1. "It is not the critic that counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and blood; who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end a triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." Theodore Roosevelt

2. "Jump high and stay a long time." (An old rodeo call for the bronc riders) George Blair (my father)

3. It is not the goal or destination that is important, it is the journey and the path we take that is important. Each journey begins with a first step.

4. "Live one day at a time and...make it a Masterpiece"

5. No one was born knowing how to...groom Poodles, train a dog, fly an airplane, perform an operation, program a computer, identify a bird, sew a shirt, etc. We all must begin at the beginning. So be patient with the young and the novice. "Repetition of fact and principle is a necessary feature of learning." Marshall Lambert (high school science teacher)

6. "If there is a will there is a way" and "perseverence succeeds"

7. Retriever field training is THE MOST intellectually challenging activity that I have ever been involved in. If I were to never put a field title on a dog I would still continue to train as it is so wonderully engrossing. It involves a depth of communication with the dog that far surpasses anything I have previously experienced. Field training challenges ALL of your senses and abilities and each is magnified by your canine partner. The more that I learn the more I find that there is to learn about this sport. After ten years I am just beginning to "crawl" and hope to yet experience the "walking" and then the "running" in this process of field training my Poodles.

8. Just because I may disagree with you on a given topic does not mean that I don't like or respect you. Differences of opinion and discussion of same is healthy and promotes personal growth. I may vehemently disagree with you but I will defend to the death YOUR right to have your opinion or conviction! I DO believe ardently in DEMOCRACY!