My super secret, not really useful gift.

"What kind of dog is that?"

"Australian shepherd, I think."

The above question and answer session is a typical one between myself and P.I.C. on a walk through our neighborhood. Apparently, I have a gift for just knowing dog breeds. P.I.C. likens it to "the way dudes know cars." My family had dogs when we were younger, Great Danes to be exact. As I grew older, the parents decided that dogs plus kids were just too much to handle. Therefore I really had no dogs as pets for most of my life. However, I have always loved dogs. Perhaps it's my love of them that makes me more interested in identifying their breeds. I certainly hope that this is not my only super all-star gift in this world. (What, like you don't have a deep-seated desire to one day realize that you really are a fantastically gifted singer or that you are really telepathic a la Sookie Stackhouse? Get real.)

Whereas I might be able to identify dog breeds at nearly the drop of a hat, my brother has an even better gift. He's more of a "dog whisperer." There are such things, I tell you. Bro is capable of training dogs in ridiculously short amounts of time. Furthermore, the tricks he trains his dogs to do are hysterical. Who doesn't want to mime a gun and say bang and watch their dog fling himself to the ground in the hope of a treat? (Answer: Not anyone that I want to know. It's HILARIOUS.)

The other day, as P.I.C. and I were on our way home from work, we see a peculiar-looking dog. P.I.C. asks the usual question, "What kind of dog is that?" I estimated it to be either a labradoodle or a golden doodle. I then began to explain that people don't realize that standard poodles were a type of hunting dogs and not just the miniature versions toted around by socialites.

P.I.C. then reminds me: "Oh. I know. Remember the poodle party in Central Park?"

Who can forget the poodle party?

Honestly, I don't really think I had a real purpose in writing this other than bragging about my special skills in knowing certain dog breeds. Oh, and bringing up the poodle party. I will always look for an excuse to bring up the poodle party. If only I had photographic evidence....oh wait. I do.

 
Well. You can only really see two of them. Trust me. There were more. I was trying to be discreet when I took the photograph.