#Big Sam the Scottish Collie

[127glenn]

FM and AM Work Great, 1960 Eton Curtis Mathes Hi-Fi Television Console B...   #etoncurtismathes,  #curtismatheselton,  #curtismathes,  #martystuart,  #johnoates

[spinningalbinoturtle]

Lotr characters and their dogs (and other pets)

Frodo

Canonically not a dog person but also just has cat person vibes

He has two cats one of them is a chubby gray kitty named Luthien and she is incredibly spoiled. A birthday present from Bilbo

His other cat is a stray who hates everyone but Frodo- its super scrangly and Sam calls it Gollum and it stuck

After the Quest Frodo gets a little beagle service dog that helps him with PTSD and other medical stuff

Sam

Pre Quest had an old basset hound named Fingon. His dad said they didn’t have room for it but Sam insisted on feeding it and when he moved in with Frodo it came along.

Post quest he has a border collie named Ellie (short for Galadriel) who helps him replant the shire

He also keeps chickens at Bag End and spoils them a bit. They are just for eggs

Also has a little dairy cow for fresh milk. Her name is Bell after his mom

Merry

The Brandybucks have a pack of mastiffs and they love Merry. Frodo is terrified of them

They also have several feral maine coones that lounge around their manor and also love Merry but hate everyone else

Has a full size horse post quest which he is very proud of and scares the other hobbits. Its name is Theoden

Pippin

Lets be honest with ourselves Pippin has a lab who has the exact same personality as him and they go everywhere together. Its name is something really basic like Buddy

He also keeps turtles and has a whole menagerie for them. They’re all named after different foods

Aragorn

Aragorn has a husky/malamute that he found on his travels north. He howls back and forth with it and is convinced he can understand it. When he becomes king it sits at the foot of his throne and occasionally will randomly howl in the middle of a meeting.

Horse girl all the way. Brego is his bestie. Man takes excellent care of his horse and buys all kinds of extraneous shit for it.

Boromir

Denethor has a pack of vicious looking dogs but Boromir has a Dalmatian that loves him so much

Faramir adopts it for a while after Boromir dies but Faramir is much more of a cat person, so ultimately its adopted by Aragorn and becomes mates with his husky. The puppies go to his and Arwens kids

Legolas

This could go one of two ways-either he has a super graceful hunting dog like a greyhound or whippet or he has a little pomeranian he dresses up and treats like a baby

He has tried to domesticate the spiders with little success maybe because he’s also killed a lot of them

Gimli

Gimli is a terrier person. He has a little Scottish terrier who sits on his lap all the time when he’s working. Gimli made it a little sweater and it hates Legolas (its jealous of Legolas stealing Gimli’s attention).

He also keeps canaries and they are very well cared for and all have names and he’s the only one who can tell them apart

Eowyn

Has a massive Rottweiler who is super intimidating to everyone except Eowyn. It has bitten Grima multiple times. Around Eowyn it acts like a little puppy.

She also loves her horse as all Rohirrim do.

I could also see her as raising ferrets or chinchilas as well

Faramir

Firmly a cat person

Doesn’t mind dogs but vastly prefers cats

Has six of them and they’re all rescues. Their names are : Mithrandir, Radagast, Varda, Melian, Beren, and Pippin.

Eowyn indulges her crazy cat husband even when their house is overrun with kittens

Arwen

Also firmly a cat person

She’s fine Aragorn’s dog but that’s just cause its well trained

Usually just has one or two cats at a time. They’re a special breed from Lothlorien and they’re really beautiful. They like to sit on her lap and purr. They’re also vicious mousers.

Eomer

Has a big great dane who hangs out in Edoras. Its super sweet and dorky. Everyone loves it.

[acehotel]

A Second Home: An Interview with CCW artist Mary T. Bevlock

Inside Job is a series lead by LAND Gallery Manager Sophia Cosmadopoulous wherein she profiles artists from LAND and similar studio programs. LAND Gallery celebrates and supports the work of adults living with intellectual disabilities and for this edition, Sophia spoke with artist Mary T Bevlock about her work, morning studio rituals, General Hospital and family.

Sophia Cosmadopoulos: Hi Mary, would you mind introducing yourself?

Mary T Bevlock: Hi my name is Mary, I am glad to see my New York people come here.

S: I am really excited to be here.

M: I have a pen, do you want a pen? I have a pen. I have a whole bunch of them in my purse.

S: I love that you carry your supplies on you. Could you tell me what else is in your purse?

M: I’ve got all my pictures of General Hospital. I always carry photo albums with Sonny and their pals. The gang of General Hospital. We’ve got Michael, and I think Lulu, David Hayward from All My Children. Jason, the new Jason. But the old Jason is back! I like him better, but there’s a lot of them though. When I do drawing, I draw from this. First, I draw it first, and then with an ink pen. And after that you paint it, that’s it.

S: And what else do you carry besides the albums?

M: I got this flier. This is Center for Creative Works (CCW) Out the Door Art Party Fundraiser. That’s what we’re cooking downstairs for with my friend Harriet. She cooks and we help, and we get paychecks for it. Right now I am cooking brownies and lemon bars and I forget what else.

S: So cool. Can you explain what CCW is?

M: CCW is Center for Creative Works. And what else, we have separate tables to do our jobs on. We pick who we will sit with to do our work. You know, so now today is Wednesday, so I work with Harriet. And I say, I am so glad I have Harriet, because I like to cook.

S: How many days do you work on your artwork here?

M: If I am not working with Harriet, I work up here. Like with Scott and that woman over there. I do my artwork. I have my box in my locker. And, I get my stuff out. I get my hot tea or hot chocolate because it’s so cold out.

S: Yeah, what the heck? I hate the cold.

M: I know.

S: What is the atmosphere like here?

M: I love it here.

S: You do?

M: Yeah. Because my mom and my dad died, and this is my second home.

S: And you come here five days a week right? So it really is like your home.

M: Yeah because this is Center for Creative Works. There was another one before this one. I was here a couple of years. I don’t know how many years, but it was way back when. That’s when my mom was here. We had a meeting and she helped me out and then we’d go out and have breakfast. And it was called Lou’s Diner. It’s not there anymore. Now it’s something with a name starting with a big “C,” but I can’t really pronounce it.

S: How do you get here in the morning?

M: A cab or a van.

S: Can you walk me through what you do when you arrive at CCW?

M: I get my tea and my hot chocolate. Then I get my stuff. Then I’ll go around right? When I get here in the morning first of all I get my hot chocolate first and then walk around first and say hi and wave first. Then my friend Vince - I say “Yo, Vince!” If he’s here, he’s here. If he’s not here Mike will say to me he’s not here. I like to go around and say hi and then I see my “boom boom,” which is my friend Vince. That’s his name, that’s his nickname. I don’t know where he got that from. But his name is Vince, you can call him Vince. Then I get my stuff, and that’s it.

S: What do you spend most of your day doing here?

M: I like cooking a lot. I like helping others. I like doing business, like with Harriet, or any other kind of business. I like events.

S: Could you describe what your art looks like now?

M: I watch TV a lot. I draw TV shows. I like watching regular TV shows. I draw celebrities on TV shows and then I create them. Right now I am doing the Incredible Hulk. For example, I painted David Hasselhoff who was on channel 10, on one of the soap operas. I forget which one. And I watch Baywatch and that’s it. I like big ears.

S: What is it about big ears that you like?

M: When I see ears, I do them. Like Maurice Bernard from General Hospital, my favorite. His ears are curling kind of.

S: So is Maurice your favorite? If you could have dinner with one celebrity, who would it be?

M: Maurice Bernard! I talk to him sometimes on the TV at my brother’s house. We talk everyday about General Hospital.

S: If you met him, what would you do?

M: Go out somewhere. Anywhere. I don’t know. My birthday is coming soon, four months to go, counting down. I am going to be 50. I’m gonna have a big party, probably around here. I like to dance.

S: You should invite Maurice to your birthday! I see a lot of your work has musicians as the subject matter. Do you listen to music when you make your work?

M: Okay, lemme see. I listen to music on my walkman. Andy Gibb, all of Barry Manilow, The Carpenters, Donny Osmaond, then um, The Monkeys, then John Denver and Kenny Rogers.

S: Besides celebrities and musicians, what else inspires you? What about animals?

M: Oh I did Lassies once!

S: A celebrity dog!

M: Well you know, why? A collie was my dog. LIke Lassie. But we called it Black Dog. But we still don’t know where the name came from.

S: You seem to pay close attention to fashion and what your subjects wear, what do you like about clothing in particular? M: I like fashion. I would like to be a model. My friend Wendy does fashion stuff like shirts and stuff like that. I like runways. My favorite colors are blue and orange.

S: What supplies do you like to use?

M: Painting, I like ink pens, you know the ink? I like doing that, what else? I think that’s it, those two things.

S: What’s your favorite painting you have made?

M: Um, I like the painting I did of Different Strokes. The Incredible Hulk, Six Million Dollar Man, Charlie’s Angels...

S: Do you like being in art shows? What was your favorite art show you have been in?

M: Yes, I love doing that. Like last time, I went up to New York, I bring my stuff over there. But Sam took the art up there, and I met her up there. It was the Outsider Art Fair and it was in New York. I did sell my Golden Girls painting already there.

S: What did you do before coming to CCW?

M: Before I came here, oh boy. I am trying to think here. I am trying to think. The last time I was here, my mom came in with me. My friend Stewart, one of the staff, was here. My sister was in the hospital because she had a baby. I have four nieces, yeah, all four of them. Did you ever hear of Marion-Mercy? It’s a school, a high school, it’s closer, not far. Two of my nieces went to Marion-Mercy.

S: How many siblings do you have? M: I have two brothers and one sister. But I do have sisters-in-laws too. Jimmy and Patty #1. Another Patty, it’s Paul and Patty #2. One Jimmy, one Paul, two Pattys, there are two Pattys in my family.

S: Do you have any favorite memories from your childhood?

M: Do you know where Mayfair road is? Come on, you don’t know Mayfair road? So, um, before that, I was on Mayfair road. I remember sitting on a step with my family. Okay, let’s see, I remember Paul was right there, Jimmy was right there and then I was in the middle and Sally was on the bottom. And that’s it.

S: When were you born?

M: Ok, lemme see. Seven, dash, thirty, dash, sixty eight.

S: When did you first start making art?

M: When I got here I did it. But I did like coloring books, I did that all the time. I painted pennies and um, I lined up my pennies in my hand. And I had a bowl okay? And I would tuck them in my bowl.

S: What do you like to do in your spare time?

M: Let’s see. I like going out into the community. I like going to Fair Acres, it’s a group home., to help people play Bingo and win the dollars. You get money for it and um, you get the dollar and you get something for a snack. For them, not for me. I am on a diet. I have to be careful what I eat. I have three weddings to go to so I have to watch what I eat.

S: I heard you are into basketball, tell me about that.

M: Yes, I like basketball, because my dad played basketball and he liked music. He was a music teacher. I like music too. I went to the university game and um, we go there every year. We go to the game and then we go to Magilicuddy’s. You ever heard of Magilicuddy’s before? It’s a restaurant and like a bar, not Scottish, it’s not Irish, it’s just plain. I like bowling too. I scored 100. And I write it down. I bring my paper with me when I go bowling and I write it down for my cousin. Every year, for Thanksgiving, I give the paper to him with my score.

S: Zooming ahead, what are your future goals as an artist?

M: I am writing a book. Because my cousin wrote a book, himself. I am following his footsteps. Now I am doing it. Now he has a publisher and he loves the topic. The topic is relationships. I got the pictures, I got the words down, it’s done. Now I am waiting for the publisher and I am waiting for my paycheck. I am getting paid. The second one will be on leadership.

S: Anything else you want people to know that I didn’t ask? M: I like soups, I like clam chowder, New England clam chowder. I get Shirley Temples, I get them at weddings too. It’s one of my favorites.

S: I love a Shirley Temple too! Mary, it’s been a real pleasure.

[daniellesmithtv]

An Insider’s Guide to the American Kennel Club Dog Show

She was teeny-tiny. All four paws fit in the palm of my hand – and I was only nine years old.

I thought my dad was joking when he said we could take her home. She was a motley mix of Llhasa Apso and Pekinese…in our minds, the very best of both breeds – but what did we know about breeding? (spoiler alert – nothing) We named her Patch for the patches of bright white bubbles and dark black spots that tic-tac-toed across her back and ears.

She was my very first case of puppy love, but far from my last. I’ve talked before about the moment our family heart was stolen by sweet Shortstop….he’s still running the family today.

Despite my love of dogs (and my children’s), we are amateurs when it comes to the true sport of showing dogs.

Or at least I was until my recent trip to the American Kennel Club’s Dog Show with Royal Canin in Mid-December. I was fascinated to learn the owner’s, breeder’s and handler’s commitment, to not only their animals, but to the presentation, understanding and dignity of each showcase, so I wanted to share a bit with you.

If you would like to see the highlights and the ultimate Best in Show from the AKC’s Dog Show in Orlando, Florida – tune in to Animal Planet this New Year’s Day at 7 p.m. ET, with an encore airing at 11 p.m. ET.

The AKC Dog Show is hosted by the ever-charming, ever-entertaining, ever-dog-loving Jerry O’Connell with commentary by favorites Sam Ryan and Megan Leavey (who you may know from this Summer’s movie named for her story: Megan Leavey).

As someone who could claim no prior knowledge of specialized breeds (nearly 200!), how the competition takes place, or the must-see moments, I wanted to happily share my thoughts and excitement.

Insider’s Guide to the American Kennel Dog Show

Best in Show competitions are one portion of the entire experience. (I explain in detail below).

Dock Diving is  pure happy, wet-dog joy. The agility, speed and precision is amazing to witness.

Photo Courtesy of Royal Canin

Agility Courses…trust me when I tell you, there is both a talent and an art form that comes with showing a dog (so says the girl who *almost* fell while attempting)…but DIDN’T.

Demonstrations showcasing the brilliance of these trained animals including one lead by Megan Leavey that highlighted the specialized scent training for dogs used to track in emergency situations and those who have a nose for bombs and drugs.

Meet the Breed is MAGIC. Nearly 200 breeds are represented. You can walk booth to booth getting to know the four-legged furry bits of happy that could be the next addition to your home. From the big to the small, the soft and cuddly to the wiry, from the hard workers to the ones destined to curl up and cuddle. I was amazed at the number of breeds I did not previously know. (Go ahead – guess my favorite!)

Royal Canin, as the main sponsor of the show, offers education for owners and breeders, an opportunity to have a signature photo taken with your favorite animal, as well as an explanation of their specialized foods for individual breeds. Each is made not only with that breed’s nutrition in mind, but their ability to bite and process a shape and size of kibble.

The AKC Dog Show is in its 17th year. There were nearly 200 breeds represented with more than five-thousand dogs competing in 7 overall categories.

There is only one winner.

The Road to Best in Show

Here’s the breakdown: each breed competes against dogs within its specific breed based on age and gender. Imagine ALL Golden Retrievers being broken down into groups based on their age and whether or not they are male or female. They compete in categories until their is one Golden remaining.

In this case – meet Bree. She was this year’s Golden Champion. Bree, like the other dogs in her breed, is judged based on how well she fits the very best representation of what THAT breed has to offer.

Bree, like all other winners, goes on to compete in one of seven groups:

Toy Group – these are dogs that fit in the lap of their owners like Pomeranians , Pugs, Maltese and Yorkshire Terriers.

Herding Group – as their name suggests, these breeds work with humans frequently to herd: German Shepherd, Collie, and Old English Sheepdog.

Working Dog Group – these four-legged friends are the working kind. They pull sleds, protect their humans and and do rescue work. The Bernese Mountain Dog, Samoyed, Rottweiler and Siberian Husky all fall in to this group.

Hound – this tough group goes after warm-blooded animals like jackrabbits and raccoons. They are scent-hounds known for speed: Beagles, Greyhounds and the small, but mighty Dachshunds.

Terrier – this short-legged group was bred to head ‘underground’ after prey. They were, for a time, used for fighting, but today are mainly companions: West Highland Terrier, Scottish Terrier and Miniature Schnauzer.

Sporting – these are the dogs that ultimately hunt. If they would pick up a bird, they fit in this group: Irish Setters, Cocker Spaniels and Golden Retrievers (like Bree)

Non-Sporting Dog Group – these dogs, while having four legs and a wet-nose, are those that fall outside of the previous categories: Dalmatians, Standard Poodles, Bulldogs, American Eskimo and (one of my favorites) the Bichon Frise.

The breed chosen to represent each group is the best-of-the-best of their breed. This means, judges (typically one for each competition) are not deciding if the Dalmatian is more pretty, spunky or obedient than the Bulldog or Poodle, but rather is THAT winning Dalmatian the best version of its breed? Would you give it a 8 of 10, while giving THAT Bulldog a 7 of 10? If so, the Dalmatian wins – even if you ‘like’ Bulldogs better.

So, the final night – the true Best in Show came down to these seven breeds – one representing each group.

Photo Courtesy of Royal Canin

And then a winner is crowned.

Dying to know who it is…easy ->

Reminder: Tune in to Animal Planet this New Year’s Day at 7 p.m. ET, with an encore airing at 11 p.m. ET. 

Disclosure: A million thanks to Royal Canin for hosting me for the American Kennel Club Dog Show. I will happily be cuddled up on New Year’s Day watching it all unfold with my family. As always, all thoughts and opinions are mine and mine alone.

    The post An Insider’s Guide to the American Kennel Club Dog Show appeared first on Pretty Extraordinary.

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