Parade Details

I thought I would put a post here with some of the parade details. You can also go to Art Unleashed for info.


*** RAIN or SHINE ***

Saturday, April 29, 2006, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

TIME LINE
09:30 a.m. - Artist/Sponsor check-in at 4th & Spruce
09:30 a.m. - Parade line-up begins at 4th & Spruce
11:00 a.m. - Parade starts at 4th & Spruce
12:00 p.m. - Parade ends at 4th & Trade
12:00 p.m. - Festival begins at Trade St. btwn 4th & 7th
03:00 p.m. - Festival ends

PARADE ROUTE: 4 blocks
STRT - 4th & Spruce
---> - down 4th to Trade
LEFT - on Trade to 5th
---> - down 5th
END. - 5th & Trade
---> - Pets & forms continue on Trade to festival
---x - Take forms to their designated location
RGHT - Cars turn on Trade

PARKING
PUBLIC - Cherry St across from Benton Convention Ctr ($2 all day)
PUBLIC - 4th & Spruce

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Please contact Stephanie Belcher.

Drool on the Frog

I thought I would tell the story of how the name Drool on the Frog (DotF) came about.

One day last summer we were out in the yard with Willa the wonder dog when My Geek discovered a frog in her water dish. Of course, Willa was fascinated by this discovery. Although My Geek loves observing the interaction of the wonder dog with other creatures, he wanted to make sure that she didn't kill the clueless amphibian.

We got prince charming out of the water dish, but he didn't hop away immediately. He didn't really move much at all without proding. Willa just hovered, staring, waiting for it make the next move and for us to give her permission to "play" with it. As she stood there looking down at the frog, she began drooling! It was hysterical hysterical! It communicated so much about Willa's instinct. Can you imagine the frog's perspective?

Anyway, that's how the phrase was born.

Taking a Break

As you may have read, the last week working on SAM was intense. School is also wearing on My Geek. We've talked about getting away, maybe during summer break. It's been over 5 years since we've taken a vacation with just the two of us. The Easter holiday offered both of us a 3-day weekend so we decided not to wait. At the last minute we made reservations at a new dog friendly B&B in West Jefferson called the Dog House Resort.

We highly recommend the Dog House Resort. Roger & Britta Roberts have paid attention to the smallest of details for those who want to enjoy the mountains and bring their dogs along. Please check out their web site for details. It is an accurate representation of the accomodations.

My absolute favorite thing was the balcony where we had breakfast one day, I watched the sunrise with my in-room coffee and watched DVDs on our laptop under a full moon. We kept the double doors to the balcony open the entire time we were there. We were so lucky that the weather was so perfect.

Willa enjoyed the dog park and the treats! Boy, was she spoiled! She loved sniffing the natural surroundings for other critters and sleeping on the balcony while we read.

Other amenities of note are a mini-frig in the room, several local art gallaries, a wonderful breakfast and wireless internet!

Help With Parade

We need some suggestions for transporting the dogs & cats in the parade on April 29.

This is a question that My Geek and I had been bantering around for a couple of weeks. It was obvious the wheels on the platform are not made to roll on the street. Anyone who rides bikes knows that a flat road in good condition can still be a rough ride. And for wheels that are not made for street use, it could be damaging.

My idea was small, flatbed trailers pulled by a car or truck or even a lawnmower or 3-wheeler. But the parade route is really short, about 3 blocks, and having that many vehicles with trailers would cause a major jam. I believe what Art Unleashed has in mind is still something that can be pulled manually.

Another suggestion was something like the flatbed lumber carts you can use at the home improvement stores. A good idea but how are we going to get 40+ of these!?

So we need your help, suggestions, and ideas.

Drop Off SAM

Well, it was a harrowing week.

Everyday this week, immediately after work, I worked until midnight painting on SAM. Everyday at lunch I worked on spots in the design that were still blank. It wasn't until Wednesday that I was confident that I could actually get him finished the way I wanted and make the drop-off on Saturday. Even still, I knew that Friday night might be an all nighter.

The platform was the biggest stresser. It was completely blank at the start of this week. The design was good but I still didn't end up with as much coverage as I wanted. It was really great to work on a flat surface for a change! Even though I kept laying my arm in areas I had just painted.

Friday and Saturday were emotional rollercoasters - partly from lack of sleep, the fact that SAM was actually going to be finished and that tornados had just hit my parents town in Goodlettsville (all are safe and sound).

Around 10:00 p.m. Friday, I decided to do a test to see how long it would take the varnish to dry. This was important since that determined when My Geek could go to sleep! I wasn't going to varnish until the dog was attached to the platform and he had to do that. What I wanted to know is, can he go on to bed and just get up in the morning and attach the dog and then I could varnish before going to the storage facility. It seemed to take a good hour for the varnish to dry. Perfect. We could attach and varnish at 7:00 a.m. Saturday and still make it to the storage facility before 1:00 p.m. My Geek headed to bed right before 1:00 a.m.

I was up until 4:00 a.m. Saturday morning painting. I wasn't surprised. I had told My Geek it would probably be 2:00 but I was thinking 3:00. And, as every good engineer knows, you double the expected time so I should have said 4:00.

It got very frustrating because I would squirt out some red paint and think, "This is it. This is the last paint I'm going to use." Then I'd step back and see and see a spot I had missed. "Damn!". And I'd go again.

I didn't really sleep much anyway. My Geek got SAM on the platform, I touched up some more spots I had missed and we ate some breakfast. Then I put on the varnish. I was surprised at how long it was taking to dry. I was really getting worried. I decided to go take a shower.

I don't know why it was at this moment that I felt sudden sadness. Maybe I was exhausted or relaxed by the steaming shower. But I suddenly realized I was done and going to give SAM away.

I was really looking forward to seeing some of the other forms. I was totally blown away. You guys are going to be in for such a treat. I just couldn't believe all the creativity and talent. The parade is going to be so much fun. I can't wait.

That's enough for now. I'm going to get some sleep. I'll be back here some more to talk about the upcoming parade, some t-shirt designs I have in mind and then, eventually, the auction.