Wednesday, April 15, 2015

A Return, with Changes

Well, needless to say, it's been a long time since I last posted here. Life got (and continues to be) crazy. :-) I have done multiple shows, both as a performer and a puppet designer, and have added a new role: Dog Trainer. My small dog, Shadow, a powderpuff Chinese Crested, has performed in 3 shows with me. For the past 8 months or so, however, I have had to hold myself away from doing any auditions thanks to some challenging health issues. These have included a major amount of work in my mouth resulting in having almost all of my top teeth removed, along with so much bone that I now have a dime-sized hole through the bone into my sinus. I have decided to hold off auditioning until I know I can actually speak clearly. I may need to re-learn how to sing, too, since I now have a partial denture that includes a plate covering the entire roof of my mouth.

Work has also exploded. Where in the past most of my available classes would be half filled at best, the vast majority of my adult dog classes are currently full, despite having raised my max class size from 5 to 7. I am also a mentor, meaning that I train additional trainers for Petco. I just graduated two apprentices, and will be getting another in a couple of weeks. Somehow I've also become the person who is sent to help stores who are struggling in the dog training department. I have also been sent to out of state stores to "flash train" new trainers. (Shadow and I have been sent to North Dakota 3 times.) So that's kept me hopping, too.

My doc and I are also dealing with the joys of hormonal changes, and have had to include thyroid medications to the mix. All in all, work on stage will have to wait until I know I can fulfill all my obligations.

But that doesn't mean I will be totally theatre-less. Shadow was just cast in another show. I'll be providing more details as they are available. The only thing I know for certain right now is that I also need to build a puppet of Shadow for one of the scenes. Can't wait to learn more!

The one advantage of being held out of theatre for a while is that I now have time for other endeavors. (Whether I have the energy for them is a whole 'nother matter!)  So this summer, hubby and I are trying our hands at aquaponics - raising plants without soil through the use of what is essentially aquarium water. Plants are placed in one of many possible inert growing mediums, and water from a tank containing fish is pumped through the growing medium for 15 min ever hour. The waste from the fish feeds the plants, and the act of feeding by the plants cleans the fish water. In a traditional commercial setting, the fish used in the system are also raised for food, so you get vegetables and herbs from the plants and protein from the fish. We won't be eating our fish, however. The outdoor growing season here just isn't really long enough to get fish to pan size. So, right now, the plan is to use goldfish.

Now, I could go into great depth on the chemical and natural processes that are used in this system, but this website http://www.coopext.colostate.edu/adams/gh/pdf/Intro_Aquaponics.pdf  presents it a much nicer format that I ever could. So if you'd like more details, check it out.

For now, this blog will focus on our venture into aquaculture, with occasional sides regarding Shadow's newest role. I hope you find this interesting. Feel free to ask any questions you'd like. I'll do my best to keep things up to date here!

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