided the art fair is too much trouble and are trying to kill it. They're almost there. It would not surprise me if this were the last year.
I do not have a booth at the art fair. I have my jewelry in a Gallery right there on the main street, and I go and sit in the weatherproof gallery with the door open and when it is hot or rainy we offer A/C or a roof. I have done quite well this way and am hoping this will be a good year, but with 62 vendors....
The weekend after that is the GABR Waddle and I am working with Wendie Prince and the Sr.Hounds Abound booth. That is in Dwight, Il and is still one of the big waddles. They raffle off a Corvette every yr. They have their own property and they walk in the Harvest Day parade. I might bring Conley, I don't know.
The idea of bringing Mr. I Am Cool and trying to sell stuff at the same time has limited appeal. I also need to have him groomed first and he howls the entire time he is there, making him not popular. There is no known way short of anesthesia to shut him up.
I will say here as an addendum that my good friend McBeth lost her heart and soul dog, Frankie, earlier this week. He was a yellow lab mix and was supposed to be a guide dog, but he flunked. He had bonded with McBeth when she raised him as a puppy and refused to submit. He tried to drag a trainer into a lake after a goose. She had him forever after, until his death from cancer this week. He was a wonderful, fun, friendly, obedient dog whose entire life revolved around McBeth.
He was an agility dog, a therapy dog, a reading dog, a dock diver and he excelled at all of those activities. Whatever McBeth wanted him to do, he did to the very utmost of his ability.
Frankie was a great dog.
We will all miss him.
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