things the dog has chewed to pieces, v6

12. second leash, less than 18 hours old. Impressive!

ingredients for a good friday

1. a half-day at work
2. family
3. river to the bay
   
4. boat
5. dogs
6. extreme Kong toy and the equally popular "chase-it"
   
7. crab feast
8. car that did not conk out
9. abundant creatures - herons, ospreys, a big honkin' woodpecker, and lots of lightning bugs
10. peace and happiness

Can't believe our dog got along so well with the host-dog. Spouse practiced being "calm and assertive." Dog even went for a boat ride - and LOVED it. Some mountain girl.

oh noes!

Yay!!
I do so love icanhascheezburger?

one path to happy

Ever since I stopped

1. Ironing clothes
2. Washing the car
3. Subscribing to the newspaper
4. Buying bottled water
5. Filing bills and statements (one big box does nicely)
6. Carrying credit card debt (stopped buying stuff)
7. Wearing jewelry (other than my wedding ring; he did spend a pretty penny)
8. Answering the phone in the evening after a hard day at work (sorry, fam - love you, but leave a message)
   
9. Going to movie theatres
10. Worrying about our mis-matched, hand-me down furniture
    

I've been a lot happier. Life can be simple if we let it.

things i'm doing to put off the inevitable

1. erm... blogging.
2. laundry
3. eating very old but still yummy (read: edible) cherries
4. watching a cat watching nothing
5. thinking about weekend guests
6. wondering where weekend guests will sleep
7. wondering if weekend guests will make their own breakfast
8. wondering if we even have breakfasty things to begin with
   
9. wishing i went with G to walk the dog
10. intimidated by the dearth of breakfast foods, deciding i might as well get back to work. rats.
    

muppet-tastic!

You Are the Swedish Chef

"Bork! Bork! Bork!" Your happy and energetic - with borderline manic tendencies. No one really gets you. And frankly, you don't even get you. But, you sure can whip up a great chocolate mousse

The Muppet Personality Test

things the dog has chewed to pieces, v5

10. rawhide, graciously provided by her host, my bruzzer
11. the tennis ball part of a tennis-ball-on-a-rope, also graciously provided by aforementioned bruzzer

A nice day at Troy's graduation party. Oddly, I took no photos! But I think my mother took lots. I hope.

Plus, we saw:
* four fuzzy (and very hungry) baby mockingbirds in a nest in a tree near the field
* momma (or poppa?) mockingbird bringing bits of dinner
* one brown rabbit near the bottom of the yard
* one red fox near my parents' house

domestic accomplishments

so exciting.

1. cut back the spruce crowding the neighbor's yard
2. hacked at neighbor's grapevine thing that is taking over a white pine tree
3. trimmed locust damage from the Japanese maple
4. gave the wild azalea an edge over the forsythia
5. wondered about the mulch pile that occupies the driveway
6. chopped up some sticky trash plant that keeps coming back and bothering the vinca
   
7. continued to not water the lawn
8. did water the dianthus and the violets
9. collected another half-pound of cat fur
10. did not allow myself to be dominated by the dog :)
    

I was wrong

According to the dog trainer, when the dog rests her head on our arms/legs/laps/ whatever is convenient, and we respond by petting her or even making eye contact, we have put her in charge and she is now dominant, because we are doing what she wants. Apparently in the dog world, one dog will put its head over another dog's back and if the second dog allows it, it is therefore submissive.

Hmm. I admit, I didn't want to do this much thinking about having a dog. Our last dog was just a dog. This one is quite something else.

books waiting to be read

1. Miles to Go, Chris Murphy (on Miles Davis)
2. Gone, by Jonathan Kellerman
3. At Risk, Patricia Cornwell
4. Big Russ & Me, Tim Russert
5. Southern Italy (travel book)
6. A Fez of the Heart, Jeremy Seal
7. Talking to High Monks in the Snow, Lydia Minatoya
8. High: Stories of Survival from Everest and K2, Clint Willis
9. The Last Days of Socrates, Plato
10. Best American Short Stories, 1991
    

A boy and his dog

things about the dog

1. hound
2. all about the scent
3. long, long dog
4. will rest her very heavy head on whatever part of you is convenient until you pay attention
5. lives for walkies
6. likes her crate - er, den
   
7. would rather live outside
8. occasionally very tall
9. fascinated by squirrels
10. happy, sweet girl
    

things the dog has chewed to pieces, v4

9. totally sanctioned bone-shaped chew toy

Yay!

it's just science

Went out for the evening and did not crate the dog. But - sprayed Chew Stop all over the part of the bed that she had chewed up. Came home six hours later, and the bed is still only in a few pieces. Pretty exciting. All hail Chew Stop.

cautiously optimistic

Hmm. A little chewing on the purple bed cover today, but really not much. Good dog.

surprised

The dog didn't chew anything up today. Could be the "Chew Stop" the spouse sprayed all over her bed cover. Could be simple good luck. I shall not look a gift horse in the mouth. Hooray!

things i am thankful for

1. sunshine
2. kitty cats
3. (ok, let's get serious) (... well, more serious)
   
4. being the daughter of my parents
5. an open mind
   
6. good friends
   
7. good books
8. a little luck
   
9. a loyal mate
10. a dog who didn't chew up anything today
    

things the dog has chewed to pieces, v4

7. purple dog bed cover... mostly still intact, so good for another day. maybe she just doesn't like zippers.

8. rope chew toy - hooray!!!! i would like to believe the rope chew toy gave out first, hence she turned her attention to the bed.

And to think I was gone only four and a half hours. Wow. Well, my fault - I really thought she'd be okay for that length of time, since I sat here with her for the first six hours of the day and all she did was sleep. Lesson learned.

things the dog has chewed to pieces, v3

...
6. green placemat

It is time for one of us to get used to crating her at night and when we are away. The rescue group recommended it, and she has been okay with it. But one of us thinks it's terribly mean and balks at closing the crate. The other of us is working at convincing him it is okay.

It's too bad we don't have/can't create a room that is indestructible. We'd remove the placemats and things except then what's left is upholstery. Which would be double-plus ungood.

On a more positive note, it looks like she has actually been chewing on the rope toy. Ah, the joys of canine adolescence.

buffet for a 100th birthday party picnic

1. fried chicken
2. hot dogs
   
3. chili
4. green beans and ham
   
5. scalloped potatoes
6. macaroni salad
7. cole slaw
8. raw veggies - broccoli, carrots, grape tomatoes, cauliflower and salad greens
   
9. sliced fruit - watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, red grapes
10. pink lemonade and iced tea

things to be Freecycled this weekend

1. two large bags of packing peanuts
2. videotape for a HealthRider (itself long ago Freecycled)
3. books
   
4. 2006 farmer's almanac calendar
5. non-prescription allergy medicine our old dog used to take
6. photo of NYC in the spring
7. clear blue purse
8. candle holder
9. vacuum cleaner bags
10. blue NYFD baseball, slightly scuffed, found by the river

Freecycle rocks. It's just so... free!