Musings - Rose

"There is no question that the dog who is really ready for a big trial is on the threshold of committing grave mistakes." On Retrievers, Charles Morgan Rose should be in a position to make grave mistakes. Our friend who acquired her from a breeder in the sierra foothills purchased her on a whim for $500.00, a bargain price apparently; the friend's mother paid a good deal more for Rose's brother. Since we haven't talked to the friend since, we don't know how he panned out. But Rose is a field lab with a deep broad chest, shortish limbs and powerful shoulders. Her retrieving drive is so strong she will endure torn nails, slashed paws, thorns, bushes and all manner of obstacles to return whatever she perceives to be her quarry. She would be a phenominal gun dog, had she not this misfortune to be given to two lawyers who lived, at the time, in San Francisco and are more apt to go to the ballet than shoot guns. No, she is the happy idiot. I have taken her all over the western U.S. and people who know about such things look at her and comment that she is a beautiful dog and that they hope I "hunt her." I smile and shake my head. They immediately write me off and could easily guess that the last time I killed anything larger than a fly was when I got a sparrow with a slingshot at 13 while walking my paper route. Rose is screwed - her considerable potential unmet. Instead, people around here simply say to me: "hey, your dog is smiling." So busy day today and she got about 45 minutes of ball play while I was overcooking dinner on the bbq. For me, the workout went like this: First Circuit Bench press, ten at 135, 145, 155, for 1st, 2nd, 3rd. sucked big time; had not benched in a least three months shoulders hurt and it showed. Usually do push-ups and floor presses instead. Squat to press, 75lb on oly bar, 10x, 80lb last circuit; that was good 15l/15r rows, body, no bench, 24kg, the 24 kg just flys up on the rows now 20l/20r body weight bulgarian split squats 3x Second Circuit windmills, 16kg, 10r/10l 60 snatches, 16kg 10r/10l x3 25 swings 24kg, 45 seconds 8r/8l single leg squats, body weight only 3x Except it was about eight hours between the second and third sets. Had run out of time in the am; can't remember when I last cut a workout short, but I was pressed to begin with and had to spend valuable time fucking around with plates during the first circuit. Did the last at home, except I had a 20kg with a 2kg "buddy" for the swings and did 30. Should have done 25 with the 28 but I was being a pussy. Felt like shit when I started all that, but an hour after was feeling great. Cardio and Yoga (I hope) tomorrow.