Sunday, February 26, 2006
Chattanooga Show
I almost didn't go to the Chattanooga show, having arrived home Thursday night late after the funeral exhausted. But I have a soft spot in my heart for a new club trying to get established, so off I went on Friday accompanied by my daughter Anna.
The absolute worst part of the show happened before I got there. We could make neither heads nor tails of the directions. We did see a lot of the country, though. And found a Starbucks in a neighboring town. Eventually we found a police officer on the side of the road attending to a wreck or something, and asked directions. We were the second rabbit show car to stop for directions. A third stopped before I left. The police officer indicated that he'd be trying to get out of there fast before more stopped for directions!
After that, the show got much, much better.
I really wanted to write at the show so that I could begin to learn about the other breeds of rabbits. Many thanks to Renee McBrayer and Tim Nix for putting my rabbits on the table for me during the first two shows. I really appreciate it.
I wrote for Briony Barnes and she judged mini rex, polish, Dutch, checkered giants, netherland dwarfs, and Holland lops. What an education that was.
I also want to thank Charles Bryant for going over English angora with me. He gave me my first quiz, showing me a pet that had two DQs. I found one pretty easily and finally stumbled on the other one after he encouraged me to keep looking (I didn't realize how long their tails were supposed to be, so it was hard to tell that so much of it was missing!) I enjoyed looking at the furnishings, seeing the feet up close, and examining the wool.
I've always thought of myself as a one-breed woman. But I think I could really get into those polish. They are really cute. And I'm finding the other breeds fascinating, even though I'm not sure I'd want to raise them.
I have to tell you that lunch was worth the 6-hour drive. They had barbecued pork and beef sandwiches available. I had the pork. Anna had the beef. It was fabulous. I hope they will have a barbecue social dinner before their night show on August 12. Hint, hint. By the way, write that down on your calendar now!
The winning within the Holland lops was spread around among the exhibitors quite well. Lots of people got to tote home trophies. That's always a lot of fun.
My best show was the specialty under Josh Humphries. Boris was BOB, Jo-Jo got a leg, Leo got a leg, and Gypsy, a solid junior doe, was BOS. For a change, my solids were my strength!
In Show B under Carol Hooks, Jo-Jo was BOS. That was apparently the only rabbit of mine that she liked. Oh well. For Show A under Briony Barnes, which was the last show (we went backwards), I didn't take a single class (except broken junior doe, but there was only 1!). Some of my bunnies were close, though.
The only down side to writing all day is that I didn't get much chance to visit. I did stay about 45 minutes longer than I should have, given my long drive home, just chatting,. That's generally my favorite part, anyway.
Charles Bryant made a great suggestion that we should exchange cell phone numbers with people we often see at shows. That way, we can have emergency contact numbers, or let someone know we are lost or whatever. It would be nice to be able to call and say, "I left my jacket, would you please grab it." I think it is an excellent idea. I have numbers for several of my close friends, of course, but I should exchange them with friendly acquaintances, too, especially since I tend to roam a bit further from home than my closest friends do.
I was extremely tired during the trip home last night. But during the last hour, Anna and I amused ourselves quite well. She wanted me to tell her some of her adoption story, so I made up versions of getting her from the zoo, or the stork bringing her. She laughed and laughed and laughed. It was so much fun (of course, I did eventually get around to her real story again). She's such a great traveling buddy and just 9 years old!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
Holland Lops Of Distinction
Precious Pet Rabbits
Pet Rabbit Care Information, Quality Pet Rabbit Breeders, and Rabbit Fun ¶ 2:04 PM
The absolute worst part of the show happened before I got there. We could make neither heads nor tails of the directions. We did see a lot of the country, though. And found a Starbucks in a neighboring town. Eventually we found a police officer on the side of the road attending to a wreck or something, and asked directions. We were the second rabbit show car to stop for directions. A third stopped before I left. The police officer indicated that he'd be trying to get out of there fast before more stopped for directions!
After that, the show got much, much better.
I really wanted to write at the show so that I could begin to learn about the other breeds of rabbits. Many thanks to Renee McBrayer and Tim Nix for putting my rabbits on the table for me during the first two shows. I really appreciate it.
I wrote for Briony Barnes and she judged mini rex, polish, Dutch, checkered giants, netherland dwarfs, and Holland lops. What an education that was.
I also want to thank Charles Bryant for going over English angora with me. He gave me my first quiz, showing me a pet that had two DQs. I found one pretty easily and finally stumbled on the other one after he encouraged me to keep looking (I didn't realize how long their tails were supposed to be, so it was hard to tell that so much of it was missing!) I enjoyed looking at the furnishings, seeing the feet up close, and examining the wool.
I've always thought of myself as a one-breed woman. But I think I could really get into those polish. They are really cute. And I'm finding the other breeds fascinating, even though I'm not sure I'd want to raise them.
I have to tell you that lunch was worth the 6-hour drive. They had barbecued pork and beef sandwiches available. I had the pork. Anna had the beef. It was fabulous. I hope they will have a barbecue social dinner before their night show on August 12. Hint, hint. By the way, write that down on your calendar now!
The winning within the Holland lops was spread around among the exhibitors quite well. Lots of people got to tote home trophies. That's always a lot of fun.
My best show was the specialty under Josh Humphries. Boris was BOB, Jo-Jo got a leg, Leo got a leg, and Gypsy, a solid junior doe, was BOS. For a change, my solids were my strength!
In Show B under Carol Hooks, Jo-Jo was BOS. That was apparently the only rabbit of mine that she liked. Oh well. For Show A under Briony Barnes, which was the last show (we went backwards), I didn't take a single class (except broken junior doe, but there was only 1!). Some of my bunnies were close, though.
The only down side to writing all day is that I didn't get much chance to visit. I did stay about 45 minutes longer than I should have, given my long drive home, just chatting,. That's generally my favorite part, anyway.
Charles Bryant made a great suggestion that we should exchange cell phone numbers with people we often see at shows. That way, we can have emergency contact numbers, or let someone know we are lost or whatever. It would be nice to be able to call and say, "I left my jacket, would you please grab it." I think it is an excellent idea. I have numbers for several of my close friends, of course, but I should exchange them with friendly acquaintances, too, especially since I tend to roam a bit further from home than my closest friends do.
I was extremely tired during the trip home last night. But during the last hour, Anna and I amused ourselves quite well. She wanted me to tell her some of her adoption story, so I made up versions of getting her from the zoo, or the stork bringing her. She laughed and laughed and laughed. It was so much fun (of course, I did eventually get around to her real story again). She's such a great traveling buddy and just 9 years old!
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
Holland Lops Of Distinction
Precious Pet Rabbits
Pet Rabbit Care Information, Quality Pet Rabbit Breeders, and Rabbit Fun ¶ 2:04 PM
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I'm glad to hear that the show was so successful. I just wish shows weren't so far for me in Tennessee and points west. Maybe that would be a reason to move to the mountains! I really enjoy reading about your adventures and hearing about the wee ones. I really wish I had discovered rabbits when my boys were small. Well there's always the grandkids when they come along. Thanks for your posts. Candace
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