My good idea of the day was the lofty goal of using my brand new video camera to show you how I add gambles to Otterpop’s gambler’s database. Did you know that’s what my birthday present was? A tiny little video camera that looks like a space gun! Now I can run over to you seconds before I run in the dog show and throw it in your hands and beg you to video my run. I’m going to be one of THOSE people!
Today I decided to work on Otterpop’s Gambler’s skills in German. Because have you seen that movie The White Ribbon? It’s a black and white German movie with subtitles about a creepy village where children are either very cute or look like tiny little Nazi’s and are damaged by their creepy, horrible parents. I think you would like this movie very much. Symbolism ahoy! Innocence and purity squelched by brutality with undertones of the imbalances of race, class and gender. In honor of this movie, I worked on sending Otterpop out to far away obstacles yelling at her only in German.
I only know a few words of German, thanks to the White Ribbon. No, Goodbye and Winter are my favorites. Oh, and The Baroness. And what I learned was, I can now send Otterpop at a distance into the weavepoles yelling Nein Auf Weidersein Vinter! That works the same as Out Poles Out! If mad skilz like that don’t get us Gamblers Q’s, I don’t know what will. Oh, but Baroness doesn’t get her to turn. I had to yell Turn in English.
So then I tried to get this on video, but I found that holding the camera myself while doing Gambles in German just doesn’t really translate well to digital video. In HD. Or work to keep Otterpop into the weave poles. She would totally go out there and make the entry when I was videoing us, but between my camerawork and the German, she would stop mid-poles and stare at me. Do you see? Genius! I was able to recreate the problem we have at trials when I do weird arm flapping and speaking in tongues! So now my goal is that I can hold the camera and take videos, and yell words in any language and have her still send out and complete the right obstacles. It’s a work in progress, kittens.
I am brushing up on my German and grabbing my video camera right now so I can recreate some ring stress for Wisp. Do you think this will work for the table? I will report back after we practice in the yard.
Did it work Mary? It sure worked good for me. If you're not getting enough ring stress, you can also yell in English with a German accent about the Barnoness's cabbages and wave the video camera around so you get a ton of video of grass and sky. That also helped a lot for me.
How appropriate! Last night in class with Nancy we talked about two things: Nancy's interview on Team Small Dog (about 20 minutes worth) and distractions:"Do whatever it takes to reproduce the problem" (probably 5 minutes). So you are so in tune with what's going on up there, or v-v. P.S. Nancy emphasized the importance of the gas mask. P.P.S. Everyone in class had read the post except one person who had to go home and read it after we all talked and laughed about it off and on all evening.
Hmmm perhaps Wisp is used to me running around crazily and yelling things which mean nothing to her. I will have to go back to run thrus with scary table people in new places.
When I tried to promote my use of foreign language and arm flailing as a proofing technique at class tonight, it was not well received. Maybe now I could just say it's what Nancy said to do?
Were you wearing the requisite skirt and heels? For establishing credibility?