The Show Must Go On

My current expression

(if I were an adorable pup)

I'm a little frustrated right now. When I gave up the presidency of my dog club last month, I was looking forward to having less responsibility and more free time. Like I said many times, there are a lot of little things that come with the office. Those little things quickly become a large time suck. My intention was to concentrate on competing with Jedi and looking for another show puppy.

Well, plans change. At the May club meeting I was told that the two women who’ve planning our dog shows for the past few years have called it quits. Just. Like. That. Even more frustrating: for two years I tried to get them to share information about show planning -- I even had someone willing to take it all in -- but said women guarded the information like a virgin guards her hymen. Now we need to come up with a Plan B.

Channeling my inner Butterfly McQueen

Only a handful of club members have any experience with conformation dog shows, and all but two -- me and RK (the new Club president) -- have stated they want nothing to do with putting on the show. Grrr . . . So the choices are:

1. RK and I do it ourselves (and hope that others change their minds about helping) or
2. It doesn't get done.

I've wrestled with this for a few weeks now. I worked so hard the past two years to build this club up, I'd feel guilty letting it flop. Hubby wants me to relax and concentrate on my health -- "Honey, remember what happened in February? You need to slow down." (Why does he always get to be the voice of reason?!)

From what I can gather, the club is required to put on a show to keep our AKC sanction. How often we have to do it is in unclear. I know there are problems with securing and/or giving up assigned show dates if they conflict with another nearby show. It’s very confusing and I can't find any definitive answers on the internet.

Recently I discovered that an AKC Show Committee Seminar being held in Greenville, South Carolina at the end of the month. I signed up. It's a six hour drive (each way) for a four hour seminar. (Fortunately, I have family in Greenville that I haven't seen since last August, so this is a great excuse to visit.) RK found a pdf of the 2017 AKC Show Manual online. It’s 192 pages long -- eek! -- and I’ve been going through it slowly. It very detailed. And surprisingly empowering.

So, guess who’s putting on a dog show? I’m unbelievably nervous. And strangely excited. True to Kelley fashion, I’ll share our efforts over the next nine months and we’ll see how this baby turns out together. And out of respect for my husband, I will try to watch my stress levels while doing it. Wish us luck! -- K