The Nicholberry Dispatch

If you don't yet know what hobby horsing is, you must click through. And, what does that tail wag mean?

BOOK NEWS

The countdown is on for my east coast book tour! I cannot wait to meet so many of you and have more conversations with

Kristin Koval

( Penitence) like the one at Zibby's (Instagram recap here)! She is a fabulous conversation partner and I look forward to our September events on the east coast. We will discuss our books, our dogs, our lawyering, and our second acts. Join us!

Rockport MA: Rockport Art Association & Museum

September 13th 5pm - 7pm (Nicholberry pups will join us too!)

TICKETS HERE

Exeter NH: Exeter Books

September 14^th 3pm

Boston MA: Hummingbird Books

September 15th 7pm (dogs allowed!) - ticket info coming soon

Bedford NY: Bedford Books

September 18th 6:30pm (sadly, no dogs allowed) - ticket info coming soon

SOMETHING TO LEARN

How to Read Dog Body Language

This article is a quick read and goes over the basics of canine body language, including raised hackles, eye contact, posture, and tail wagging. It also has a fantastic, short video on the nuances of tail wagging, including references to recent research about the meaning of a wag on the right or the left. If you have kids and are getting a puppy, this video will be a good one for them to watch (but also useful for all of us adults, too!).

SOMETHING TO … DEMONSTRATE?

Hobby Horsing

A few years ago, my brother decided to start a family fantasy football league. It all sounded like fun, particularly the requirement that those participating put their suggestions for a punishment in our family group chat and the suggestion with the most likes would be the loser’s punishment (apparently, this is common in FF). I had seen some videos of hobby horsing and had become mildly obsessed with it on Instagram. How funny would it be to have the loser give a hobby horse power point presentation and demonstration when our entire family gathered for Thanksgiving?! Though others suggested singing in a town square or affixing certain bumper stickers to our cars, the hobby horse punishment won.

And I lost.

Thus, this is what I will be doing Thanksgiving 2025 and if you needed a smile today, allow me to offer it. Maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll post a video of my demonstration as my Christmas present to you.

SOMETHING TO CONSIDER

“Be brave. The unfamiliar will shape you more than the familiar ever could.”

- Jo Cato

SOMETHING TO LOVE