Friday, November 30, 2007
Me-1, NaBloPoMo-0
Well, NaBloPoMo is over for 2007. I successfully updated my page on NaBloPoMo daily, and kept up with this blog and Suburban Scrawl practically everyday. It was fun, but I'm happy to be back down to 2 blogs instead of 3! Whew!
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Friends Til the End
Lesson Number 5: You've Gotta Have Friends, part two
In April, Jim finished his sea duty rotation and was stationed at Great Lakes Naval Base in North Chicago, Illinois for shore duty. I had just graduated from college, so we packed up our stuff and moved north. My parents lived in Milwaukee at that time, and invited us, along with their “Granddog”, to stay with them so we could take extra time to find a place to live. We were happy for the offer but nervous about Bijoux meeting Dapple, who was thirteen years old at the time, and Willie and Sandy, her eleven-year-old sons. Because the three miniature dachshunds were so much older, we weren’t sure how they would respond to our puppy, or she to them. My mom was nervous also, and we put much thought into the introduction. Mom and Dad lived across the street from a big field, and when we arrived at the house I took Bijoux there, to wait for the others. A few minutes later, my mom crossed the street with the three dachshunds on their leashes. They barked and as I remember it, Bijoux was nervous and slightly overwhelmed. My mom and I got down on the ground with the dogs—something that my dad still laughs about to this day—and let them sniff each other before we all went into the house. From that point on, although the age difference prevented any real interest in playing together, the four dogs tolerated one another just fine. Whenever Bijoux “got out of line” by trying to impose her puppy self on Dapple, Dapple would growl and snap, and Bijoux invariably ended up just lying down—completely still and calm—next to her.
Occasionally, Bijoux’s “friends” weren’t of the canine variety. She would smell a rabbit or a squirrel nearby and take off running, trying to find it. If we happened to be inside the house, she would whine and paw at the door, as if she were a bull trying to get out of confinement. When she was after something, she could get all the way across the yard practically before the screen door could re-latch itself!
When Jim left the Navy for a civilian job in 1995, we moved to our current town. Bijoux was a real trooper about the move (this was her 4th house in five years!), and we were overjoyed when we learned that our new neighbors brought a puppy into their home. His name was Rudy, and he was a Boxer. Although Rudy and Bijoux rarely played in the same yard, they spent hours running back and forth along their respective side of the chain-link fence that was between them. In fact, occasionally they had another partner in crime: that fall our older son was three and a half, and even he was astounded at how much fun he could have, running alongside a fence with two dogs!
We moved away from Rudy in 1997, to the other side of town. Unfortunately, it would be three more years before Bijoux “found” another friend. This one, however, would carry her to the end. Minnie was a Schnoodle (schnauzer/poodle mix), and she was adorable. My friend brought Minnie into her home directly from the breeder, and we introduced her to Bijoux almost immediately. At this point, Bijoux was an “old girl” of ten, which made Minnie the “young whippersnapper”. I was uncertain at first about whether Bijoux would accept Minnie (and whether her 50+ pounds would crush Minnie’s 7 pounds!), but as it turned out, I was silly for worrying about it. Bijoux knew what she was doing, and although she began her friendship with Minnie in a diva-like attitude, she learned to “leave her ego at the door”. The first time that Minnie came to our house, the dogs were racing around within 30 minutes. It was definitely reminiscent of Bijoux’s relationship with Rex, only this time Bijoux was in charge. I laughed as she continuously pushed Minnie to the ground with her chin, just as Rex had done ten years before, and when she tired of playing, she would growl at Minnie, letting her know that Playtime was over. To me, this was better than television, and nobody could understand how I could just sit and watch two dogs play for as long as I did. The truth is, it not only gave me a good laugh, but I was genuinely so happy for Bijoux, as she was having such a great time and finally getting some quality exercise!
Minnie became a regular visitor to our home, and that Thanksgiving we took care of her for four days while her family went to Ohio. I had no problem leaving the two dogs home alone together if I needed to do so, and now and then we would take them both for a car ride. As our family relaxed in the family room, Bijoux and Minnie would often sleep curled up next to each other. It was a sweet picture.
Two more dogs came into our lives at Christmas time, and coincidentally they were both beagles! Buddy was a Christmas gift for our next-door neighbor’s son, and Maxie was the family dog of our friends who lived on the next block.
Buddy was the only dog I have ever seen Bijoux run from upon first sniff. He was an adorable puppy and, in fact, resembled the puppy that Bijoux used to be. But looks didn’t mean anything to her. Bijoux became immediately annoyed at Buddy’s bark, his nipping, and his pouncing. In fact, he made her downright nervous! She did everything she could to get away from him, all while he did everything he could to get near her. Not wanting to force the issue, we just prevented Bijoux from being on the same side of the fence with Buddy. He was persistent, though…he would stand on his side of the fence, howling at her, begging her to come over to him. She wouldn’t give him the time of day.
Maxie was a different story. Also a spirited sort of beagle—-one eye always had to be on her when there was food in the area because she was known for jumping up onto a dining room chair and eating whatever was on the table—-Maxie eventually became an accepted friend. Maxie was another dog, to Jim’s initial dismay, that I offered to care for while her family was on vacation. Bijoux and Maxie didn’t run around the house together; Maxie had shorter legs and moved much faster than Bijoux could. It seemed as though, somehow, Bijoux had let Maxie know that although she was welcome in our home, her youthful silliness would be neither tolerated nor acknowledged. Their relationship mostly consisted of an initial greeting, tails wagging, and then mere glances across the room in a simple parallel existence.
As time passed, Minnie continued her frequent visits, and we would often have her over for the day for no other reason than to keep Bijoux’s company. Minnie made Bijoux happy, and in the spring of 2001 we would find out that she was good for Bijoux in other ways as well.
I took Bijoux to Dr. Heflin for her yearly check-up and shots in May. As always, the first item on the agenda was to weigh her. I did a double take when I saw the scale hit 46 pounds. When I expressed concern (and a little panic!) at the read, Dr. Heflin checked Bijoux’s records from the last time she visited, in the summer of 2000. Indeed, she had weighed in at a hefty 53 pounds (Blognote: Bijoux was overweight but was indeed a large beagle, unlike Roxie, our current beagle who is a waif-like 27 pounds). Dr. Heflin also became slightly alarmed, and as we discussed what could be happening, I realized that it was quite possible that Bijoux had finally lost her extra weight because of her new, intense exercise regimen: running around like a crazy dog with her friend Minnie two to three times each week. Dr. Heflin agreed, but recommended blood work, just to be sure. When I received the call three days later, I learned that the tests showed nothing to be concerned about; in fact, they indicated that Bijoux was quite healthy, especially for her age. With a sigh of relief, we went on with life: although over the next 2 years Bijoux and Minnie ran together less and less due to Bijoux’s advanced age, she remained at a healthy weight.
More importantly, it was Minnie who always got Bijoux to perk up near the end. Her visits were lovely surprises to Bijoux, and I am so thankful for that.
In April, Jim finished his sea duty rotation and was stationed at Great Lakes Naval Base in North Chicago, Illinois for shore duty. I had just graduated from college, so we packed up our stuff and moved north. My parents lived in Milwaukee at that time, and invited us, along with their “Granddog”, to stay with them so we could take extra time to find a place to live. We were happy for the offer but nervous about Bijoux meeting Dapple, who was thirteen years old at the time, and Willie and Sandy, her eleven-year-old sons. Because the three miniature dachshunds were so much older, we weren’t sure how they would respond to our puppy, or she to them. My mom was nervous also, and we put much thought into the introduction. Mom and Dad lived across the street from a big field, and when we arrived at the house I took Bijoux there, to wait for the others. A few minutes later, my mom crossed the street with the three dachshunds on their leashes. They barked and as I remember it, Bijoux was nervous and slightly overwhelmed. My mom and I got down on the ground with the dogs—something that my dad still laughs about to this day—and let them sniff each other before we all went into the house. From that point on, although the age difference prevented any real interest in playing together, the four dogs tolerated one another just fine. Whenever Bijoux “got out of line” by trying to impose her puppy self on Dapple, Dapple would growl and snap, and Bijoux invariably ended up just lying down—completely still and calm—next to her.
Occasionally, Bijoux’s “friends” weren’t of the canine variety. She would smell a rabbit or a squirrel nearby and take off running, trying to find it. If we happened to be inside the house, she would whine and paw at the door, as if she were a bull trying to get out of confinement. When she was after something, she could get all the way across the yard practically before the screen door could re-latch itself!
When Jim left the Navy for a civilian job in 1995, we moved to our current town. Bijoux was a real trooper about the move (this was her 4th house in five years!), and we were overjoyed when we learned that our new neighbors brought a puppy into their home. His name was Rudy, and he was a Boxer. Although Rudy and Bijoux rarely played in the same yard, they spent hours running back and forth along their respective side of the chain-link fence that was between them. In fact, occasionally they had another partner in crime: that fall our older son was three and a half, and even he was astounded at how much fun he could have, running alongside a fence with two dogs!
We moved away from Rudy in 1997, to the other side of town. Unfortunately, it would be three more years before Bijoux “found” another friend. This one, however, would carry her to the end. Minnie was a Schnoodle (schnauzer/poodle mix), and she was adorable. My friend brought Minnie into her home directly from the breeder, and we introduced her to Bijoux almost immediately. At this point, Bijoux was an “old girl” of ten, which made Minnie the “young whippersnapper”. I was uncertain at first about whether Bijoux would accept Minnie (and whether her 50+ pounds would crush Minnie’s 7 pounds!), but as it turned out, I was silly for worrying about it. Bijoux knew what she was doing, and although she began her friendship with Minnie in a diva-like attitude, she learned to “leave her ego at the door”. The first time that Minnie came to our house, the dogs were racing around within 30 minutes. It was definitely reminiscent of Bijoux’s relationship with Rex, only this time Bijoux was in charge. I laughed as she continuously pushed Minnie to the ground with her chin, just as Rex had done ten years before, and when she tired of playing, she would growl at Minnie, letting her know that Playtime was over. To me, this was better than television, and nobody could understand how I could just sit and watch two dogs play for as long as I did. The truth is, it not only gave me a good laugh, but I was genuinely so happy for Bijoux, as she was having such a great time and finally getting some quality exercise!
Minnie became a regular visitor to our home, and that Thanksgiving we took care of her for four days while her family went to Ohio. I had no problem leaving the two dogs home alone together if I needed to do so, and now and then we would take them both for a car ride. As our family relaxed in the family room, Bijoux and Minnie would often sleep curled up next to each other. It was a sweet picture.
Two more dogs came into our lives at Christmas time, and coincidentally they were both beagles! Buddy was a Christmas gift for our next-door neighbor’s son, and Maxie was the family dog of our friends who lived on the next block.
Buddy was the only dog I have ever seen Bijoux run from upon first sniff. He was an adorable puppy and, in fact, resembled the puppy that Bijoux used to be. But looks didn’t mean anything to her. Bijoux became immediately annoyed at Buddy’s bark, his nipping, and his pouncing. In fact, he made her downright nervous! She did everything she could to get away from him, all while he did everything he could to get near her. Not wanting to force the issue, we just prevented Bijoux from being on the same side of the fence with Buddy. He was persistent, though…he would stand on his side of the fence, howling at her, begging her to come over to him. She wouldn’t give him the time of day.
Maxie was a different story. Also a spirited sort of beagle—-one eye always had to be on her when there was food in the area because she was known for jumping up onto a dining room chair and eating whatever was on the table—-Maxie eventually became an accepted friend. Maxie was another dog, to Jim’s initial dismay, that I offered to care for while her family was on vacation. Bijoux and Maxie didn’t run around the house together; Maxie had shorter legs and moved much faster than Bijoux could. It seemed as though, somehow, Bijoux had let Maxie know that although she was welcome in our home, her youthful silliness would be neither tolerated nor acknowledged. Their relationship mostly consisted of an initial greeting, tails wagging, and then mere glances across the room in a simple parallel existence.
As time passed, Minnie continued her frequent visits, and we would often have her over for the day for no other reason than to keep Bijoux’s company. Minnie made Bijoux happy, and in the spring of 2001 we would find out that she was good for Bijoux in other ways as well.
I took Bijoux to Dr. Heflin for her yearly check-up and shots in May. As always, the first item on the agenda was to weigh her. I did a double take when I saw the scale hit 46 pounds. When I expressed concern (and a little panic!) at the read, Dr. Heflin checked Bijoux’s records from the last time she visited, in the summer of 2000. Indeed, she had weighed in at a hefty 53 pounds (Blognote: Bijoux was overweight but was indeed a large beagle, unlike Roxie, our current beagle who is a waif-like 27 pounds). Dr. Heflin also became slightly alarmed, and as we discussed what could be happening, I realized that it was quite possible that Bijoux had finally lost her extra weight because of her new, intense exercise regimen: running around like a crazy dog with her friend Minnie two to three times each week. Dr. Heflin agreed, but recommended blood work, just to be sure. When I received the call three days later, I learned that the tests showed nothing to be concerned about; in fact, they indicated that Bijoux was quite healthy, especially for her age. With a sigh of relief, we went on with life: although over the next 2 years Bijoux and Minnie ran together less and less due to Bijoux’s advanced age, she remained at a healthy weight.
More importantly, it was Minnie who always got Bijoux to perk up near the end. Her visits were lovely surprises to Bijoux, and I am so thankful for that.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Arigato, Amazon Japan!
Do you live in Japan? Here's the Amazon listing you can use to get Ruby:
Remembering Ruby in Japan
I have no idea what the listing says, but it's fun to look at! LOL
Remembering Ruby in Japan
I have no idea what the listing says, but it's fun to look at! LOL
Ruby Has Been Located in Australia...
I received a wonderful e-mail a couple of weeks ago from J.M. in Australia. She wrote to give me a couple of links for acquiring Remembering Ruby in the Land Down Under. One of them is called Seekbooks.com.au and the other is fishpond.com.au. I'm not sure if the cost of the book plus the shipping is reasonable, because I don't know how the US dollar translates into an Aussie dollar.
At any rate, I'm happy to know that it's available there! Thanks so much, J.M.!
At any rate, I'm happy to know that it's available there! Thanks so much, J.M.!
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Some Nice Words From a Nice Woman!
I am very lucky to have some great reviews posted up on the Amazon site for Remembering Ruby. This one was just posted yesterday by Carolyn Sterner of Cascade Beagle Rescue-East (and a Special Education Teacher & Behavior Analyst in the New Jersey Public School System):
"For those who have lost a pet, we know the devastation it can bring, and at times the embarrasment experienced for feeling this way about "just a dog" or "just a cat." Remembering Ruby is a great resource for families to help them not only understand that it is OK to love your pets and experience loss when they leave us, but to give some ideas about how to deal with that loss in a positive way. It is written quite simply, and is filled with photographs. Since we have not figured out how to extend the lives of our pets, and pets continue to grow in importance in the lives of families, this book is a fabulous resource to be added to any household library. We are adding Remembering Ruby to our website's Suggested Readings list and will recommend it to our family of adopters and volunteers, who will go through this loss if they bring a pet into their lives."
"For those who have lost a pet, we know the devastation it can bring, and at times the embarrasment experienced for feeling this way about "just a dog" or "just a cat." Remembering Ruby is a great resource for families to help them not only understand that it is OK to love your pets and experience loss when they leave us, but to give some ideas about how to deal with that loss in a positive way. It is written quite simply, and is filled with photographs. Since we have not figured out how to extend the lives of our pets, and pets continue to grow in importance in the lives of families, this book is a fabulous resource to be added to any household library. We are adding Remembering Ruby to our website's Suggested Readings list and will recommend it to our family of adopters and volunteers, who will go through this loss if they bring a pet into their lives."
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Thankful For The Memories...Today and Everyday!
Lesson Number Five: You’ve Gotta Have Friends, part 1
I always wanted the kind of dog that would have doggy friends. Was that a crazy idea? Many people might think so, but “dog people” know what I mean. I wanted a dog that I could visit friends with, a dog that wouldn’t go ballistic at the sight of another dog. I was determined to introduce Bijoux to as many other dogs as I could, and over her long life she had many canine friends, the first of which was Rex.
Rex was an English springer spaniel, about one-and-a-half years old. He was a good deal bigger than our puppy, but they got along famously. Rex’s owner, my friend Dawn, and I were close and saw each other practically on a daily basis. They lived just two blocks away, which made visits extremely convenient. Rex was quite rowdy, and I think Bijoux’s visits did Dawn and her husband Scott a huge service because she wore him out for them! Rex and Bijoux had a simple, specific routine they would follow: we’d arrive, and less than five minutes later, the two dogs were tearing through the house, chasing each other. Once caught, they rolled around on the floor (and sometimes the couch!), mouths wide open, drooling all over each other. Rex always tried to push Bijoux down with his chin, proving his dominance. Eventually the chase expanded to both floors of Dawn and Scott’s townhouse, and Bijoux raced down the stairs, Rex on her heels, sounding a lot more like elephants than dogs. Occasionally they couldn’t turn fast enough at the bottom of the stairs, and they tumbled into the wall. It didn’t even stun them: they kept right on going! Often they played like this for hours, and when we left, their fur was always damp from slobbering.
Her play dates with Rex were such a big part of Bijoux’s life that she even knew how to get to his house on her own, as I found out the hard way. Rex and Dawn had come to our house one day for a visit. About a minute or two after they left, I opened the front door again for some reason, and Bijoux slipped out. She ran, possessed, through my neighbor’s yard as I took off after her. She was so determined to get to her destination that I couldn’t catch up to her. I chased her through the neighborhood as everyone outside watched and laughed, and she didn’t stop until she got to Dawn’s porch. Dawn and Rex had just completed the walk from our house and were going inside when Bijoux met them. Although I scolded her for running away, I secretly found her spunk very amusing, and found it amazing that she knew how to find her friend.
Dawn gave birth to her son Nicholas that November, and Bijoux had her first exposure to an infant. Although Dawn was a typical first-time mom in that she didn’t want dogs licking her baby all the time, she was quite generous in allowing Bijoux to have access to Nick. I believe that her learning how to control herself around Nick—an unpredictable baby—while she was still a puppy made Bijoux completely tolerant of children and their antics, and set the foundation for her eventual transition from “our baby” to our Family Dog.
February 3, 1991 marked Bijoux’s First Birthday. Being a doting dog owner (and yes, a bit cuckoo), I decided to make a big deal out of the day. Jim and Scott were out to sea on their respective Navy ships, and I invited Dawn, Nick, and Rex to our house for a little party. Dawn and I tended to get quite silly when we were together, and this day was no exception. I had picked up pink birthday party hats for the occasion, and we all put them on—dogs included—and I took photos.
When it was time to play, I pulled a cardboard roll out of my stash and let the dogs tug on it. I had also purchased party blowers, and Rex and Bijoux tried to grab the end as I blew it out. Eventually I posed Bijoux with a blower hanging out of her mouth and snapped one of the funniest pictures I have from her whole long life.
For dessert, I served Dawn and myself a bag of M & M’s, and Rex and Bijoux snacked on Frosty Paws, an ice cream-like frozen treat especially made for dogs. I thought this was a great invention, and the dogs enjoyed it immensely. By the end of the evening, I was certain that Rex and Bijoux could have done without all of the party activities (except the Frosty Paws, which eventually became a regular treat!), but Dawn and I still laugh about the memories that were made.
Click here for part 2!
I always wanted the kind of dog that would have doggy friends. Was that a crazy idea? Many people might think so, but “dog people” know what I mean. I wanted a dog that I could visit friends with, a dog that wouldn’t go ballistic at the sight of another dog. I was determined to introduce Bijoux to as many other dogs as I could, and over her long life she had many canine friends, the first of which was Rex.
Rex was an English springer spaniel, about one-and-a-half years old. He was a good deal bigger than our puppy, but they got along famously. Rex’s owner, my friend Dawn, and I were close and saw each other practically on a daily basis. They lived just two blocks away, which made visits extremely convenient. Rex was quite rowdy, and I think Bijoux’s visits did Dawn and her husband Scott a huge service because she wore him out for them! Rex and Bijoux had a simple, specific routine they would follow: we’d arrive, and less than five minutes later, the two dogs were tearing through the house, chasing each other. Once caught, they rolled around on the floor (and sometimes the couch!), mouths wide open, drooling all over each other. Rex always tried to push Bijoux down with his chin, proving his dominance. Eventually the chase expanded to both floors of Dawn and Scott’s townhouse, and Bijoux raced down the stairs, Rex on her heels, sounding a lot more like elephants than dogs. Occasionally they couldn’t turn fast enough at the bottom of the stairs, and they tumbled into the wall. It didn’t even stun them: they kept right on going! Often they played like this for hours, and when we left, their fur was always damp from slobbering.
Her play dates with Rex were such a big part of Bijoux’s life that she even knew how to get to his house on her own, as I found out the hard way. Rex and Dawn had come to our house one day for a visit. About a minute or two after they left, I opened the front door again for some reason, and Bijoux slipped out. She ran, possessed, through my neighbor’s yard as I took off after her. She was so determined to get to her destination that I couldn’t catch up to her. I chased her through the neighborhood as everyone outside watched and laughed, and she didn’t stop until she got to Dawn’s porch. Dawn and Rex had just completed the walk from our house and were going inside when Bijoux met them. Although I scolded her for running away, I secretly found her spunk very amusing, and found it amazing that she knew how to find her friend.
Dawn gave birth to her son Nicholas that November, and Bijoux had her first exposure to an infant. Although Dawn was a typical first-time mom in that she didn’t want dogs licking her baby all the time, she was quite generous in allowing Bijoux to have access to Nick. I believe that her learning how to control herself around Nick—an unpredictable baby—while she was still a puppy made Bijoux completely tolerant of children and their antics, and set the foundation for her eventual transition from “our baby” to our Family Dog.
February 3, 1991 marked Bijoux’s First Birthday. Being a doting dog owner (and yes, a bit cuckoo), I decided to make a big deal out of the day. Jim and Scott were out to sea on their respective Navy ships, and I invited Dawn, Nick, and Rex to our house for a little party. Dawn and I tended to get quite silly when we were together, and this day was no exception. I had picked up pink birthday party hats for the occasion, and we all put them on—dogs included—and I took photos.
When it was time to play, I pulled a cardboard roll out of my stash and let the dogs tug on it. I had also purchased party blowers, and Rex and Bijoux tried to grab the end as I blew it out. Eventually I posed Bijoux with a blower hanging out of her mouth and snapped one of the funniest pictures I have from her whole long life.
For dessert, I served Dawn and myself a bag of M & M’s, and Rex and Bijoux snacked on Frosty Paws, an ice cream-like frozen treat especially made for dogs. I thought this was a great invention, and the dogs enjoyed it immensely. By the end of the evening, I was certain that Rex and Bijoux could have done without all of the party activities (except the Frosty Paws, which eventually became a regular treat!), but Dawn and I still laugh about the memories that were made.
Click here for part 2!
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Chicagoland "Virtual" Ink!
I want to extend a hearty "Welcome!" to any newcomers that found me via Chicagoist...or any other avenues, of course!
Take a look at previous blog entries to read about my progress through the process of getting the book published and marketed, and if you want, click on the label "Lessons Learned from the Life of a Princess Dog" to read stories about Bijoux, the real Ruby.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me...click "E-mail me!" to the right.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Take a look at previous blog entries to read about my progress through the process of getting the book published and marketed, and if you want, click on the label "Lessons Learned from the Life of a Princess Dog" to read stories about Bijoux, the real Ruby.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me...click "E-mail me!" to the right.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
A Shoutout To The Land Down Und-ah!
I have met some incredible people through blogging, even though I've only been at it for a relatively short time. Katie is one of them. Katie--along with Kat--was among my first two bloggy friends (I can't remember who was first: doesn't matter!). Katie, like me, has two blogs. I found her doggy bloggy first; it's called "A Blog By Thy Dog". Her blog follows the activities going on with Phoenix and Sahara, her gorgeous canines.
It was only waaaaaay later that I realized she has another blog which is all about assorted other things going on in her life. That one is called "Made in Melbourne" (a title which, I must admit, is confusing because she is a transplanted Brit. Katie: doesn't that mean your blog should be called Made in the UK? Please explain. LOL). I enjoy reading both blogs immensely.
Check out one or both of Katie's blogs! And tell her that Melisa sent ya!
It was only waaaaaay later that I realized she has another blog which is all about assorted other things going on in her life. That one is called "Made in Melbourne" (a title which, I must admit, is confusing because she is a transplanted Brit. Katie: doesn't that mean your blog should be called Made in the UK? Please explain. LOL). I enjoy reading both blogs immensely.
Check out one or both of Katie's blogs! And tell her that Melisa sent ya!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Thank Goodness!
Six of us had dinner here in Tucson at PF Chang’s last night (Yummy!). When the server brought our plate of fortune cookies, I grabbed mine first. My fortune?
“Your efforts will be worthwhile.”
Yay!
“Your efforts will be worthwhile.”
Yay!
Friday, November 16, 2007
More West Suburban Ink!
If you are a reader of my sister’s blog, The House of Jules, this will be day-old news to you…
I was very, very excited to find out that my book would be featured in the Local Lit section of our newspaper, The Naperville Sun! Expecting just a little teeny, tiny blurb, I was flabbergasted when Julie e-mailed me yesterday morning to let me know that the article takes up half the page! Being all the way on the other side of the country (I’m in Tucson, Arizona…you knew that, right??), I was thrilled when Julie scanned the article so I could see it for myself! Yippee!!
I was very, very excited to find out that my book would be featured in the Local Lit section of our newspaper, The Naperville Sun! Expecting just a little teeny, tiny blurb, I was flabbergasted when Julie e-mailed me yesterday morning to let me know that the article takes up half the page! Being all the way on the other side of the country (I’m in Tucson, Arizona…you knew that, right??), I was thrilled when Julie scanned the article so I could see it for myself! Yippee!!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Only 1% Watchdog
Lesson Number Four: The Family That Plays Together Stays Together
Anyone who has ever had a puppy in the house will tell you that there are hundreds of different ways to be entertained. Although we allowed her to play tug-of-war with a pair of socks that we had knotted together, we needed to find other permissible items to keep her busy so that she wouldn’t end up, say, ripping our dirty laundry to shreds or putting more holes in our couch. We were constantly coming up with new games to play with Bijoux, especially once it had been established that squeaky toys were definitely not part of our future.
Next to squeaky toys, most puppies love balls. They love the unpredictability of the movement. They love to squeak them, roll them, push them with their nose, chase them, and fetch them. We soon discovered that a tennis ball was a great toy, because Bijoux didn’t rip into it (not right away, anyway…after a while, tennis balls had a short life in our home before they were too badly chewed to bounce!)…As an added bonus, they were inexpensive.
Since Bijoux, at that time, was our only “baby”, we came home from work and school every evening, ate dinner, and spent the next couple of hours before bedtime playing with her and that tennis ball. We spent countless hours throwing the ball so she could fetch it, and it was always fun to see if she was in the mood to bring it back to us for another throw, or run madly in the opposite direction, persuading us to chase her down. As one of us zoomed in on her to grab the ball, she would crouch down on her front legs with her rear end up in the air, and she’d wait until we were thisclose before veering off to one side and taking off again.
When it was too cold or too dark to play outside, Jim and I sat on opposite ends of the living room and played “Monkey in the Middle” with Bijoux. Each time, she eventually grew tired of running back and forth, chasing a ball that would rarely be hers, and she sat in the middle of the room just staring at us as if to say, “Next game, please?”
As she grew bigger and stronger, Bijoux could fit the entire tennis ball in her mouth. While we played, she would come towards us, ball in mouth, and then stop. She would gaze at us, eyes blinking, as she opened and closed her mouth, loosening and tightening her grip on the ball. She could squeeze and squash the ball in her mouth, as someone would squeeze a stress-relief ball in his hands. We think it was her form of “intimidation”, but it was so cute!
Eventually Bijoux learned to catch the tennis ball in her mouth. The “Plop!” sound it made as she captured it was quite funny. After she was good at catching the ball, “Monkey in the Middle” was much more fun for her, as she leapt from her position to grab the ball from mid-air.
The tug-of-war with a pair of knotted socks was always a hit, but when Bijoux got a hold of a single sock and took off running, it was always a different game. Eventually she learned which socks were hers to play with and which ones she couldn’t. (In her later years, she would playfully pick up one of our socks, off limits to her, and gently, teasingly, “chew” on it until we took it out of her mouth. One of our favorite things to do with a sock was open it up and shove it over her entire nose. She would often then just sit and look at us with the sock all the way up to those pleading eyes, the other end hanging pitifully from the end of her nose. Sometimes she allowed us to put the sock on her; other times she would playfully dodge us. Other times she opened her mouth as wide as she could, so we could only get the sock over her upper jaw, and she clamped down on the sock so we couldn’t take it off and try again.
Occasionally, we decided to provide Bijoux with a fun challenge. We took two of her favorite toys—the tennis ball and the sock—and combined them. We teased her with the tennis ball and then shoved it way down into the toe of the sock, and then let her struggle to get it out. It provided us all with hours of entertainment, to be sure.
During Bijoux’s first holiday season, even wrapping presents became more fun. One day I finished off a jumbo roll of gift-wrap and looked down to see Bijoux take off running with the cardboard roll. I gave chase and she ran through our townhouse, only slowing down occasionally when she had to cock her head to the side to fit the roll through the doorways. Eventually I caught her and grabbed the roll from her mouth. She barked and barked, wagging her tail, encouraging me to toss the roll.
I held the cardboard roll with one hand and repeatedly hit my other palm with it as I chased her through the house, and we played with that paper treasure until it was shredded to bits. From then on she even got excited about an empty paper towel roll. Easy to please, our dog was!
As the mall filled with holiday shoppers that first year, I didn’t have to look too hard to find the “perfect” gift for our puppy. She loved rawhide bones and I found one that was about three feet long, in the shape of a candy cane. I even wrapped it (and the empty gift wrap roll was a bonus for her!). When we gave her this gift, we were shocked to find that she was actually afraid of it because it was so large! It was much bigger than she was!
A couple of days went by before she even got near it, and even then she only nipped at it before leaping away. After a couple more days, she started dragging it through the house, and at that point she chewed on it for hours. That three-foot-long rawhide bone was gone in about three short days! The Jumbo Bone became a holiday tradition that lasted for the next ten years.
One day, completely by accident, we discovered the joys of “tormenting” Bijoux with light. The face of Jim’s watch had caught the reflection of the sun, and the tiny light spot it created on the floor and wall as Jim moved his arm caught Bijoux’s attention. We were having a conversation, and suddenly Bijoux jumped up from her nap on the couch and pounced on the floor. It took us a minute or two to realize what she was after, because we were laughing so hard at her swift change from complete relaxation to “attack mode”, but once we figured it out, things were never the same at our house! It was a happy accident, and Jim used his watch to lead a light spot across the floor so Bijoux would chase it and attack it with her overgrown puppy paws. We giggled as Jim made the light zig zag across the floor at different speeds as Bijoux pursued it. My parents thought this was a cruel game, but we thought it made her happy. Eventually, what originated as only a daytime game evolved into nighttime entertainment when we brought a flashlight into play. Bijoux enjoyed this for years and years, until she became a “senior citizen” and grew tired of our little game.
On occasion, we needed no props to conduct a play session with Bijoux. We were fond of crawling towards her, placing our mouth on one of her paws, and singing “Doo doo doo!” in a high-pitched tone. This drove her completely batty, and at first she only pulled her paw away from her tormenter. When the torture continued, she was prone to yelping as if to say, “Leave me alone!” After a while, she would alternate yelping with a high-pitched whine, and I began imitating her, starting out with a low growl that worked up to a whine. We were quite the pair, “talking” to each other like we did. Of course, just as we didn’t see the consequences of her “adorable” digging habits, we also didn’t anticipate that “Doo doo doo-ing” on her paws would make her extremely nervous when we took her to a groomer for nail clipping.
We realized that although Bijoux was great at “protecting” me from Jim in case of a tickle fight, she was quite useless in defending our humble abode. When visitors knocked on our door, Bijoux barked as if she were typical watchdog. When we let people in, however, Bijoux jumped up to greet them, wagging her tail and licking them as if they were long-lost relatives. If a burglar ever broke into our home, she’d wag her tail and escort them out with anything they wished to carry, licking them all the way to the car. She had proven to be 99% Companion and only 1% Watchdog, and that was fine with me.
Anyone who has ever had a puppy in the house will tell you that there are hundreds of different ways to be entertained. Although we allowed her to play tug-of-war with a pair of socks that we had knotted together, we needed to find other permissible items to keep her busy so that she wouldn’t end up, say, ripping our dirty laundry to shreds or putting more holes in our couch. We were constantly coming up with new games to play with Bijoux, especially once it had been established that squeaky toys were definitely not part of our future.
Next to squeaky toys, most puppies love balls. They love the unpredictability of the movement. They love to squeak them, roll them, push them with their nose, chase them, and fetch them. We soon discovered that a tennis ball was a great toy, because Bijoux didn’t rip into it (not right away, anyway…after a while, tennis balls had a short life in our home before they were too badly chewed to bounce!)…As an added bonus, they were inexpensive.
Since Bijoux, at that time, was our only “baby”, we came home from work and school every evening, ate dinner, and spent the next couple of hours before bedtime playing with her and that tennis ball. We spent countless hours throwing the ball so she could fetch it, and it was always fun to see if she was in the mood to bring it back to us for another throw, or run madly in the opposite direction, persuading us to chase her down. As one of us zoomed in on her to grab the ball, she would crouch down on her front legs with her rear end up in the air, and she’d wait until we were thisclose before veering off to one side and taking off again.
When it was too cold or too dark to play outside, Jim and I sat on opposite ends of the living room and played “Monkey in the Middle” with Bijoux. Each time, she eventually grew tired of running back and forth, chasing a ball that would rarely be hers, and she sat in the middle of the room just staring at us as if to say, “Next game, please?”
As she grew bigger and stronger, Bijoux could fit the entire tennis ball in her mouth. While we played, she would come towards us, ball in mouth, and then stop. She would gaze at us, eyes blinking, as she opened and closed her mouth, loosening and tightening her grip on the ball. She could squeeze and squash the ball in her mouth, as someone would squeeze a stress-relief ball in his hands. We think it was her form of “intimidation”, but it was so cute!
Eventually Bijoux learned to catch the tennis ball in her mouth. The “Plop!” sound it made as she captured it was quite funny. After she was good at catching the ball, “Monkey in the Middle” was much more fun for her, as she leapt from her position to grab the ball from mid-air.
The tug-of-war with a pair of knotted socks was always a hit, but when Bijoux got a hold of a single sock and took off running, it was always a different game. Eventually she learned which socks were hers to play with and which ones she couldn’t. (In her later years, she would playfully pick up one of our socks, off limits to her, and gently, teasingly, “chew” on it until we took it out of her mouth. One of our favorite things to do with a sock was open it up and shove it over her entire nose. She would often then just sit and look at us with the sock all the way up to those pleading eyes, the other end hanging pitifully from the end of her nose. Sometimes she allowed us to put the sock on her; other times she would playfully dodge us. Other times she opened her mouth as wide as she could, so we could only get the sock over her upper jaw, and she clamped down on the sock so we couldn’t take it off and try again.
Occasionally, we decided to provide Bijoux with a fun challenge. We took two of her favorite toys—the tennis ball and the sock—and combined them. We teased her with the tennis ball and then shoved it way down into the toe of the sock, and then let her struggle to get it out. It provided us all with hours of entertainment, to be sure.
During Bijoux’s first holiday season, even wrapping presents became more fun. One day I finished off a jumbo roll of gift-wrap and looked down to see Bijoux take off running with the cardboard roll. I gave chase and she ran through our townhouse, only slowing down occasionally when she had to cock her head to the side to fit the roll through the doorways. Eventually I caught her and grabbed the roll from her mouth. She barked and barked, wagging her tail, encouraging me to toss the roll.
I held the cardboard roll with one hand and repeatedly hit my other palm with it as I chased her through the house, and we played with that paper treasure until it was shredded to bits. From then on she even got excited about an empty paper towel roll. Easy to please, our dog was!
As the mall filled with holiday shoppers that first year, I didn’t have to look too hard to find the “perfect” gift for our puppy. She loved rawhide bones and I found one that was about three feet long, in the shape of a candy cane. I even wrapped it (and the empty gift wrap roll was a bonus for her!). When we gave her this gift, we were shocked to find that she was actually afraid of it because it was so large! It was much bigger than she was!
A couple of days went by before she even got near it, and even then she only nipped at it before leaping away. After a couple more days, she started dragging it through the house, and at that point she chewed on it for hours. That three-foot-long rawhide bone was gone in about three short days! The Jumbo Bone became a holiday tradition that lasted for the next ten years.
One day, completely by accident, we discovered the joys of “tormenting” Bijoux with light. The face of Jim’s watch had caught the reflection of the sun, and the tiny light spot it created on the floor and wall as Jim moved his arm caught Bijoux’s attention. We were having a conversation, and suddenly Bijoux jumped up from her nap on the couch and pounced on the floor. It took us a minute or two to realize what she was after, because we were laughing so hard at her swift change from complete relaxation to “attack mode”, but once we figured it out, things were never the same at our house! It was a happy accident, and Jim used his watch to lead a light spot across the floor so Bijoux would chase it and attack it with her overgrown puppy paws. We giggled as Jim made the light zig zag across the floor at different speeds as Bijoux pursued it. My parents thought this was a cruel game, but we thought it made her happy. Eventually, what originated as only a daytime game evolved into nighttime entertainment when we brought a flashlight into play. Bijoux enjoyed this for years and years, until she became a “senior citizen” and grew tired of our little game.
On occasion, we needed no props to conduct a play session with Bijoux. We were fond of crawling towards her, placing our mouth on one of her paws, and singing “Doo doo doo!” in a high-pitched tone. This drove her completely batty, and at first she only pulled her paw away from her tormenter. When the torture continued, she was prone to yelping as if to say, “Leave me alone!” After a while, she would alternate yelping with a high-pitched whine, and I began imitating her, starting out with a low growl that worked up to a whine. We were quite the pair, “talking” to each other like we did. Of course, just as we didn’t see the consequences of her “adorable” digging habits, we also didn’t anticipate that “Doo doo doo-ing” on her paws would make her extremely nervous when we took her to a groomer for nail clipping.
We realized that although Bijoux was great at “protecting” me from Jim in case of a tickle fight, she was quite useless in defending our humble abode. When visitors knocked on our door, Bijoux barked as if she were typical watchdog. When we let people in, however, Bijoux jumped up to greet them, wagging her tail and licking them as if they were long-lost relatives. If a burglar ever broke into our home, she’d wag her tail and escort them out with anything they wished to carry, licking them all the way to the car. She had proven to be 99% Companion and only 1% Watchdog, and that was fine with me.
More Internet Search Results...
Here are even more cool places where you can find my book:
Knowmore.com
Amazon in France
Amazon in Germany...Prima!
I think it's kind of amazing, the whole spider-webby path my book has taken around the internet sellers. While it's awesome to see that my book can be found in so many places because each place makes it available to more and more people, it boggles my mind at the same time.
I'm putting up another piece of my Lessons Learned From the Life of a Princess Dog (in a seperate post) before I go on my mini-vacation. We're leaving early tomorrow (Wednesday) morning and will return late Sunday night. We are taking a laptop and I will do my best to post, but we'll see what happens. Arizona, here we come!
Knowmore.com
Amazon in France
Amazon in Germany...Prima!
I think it's kind of amazing, the whole spider-webby path my book has taken around the internet sellers. While it's awesome to see that my book can be found in so many places because each place makes it available to more and more people, it boggles my mind at the same time.
I'm putting up another piece of my Lessons Learned From the Life of a Princess Dog (in a seperate post) before I go on my mini-vacation. We're leaving early tomorrow (Wednesday) morning and will return late Sunday night. We are taking a laptop and I will do my best to post, but we'll see what happens. Arizona, here we come!
Friday, November 9, 2007
La...Ti Da...Ti Da!
Every few days I do a few internet searches to see if anyone new is talking about the book, and also to see if any publications have printed information or a review, basically because I'm an impatient person (but working on it). I have found lots and lots of internet sellers that now offer the book, most of which have names I don't recognize, but...
I found something WAY cool just now. The book is available at TARGET.COM!!
I created something that you can get at Target! Woo Wooooooo! Can I get a What-what??
Long Live Happy*!
*The book was not in this commercial. Don't worry; you didn't blink and miss it or anything. I just added the ad (ha!) for ambiance.
I found something WAY cool just now. The book is available at TARGET.COM!!
I created something that you can get at Target! Woo Wooooooo! Can I get a What-what??
Long Live Happy*!
*The book was not in this commercial. Don't worry; you didn't blink and miss it or anything. I just added the ad (ha!) for ambiance.
The Couch Incident
Lesson Number Three: Don’t Start Something You Don’t Want To Finish, part 2
Puppies are funny creatures. They are furry and floppy and clumsy and depend completely on their master to teach them the ways of the world. Their cuteness can often make them difficult to train in a consistent manner, and their mischievous ways can, if you’re not careful, bloom into big trouble.
Almost everyone who ever got to know Bijoux would testify that we couldn’t have trained her any better than we did. I divide the credit between our diligence and consistency and the fact that Bijoux was an awesome animal that accepted lessons easily. There were, however, some mistakes along the way.
At the store on Bijoux’s first night in our home, I purchased some squeaky toys. Every puppy has to have squeaky toys. Not only is the soft plastic fun for them to chew, but also they love the power that comes with learning how to make the toy sound off! We played with those squeaky toys until they couldn’t squeak anymore, literally. Even after I got up off of the floor and walked away, Bijoux would continue to chew on them. Eventually she would get the squeaker out, and it appeared that she was wondering to herself why the toy “didn’t work” anymore. Rather than encourage play with a variety of toys, we kept buying new squeaky ones for her. And she kept ruining them. Finally, the only toys other than knotted up socks—which she loved—that she could play with, without our being worried about her choking, were the hard rubber bones and other shapes that the manufacturer claimed were “indestructible”.
We had to find something new to play. One day I discovered her “digging” in the sheets on the bed. It was adorable: her paws dug rapidly while her eyes didn’t move from whatever she was intent to find, all the while her floppy ears shook with the motions of her body. Common sense left me when I found this captivating sight, and I began to encourage her. There we would spend playtime, alternating between tug-of-war with the socks and both of us digging on the bed. She never actually tore sheets with her nails; it was just harmless digging. Or so I thought.
Then, the Couch Incident happened. I returned home from school one day to find something terrible. Bijoux had apparently been bored and in need of some playtime. Our couch, her perch from which she kept an eye on the neighborhood and from which she would look for me coming up the walk at the end of the day, had a hole in it. It was a small hole, but a hole nonetheless. I brought her to it and reprimanded her, even though I was pretty certain she wouldn’t take me seriously, since I didn’t catch her in the act. I hoped that she understood that this was a no-no.
The next day before I left for school, I put a folded blanket on top of the hole, not realizing whom I was dealing with. When I came home, not only was the hole a little bit bigger, but also the blanket was all bunched up in the middle of the couch. “Ah-ha!” I thought, “She was nesting in the blanket!” When I left the next day, I bunched the blanket up for her and put it on top of the hole. Arriving home, I was dismayed, but not surprised, to find a bigger hole and the blanket in the middle of the couch again.
I made a trip to the pet store (with Bijoux in tow) to get a product called Grannick’s Bitter Apple. The horrible taste of it was supposed to deter dogs from destroying things. I thought my problems were over when I left the next day, having sprayed the entire hole and surrounding area on the couch with Bitter Apple. I was wrong again; not only was the hole now the size of a dinner plate, but also Bijoux seemed to enjoy the Bitter Apple taste! I was at my wit’s end and struggled to think of another solution. I tried pepper. I tried chili powder. With all of the spices I was sprinkling on it, our couch must have been the best tasting couch ever, and nothing stopped her. (It didn't occur to me at the time that she was not touching the surface with her mouth--only her paws--but I didn't have an alternate plan.) Eventually I would stack about twenty pounds of books on top of the hole before I left each morning, and Bijoux lost interest. When we bought a new couch six months later, it never became an issue again. It was an expensive lesson for all of us.
Puppies are funny creatures. They are furry and floppy and clumsy and depend completely on their master to teach them the ways of the world. Their cuteness can often make them difficult to train in a consistent manner, and their mischievous ways can, if you’re not careful, bloom into big trouble.
Almost everyone who ever got to know Bijoux would testify that we couldn’t have trained her any better than we did. I divide the credit between our diligence and consistency and the fact that Bijoux was an awesome animal that accepted lessons easily. There were, however, some mistakes along the way.
At the store on Bijoux’s first night in our home, I purchased some squeaky toys. Every puppy has to have squeaky toys. Not only is the soft plastic fun for them to chew, but also they love the power that comes with learning how to make the toy sound off! We played with those squeaky toys until they couldn’t squeak anymore, literally. Even after I got up off of the floor and walked away, Bijoux would continue to chew on them. Eventually she would get the squeaker out, and it appeared that she was wondering to herself why the toy “didn’t work” anymore. Rather than encourage play with a variety of toys, we kept buying new squeaky ones for her. And she kept ruining them. Finally, the only toys other than knotted up socks—which she loved—that she could play with, without our being worried about her choking, were the hard rubber bones and other shapes that the manufacturer claimed were “indestructible”.
We had to find something new to play. One day I discovered her “digging” in the sheets on the bed. It was adorable: her paws dug rapidly while her eyes didn’t move from whatever she was intent to find, all the while her floppy ears shook with the motions of her body. Common sense left me when I found this captivating sight, and I began to encourage her. There we would spend playtime, alternating between tug-of-war with the socks and both of us digging on the bed. She never actually tore sheets with her nails; it was just harmless digging. Or so I thought.
Then, the Couch Incident happened. I returned home from school one day to find something terrible. Bijoux had apparently been bored and in need of some playtime. Our couch, her perch from which she kept an eye on the neighborhood and from which she would look for me coming up the walk at the end of the day, had a hole in it. It was a small hole, but a hole nonetheless. I brought her to it and reprimanded her, even though I was pretty certain she wouldn’t take me seriously, since I didn’t catch her in the act. I hoped that she understood that this was a no-no.
The next day before I left for school, I put a folded blanket on top of the hole, not realizing whom I was dealing with. When I came home, not only was the hole a little bit bigger, but also the blanket was all bunched up in the middle of the couch. “Ah-ha!” I thought, “She was nesting in the blanket!” When I left the next day, I bunched the blanket up for her and put it on top of the hole. Arriving home, I was dismayed, but not surprised, to find a bigger hole and the blanket in the middle of the couch again.
I made a trip to the pet store (with Bijoux in tow) to get a product called Grannick’s Bitter Apple. The horrible taste of it was supposed to deter dogs from destroying things. I thought my problems were over when I left the next day, having sprayed the entire hole and surrounding area on the couch with Bitter Apple. I was wrong again; not only was the hole now the size of a dinner plate, but also Bijoux seemed to enjoy the Bitter Apple taste! I was at my wit’s end and struggled to think of another solution. I tried pepper. I tried chili powder. With all of the spices I was sprinkling on it, our couch must have been the best tasting couch ever, and nothing stopped her. (It didn't occur to me at the time that she was not touching the surface with her mouth--only her paws--but I didn't have an alternate plan.) Eventually I would stack about twenty pounds of books on top of the hole before I left each morning, and Bijoux lost interest. When we bought a new couch six months later, it never became an issue again. It was an expensive lesson for all of us.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Two's Company, Three's a Crowd
Lesson Number Three: Don’t Start Something You Don’t Want To Finish, part 1
Jim’s frequent Navy cruises to Cuba, the Mediterranean, the Virgin Islands, and other points unknown were a big factor in our decision to bring a dog into the house. Although nothing could have replaced Jim’s presence, Bijoux filled a little lonely space in me and gave me something to concentrate on and take care of in Jim’s absence. When we brought her crate up to the bedroom, it was with the understanding that the floor was the closest she would get to us in the middle of the night. That was until Jim went away for the first time after Bijoux was reasonably housebroken. She no longer had to be in the crate when we were gone during the day--she had proven herself trustworthy to have the run of the house. It was only at night that we wanted to make sure she didn’t roam.
I put her in the crate, just like I had done every night since she had been with us. I got under my own covers and looked at her. She sat at the wire door, cocking her head to the right side, and then to the left. I told her to lie down. I told her to go to sleep. I tried to roll over and ignore her, but it just wasn’t working for me. Each time I turned in her direction to see if she was laying down, she would wag her tail and whine, and those puppy dog eyes would plead with me to let her out.
Those eyes! It was not the first time they would get the best of me, and it certainly wasn’t the last, but I remember this night like it was yesterday. I gingerly opened the door, pushing aside my inner voice that was trying to stop this from happening. Bijoux tentatively came out of her crate, looking at me like the sucker I was. Remembering the passage from Superpuppy about how dogs typically don’t urinate where they sleep, I reassured myself that she would be fine in our bed. Although it took her a while to settle down from the excitement of the battle she had won, she finally plopped down next to me and fell into a deep sleep until morning. (I, however, slept poorly.) This was the first night of the next thirteen-plus years that she would share our bed.
Click here for part 2!
Jim’s frequent Navy cruises to Cuba, the Mediterranean, the Virgin Islands, and other points unknown were a big factor in our decision to bring a dog into the house. Although nothing could have replaced Jim’s presence, Bijoux filled a little lonely space in me and gave me something to concentrate on and take care of in Jim’s absence. When we brought her crate up to the bedroom, it was with the understanding that the floor was the closest she would get to us in the middle of the night. That was until Jim went away for the first time after Bijoux was reasonably housebroken. She no longer had to be in the crate when we were gone during the day--she had proven herself trustworthy to have the run of the house. It was only at night that we wanted to make sure she didn’t roam.
I put her in the crate, just like I had done every night since she had been with us. I got under my own covers and looked at her. She sat at the wire door, cocking her head to the right side, and then to the left. I told her to lie down. I told her to go to sleep. I tried to roll over and ignore her, but it just wasn’t working for me. Each time I turned in her direction to see if she was laying down, she would wag her tail and whine, and those puppy dog eyes would plead with me to let her out.
Those eyes! It was not the first time they would get the best of me, and it certainly wasn’t the last, but I remember this night like it was yesterday. I gingerly opened the door, pushing aside my inner voice that was trying to stop this from happening. Bijoux tentatively came out of her crate, looking at me like the sucker I was. Remembering the passage from Superpuppy about how dogs typically don’t urinate where they sleep, I reassured myself that she would be fine in our bed. Although it took her a while to settle down from the excitement of the battle she had won, she finally plopped down next to me and fell into a deep sleep until morning. (I, however, slept poorly.) This was the first night of the next thirteen-plus years that she would share our bed.
Click here for part 2!
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Thoughtful Husband, Great Gift!
I had to share the birthday gift my husband gave me yesterday. SO COOL:
Yes, he framed my book. Took me totally by surprise. I love the way it's framed, and I love the frame itself. It's one of the most beautiful frames I've ever seen...and I've seen lots of them, as I did custom framing for about six years way back in the day! He was adorable as he told me he framed it in mind for our family room wall, and talked about how he wanted to frame ALL of my books and hang them there. (I only have one more planned...but you never know, right?) It was a great surprise, and not the first time he has framed something special. This is what he got for me for our 20th anniversary last December:
At the risk of sounding like Chandler from "Friends", Could he BE any more creative?
(Go to 1:40)
Normally I'm the creative one. I'm a great gift-giver, and proud of it. But he has totally outdone me twice now. What will I do for HIS birthday in January? Ugh, I'd better start thinking about it now.
Yes, he framed my book. Took me totally by surprise. I love the way it's framed, and I love the frame itself. It's one of the most beautiful frames I've ever seen...and I've seen lots of them, as I did custom framing for about six years way back in the day! He was adorable as he told me he framed it in mind for our family room wall, and talked about how he wanted to frame ALL of my books and hang them there. (I only have one more planned...but you never know, right?) It was a great surprise, and not the first time he has framed something special. This is what he got for me for our 20th anniversary last December:
At the risk of sounding like Chandler from "Friends", Could he BE any more creative?
(Go to 1:40)
Normally I'm the creative one. I'm a great gift-giver, and proud of it. But he has totally outdone me twice now. What will I do for HIS birthday in January? Ugh, I'd better start thinking about it now.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
In Honor of My Birthday...
I'm only putting up an official post on *one* of my blogs today:
Suburban Scrawl
More book news tomorrow!
Suburban Scrawl
More book news tomorrow!
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Need To Stock Up?
I just noticed at the Amazon site for Remembering Ruby that it is currently included in the "4 For 3" promotion. That means that if you buy four items that are eligible, you'll get the least expensive one for free.
I know nothing about this promotion as far as how long it is going to go on, but more details are at the Amazon site.
So, if you want to stock up for gifts, get four books! Otherwise, if you only want one, find three other items included in the promotion and you can save money that way, too!
I know nothing about this promotion as far as how long it is going to go on, but more details are at the Amazon site.
So, if you want to stock up for gifts, get four books! Otherwise, if you only want one, find three other items included in the promotion and you can save money that way, too!
Friday, November 2, 2007
West Suburban Ink!
What a great day it's been, bookwise!
First, a client at the salon--after drying her nails at the drying table (of course! she wouldn't dry them at the polishing table, would she?) where my book is conveniently on display--approached me at the desk and congratulated me on my book. I said, "Thanks!" She asked, "You wouldn't happen to have any with you so I could buy one, would you?"
And I said, "Lady, are you kidding?" and then I opened up my trenchcoat where I had sewn about six copies into the lining as if they were watches.
Just kidding. Just trying to add a little bit of spice to that story.
The truth is less exciting: I just ran out to my car to grab a book. She asked me to sign it for her sister, which I did, and she said, "I'm going to give it to my sister because she's a grief counselor."
YAY! YIPPEE! WOO HOO!
There I go with those mixed emotions again. Should I really have been mentally cheering about a grief counselor? It's such a serious (and might I add VERY IMPORTANT) job. I guess what I was really cheering about was the potential for more people to hear about my book. As she was walking out I grabbed some of my business cards and asked her to ask her sis to pass them on.
THEN the really, really thrilling part of the day arrived. Another client came over to me about an hour later on her way out, and said "I saw the little blurb about your book in West Suburban Living magazine, congratulations!!"
I screamed "WHAT? Shut up! Are you kidding me???"
She said, "They didn't tell you it was going to be in there?"
I had sent them a book for review (along with my press release) for their "Local Authors" page but didn't think of checking the new issue because I didn't anticipate such a quick inclusion.
I asked her if the blurb included the cover graphic, and she said she didn't remember seeing it. I was really hoping so, because I believe that Julie's awesomely designed cover is what would draw people to the blurb first.
Needless to say, I was quite anxious to leave work and go get a copy of the magazine, so as soon as I was able, I hopped into the car and rushed over to Borders. I frantically glanced around the magazine racks and finally saw it, grabbed it, and madly flipped the pages.
And there it was.
On page 42.
With the cover graphic.
A joyful moment!
This magazine gets distributed to almost 27,000 households each month!
I called Julie right away and we shrieked together on the phone.
I love today.
First, a client at the salon--after drying her nails at the drying table (of course! she wouldn't dry them at the polishing table, would she?) where my book is conveniently on display--approached me at the desk and congratulated me on my book. I said, "Thanks!" She asked, "You wouldn't happen to have any with you so I could buy one, would you?"
And I said, "Lady, are you kidding?" and then I opened up my trenchcoat where I had sewn about six copies into the lining as if they were watches.
Just kidding. Just trying to add a little bit of spice to that story.
The truth is less exciting: I just ran out to my car to grab a book. She asked me to sign it for her sister, which I did, and she said, "I'm going to give it to my sister because she's a grief counselor."
YAY! YIPPEE! WOO HOO!
There I go with those mixed emotions again. Should I really have been mentally cheering about a grief counselor? It's such a serious (and might I add VERY IMPORTANT) job. I guess what I was really cheering about was the potential for more people to hear about my book. As she was walking out I grabbed some of my business cards and asked her to ask her sis to pass them on.
THEN the really, really thrilling part of the day arrived. Another client came over to me about an hour later on her way out, and said "I saw the little blurb about your book in West Suburban Living magazine, congratulations!!"
I screamed "WHAT? Shut up! Are you kidding me???"
She said, "They didn't tell you it was going to be in there?"
I had sent them a book for review (along with my press release) for their "Local Authors" page but didn't think of checking the new issue because I didn't anticipate such a quick inclusion.
I asked her if the blurb included the cover graphic, and she said she didn't remember seeing it. I was really hoping so, because I believe that Julie's awesomely designed cover is what would draw people to the blurb first.
Needless to say, I was quite anxious to leave work and go get a copy of the magazine, so as soon as I was able, I hopped into the car and rushed over to Borders. I frantically glanced around the magazine racks and finally saw it, grabbed it, and madly flipped the pages.
And there it was.
On page 42.
With the cover graphic.
A joyful moment!
This magazine gets distributed to almost 27,000 households each month!
I called Julie right away and we shrieked together on the phone.
I love today.
She Had My Back, Always
Lesson Number Two, The Buddy System Always Works, Part Three:
As most “Dog People” would agree, the idea of constant companionship is something that both canine and master can easily embrace, especially if they feel like they’ve waited a lifetime to be together in the first place. As we grew accustomed to being together for most of the day, it was not long at all before she insisted on nighttime togetherness, as well (or maybe it was me…who knows?). We started out leaving Bijoux’s crate in the kitchen, and that’s where she would sleep at night. From the kitchen, we moved her to the living room, thinking it would be warmer there (as if there was ever a chill problem in our Norfolk, Virginia townhouse!). As the days went on and her nighttime whining continued, I reasoned that she might be comforted being in our room with us. That’s how the crate made its way upstairs to our bedroom. And my first brush with Lesson Number Three—Don’t Start Something You Don’t Want To Finish—was about to take place.
Bijoux was my first “baby”, and as Jim and I spent hours with her whenever we could, she got used to the attention. Eventually she took to following me everywhere, even if I was just getting up to turn on the television. No sooner would my bottom rise up from the couch, she would be up on all fours, ready to accompany me anywhere. Jim just shook his head, telling her, “She’s just going to get a drink, Bijoux…relax!” If I was on my way to the kitchen, she trotted behind me happily, wagging her tail in hopes that I would share my snack with her. If I went upstairs to change my clothes, she hopped up on the bed, lay down, and got comfortable until I was finished and ready to leave the room. When I did, she jumped off the bed and followed me back downstairs.
Even when I just went to use the bathroom and closed the door but didn’t let the lock catch, it was only a matter of seconds before I heard a thump as her nose hit the door to push it open. She peeked her head in only for a moment as if to say, “Are you in here? Okay.” After she was sure of my whereabouts, she backed up and went to lay down wherever she could, all the while keeping the bathroom doorway in her line of sight.
The need Bijoux had to be always by my side even caused leash problems. She gladly trotted beside me when I held the leash. She gladly trotted beside Jim or the kids when they held the leash if I walked with them. The problems began if we were all walking together and I had to leave. Bijoux whined and pulled at the leash, trying to follow me. One day I took her with me to pick Dylan and Jason up at school. Needing to talk to one of the teachers, I gave the leash to Dylan and told him to take Bijoux home because I’d be more than a minute. When I turned around a couple of minutes later, he was still there, struggling to make her turn around and go home with him, all the while her eyes were locked on me and her four feet were planted firmly where she stood. She wasn’t going anywhere without me.
At night, she jumped into bed with me and made herself right at home. Typically, Jim was still brushing his teeth when Bijoux and I snuggled in. We had a little game that we played, a game that never got old. To us. To Jim? He found it funny only once or twice. When Bijoux hopped up onto the bed, she laid down on Jim’s side of the bed, even placing her head on the pillow. I covered her up to her neck and there we stayed, just waiting for Jim to come into the room. As he appeared in the room, Bijoux kept her body completely still—except for her eyes. Her eyes followed him around the room as he put his pajamas on, checked his closet for tomorrow’s clothes, and generally finished up for the evening. Jim made eye contact with her as he walked around to his side of the bed and stood next to her waiting for her to move. And she waited for him to leave! She didn’t move a muscle until he said, “Move your ass, Bijoux!” If she was being particularly stubborn, he also gave her a little whack on the bottom. She clumsily got up and lumbered around the bed like a big ox, finally plopping down next to me, her body curled up against mine. As the night went on, she tunneled under the covers and usually ended up in a big ball, right between my knees. Worse, if it was summer, she ended up in a big ball on the outside of the covers, right between my knees. Jim thought I was crazy for not kicking her out, and I spent many nights sleeping badly because of her, but for some reason I didn’t care enough to make her leave.
Although she followed me so closely (especially in the kitchen) that I tripped over her on a constant basis, her perpetual presence was one of the hardest things to get over after her death. Sometimes I still feel like she’s right behind me and I turn around, expecting to see her there.
As most “Dog People” would agree, the idea of constant companionship is something that both canine and master can easily embrace, especially if they feel like they’ve waited a lifetime to be together in the first place. As we grew accustomed to being together for most of the day, it was not long at all before she insisted on nighttime togetherness, as well (or maybe it was me…who knows?). We started out leaving Bijoux’s crate in the kitchen, and that’s where she would sleep at night. From the kitchen, we moved her to the living room, thinking it would be warmer there (as if there was ever a chill problem in our Norfolk, Virginia townhouse!). As the days went on and her nighttime whining continued, I reasoned that she might be comforted being in our room with us. That’s how the crate made its way upstairs to our bedroom. And my first brush with Lesson Number Three—Don’t Start Something You Don’t Want To Finish—was about to take place.
Bijoux was my first “baby”, and as Jim and I spent hours with her whenever we could, she got used to the attention. Eventually she took to following me everywhere, even if I was just getting up to turn on the television. No sooner would my bottom rise up from the couch, she would be up on all fours, ready to accompany me anywhere. Jim just shook his head, telling her, “She’s just going to get a drink, Bijoux…relax!” If I was on my way to the kitchen, she trotted behind me happily, wagging her tail in hopes that I would share my snack with her. If I went upstairs to change my clothes, she hopped up on the bed, lay down, and got comfortable until I was finished and ready to leave the room. When I did, she jumped off the bed and followed me back downstairs.
Even when I just went to use the bathroom and closed the door but didn’t let the lock catch, it was only a matter of seconds before I heard a thump as her nose hit the door to push it open. She peeked her head in only for a moment as if to say, “Are you in here? Okay.” After she was sure of my whereabouts, she backed up and went to lay down wherever she could, all the while keeping the bathroom doorway in her line of sight.
The need Bijoux had to be always by my side even caused leash problems. She gladly trotted beside me when I held the leash. She gladly trotted beside Jim or the kids when they held the leash if I walked with them. The problems began if we were all walking together and I had to leave. Bijoux whined and pulled at the leash, trying to follow me. One day I took her with me to pick Dylan and Jason up at school. Needing to talk to one of the teachers, I gave the leash to Dylan and told him to take Bijoux home because I’d be more than a minute. When I turned around a couple of minutes later, he was still there, struggling to make her turn around and go home with him, all the while her eyes were locked on me and her four feet were planted firmly where she stood. She wasn’t going anywhere without me.
At night, she jumped into bed with me and made herself right at home. Typically, Jim was still brushing his teeth when Bijoux and I snuggled in. We had a little game that we played, a game that never got old. To us. To Jim? He found it funny only once or twice. When Bijoux hopped up onto the bed, she laid down on Jim’s side of the bed, even placing her head on the pillow. I covered her up to her neck and there we stayed, just waiting for Jim to come into the room. As he appeared in the room, Bijoux kept her body completely still—except for her eyes. Her eyes followed him around the room as he put his pajamas on, checked his closet for tomorrow’s clothes, and generally finished up for the evening. Jim made eye contact with her as he walked around to his side of the bed and stood next to her waiting for her to move. And she waited for him to leave! She didn’t move a muscle until he said, “Move your ass, Bijoux!” If she was being particularly stubborn, he also gave her a little whack on the bottom. She clumsily got up and lumbered around the bed like a big ox, finally plopping down next to me, her body curled up against mine. As the night went on, she tunneled under the covers and usually ended up in a big ball, right between my knees. Worse, if it was summer, she ended up in a big ball on the outside of the covers, right between my knees. Jim thought I was crazy for not kicking her out, and I spent many nights sleeping badly because of her, but for some reason I didn’t care enough to make her leave.
Although she followed me so closely (especially in the kitchen) that I tripped over her on a constant basis, her perpetual presence was one of the hardest things to get over after her death. Sometimes I still feel like she’s right behind me and I turn around, expecting to see her there.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
She's a Maniac, Maniac...(sing it!)
Lesson Number Two, The Buddy System Always Works, Part 2
Bijoux was a frequent visitor at the craft store where I worked part-time. The first time I brought her in, holding her in my arms, my co-workers fell in love immediately. (She had that effect on people.) After a couple of weeks I even got permission from the manager to actually put her down on the floor to walk around for a few minutes, but only before the store was open.
It became a ritual to bring Bijoux each time I picked up my paycheck. We would arrive at the store at fifteen minutes before opening time and knock on the glass to gain entry. Once we were inside, I unfastened her leash and, as my co-workers laughed in anticipation, I acted like I was going to scoop her up into my arms. Bijoux took off then, like a maniac, running down the center aisle and stopping just short of the end, skidding around corners. Many times her oversized paws couldn’t stop her soon enough, and she’d end up flopping to the ground and rolling around as she tried quickly to switch directions. She and I ran the aisles for ten minutes at a time, and then, having had enough fun for the time being, left for home.
Click here for part 3!
Bijoux was a frequent visitor at the craft store where I worked part-time. The first time I brought her in, holding her in my arms, my co-workers fell in love immediately. (She had that effect on people.) After a couple of weeks I even got permission from the manager to actually put her down on the floor to walk around for a few minutes, but only before the store was open.
It became a ritual to bring Bijoux each time I picked up my paycheck. We would arrive at the store at fifteen minutes before opening time and knock on the glass to gain entry. Once we were inside, I unfastened her leash and, as my co-workers laughed in anticipation, I acted like I was going to scoop her up into my arms. Bijoux took off then, like a maniac, running down the center aisle and stopping just short of the end, skidding around corners. Many times her oversized paws couldn’t stop her soon enough, and she’d end up flopping to the ground and rolling around as she tried quickly to switch directions. She and I ran the aisles for ten minutes at a time, and then, having had enough fun for the time being, left for home.
Click here for part 3!
Just a Few Kibbles and Bits This Morning
Some updates on book progress today, but not much is happenning:
1. To answer my most-asked question of late: No, I have not heard from Ellen or Ross. I may never hear from Ellen or Ross, or it may just take forever. For a girl who likes closure and may never get it in many book situations, this is a "great" experience for me. Keep on keeping your fingers crossed!
2. I have completed the process of sending out all of my review copies, and now I'm waiting for some of those to come in. Another situation where I could possibly wait forever...but I have faith that a few will come through with a review. Don't worry, I'll post them here!
3. I finally finished making those pet boutique phone calls. I did have the few who want another call in a couple of weeks, but that's great: at least they'll expect to hear from me!
4. I received my second book shipment this week! That was exciting, because I am almost finished selling the large first shipment. I plan to take the new books to an event we're having at the salon in mid-November for my mini-book signing!
5. You have today and tomorrow to go to Manic Mommy's blog and post a comment about your dog's name if you want to be in the running to win a free copy of Remembering Ruby! Her blog is hopping, so get over there and read and enter!
6. Holla! to Kevin at the Wag N' Wash. I stopped in to hang some flyers and business cards in his store and he was very, very nice. He has a great store, too!
7. I feel like I'm trying to get the word out about the book through one or two people at a time (well, I am, right?). I thought yesterday about trying to find some event where I could set up a table with my books, like a craft show but not a craft show. Any general ideas of what I should look for? And do you think it would be worth it? Instead of marketing to one or two at a time, I could reach--what--75 to 100 at a time that day? Advice, please??
8. My next steps include mailing out more information to the second round of rescues, and I have yet to market to veterinary offices, which I really need to do soon. I hope to start that this weekend!
1. To answer my most-asked question of late: No, I have not heard from Ellen or Ross. I may never hear from Ellen or Ross, or it may just take forever. For a girl who likes closure and may never get it in many book situations, this is a "great" experience for me. Keep on keeping your fingers crossed!
2. I have completed the process of sending out all of my review copies, and now I'm waiting for some of those to come in. Another situation where I could possibly wait forever...but I have faith that a few will come through with a review. Don't worry, I'll post them here!
3. I finally finished making those pet boutique phone calls. I did have the few who want another call in a couple of weeks, but that's great: at least they'll expect to hear from me!
4. I received my second book shipment this week! That was exciting, because I am almost finished selling the large first shipment. I plan to take the new books to an event we're having at the salon in mid-November for my mini-book signing!
5. You have today and tomorrow to go to Manic Mommy's blog and post a comment about your dog's name if you want to be in the running to win a free copy of Remembering Ruby! Her blog is hopping, so get over there and read and enter!
6. Holla! to Kevin at the Wag N' Wash. I stopped in to hang some flyers and business cards in his store and he was very, very nice. He has a great store, too!
7. I feel like I'm trying to get the word out about the book through one or two people at a time (well, I am, right?). I thought yesterday about trying to find some event where I could set up a table with my books, like a craft show but not a craft show. Any general ideas of what I should look for? And do you think it would be worth it? Instead of marketing to one or two at a time, I could reach--what--75 to 100 at a time that day? Advice, please??
8. My next steps include mailing out more information to the second round of rescues, and I have yet to market to veterinary offices, which I really need to do soon. I hope to start that this weekend!
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