Burlesque at The Idiot Box

Some friends and I went to the Burlesque show put on by Vaudeville After Dark at The Idiot Box Saturday night (June 7) at 11:30. I had never seen any burlesque before. When I think of burlesque I think of a girl inside a giant martini glass and Dita Von Teese.

Dita + martini glass = Burlesque

That was not what we got, but it was just as good. There were several female performers but it was really the men that stole the show. There was a definite comedy element to the show. The first song was "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer and part-way through the dance a man in a jalapeño costume bursts out from the curtain and joins in. The audience exploded in laughter.

A team called The Brouhaha Revue came on and did a choreographed routine to Vogue and later did Thriller. AMAZING!

As someone who is extremely self conscious, it was refreshing to see people up on stage with all different bodies totally comfortable showing them off, flaws and all. I wished I could have that confidence.

The show was a riot and a very fun experience. It will definitely become a regular girls night. The first Saturday of every month at 11:30 at The Idiot Box. $10 admissions fee. They serve a bottles of beer and Mike's Hard Lemonade.

About to enjoy some Burlesque

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Triad Dog Games

I went to the Triad Dog Games today. It was supposed to start at 10am, but the time got moved to 3pm because of Maya Angelou's funeral down the street that morning.

Buster's agility instructor was there running all things agility. (I knew we picked a good instructor!) I had never seen an agility competition in person and wanted to see what it was like.

First we watched the small dogs compete (pictured above) then the large dogs. I was more interested in the large dogs because that's what my dog would be competing as. There was a Golden Retriever, Goldendoodle and Border Collie. Of course the Border Collie was amazing. They excel at all things agility.

We're going to talk to Buster's agility instructor (pictured right, above) about the possibility of Buster being ready to enter a competition next year. This one is pretty informal and open to everyone, but we want to be in it to win it.

Buster's swim instructor was there with her dog as a competitor in dock diving, but we didn't stay late enough to see her dog compete. We did see some dock diving though and it was awesome. I would love to have Buster involved in this, but it's just not meant to be. He doesn't like water or toys enough to dive after one.

I was surprised at the amount of dogs that refused to jump. This competition was pretty informal and open to anyone, so I'm guessing it was many of these dogs' first time competing.

But other dogs...they flew out there. Almost 2 foot jumps with huge splashes. So much fun to watch.

The only thing I didn't get to see that I would have liked to was the Disc Dog. Never seen anyone do it in person and they had a demo, but it was at the same time as agility, so we missed it.

There was lots of swag. We got a very cool card that hangs in your car and changes colors if it's too hot to leave your dog in there.
Buster got a bandana, too.

Styling in our RuffHousing bandana.

Looking forward to next years games and possibly being competitors in it.

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Swimming at Creekside Canines

I've always wondered if my dog, Buster, would enjoy swimming. So when I found out there were local doggy swim lessons I was ALL over it.

We went to Creekside Canines in Kernersville. You can rent the pool for $10/half hr. But first you have to take a $25/dog swimming safety class or a $50/half hr private swim lesson. I opted to book a private swim lesson and split the cost with a friend.

Both of our dogs had to wear a life jacket.

What have you gotten me into, Mom?

Then the instructor helps your dog build confidence, focusing on entrances and exits on the pool steps. The dog that went with us is part lab and has been swimming before. He only needed a little coaxing to get off the steps and then he was like a fish swimming around, having a blast.

Buster wasn't so sure.

I brought his high-value treats (baked chicken & sausage & scrambled eggs) and we slowly coaxed him into the pool.

2 paws in!

All 4 paws in!

Once we got him all in, we pulled him in a little. When his feet left those steps he just went down, his little head went under and I was very thankful for that life jacket. I put my hands underneath him to hold him up and at first he didn't do anything. Then he started doggy paddling and we got him to around a little bit.

But the point of the lesson is to build confidence so we quickly brought him back to the steps so he could understand that there is an easy exit.

After that, he just wanted to sit at the pool steps and get treats. His swimming buddy was jumping in, splashing around and having a blast. In the end, we got him to put his two paws back in and we ended on a good note.

"I know what happens when I put all my paws in....2 paws in is all you're getting now, Mom!"

The instructor said he had potential, since we were able to get his 2 paws in again. She suggested we try a lake or river so he could easily walk in and out. We had done that once before, but I couldn't let him go out very far because of the current and I wasn't prepared to swim with him.

I'm going to purchase a life jacket and then we're gonna find a natural body of water to practice our swimming together.

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Pre-Agility at Dog-Gone Fun: Week 1

Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6

My dog, Buster, completed Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced obedience courses and got his diploma! He also passed his Canine Good Citizen test. (Have to wait for the certificate to be mailed).

Summa Cum Laude!

So the next stop on our journey is Agility! (It was a New Year's Resolution.) I chose to take him to Dog-Gone Fun in Kernersville. They offer several Agility courses starting with Pre-Agility.

It's very important that your dog be proficient in sit-stay and down-stay in a distracting environment. These are things Buster and I had been working on since his Beginner class back in November.

For our first class, we introduced the dogs to jumps, tunnels and the A-Frame.

Dog has to run up and down A-Frame , making contact with the yellow parts.

The A-Frame can be a little scary because it's very tall. It was close to 5 feet off the ground at its peak. But Buster conquered every obstacle we gave to him and was very eager to please (and to get the chicken treats)!

So far I'm very pleased with how Buster has responded to agility. I always said as long as it was fun for him, we'd work our way up to competitions. 

We've practiced in the backyard and he seems to enjoy it, so we'll see.

Backyard Agility...with brooms

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Night Paddling at Lake Higgins

I've loved kayaking for a few years now, but I'm limited because I have to rent kayaks. Luckily the Greensboro City Lakes all rent kayaks. However it can get a little old going to the same place every year....so I switched it up and went at a different time.

The Greensboro Lakes offers Night Paddling every Weds from May through August. This week's paddle on June 4 was at Lake Higgins (my favorite lake).

At first it wasn't so different because the sun was still out. We got one really good pic.

Cyrus Paddling!

But then the sun started going down behind the trees and picture taking got a lot harder.

The critters were out in full force as night fell and they all had a song to sing....a very annoying song. Like karaoke at last call annoying.

But overall it was so peaceful out there at night. I highly recommend paddling at night at least once.

Glow stick for safety!

The cost for the night paddle is the same as during the day: $15 for a single kayak rental. You can get a guided tour if you'd like. Nobody chose a guided tour. I later saw the guide paddling on a SUP, which are now allowed on the lakes, although they're not for rent.

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Let's Go Sailing

The Greensboro Parks and Rec is amazing, offering all kinds of interesting things to do. The latest was free sailboat rides through the Lake Townsend Yacht Club.

I thought we would just go on a ride, but our amazing guide, Ken, actually taught us how to sail. We had to pull the lines to adjust the sails and I was the helmsman and steered the boat. It wasn't a very windy day, so we had some downtime, but it was still a great experience.

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No Poo Method - Week 1

I'm trying out this no shampoo thing. Our scalps naturally produce oil and when we use shampoo, we strip the oil and confuse our oil glands. My hair gets greasy 8-12 hours after washing my hair with shampoo. 

I'm using 1-2 Tablespoons of baking soda dissolved in a cup of water. And 2 tablespoons of white vinegar dissolved in a cup of water for condition.

The big thing about trying this is the transition period. Supposedly your hair will get really oily while your scalp tries to equalize itself. Because my hair got so greasy so quickly before, I am not noticing a difference. I'm used to being a grease-ball everyone else complains about becoming with this method.

Everyone says to give it about a month and then you won't even need to wash your hair every day and it will look more beautiful than ever. I'm skeptical because I've never been able to go a day without washing my hair. I'm concerned I'm just gonna be a grease-ball forever.

UPDATE: After a week, and cutting back on baking soda, my hair was both fried and greasy at the same time. I didn't know such a thing was possible. It took over a week to get my hair back to normal with shampoo.

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