Her name was Lola, she was a show dog

From the AKC German Shepherd Dog breed standard:

The breed has a distinct personality marked by direct and fearless, but not hostile, expression, self-confidence and a certain aloofness that does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. The dog must be approachable, quietly standing its ground and showing confidence and willingness to meet overtures without itself making them. It is poised, but when the occasion demands, eager and alert; both fit and willing to serve in its capacity as companion, watchdog, blind leader, herding dog, or guardian, whichever the circumstances may demand. The dog must not be timid, shrinking behind its master or handler; it should not be nervous, looking about or upward with anxious expression or showing nervous reactions, such as tucking of tail, to strange sounds or sights.

From my backyard, 30 minutes ago:

Random Car Alarm goes off
German Shepherd runs to the back porch and sets on the step closest to the door.
Followed by a very low, very quiet growl.

My life is now complete

I had planned on writing an in-depth, massive review about the Muse concert I experienced last weekend. After starting the review several times, I figured I would go with this:

(New Born video graciously and awesomely taken by Hexydes)



The whole concert experience was great. As someone who has followed Muse (somewhat obsessively) for many years but never had the opportunity to see them live, I was SO pleased.



Pleased to see Matt's weird shuffle dance in Time is Running Out. Pleased to get to touch one of the eyeball balloons. Pleased to see these 3 people looking like they really enjoy playing for an audience.




The concert exceeded my expectations. I know that this kind of music is not everyone's cup of tea. Neither is the love it or hate it voice of Matt Bellamy. But for me, it was just perfect. And I hope that my Muse-noob friend Rachael has become a fan. I am so glad she made the shitty drive in the rain with me to Detroit.

Here is a link to my pretty mediocre photos from the concert


I have spent the last week being slightly bummed that the concert is over, and hoping that more US tour dates will be set for later this year. Which, I am now pretty sure is going to happen. If Muse comes to a city near you, go see them! You will be missing one of the most exciting live bands ever if you don't!

So I don't want to brag or anything ...

I GET TO SEE MUSE NEXT SATURDAY!!!!!1!

I don't think I will be physically able to contain myself when Rachael and I get into that arena. I mean, I have been pretty much obsessed with this band since 2006. I have been waiting for them to come somewhere close to Ohio to play and next Saturday is it.





Rachael and I will be driving to Detroit to see Muse, with special guests Silversun Pickups at the Palace at Auburn Hills and I might die of happiness.

I have been browsing the Muse forums and watching clips on YouTube to prepare myself for this epic event. I even changed my desktop wallpaper.




In other, albeit less, exciting news ... I entered a raffle at work and won (what??) a pair of box seat tickets to see the Columbus Crew play Toluca this Tuesday. Now understand that I know nothing about soccer and less about the Columbus Crew, but I am kind of excited to go and experience something in Columbus that had I not won tickets to I probably would never had experienced.

So in the spirit of things ... Let's Go Crew!

Lastly, the snow is almost completely gone from the back yard and I think that the dogs forgot what grass is. Lola has spent most of her time outdoors in the last few days rolling around in the mostly muddy grass flat on her back.