You are looking at one tired and happy, happy puppy…me! Xena! I’ve had so many firsts this weekend, and they’ve all been great.
Let me start at the beginning, ok? Since Mommy started working at the Jewish synagogue, I haven’t been allowed to go to work with her except for that one time when I was getting my allergy testing, almost a year ago. So imagine my surprise when she gave me a bath very early on Friday morning and loaded me into my crate in the car. I shook for about 5 or 10 minutes, then settled down for the rest of the ride to…guess where. Bet you can’t guess! Work! This was 1st number one. I got to go in the synagogue and meet Mr. Billy Joe, who let me follow him around as he cleaned and did other stuff. I met Mr. Lester, too, who let me help him put away important books in the book closet.
When we were done with our work, I laid in Mommy’s office until it was time to go. She said we were only working a half day, ’cause we had a long drive ahead of us. We were going for me to get my first Freestyle title!
We drove about 87 hours from Chattanooga, on the big road through the mountains, winding back and forth and back and forth, until we got to a city called Greensboro in North Carolina. This was 1st number 2. I’ve never been on a trip befoe. We checked into a motel called the Red Roof Inn. Mommy said this is where the Freestylers from out of town were staying. We walked into our room with all our stuff, right into a big puddle of water on the floor by the sink and potty room. Back to the office we went, with all our stuff loaded back in our car, and were given a key card to the next room down. This was 1st number 3. I’ve never stayed in a hotel before.
The first thing I did after we got in our new room was eat my dinner. So far, so good. By now it was late, at least 6 o’clock, and we were both tired, so we just hung out in the room listening to Mommy’s new Stephen King audio book. Around 9 o’clock, we were both nodding off and were ready to turn off the lights, when workmen who were staying there gathered outside their room – which was right next to ours – talking loud and coming and going in their loud work trucks. That went on for 87 minutes and they finally went away. Almost as soon as they left, another group of work men, speaking another language, took their place. They were smoking, too, and it was coming in through the air conditioner, making us miserable. Mommy gets really grouchy when she is too tired. She called the office three – yes, three- times. Someone kept coming down telling them to be quiet, and that worked for less than five minutes each time. Finally Mommy opened our door – while she was in her jammies – and told these guys that they were keeping her awake and to please be quiet. They said they were sorry and were quiet until the door shut. Mommy opened the door again – still in her jammies – and told them that she wasn’t going to warn them again, that next time she was calling the police, and slammed the door closed. This was my 1st number 4. I’ve never seen Mommy so teed off and yelling at a bunch of big men before. They finally went inside, where we could hear them throwing dice and hollering and laughing. Next thing we knew, the alarm on their big truck started blasting. At that point, Mommy called the office again and told the guy who answered that she was getting dressed, packing the car, and coming down to get a full refund on both nights. It was now 11:30 at night, so the clerk made Mommy come around to the night window, pushed the printout with the credit card refund through the slot to her and muttered something in another language that we didn’t understand. Mommy thought about sleeping in the car, but it was getting pretty cold. There was a Motel 6 right next door, so in she went. They liked dogs there, and room access was from an inside hallway, so we decided to stay there.
Mommy was so over-exhausted and so worked up that she couldn’t fall asleep for a long time. Six-thirty o’clock came way too soon the next morning, but a shower (for Mommy) and a breakfast (for me) got us going. Back into the car and another 30 minute drive took us to a city called Winston-Salem, North Carolina. That’s where the Freestyle event was. I thought I would go in, do our routine, get paid, and leave. Boy, was I wrong.
Oh, and this was 1st number 5. I’ve never competed in a Freestyle event before. When the trial finally started, they had to get through all the beginner dogs who were doing something new called “Phrases,” plus Level 1, and wait for the judges to be done with each one. It was finally my turn and I was super, over-the-moon excited! We started our dance routine just like we practiced, then I hopped and bounced and ran out of the ring to say high to the judges, and then right back to Mommy, and we finished our dance routine just like we had practiced. She was sure I had “blown it,” and we were going to get disqualified foe leaving the ring, but guess what. They loved me! I only got one point taken off my score for running outside of the ring. And guess what else. When we went up front with all the other levels to find out who got ribbons and prizes and titles, me and Mommy each got a blue first place ribbon for our class (II B). Blue ribbons, 1st number 6. And guess what else.
I got my Freestyle Level II (2) B Title! 1st number 7. Mommy was so surprised that she couldn’t stop grinning. She says she is super proud of me, and we are still going back on Sunday to do it all over again. I can’t get more ribbons or titles tomorrow, but we Mommy we want to try to do the dance routine that we had practiced so hard and maybe get an even higher score. I’ll let you know how that works out and share the video with you as soon as we get it.
Love, hops and wiggles, Xena Schnauzer Dancing Warrior Princess
Xena Schnauzer Warrior Princess with Lucy and Chia 