Boxers can't swim.....or can they???

Mr. Lush has always said that boxers can not swim- “their chests are too heavy….they will sink like a rock”.

Hogwash I’ve said.

A tidbit from Americanboxerclub.org, which I just read for the tongue-in-cheek benefit of the post….

“Precautions must be taken to ensure your dog's safety. Being deep-chested and tailless, our Boxers need plenty of instruction learning to turn and maneuver in the water.”

Hmm. Well, this last weekend we went to visit my parents at a lake. Someone suggested putting her in a life jacket. Which of course this is evidently not a new idea:

“Boxer's do not have the benefit of a rudder (tail) to help them steer, for example. Invest in a good quality canine life jacket.”

As you can see she didn’t like the life jacket much.

“Do not expect your dog to be a "natural". Starting to swim will require your patience and encouragement. It takes more than a few times in the pool or the lake before your Boxer starts to really enjoy himself.”

Hmm. Oh really???? Here she is with no instruction, no life jacket.....



It took her about 15 minutes of being locked off the boat with all of us in the water for her to swim on out to us. ALL ON HER OWN.

And here she is, sitting naturally in a floatie. Just like her mamma...well, minus the drink of course. ;) Yep. Boxers can't swim. Nope. Not at all.

Have a Meaty 4th of July for your bones

I like finding news that supports my lifestyle decisions. Lucy often finds reasons how drinking wine is good for you, and in honor of the 4th of July, the meat mecca of holidays, (I for one would never have a 4th of July weekend without grilling SOME meat of SOME kind) I just found an article saying meat eaters have better bone density. Woo hoo! Go meat!

Should you BBQ your meat, Lucy posted some BBQ friendly wines, however, I will caution that with spicy BBQ, such as ours, Zin may not be the perfect match. (although the Austrailian Shiraz's would likely go great and I will have to try that this month!)

Now I just need to find research that states eating buffalo wings and sitting on your bum most of the day is actually better for you than eating veggies and exercising. Hmm. Probably shouldn't hold my breath huh??? I guess in the meantime, I'll be happy for this tidbit.

Je ne parle pas français

(I do not speak French)

So one of the top questions we get asked about our trip was "did you have problems with the language barrier"? Yes and no. While I took some French in high school, I could read it better than speak or verbally comprehend it. We listened to some CDs in the car in French, but that's hardly real preparation, and it left Mr. Lush with zero ability to read. I was the best French resource of the Lush Travelling Duo, and I was really not that great.

My first question anywhere was "Parlez vous anglais?" (Do you speak English?) Often the answer was "yes" or "yes, a little". If he answer was yes, we got along fine with talking fairly slow and using the most literal words/translations we could think of. If the answer was "a little", we used the Lingo (electronic translator loaned to us by some good friends) a phrase book, and pointing to maps or menu items. It wasn't great, but it worked. As noted in my public transportation post we got around using public transportation, which most signs, instructions, announcements, etc are in French.

We put forth an effort when we could and were apologetic about not speaking the language which went a long way to keep things nice and civil and even to get people to go out of their way to help. We were polite and said hello, goodbye, thank you, just as you should. I will say, it was a LOT easier in Paris and Bordeaux/St. Emilion than in Burgundy. While "most" people spoke a decent amount of English in those areas, "most" spoke little to no English in Burgundy, even in Dijon and Beaune, somewhat larger towns in Burgundy.

So....would I say I have regrets about not speaking better French? Sure, because it would've made things easier. But is it required? Not really - but having some basic knowledge of what certain words mean does help - not only for public transportation, but to know if the check includes gratuity, for example. *Which, we always tipped extra anyway, just because we wanted to spread the word that "Hey, being nice to Americans pays". (literally) :)

I guess the bottom line is that the language barrier won't keep me away from a vacation, but I will probably spend a smidge more effort next time.