Thursday, January 1, 2009

You May Be Addicted to Flyball if.....

The New Year gives us an opportunity every January to reevaluate our lives and rearrange our priorities. We resolve to lose weight, get fit, spend less and appreciate our loved ones more. Trouble is, by January 10, alot of the best intended plans fall by the wayside as we eat more, forget to exercise, live paycheck to paycheck and find we just don't have enough time for our families and friends. Many of us resolve these issues by resolving to NOT make any "New Year's Resolutions". For some, that's the only promise they can keep.

I thought about this dilemma and wondered if I should make any resolutions about flyball. I mean, I'm well aware that flyball is just the MOST important thing in my life......and, I just don't 'get' people who don't love it and/or don't love dogs the way I do. Do I have a 'problem'? Hmmmmmm..... How would I know? How would I recognize it? I gave it some thought and came up with these "observations'...

You may be addicted to flyball if...

  • You bought a full size or mini-van solely because your old vehicle no longer could hold all the dogs and equipment you needed to go to tournaments.
  • You got your last puppy because your flyball team needed a "speed" dog.
  • You look at other vehicles and imagine how many dog crates you could fit in there.
  • You plan all your vacation days around flyball tournaments.
  • You lie to new co-workers about how many dogs you actually own.
  • There are more flyball plaques on your wall for the dogs than there are school achievement awards for your kids.
  • You call one of your children with the dog's name.
  • You got your last puppy because your team needed another breed to compete in Multi-Breed.
  • You ran out of vacation days so you called off work to go to a flyball tournament.
  • You spend more on vet bills than you do on Doctor visits.
  • You consider volunteering at the local humane society so you can evaluate potential flyball talent.
  • Instead of throwing a birthday party for your kid, you bring them to a flyball tournament.
  • You bought an RV to take to flyball tournaments.
  • You got your last puppy because your flyball team needed a Height Dog.
  • You own at least three vehicles: One for work, one to go grocery shopping and one for flyball.

If you answered "yes" to at least two of the above, you are in danger of becoming addicted. If you answered "Yes" to at least three, you may already have a problem. If you answered "YES' to four or more, your family knows you are addicted but loves you anyway!

Enjoy your addiction for there is no known cure! Take a cue from your dogs and share your addiction with others with enthusiasm, boundless energy and generosity because dogs know what takes humans a whole lifetime to learn: Forget yesterday cuz you can't change it after it got here. Don't worry about tomorrow cuz there are too many possibilities to worry about. Live for right now cuz this moment in time is all you really "own".

Happy New Year! Good Luck and Good Racing!

.....Chris