D is for Dog

There are dog people and cat people in the world.  I am a dog person, always have been.  And, I confess, I like large dogs best.

The hard-to-resist Harlequin Great Dane on the couch is one of my favorite photos, but unfortunately, not my dog.  Great Danes are gentle and wonderful with children, but need room obviously, and the owners need a rather large dog-food budget.

Some years ago, we purchased an English Setter puppy in Deerfield, Massachusetts for $85. Papers were included and we were in love with her unusual coloring, a tri-color, tan, black and white.  There is another story concerning why we bought her but that will be under the "T" day.

After moving back to Colorado, my husband encouraged me to train her with the thought of entering her in dog shows later.  A few years, much training, and showing later, ta da. . . .

Presenting:  Champion Lady Guenevere of High Tor!  Yes, "finished" her myself.

Fast forward to this year's Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show where dogs have to already be champions to enter.  The last hour of the show which takes place in Madison Square Garden,  and is a big deal in the dog world, a huge honor is to win best in show which means winning in many ways, some financial.  These dogs have already won in their class, Sporting Group, Working Group, Toy Group, Non-Sporting, Herding, Terrier and Hound.  Some of the dogs were therapy dogs at home.

The dogs were outstanding, all brushed, fluffed and ready for their close-up.  The German Shepherd, the Irish Setter, the Doberman, the Poodle, and the smaller ones all looked outstanding enough to win.  As the judge examined every one going over their confirmation, and watching their walking gate, I tried to pick the winner, but I knew there was one that could not win--the Pekingese, just a fluffy little ball of fur, waddling back and forth.   One last walk/run around the track with the handlers doing their best.  I held my breath. . .Oh No! the Pekingese won!

Did you have a "best" dog in your life?

Day 3, A to Z Writing Challenge

C is for Cartoons

Cartoons, a small daily pleasure.  I have a collection of my favorite cartoons most of which I used as a teacher.  Cartoons are wonderful; they can make you smile in four frames or think in one frame as in political cartoons.  And in past years cartoons have become controversial and even dangerous for the cartoonist, but not a subject I will write about today.

My focus is past favorites and my all-time favorite is Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson, who retired some years ago but is still in print in book collections.  I have always marveled at his drawing ability which not all cartoonists have.  The example here is Calvin, a very precocious little boy in a Sam Spade daydream drawn in a typical film noir setting, dark shadows and unusual angles.  As he daydreams in class he is supposed to be finishing a test, but it's more fun to be a detective.  I have several Calvin books bought used at Amazon, kids love reading them.

Gary Larsen, of The Far Side Fame,  is also not publishing his work anymore, except in greeting cards, sold mostly at car washes.  His forte was humanizing animals with satirical comments and was the  "Saturday Night Live" of cartoonists.  Peanuts by Charles Schultz, is another classic.

Paul Conrad, of the Los Angeles Times, was an  outstanding political cartoonist, and excellent artist from years ago. Garry Trudeau writes a four- frame cartoon, "Doonsbury," which is more political than most.  My favorites from today are:  Lu Ann by Greg Evans, Funky Winkerbean and Crankshaft by Tom Batiuk and Chuck Ayers. And there are many more, past and present.

But sadly, I see the demise of the hometown newspaper.  Here in Denver, we only have one, The Denver Post, and it is getting slimmer and slimmer as more columnists are eliminated and features are shortened.

As a kid, one of my fondest memories is of reading the Sunday funnies spread out on the living room floor.

How do you see the future of cartoons?  More Anime like Japan?  Everything on the internet?  On IPad? And do you have favorites?

b is for basket

The Basket

"Sale, Baskets."  The sign in the window beckoned to me.  It was too tempting, so I stopped at the array of baskets stacked haphazardly in front of the small shop--one of those shops that specialize in candles, knickknacks, soaps, and a multitude of items no one actually needs, but can't resist having "just a look."

I glanced over the dozens of baskets in all shapes and sizes, lifting one here and there.  How could I use this?  Where would I put that?  And then, I saw it--a grayish, blue, unusually shaped asymmetrical basket with an angled handle made from a small tree branch, bark intact.

As I grabbed the handle, my right thumb settled naturally into a slight bend in the branch--it fit perfectly--and I felt an instant connection to the creator of the basket who had selected this crooked branch; noticed how perfectly it fit the hand, trimmed it, and attached it to the basket.

It was an odd feeling to hold the handle and instantly feel a connection to someone.  Who was it?  A man?  A woman? Probably a man, I decided with a strong hand.  But do men usually weave baskets?  What country?  China?  Mexico?  South America?  From some kind of factory or a more primitive place of production?

All kinds of images floated through my mind--idyllic scenes of China with rows of Asian workers, even children making baskets, working quietly but quickly.  Very romantic, I thought, but not realistic.  The one true thought remained:  someone had put thought and pride into the creation of this work.  I purchased the basket, reluctant to let go of the handle.  

Back at home I thought about workers in far away places and decided to check the labels of some of the clothes in my closet.  The labels read:  knitted in Mongolia, finished in China; Made in Jordan; Kenya: Guatemala; Mexico; Taiwan; Israel; USA (a few); India; Macau; Hong Kong; Turkey; and Honduras--a veritable United Nations right here in my closet.  But despite the fact that I could imagine and appreciate the work and workers of my clothes (if I thought about it), none had that instant connection that I had to the creator of the basket, a hand shake of a sort, through time, space, and distance.

Have any of you bloggers bought or received something from a far-away place and felt a special connection?