I took Lola darlin' to the park today. She enjoyed it, I think. I took some pictures, my main goal was to get a good black and white shot for and new group I am in. Group Learning for Photography. This was my main choice:

                                                                  Heavy editing, but I like it.

While at the park, Lola did some squirreling in the mullberry trees.

We also worked on some obedience while at the park. It seemed to be the day for dog aggressive dogs to be at the park. I had Lola offleash, taking the above rock pictures, and some man came over and asked if she would bother another dog because his dog "bit hard". Ok...

After going to the park I had to go get some gas. I pulled in, rolled down the windows and walked in to pay. I was gone for approximately one minute, and in that time Lola barked twice (I could see her the whole time) and when I came out the man (I say man, he was younger than me. Between 16-17) in the car beside me told me I needed to "Shut my f-ing dog up". I said that I am sorry, but she was just wanting me to come back outside. He then said that my "f-ing dog was to f-ing loud and that he would shut her up" and started to walk towards me. I unhooked Lola's seatbelt and got her out of the car, because I had to pump fifty dollars of gas and felt threatened. He continued to approach until Lola "stacked up" in front of me and begin a deep, low growl. He muttered something else about a "f-ing bitch" and walked back to his car. Wonder which one of us was the bitch?

Look! Shots not from 52 weeks!

Hello ladies and gents! Today I bring to you some shots that are NOT destined for 52 weeks! Yay! Lola has once again broken my tripod. Shame on her. That is tripod numero dos. Damn dog. Soo... to get this shot, I took out the dictionary. Meaning I sat the Camera on top of the dictionary.



I also got some fun Boomer shots!



I have been in post processing funk lately. Sticking with a particular colour pallet,  Can't ya tell?

Poodle Palooza and the beach.

Back from Florida and it was SOOO much fun! Our first full day there we visited a beach in New Smyrna. I have mentioned before that Lola is not a swimmer.It's true, she is no great shakes at the doggy paddle. She just likes to cling to me. When not clinging she splashes... a lot!



While we were out splash... I mean swimming one of our fellow dog beach-ers called our attention to a bit farther out. Lo and behold, DOLPHINS!



Anyway, our main goal, The Poodle palooza was a ball! Lotsa poodles and Lotsa poodle people! As it should be:


It is so much fun to be around multiple dogs of the same breed. The similarity in play style  is astounding to watch.

The day after the palooza we went to the beach with a fellow poodler, Jenni, and her poodle, Rufus. That was also lots of fun, complete with more dolphins.

This blog post is late because I have had a busy couple of weeks. I am now in Topsail Island, NC sans poodle. 

Practice makes perfect.

Today has been a very lazy day. This morning I groomed a Pug and a Pomeranian but after I finished those guys I came home to take a nap. Turns out I couldn't go to sleep Instead I got into the pool for the first time this year. Thing is, Lola has to get in some swimming practice. We are headed down to Daytona the twentieth and her swimming is not so good. We are going to Daytona for a poodle meetup. Poodle Palooza to be exact. We went last year and had a  BALL. So much fun. Looking forward to going back this year. As well as visiting with twenty-something poodles we go to the beach. Lola can swim... just not well. She sort of flails with her front half and lets her back end float around randomly. Sorta like this:



Last year, she EMBARRASSED me! A Dachshund was swimming WAY better than my poodle. Ancient Water dog. Duck hunter. I saw several labs laughing at her... all she wanted to do was chase sand. Weirdo. Want some more swim pictures? I will post them just to embarrass her!



and a few from last years poodle palooza!



a plethora of poodles from last year.


Poodle Stampede



I think this year will be just as much fun!

EXPLORE!!!

Ok, So I know that Explore is just a numbers game, a popularity contest. It still excites me EVERY TIME I make it. So I have been that excited... twice. That's right. I have made explore twice. I have been on Flickr almost two years. This is depressing to me. Back to the good new. Look at this not so great explored shot!



Thing is, I don't actually think it is great. The algorithm sure does.Oh well, what do I know.

Shampoodled

Poor Lola had to get a bath tonight. This offered an excellent opportunity for online humiliation. Without further ado I present Lola's 52 weeks shot of the week!

Insanity reighns!

I have crazy dogs. This is a fact that I have accepted and choose to move on from. Sometimes though one of them does something so insane, so ridiculous that I am shocked.

Example number one: Boomer. That dog is absolutely buggers. Her favorite hobby? Pruning trees. No really. She is really good at it too.



Yes, that is Boomer, Hanging from a tree. Yes, she still has all of her teeth. This shocks me. When she gets the limb she runs around for a bit and will dead leg you if you are not careful.

Lola's version of madness is less intense. She likes to hide in the bushes and burst out like a cat.



Anyway, Agility was tonight. Lola was great even though I couldn't get my handling right. I even let Boomer run a bit with 12 inch jumps. She was super fast!

Dirty Poodle

Lola has a dirty nose after some sandbox play in this week's shot for 52 weeks.

New Lens!

Ok, So my new lens came in on Saturday. I like it OK especially for twenty five dollars. The powers that be upgraded it to a 2.5x instead of a 2x. The vignetting though, is HORRIBLE. Like it really sucks. Oh well, that is what cropping is for! I love it because taking a pic of Boomer is now less of a chore.





In other news, Boomer killed a groundhog yesterday. That thing was HUGE! This killing and other recent events have reminded me that the dogs need their Flea and tick meds. I took Lola in to show to the ladies as they love her and the new vet that just started said she needs to gain two or three pounds. How ridiculous. She does agility and is a VERY fit and muscular sixty pounds. Silly man.

Speaking of Agility, Agility tonight was decent. The pollen is just getting to everyone, even the dogs. Lola is doing well on driving to obstacles and getting her contacts. We did some short tricky sequences and she got them fairly well. Lots of fun.

Well... That is all I have to say for tonight. G'night!

Poodle in the Sky.

Lola's 52 weeks shot is up. I had a really difficult time choosing this week. It was a toss up between two very different shots. I suck at decision making.

Anyway, Thar she blows!


Really and truly I just wanted to wait for my BRAND SPANKING NEW LENS but alas, that may not arrive until next week. Curse you postal service!

Since I am not limited to posting just one pic here I shall post the runner up. AKA, First Loser.


No cropping on either picture. SOOC if you will. Gotta love pictures with minimum work involved!

Oh yeah, have I mentioned my NEW LENS. I cannot help being excited, I am new to the world of lenses!

Hiking at Cheaha

We had a very nice hike yesterday. A friend went with me and we took both dogs, as didn't bring a dog for Boomer to argue with. Boomer's dog aggression often limits her activities, so taking her along is great when possible. Especially as she needs to lose 5 lbs. She has NEVER been an ounce over 39lbs her entire life and she is 44 at last weigh in. Needless to say, she is on a diet.



Cheaha is a GREAT place to hike. Lovely trails, great views!



That is the view from where we stopped for lunch. Gorgeous huh? We hope to go camping up in that area soon, but who knows.

One not so cool part of our hike, and this awesome weather, is my allergies. My eyes are driving me NUTS. Constantly itching eyes, a stuffy nose and a soar throat. Yet I refuse to stay inside. Wise choice, no?

No agility this week, my trainer is out of town. I guess that is all I need to share for today!

Ooops! Almost forgot to mention that I ordered a telephoto lens for my camera. Can't wait for it to arrive!!

Agility pics!

Took some agility pictures today. That is about all I have to say. I promise more tomorrow, as I am going hiking with both dogs.

Tire Jump:


Dog walk:


Jump:


and Lola's lovely 2 on 2 off:


Lola does a 2o2off because that is what is safest for a dog her size, Boomer did running contacts. My trainer practically had to beat me to teach 2o2o but I don't regret it!

So we meet again, soap box.

Hello dearies! Finally got my 52 weeks shot for the week. This week I used a bit of a silly theme to convey something I really do believe in. A HEALTHY diet for dogs. Both of mine eat a Raw/Grain free Kibble rotation. The do wonderfully. Dogs are CARNIVORES and if your dog food does not have at least a named meat as the first ingredient it isn't what dogs need. Did you know that most food allergies in dogs can be traced to corn? So WHY are we feeding dogs corn? Beats me. Lola feels the same.


No pupperoni for this pudel! Not that she wouldn't take it if she was offered. I swear I have the least picky dogs on earth. Oranges? Cucumbers? Sure! Bring it on! They will eat ANYTHING. Seriously, they are goats. That does explain Boomer's love of heights... and her horns.

I am a 52 weeker!

In my last post, I mentioned that I like to take pictures. Because of this, I joined a wicked awesome group on Flickr called 52 weeks for Dogs. The basic idea of this group is one picture a week for a year. It is located here. One of the reasons I started this blog is because of all the awesome blogs mentioned in a discussion there. Anyway, I want to post my weekly photos in this blog. So... I have to catch it up first. Therefore, this entry will be chock full o'pics! Enjoy!

Week 1:


Week 2:


Week 3:


Week 4:


Week 5:


Week 6:


Week 7:


Week 8:


Week 9:


Week 10:


Week 11:


Week 12:


Now you are all caught up! More words next time, I promise.

Testing 1... 2...

Hi! Seems like a good idea to introduce myself in this first entry, so here we go. My name is Kamie, I am youngish, have two dogs, live in the south and I am female. Hmmm... That seems like too little information. My OCD says that I need a list!
Kamie, in list form:

1. I live in Alabama.
2. I am not a redneck, nor a hillbilly, nor a southern belle.
3. I am liberal.
4. I have one standard Poodle, named Lola.
5. I have one Australian Cattle Dog, named Boomer. ( Feel free to call her Beelzebub)
6. I talk about my dogs... a LOT.
7. I started this blog to talk about my dogs.
8. I do Agility with Lola.
9. Boomer did agility until she pinched her sciatic nerve.
10. I enjoy taking pictures.
11. I have a DSLR camera.
12. This does not mean I take good photos.
13. I frequent both Flickr and Dogster.
14. I love to read.
15. Fantasy is my genre of choice.
16. I have a Harry Potter obsession.
17. I listen to Wrock.
18. If you have to ask, you won't get it.
19. I am a first class nerd.
20. I enjoy music.
21. Except, only good music.
22. I have two horses.
23. I will not often talk about them

I guess that is about all you need to know for now. Another reason for this blog is to share my images. So, Here ya go!