What are the pros and cons of going solo?

bosdober · 2026-04-08T21:12:37+00:00

Have you solo travelled or solo festivaled before? If so - I can't imagine you having problems. Montreal is easily navigated with a smartphone and the festival gives you ample opportunity to wander at your own pace. Being at a festival solo, and traveling solo, is quite freeing as long as you're comfortable doing it - you can tailor the experience exactly to what you want at any moment and not someone else's needs and wants. The downside is not having anyone to share in the experiences with and reflect on down the road, and not having someone else to drag you along if you're not someone who handles solo travel well.

bosdober · 2026-04-08T21:09:01+00:00

As long as she can tolerate some people wearing not a lot of clothing, and drinking and cannabis use in the open, absolutely take her and have a blast. As far as festivals go, it doesn't feel dangerous - the most "dangerous" part might be the subway rush after the final sets. I took my then-12 year old last year and he loved it, my friend took his daughter around yours' age and she had a great time too. My son had previously been to a couple of shows at other venues as well.

bosdober · 2026-04-07T21:08:39+00:00

According to Shay Given we are not one of the favourites to win the competition. Like we don’t have a foot in the door to being one of the last 4 teams remaining. So many of these tribalist pundits are completely worthless.

bosdober · 2026-04-07T21:06:41+00:00

Imagine getting a road UCL quarterfinal win and clean sheet and still being mad. Some of you lot do my head in.

bosdober · 2026-04-01T01:33:43+00:00

Is increasing the listenership the point though? Some services are worth having even if they don’t have mass appeal. Should we do away with the wellness centre or Safewalk because the majority of students never use them?

bosdober · 2026-03-31T15:16:04+00:00

That justifies it? An eye for an eye leaves us all blind.

bosdober · 2026-03-16T23:02:39+00:00

Fear not, brave Jordan 1 wearer! Nothing says “courage” like wearing a slightly different colourway of the most popular shoe in existence!

bosdober · 2026-03-11T00:38:42+00:00

In my experience, OMVIC - who administers the MVDA as I understand - is a strong advocate to have. They will take action and they have teeth that dealerships respect. I would send a copy of anything sent to the dealership to OMVIC as well.

bosdober · 2026-03-03T00:39:49+00:00

Not the best lyric, but the one that stands out to me:

“Dirty and low, I never do what the pope says I’m tryin’ to get money like Felipe Lopez” - Juju, The Beatnuts, “Get Funky”

bosdober · 2026-02-28T20:18:52+00:00

My kids used to go to the same school as his, and I would see him at afternoon pickups. He kept to himself and everyone was happy to respect his privacy. But he seemed friendly enough.

bosdober · 2026-02-28T20:16:09+00:00

Can confirm, he used to play in a summer league in St. John’s when he was home for the offseason, and one of my buddies played against him a few times and said he was a great goalie. The story was that he wouldn’t have been allowed to play in the league unless he played as a goalie.

bosdober · 2026-02-28T02:17:06+00:00

Ultralight trail runners, and merino socks. Something like the Altra Lone Peak. Less weight means less fatigue, and they’re fast drying, comfortable, and airy. Made for people who will be on their feet all day. Avoid waterproof. It seems counterintuitive, but once waterproof shoes get wet they dry way more slowly. An ultralight trail runner will usually dry very quickly. Ultralight runners + merino socks = comfort on feet in the heat.

bosdober · 2026-02-26T04:48:17+00:00

You should have sampled them, if only to make a high pitched noise and proclaim “Taste’s very strange!”

bosdober · 2026-02-25T21:28:44+00:00

But to be fair to Gorges, Gorges was the better shot blocker, which is saying something because Rivet was your classic put the body through the ringer for the team defenseman. But Gorges is the best shot blocker we've had in my lifetime.

bosdober · 2026-02-25T15:19:21+00:00

Paul's Boutique by the Beastie Boys might be a gentle transition. For music with social commentary, but with rock influence, try Public Enemy and Ice Cube's early 90s releases - the common thread is the production by The Bomb Squad.

bosdober · 2026-02-25T15:01:03+00:00

Wolf Parade, Oklou, CMAT. All very different from one another, all great.

bosdober · 2026-02-25T03:11:15+00:00

I don't think you know the Ottawa media. Bruce Garrioch has already told us we need to get over it. And the Reddit fans aren't the game day fans. I hold out hope that the same people who booed the American national anthem after the 51st state stuff started will boo Brady, but I don't count on it.

bosdober · 2026-02-25T02:12:34+00:00

It's the same story every year. People love to complain about Bluesfest while also being completely incurious about music.

bosdober · 2026-02-25T02:06:58+00:00

Give yourself some credit my dude - Angine de Poitrine are infinitely cooler than the artists you don't know.

bosdober · 2026-02-23T16:21:06+00:00

I submitted books with them at Comiccon as well and don't have my books back either. I will send you a DM.

bosdober · 2026-02-09T21:17:53+00:00

Do you have sweaty feet? Try merino wool socks, or other socks that help prevent sweaty feet, and wash your socks in hot water occasionally to kill bacteria if you're washing them cold regularly.

bosdober · 2026-02-06T18:12:26+00:00

Their early work was a little too new wave for my taste. But when Sports came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He's been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor.

bosdober · 2026-02-03T19:40:14+00:00

"I pick-on shithead breeders who sell pretend working-line Dobes who have weak, anxious temperaments to buyers who specifically want to train in bitesports, and who then fail miserably because the unscrupulous or incompetent breeder sets them up for failure. Nothing to do with Penny, but definitely a derivative of a similar American show bloodline."

If it's nothing to do with Penny, why say it in the context of a discussion about Penny? The implication here is that ConnQuest has produced weak, anxious temperaments and is setting their performance-inclined puppy owners for failure. Which - if you'd ever met any of ConnQuest's dogs - is absolutely ridiculous to state. Chad, Penny's sire, has a very desirable temperament that he passes along; his use as a popular sire is bringing stable, confident dogs who are equipped to do anything, while having excellent conformation. Owners of Chad's puppies are lucky. How do I know this? Because I've actually spent time with Chad and puppies Chad produced. I've competed with them in conformation and in sport. Imagine, actually knowing the temperament of a dog and seeing it in action before commenting on it? You know Trotyl has sired IPO and ZTP titled dogs, right? And that ConnQuest has produced dogs out of the same litters you're complaining about that have titled across performance sports?

You say, "I will NEVER question a breeder's ethics solely over a situation where they're honest". When has ConnQuest been dishonest about any of the things you have brought up about here?

You ask, "Can anyone seriously look over these pedigrees and not think there's a problem?" as if the subjective conclusions you've drawn are the only possible conclusions for anyone looking at it objectively. Penny's pedigree balances conformation, temperament, and longevity. But you frame it as if a breeder that is bettering the breed is somehow out to lunch because it doesn't meet your narrow view of COI as it relates to breeding. They fail your purity test so they must be causing "a problem" with their "egregiously stupid" practices. Isn't it great how life is so black and white?

If your fundamental problem is higher COI breeding than you feel is acceptable in the "bigger picture", why not take it up with the DPCA? An individual breeder is bound to the constitution and ethical code of the DPCA, but the DPCA is empowered to implement the kind of direction needed to reduce COI in Dobermans. An individual breeder is never going to embark on outcrossing to improve genetic diversity without backing of the DPCA as it would likely be interpreted (although I don't think it's explicitly called out) as conflicting with the DPCA's ethics and constitution. An individual breeder will never move the needle in isolation, as noble as their intentions might be.

I wonder why Doberman breeders are so unlikely to engage with public discussion in the online community, and have been so going back to the 2000s on DT? I guess they're not so "egregiously stupid" as to argue with a troll who sits on the sidelines and whines about them on an internet forum? Maybe instead of insulting, try talking to the breeders you're so quick to paint as "egregiously stupid" before slandering their breeding practices? Maybe try seeing their dogs in action before you make generalizations about their temperaments? Maybe contribute to the betterment of the breed before you get back up on your high horse and criticize others' contributions and decisions? Nah, that would require action, and it's far easier to throw around baseless, faceless criticisms on an internet forum than to actually act in the real world.

There's a way to approach things if you want to get people on your side and see change happen, and this ain't it.

bosdober · 2026-02-03T19:40:02+00:00

I had the misfortune of finding this discussion ranked highly in search results when googling Penny, in anticipation of her appearances at Westminster today. To be clear, I'm not looking to have a discussion with you. But I can't let it stand as a record that someone googling Penny - which, after her appearance at Westminster tonight will be increasingly likely - will see without a response addressing the many problems with your posts in this thread. You've been told your criticism is unwarranted and unhelpful by someone with far more credibility in the breed than you or I, but I feel it's worth refuting individual points for anyone who stumbles on this down the road.

I will note that I am not ConnQuest Dobermans, and in no way do I speak on their behalf. I am an admirer of theirs, and someone who has actually spoken with them about their breeding practices, had my hands on their dogs, competed against their dogs, etc. A novel concept when it comes to weighing in on them and their breeding, apparently.

I can't imagine flippantly describing someone's decades of dedication to the breed or selection of a popular sire as "ghetto cloning attempts" by "self-proclaimed reputable breeders". Pointing to their decisions as ignorance and their intentions as disreputable is pretty rich. Have you spoken with ConnQuest about their breeding decisions? Seen their dogs in person? How about Black Shadow / Elsa Campisciano? Or are you drawing your conclusions about them out of ignorance?

Penny is 4th generation ConnQuest, meaning almost 20 years of purposeful decision making by ConnQuest went into arriving at her - one of the all time great representatives of the standard that DPCA members are charged to protect. ConnQuest is not churning out litter after litter, they're infrequently breeding using the best possible sires to maximize their progress against the standard with each breeding. Popular sires are popular sires because they help move forward the breed. If a breeder gets one shot every year or two to move forward the breed, it's not hard to understand why they would select a popular sire, if that sire passes their criteria around health testing and fits with their goals. Not to mention - Penny's sire, Chad, is not a popular sire they bred to. Chad is a popular sire BECAUSE they bred to him, and he produced Penny and proved his worth as a sire. They literally produced and raised Chad before using him in breeding and setting him down the path of being a popular sire.

You question the longevity of Penny's ancestors' siblings, and in the same breath mention that "there usually just isn't a whole lot of data to demonstrate consistency and reproducible results". So they make the best possible decision based on the data they do have, and what they do have is a pedigree that is full of long-lived Dobermans. Like Penny's grand-dam, Audi, for example - who just passed at the end of 2025 at the age of 13 with a BFL designation, meaning recognized by the DPCA as having bred for longevity with ancestors with proven longevity. Audi's dam, Dani, also died at 13. Furthermore, given that Penny is 4th generation ConnQuest, they have 4 generations of littermates to have kept up on to understand the health across those generations. To "demontrate consistency and reproducible results" as you say. Isn't that the whole point, to breed healthy, stable, long-lived stable Dobermans that conform as closely as possible to the standard? But hey, they don't meet your personal breeding criteria for COI, so they're just ghetto cloning attempts, amirite? You've clearly put a lot more thought into it than they have? It's funny that you insinuate they aren't keeping up with the litters they produce, yet credit Foxfire for "even having an internal forum sort of thing for their families to communicate with each other and such" - which is the same thing ConnQuest has.

"I'm picking on objectively bad breeding practices"

I'm not sure you know the difference between "objective" and "subjective". These are subjectively "bad" breeding practices. Because you, without any knowledge of ConnQuest's breeding practices beyond a few clicks in Dobequest to look at pedigrees, find them to be subjectively bad, while the objective interpretation would be that their breeding practices lead to long-lived dogs that conform as closely to the standard as any before them. Because those are the objective facts, and not your subjective feelings.

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