Super Troopers For the Win!

This year has been Jacob's senior year in high school. It has been a wonderful experience for him and he has learned so much. This fall he will be at Virginia Tech and our house will no longer be quite so full.

 As his high school career has been coming to a close he had one big final project, the hover car. The class was divided into teams with the assignment to build a hover craft. An integral part was to have a theme for the creation, not just for the car but for the team members as well. After some hard lobbying by Jacob's two team mates, they settled on the movie "Super Troopers." I found some "trooper shirts" at Party City and the guys used yellow duct tape for the stripe along the pant leg. Aviator sunglasses and a big old fake mustache for Jacob rounded out the look.

Today was the big competition for all the hover crafts. Team Super Troopers had created a very quick and nimble car, It passed the maneuverability portion with great style and speed. The team's driver, the other Jacob, was able to swing around the car and come to a very impressive stop at the end of the course. The next portion was the timed races. They didn't have the fastest car, the Duck Dynasty entry went off like a shot, but it's maneuverability won the day. They ended up winning the competition by a two second margin.

Jacob at one point observed that today they proved that a '93 Crown Victoria was faster than the USS Enterprise.

HAPPY DOGS in Australia

I admit it, I Pharrell Williams' Happy. The videos on his site, 24 Hours of Happy, are wonderful. I think this one, submitted by a dog trainer from Australia is one of my favorites. Because really, it's hard to top a dog in joie de vivre.

Turkey

I was going through my pictures when I found this one from a few weeks back. I had fully intended to share it, but it got lost in the shuffle known as my life.

Anyhoo, I saw the turkey strolling across my neighbors lawn as I was leaving my street for some errand. For once I had my camera with me in the car and I was able to stop and take a few pictures before to made its way back into the woods. I don't get to see Our neighborhood's resident flock of turkeys, so it is a big deal when I do spot them. I find them to be far more interesting than the huge herd of deer that I get to see pretty much every day.

I Love Purebred Dogs

Today was "National Purebred Dogs Day." The mixed breeds aka Heinz 57s and All Americans get TWO days (July 31 AND December 2) so why not one day to celebrate the intentionally bred to a standard dogs?

I love my purebred dogs because I knew exactly what I was getting. I am allergic to most heavily coated breeds, smooth dachshunds are much less of a problem. I adore Corgis, but the 24 hour, seven day a week shedding is murder for me to keep up with, hence the polyester of the dog world, smooth dachshunds, are my breed of choice. I like smart independent dogs that love me, but are not needy. I don't want a yappy dog, dachshunds have a surprisingly deep houndy bark, the better to hear them when under ground. I could go on and on on what I like about dachshunds.

Conversely I know I have dogs that love to dig, chase critters, and can be very stubborn. With consistant and firm training it is possible to work with these behaviors, by providing a safe and secure environment and redirecting them to approved areas to dig. I was able to train the red boys father, Crunch, to dig on command. From there I was able to get him to dig in the woods. Sadly I have been less successful with John and Dell. You can even enter your dachshund in den and field trails as an official outlet for their hunting, chasing, and digging needs.

Another advantage to having a well bred purebred is their health and temperament. So far the boys have only suffered from self inflicted and accidental health issues, from snake bites, to a dislocated shoulder (stupid squirrels taunting my boys), and the odd growth. As for their temperaments, well I chose the breeder known for happy, loving dogs with waggy tails. Both dogs love kids and view visitors to our home as new friends. There are a lot of ill bred dachshunds out there that are snappy and ill tempered. My dogs are beloved at the vet and the kennel for being the love bugs that they are.

So that is part of why I love my purebred dogs.

Artist of the Week: Salsa!

This week's artist is Jacob's trumpet teacher, or rather one of his many bands. Bio Ritmo, the band, has been around for a while and Mark is one of the horn players. His main instrument is the cornet, but he plays trumpet just as well. As for the video, it was shot around Richmond including the restaurant Cuba Cuba.

Enjoy!

Sprung

Spring is at full throttle around here. The wisteria has exploded out of the azaleas, yellow tree pollen is everywhere, and the dogwoods are in full bloom. I love autumn for the crisp nights, but really spring is where it is at in the south.

We broke out the mowers this weekend, our lawn was a shaggy mess and desperately needed attention. There wasn't too much drama starting the tractor, it had one tire in need of air and the battery needed a boost. the one tricky bit was when Larry was almost done mowing and the mower deck quit working. Luckily it as just a cotter pin working loose and I knew all about it from last year. Technically it wasn't a cotter pin as I had used a heavy duty paper clip, but the end result was the same. This time I used a heavy duty key ring (sans keys) to hold the bits together. I am the queen of ad hoc tractor repair.

Writer's Block

A gang of convicts attempt to make a break from the prison for criminally poor writers.
Writers' Block from WÖNKY Films on Vimeo.