Do 43 things i've never done before!

Last Saturday I was at the farm and heard the dogs barking. I went to see what was going on, and they were running around with a really scruffy looking collie. He was really happy to see me, and once I petted him, he followed me around like a shadow all day. He didn’t have a collar of any kind, but he’s a really nice dog, so I was sure that someone would claim him after I reported him missing at all of the vets, animal control offices, humane societies, etc. in our area. I took him to the vet to see if he had a microchip too, but so far, we haven’t been able to find out where he came from. He’s really skinny, and has sores on his feet, so the vet thought that he’d probably been on his own for a while. I can’t imagine that someone would just dump him off in the country, but it’s weird that I haven’t gotten any response. I don’t want to keep someone else’s dog if they’re missing him, but I don’t know what else to do in order to try to find his family. I took him to my parents’ house and initially, they told me that I could just forget about leaving him there. Now though, I have two other families that want him (and would take wonderful care of him according to the vet’s office), but my dad isn’t so sure about giving him up unless the original owner contacts us. He takes Charlie everywhere with him, and my mom even made a special trip to the grocery store to get him a soup bone because chewing on bones seems to be the only thing that he likes to do right now to entertain himself. She also told me that he slept in the bedroom with them last night. For years, the cats at their house have been trying to charm their way into sleeping in the bedroom, but have remained barred… so whether she’ll admit it or not, she really likes him. If his original family is nice and missing him, then I hope that they see one of our notices posted or call one of the locations that we’ve reported him to. If not, I don’t care if he stays with my parents or goes to live with one of the vet-recommended families, I just want him to have a good home where he’s thoroughly spoiled.

It didn’t really go that well because it was for a classroom of vipers, but still… I did it. My teacher, who has been dancing professionally in New York, Turkey, etc., and is absolutely beautiful had to miss for a family emergency. I found out the day before and didn’t have time to prepare anything, which was pretty stressful. Also, I have no idea what she’s been teaching in that class, where the students are at, what their interests are, etc. Not the easiest gig for a first-timer actually, considering that even though I’m more experienced than the students in that class, their regular teacher is a ton better than I am. Or more than a ton, so she’s a tough act to follow. Also the studio owner is up to her normal divide and conquer nonsense and trying to create friction and uncertainty everywhere. Anyway, I did it, I’ve committed to filling in for 2 more weeks and teaching an intro class at a women’s retreat. I’d love to teach more at some point, but I’ll be happy when my regular teacher is back from Turkey for now. I want to get a lot more experience under my belt before I teach a regular class.

... in public even. I’ve seen people dance with swords, and while I know that it isn’t authentic, I like the way it looks. I’d really like to buy one, but from practicing with a couple of different borrowed swords, I’ve noticed that there’s a huge difference in the way that they’re balanced (or not). There are some gorgeous swords on the internet, but I might see if I can hold off until the bellydance convention so that I can actually get a feel for it before making the investment.